Application modifier based on operating environment parameters

• US 7,644,262 B1
• Filed: 08/30/2007
• Issued: 01/05/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Bromley, Clifton Harold, Virji, Shafin A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRAN, VINCENT HUY
• Application Number:
  US11/848,162
• Time in Patent Office: 859 Days
• Field of Search: 713/1, 717/136, 717/148
• US Class Current: 713/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44505 Configuring for program initiating, e.g. using registry, configuration files

Abstract

A system and method adapted to modify or configure an application based, at least, upon a parameter of an operating environment. An interrogation component adapted to interrogate an operating environment receiving defining parameters. A modification component adapted to modify the application based, at least, upon the defining parameters of the operating environment.

Claims

1. A system for modifying an application, the system comprising:

an interrogation component adapted to determine parameters associated with an operating environment for the application; and

a modification component adapted to;

automatically configure the application based, in part, upon the determined parameters so that the application will function as desired within the operating environment; and

interact with a virtual code component to configure generic code of the application in accordance with the determined parameters of the operating environment, wherein the generic code of the application is independent of an underlying platform, and wherein the interrogation component or the modification component is adapted to employ an inference scheme for filtering desirable applications and filtering desirable parameter interrogation questions.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the interrogation component or the modification component is adapted to utilize an artificial intelligence technique.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the interrogation component is adapted to perform an artificial intelligence technique to determine the parameters associated with the operating environment for the application.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the modification component is adapted to perform the artificial intelligence technique to configure the application based, at least, upon the determined parameters.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising an application and parameter data store configured to store at least one of the filtered desirable applications and at least one of the filtered desirable parameter interrogation questions.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein artificial intelligence technique is adapted to be utilized within the application and parameter data store to facilitate a user choice of whether the filtered desirable application is to be stored within the application and parameter data store or not.

7. The system of claim 1, the system being employed in an industrial automation environment and being adapted to utilize at least one industrial automation programming language.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the virtual code component is adapted to utilize .NET virtual machine code-ability mechanisms to convert managed code into native computer assembly.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the virtual code component is further adapted to utilize .NET to morph application code to the underlying platform at runtime.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the interrogation component or the modification component is further adapted to employ the inference scheme for at least one of:

filtering desirable configurations for the application, filtering desirable interrogations for the operating environment or filtering desirable generic applications.

11. A method for modifying an application, the method comprising:

employing a processor executing computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable medium to perform the following acts;

determining, for the application via interrogation based on an artificial intelligence technique, parameters associated with an operating environment, the interrogation comprising providing a series of parameter interrogation questions for configuring the application, wherein the series of parameter interrogation questions is provided in an order determined by the artificial intelligence technique; and

modifying automatically configuring the application based, in part, upon the determined parameters, such that generic code is configured in accordance with the determined parameters of the operating environment, the generic code of the application being independent of an underlying platform.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising converting managed code into native computer assembly utilizing .NET virtual machine code-ability mechanisms.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the artificial intelligence technique is also employed to configure the application based, at least, upon the determined parameters.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising storing the application and at least one of the parameter interrogation questions.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the artificial intelligence technique is employed to infer an importance of having the application stored within the application and data store.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising storing one or more historical application configurations.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising displaying information indicative of the application and information indicative of the operating environment.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising employing .NET to morph application code to the underlying platform at runtime.

19. A system for modifying an application, the system comprising:

an interrogation means for determining, via interrogation, parameters associated with an operating environment for the application, wherein the interrogation means is configured to perform the interrogation by transmitting to the operating environment a series of parameter interrogation questions for configuring the application, the series of the parameter interrogation questions being in an order determined by an inference scheme; and

a modification means for automatically configuring the application based, in part, upon the determined parameters so that the application will function as desired within the operating environment, wherein the modification means is adapted to interact with a virtual code component to configure generic code of the application in accordance with the determined parameters of the operating environment, wherein the generic code of the application is independent of an underlying platform, and

wherein the virtual code component includes;

a code analyzer configured to receive the generic code and determine a native coding language of the generic code; and

a code generator configured to utilize .NET virtual machine code-ability mechanisms to convert managed code into native computer assembly, the virtual code component being communicatively coupled to a generic application data store configured to store generic application data.