Process control system

• US 6,571,273 B1
• Filed: 06/29/1999
• Issued: 05/27/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Yokogawa Electric Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yokogawa Electric Corporation
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Shuji, Kumagai, Hiroshi, Hoshino, Umihiko, Inoue, Takeshi, Shirai, Toshiaki, Ura, Naoki
• Primary Examiner(s): Powell, Mark
• Assistant Examiner(s): VU, THONG H
• Application Number:
  US09/342,712
• Time in Patent Office: 1,428 Days
• Field of Search: 709/201, 709/220, 709/239, 709/315, 709/305, 700/86, 700/1, 700/18, 700/223, 710/200, 707/10, 345/840, 345/866, 358/1.9, 717/136
• US Class Current: 709/201
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23255 Object oriented programming, OOP
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23293 Automated assembly of machine control software, reusable software components
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23304 Download program from host
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23389 Modular program, each process has corresponding program module

Abstract

An improved process control sytem wherein objects having functions for configuring a process control system are distributed and arranged in a plurality of computers connected to a network and each distributed and arranged object shares the functions of the process control system; information component cassettes are provided having individual information related to monitoring and operation and methods to display the information in an optimum display form, and the cassettes are provided according to the types of information; an information component deck is provided which arranges the information component cassettes and offers a unified interface for accessing the information component cassettes; and control objects are provided for controlling a plant and display objects for monitoring and operation of the plants, the control objects and display objects being related to each other and operated in association with each other.

Claims

1. A process control system comprising:

a network;

a plant which has a process to be controlled;

a plurality of computers connected to said network for communication therebetween, each of said plurality of computers comprising a memory unit with an object storage therein, said object containing a function which is independently changeable with use of software, said plurality of computers comprising a first computer having a first memory unit having an object therein with a process input-output function, a second comptuer having a second memory unit having an operation function, a third computer having a third memory unit having a control function, and a fourth computer having a fourth memory unit having a data processing function,

said object of each computer memory unit having a different selected function with a combination of said functions of said memory units constructing a distributive process control in said plurality of computers with each object of each different memory unit sharing a function of the process control with at least another-object;

means for providing process control signals between said plant and said first computer;

means for providing an input signal to said second computer so that said operating function stored in said second memory unit causes said control function of said third computer memory unit to cause said input-output functions of said first computer memory unit to control the plant process utilizing said data processing function of said fourth computer memory unit and based on information previously stored in a separate memory unit and causing display of the resulting processed information related to said processing control, control whereby control is effected independently of hardware of the system and change of a particular function is attained without disturbing other functions.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said objects have at least one of the following functions:

monitoring and operating functions, an engineering function, a process input-output functions, data processing function, and a control function; and

wherein any object shares with another object each of said functions.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein each object is stored with a name tag.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said separate memory unit is contained in a separate computer, said separate computer also comprising:

an engineering unit, an object information storage unit for storing object information data, and a communicating unit so that control of said plant is effected utilizing said engineering unit and said object information.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising in each computer:

a life cycle management unit which functions to manage, create, delete and move said objects, and an interface unit for exchanging information between said objects and carried out separately from providing said objects in said plurality of computers.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising means for encapsulating each of said objects and wherein data characterization function of an object and a method of realizing a predetermined function utilizing data are integrated.

7. A process control system for controlling and operating a plant by controlling process variables existing in said plant, said system comprising:

a network;

a plurality of computers connected to said network for communication therebetween, said plurality of computers having a plurality of objects comprising data and operating functions which are changeable by software and are configured to provide a process control system;

a first memory unit in said plurality of computers offering residing areas for a plurality of autonomously operable information component cassettes which are objects having a plurality of information related to monitoring and operating said plant, an access method for accessing said plurality of information, and a viewing method for displaying said plurality of information in an optimum form, each of said information component cassettes being provided with different types of information;

input means for providing input signals to said first memory unit;

a second memory unit in said plurality of computers offering residing areas for objects having a control function, object information, and input-output functions, so that responsive to input signals from said input means said plurality of computers cause said control function utilizing said input-output functions to cause control signals to be transmitted between said plurality of computers and said plant and based on said object information to monitor and operate said plant; and

display control unit for displaying on a display screen information relating to monitoring and operating said plant based on autonomous operation of a component cassette having that information being displayed.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein said first memory unit further comprises residing areas for an information component deck that arranges the component cassettes in a selective manner and offers a unified interface for accessing the information in the component cassettes.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising an alteration unit for dynamically adding or deleting one or more said plurality of component cassettes from or to said information component deck.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein said information component cassettes comprise accessing and viewing information.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein said accessing and viewing information are changeable with each cassette.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein said objects are tagged.

13. A process control system for controlling and operating a plant by controlling process variables that exist in said plant, said system comprising:

a network;

a plurality of computers connected to said network for communications therebetween, said plurality of computers having objects with data and operating functions which are configured to provide a process control system;

a memory unit provided in said plurality of computers and offering residing areas for a plurality of control objects performing functions for controlling said plant, and a plurality of display objects for displaying objects that function as human interfaces required for monitoring and operating said plant, wherein said plurality of control objects and said plurality of display objects are operated autonomously in association with each other;

control means provided in said plurality of computers for controlling said plant based on autonomous operation of said plurality of control objects in association with said plurality of display objects, and utilizing control signals transmitted between said plurality of computers and said plant; and

a display control unit provided in said plurality of computers for displaying a screen that functions as a human interface based on autonomous operation of said plurality of display objects operated in association with said plurality of control objects;

wherein each of said plurality of computers has a distributed and arranged object which shares operating functions of the process control system and wherein said operating functions are represented by function blocks which are independent and autonomous.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

means for downloading said plurality of control objects to a separate computer wherein said control means resides, and for down-loading display objects correlated to said control objects to a computer, wherein said display control resides, respectively, upon start of control; and

means for causing said downloading of control object and display object to thereby exchange data with each other and thereby execute control and display operations.

15. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

means for assigning the same tag names to said control object and said display object that operate in association with each other so that both said control object and said display object recognize each other based on said tag names.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein said display object displays control data received from an associated control object.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein said control object causes processing of setting data received from an associated dispay object.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein said plurality of control objects include a control function in charge of process control, and wherein said plurality of display objects include a display object for monitoring and operating function and for displaying information related to process control.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein said display object has a display function in charge of displaying information required for process control.

20. A process control system comprising:

a network;

a plurality of computers connected to said network for communication therebetween; and

a plurality of separate function blocks arranged in said said plurality of computers and convertible to a plurality of separate objects being combined to construct a process control system distributed and arranged in said plurality of computers with each distributed and arranged object sharing one or more functions of said process control system so that functions represented by said plurality of separate function blocks are independent and autonomous and so that a particular function is added, deleted or changed without affecting other functions and while said process control system is kept in continuous operation.