The IEC 60870-5-101 protocol is a serial based communications protocol. The protocol is designed to be used on systems where there are permanent direct connections between the Controlling Station (ClearSCADA) and the Controlled Station(s) (outstations or slaves).
Communications can be either:
- Balanced—whereby there is a one-to-one full-duplex connection between a channel and a single outstation
- Unbalanced—whereby there is a half-duplex connection between a channel and one or more outstations (for instance, in a multidrop setup).
For more information on either of the above transmission procedures, see Configure IEC 60870-5-101 Protocol Properties.
In order for ClearSCADA to communicate using the IEC 60870-5-101 protocol, select the Connection tab of the IEC 60870-5 Direct Channel Form.
Configure the following to setup a communication link:
- Connection Type—A channel using the IEC 60870-5-101 protocol typically uses a Serial connection type.
- Data Bits—Should be set to 8 bits.
- Parity—Should be Even, to comply with the IEC 60870-5 standard.
If no parity is used (for instance, if the communications media does not support parity), be aware that this increases the likelihood of an error going undetected.
- Flow Control—Generally specify None to comply fully with the IEC 60870-5 standard. However, be aware that some form of Flow Control may be required by transmission media that is not fully compatible with the IEC 60870-5 standard.
For more details on how to configure serial connections, (see Configure a Channel’s Serial Connection Properties).
(Specify a different Connection Type if the serial interface is not directly connected to ClearSCADA—for more information, see Configure a Channel’s Connection Type in the ClearSCADA Guide to Drivers.)