OBIX
Encyclopedia
oBIX is a standard for RESTful Web Services-based interfaces to building control systems. Building control systems include those electrical and mechanical systems that operate inside a building, including Heating and Cooling, Security, Power Management, and Life/Safety Alarms that are in nearly all buildings as well as the myriad of special purpose systems that may be tied to particular buildings such as A/V Event Management, Theatre Lighting, Medical Gas Distribution, Fume Hoods, and many others.
oBIX is a web services interface because it does not necessarily allow deep interactions with the underlying control systems. This interface can enable communications between enterprise applications and embedded building systems as well as between two embedded building systems. Facilities and their operations to be managed as full participants in knowledge-based businesses.
oBIX is being developed within OASIS
http://www.oasis-open.org, the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards. Version 1.0 was completed as a committee standard in December 2006.
, LonTalk
, Modbus
, DALI
) that are used on these dedicated networks in addition to numerous proprietary protocols. While these binary protocols can be used over TCP/IP networks - they have challenges with routers, firewalls, security, and compatibility with other network applications. There is an added challenge in that the industry is split between several largely incompatible protocols.
Because oBIX integrates with the enterprise, it enables mechanical and electrical control systems to provide continuous visibility of operational status and performance. By exposing these operations using web services, it enables owners and tenants to use the full array of standard databases and OLAP tools to analyse their performance. oBIX enables facilities operators, owners and tenants to make decisions based on a fully integrated consideration of all life-cycle, environmental, cost, and performance factors.
oBIX 1.0 provides a low level object model which can be extended during implementation. While points are directly addressable (and thereby settable), direct interaction with the points requires too much knowledge of the underlying control system for the enterprise developer. The underlyingpoints can be aggregated, the results named, alarm levels set, and histories begun using the oBIX contract. If oBIX exposes a low level object model for control systems, oBIX contracts create the higher level type libraries that most programmers actually want to work with.
In an oBIX-enabled building, these features are accomplished by instead sending an iCalendar
meeting invitation to the room and/or its support systems.
(CAP) is a standard increasingly used for relaying information from various agencies to the public and to police and first responders. One challenge that public notification faces is that the traditional Emergency Broadcasting System for transmitting information over the radio is now much less effective, now that the public is tuned
instead to personal media players such as the iPod
. New versions of these protocols anticipate, for example, direct texting of all cell phones in range of a given cell tower or set of cell towers.
In a similar manner, current proposals suggest direct messaging to Intelligent Buildings to invoke named oBIX contracts, with effects ranging from temporary user security elevation, to initiating process shut down, to notifying in-building warning systems to read messages aloud.
The Open Geospatial Consortium
anticipates Emergency Responders being able to access certain classes of geo-tagged sensor information from buildings from within their maps to improve situational awareness.
These grid negotiations are likely to be of two forms. (1) An intelligent agent residing in the building, and negotiating with the building tenants and their business processes negotiates set building system operating postures. (2) An external agent hired by the building tenants aggregates demand across multiple buildings and buys power on their behalf. Markets based on these interactions are considered to be key to creating market conditions to drive rapid innovation in on-site power storage and generation technologies.
oBIX is a web services interface because it does not necessarily allow deep interactions with the underlying control systems. This interface can enable communications between enterprise applications and embedded building systems as well as between two embedded building systems. Facilities and their operations to be managed as full participants in knowledge-based businesses.
oBIX is being developed within OASIS
OASIS (organization)
The Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards is a global consortium that drives the development, convergence and adoption of e-business and web service standards...
http://www.oasis-open.org, the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards. Version 1.0 was completed as a committee standard in December 2006.
Background
Presently most mechanical and electrical systems are provided with embedded digital controls (DDC). Most of these devices are low cost and not enabled for TCP/IP. They are installed with dedicated communications wiring. Larger DDC controllers provide network communications for these dedicated controllers. There are many well established binary protocols (BACnetBACnet
BACnet is a communications protocol for building automation and control networks. It is an ASHRAE, ANSI, and ISO standard protocol....
, LonTalk
LonTalk
LonTalk is a protocol optimized for control created by Echelon Corporation for networking devices over media such as twisted pair, powerlines, fiber optics, and RF...
, Modbus
Modbus
Modbus is a serial communications protocol published by Modicon in 1979 for use with its programmable logic controllers . Simple and robust, it has since become one of the de facto standard communications protocols in the industry, and it is now amongst the most commonly available means of...
, DALI
Digital Addressable Lighting Interface
Digital Addressable Lighting Interface is a technical standard for network-based systems that control lighting in buildings. It was established as a successor for 0-10 V lighting control systems, and as an open standard alternative to Digital Signal Interface , on which it is based...
) that are used on these dedicated networks in addition to numerous proprietary protocols. While these binary protocols can be used over TCP/IP networks - they have challenges with routers, firewalls, security, and compatibility with other network applications. There is an added challenge in that the industry is split between several largely incompatible protocols.
Because oBIX integrates with the enterprise, it enables mechanical and electrical control systems to provide continuous visibility of operational status and performance. By exposing these operations using web services, it enables owners and tenants to use the full array of standard databases and OLAP tools to analyse their performance. oBIX enables facilities operators, owners and tenants to make decisions based on a fully integrated consideration of all life-cycle, environmental, cost, and performance factors.
Scope
oBIX provides a publicly available web services interface specification that can be used to obtain data in a simple and secure manner from HVAC, access control, utilities, and other building automation systems, and to provide data exchange between facility systems and enterprise applications. Release 1 provides a normalized representation for three of elements common to control systems:- Points: representing a single scalar value and it’s status – typically these map to sensors, actuators, or configuration variables like a setpoint.
