Dynamic maintenance management system

• US 6,006,171 A
• Filed: 07/28/1997
• Issued: 12/21/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Schneider Electric Systems USA, Inc. (Schneider Electric SE)
• Original Assignee: The Foxboro Company (Schneider Electric SE)
• Inventors: McGuire, Richard A., Komarla, Sharath, Leroy, Houghton S. Jr., Vines, Caroline J.
• Primary Examiner(s): SHAH, KAMINI S
• Application Number:
  US08/901,847
• Time in Patent Office: 876 Days
• Field of Search: 702/184, 340/825.06, 340/825.19, 340/706, 376/216, 376/215, 364/188, 364/474.15, 364/474.22, 395/670
• US Class Current: 702/184
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4184 characterised by fault tolerance, reliability of production system
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32226 Computer assisted repair, maintenance of system components
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32234 Maintenance planning
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32235 Sharing of data between process control and maintenance management computers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/20 Administration of product repair or maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/80 Management or planning

Abstract

A computerized maintenance management system for the process control environment which integrates a CMMS system with a process control system. The system includes configurator software which allows users to link process control data and maintenance management data using a graphical user interface. Integration provides the ability to identify conditions requiring work order response and to either automatically respond to such conditions or to notify plant operators and engineers of required actions. The integrated system can easily associate work orders, maintenance history and equipment health with operational assets using process control objects such as motors, valves, pumps, alarms, and other device display icons.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

one or more computers operable to run process control software;

one or more computers operable to run maintenance management software; and

computer program means for enabling communication between the process control software and the maintenance management software, the computer program means including association means for associating process control process variables accessible to the process control software with maintenance management data equipment identifiers accessible to the maintenance management software, the association means including means to create a link by associating a select one of the process variables with a select one of the equipment identifiers using a common graphical user interface for both the process control software and the maintenance management software, the common graphical user interface displaying a plurality of process variables and a plurality of equipment identifiers in a dialog box, the dialog box containing controls allowing a user to indicate an association of process variables with equipment identifiers.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the association is indicated by selecting a first entry in the first column and dragging and dropping the first entry on a second entry in the second column, thereby establishing a link between the first entry and the second entry.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

permitting the user to associate with a link a procedure for handling the process variable associated with the equipment identifier by the link.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein:

in response to the user selecting a monitoring type or alarm type from among a set of displayed monitoring types and alarm types, displaying an appropriate corresponding dialog box permitting the user to select a parameter value from a plurality of parameter values.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein:

the range of parameter values includes runtime, point, process alarm, and system alarm.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein:

in response to the user selecting a parameter value of runtime, the system responds by displaying a dialog box permitting the user to select a scan rate frequency.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein:

in response to the user selecting a parameter value of point, the system responds by displaying a dialog box permitting the user to select a scan rate, high and low warning levels, and high and low action levels.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein:

in response to the user selecting a parameter value of process alarm, the system responds by displaying a dialog box permitting the user to select an alarm type.

9. The system of claim 5, wherein:

in response to the user selecting a parameter value of system alarm, the system responds by displaying a dialog box permitting the user to select an alarm subsystem and associated alarm codes.

10. A computer program, tangibly stored on a computer-readable medium, for use in a system comprising one or more computers operable to run process control software and one or more computers operable to run maintenance management software, the program comprising instructions to:

associate process control process variables accessible to the process control software with maintenance management data equipment identifiers accessible to the maintenance management software by creating a link associating a select one of the process variables with a select one of the equipment identifiers using a common graphical user interface for both the process control software and the maintenance management software, the common graphical user interface displaying a plurality of process variables and a plurality of equipment identifiers in a dialog box, the dialog box containing controls allowing a user to indicate an association of process variables with equipment identifiers.

11. A process of integrating two pre-existing separate systems, one a process control system and the other a maintenance management system, for the same plant process, comprising:

associating process control process variables accessible to the Process control software with maintenance management data equipment identifiers accessible to the maintenance management software, by creating a link associating a select one of the process variables with a select one of the equipment identifiers using a common graphical user interface for both the process control software and the maintenance management software, the common graphical user interface displaying a plurality of process variables and a plurality of equipment identifiers in a dialog box, the dialog box containing controls allowing a user to indicate an association of process variables with equipment identifiers.