PLC for distributed control and distributed control system

• US 7,912,558 B2
• Filed: 07/28/2006
• Issued: 03/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Jtekt Corporation (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Jtekt Corporation (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Araki, Tsutomu, Adams, Friedrich, Kato, Sutemaro, Niehaus, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Rodriguez; Paul L
• Assistant Examiner(s): LAUGHLIN, NATHAN L
• Application Number:
  US11/494,540
• Publication Number:
  US 20070055388A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,698 Days
• Field of Search: 700/18, 700/21, 700/5, 700 86- 87
• US Class Current: 700/5
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/052 Linking several PLC's
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/1204 Multiprocessing, several plc's, distributed logic control
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/1208 Communication, exchange of control, I-O data between different plc,

Abstract

A PLC for distributed control includes a storage unit that stores common-data specifying information for specifying common data shared by a corresponding PLC and another PLC, a receiving unit that receives the common-data specifying information from another PLC, and a collating unit that collates the common-data specifying information stored in the storage unit with the common-data specifying information received by the receiving unit.

Claims

1. A PLC for distributed control in a distributed control system together with at least two other PLCs, wherein each of the PLCs is connected to all of the other PLCs to transmit data therebetween, the PLC comprising:

a data transmission line connecting said PLC to all of the other PLCs in the distributed control system;

a storage unit that stores common-data specifying information for specifying common data shared by respective programs executed by the PLC and the another PLC, wherein the common-data specifying information includes information on an address where the common-data is assigned in a frame of a ladder diagram representing the content of programs to be executed by the PLCs;

a receiving unit that receives the common-data specifying information from the another PLC;

a collating unit that collates the information on an address stored in the storage unit with the information on an address received by the receiving unit; and

a normal data transmission determining unit that determines whether data is normally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC based on the collation of the common-data specifying information stored in the storage unit with the common-data specifying information received by the receiving unit.

2. The PLC according to claim 1, wherein the collating unit performs the collation of the common-data specifying information when the distributed control system starts or restarts.

3. The PLC according to claim 1, wherein the distributed control system is composed of a plurality of PLCs, and the common-data specifying information includes identification information for identifying the plurality of PLCs.

4. The PLC according to claim 1, further comprising means for prohibiting normal communication between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC when it is determined that data transmission between the PLC and the another PLC is abnormal.

5. The PLC for distributed control according to claim 1, wherein the normal transmission determining unit determines that data is normally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC when the collation by the collating unit yields that the stored and received common-data specifying information corresponds to each other, and determines that data is abnormally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC when the collation by the collating unit yields that the stored and received common-data specifying information do not correspond to each other,

further comprising a communication unit that starts normal communication in the distributed control system when the normal transmission determining unit determines that data is normally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC, and prohibits normal communication in the distributed control system when the normal transmission determining unit determines that data is abnormally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC.

6. A distributed control system comprising:

at least three PLCs for distributed control, wherein each of the at least three PLCs is connected to all of the other PLCs of the distributed control system by signal lines and all of the PLCs are mutually cooperated with one another to transmit data therebetween by way of the signal lines, each of the PLCs comprising;

a storage unit that stores common-data specifying information for specifying common data shared by respective programs executed by the respective PLC and another of the plurality of PLCs, wherein the common-data specifying information includes information on an address where the common-data is assigned in a frame of a ladder diagram representing the content of programs to be executed by the PLCs;

a receiving unit that receives the common-data specifying information from another of the plurality of PLCs;

a collating unit that collates the information on an address stored in the storage unit with the information on an address received by the receiving unit; and

a normal data transmission determining unit that determines whether data is normally transmitted between the PLC and the another of the plurality of PLCs based on the collation of the common-data specifying information stored in the storage unit with the common-data specifying information received by the receiving unit.

7. The distributed control system according to claim 6, wherein each of the PLCs includes a transmitting unit that transmits the common-data specifying information to another of the plurality of PLCs.

8. The distributed control system according to claim 6, wherein each of the PLCs is a safety PLC for ensuring safety of a control object connected to the corresponding PLC.

9. The distributed control system according to claim 6, wherein the common-data specifying information is input to each of the PLCs together with a program to be executed by the corresponding PLC.

10. The distributed control system according to claim 6, further comprising means for prohibiting normal communication between each of the PLCs and the another of the plurality of PLCs when it is determined that data transmission between each of the PLCs and the another of the plurality of PLCs is abnormal.

