WEB-BASED INTERACTION WITH BUILDING AUTOMATION

• US 20150160628A1
• Filed: 12/06/2013
• Published: 06/11/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Schweiz AG (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Kalafut, Robert L., Brun, Gerhard, Schlumberger, Andreas, Sigrist, Ralph
• Granted Patent: US 10,671,030 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2836 Protocol conversion between an external network and a home network controlling appliance services of a home automation network from a device located outside the home and the home network H04L12/2818; protocol conversion H04L69/08; adaptation of digital video signals for transport over a specific home network H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/40221 Profibus
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/40228 Modbus
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/4026 Bus for use in automation systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

Web-based interaction with building automation is provided. The interaction, regardless of the access point, is browser based. For IP access, hypertext protocol (http) communications of the browser are performed. The web-enabled controller serves responses with building automation information. For non-IP access, a web-server operating as an application in the same device as the browser intercepts the http communication and reformats the communication as appropriate for the non-IP access. Based on a response from the building automation system, the device local web-server responds to the browser. For communicating across different types of networks in the building automation system, controllers may use the embedded web-server to reformat as needed and route requests. The same look, feel, functionality, and/or usability may be provided using the browser regardless of the connectivity to the building automation network.

Claims

1. A system for web-based interaction with building automation, the system comprising:

a building automation network including at least a first operations or monitoring device hosting a first web-server and first building automation logic, a first room unit, and a communications link between the first operations or monitoring device and the first room unit; and

a first computer hosting a web browser and a second web-server, the web browser configured to access the first building automation logic through the web-server, the first computer configured to access the first building automation logic through the first room unit and the communications link using the web browser interacting with the second web-server.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the communications link is a PL-link and wherein the first computer connects with the first room unit through a PL-link port to access the first building automation logic through the first room unit.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the first computer is connectable with the first operations or monitoring device through a networking protocol to access the first building automation logic through the web-server.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the networking protocol comprises an Internet protocol on an Ethernet network.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the first computer is directly connectable with the first operations or monitoring device through a port to access the first building automation logic through the web-server.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the first computer comprises a personal computer, laptop, or tablet, and wherein the web browser comprises a program for retrieving information using a uniform resource locator.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the first computer includes first presentation logic with the second web server, and wherein the first operations or management device includes second presentation logic with the first web-server, the first and second presentation logic configured to control a presentation of building automation information from the first building automation logic.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the first and second presentation logic are configured to create a user interface with the web browser where the user interface includes a same format for access to the first building automation logic through the first room unit and through the first operations or management device.

9. The system of claim 7 wherein the first and second presentation logic are identical.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the first computer is configured to operate with the access to the first building automation logic through the first web-server or the second web-server, the operation depending on a connection of the first computer with the building automation network.

11. The system of claim 1 further comprising a second operations or monitoring device hosting a router, the second operations or monitoring device connected to the first operations or monitoring device through a master-slave token pathing network, the router configured to route communications to and from the browser to the first operations or monitoring device.

12. The system of claim 1 wherein the second web-server is configured as an application on the first computer.

13. A method for web-based interaction with building automation, the method comprising:

sending, by a web browser operating on a computer, a browser request for building automation information from a first building automation panel of a building automation system;

receiving the browser request at a second building automation panel of the building automation system, the browser request sent from the computer to the second building automation panel on a first type of network of the building automation system;

routing, by the second building automation panel, the browser request to the first building automation panel;

receiving the browser request at the first building automation panel from the second building automation panel, the browser request sent from the second building automation panel to the first building automation panel on a second type of network of the building automation system, the second type of network being a different type than the first type of network; and

responding, by the first building automation panel, to the browser request with the building automation information.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein receiving at the second building automation panel comprises receiving from a PL-link as the first type of network, and wherein receiving at the first building automation panel comprises receiving from a master-slave token pathing as the second type of network.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein receiving at the second building automation panel comprises receiving from an Internet Protocol network as the first type of network, and wherein receiving at the first building automation panel comprises receiving from a master-slave token pathing as the second type of network.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein sending comprises:

intercepting the browser request in the computer by a web server; and

formatting the browser request for the first type of network for sending.

17. The method of claim 13 wherein sending comprises sending the browser request in a http format, and wherein routing comprises:

intercepting the browser request in the second building automation panel by a web server; and

formatting the browser request for the second type of network for routing to the first building automation panel.

18. The method of claim 13 further comprising listening, by the second building automation component, for the browser request on at least first, second, and third ports, a first port for the first type of network, the second port for the second type of network, and the third port for a third type of network different than the first and second types of networks.

19. In a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored therein data representing instructions executable by a programmed processor for web-based interaction with building automation, the storage medium comprising instructions for:

operating both a browser and a web-server by a computer connected with a building automation system;

intercepting a hypertext transport protocol (http) request from the browser of the computer by the web-server of the computer, the http request being for building automation information;

reformatting the http request into a building automation request for transfer over a serial link;

transmitting the building automation request over the serial link;

receiving a building automation response to the building automation request by the web-server; and

serving a browser response to the http request by the web-server, the browser response being a function of the building automation response.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 19 wherein reformatting comprises reformatting for transfer over a PL-link, further comprising operating presentation logic for the browser in the computer, and wherein transmitting comprises transmitting to an operations and monitoring unit of the building automation system.