CONTROL NODE, A NETWORK OF CONTROL NODES AND A NETWORK CONFIGURATOR

• US 20100208586A1
• Filed: 02/18/2010
• Published: 08/19/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Beckhoff Automation GmbH
• Original Assignee: Beckhoff Automation GmbH
• Inventors: Hoppe, Gerd, Heitmann, Ralf, Papenfort, Josef
• Granted Patent: US 8,824,283 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/230
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4186 by protocol, e.g. MAP, TOP
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4035 in which slots of a TDMA packet structure are assigned based on a contention resolution carried out at a master unit TDM/TDMA multiplex systems per se H04J3/1694; hybrid switching systems H04L12/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/413 with random access, e.g. carrier-sense multiple-access with collision detection [CSMA-CD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/4026 Bus for use in automation systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

A control node for a network of control nodes includes a transmitter module configured to manage the data to be sent in an output process image, to convert the output process image into a data packet and to output the data packet onto the network at a predetermined point in time. The control node further includes a receiver module configured to log on to the data packets of one or of a plurality of transmitter modules of further control nodes and to convert a received data packet into an input process image. The data transmission between the control nodes in the network takes place in the form of data packets.

Claims

1. A control node for a network of control nodes,

data transmission between the control nodes in the network taking place in the form of data packets,

the control node comprising a transmitter module configured to manage the data to be sent in an output process image, to convert the output process image into a data packet and to output the data packet onto the network at a predetermined point in time, and

the control node comprising a receiver module configured to log on to the data packets of one or of a plurality of transmitter modules of further control nodes and to convert a received data packet into an input process image.

2. The control node according to claim 1, the receiver module being configured to associate a quality date with the received data packets, the quality date indicating the age of the data packet.

3. The control node according to claim 1, the transmitter module being configured to directly address the data packet to one or to a plurality of further control nodes.

4. The control node according to claim 3, the transmitter module being configured to transmit non-real-time data to one or a plurality of further control nodes in an acyclic manner.

5. The control node according to claim 1, the transmitter module being configured to forward the data packet to all control nodes present in the network.

6. The control node according to claim 5, the transmitter module being configured to transmit real-time date to all control nodes present in the network in a cyclic manner.

7. The control node according to claim 1, wherein a data transmission between subscribers is carried out within the control nodes in the form of a data imaging process.

8. The control node according to claim 7, each subscriber comprising an organizing unit for processing a finite state machine which determines the mode and the state of operation, as well as a functional unit for carrying out the application program relevant for the respective current mode of operation and for the respective current state of operation.

9. The control node according to claim 1, comprising an incident-recording unit configured to classify and to latch incidents, as well as a data-recording unit configured to latch the data.

10. The control node according to claim 1, comprising an input/output unit configured to define input/output variables as local variables comprising wildcard addresses which are configurable.

11. A system comprising a network of control nodes and a network configurator, at least one control node including subscribers, the network configurator being configured to determine the communication relations between the control nodes and between the subscribers in the control node.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein a recording module of the network configurator transmits a broadcast telegram in the connected network for recording the control nodes connected to the system, the control nodes connected to the network responding to the broadcast telegram by means of an identification telegram.

13. The system according to claim 12, each control node sending an identification telegram to the recording module of the network configurator upon booting.

14. The system according to claim 11, each control node having a valid address which is definitely predetermined.

15. The system according to claim 11, each control node having a valid address which is retrieved by any of DHCP and AUTO-IP and which is transmitted to the network configurator.

16. The system according to claim 11, the network configurator being configured to determine incidental and process data streams between the control nodes within the network, and the control nodes being configured to carry out a mapping process across the network by converting a control node process image.

17. The system according to claim 11, the network configurator being configured to determine incidental and process data streams between subscribers in the control node in the form of a control node process image, and the subscribers in the control node being configured to carry out a local mapping by exchanging data with the process image.

18. A network comprising control nodes and a network configurator,

data transmission between the control nodes in the network taking place in the form of data packets,

each control node comprising a transmitter module configured to manage the data to be sent in an output process image, to convert the output process image into a data packet and to output the data packet onto the network at a previously determined point in time,

each control node comprising a receiver module configured to convert a received data packet into an input process image,

the network configurator comprising a recording module in order to determine the control nodes connected to the network, a configuration module for determining the communication relations of the transmitter and receiver modules of the determining control nodes, as well as a programming module for transmitting the communication relations determined by the configuration module between the control nodes in the network to the control nodes,

the receiver module of the control node being configured to log on for the data packets of one or of a plurality of transmitter modules of further control nodes.

19. The network according to claim 18, wherein the receiver module of the control node is configured to associate a quality date with the received data packets, the quality date indicating the age of the data packet.

20. The network according to claim 18, wherein the transmitter module of the control node is configured to directly address the data packet to one or to a plurality of further control nodes.

21. The network according to claim 20, wherein the transmitter module of the control node is configured to transmit non-real time data to one or a plurality of further control nodes in an acyclic manner.

22. The network according to claim 18, wherein the transmitter module of the control node is configured to forward the data packet to all control nodes present in the network.

23. The network according to claim 22, wherein the transmitter module of the control node is configured to transmit real-time date to all control nodes present in the network in a cyclic manner.

24. The network according to claim 18, wherein each control node comprises an incident-recording unit configured to classify and to latch incidents, as well as a data-recording unit configured to latch the data.

25. The network according to claim 18, wherein each control node comprises an input/output unit configured to define input/output variables as local variables comprising wildcard addresses which are configurable.

26. The network according to claim 18, wherein the recording module of the network configurator transmits a broadcast telegram in the connected network for detecting the control nodes connected to the system, the control nodes connected to the network responding to the broadcast telegram by means of an identification telegram.

27. The network according to claim 26, wherein each control node sends an identification telegram to the recording module of the network configurator upon booting.

28. The network according to claim 26, wherein each control node has a valid address which is definitely predetermined.

29. The network according to claim 26, wherein each control node has a valid address which is retrieved by any of DHCP or AUTO-IP and which is transmitted to the network configurator.

30. The network according to claim 18, wherein the network configurator is configured to determine incidental and process data streams between the control nodes within the network, and the control nodes being configured to carry out a mapping process across the network by converting a control node process image.

31. The network according to claim 18, wherein a data transmission is carried out between subscribers within the control node in the form of a data imaging process.

32. The network according to claim 31, wherein each subscriber comprises an organizing unit for processing a finite state machine which determines the mode and the state of operation, as well as a functional unit for carrying out the application program relevant for the respective current mode of operation and for the respective current state of operation.

33. The network according to claim 31, wherein the network configurator is configured to determine incidental and process data streams between subscribers in the control node in the form of a control node process image, and the subscribers in the control node being configured to carry out a local mapping by exchanging data with the process image.