11. The distributed control system according to claim 6, wherein the normal transmission determining unit determines that data is normally transmitted between the at least three PLCs when the collation by the collating unit yields that the stored and received common-data specifying information corresponds to each other, and determines that data is abnormally transmitted between the at least three PLCs when the collation by the collating unit yields that the stored and received common-data specifying information do not correspond to each other,

further comprising a communication unit that starts normal communication in the distributed control system when the normal transmission determining unit determines that data is normally transmitted between the at least three PLCs, and prohibits normal communication in the distributed control system when the normal transmission determining unit determines that data is abnormally transmitted between the at least three PLCs.

12. A PLC for distributed control in a distributed control system together with at least two other PLCs, wherein each of the PLCs is connected to all of the other PLCs to transmit data therebetween, the PLC comprising:

a data transmission line connecting said PLC to all of the other PLCs in the distributed control system;

storage means for storing common-data specifying information for specifying common data shared by respective programs executed by the PLC and the another PLC, wherein the common-data specifying information includes information on an address where the common-data is assigned in a frame of a ladder diagram representing the content of programs to be executed by the PLCs;

receiving means for receiving the common-data specifying information from another PLC;

collating means for collating the information on an address stored in the storage means with the information on an address received by the receiving means; and

normal data transmission determining means for determining whether data is normally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC based on the collation of the common-data specifying information stored in the storage means with the common-data specifying information received by the receiving means.

13. The PLC according to claim 12, wherein the collating means performs the collation of the common-data specifying information when the distributed control system starts or restarts.

14. The PLC according to claim 12, wherein the distributed control system is composed of a plurality of PLCs, and the common-data specifying information includes identification information for identifying the plurality of PLCs.

15. The PLC according to claim 12, further comprising means for prohibiting normal communication between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC when it is determined that data transmission between the PLC and the another PLC is abnormal.

16. The PLC for distributed control according to claim 12, wherein the normal transmission determining means determines that data is normally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC when the collation by the collating means yields that the stored and received common-data specifying information corresponds to each other, and determines that data is abnormally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC when the collation by the collating means yields that the stored and received common-data specifying information do not correspond to each other,

further comprising communication means for starting normal communication in the distributed control system when the normal transmission determining means determines that data is normally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC, and prohibits normal communication in the distributed control system when the normal transmission determining means determines that data is abnormally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC.

17. A distributed control system comprising:

at least three PLCs for distributed control, wherein each of the at least three PLCs is connected to all of the other PLCs of the distributed control system by signal lines and all of the PLCs are all connected by signal lines and mutually cooperated with one another to transmit data therebetween by way of the signal lines, each of the PLCs comprising;

storage means for storing common-data specifying information for specifying common data shared by respective programs executed by the respective PLC and another PLC, wherein the common-data specifying information includes information on an address where the common-data is assigned in a frame of a ladder diagram representing the content of programs to be executed by the PLCs;

receiving means for receiving the common-data specifying information from another PLC;

collating means for collating the information on an address stored in the storage means with the information on an address received by the receiving means; and

normal data transmission determining means for determining whether data is normally transmitted between the PLC for distributed control and the another PLC based on the collation of the common-data specifying information stored in the storage means with the common-data specifying information received by the receiving means.

18. The distributed control system according to claim 17, wherein each of the PLCs includes a transmitting unit that transmits the common-data specifying information to another of the plurality of PLCs.

19. The distributed control system according to claim 17, wherein each of the PLCs is a safety PLC for ensuring safety of a control object connected to the corresponding PLC.

20. The distributed control system according to claim 17, wherein the common-data specifying information is input to each of the PLCs together with a program to be executed by the corresponding PLC.

21. The distributed control system according to claim 17, further comprising means for prohibiting normal communication between each of the PLCs and the another of the plurality of PLCs when it is determined that data transmission between each of the PLCs and the another of the plurality of PLCs is abnormal.

22. The distributed control system according to claim 17, wherein the normal transmission determining means determines that data is normally transmitted between the at least three PLCs when the collation by the collating means yields that the stored and received common-data specifying information corresponds to each other, and determines that data is abnormally transmitted between the at least three PLCs when the collation by the collating means yields that the stored and received common-data specifying information do not correspond to each other,

further comprising communication means that starts normal communication in the distributed control system when the normal transmission determining means determines that data is normally transmitted between the at least three PLCs, and prohibits normal communication in the distributed control system when the normal transmission determining means determines that data is abnormally transmitted between the at least three PLCs.