Configuration and method for operating a technical installation

• US 7,890,437 B2
• Filed: 04/21/2005
• Issued: 02/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Wee, Bun-Kee, Schwab, Lothar, Schneider, Martin, Kühner, Claus
• Primary Examiner(s): Holmes; Michael B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kim; David H
• Application Number:
  US11/587,984
• Publication Number:
  US 20070250188A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,126 Days
• Field of Search: 700/83, 700/5, 707/999.008, 706/11
• US Class Current: 706/11
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0426 Programming the control sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41865 characterised by job scheduling, process planning, material flow
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24215 Scada supervisory control and data acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32404 Scada supervisory control and data acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

A computer-aided configuration for a technical installation includes a presentation layer with operator control interfaces, an application layer containing all applications, a realtime basic processing layer for providing all applications and operator control interfaces with information and a data manager for creating and maintaining data models for operating and system functions. One such configuration is constructed in such a way that the structure thereof is favorable to extension and offers high availability. The applications in the realtime basic processing layer are respectively combined to form bundles, wherein the same data model is respectively common to the applications of a bundle. The data of a respective application bundle is stored in an application bundle storage unit as shared memory mapped files. A method for operating such a configuration includes storing the data in the realtime basic processing layer in an application bundle storage unit as shared memory mapped files.

Claims

1. A computer-aided configuration for a technical installation, the configuration comprising:

a presentation layer with operator control interfaces for operation and engineering;

an application layer containing all applications;

an engineering unit having a data manager for creating and maintaining data models for operating and system functions;

a realtime basic processing layer for supplying all of said applications and operator control interfaces with information about the technical installation;

said applications in said realtime basic processing layer being respectively combined to form application bundles, and each of said application bundles having a respective underlying data model;

said application bundles respectively storing data in an application bundle storage device in the form of Shared Memory Mapped Files, on the basis of said underlying data model;

a database having data models, said data models of said application bundles in said realtime basic processing layer being associated with said data models of said database by an association function, and data in said database being transmitted to said respective relevant application bundles in line with said association function; and

a respective auxiliary manager associating said respective data in said database with said respective Shared Memory Mapped Files, and Change Log files assuring an association function between said data models.

2. The configuration according to claim 1, which further comprises a data conditioning unit disposed between said database and said Change Log files, said data conditioning unit taking said association function as a basis for aligning a data model of engineering change data with a data structure of said application bundle in which respective engineering change data become active.

3. The configuration according to claim 2, wherein said data conditioning unit produces said Change Log files and transmits said Change Log files to said relevant auxiliary managers, only in the event of a change in a data file in said database.

4. The configuration according to claim 3, wherein said Change Log files contain only said change in said data file in said database.

5. The configuration according to claim 3, wherein said change in said data file in said database occurs in the form of directly readable control commands for said relevant auxiliary managers in said Change Log files.

6. The configuration according to claim 3, wherein said auxiliary managers do not change said application bundles until after conclusion of a complete reading-in of said Change Log files.

7. The configuration according to claim 1, wherein operating data are applied to said auxiliary manager, and said auxiliary manager keeps said Shared Memory Mapped Files adjusted.

8. The configuration according to claim 7, which further comprises Thin Client interfaces preceding said auxiliary manager in a direction of action, said Thin Client interfaces being used to supply said operating data.

9. The configuration according to claim 1, which further comprises:

a further auxiliary manager associated with and operatively connected to said auxiliary manager as a redundant auxiliary manager to form a master manager;

further Change Log files preceding said further auxiliary manager in a direction of action as redundant Change Log files; and

further Shared Memory Mapped Files succeeding said further auxiliary manager in said direction of action as redundant Shared Memory Mapped Files.

10. The configuration according to claim 1, which further comprises activation agents operatively connected to said auxiliary managers, said activation agents to be controlled by one of said activation managers in a basic system in the configuration, and said activation manager acting directly on said engineering unit.

11. The configuration according to claim 2, wherein said engineering unit has a database storing engineering data and said engineering change data and separately storing said engineering change data.

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

13. The configuration according to claim 1, wherein the technical installation is a high-voltage, gas or water supply network.

14. A method for operating a computer-aided configuration, which comprises the following steps:

providing a layer structure for a supply network, having a presentation layer with operator control interfaces for operation and engineering, an application layer containing all applications, a realtime basic processing layer for supplying all applications and operator control interfaces with information about the supply network, and a data manager for creating and maintaining data models for operating and system functions;

storing the data in a respective application bundle, including combined applications with the same data model, in an application bundle storage device in the form of Shared Memory Mapped Files, in the realtime basic processing layer; and

supplying operating data directly to an auxiliary manager of an application bundle storage device in the form of Shared Memory Mapped Files, for storing an application of a respective data model having been respectively combined to form application bundles, while supplying engineering data and engineering change data to the auxiliary manager using preceding Change Log files.

15. The method according to claim 14, which further comprises supplying the operating data to the auxiliary manager directly or by using Thin Client interfaces.

16. The method according to claim 14, which further comprises applying control signals from an activation agent to the auxiliary manager, and controlling the activation agent by an activation manager in a basic system in the configuration.

17. The method according to claim 14, which further comprises in the event of an error, a further auxiliary manager connected firstly to further Change Log files, corresponding to the one Change Log file, and secondly to further Shared Memory Mapped Files, corresponding to the one Shared Memory Mapped File, reads the further Change Log files and applies the data which have been read to the further Shared Memory Mapped Files.

18. The method according to claim 14, which further comprises:

storing the engineering change data separately in a database in an engineering unit during operation of the configuration, independently of a progression thereof;

conditioning the stored data, independently of the operation of the configuration, to match a data structure of the application bundle; and

then storing the data in the Change Log files.

19. The method according to claim 18, which further comprises reading the data stored in the Change Log files during activation of the auxiliary managers and supplying the data to the Shared Memory Mapped Files.