Component factory for human-machine interface migration to a cloud platform

• US 9,886,012 B2
• Filed: 09/05/2014
• Issued: 02/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated (Allen-Bradley Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Maturana, Francisco P., Asenjo, Juan L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Coyer, Ryan
• Application Number:
  US14/478,974
• Publication Number:
  US 20150277404A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,250 Days
• Field of Search: 700 83, 717105-106, 717109-110
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5072 Grid computing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

A cloud human-machine interface (HMI) generation system converts an original HMI project to a web-compatible version of the HMI capable of storage and execution on a cloud platform or web server. The cloud HMI generation system parses HMI project files exported from the original HMI to identify graphical objects and their attributes, animations, data tags linked to the HMI, and other characteristics of the HMI. The system then generates scripts or function calls that reproduce the identified graphical objects and their associated animations, yielding a web-based HMI that emulates the original HMI project. The resulting cloud HMI can retrieve copies of the original industrial system data maintained on cloud-based storage, allowing the cloud HMI to display near real-time system data on a client device from any location.

Claims

1. A system for generating a human-machine interface (HMI) application capable of execution on a cloud platform, comprising:

a memory that stores computer-executable components;

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

an import component configured to import one or more HMI project files that define an HMI project developed in a first format corresponding to the HMI application;

an element drawing component configured to identify one or more first graphical objects defined by the one or more HMI project files and to generate one or more drawing scripts that, in response to first execution, reproduce the one or more first graphical objects in a second format, corresponding to the cloud platform, to yield one or more second graphical objects, wherein a graphical object of the one or more first graphical objects is a multistate indicator in which a state of the multistate indicator is based on a data value that is dynamically updated by an industrial controller of an industrial system;

a tag identification component configured to identify one or more data tags defined by the HMI project files, wherein a data tag, of the one or more data tags, corresponding to the graphical object comprises an indicator that the data value is dynamically updated by the industrial controller; and

a cloud mapping component configured to generate one or more data retrieval scripts that, in response to second execution, retrieve one or more data items corresponding to the one or more data tags from a specified data source, wherein the one or more data retrieval scripts comprises a data writing script, corresponding to the data tag, that facilitates pushing the data value to the data tag, and wherein the cloud mapping component generates the data writing script in response to the indicator.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more drawing scripts, in response to the first execution, draw the one or more second graphical objects in the second format on a web page.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the specified data source comprises one or more cloud storage devices.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the cloud mapping component is configured to identify the one or more data items corresponding to the one or more data tags based on a cloud database schema file that defines a storage schema used to store industrial data from the industrial system on the one or more cloud storage devices.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a cloud interface component configured to export the one or more drawings scripts and the one or more data retrieval scripts to a cloud platform device.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the element drawing component is further configured to, for a first graphical object of the one or more first graphical objects, identify one or more animation attributes associated with the graphical object, wherein the one or more drawing scripts, in response to the first execution, emulate the one or more animation attributes for a second graphical object of the one or more second graphical objects.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the one or more animation attributes are controlled by a first data tag of the one or more data tags defined by the HMI project files, and the cloud mapping component is configured to generate the one or more data retrieval scripts to retrieve a first data item corresponding to the first data tag and control a state of the second graphical object based on the first data item.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein, the element drawing components is further configured to, in response to determining that the graphical object of the one or more first graphical objects is the multistate object, generate a variable that controls a state of the graphical object and generate the one or more drawings scripts to include an if/then tree script having branches corresponding to respective states of the graphical object.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the element drawing component and the cloud mapping component are configured to generate one or more cloud HMI files including the one or more drawing scripts and the one or more data retrieval scripts, and wherein the one or more cloud HMI files are configured to execute the one or more drawing scripts and the one or more data retrieval scripts to emulate the HMI project on a client device that invokes the one or more cloud HMI files.

10. A method for converting a human-machine interface (HMI) application to a cloud-compatible HMI application, comprising:

receiving, by a system comprising a processor, an HMI project file that defines an HMI project developed in a first format;

parsing the HMI project file to identify a first graphical object defined by the HMI project file and a data tag that controls a state of the first graphical object, wherein the first graphical object is determined to be a multistate indicator and a state of the multistate indicator is a function of a data item that is dynamically modified by an industrial controller, and wherein the data tag comprises an indicator that the data item is dynamically modified by the industrial controller;

generating a drawing script that, in response to execution, reproduces the first graphical object in a second format to yield a second graphical object;

in response to the indicator, generating a data writing script, corresponding to the data tag that, in response to the data item being modified, populates a defined data source with the data item from the industrial controller; and

generating a data retrieval script that, in response to execution, retrieves the data item corresponding to the data tag from the defined data source.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising, in response to execution of the drawing script, reproducing the graphical object on a web page.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising, in response to execution of the data retrieval script, retrieving the data item from a cloud storage device comprising the defined data source.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising identifying the data item corresponding to the data tag based on a cloud database storage schema file that defines a storage schema used to store industrial data on the cloud storage device.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising exporting the drawing script and the data retrieval script to a cloud platform device.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the generating the data retrieval script comprises generating the data retrieval script to, in response to execution, control a state of the second graphical object based on a value of the data item.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the generating the drawing script comprises generating an if/then tree script comprising branches corresponding to respective states of the second graphical object.

17. The method of claim 10, further comprising generating a cloud HMI file comprising the drawing script and the data retrieval script, wherein the cloud HMI file is configured to, in response to invocation by a client device, execute the drawing script and the data retrieval script to reproduce the second graphical object via a web browser of the client device.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, in response to execution, cause a system comprising a processor to perform operations, the operations comprising:

receiving one or more HMI project files that define an HMI project developed in a first format;

parsing the HMI project files to identify a first graphical object defined by the one or more HMI project files and a data tag that controls a state of the first graphical object, wherein the first graphical object is determined to be a multistate indicator and a state of the multistate indicator is a function of a data item that is dynamically updated by an industrial controller, and wherein the data tag comprises an indicator that the data item is dynamically updated;

generating a drawing script that, in response to execution, draws the first graphical object in a second format to yield a second graphical object;

in response to the indicator, generating a data writing script, corresponding to the data tag that, in response to the data item being updated, populates a specified data source with the data item from the industrial controller; and

generating a data retrieval script that, in response to execution, retrieves the data item corresponding to the data tag from the specified data source.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the generating the drawing script comprises generating the drawing script in a format that draws the second graphical object on a web page.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the generating the data retrieval script comprises generating the data retrieval script to retrieve the data item from a cloud storage location.