Motion monitoring

• US 7,911,333 B2
• Filed: 12/01/2006
• Issued: 03/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Heimann, Thomas, Terpitz, Hagen, Büssert, Jürgen, Pavlik, Rolf-Dieter, Lange, Jürgen
• Primary Examiner(s): TRIEU, VAN THANH
• Application Number:
  US12/086,441
• Publication Number:
  US 20090072986A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,572 Days
• Field of Search: 340/679, 340/680, 340/682, 340/686.1, 340/686.2, 340/686.3, 340/438, 340/439, 340/507, 340/508, 731/180.1, 700/9, 700/21, 101/107, 101/112, 324/503
• US Class Current: 340/507
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4063 Monitoring general control system G05B19/4062 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/34483 Monitor absolute position independently by two processors, if out of range
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/34484 Use dual channels
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 9/03 with multiple-channel loop, i.e. redundant control systems

Abstract

There is described a method for motion monitoring of a machine, comprising a sensor, wherein a sensor signal is transmitted from the sensor to a controller and/or to a drive device, a failsafe controller or drive device being employed as controller or drive device. The controller or drive device comprises three independent monitoring devices in which the sensor signal is formed from a first and a second redundant actual position value.

Claims

1. A method for motion monitoring of a machine having a sensor assigned to a power unit, comprising:

transmitting a sensor signal from the sensor to a failsafe controller, wherein the failsafe controller incorporates redundantly configured monitoring devices for evaluating the sensor signal, wherein each monitoring device monitors the sensor signal independently of the respective other monitoring device and is capable to generate a control signal for activating a first or second shutdown path, wherein

the first shutdown path leads via a motor module and the second shutdown path leads via a motor controller as different components of the drive device and

the power unit is influenced by the motor module and/or the motor controller in accordance with the control signal received via the first or second shutdown path, and

transmitting the sensor signal to a drive device which is implemented at least partially in a failsafe manner.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a failsafe field bus is used for transmitting the sensor signal.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive device is assigned a further monitoring device which checks the sensor signal independently of the monitoring device of the failsafe controller and if necessary generates a control signal for activating a third shutdown path.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sensor signal is formed by a first and a second actual position value, the second actual position value acting as a redundant actual position value to the first actual position value.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the two actual position values are formed from signals supplied by the sensor at least on the basis of an output signal of a respective counter.

6. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein one of the actual position values undergoes hardware amplitude monitoring by a first amplitude monitoring functional block and/or software amplitude monitoring by a second amplitude monitoring functional block.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein either the hardware amplitude monitoring or the software amplitude monitoring if necessary generate a fault signal which flows into the sensor signal.

8. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein one of the actual position values maps a coarse and a fine position of a motor controlled by the drive device, the coarse and fine position overlapping at least in part and an overlapping region being checked for a deviation by no more than a predefined or predefinable threshold value.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein a third fault signal is generated.

10. An apparatus for motion monitoring, comprising:

a motor;

a single sensor for the motor;

a power unit, the single sensor being assigned to the power unit;

a drive device for the motor;

a failsafe controller assigned to the drive device,

wherein a sensor signal generated by the sensor is processed at least by the failsafe controller which includes redundantly configured monitoring devices,

wherein a first or second shutdown path can be activated by the redundantly configured monitoring devices, and

wherein the first shutdown path leads via a motor module and the second shutdown path leads via a motor controller as different component of the drive device,

wherein the power unit is influenced by the motor module and/or the motor controller in accordance with a control signal received via the first or second shutdown path, and

wherein the sensor signal is transmitted to the drive device which is implement at least partially in a failsafe manner.

11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the sensor signal is processed at least in the area of the drive device which for this purpose has an additional monitoring device and wherein a third shutdown path is activateable by the additional monitoring device.

12. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium encoded with a computer program, wherein the computer program when executed carries out the steps comprising:

transmitting a sensor signal from a sensor to a failsafe controller, wherein the failsafe controller incorporates redundantly configured monitoring devices for evaluating the sensor signal, wherein each monitoring device monitors the sensor signal independently of the respective other monitoring device and is capable to generate a control signal for activating a first or second shutdown path, wherein

the first shutdown path leads via a motor module and the second shutdown path leads via a motor controller as different components of the drive device and

the power unit is influenced by the motor module and/or the motor controller in accordance with the control signal received via the first or second shutdown path, and

transmitting the sensor signal to a drive device which is implemented at least partially in a failsafe manner.