- November 14, 2012
November 14, 2012 – Software Toolbox announced TOP Server Version 5.10 with Electronic Flow Measurement (EFM) functionality designed for the oil and gas industry, ControlLogix firmware Version 21 support, as well as enhancements and fixes for existing communications drivers.
Top Server is Software Toolbox’s OPC and native HMI device connectivity software application offering more than 130 different device drivers and plug-ins. TOP Server 5.10 delivers drivers and enhancements to the main server, and most drivers.
TOP Server Version 5.10 adds support to the ControlLogix Ethernet driver for the latest Allen-Bradley release of ControlLogix firmware, Version 21. The latest version of firmware for ControlLogix PACs introduces a new communication service for reading native tags. TOP Server fully supports this new methodology as well as the previous physical protocol modes for users maintaining pre-V21 firmware on their ControlLogix controllers.
TOP Server Version 5.10 also adds the second phase of the new EFM plug-in that enables EFM data export for midstream applications in the oil and gas industry. EFM data and analysis is important for measuring production and other metrics, as well as for reporting and compliance purposes. This phase of the EFM plug-in provides users with export capabilities for Quorum PGAS V8.0 and generic CSV formats.
In addition to the EFM plug-in enhancements, TOP Server 5.10 introduces a driver and updated existing drivers for gathering EFM data from midstream field devices for export by the EFM plug-in. Drivers enhanced for compatibility with the EFM plug-in in Version 5.10 include the new ABB Totalflow driver, for connectivity to ABB TotalFlow serial devices, and an updated Fisher ROC Suite. The Oil and Gas Industry Suite for TOP Server, a cost-effective option for oil and gas industry real-time data collection, includes the ABB Totalflow driver, complementing an already extensive array of drivers.
Additional improvements in TOP Server Version 5.10 include:
- Connection Sharing with Multiple Protocols – Users can now share a single serial or modem connection with multiple protocols for select drivers. This is extremely useful in telemetry scenarios where multiple device protocols are used at a remote site with only a single physical connection to the site.
- Expanded GE Ethernet Address Support – The driver now includes expanded %W-type addressing support and support for accessing symbol addresses for variables mapped to a reference address for PACSystems models.
- Other Driver Updates – Expanded functionality and improvements made to the ControlLogix Ethernet, Beckhoff TwinCAT Ethernet, Fisher ROC Suite, Modbus Suite drivers, Siemens TCP/IP Ethernet, UCON, and Yokogawa Suite drivers, as well as other enhancements.
“Constant innovation and enhancement has always been one of the major focuses with TOP Server, enabling us to meet all of the needs of the user,” said Kevin Rutherford, brand manager at Software Toolbox. “Our expansion of new drivers and existing driver functionality means users can integrate TOP Server industry applications and processes over the widest variety of vertical industries, such as oil & gas, manufacturing and many more.”