System for operating an installation by editing graphic objects

• US 7,734,357 B2
• Filed: 05/13/2005
• Issued: 06/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Wolf, Gunnar
• Primary Examiner(s): Bahta; Kidest
• Application Number:
  US11/628,514
• Publication Number:
  US 20070244582A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,852 Days
• Field of Search: 700/17, 700/83, 700/79, 700/65, 700/169, 700/18, 700/87, 700 95- 96, 715/516, 715/530, 715/812, 715/853, 709/221, 709/223, 709/220, 345/160, 705/7, 707 6- 10, 707/100, 707103-104, 707/37
• US Class Current: 700/17
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0426 Programming the control sequence

Abstract

A system is used to operate partial units of a technical installation by editing graphic objects, the system contains a graphic editor and a data editor. During the selection of a graphic object by the graphic editor, the data editor, which produces or modifies the control and configuration data and signals for a technical installation which is to be controlled, is called. The selection of the user is examined, in relation to the plausibility and consistency thereof, for the predetermined operational state of the technical installation. Subsequently, the modified and current configuration data is visualized in the graphic editor and the graphic object is modified based on the graphic object selected by the user.

Claims

1. A system for operator control of subunits of a technical installation by editing graphical objects, the system comprising:

a graphics editor for monitoring and analyzing a user operator control command;

a data editor, being started by said graphics editor, when a user selects a graphical object, said data editor producing and/or updating configuration data for a represented subunit and the configuration data being associated with the graphical object selected, then said graphics editor visually displaying the graphical object with an updated association between the updated configuration data and associated updated graphs, said data editor using the updated configuration data to control or reconfigure the technical installation or the subunits;

a symbol database connected to and supplying graphical objects to said graphics editor, the graphical objects graphically representing the respective subunits in the technical installation; and

a process data element updating and combining measured process data from the respective subunits for forming the updated graphs for the respective subunits.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said graphics editor, when editing a graphical object, compares a consistency of a graphical user selection made by the user on a basis of the graphical object selected with an association function, and allows said data editor to be called only if the association is admissible.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein said data editor takes the graphical user selection in said graphics editor as a basis for updating the configuration data for the graphically represented subunits.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein said data editor compares a consistency of the updated configuration data for the selected subunit with admissible configurations of the technical installation, and buffer-stores the updated configuration data formed in said data editor only if consistency exists.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein said data editor checks a consistency of updated process data elements for the selected subunit with admissible operating states of the technical installation and/or with user stipulations, and buffer-stores the updated configuration data formed in said data editor only if consistency exists.

6. The system according to claim 2, wherein the consistency of the graphical objects selected by the user with a graphical depiction of the technical installation is checked using the association function, the updated configuration data within the technical installation and/or updated process data elements with admissible operating states within the technical installation using intelligent expert systems.

7. The system according to claim 4, wherein said data editor uses the buffer-stored, updated configuration data to produce an update data record in a graphics data format.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein said graphics editor imports the update data record buffer-stored in a graphics data format and allocates it to the associated graphical object.

9. The system according to claim 7, wherein the configuration data and/or the update data record are stored in a form of shared memory mapped files and can be used jointly with other system components.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein said data editor analyzes the updated configuration data for the selected subunit and makes and buffer-stores technically required additions.

11. The system according to claim 10, wherein said graphics editor analyzes the technically required additions documented in the update data record and alters the graphical object accordingly, with only the graphs associated with the selected subunit being updated.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein the technical installation is a supply line network.

13. The system according to claim 2, wherein said association function is an association table.

14. The system according to claim 6, wherein the intelligent expert systems are neural networks.

15. The system according to claim 7, wherein the graphics data format is an XML format.

16. The system according to claim 12, wherein the supply line network is selected from the group consisting of high-voltage networks, gas networks and water networks.

17. A document database for storing files selected from the group consisting of configuration data, process data elements and update data records, in a technical installation and its subunit, in a system for the operator control of subunits in the technical installation by editing graphical objects, the document data base comprising:

a data editor;

a graphics editor for monitoring and analyzing a user operator control command, said graphics editor starting a data editor when a user selects a graphical object;

said data editor producing and/or updating configuration data for a represented subunit and the configuration data being associated with the graphical object selected, then said graphics editor visually displays the graphical object selected with an updated association between the updated configuration data and associated updated graphs, said data editor using the updated configuration data to control or reconfigure the technical installation or the subunits;

a symbol database connected to and supplying graphical objects to said graphics editor, the graphical objects graphically representing the respective subunits in the technical installation; and

a process data element updating and combining measured process data from the respective subunits for forming the updated graphs for the respective subunits.

18. A method for operator control of subunits in a technical installation by editing graphical objects, which comprises the steps of:

providing a graphics editor;

providing a symbol database from which it is possible to take graphical objects using the graphics editor, with the graphical objects graphically representing respective subunits in the technical installation;

creating a process data element in which all measured process data in the technical installation are updated and are combined to form graphs for the respective subunits;

monitoring and analyzing a user operator control command of the graphics editor by the graphics editor;

starting a data editor when the user selects a graphical object, the data editor produces or updates configuration data for a represented subunit which are associated with the graphical object selected;

using the graphics editor for logically combining the graphical object with an updated association for the updated configuration data and visually displays it with the associated updated graph; and

the data editor using the updated configuration data to control or reconfigure the technical installation or the respective subunits.

19. A method for checking a selection of objects, where the objects respectively represent subunits in a technical installation and the subunits can be controlled and configured using configuration data, the selection of the objects producing or altering the configuration data associated with the represented subunit, which comprises the steps of:

checking a consistency of selected objects in respect of already available objects using an association function;

subsequently an admissible object selection in line with the association function prompts the configuration data associated with the represented subunit to be updated and the consistency of the updated configuration data for the selected subunit to be checked using admissible configurations of the technical installation; and

an admissible selection in line with the association function prompts the process data elements associated with the represented subunit to be updated and the consistency of the then updated process data elements for the selected subunit to be checked using admissible operating states of the technical installation; and

processing further the object selection, the updated configuration data and the updated process elements only if the object selection, the updated configuration data and the updated process elements are consistent.

20. The method according to claim 19, which further comprises providing an association table as the association function.

21. A computer program product for operator control of subunits in a technical installation by editing graphical objects, when stored in a computer memory and executed on a computer, the computer program product configuring the computer to comprise:

a graphics editor , a user operator control command of said graphics editor being monitored and analyzed;

a data editor being started when a user selects a graphical object, said data editor producing or updating configuration data for a represented subunit which are associated with a graphical object selected, said graphics editor then logically combining the graphical object with an updated association of the updated configuration data, and said data editor using the updated configuration data to control or reconfigure the technical installation or the respective subunits;

a symbol database connected to said graphics editor and from which it is possible to take graphical objects using said graphics editor, the graphical objects graphically representing the respective subunits in the technical installation; and

a process data element in which all measured process data for the technical installation are updated and are combined to form graphs for the respective subunits.