Data Connectors¶

Data Connectors are components within the Wood InsightsPlatform (WIP) that establish connections to external data sources using specific protocols. They interact with the WIP External Data Services to either read data into WIP or push data out from WIP to the external source. External data sources can include other software systems, databases, or files. The data structures managed by Data Connectors are typically historical time series or snapshot values that WIP can poll and historise once ingested into the platform.

Key Functions¶

Connecting to External Sources: Data Connectors establish connections to external data sources using specific protocols.
Interacting with WIP External Data Services: They interact with the WIP External Data Services, which facilitates a standardised method for data connectors to integrate external data sources into WIP. The External Data Service provides a unified framework for filtering and processing, allowing data connectors to be templatised and focusing exclusively on the specific protocols required for connection.
Data Transfer: Data Connectors are responsible for reading data into WIP or pushing data out from WIP to the external source.

Supported Protocols¶

WIP supports a variety of protocols for Data Connectors. The list of supported protocols continuously grows as new requirements arise. Some of the example protocols supported by WIP include:

CSV
Excel
Azure Kusto
Cognite Data Fusion
OPC DA
OPC HDA
OPC UA
OPC XML
OSI PI Web API
Virtuoso (Wood’s Process Modelling Technology)
WIP (for redundancy / distributed systems)