Diagnosis of an automation system

• US 20060212268A1
• Filed: 03/15/2006
• Published: 09/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Weigel, Stefan, Schlemper, Michael, Becker, Norbert, Helmig, Dieter, Ritzer, Josef, Beck, Hans-Joachim, Schmuck, Axel
• Granted Patent: US 7,779,053 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/183
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0248 Causal models, e.g. fault tree; digraphs; qualitative physics

Abstract

The invention relates to a method, a computer program product and an engineering system for creating a diagnostic model of an automation system made up of various automation components. The diagnostic model is generated automatically during the project planning phase of the automation system. Within the diagnostic model the automation components are represented by model nodes. Functional and/or physical relationships between the automation components are mapped by links between the corresponding model nodes within the diagnostic model. Each model node contains status information in which the status of the associated automation component is stored. By evaluating the status information, the status of the automation system can be investigated and monitored with the aid of the diagnostic model.

Claims

1-13. -13. (canceled)

14. A method of diagnosing an automation system comprising at least a first and a second automation component, the first and second automation components having a physical or functional relationship, the method comprising:

creating a diagnostic model having first and second model nodes, the first and second automation components assigned to the first respectively second model node,

creating a link between the first and second model nodes within the diagnostic model for modeling the physical or functional relationship between the first and second automation components;

acquiring within the diagnostic model a first status of the first automation component by a first status information regarding the first model node;

acquiring within the diagnostic model a second status of the second automation component by a second status information regarding the second model node; and

evaluating the first and/or second status information for determining a status information about the automation system, wherein the diagnostic model is created automatically by an engineering system during a process of project planning of the automation system executed by the engineering system.

15. The method in accordance with claim 14, wherein the first and/or second model nodes comprise an electronic description of the respective automation component.

16. The method in accordance with claim 15, wherein the electronic description comprises a description of possible faults of the respective automation component.

17. The method in accordance with claim 14, further comprising reading the second status information via the link by the first model node.

18. The method in accordance with claim 14, further comprising generating an alarm message based on the first and/or second status information by a filter implemented in the first model node.

19. The method in accordance with claim 14, further comprising indicating a fault by the first status information if the second status information includes information about a fault, wherein the first automation component belongs to a higher functional level compared to the second automation component.

20. The method in accordance with claim 14, further comprising checking the first status information upon occurrence of an alarm message for tracking a cause of a fault triggering the alarm message, wherein the second status information is only checked if the checked first status information indicates the fault.

21. The method in accordance with claim 14, wherein the diagnostic model is

loaded into the first and/or the second automation component, and

activated at run time of the automation system.

22. A computer program for diagnosing an automation system comprising at least a first and a second automation component, the first and second automation components having a physical or functional relationship, the computer program comprising:

a diagnostic model including first and second model nodes, the first and second automation components assigned to the first respectively second model node, wherein a link is established between the first and second model nodes within the diagnostic model for modeling the physical or functional relationship between the first and second automation components;

a first software module for acquiring within the diagnostic model a first status of the first automation component by a first status information regarding the first model node;

a second software module for acquiring within the diagnostic model a second status of the second automation component by a second status information regarding the second model node; and

a third software module for evaluating the first and/or second status information for determining a status information about the automation system.

23. An engineering system for project planning of an automation system having at least first and second automation components, the engineering system comprising:

an input device for acquiring a physical and/or functional relationship between the first and a second automation components; and

a processing unit configured to;

automatically creating a diagnostic model during project planning, wherein the first automation component is assigned to a first model node and the second automation component is assigned to a second model node;

automatically creating a link between the first and second model nodes within the diagnosis model based on the acquired physical and/or functional relationship wherein the diagnostic model is configured to;

record a first status of the first automation component in a first status information assigned to the first model node;

record a second status of the second automation component in a second status information assigned to the second model node; and

evaluate the first and/or second status information for determining a status information about the automation system.

24. The engineering system in accordance with claim 23, wherein the first and/or second model nodes include an electronic description of the respective automation component.

25. The engineering system in accordance with claim 24, wherein the electronic description comprises a description of possible faults of the respective automation component.

26. The engineering system in accordance with claim 23, wherein the processing unit includes a filter implemented in the first model node, the filter configured to generate an alarm message based on the first and/or second status information.

27. The engineering system in accordance with claim 23, wherein the processing unit is configured to indicate a fault by the first status information if the second status information includes information about a fault, wherein the first automation component belongs to a higher functional level compared to the second automation component.

28. The engineering system in accordance with claim 23, wherein the diagnostic model is

loaded into the first and/or the second automation component, and

activated at run time of the automation system.