Systems, methods and articles of manufacture to provide a search service to a process control system

• US 10,083,249 B2
• Filed: 09/23/2010
• Issued: 09/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Nixon, Mark, Rotvold, Eric, Potter, Jeff
• Primary Examiner(s): Waldron, Scott A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LODHI, ANDALIB FT
• Application Number:
  US12/889,060
• Publication Number:
  US 20120078896A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,924 Days
• Field of Search: 707706, 707731, 707769, 707732
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31166 Access data by name, object, stored in list, database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90 Details of database functions independent of the retrieved data types
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9035 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles

Abstract

Systems, methods, and articles of manufacture to provide a search service to users of a process control system are disclosed. An example system includes a search database to store a set of searchable items associated with a process control system and to store a search profile associated with a selected query result, a publisher to collect information associated with the searchable items from the process control system and to publish the collected information to the search database, and a searcher to receive a request including the search profile and a query of the searchable items in the database, to search the searchable items based on the query, and to return at least a portion of the collected information based on the search profile.

Claims

1. A field device integration (FDI) server to provide a search service to users of a process control system, the FDI server comprising:

a search database to store a set of searchable items associated with a plurality of field devices of the process control system and to store a user search profile associated with a selected query result;

a publisher implemented via a processor, the publisher to collect information associated with the searchable items from the process control system and to publish the collected information to the search database; and

a searcher implemented via a processor, the searcher to;

receive a search request including the user search profile and a search query of the searchable items in the search database;

request an update service from the publisher in response to receiving the search request, the publisher to collect updated information associated with the searchable items from the process control system in response to the request for the update service and to publish the updated collected information to the search database;

modify the search query based on the user search profile;

search the searchable items based on the modified search query;

filter results of the search based on a filter condition included in the user search profile; and

return at least a portion of the collected information and the updated collected information based on the user search profile and the filter condition.

2. The FDI server as defined in claim 1, wherein the searcher includes an indexer to index the searchable items based on the collected information and the updated collected information.

3. The FDI server as defined in claim 1, wherein the searcher is to modify the user search profile based on the search query.

4. The FDI server as defined in claim 1, wherein the user search profile includes a user preference for one or more types of search results.

5. The FDI server as defined in claim 1, wherein the collected information includes at least one of process control operating data, device measurements, alarms, alerts, or device location.

6. The FDI server as defined in claim 1, wherein the search database stores information associated with off-line and on-line process control devices.

7. The FDI server as defined in claim 1, wherein the search query includes an application context and the searcher is to search the searchable items based on the application context.

8. The FDI server as defined in claim 1, wherein the filter condition includes security access of a user associated with the user search profile.

9. The FDI server as defined in claim 1, wherein the publisher is to collect the information associated with the searchable items based on an FDI standard.

10. A method to provide a search service to users of a process control system, the method comprising:

collecting information from the process control system at a field device integration (FDI) server, the collected information including searchable items associated with a plurality of field devices of the process control system;

publishing the collected information to a search database maintained by the FDI server;

requesting an update service via the FDI server in response to receiving a search request, the search request including a user search profile and a search query of the searchable items in the search database;

collecting updated information from the process control system at the FDI server in response to the requested update service;

publishing the updated collected information to the search database;

modifying the search query via the FDI server based on the user search profile;

searching the searchable items via the FDI server based on the modified search query;

filtering results of the search via the FDI server based on a filter condition included in the user search profile; and

returning at least a portion of the collected information and the updated collected information via the FDI server based on the user search profile and the filter condition.

11. The method as defined in claim 10, further comprising indexing the searchable items via the FDI server based on the collected information and the updated collected information.

12. The method as defined in claim 10, further comprising modifying the user search profile via the FDI server based on the search query.

13. The method as defined in claim 10, wherein the user search profile includes a user preference for one or more types of search results.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the collected information includes at least one of process control operating data, device measurements, alarms, alerts, or device location.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the filter condition includes security access of a user associated with the user search profile.

16. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising machine readable instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause a field device integration (FDI) server to at least:

collect information from a process control system, the collected information including searchable items associated with a plurality of field devices of the process control system;

publish the collected information to a search database maintained by the FDI server;

request an update service in response to receiving a search request, the search request including a user search profile and a search query of the searchable items in the search database;

collect updated information from the process control system in response to the requested update service;

publish the updated collected information to the search database;

modify the search query based on the user search profile;

search the searchable items based on the modified search query;

filter results of the search based on a filter condition included in the user search profile; and

return at least a portion of the collected information and the updated collected information based on the user search profile and the filter condition.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium as defined in claim 16, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the FDI server to index the searchable items based on the collected information and the updated collected information.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium as defined in claim 16, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the FDI server to modify the user search profile based on the search query.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium as defined in claim 16, wherein the user search profile includes a user preference for one or more types of search results.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium as defined in claim 16, wherein the filter condition includes security access of a user associated with the user search profile.