Simulation system of technical plant

• US 7,756,696 B2
• Filed: 08/07/2002
• Issued: 07/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/07/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Kleyer, Dieter
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah; Kamini S
• Assistant Examiner(s): GEBRESILASSIE, KIBROM K
• Application Number:
  US10/212,864
• Publication Number:
  US 20030033133A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,897 Days
• Field of Search: 703/13, 703/22, 700/47, 702/62
• US Class Current: 703/18
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 25/02 of industrial processes; of machinery

Abstract

A simulation system includes a simulation computer having a Web server and a client computer with an Internet browser. On the simulation computer, a process engineering process model of a technical plant is available, to which access can be made by the client computer via the Internet. In preferred embodiments, the simulation computer additionally includes an automation engineering process model of the technical plant, operation and observation software and a project engineering tool for changing the aforementioned programs in the simulation computer.

Claims

1. A simulation system for simulating a technical plant, the simulation system comprising:

at least one simulation computer, including

at least one process engineering process model of a technical plant to be simulated as a software program, the process engineering process model being configured to simulate a process engineering process running in the technical plant, the technical plant being produced by a series of interacting plant components and a mathematical model, the interacting plant components being represented by a graphical display of the interacting plant components and of connections between the interacting plant components, and the mathematical model including a set of equations including dependent and independent variables of the process engineering process,

an automation engineering process model belonging to an automation engineering device used for at least one of monitoring, controlling and regulating the technical plant, as a software program, the automation engineering process model being configured to simulate functionality of automation devices, which are used in an actual technical plant, for at least one of monitoring, controlling and regulating plant components, the automation process model including a further set of mathematical equations for simulating at least one of control and regulation algorithms used in the automation devices, wherein

if automation functions are implemented in the actual technical plant in the form of a hardware solution, the automation functions include the automation engineering process model,

a Web server for connecting to at least one of an Internet and an Intranet, so that access to the process model can be made via at least one of the Internet and the Intranet, and

an O&

O software program for operation and observation of the simulated technical plant; and

at least one client computer, including an Internet browser for connecting the at least one client computer to at least one of the Internet and the Intranet;

wherein

the simulation computer includes a project engineering tool as a software program, the project engineering tool being capable of changing at least one of the process engineering process model, the automation engineering process model and the O&

O software program,

the at least one client computer accesses, via the internet, each of the software programs on the simulation computer for simulating the technical plant, and

the same O&

O software program is for executing on both the simulation computer and at an actual technical plant for operation and observation of the actual technical plant.

2. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein the technical plant is a power plant.

3. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein the power plant is a gas or steam plant.

4. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein the simulation of the technical plant includes at least one of simulation of startup and shutdown of an engineering process.

5. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein an engineering process is simulated in real-time, slow mode or fast mode.

6. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein the project engineering tool is a software tool for design, analysis and construction of works for practical purposes.

7. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein the client computer and the simulation computer are configured such that the client computer is capable of operating the simulation computer, the client computer being geographically separated from the simulation computer.

8. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein the simulation computer includes a plurality of process models.

9. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein the at least one simulation computer simulates a plurality of technical plants, and the simulation computer is not co-located with the technical plant.

10. The simulation system of claim 1, wherein the at least one client computer is co-located with the technical plant and the at least one simulation computer is geographically separated from the technical plant and the at least one client computer, and wherein the at least one client computer accesses, via the Internet browser, the at least one process engineering process model, the automation engineering process model and the O&

O software program to execute simulation of the technical plant.

11. The simulation system of claim 10, wherein the at least one simulation computer includes a plurality of process models, each of the plurality of process models simulating one of a plurality of technical plants.

12. The simulation system of claim 10, wherein the at least one client computer executes and controls the simulation of the technical plant being run on the at least one simulation computer via the Internet browser.