Glossary · Distributed automation and IEC 61499
Compliance profile (IEC 61499)
Also known as: IEC 61499 compliance profile
German: Konformitätsprofil
In IEC 61499, a compliance profile is a specification that defines which features of the standard devices and software tools must support, and how, to achieve interoperability, portability and configurability; IEC 61499-4 sets the rules for such profiles.
- IEC 61499
- Standards
In one sentence
An IEC 61499 compliance profile specifies how devices and tools implement the standard to achieve interoperability and portability.
Example
Two vendors agree to implement the same compliance profile, so that an application exported from one tool can be loaded and run on the other vendor's devices.
How it applies
- Engineering: IEC 61499-1 leaves many implementation details open. A compliance profile closes them for a group of products: which function block types and features are supported, which communication mappings and management commands are used, and which file exchange formats apply.
- Procurement: When a specification requires IEC 61499, it should name the compliance profile. Without it, two IEC 61499 products may still be unable to work together.
- Testing: Claims of profile compliance should be backed by tests. Compliance with a profile is a technical property; it says nothing about product safety or legal conformity, which is a separate Conformity assessment topic.
- Documentation: Product documentation should state which profile and which version the device or tool implements, and list deviations or unsupported features.
Compliance profile vs. conformity
A compliance profile is a technical agreement on how to implement a standard. Legal conformity, as in CE marking, concerns regulatory requirements and follows its own procedures.