Method and system for remote control of a local system

• US 20040153493A1
• Filed: 10/29/2003
• Published: 08/05/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Schneider Electric Software, LLC (Schneider Electric SE)
• Original Assignee: Hatem K. Ei-Sabaaly, Jay S. Cook, Sean Slavin
• Inventors: EI-Sabaaly, Hatem K., Cook, Jay S., Slavin, Sean
• Granted Patent: US 7,330,878 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/200
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A system and method for remote control including a control system having a memory and a CPU for sending and receiving control information and instructions at a first location, a software application for manipulating the control information sent and received by the control system resident in the memory, a remote computer system having a CPU and memory at a second location communicating over a communication path with the control system at the first location and one desktop bound software application for manipulating the control information sent and received by the control system accessed by the remote computer system over the at least one communication path resident in the memory of the remote computer system. In variations, the control information includes alarm data, runtime data and historical data.

Claims

1. A method for communicating with a control system via a remote computer, the remote computer including an object container, the method comprising:

requesting, via the remote computer, control system information;

receiving, from the control system, the control system information at the object container; and

running a software application in the object container to view the received control system information.

2. The method of claim 1 including:

generating control instructions with the software application; and

sending the control instructions to the control system.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the control system is an industrial control system configured to control an industrial process, and wherein the control instructions effect changes in the industrial process.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the received control system information includes information selected from the group consisting of alarm information and history information.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the requesting includes requesting a web page, the web page being hosted by the control system.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the software application is a web browser configured to display the control system information via the web page.

7. A system for managing an industrial process at an industrial facility comprising:

an input/output (I/O) unit, wherein the I/O unit is configured to communicate with a corresponding node in the industrial process and is capable of generating process data;

a remote computer system configured to execute a desktop bound software application adapted to request, receive and manipulate said process data;

a control system computer coupled between said plurality of I/O units and said remote computer system, said control system computer executing a local software application comprising;

a data handler;

an Internet server application program interface (ISAPI) configured to receive a

request from the remote computer system for said process data and send the request to said data handler, said data handler being configured to retrieve said process data from said I/O unit in response to said request; and

wherein said software application is configured to send said process data to said remote computer system.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the data handler is selected from the group consisting of an alarm handler and a history handler.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein said local software application includes a web server configured to send said process data with a web page.

10. A processor readable medium including computer executable instructions for communicating with a control system via a remote computer, the remote computer including an object container, the instructions including instructions for:

requesting, via said remote computer, control system information;

receiving, via at least one communication path, the control system information at the object container; and

running a software application in the object container to view the received control system information.

11. The processor readable medium of claim 10 wherein the instructions include other instructions for:

generating control instructions with the software application; and

sending the control instructions to the control system.

12. The processor readable medium of claim 11 wherein the control system is an industrial control system configured to control an industrial process, and wherein the control instructions effect changes in the industrial process.

13. The processor readable medium of claim 10 wherein the received control system information includes information selected from the group consisting of alarm information and history information.

14. The processor readable medium of claim 10 wherein the requesting includes requesting a web page, the web page being hosted by the control system.

15. The processor readable medium of claim 14 wherein the software application is a web browser configured to display the control system information via the web page.

16. A method for obtaining industrial system data via an object container on a remote computer, the industrial system being controlled by a control program executed by a local control system, the method comprising:

modifying the object container so that the object container includes a control object;

requesting, via the remote computer, the industrial system data from the local control system;

receiving the industrial system data at the remote computer; and

displaying the industrial system data with the object container.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the object container is a web browser.

18. The method of claim 16 wherein the control object is an ActiveX object.

19. A method for executing, from a remote client, an industrial process control application configured for operation at an industrial facility, the method comprising:

creating a local server by modifying the industrial process control application;

providing an ActiveX object to host the local server; and

executing the local server.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the industrial process control application is a window viewer.

21. The method of claim 19 wherein the industrial process control application executes at a local site and sends data to and receives data from a remote site.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the data is sent to and received from the local site via an Internet.

23. A system for monitoring an industrial facility comprising:

a first computer at the industrial facility, the first computer including a deskbound application configured to monitor the industrial facility;

a second computer remote from the first computer, the second computer including an object container for executing an instance of the deskbound application; and

a communication system coupled between said first computer and said second computer for transmitting and receiving process data between said first computer and said second computer.

24. The system of claim 23 wherein the object container contains an ActiveX component which exchanges information from said second computer and couples the information to said communication system for communication to said first computer.

25. The system of claim 24 wherein the object container is a web browser, and wherein the ActiveX component displays a display output of the deskbound application in the web browser.