Introduction

PI Connector for OPC UA copies contextual and time-series data from Open Platform Communications (OPC) Unified Architecture (UA) servers to Data Archive and PI Asset Framework servers.

Static OPC UA variables are mapped to PI Asset Framework elements and attributes while dynamic variables are converted to PI points. Before starting, users have an option to browse the whole OPC UA address space and select manually, or by using a formula, what they want to have replicated to PI.

PI AF templates, elements, their attributes, and PI points are created automatically based on the information obtained from browsing the OPC UA address space. Data from OPC UA variables is read through subscriptions (unsolicited reads). This version of the connector supports the Data Access (DA) and the Historical Access (HA) parts of the OPC UA specification.

The following figure illustrates the initial setup of the connector architecture, and the components involved. Users are advised to read the PI Connector Administration user guide to understand the role of PI Data Collection Manager and PI Connector Relay in the architecture.

The second step is the actual installation and configuration of PI Data Collection Manager, PI Connector Relay, and PI Connector for OPC UA. After these components are installed and configured, PI Connector for OPC UA is registered to PI Data Collection Manager.

From PI Data Collection Manager, users register PI connectors, select data sources, add OSIsoft Message Format (OMF) applications, and route data through PI Connector Relays to specific destinations within the PI AF database. Users can view and monitor data flow in real-time on the PI Data Collection Manager dashboard. The dashboard also provides functionality to modify data sources, start and stop connectors, revoke OMF application data ingress, and re-route data flow to alternative destinations.

See Connector configuration for further details.

PI Connector for OPC UA data flow