Integrating ACS with other (Control) Systems:

ACS and EPICS

Presented at 1st ACS Workshop, March 9th, 2004By Mark Pleško

Integrating ACS and EPICS 2

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Need Open Standards like WinCC

Enhanced Scaleability

Enhanced Web Functionality

Integrated Historian Functionality

Optimized for IT & Business Integration

New open standards

New Functions in the Basic System

New Options for FDA 21 CFR Part 11

“Right from the start, SIMATIC WinCC has stood for the highest levels of openness and integration, since it has consistently backed Microsoft technologies. Version 6, in addition to using Microsoft SQL Server 2000 also adds Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), Visual Basic Scripting (VBScript), database access via OLE DB and new OPC standards. OPC HDA, OPC A&E and OLE-DB are features of WinCC/Connectivity Pack.”

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The Layers of Control System Packages

EPICS

DOOCS

COACK

TINE

chan. acc.

ACS

driver data

SERVERcommu-nication

API visual support

CLIENT

ACOP

AbeansCosyBeans

TANGO

MEDM

DDD

Applications (alarm manager, GUI, logger, trending, scripting etc.): while all have them, their quality, flexibility, configurable etc. makes

the largest difference

DevIO

CDEV JDM

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Abeans Application

Abeans and ACS... and EPICS

Abeans: libraries, device beans, plugs

I/O boards

devIO calls local EPICS db_xxx commands

CORBA

CosyBeansGUI widgets

interface

devIO

ACS CORBA server

configdatabase

Management,ObjectExplorer,Logging,Alarms,…

ACS tools

plain Java code

channel access

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Why Translators are Good

• Server-side systematics are guaranteed to be there. – local alarm server, local history server, queries, etc.

• The data are as close to the source as possible • can use the best applications for each problem• Gateways bring a host of intermediate problems

– e.g. connectivity problems are difficult to locate – another link in the chain

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Very Successful Translators of TINE at

• run EPICS2TINE directly on the IOC– don't speak channel access at all and access EPICS

database directly– we have also elegantly solved the 16 Kbyte/message

barrier (i.e. 4000 floats) of the old EPICS release

• DOOCS servers and clients offer the traditional SUN RPC interface as well as a TINE interface– EPICS IOCs are immediately available to DOOCS DDD

clients. Using TINE2EPICS, the DOOCS IOCs are likewise available to EPICS MEDM clients.

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Abeans: Much More than a Wrapper

• Application framework

Applications

IOC

Hardware

Applications

Abeans

IOC

Hardware

Hide comm layer

Provide application services

Provide CS models (device, channel, etc.)

RAD, easier maintenance

:

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Limitations of Plugs and the Abeans Solutions

• Client-side plugs usually provide only– common functionality over several CS

• if the server-side features are not available, you come up empty– generic API

• requires knowledge of CS and is therefore practically useless

• Abeans have a solution though– allow different CS data models (Channels, Devices, etc.)– interfaces are facades for services (plug-ins) with always at

least one default implementation– we work hard to provide each single feature in a generic way –

if TINE has ArchiveReader, also ACS gets it!

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Abeans

• Models– Logical containment of CS Objects– Channel, BACI

1/2

• Plugs– Connection to remote modeling layer– TINE, EPICS, ACS CORBA

Device

Property 1

Property 2

Property 3

Channel 1

Channel 2

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Abeans

Modeling layer

EPICS TINE

Plugs

Application

Request Response

2/2

CORBA

URIabeans-EPICS:///PBEND_M_01_current?getabeans-TINE://ns.desy.de/DESY/BENDS/PBEND_M_01/current?get

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All possible request targets, their names, all possible valid requests that can be issued and all possible responses, including errors, exceptions and connection timeouts

What a request can do and what responses are to be expected, the list of parameters, name-value pairs, timeout data, error stack, etc.

Requests can be more than just simple get/set commands – they can be asynchronous, define callbacks, repeated monitors, etc.

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Example: Device Table

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Integrating ACS and EPICS 14

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Object Explorer in use at SNS (accelerator with EPICS)

• Abeans read XAL XML files with hierarchically organized EPICS PVs– Or any source of hierarchy, e.g. EPICS nameserver

• The PVs are put into the Abeans Directory (GUI tree)

• Properties are selected from the tree and connection is established via Abeans JCA plug (a vast improvement of JCA 1.0)

• PVs are displayed with Abeans displayers– Data quality control

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It’s a Reality: Joint Applications for +

• Same look and feel: – SNS: Object Explorer

– Jlab:Archive Reader (next)

ACS/EPICS Office– Diamond: ControlDesk

EPICS

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Summary: Mixing ACS with EPICS

1. ‘EPICS-ACS’ gatewaya separate process utilizing the client/server APIs of both systems

2. Client-side ‘EPICS-plugs’client program developers think they are talking to ACS, but they are really speaking native ‘EPICS’

3. Server-side ‘ACS-translators’EPICS server IOCs think they are being addressed by EPICS clients but are really speaking native ACS.