An approach for interoperation between heterogeneous fieldbus systems

An integrated approach for the interoperation between two heterogeneous fieldbus systems, i.e. Profibus-DP and HART is proposed and implemented through a fieldbus protocol conversion gateway, which possesses not only high real-time performance but also an open architecture. The proposed approach introduces a communication model between heterogeneous fieldbus devices, based on analyzing of the layered structure of Profibus-DP and HART. Feasibility of designing fieldbus protocol converter is discussed and the three main protocol conversion methods are introduced. A scheme of designing the protocol conversion gateway is presented, covering both aspects of hardware design and software design. The test results have shown its high real-time performance and reliability