OPC UA (Unified Architecture)

What is OPC UA?

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Interoperability and Standardization are what OPC is all about. While conventional OPC solved the device interoperability problem at the Control level, the demand for that same level of standardization was required for the Enterprise layer. OPC Classic is based on the Microsoft DCOM which can introduce vulnerabilities at these layers. Urgency to find simplicity, maximum interoperability, and security drove the OPC foundation into creating a unified method of data communication for parts of the existing OPC specifications for DA, HDA, A&E, and Security.

OPC Unified Architecture extends the highly successful OPC communication protocol, enabling data acquisition and information modeling and communication between the plant floor and the enterprise reliably and securely.

The key features and benefits for OPC UA are:

Platform neutrality to run on any operating system
Future-ready and Legacy-friendly
Easy configuration and maintenance
Service-based technology
Increased visibility
Broader scope of connectivity
Higher Performance

Find out what OPC UA products are available below:

MatrikonOPC UA Suite
MatrikonOPC, early adopters of UA and UA specification editors as part of the OPC Foundation Board of Directors, delivers what the world is really thriving for. MatrikonOPC UA is compliant with the latest OPC Foundation’s UA Specification. Using MatrikonOPC UA technology securely broadens your connectivity horizons, open new market shares, and enables you to achieve ultimate scalability in the automation world today.

MatrikonOPC UA Embedded Suite
MatrikonOPC is the only vendor to offer an OPC UA Embedded Server SDK scalable across every class of device. Whether your product is engineered for minimum unit cost or maximum performance we have the right solution for you.

OPC UA is designed to deliver a true Universal Connectivity based on a secure and simple platform to address Enterprise level challenges.

OPC UA Principles:

Unified Access
OPC UA integrates existing OPC specifications DA, A&E, HDA, Commands, Complex data, and Object Types in one specification. This reduces system integration costs by providing a common architecture for accessing information.

Access via Firewalls and across the Internet
OPC UA uses message based security which means messages can be relayed through HTTP, UA TCP port or any other single port available.

Reliability
OPC UA implements a configurable timeouts, error detection, and communication failure recovery. OPC UA allows redundancy between applications from different vendors to be deployed.

Security
OPC UA is Secure-by-default, encryption enabled, and uses advanced certificate handling.

Platform Independence
OPC UA is designed to be independent of the platform. Using SOAP/XML over HTTP, OPC UA can be deployed on Linux, Windows XP Embedded, VxWorks, Mac, Windows 7, and Classical Windows platforms.

	Unified Access OPC UA integrates existing OPC specifications DA, A&E, HDA, Commands, Complex data, and Object Types in one specification. This reduces system integration costs by providing a common architecture for accessing information.
	Access via Firewalls and across the Internet OPC UA uses message based security which means messages can be relayed through HTTP, UA TCP port or any other single port available.
	Reliability OPC UA implements a configurable timeouts, error detection, and communication failure recovery. OPC UA allows redundancy between applications from different vendors to be deployed.
	Security OPC UA is Secure-by-default, encryption enabled, and uses advanced certificate handling.
	Platform Independence OPC UA is designed to be independent of the platform. Using SOAP/XML over HTTP, OPC UA can be deployed on Linux, Windows XP Embedded, VxWorks, Mac, Windows 7, and Classical Windows platforms.