Enhanced Version of Low Power Autonomous Controller

Yokogawa Electric Corporation (Netherlands) announces the release of an enhanced version of the FCN-RTU (field control node remote terminal unit) low-power autonomous controller for the STARDOM(TM) network-based control system. This new version of the FCN-RTU has been developed to meet the requirements of customers in the high-growth upstream oil & gas industries.

Until recently, gas wells were drilled at multiple sites spread out over a wide area, and each individual well head had its own controller for monitoring and control. With the advent of unconventional horizontal gas drilling techniques, multiple wells can now be drilled from a single well pad, enabling a reduction in the number of controllers needed to monitor and control the well heads. For such applications, the controllers need to be able to handle more input/output (I/O) signals. Also, as wells are often drilled in remote locations where temperatures can be extreme, these controllers must be ruggedly built to withstand those conditions. The new version of the STARDOM (TM) FCN-RTU has been developed to address these challenges. 

1. Increased number of I/O modules - The enhanced FCN-RTU can now accommodate eight I/O modules, up from the previous three, and can thus handle up to 256 input/output signals. This is well within the requirements of the latest unconventional natural gas well monitoring and control applications.

2. Improved environmental resistance - An additional ten STARDOM FCN-RTU I/O modules are now rated for use in temperatures ranging from -20°C to +70°C. These enhanced components are thus well suited for use in the very cold or hot weather conditions that can be encountered at natural gas drilling sites.

3. Support for 64-bit Windows 7- ASTMAC VDS, the STARDOM supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) package, as well as all related software, now supports the 64-bit version of Windows 7. All engineering, monitoring, and control functions can be performed on computers running 64-bit Windows 7.

STARDOM is an open network control system consisting of components with control, operation, and monitoring functionality, and  combines the reliability of a DCS and the versatility and economy of a PLC. The autonomous controllers at the core of STARDOM have the same control and monitoring functions found in a PLC as well as the information distribution functions of a PC. They are widely used as intelligent remote terminal units (RTU) in distributed applications such as natural gas and oil wells. When used in combination, the FCN/FCJ autonomous controllers and FAST/TOOLS SCADA software give increased flexibility in distributed applications.

Major target markets; Widely distributed facilities such as those used in oil and gas well and water and wastewater applications, Small- to medium-size process plants in oil, chemicals, iron and steel, nonferrous metals, pulp and paper, food, pharmaceuticals, and other industries, Small- to medium-size power generation facilities such as wind turbines, steam turbines, and hydropower generation facilities.

Applications include; Monitoring, operation, control, data collection, and data storage in small-to medium-size manufacturing and processing facilities.