Method and apparatus for providing automatic software updates

• US 20050071851A1
• Filed: 09/25/2003
• Published: 03/31/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Opheim, Greg
• Granted Patent: US 7,865,907 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/321
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57

Abstract

A software updating system enables a user to automatically identify and obtain a device description for use with an application and to update the application with the device description. The system communicates with a device to obtain device description identification information identifying the device description that is required to communicate with the device. Once the device description identification is obtained, the system downloads the device description from a device description database connected to, for example, the Internet. Subsequently, the system updates the application with the device description so that the application may communicate with the device.

Claims

1. A method of updating a host application running on a host system, the method comprising:

sending a first command from the host system to a device to request a device description identification;

receiving the device description identification at the host system;

downloading the device description into the host system using the device description identification; and

updating the host application to include the device description.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein downloading the device description includes downloading the device description from one of a CD-ROM, a diskette, and an online database.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein updating the host application includes copying the device description into the host application.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the host system is a system in a process plant and the device is one of a plurality of process control devices used in the process plant.

5. The method of claim 1, further including searching for the device description on the host system based on the device description identification.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein downloading the device description includes:

connecting the host system to a communication network;

requesting the device description from a device description database connected to the communication network; and

receiving the device description from the device description database.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein downloading the device description includes storing an Internet address of the device description database and using one of an Internet communication protocol and a wireless communication protocol to connect to the device description database.

7. The method of claim 7, wherein the device description database is one of a Fieldbus database, a Profibus database and a HART communication foundation database.

9. A method of providing a software update for a host application running on a host system, the method comprising:

sending a first command to a first device to request a first device description identification identifying a first device description, wherein the first device description is used to communicate with the first device;

receiving the first device description identification at the host system;

determining if the host system includes the first device description using the first device description identification;

automatically downloading the first device description onto the host system if the host system does not have the first device description; and

updating the host application with the first device description.

10. The method of claim 9, further including storing the first device description information on the host system.

11. The method of claim 9, further including storing the first device description identification, determining if the host system is connected to the Internet, initiating a connection to the Internet if the host system is connected to the Internet, and sending a request to a device description database connected to the Internet for downloading the first device description onto the host system.

12. The method of claim 9, further including storing on the host system a list relating an identification of a device manufacturer to an Internet address of a device description database provided by the device manufacturer.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the host application is one of (1) an asset management system application, (2) a plant simulation application, (3) a plant maintenance application, (4) a plant monitoring application, and (5) a process control application.

14. A computer system for updating a host application with a device description of a device, the computer system being connected to a device description database via a communication network, the computer system comprising:

a processing unit;

a computer readable memory; and

a software routine stored on the computer readable memory and adapted to be executed on the processing unit to;

receive a device description identification from a device,

download the device description from the device description database using the device description identification, and

update the host application with the device description.

15. The computer system of claim 14, wherein the software routine is further adapted to be executed on the processing unit to download the device description using one of an Internet protocol and a wireless communication protocol.

16. The computer system of claim 14, wherein the software routine is further adapted to be executed on the processing unit to identify a DDL source of the host application, interpret the device description into the DDL source and insert the device description into the host application.

17. The computer system of claim 14, wherein the host application is one of (1) an asset management system application, (2) a plant simulation application, (3) a plant maintenance application, (4) a plant monitoring application, and (5) a process control application.

18. The computer system of claim 14, wherein the software routine is further adapted to update a remote host application located on a remote computer communicatively connected to the computer system.

19. A computer system for use in process plant having a plurality of devices and one or more process applications requiring communication with the plurality of devices, the computer system comprising:

a communication module adapted to request a device description identification from one of the plurality of devices;

a storage module adapted to store the device description identification;

a search module adapted to search for a device description database storing the device description identified by the device description identification;

a downloading module adapted to download a device description from the device description database; and

an updating module adapted to update one of the one or more process applications with the device description.

20. The computer system of claim 19, wherein the downloading module communicates with the device description database using the Internet protocol.