Industrial Automation Glossary
Your reference guide to key terms in SCADA, IoT, industrial communication protocols, and automation technologies.
Explore 16 essential terms covering industrial automation, SCADA systems, communication protocols, and modern industrial architecture.
Architecture(2)
Edge Computing
Edge computing is the practice of processing data near its source rather than in a centralized data center, reducing latency and bandwidth usage in industrial environments.
Unified Namespace (UNS)
A Unified Namespace (UNS) is a centralized, event-driven data architecture that serves as a single source of truth for all operational and business data in an industrial organization. It replaces point-to-point integrations with a hub-and-spoke model built on MQTT.
Communication Protocols(4)
LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network)
LoRaWAN is a low-power, wide-area networking protocol designed for wirelessly connecting battery-operated IoT devices to the internet over long distances in industrial and smart city applications.
Modbus
Modbus is a serial communication protocol originally published by Modicon in 1979 for use with PLCs. It remains one of the most widely deployed protocols in industrial automation due to its simplicity and open specification.
MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport)
MQTT is a lightweight publish-subscribe messaging protocol designed for constrained devices and low-bandwidth networks. It has become the dominant protocol for IoT and IIoT data transport in industrial automation.
OPC UA (Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture)
OPC UA is a platform-independent, service-oriented architecture for secure and reliable data exchange in industrial automation. It is the modern successor to OPC Classic and the standard communication protocol for Industry 4.0.
Concepts(3)
Digital Twin
A digital twin is a virtual replica of a physical asset, process, or system that uses real-time data from sensors and IoT devices to mirror its real-world counterpart for simulation, analysis, and optimization.
IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things)
IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) refers to the network of interconnected sensors, instruments, and devices deployed in industrial environments to collect, exchange, and analyze data for improved operational efficiency and decision-making.
IT/OT Convergence
IT/OT convergence is the integration of Information Technology (IT) systems with Operational Technology (OT) systems to create a unified infrastructure that improves data flow, visibility, and decision-making across industrial operations.
Hardware(2)
IoT Gateway
An IoT gateway is a hardware or software device that bridges IoT sensors and cloud or on-premises systems by handling protocol translation, data aggregation, and edge processing.
PLC (Programmable Logic Controller)
A PLC is a ruggedized digital computer designed for industrial automation that continuously executes control logic to manage machinery, production lines, and industrial processes in real time.
Industrial Systems(5)
DCS (Distributed Control System)
A DCS is an automated control system distributed across a plant, where autonomous controllers manage individual process areas while a centralized supervisory layer coordinates the entire operation.
Historian (Process Data Historian)
A historian is a specialized software system designed to efficiently record, store, and retrieve time-series process data from industrial control systems for analysis, reporting, and regulatory compliance.
HMI (Human-Machine Interface)
An HMI is a graphical interface that allows operators to interact with industrial equipment and processes, displaying real-time data, alarms, and controls in a visual format.
SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition)
SCADA is an industrial control system architecture that collects real-time data from remote sensors and equipment, enabling centralized monitoring, control, and decision-making across distributed infrastructure.
Tag Provider
A tag provider is a data source in SCADA platforms like Ignition that supplies tags -- named data points representing real-time values from sensors, PLCs, calculations, or databases -- to the supervisory system.
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