Development of PC-Based SCADA Training System Syed Umer Abdi, M.Eng. University of Ottawa Ottawa, ON, Canada Email: umerabdi@hotmail.com Kamran Iqbal, Ph.D. University of Arkansas at Little Rock Little Rock, AR, USA E-mail: kxiqbal@ualr.edu Jameel Ahmed, Ph.D. Riphah International University Islamabad, Pakistan E-mail: jameel2510@yahoo.com Abstract— This paper describes successful and cost effective design & implementation of PC-based SCADA training system for the natural gas transmission and distribution industry. The design provides robust and automated environment for centralized control of a geographically scattered process. Microcontroller based data acquisition (DAQ) control units for distributed data processing are designed and serially connected with COM port of the remote terminal units (RTUs) via RS485/232 convertor. The real-time information gathered in RTU from sensors is fed to the master terminal unit (MTU) through a dedicated communication link. Visual Basic (VB) is used to develop Human-Machine Interface (HMI) environment for technicians and operators. The in-house HMI development aimed at reliable, cost effective, user friendly and easy to troubleshoot and update software. PC-based SCADA training system and HMI were developed to meet the training needs of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd. (SNGPL). The design work supports future updates and provides opportunities of research in rapidly evolving field of industrial automation and control. Keywords— HMI, PC, SCADA, Training I. INTRODUCTION SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system can formally be defined as a system that allows the collection of data from remote sites coupled with supervisory control over various decisions that need to be made using the collected information [1]. SCADA provides the combination of data acquisition and telemetry to incorporate information gathering, transferring it back to central location, functioning essential control and analysis, and exhibition of information on screens and displays for operators and decision makers. Control actions required to tune the process are then fed back to process [2]. SCADA is utilized for remote measurement and control on modern industrial facilities in addition to critical infrastructures [3]. In practice, SCADA is an industrial control system which consists of an HMI, computer system monitoring, data acquisition and processing, and advanced visualization [4,5] (Fig. 1). The aim of the SCADA system is collection of real-time data to monitor and control equipment and processes in a critical infrastructure. Examples include oil and gas production, telecommunication, distribution and transmission, pollution and soil fertility and moisture monitoring, railways, industrial plant control, distribution and management of fresh, irrigation and waste water, system control of communication network (SYSCON), early warning siren system, process monitoring, transportation management, mass transit system, energy management system, electrical power distribution from nuclear, renewable resources, gas or coal fired, and so on. Fig. 1. The general SCADA system [5]. SCADA system includes analytical instruments which senses process variables across field data interface devices, or RTUs. The RTUs connect to sensors, convert sensor signals to digital data, and transmit digital data to the supervisory system. Host computers, called SCADA servers or MTUs, enable human control and monitoring of the processes by keeping databases and displaying statistical process control charts and reports. The HMI is used to display process data to a human operator who has the ultimate responsibility to monitor and control the process [6]. SCADA systems are employed to collect real-time data from pipeline sensors, such as valves and pumps, and present it to operators, who observe data from pipeline control equipment [7]. A. Evolution of SCADA Systems SCADA system has progressed with the increasing complexity of latest computational technology. First generation SCADA systems lacked connectivity to other systems and employed wide area networks (WAN) for connecting with RTUs. The communication protocols used in those networks were designed by RTU vendors and were proprietary in nature. Redundancy in the first generation systems was furnished by using two mainframe systems, i.e., dual primary and backup systems connected at bus level. Second generation SCADA systems benefited from advancement in system miniaturization and development of LAN technology, whereby multiple stations with explicit functions could be connected to LAN and shared information in real-time. A few distributed stations served as communication processors for field devices/RTUs. Other units ＹＷＸＭＱＭＴＶＷＳＭＸＰＷＴＭＴＯＱＶＯＤＳＱＮＰＰ＠ﾩＲＰＱＶ＠ｉｅｅｅ ＱＱＹＲ