Supervisory process control and manufacturing information system application having a layered architecture

• US 20020198920A1
• Filed: 02/25/2002
• Published: 12/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Schneider Electric Software, LLC (Schneider Electric SE)
• Original Assignee: Wonderware Corporation (Schneider Electric SE)
• Inventors: Mody, Pankaj H., Sowell, Timothy, Resnick, Robert M., Leblanc, Laurence G.
• Granted Patent: US 7,650,607 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 718/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/10 Requirements analysis; Specification techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44505 Configuring for program initiating, e.g. using registry, configuration files

Abstract

A supervisory process control and manufacturing information system application is disclosed. The components of the application are distributable to a plurality of networked computer devices in a multi-layered hierarchical manner wherein lower layers host higher installed layers of application components. Application objects reside at a relatively high level of the distributed application architecture and model entities within a process control system. Engine objects host execution of the application objects in a run-time environment. Thus, application objects are not deployed until a host engine object with which they are associated have been deployed. Engine objects are hosted by platform objects. The platform objects correspond to a physical computer system component for executing the engine objects and associated application objects. A configuration facility presents a variety of views including deployment and model views of the application. The views incorporate the relationships of the objects that make up the distributed application.

Claims

1. A supervisory process control and manufacturing information system application distributable to a plurality of networked computer devices and having a layered architecture, the application comprising:

application objects that model entities within a process control system;

engine objects that host execution of the application objects in a run-time environment; and

platform objects, corresponding to a physical computer system component for executing the engine objects and associated application objects, and wherein the platform objects host one or more of the engine objects.

2. The application of claim 1 wherein the engine objects and platform objects address aspects of the application relating to physical computing device configurations upon which the application executes, and wherein the application objects execute independently of the physical computing device configurations.

3. The application of claim 1 wherein the application objects communicate on a same computing device through engine objects, and communications across a network of computing devices are supported by the platform objects, thereby insulating communications between application objects from the topology of a computer system within which the application objects execute.

4. A configuration facility for specifying a deployment model for supervisory process control and manufacturing information applications for associating application objects to particular physical computing devices and providing a view of the distribution of the objects upon the physical computing devices, the configuration facility comprising:

platform definitions specifying one or more physical computing device types;

engine definitions specifying engines that execute upon the physical computing systems and thereby define types of services supported by the physical computing devices;

area definitions specifying areas comprising logical groupings of application objects;

a set of hierarchical relationships specifying assignments of the engines to particular ones of the physical computing systems, and assignments of the areas to particular ones of the engines; and

a deployment view generator depicting, in accordance with the set of hierarchical relationships, a hierarchy of physical computing devices, engines, and areas.

5. A supervisory process control and manufacturing information system application configuration facility comprising components arranged in accordance with a particular view facilitating configuration and deployment of process control and manufacturing information software, the facility comprising:

supervisory process control system objects corresponding to devices and functions corresponding to distinct entities within a plant, wherein associated functionality for the devices and functions is contained in each object, and wherein the supervisory process control system objects have associated therewith a set of attributes specifying relationships between the supervisory process control system objects; and

view generators for rendering the supervisory process control system objects according to the associations between the supervisory process control system objects, the view generators providing at least;

a first view representing the logical arrangement of a process/plant and its monitored components, and

a second view representing a physical deployment of objects upon computer systems that carry out the application.

6. The configuration facility of claim 5 wherein a user defines a set of areas, each area comprising a set of related application objects that are constrained to execute upon a same engine, and wherein the association between an area and an engine is depicted in the second view.

7. The configuration facility of claim 5 wherein the supervisory process control system objects include container objects including nested therein other supervisory process control system objects.

8. The configuration facility of claim 5 wherein supervisory process control system objects are derived/instantiated from templates, and wherein the templates specify containment of other templates.

9. The configuration facility of claim 8 wherein the templates are capable of specifying a parent template from which the templates inherit characteristics including subsequent changes to a parent template after specifying a child template.