Proxy object configuration of industrial component

• US 20080162671A1
• Filed: 09/29/2006
• Published: 07/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Mann, Joseph Francis
• Granted Patent: US 7,966,427 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23109 Configuration of display device, operator panel
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23258 GUI graphical user interface, icon, function bloc editor, labview
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0253 using browsers or web-pages for accessing management information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0813 characterised by the conditions triggering a change of settings
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0853 by actively collecting configuration information or by backing up configuration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0879 Manual configuration through operator
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]

Abstract

An electrical device may be configured by coupling the device to a human machine interface (HMI) that is equipped with software for interacting with a configuration station. The software may include components that can enumerate properties of objects on the device to be configured. The device to be configured provides a file to the server-enabled HMI, such as a schema file. The server-enabled HMI then enumerates properties of the objects or otherwise provides an indication of the properties to the configuration station. The properties may be altered by a user at the configuration station. The reconfigured properties are then transmitted from the server-enabled HMI back to the device to be configured.

Claims

1. A method for configuring an electrical device comprising:

generating a file in a device to be configured summarizing configuration of the device;

transmitting the file to an interface including a design environment for configuring an interface screen, and a server for serving a view representative of the interface screen for configuration by a user;

altering the file based upon configuration input by a user via the interface; and

transmitting the altered file from the interface to the device, the altered file defining reconfiguration of the device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the file is altered by serving an interface screen view to a configuration station, altering the interface screen view on the configuration station, and altering the file to reflect alterations in the interface screen view.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the interface screen view is displayed in a browser on the configuration station.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the file is a schema file.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the schema file is in an extended markup language.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein altering the file includes accessing an object defining a feature of an interface screen view and changing a property of the object.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the device to be configured does not include a design environment or a server.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the interface screen view is altered on the interface.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the interface screen view is altered on the interface.

9. A method for configuring an electrical device comprising:

coupling a device to be configured to an interface, the interface including a design environment for configuring an interface screen, and a server for serving a view representative of the interface screen for configuration by a user;

altering configuration of the an object stored on the device by input of configuration changes via the interface; and

storing the altered configuration in the device, the altered configuration defining a reconfiguration of the object on the device.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the configuration is altered by transmitting a file from the device to the interface, the file representing a configuration of the device prior to alteration.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the file is a schema file defining an aspect of a function performed by the device when in operation.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the configuration is altered by serving an interface screen view to a configuration station, altering the interface screen view on the configuration station, and altering the configuration on the interface to reflect alterations in the interface screen view.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the interface screen view is displayed in a browser on the configuration station.

15. A system for configuring an interface comprising:

a device to be configured, the device including an object defining a function of the device in operation, the device being configured to generate a file summarizing configuration of the object;

an interface coupled to the device and configured to receive the file and alter the configuration of the object based upon user alterations properties of the object.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the interface includes a design environment for configuring the interface screen view, and a server for serving a view representative of the interface screen view for configuration by a user.

17. The system of claim 15, comprising a configuration station, the interface being configured to transmit an interface screen view to the configuration station and to receive user alterations of the interface screen view from the configuration station and to alter the configuration of the object based upon the user alterations.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the interface screen view is displayed in a browser on the configuration station.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the file is a schema file.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the interface screen view is altered on the interface.