Editing Open Platform Communications (section)

{{Short description|Industrial communication standards}}
[[File:PROPOPC.JPG | thumb | right]]
'''Open Platform Communications''' ('''OPC''') is a series of [[standardization|standards]] and specifications for industrial [[telecommunication]]. They are based on [[Object Linking and Embedding]] (OLE) for [[process control]].
An [[industrial automation]] task force developed the original standard in 1996 under the name '''OLE for Process Control'''. OPC specifies the communication of [[real-time computing|real-time]] plant data between control devices from different manufacturers.

After the initial release in 1996, the [[OPC Foundation]] was created to maintain the standards.<ref name="what">{{Cite web |title= What is OPC? |work= OPC Foundation web site |url=  https://opcfoundation.org/about/what-is-opc/ |access-date= October 7, 2021 }}</ref> Since OPC has been adopted beyond the field of process control, the OPC Foundation changed its name to Open Platform Communications in 2011.<ref name="what" /> The name change reflects the applications of OPC technology for applications in [[building automation]], [[discrete manufacturing]], process control and others. OPC has also grown beyond its original OLE implementation to include other data transportation technologies including [[Microsoft Corporation]]'s [[.NET Framework]], [[XML]], and even the OPC Foundation's binary-encoded TCP format.