Highly versatile process control system controller

• US 20060064512A1
• Filed: 11/10/2005
• Published: 03/23/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Nixon, Mark, Law, Gary, Burr, Kent, Shepard, Rusty, Krivoshein, Ken, Christensen, Dan
• Granted Patent: US 7,181,550 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 710/8
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25014 Fieldbus general name of bus connected to machines, detectors, actuators
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25252 Microprocessor
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25428 Field device

Abstract

A versatile controller that can be used as either a stand-alone controller in a relatively small process plant or as one of numerous controllers in a distributed process control system depending on the needs of the process plant includes a processor adapted to be programmed to execute one or more programming routines and a memory, such as a non-volatile memory, coupled to the processor and adapted to store the one or more programming routines to be executed on the processor. The versatile controller also includes a plurality of field device input/output ports communicatively connected to the processor, a configuration communication port connected to the processor and to the memory to enable the controller to be configured with the programming routines and a second communication port which enables a user interface to be intermittently connected to the controller to view information stored within the controller memory. When used in a distributed process control system, the controller platform may be used as a remote input/output device and the ports of this remote input/output device may be logically mapped to controllers within the distributed process control system in a manner that is different than the physical connection between such controllers and the remote input/output device.

Claims

1. A method of configuring a distributed process control system having one or more controllers and one or more remote input/output devices, wherein each of the controllers has a field device input/output port associated therewith, the method comprising:

physically communicatively connecting one of the controllers within the distributed process control system;

physically communicatively connecting one of remote input/output devices within the process control system without physically connecting the one of the remote input/output devices directly to the field device input/output port of the one of the controllers; and

logically communicatively connecting the one of the remote input/output devices directly to the one of the controllers.

2. The method of configuring a distributed process control system of claim 1, wherein the step of logically communicatively connecting includes storing communication routines in each of the one of the controllers and the one of the remote input/output devices to communicate directly with one another.

3. The method of configuring a distributed process control system of claim 1, wherein the step of physically communicatively connecting the one of the controllers includes the step of physically communicatively connecting the one of the controllers to a bus and physically communicatively connecting a second one of the controllers to the bus and wherein the step of physically communicatively connecting the one of the remote input/output devices includes the step of physically communicatively connecting the one of the remote input/output devices to the bus.

4. The method of configuring a distributed process control system of claim 1, further including displaying the one of the remote input/output devices as logically connected to the one of the controllers within a configuration hierarchy display.

5. The method of configuring a distributed process control system of claim 1, further including the step of physically connecting a local input/output device directly to the field device input/output port of the one of the controllers.

6. The method of configuring a distributed process control system of claim 1, wherein the step of logically communicatively connecting includes the step of logically communicatively connecting an individual port of the one of the remote input/output devices to the one of the controllers.

7. The method of configuring a distributed process control system of claim 6, further including the step of logically communicatively connecting a second individual port of the one of the remote input/output devices to a second one of the controllers.