Method for operating a system of modular structure, in particular a process automation system

• US 20080284247A1
• Filed: 05/13/2008
• Published: 11/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Metzler, Matthias
• Granted Patent: US 7,848,855 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 307/11
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0428 Safety, monitoring G05B19/0423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24025 Remove board with system on power, hot plug in, swap, docking, life insertion
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25318 Power supply module in common for all modules
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25469 Inserting or taking out circuit boards during power on
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/26 Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof for memories G11C

Abstract

There is described a method for operating a system of modular structure, which can be extended during operation by adding modules that consume electrical energy, in particular a process automation system, the system having a power supply, which supplies the other modules of the system with electrical energy, with at least one signal being generated and displayed before a further module that consumes electrical energy is added, from which signal it is possible to identify or derive the level of current electrical power, which the power supply can still supply to the further module to be added given the already added modules—residual power—and/or the level of power, which the power supply supplies currently to the already added modules and/or from which it can be identified or derived whether the module to be added can be added without overloading the power supply.

Claims

1-15. -15. (canceled)

16. A method for operating a system of modular structure, which is extendable during operation by adding modules that consume electrical energy, comprising:

providing a power supply for the system, wherein the power supply supplies the modules of the system that consume electrical energy with electrical energy;

generating a signal for

a remaining residual power for a further module to be added, wherein the signal is generated before the further module which consumes electrical energy is added to the system, or

a level of power, which the power supply supplies currently to already added modules, or

from which it can be identified or derived whether the module to be added can be added without overloading the power supply; and

displaying the signal.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the modules are plugged in.

18. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the system is a process automation system.

19. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein a computation and/or control facility assigned to the system determines a maximum number of addable modules, which can be added without a predefined overload power limit value being reached or exceeded, wherein a maximum number of addable modules is determined based upon a power consumption limit value, which forms the upper limit for all addable modules, and a current value of the residual power of the power supply given the already added modules.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the predefined overload power limit value is a function of the rated power of the power supply, and wherein the predefined overload power limit value is greater than the rated power of the power supply.

21. The method as claimed in claim 19, further comprising:

displaying a first signal when the maximum number of addable modules is one; and

displaying a further signal, distinct from the first signal when the maximum number of addable modules is zero.

22. The method as claimed in claim 19, further comprising:

displaying the maximum number of addable modules via a numeric display or a text display, wherein the maximum number of addable modules is less than or equal to a predefined limit value.

23. The method as claimed in claim 19, displaying a third signal, distinct from a first and a second signal, when the overall power consumption of the already added modules is equal to or greater than the overload power limitvalue.

24. The method as claimed in claim 21, wherein the signals are displayed via a multi-step optical display, wherein the multi-step optical display is arranged on the power supply of the system or on a CPU of the system.

25. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein a computation or control facility assigned to the system determines or takes from a storage unit a maximum number of addable modules respectively for different classes of modules of different power consumption values, which number can be added without a predefined overload power limit value being reached or exceeded.

26. The method as claimed in claim 25, wherein the classes are determined based upon maximum power consumption values.

27. The method as claimed in claim 25, wherein the class-dependent, maximum number is determined from upper power consumption limit values assigned to each class, which respectively form the upper limit for all addable modules of the corresponding class, and from the current value of the residual power of the power supply given the already added modules.

28. The method as claimed in claim 27, wherein a first signal is displayed for each power consumption class, when the maximum number of addable modules of this class determined for the respective power consumption class is 1 and a further signal, distinct from the first signal, is generated, when the maximum number of addable modules of this class is 0.

29. The method as claimed in claim 27, wherein a third signal, distinct from the first and second signals, is displayed, when the overall power consumption of the already added modules of the system is equal to or greater than the overload power limit value.

30. The method as claimed in claim 28, wherein a third signal, distinct from the first and second signals, is displayed, when the overall power consumption of the already added modules of the system is equal to or greater than the overload power limit value.

31. The method as claimed in claim 27, wherein the maximum number of addable modules of one class is displayed with a numeric display or text display, when the maximum number of addable modules of the one class is less than or equal to a predefined limit value.

32. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the system detects based upon a detection facility wirelessly information assigned to the module to be added, wherein said information is representative of a predefined power consumption value of the respective module.

33. The method as claimed in claim 32, wherein the detection facility has a keyboard to transmit information to the system, said information being representative of a predefined maximum power consumption value of the respective module.

34. The method as claimed in claim 32, wherein the information assigned to the module to be added relating to the power consumption value of the module is detected and transmitted to the computation or control facility and the computation or control facility uses the power consumption value of the module to be added to select the power consumption class to which the module to be inserted belongs and a suitable display unit of the system is used to display, the maximum number of modules of this power consumption class that can be added without the predefined overload power limit value being reached or exceeded, the reaching or exceeding of which may result in an overload scenario for the power supply, is displayed automatically by way of a display unit of the system.

35. The method as claimed in claim 33, wherein the information assigned to the module to be added relating to the power consumption value of the module is detected and transmitted to the computation or control facility and the computation or control facility uses the power consumption value of the module to be added to select the power consumption class to which the module to be inserted belongs and a suitable display unit of the system is used to display, the maximum number of modules of this power consumption class that can be added without the predefined overload power limit value being reached or exceeded, the reaching or exceeding of which may result in an overload scenario for the power supply, is displayed automatically by way of a display unit of the system.