what is an rtu

An RTU stands for Remote Terminal Unit, which is a microprocessor-based electronic device used in industrial control systems (ICS) to connect various hardware to distributed control systems (DCS) or supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) . An RTU is a device that monitors and controls field devices and then connects to plant control or SCADA systems. It is a microprocessor-controlled electronic device that interfaces objects in the physical world to a distributed control system or SCADA system by transmitting telemetry data to a master system, and by using messages from the field to control connected objects. An RTU monitors the field digital and analog parameters and transmits data to a SCADA Master Station. It runs setup software to connect data input streams to data output streams, define communication protocols, and troubleshoot installation problems in the field. An RTU may consist of one complex circuit card consisting of various sections needed to do a custom-fitted function, or may consist of many circuit cards including a CPU or processing with communications interface(s), and one or more of the following: (AI) analog input, (DI) digital (status) input, (DO/CO) digital (or control relay) output, or (AO) analog output card(s) .