A simple example shall be used to explain how the above introduced OPC UA concepts are used to represent IEC 61131-3 elements in an OPC UA Server.
According to IEC 61131-3IEC 61131-3, Ctrl Function Blocks consist of a name, Ctrl Variables with associated data types (input, output, internal), and a body containing the algorithm to be executed. These data are represented by OPC UA ObjectTypes derived from the ObjectType CtrlFunctionBlockType (see Figure 11).
To start, IEC 61131-3IEC 61131-3 requires a Ctrl Function Block type declaration. Here an integer up-counter is used which follows the IEC 61131-3 standard counter Ctrl Function Block. CTU_INT contains three input Ctrl Variables (CU – counter up, R – reset, PV – primary value), one local Ctrl Variable (PVmax) and two output Ctrl Variables (Q, CV – counter value) with their respective data types. Furthermore, CTU_INT has a body containing the algorithm to do the actual counting. The formal declaration of CTU_INT using the Structured Text programming language is shown in Figure 9.
Figure 9 – Ctrl Function Block CTU_INT declaration
The OPC UA representation of CTU_INT is shown in Figure 11. The ObjectType CTU_INT is a subtype of the ObjectType CtrlFunctionBlockType. Its components are defined by instance declaration and referenced by HasInputVar, HasLocalVar, and HasOutputVar References.
After declaration of CTU_INT it is instantiated twice (MyCounter, MyCounter2) and used within a Ctrl Program MyTestProgram shown in Figure 10. Signal and Signal 2 are counted, the Ctrl Function Block output Ctrl Variables are transferred to some temporary Ctrl Variables but are not further processed in this example.
Figure 10 – Ctrl Function Block MyCounter / MyCounter2 instantiation and usage
The OPC UA representation of the Objects MyCounter and MyCounter2 is shown in Figure 11. The Objects are instances of the ObjectType CTU_INT which is indicated by the HasTypeDefinition References. The example specific ObjectType CTU_INT is derived from the ObjectType CtrlFunctionBlockType which is indicated by the HasSubType Reference. Current values at a certain point in time are provided by the instances, e. g. the current counter value of MyCounter equals 11. The Ctrl Program MyTestProgram is not represented in the figure.
