Customized object design for industrial automation application

• US 8,898,634 B2
• Filed: 11/06/2012
• Issued: 11/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Rockwell Automation, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Rockwell Automation, Inc.)
• Inventors: Weatherhead, Norman, Stump, Andrew R., Mansouri, Haithem, Rodriguez, Axel, Thomsen, Joachim
• Primary Examiner(s): Khatri, Anil
• Application Number:
  US13/670,051
• Publication Number:
  US 20140130012A1
• Time in Patent Office: 749 Days
• Field of Search: 717104-109, 717120-123
• US Class Current: 717/120
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/24 Object-oriented
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management

Abstract

Described herein are systems, methods and apparatuses that can provide a holistic, bottom-up approach to facilitate the design of objects (e.g., modular objects that can facilitate industrial automation applications). The design approach includes selection of an object from a library of a plurality of objects; filtration of functionalities of the object based on a workflow of an application; and display of the object for customization of the object for the application with the filtered functionalities masked.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a memory that stores computer-executable instructions; and

a processor that is communicatively coupled to the memory, wherein the processor executes the computer-executable instructions to perform acts, comprising;

based on goal data indicative of a production goal of a workflow related to an industrial automation process, selecting an object from a plurality of objects stored within a data store, wherein the object comprises first data representing functionalities of the object;

filtering the first data based on the goal data and role data resulting in the first data comprising second data representing filtered functionalities that are not associated with the goal data and third data representing unfiltered functionalities that are associated with the goal data, wherein the role data represents a role of an entity that has selected or initiated a customization of the object; and

facilitating a display of the third data to initiate the customization of the object for satisfying the production goal of the workflow while masking the second data.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first data is further filtered based on location data representing a location of the entity.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the data store is an internal library with a local security protocol that applies to a set of devices communicatively coupled to the data store by one or more local area networks.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the data store is an external library with a global security protocol that applies to a set of devices communicatively coupled to the data store by a wide area network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the first data is further filtered based on a determination of a type of an application of the workflow.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the acts further comprise:

receiving input data indicative of an instruction to customize, a functionality of the unfiltered functionalities of the object.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the input data is first input data, the instruction is a first instruction and the acts further comprise:

subsequent to the customization of the functionality based on the first input data, receiving second input data indicative of a second instruction to store the object with the customized functionality within the data store.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the selecting comprises selecting the object from the plurality of objects based on a determination of a type of an application associated with the workflow.

9. A method, comprising:

based on goal data representing a production goal of a workflow associated with an industrial automation process, selecting, by a system comprising a processor, an object from a library of object data;

determining, by the system, a first set of parameters of the object that relate to the goal data and a second set of parameters of the object that do not relate to the goal data, wherein the determining comprises determining the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters based on role data representing a role of an entity that has selected or initiated a customization of the object; and

facilitating, by the system, a display of the object comprising presenting the first set of parameters and masking the second set of parameters to facilitate the customization of the object for a defined application associated with the workflow.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving, by the system, input data relating to customizing a parameter of the first set of parameters of the object for the application.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

based on the input data, customizing, by the system, the object to generate a customized object for the application.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

storing, by the system, the customized object for the application in a private library that is accessed via a local area network.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

storing, by the system, the customized object for the application in a globally accessible library that is accessed via a wide area network.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the selecting further comprises selecting the object based on classification data indicative of a type of the defined application.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein the selecting further comprises selecting the object based on context data associated with an industrial automation device that implements at least a portion of the industrial automation process.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the selecting further comprises selecting the object based on context data indicative of a design constraint associated with the defined application.

17. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer executable instructions that, in response to execution, cause a computing device comprising a processor to perform operations, comprising:

based on goal data indicative of a production goal of a workflow of an industrial automation process, selecting an object from a plurality of objects stored in data store, wherein the object comprises a set of parameters corresponding to respective functionalities of the object;

determining a first parameter of the set of parameters that relates to the goal data and a second parameter of the set of parameters that does not relate to the goal data, wherein the determining comprises determining the first parameter and the second parameter based on role data indicative of a role of an entity that has selected or initiated a customization of the object; and

displaying the first parameter and masking the second parameter to facilitate the customization of the object for a specified application associated with the workflow.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:

customizing the object for the application according to input data received for the first parameter.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:

saving the object customized for the specified application in an external library accessible based on utilization of a global security protocol.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:

saving the object customized for the specified application in an internal library accessible based on utilization of a local security protocol.