Digitization of field engineering work processes at a gas turbine power plant through the use of portable computing devices operable in an on-site wireless local area network

• US 7,266,429 B2
• Filed: 04/30/2001
• Issued: 09/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: House, Michael Brynn, Rao, Kotesh Kummamuri, Travaly, Andrew Joseph
• Primary Examiner(s): KOSOWSKI, ALEXANDER J
• Application Number:
  US09/844,270
• Publication Number:
  US 20020159441A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,318 Days
• Field of Search: 700/9, 700/17, 700/19, 700/22, 700/83, 700/286, 700/287, 701/100
• US Class Current: 700/287
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/41 Remote control of gateways
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/42 Transmitting or receiving remote control signals via a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/20 End-user application control systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

A system for digitization of work processes in a power plant having a gas turbine including at least one processor system having a controller. The processor receives power plant data and the controller preferably controls the gas turbine. At least one interface device is communicatively coupled to the processor system for communicating the data received from the processor system to at least one of a mobile computing system and a computer system carried by a mobile user. The controller is capable of receiving instructions from the mobile user to control the gas turbine. The system further includes a local area network (LAN) in communication with the at least one interface device. At least one antenna assembly having a transceiver system for transmitting and receiving signals from the at least one interface device is provided. A network server system is communicatively coupled to the at least one antenna assembly via a wireless communication network, the server computer including a database for storing application data accessible by the mobile user.

Claims

1. A system for digitization of field service engineering work processes in a power plant having a gas turbine, comprising:

at least one processor system having a controller, said at least one processor system receiving power plant data, and said controller controlling said gas turbine;

at least one wireless communications interface device communicatively coupled to said at least one processor system for wirelessly communicating the data received from the power plant by the processor system to at least one of a wireless mobile computer system or a wireless computer device carried by a mobile user, said controller configured to receive instructions from at least one of said wireless mobile computer system or said wireless computer device carried by a mobile user to control the gas turbine, enabling field service engineering work processes including inspection, monitoring and controlling a power plant gas turbine to be performed using said mobile computer system or said wireless computer system carried by said mobile user;

a local area network (LAN) including at least one wireless network comprising a wireless hub router and one or more wireless communication devices wherein at least one of said wirelessly communication devices is the wireless computer device carried by said mobile user;

a voice-over-Internet-protocol (VOIP) gateway coupled to said LAN;

at least one terrestrial orbiting satellite antenna assembly having a transceiver system for transmitting and receiving signals from said at least one wireless communications interface device; and

a network server computer system communicatively coupled to said at least one terrestrial orbiting satellite communications antenna assembly via a wide area communication network, said server computer system including a database for storing application data accessible by the mobile user;

wherein said system for digitization of field service engineering processes enables a mobile user roving on site at a power plant location remote from the network server computer system to wirelessly communicate with both said gas turbine controller and said network server and to engage in two-way voice communications with other remote users communicatively coupled to said system for digitization by using VOIP communications for performing service engineering work processes including uploading and/or downloading computer software applications and data for performing inspection, operation or control of one or more gas turbine processes.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said at least one wireless communications interface device is a wireless access point device, and said wireless computer system carried by said mobile user is a wearable computer.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein said access point device is capable of communicating the data received from the processor system to the server computer via said LAN.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said LAN is linked to said at least one terrestrial orbiting satellite communications antenna assembly via an internet protocol (IP) data interface.

5. The system of claim 4 further comprises:

a private branch exchange network (PBX) coupled to said VOIP gateway; and

an ethernet interface coupled to said VOIP gateway and said IP data interface.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein said network server computer system comprises:

at least one router; and

an ATM network communicatively coupled to said at least one router.

7. The system of claim 6 further comprises:

a wide area network (WAN) coupled to said at least one router for communicating data from said network server computer system to said terrestrial orbiting satellite communications antenna assembly via an orbiting satellite.

8. The system of claim 2 wherein said wireless access point device is capable of operating on DC power.

9. A field engineering communication network for enabling a mobile field service engineer working at a power plant having a gas turbine to engage in two-way voice communications with other persons communicatively coupled to the network and to monitor operational parameters of the gas turbine and to upload and/or download computer software applications and operational parameter data to/from a remote server for performing on-site inspection, operation or control of the gas turbine via a wireless mobile device, said network comprising:

a controller processor system at said power plant to control the gas turbine;

a local area network (LAN) communicatively coupled to a remote field service engineering server and including at least one wireless communications access point interface communicatively coupled to said controller processor system, said interface communicating wirelessly with at least one of a wireless mobile computing system and a wireless wearable computer carried by a mobile user, said controller processor system providing operational parameter data and receiving instructions from at least one of said wireless mobile computing system and a wireless wearable computer carried by a mobile user for performing on-site inspection, operation or control of the gas turbine, wherein appropriate computer software applications, control data or instructions for controlling the operation of the gas turbine can be provided to at least one of said mobile unit and a wearable computer via wireless communications from a remote server field service engineering database; and

a voice-over-internet-protocol (VOIP) gateway coupled to said LAN for enabling two-way voice communications over said network between said mobile field service engineering database and at least one other user communicatively coupled to said VOIP gateway.

10. The system of claim 9 further comprises:

a local area network (LAN) in communication with said at least one wireless communications access point interface;

at least one terrestrial satellite communications system communicatively coupled to said LAN for transmitting and receiving signals to and from said at least one wireless communications access point interface; and

at least one network server computer system communicatively coupled to said at least one terrestrial satellite communications system via an orbiting satellite communication link, said server computer system including a database for storing application data accessible by the mobile user.

11. The system of claim 9 wherein said wireless network is linked to said at least one terrestrial satellite communications antenna assembly via an internet protocol (IP) data interface.

12. The system of claim 11 further comprises:

a private branch exchange network (PBX) coupled to said VOIP gateway; and

an ethernet interface coupled to said VOIP gateway and said IP data interface.

13. The system of claim 10 wherein said server computer system comprises:

at least one router;

a packet switching network communicatively coupled to said at least one router; and

a wide area network (WAN) coupled to said at least one router for communicating data from said server computer system to said terrestrial satellite communications antenna assembly.