Platform independent historian

• US 7,882,218 B2
• Filed: 09/27/2007
• Issued: 02/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Palmieri, Frank Anthony Jr., Baier, John J., Campbell, John T., McGreevy, Robert J., Herbst, Robert J., Jasper, Taryl J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrell; Robert B
• Application Number:
  US11/863,216
• Publication Number:
  US 20090089695A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,223 Days
• Field of Search: 709/224
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25204 Translate between different communication protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/45 Network directories; Name-to-address mapping

Abstract

Systems and methods that provide for historians communicating in a plurality of protocols/languages with various resources via employing an abstraction component that normalizes such communication. Accordingly, the historian can supply a common configuration for various data (e.g., events, command, event, alarm, scenarios, transactions, messages, and the like), and hence provide support for third party devices. The abstraction component can further facilitate: Filtering, Bridging, Routing, Propagation, Transformation and Monitoring of data exchange with third party devices.

Claims

1. An industrial automation system, comprising:

a plurality of embedded historians that collect data associated with the industrial automation system, the plurality of embedded historians are distributed among a plurality of tiers of an organizational hierarchy data model; and

at least one processor that executes at least an abstraction component stored on at least one non-transitory computer readable medium, wherein the abstraction component normalizes communications between the embedded historians and one or more industrial units within the industrial automation system by employing a plurality of protocols.

2. The industrial automation system of claim 1, wherein the abstraction component further comprising a locator component that detects at least one of the plurality of embedded historians or the one or more industrial units.

3. The industrial automation system of claim 2, wherein the organizational hierarchy data model includes nodes that represent the one or more industrial units associated with the industrial automation system.

4. The industrial system of claim 3, wherein the organizational hierarchy data model facilitates determining data context for data collection.

5. The industrial system of claim 3, the organizational hierarchy data model employs metadata for identification of the plurality of embedded historians to the locator component.

6. The industrial automation system of claim 2, wherein the locator component is operatively connected to a directory service to facilitate discovery service.

7. The industrial system of claim 2, further comprising a publish and subscribe component that identifies the plurality of embedded historians to the locator component.

8. The industrial automation system of claim 1, wherein the abstraction component further comprising a message transport component that enables transfer of messages between at least one application on the one or more industrial units, which is unfamiliar with a protocol employed by the plurality of embedded historians.

9. The industrial automation system of claim 1 further comprising an artificial intelligence component that facilitates identification of the data collected by the plurality of embedded historians.

10. The industrial automation system of claim 1 further comprising a Human Machine Interface (HMI) to graphically display a view of the industrial automation system.

11. The industrial automation system of claim 1 further comprising a graphical user interface (GUI) that forms an application view of a historian data collection system.

12. The industrial system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of embedded historians are associated with at least one of a controller, a module in a chassis, a server, a sensor, or a factory component.

13. A method of locating embedded historians within an industrial plant comprising:

collecting data via a plurality of embedded historians exposed across various levels of an organization; and

employing at least one processor to execute computer executable instructions stored on at least one non-transitory computer readable medium for normalizing communication between the plurality of embedded historians and one or more industrial units employing a plurality of protocols by supplying a common configuration for different types of data.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising identifying a data type for collection by the plurality of embedded historians.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising detecting an embedded historian that collects the data type via a locator component.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising defining a common organizational data model that represents the various levels of the organization associated with the industrial plant.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising employing a directory to track source of data.

18. The method of claim 16 further comprising collecting historian data across various levels of the industrial plant.

19. The method of claim 15 further comprising employing metadata to facilitate a trail to the embedded historian.

20. An industrial controller system comprising:

hardware means for processing;

non-transitory means for storing computer executable instructions that, in response to execution by the means for processing, implement;

means for collecting data related to an industrial process across at least two disparate levels of the industrial controller system;

means for locating the means for collecting;

means for supplying a common configuration for different type of data to at least one industrial unit; and

means for abstracting communication between the means for collecting and the at least one industrial unit.