MULTIPLE APPLICATIONS UTILIZED IN AN INDUSTRIAL AUTOMATION SYSTEM DISPLAYED AS A SINGLE APPLICATION

• US 20130297050A1
• Filed: 04/15/2013
• Published: 11/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Reichard, Douglas J., Weinhofer, Juergen
• Granted Patent: US 10,114,349 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/83
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2246 Trees, e.g. B+trees
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

A manager (or master) application can facilitate navigation between different slave applications used in connection with an industrial automation system and manipulation of the different applications. For example, the manager application can at least: display the first application and the second application at different organizational locations within the manager application and provide a common menu to the first application and the second application. According to an input to the common menu, a variety of actions can be performed by the first application or the second application.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a memory that stores computer executable instructions; and

a processor that executes or facilitates execution of the computer executable instructions to at least;

display a manager application comprising a display of a first application utilized in configuration of an industrial automation system at a first organizational location within the manager application and a display of a second application utilized in the configuration of the industrial automation system at a second organizational location within the manager application; and

provide a common menu to the first application and the second application via the manager application,

wherein the manager application facilitates navigation between the first application and the second application, and

wherein the manager application facilitates performance of an action by the first application or the second application in response to an input received by the manager application.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the common menu comprises a common save command for the first application and the second application.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the common menu comprises at least one of a common file menu for the first application and the second application, a common view menu for the first application and the second application or a common tools menu for the first application and the second application.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the manager application comprises a tabbed application interface, wherein the first organizational location corresponds to a first tab and the second organizational location corresponds to a second tab.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the common menu comprises a common visualization menu that provides a plurality of visualizations of the industrial automation system.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the plurality of visualizations comprises at least two of a logical visualization, a physical visualization, a network visualization and a library visualization.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the first application is a visualization program and the second application is a control program

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the first application is a first instance of a program and the second application is a second instance of the program, and

wherein the first instance of the program corresponds to a first version of the program and the second instance of the program corresponds to a second version of the program.

9. A method, comprising:

displaying, by a system comprising a processor, a master application comprising a first slave application utilized in configuring an industrial automation system and a second slave application utilized in the configuring of the industrial automation system;

facilitating, by the system, navigation between the first slave application and the second slave application via the master application; and

receiving, by the system, an input from a common menu in the master application to facilitate performance of an action by the first slave application or the second slave application in response to the receiving the input,

wherein first slave application and the second slave application are different applications utilized in the configuring of the industrial automation system.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the action is selected from a group comprising a save action, a view action, and an edit action.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the first slave application is a display program and the second slave application is a control program.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the first slave application is a first instance of a program and the second slave application is a second instance of the program, and

wherein the first instance of the program corresponds to a first version of the program and the second instance of the program corresponds to a second version of the program.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

displaying, by the system, the first slave application at a first position within a display of the master application and the second slave application at a second position within the display of the mater application.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first position and the second position correspond to a first tab and a second tab within the master application.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein the master application is reusable for a different first slave application or a different second slave application.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the master application provides the common menu to the first slave application, the second slave application and a third slave application,

wherein the first slave application is a first version of a first program, the second slave application is a second program, and the third slave application is a second version of the first program.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution, cause a system comprising a processor to perform operations, comprising:

displaying a main application comprising a first application utilized within an industrial automation system at a first position within the main application and a second application utilized within the industrial automation system at a second position within the main application;

receiving a selection of a command from a common menu for the first application and the second application within the main application; and

facilitating performance of an action by the first application or the second application in response to the receiving the selection.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the first position and the second position correspond to tabs within the main application.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the first application is a first program and the second application is an earlier version of the program or a different program.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the main application is reusable for a different first application or a different second application.