Using cloud-based data for industrial simulation

• US 9,703,902 B2
• Filed: 11/22/2013
• Issued: 07/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Asenjo, Juan, Strohmenger, John, Nawalaniec, Stephen, Hegrat, Bradford H., Korpela, Jessica Lin, Harkulich, Joseph A., Hessmer, Rainer, Wright, Jenifer Rydberg, Dyck, John, Conti, Sal, Hill, Edward Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Thai
• Application Number:
  US14/087,835
• Publication Number:
  US 20140337000A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,327 Days
• Field of Search: 703 2, 703 5, 709238, 709246
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/20 Design optimisation, verification or simulation optimisation, verification or simulation of circuit designs G06F30/30
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/80 Management or planning

Abstract

A cloud-based simulation generation service collects industrial data from multiple industrial customers for storage and analysis on a cloud platform. The service employs a simulation generator component that analyzes data to facilitate generating a simulation model that simulates an industrial automation system, including simulating or emulating industrial devices, industrial processes, other industrial assets, or network-related assets or devices, and their respective interrelationships with each other. The simulation generator component also analyzes modification data to facilitate generating a modified simulation model that simulates the industrial automation system based on the modification. The simulation generator component performs operation simulations using the simulation model or modified simulation model to facilitate determining whether making the modification is appropriate, determining or predicting performance of a modified industrial automation system, determining compatibility of a modification with an industrial automation system, or determining or predicting performance of the industrial automation system when processing a work order.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a memory that stores computer-executable components;

a processor, operatively coupled to the memory, that executes computer-executable components, the computer-executable components comprising;

a collection component configured to collect a subset of industrial data from a set of devices of an industrial automation system and store the industrial data in a data store that is part of a cloud platform; and

a simulation generator component configured to simulate at least one device of the set of devices to facilitate simulation of the industrial automation system, and generate a simulation model that corresponds to the industrial automation system based on the simulation of the at least one device, based on a result of an analysis of the subset of industrial data.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the collection component or the simulation generator component are part of the cloud platform.

3. The system of claim 2, further comprising an interface component configured to interface the cloud platform with the industrial automation system via a cloud gateway device of the industrial automation system to facilitate communication of the subset of industrial data from the industrial automation system to at least one of the collection component or the simulation generator component.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to simulate a modification to the industrial automation system based on a subset of data relating to the modification, integrate the simulation of the modification with at least a portion of the simulation of the industrial automation system to facilitate simulation of a modified industrial automation system based on the modification, and generate a modified simulation model that corresponds to the modified industrial automation system based on the simulation of the modified industrial automation system.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to evaluate at least one of a modification response of the modified simulation model or a response of the simulation model, based on application of a set of operation data to at least one of the modified simulation model or the simulation model, and determine at least one of an industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system or an industrial system response of the industrial automation system based on a result of the evaluation of at least one of the modification response of the modified simulation model or the response of the simulation model.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to evaluate at least one of the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system or the industrial system response of the industrial automation system, and determine whether the industrial automation system is to be modified based on a set of defined operation criteria and a result of the evaluation of at least one of the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system or the industrial system response of the industrial automation system.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to generate a report that indicates whether the industrial automation system is to be modified in accordance with the modification based on a result of the determination of whether the industrial automation system is to be modified.

8. The system of claim 4, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to obtain a set of historic operation data from the data store and generate a set of response data relating to a disparate modification response of the modified simulation model to an application of the set of historic operation data to the modified simulation model.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to obtain a set of historic response data from the data store, wherein the set of historic response data relates to a historic response of the industrial automation system or a previous version of the industrial automation system to an application of the set of historic operation data to the industrial automation system or the previous version of the industrial automation system.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to compare the set of response data to the set of historic response data, determine a difference between the set of response data and the set of historic response data based on a result of the comparison of the set of response data to the set of historic response data, and determine whether to implement the modification in the industrial automation system based on the difference and a set of defined operation criteria.