- Alarming: modeling, routing, and acknowledgment of alarms. Alarms indicate a condition which requires notification of either a user or another application.
- Histories: modeling and querying of time sampled point data. Typically edge devices collect a time stamped history of point values which can be fed into higher level applications for analysis.
oBIX 1.0 provides a low level object model which can be extended during implementation. While points are directly addressable (and thereby settable), direct interaction with the points requires too much knowledge of the underlying control system for the enterprise developer. The underlyingpoints can be aggregated, the results named, alarm levels set, and histories begun using the oBIX contract. If oBIX exposes a low level object model for control systems, oBIX contracts create the higher level type libraries that most programmers actually want to work with.
Tenant Interactions
To keep a public space open in the evening may require a range of calls to different organizations within a building, each initiating an interaction with a separate building control system. To schedule a public meeting tonight from 7:00 to 9:00, the organizer may have to:- Call Security to warn the guard, and keep the (1) Access Control System working in day-time mode until 9:30. The guard may also need to disable the (2) Intrusion Detection System during that period.
- Call Maintenance to make sure the room's (3) Environmental Controls are set properly for the event. This may include over-cooling (or heating) the room in advance to make sure that the room will be comfortable when filled with the anticipated numbers of callers.
- Call the media support group to make sure the (4) A/V Event Management system is properly warmed up before the event,
In an oBIX-enabled building, these features are accomplished by instead sending an iCalendar
ICalendar
iCalendar is a computer file format which allows Internet users to send meeting requests and tasks to other Internet users, via email, or sharing files with an extension of .ics...
meeting invitation to the room and/or its support systems.
Emergency Response
The Common Alerting ProtocolCommon Alerting Protocol
The Common Alerting Protocol is an XML-based data format for exchanging public warnings and emergencies between alerting technologies. CAP allows a warning message to be consistently disseminated simultaneously over many warning systems to many applications...
(CAP) is a standard increasingly used for relaying information from various agencies to the public and to police and first responders. One challenge that public notification faces is that the traditional Emergency Broadcasting System for transmitting information over the radio is now much less effective, now that the public is tuned
instead to personal media players such as the iPod
IPod
iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
. New versions of these protocols anticipate, for example, direct texting of all cell phones in range of a given cell tower or set of cell towers.
In a similar manner, current proposals suggest direct messaging to Intelligent Buildings to invoke named oBIX contracts, with effects ranging from temporary user security elevation, to initiating process shut down, to notifying in-building warning systems to read messages aloud.
The Open Geospatial Consortium
Open Geospatial Consortium
The Open Geospatial Consortium , an international voluntary consensus standards organization, originated in 1994. In the OGC, more than 400 commercial, governmental, nonprofit and research organizations worldwide collaborate in a consensus process encouraging development and implementation of open...
anticipates Emergency Responders being able to access certain classes of geo-tagged sensor information from buildings from within their maps to improve situational awareness.
Emerging Power Markets
The GridWise Architecture Council envisions an open market or Power Providers, Transmission, Distribution, and Customer Agents negotiating freely for live power contracts based on instantaneous demand/response. The ongoing installation across the US of Electric Meters able to provide time-of-day-metering is one step to enabling this. Another is the development of Intelligent Buildings able to negotiate with the grid.These grid negotiations are likely to be of two forms. (1) An intelligent agent residing in the building, and negotiating with the building tenants and their business processes negotiates set building system operating postures. (2) An external agent hired by the building tenants aggregates demand across multiple buildings and buys power on their behalf. Markets based on these interactions are considered to be key to creating market conditions to drive rapid innovation in on-site power storage and generation technologies.
Base Level Control Protocols
- BACnetBACnetBACnet is a communications protocol for building automation and control networks. It is an ASHRAE, ANSI, and ISO standard protocol....
Building Automation Control network - KNX/EIBKNX (standard)KNX is a standardized , OSI-based network communications protocol for intelligent buildings. KNX is the successor to, and convergence of, three previous standards: the European Home Systems Protocol , BatiBUS, and the European Installation Bus...
- ModbusModbusModbus is a serial communications protocol published by Modicon in 1979 for use with its programmable logic controllers . Simple and robust, it has since become one of the de facto standard communications protocols in the industry, and it is now amongst the most commonly available means of...
- LonWorksLonWorksLonWorks is a networking platform specifically created to address the needs of control applications. The platform is built on a protocol created by Echelon Corporation for networking devices over media such as twisted pair, powerlines, fiber optics, and RF...
- C-Bus (protocol)C-Bus (protocol)C-Bus is a proprietary communications protocol for home and building automation that can handle cable lengths up to 1000 meter using Cat-5 cable. It is used in Australia, New Zealand, Asia, the Middle East, Russia, USA, South Africa, the UK and other parts of Europe including Greece and Romania...
- DynetDynaliteDynalite is a product range of Phillips lighting. Up until 2009 Dynalite was also the name of the company which manufactured and sold the product until it was bought by Phillips...
- Metasys
- Digital Addressable Lighting InterfaceDigital Addressable Lighting InterfaceDigital Addressable Lighting Interface is a technical standard for network-based systems that control lighting in buildings. It was established as a successor for 0-10 V lighting control systems, and as an open standard alternative to Digital Signal Interface , on which it is based...
DALI
Other Standards interacting with oBIX
- Open Geospatial ConsortiumOpen Geospatial ConsortiumThe Open Geospatial Consortium , an international voluntary consensus standards organization, originated in 1994. In the OGC, more than 400 commercial, governmental, nonprofit and research organizations worldwide collaborate in a consensus process encouraging development and implementation of open...
(OGC) - National Building Information Standard (NBIMS)
- buildingSMART