Emerson Exchange 365

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Can I read DV database outside DV using VBA or .Net application?

Hi,

I need to connect to DV database to access say Control Module/Equipment Module parameters to read and write data from external application. I do not want to use OPC as later on it can become licensing issue if tags increase. I can think of below options:

1. I can use iFix PDB to access iFix points via external application e.g. VBA. Here I need to make point to point mapping between iFix PDB points and DV tags (DST or CM/EM Parameters)

2. I use ADO but I do not know what ActiveX will support to fetch real time data read/write.

3. I use iFix scripting (event or timer events) in VBA to read/write into SQL and let external application to connect to this SQL. This one I am not sure if performance of the overall solution will detoriate.

4. (this one is handy and proven) I write OPC client and read/write to OPC.DeltaV.1.

 

Please suggest if anyone has done it before. My emerson e-mail address is Samir.Thaker@emerson.com

 

• DeltaV tags read and write from external application

Samir Thaker

• 4 Sep 2015 7:00 AM
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1 Reply

• Andre Dicaire

  

  • 4 Sep 2015 4:20 PM

  Samir,
  
  I would strongly recommend against using DeltaV Operate as a third party integration application. The Excel Addin provides a 500 OPC Tag database on the station where it is assigned. If you are planning to integrate more than this, you should use a DeltaV Application station. The cost of OPC DA server tags is minimal and far less than the engineering, testing and support that a custom VBA based solution in an Operator Station. It also allows you to use a host of OPC Client solutions to access the data, and to separate the application from the DeltaV Operate software.
  
  By the time you figure out a solution, design it, implement and test it, your investment will be significant. More importantly, your customer will have a unique solution that might be impacted by how DeltaV evolves, and migration of this solution to future releases will be an added complexity.
  
  OPC was developed specifically to reduce such integration costs and avoid custom coded applications. Why create all this risk?

  Andre Dicaire

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