ISA Committee to Focus on EDDL

The Instrumentation, Systems and Automation Society (ISA) has announced the formation of a new committee that will focus on Electronic Device Description Language (EDDL).

The committee, known as ISA SP104, will be formed to create a standard that adopts the generic language specified by the International Electrotechnical Commission’s IEC 61804 to describe the properties of automation system components. The specified language is capable of describing device parameters and their dependencies, device functions, graphical representations, and interactions with control devices.

The language, EDDL, is used to create an Electronic Device Descriptions (EDD) file. These files may be used with appropriate tools to support parameter handling, operation, and monitoring of automation system components.

The applications of EDDL may include devices such as generic digital and analog input/output modules, motion controllers, human machine interfaces, transmitters, on-off and regulating valves, closed-loop controllers, encoders, hydraulic valves, and programmable controllers.

The Electronic Device Description Language is a result of cooperation among the consortia of Fieldbus Foundation, Hart Communication Foundation, Profibus Nutzerorganisation and the OPC Foundation. Enhancements recently added and officially approved as part of the IEC 61804 maintenance cycle extend the capabilities of EDDL to provide an industry standard solution for advanced visualization of intelligent device information. Through this cooperative effort, the proven integrity of existing EDD technology is maintained across all three communication technologies —Fieldbus Foundation, Hart and Profibus,. There are more than 15 million installed devices that use the existing EDDL.

EDDL enhancements include an improved user interface with support for menus, windows, tabs and groups and added graphic support for graphs, trends, charts and dial indicators.