Control system, display device, control-use host computer, and data transmission method

• US 6,867,749 B1
• Filed: 04/23/1999
• Issued: 03/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Schneider Electric Japan Holdings Ltd. (Schneider Electric SE)
• Original Assignee: Digital Electronics Corporation (Schneider Electric SE)
• Inventors: II, Nobuhiro, Yoshida, Minoru, Kato, Satoshi, Shinohara, Akio, Morigaki, Yuichi
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, RAMESH B
• Application Number:
  US09/674,175
• Time in Patent Office: 2,153 Days
• Field of Search: 700/19, 700/20, 700/17, 700/83, 700/65, 700/66, 709/200, 709/217, 345/1.1, 345/4
• US Class Current: 345/1.1
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0421 Multiprocessor system
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/052 Linking several PLC's
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4185 characterised by the network communication
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25012 Two different bus systems
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31087 Transmission device between workcell and central control
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31088 Network communication between supervisor and cell, machine group
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31227 External network for proces data, internal network for transport, handling only
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31369 Translation, conversion of protocol between two layers, networks
• 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 system including control devices with each control device including a control unit and a display device connected with the control unit via a dedicated communication line and being capable of display corresponding to a control state of the control unit. The display device includes a communication port connected with a control unit and a communication port connected with a data processing device, and a data processing section. Further, the data transmission method includes a dedicated protocol communication transmitting data with a processing device and a common protocol communication transmitting data with another processing device. In addition, the control-host computer used in the control system includes a control unit controlling a control target and a display device.

Claims

1. A display device, comprising:

a first data communication port connected with a control unit having a predetermined dedicated communication protocol specialized for said control unit itself;

a second data communication port connected with a certain data processing device;

a data processing section that processes data inputted and outputted through said first and second data communication ports, in accordance with a procedure set beforehand; and

a display section that provides a display corresponding to information processed by said data processing section,

wherein said display device executes data communication with said control unit according to the dedicated communication protocol of said control unit and said display device executes data communication with said data processing device according to the common communication protocol.

2. The display device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said data processing section is connected with an operating section, so that a timing of data processing and contents of the processing by said data processing section is manually instructed by said operating section.

3. A display device as set forth in claim 1, further comprising:

a data input section for downloading, from outside said device, data for communication according to the dedicated communication protocol.

4. A display device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said control unit connected to said first data communication port is a programmable logic controller capable of performing a predetermined control operation by means of a program incorporated, and said data processing device connected with said second data communication port is a programmable display device arranged substantially identically to said display device, said first data communication port of said programmable display device also being connected with a programmable logic controller.

5. The display device as set forth in claim 4, wherein said data processing section enables a predetermined display control operation on said display section by forming a display by providing one or a plurality of processing instruction words (W) each defining a unit data processing operation on one unit screen, and by effecting the processing instruction word (W) at predetermined intervals, the processing instruction word (W) causes addresses for storage of state data (MD) in all of said programmable logic controllers G to be designatable as reference information (r), while in each data processing section at which the processing instruction word (W) is effected, necessary data are sent via said second data communication port according to the common protocol to said display device connected with said programmable logic controller designated as the reference information (r) and said display device having received the data causes necessary data to be transmittable to said programmable logic controller connected therewith, according to a protocol dedicated for said programmable logic controller via said first data communication port.

6. A display device as set forth in claim 1, further comprising:

a conversion table storing section that stores a conversion table showing correspondence between special information of said programmable logic controller that is extracted from the dedicated protocol on one hand and common information transmitted according to the common protocol on the other hand,

wherein said data processing section converts the common information received from said common communication line, into the special information, referring to said conversion table.

7. A display device as set forth in claim 6, further comprising:

a format information storing section for storing a data transfer format of transfer information transmitted according to the dedicated protocol,

wherein said data processing section produces the transfer information by substituting the converted special information for an undefined portion of the data transfer format.

8. The display device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said display section and said data processing section are provided in one case.

9. A display device as set forth in claim 1, further comprising:

a protocol determining section that sends out preset data according to a communication protocol selected from among a group of protocols applicable for communication of itself, prior to data transmission with said control unit, and in the case where a response from said control unit coincides with a predetermined response, determines the communication protocol as a communication protocol used for the data transmission with said control unit.

10. A display device comprising:

a first data communication port connected with a first control unit having a predetermined first communication protocol specialized for and dedicated for said first control unit;

a second data communication port for enabling data communication with another display device connected with a second control unit having a predetermined second communication protocol specialized for and dedicated for said second control unit;

a data processing section that processes data inputted and outputted via said first and second data communication ports and in accordance with a procedure set beforehand;

a display section that provides a display corresponding to information processed by said data processing section; and

an input section for inputting the first communication protocol from outside,

wherein data communication with said another display device is executed according to a common communication protocol.

11. A recording medium storing a program that directs a computer to function as a display device, said computer having a first data communication port (11) connected with a control unit (2) having a predetermined dedicated communication protocol specialized for said control unit (2) itself, a second data communication port (12) connected with a certain data processing device (5, 7), and display means (14), said recording medium storing:

a program that directs said computer to function as;

a data processing section (13) that processes, through a predetermined procedure, data inputted and outputted through said first and second data communication ports (11, 12); and

a display section (14) that provides a display corresponding to the information processed by said data processing section (13), and,

a program that directs said computer to function as;

first communication means (11) that executes data communication with said control unit (2) according to a dedicated communication protocol, by controlling said first data communication port (11); and

second communication means (12) that executes data communication with said data processing device (5, 7) according to a common communication protocol, by controlling said second data communication port (12).

12. A recording medium storing a program that directs a computer to function as a display device, said computer having a first data communication port (11) connected with a first control unit (2α

) having a predetermined first communication protocol specialized for and dedicated for said first control unit (2α

), a second data communication port (12) for enabling data communication with another display device (3β

) connected with a second control unit (2β

) having a predetermined second communication protocol specialized for and dedicated for said second control unit (2β

), and display means (14), said recording medium storing;

a program that directs said computer to function as;

a data processing section (13) that processes, through a predetermined procedure, data inputted and outputted through said first and second data communication ports (11, 12);

a display section (14) that provides a display corresponding to the information processed by said data processing section (13);

an input section (16, 12) that inputs the first communication protocol from outside; and

communication means (12) that executes data communication with said another display device (3β

) according to a common communication protocol, by controlling said second data communication port (12).