Fieldbus devices and DeltaV overview

Fieldbus devices are field instruments such as transmitters and valves with processors that monitor device performance and state. Fieldbus devices use a digital, rather than analog, connection to a control system such as the DeltaV system. In addition to notifying the control system of standard operating parameters, fieldbus devices are capable of reporting significant events such as instrument out of calibration.

The DeltaV system connects to the fieldbus device through an H1 fieldbus card. In the DeltaV Explorer, the fieldbus cards are under the I/O subsystem for the controller associated with the fieldbus device. Each fieldbus card has two ports and each port supports as many as 16 fieldbus devices.

The DeltaV system supports autosensing of fieldbus devices. When the fieldbus cards and devices are connected, the DeltaV system automatically detects the fieldbus devices, recognizes the type of device, and makes this information available throughout the system.

As with any card type, you can add fieldbus cards and fieldbus devices as placeholders to the database or you can connect fieldbus cards and devices without creating placeholders. The autosense feature adds the devices to the DeltaV system as they are connected.