11. The system of claim 4, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to respectively simulate modifications of a set of modifications for the industrial automation system based on respective subsets of data relating to the modifications, and generate respective modified simulation models of respective modified industrial automation systems based on the respective simulations of the modifications, wherein the set of modifications comprises the modification and a second modification that is associated with a second modified simulation model of the respective modified simulation models.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to evaluate a response of the simulation model, a modification response of the modified simulation model, and a second modification response of the second modified simulation model, based on application of a set of operation data to the simulation model, the modified simulation model, and the second modified simulation model, and determine an industrial system response of the industrial automation system, an industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system, and a second industrial system modification response of the second modified industrial automation system based on a result of the evaluation of the response of the simulation model, the modification response of the modified simulation model, and the second modification response of the second modified simulation model.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to evaluate the industrial system response of the industrial automation system, the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system, and the second industrial system modification response of the second modified industrial automation system, and determine whether the industrial automation system is to be modified based on a set of defined operation criteria and a result of the evaluation of the industrial system response of the industrial automation system, the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system, and the second industrial system modification response of the second modified industrial automation system.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the simulation generator component determines that the industrial automation system is to be modified, and is further configured to determine whether to implement the first modification in the industrial automation system, implement the second modification in the industrial automation system, or implement a combination of the first modification and the second modification in the industrial system, based on a set of defined operation criteria and the result of the evaluation of the industrial system response of the industrial automation system, the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system, and the second industrial system modification response of the second modified industrial automation system.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to evaluate a response of the simulation model to an application of a set of operation data relating to a work order, determine an industrial system response of the industrial automation system based on the response of the simulation model, and determine whether the industrial simulation system is able to satisfy a set of conditions associated with the work order based on a result of an evaluation of the industrial system response of the industrial automation system.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the collection component is further configured to collect a second subset of industrial data from a second industrial automation system of a set of industrial automation systems associated with the cloud platform and comprising the industrial automation system, and wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to simulate the at least one device of the set of devices to facilitate the simulation of the industrial automation system, and generate the simulation model that corresponds to the industrial automation system based on the simulation of the at least one device, based on a result of an analysis of the subset of industrial data and the second subset of industrial data.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the subset of industrial data comprises at least one of first data relating to an industrial device of the set of devices, second data relating to an industrial process associated with the set of devices, third data relating to an industrial asset, fourth data relating to a network-related device of the set of devices that facilitates data communications associated with the industrial automation system, fifth data relating to an operating system associated with the industrial automation system, sixth data relating to software associated with the industrial automation system, or seventh data relating to firmware associated with the industrial automation system.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the subset of industrial data comprises data relating to at least one interrelationship between the at least one device and at least one other device of the set of devices, and wherein the simulation generator component is further configured to simulate the at least one interrelationship between the at least one device and the at least one other device to facilitate the simulation of the industrial automation system based on the data relating to the at least one interrelationship between the at least one device and the at least one other device.

19. A method, comprising:

obtaining a subset of industrial data from a set of devices of an industrial automation system for storage in a data store of a cloud platform associated with the industrial automation system;

simulating at least one device of the set of devices, based on a result of analyzing the subset of industrial data, to facilitate simulating the industrial automation system; and

generating a simulation model that corresponds to the industrial automation system based on the simulating of the at least one device of the set of devices.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

interfacing the cloud platform with the industrial automation system; and

monitoring the industrial automation system via the interfacing to facilitate the obtaining of the subset of industrial data from the set of devices of the industrial automation system.

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

simulating a modification to the industrial automation system based on a subset of data relating to the modification to facilitate simulating a modified industrial automation system based on the simulating of the modification and the simulating of at least a portion of the industrial automation system; and

generating a modified simulation model that corresponds to the modified industrial automation system based on the simulating of the modified industrial automation system.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

evaluating a modification response of the modified simulation model and a response of the simulation model, based on applying a set of operation data to the modified simulation model and the simulation model;

predicting an industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system and an industrial system response of the industrial automation system based on a result of the evaluating the modification response of the modified simulation model and the response of the simulation model;

determining whether the industrial automation system is to be modified using the modification based on a set of defined operation criteria and a second result of evaluating the predicting of the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system and the industrial system response of the industrial automation system; and

generating a message that indicates whether the industrial automation system is to be modified using the modification based on a third result of the determining whether the industrial automation system is to be modified using the modification.

23. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

receiving a set of historic operation data from the data store; and

generating a set of response data relating to a modification response of the modified simulation model based on applying the set of historic operation data to the modified simulation model.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

receiving a set of historic response data from the data store, wherein the set of historic response data relates to a historical response of the industrial automation system or a previous version of the industrial automation system generated in response to applying the set of historic operation data to the industrial automation system or the previous version of the industrial automation system;

evaluating the set of response data and the set of historic response data;

determining a difference between the set of response data and the set of historic response data based on a result of the evaluating of the set of response data and the set of historic response data; and

determining whether to implement the modification in the industrial automation system based on the difference and a set of defined operation criteria relating to modification of the industrial automation system.

25. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

simulating respective modifications of a set of modifications for the industrial automation system based on respective subsets of data relating to the respective modifications; and

generating respective modified simulation models of respective modified industrial automation systems based on the simulating of the respective modifications, wherein the set of modification comprises the modification and a second modification that is associated with a second modified simulation model of the respective modified simulation models.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising:

evaluating a response of the simulation model, a modification response of the modified simulation model, and a second modification response of the second modified simulation model, based on applying a set of operation data to the simulation model, the modified simulation model, and the second modified simulation model, and

predicting an industrial system response of the industrial automation system, an industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system, and a second industrial system modification response of the second modified industrial automation system based on a result of the evaluating of the response of the simulation model, the modification response of the modified simulation model, and the second modification response of the second modified simulation model.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

evaluating a second result of the predicting of the industrial system response of the industrial automation system, the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system, and the second industrial system modification response of the second modified industrial automation system; and

determining whether the industrial automation system is to be modified based on a set of defined operation criteria and a third result of the evaluating of the predicting of the industrial system response of the industrial automation system, the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system, and the second industrial system modification response of the second modified industrial automation system.

28. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

determining that the industrial automation system is to be modified; and

determining whether to implement the first modification in the industrial automation system, implement the second modification in the industrial automation system, or implement a combination of the first modification and the second modification in the industrial system, based on a set of defined operation criteria and the third result of the evaluating of the predicting of the industrial system response of the industrial automation system, the industrial system modification response of the modified industrial automation system, and the second industrial system modification response of the second modified industrial automation system.

29. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

evaluating a response of the simulation model based on applying a set of operation data relating to a work order to the simulation model;

predicting an industrial system response of the industrial automation system based on the response of the simulation model; and

determining whether the industrial automation system is able to satisfy a set of conditions associated with the work order and a set of defined operation criteria based on a result of an evaluation of the industrial system response of the industrial automation system.

30. The method of claim 19, wherein the subset of industrial data comprises data relating to at least one interrelationship between the at least one device and at least one other device of the set of devices, the method further comprising:

simulating the at least one interrelationship between the at least one device and the at least one other device to facilitate simulating the industrial automation system based on the data relating to the at least one interrelationship between the at least one device and at least one other device.

31. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions that, in response to execution, cause a system comprising a processor to perform operations, comprising:

collecting a subset of industrial data from a set of devices of an industrial automation system for storage in a data store of a cloud platform interfaced with the industrial automation system;

simulating at least one device of the set of devices, based on a result of analyzing the subset of industrial data, to facilitate simulating the industrial automation system; and

generating a simulation model that simulates the industrial automation system based on the simulating of the at least one device.

32. The computer-readable medium of claim 31, wherein the operations further comprise:

simulating a modification to the industrial automation system based on a subset of data relating to the modification to facilitate simulating a modified industrial automation system based on the simulating of the modification and the simulating of at least a portion of the industrial automation system;

generating a modified simulation model that simulates the modified industrial automation system based on the simulating of the modified industrial automation system;

evaluating a first response of the modified simulation model and a second response of the simulation model, based on applying a set of operation data to the modified simulation model and the simulation model;

determining a third response of the modified industrial automation system and a fourth response of the industrial automation system based on a first result of the evaluating the first response of the modified simulation model and the second response of the simulation model; and

determining whether the industrial automation system is to be modified using the modification based on a set of defined operation criteria and a second result of evaluating the determining of the third response of the modified industrial automation system and the fourth response of the industrial automation system.