February 6, 2019 - The HIMA Group announced developments and enhancements to the HIMA Smart Safety Platform (SSP). This functional safety platform provides plant operators with cybersecurity to ensure that safety automation and critical assets are protected.
The platform supports legacy products and will continue to do so in the future. At the same time, in the course of digitization, the topics of safety and security continue to converge whereby functional safety and cybersecurity can no longer be separated.
An important component of the platform concept is the market launch of two safety systems. The HIQuad X is a new generation of the HIQuad safety system, which has been protecting thousands of applications around the world for more than 30 years. It enables plant operators to bring their systems up-to-date in terms of functional safety and cybersecurity.
The system architecture allows connection to any Basic Process Control System (BPCS). In addition, as the unchanged I/O level, including the complete field wiring, remains in place, plant operators using HIQuad systems already, can modernize existing systems to HIQuad X. Furthermore, HIMA provides an individual modernization service that is supported by an automated logic conversion of the application program to the HIMA engineering tool SILworX.
Secondly, extending the concept of the Smart Safety Platform directly into the field, the HIJunctionBox enables plant operators to implement decentralized control and safety solutions. A range of I/O modules enables system expansions during plant operation. HIJunctionBox integrates into the Smart Safety Platform and helps expand existing HIMA safety automation systems.
Depending on the complexity of the application, the pre-configured HIJunctionBox is based on HIMatrix or HIMax safety controllers. Modular I/O integration allows a variety of functions to be implemented, from HART protocol and monitoring via high-current outputs to line monitoring and heat dissipation protection. To speed up commissioning, FAT and SAT can be carried out in parallel. The ‘control in the field’ function allows the plant operator to carry out high-performance control tasks remotely. The box is certified for use in hazardous ATEX Zone 2 environments and in extended temperature ranges.
If the HIJunctionBox loses connection to the central control system, it can also function autonomously.
