IEC 61158

IEC 61158
Standard	IEC 61158
Title	Industrial communication networks — Fieldbus specifications
Organization	International Electrotechnical Commission
First published	1990s
Status	Published

IEC 61158

Overview

IEC 61158 is an international standard for industrial communication networks and Fieldbus specifications maintained by the International Electrotechnical Commission. It defines multiple protocol types, data link services, and application layer behavior for interoperable Programmable logic controllers, Distributed control systems, and Industrial automation devices used in manufacturing, process control, and Power station operations. The standard is referenced by organizations such as International Organization for Standardization, International Electrotechnical Commission technical committees, and national bodies including ANSI, DIN, and BSI.

History and Development

Development of the standard involved collaboration among vendor consortia and national committees including the Fieldbus Foundation, PROFIBUS Nutzerorganisation, ODVA, and the WorldFIP. Early efforts trace to work by International Electrotechnical Commission Technical Committee 65 and working groups influenced by projects like European Union research initiatives and industrial programs at institutions such as Siemens, ABB, Schneider Electric, and Rockwell Automation. Political and technical debates mirrored disputes seen in standards histories like those around Ethernet, OSI model, and POSIX, leading to a multipart standard addressing competing proposals.

Structure and Parts

IEC 61158 is organized into parts that specify protocol types, conformance testing, and application profiles. The multipart structure resembles standards such as ISO/OSI publications and divides responsibilities across physical, data link, network, transport, session, presentation, and application service definitions similar to the OSI model used by ITU-T and IEEE. Parts include logical descriptions, service definitions, protocol implementation conformance statements, and a conformance test suite analogous to work by ETSI and IETF on interoperability.

Protocol Types and Implementation Classes

The standard enumerates distinct protocol types, each corresponding to technologies championed by industry groups like PROFIBUS, FOUNDATION Fieldbus, Modbus-based systems, and CANopen-derived approaches. Implementation classes separate master/slave, producer/consumer, and peer-to-peer paradigms familiar from Master/slave architecture cases and standards such as Modbus, DNP3, and BACnet. Designers can choose protocol types aligned with vendors including Emerson Electric, Honeywell, Yokogawa, and Mitsubishi Electric to meet use cases in Refinerys, Water treatment plants, and Automotive industry manufacturing lines.

Compliance, Testing, and Certification

Conformance testing and certification are provided through IEC test specifications and national test laboratories similar to programs run by UL, TUV, and CSA Group. Certification efforts intersect with industry consortia certification programs run by entities like the Fieldbus Foundation and PROFIBUS International, and testing methodologies reflect techniques used in IEEE 802 interoperability testing and IETF protocol validation. Regulatory frameworks in regions such as the European Union and United States influence mandatory compliance for safety-related systems overseen by bodies like IECEx and ATEX directives.

Applications and Industry Adoption

IEC 61158 protocols are deployed across sectors including Oil refinerys, Chemical industry, Pharmaceutical industry, and Mining operations, and are integrated into Supervisory control and data acquisition systems and Batch processing management solutions used by corporations like BASF, Shell, BP, Dow Chemical, and ExxonMobil. Adoption patterns reflect transitions similar to those observed with Industrial Ethernet and Profinet in discrete and process automation, with major users including Toyota, Ford Motor Company, Boeing, and Airbus for factory automation and supply-chain integration.

Criticisms and Limitations

Critics compare IEC 61158 to competing approaches such as Industrial Ethernet and OPC UA and note complexity, fragmentation among protocol types, and slow update cycles resembling issues seen in standards disputes like HD DVD vs Blu-ray Disc and historical telecom standardization. Interoperability challenges persist between vendor-specific stacks from companies like Rockwell Automation, Siemens, and Schneider Electric, and integration with newer cybersecurity frameworks discussed by NIST, ENISA, and ISO sometimes lags behind initiatives such as IEC 62443. Scalability and support for modern Industrial Internet of Things deployments raise concerns similar to those faced by Zigbee and Bluetooth in industrial contexts.

Category:Industrial automation standards