What Is It
SCADA is acronym for Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition. It is a kind of software application program used for process control and gather real time data from remote locations for exercising this control on equipments and conditions.
Components
SCADA Systems consist of both hardware and software components. The hardware collects and feeds data into a computer with SCADA software installed. The data is then processed by the computer before presenting it in a timely manner. The function of SCADA is recording and logging all events in a file that is stored in a hard disk or sending them to a printer. If conditions become hazardous, SCADA sounds warning alarm.
Composition
Input/output signal hardware, network, human machine interface, controllers, database, communication and software constitute a SCADA system. SCADA comes under the scope of Instrumentation Engineering.
Real Time
There are real time automated and integrated control systems like its cooling by the computer itself for quick responding to the process changes within the processes’ own time-frame. But SCADA is not critical to controlling real time process.