Control system for executing manufacturing processes

• US 8,335,575 B2
• Filed: 02/11/2010
• Issued: 12/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Beckhoff Automation GmbH
• Original Assignee: Beckhoff Automation GmbH
• Inventors: Papenfort, Josef, Heitmann, Ralf, Hoppe, Gerd, Christow, Itzko
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, RAMESH B
• Application Number:
  US12/704,156
• Publication Number:
  US 20100211201A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,041 Days
• Field of Search: 700/1, 700/7, 700/11, 700 23- 25, 700 95- 96, 700/160, 700/181, 710 8- 10
• US Class Current: 700/23
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 2207/14 Combination of conveyors
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0421 Multiprocessor system
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41845 characterised by system universality, reconfigurability, modularity
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31098 Configuration editor for networking interconnection
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31233 Map network and server in node and server controlled ethernet with machine nodes
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32019 Dynamic reconfiguration to maintain optimal design, fabrication, assembly
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32052 Lookup table, identify job to be executed by master or slave
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32248 Create schedule from elementary operations from database
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33149 Publisher subscriber, publisher, master broadcasts data to slaves, subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33273 DCS distributed, decentralised controlsystem, multiprocessor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/407 with decentralised control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/4026 Bus for use in automation systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/26 using dedicated tools for LAN [Local Area Network] management
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

A control node has a sequence table and subscribers, with the sequence table having data records each having an identification for an action of a manufacturing sequence associated with the control node, an identification for a subscriber carrying out the action and an identification of a parameter set associated with the action, and wherein each subscriber has a sequence interpreter which is designed to read and to interpret the sequence table, and to initiate the actions associated with the subscriber.

Claims

1. A control system for executing manufacturing processes comprising control nodes connected to each other via a data communication network, wherein the manufacturing process is divided up into manufacturing sequences comprising actions, the manufacturing sequences to be carried out by the respective control nodes, wherein each control node comprises a sequence table and subscribers, the sequence table comprising data records with a respective identification for an action of a manufacturing sequence associated to the control node, an identification for a subscriber executing the action and an identification of a parameter set associated with the action, and each subscriber comprising a sequence interpreter which is designed to read and to interpret the sequence table, and to initiate the action associated with the subscriber,

wherein a subscriber of each control node acts as a synchronization component, the synchronization component generating signalling data for further subscribers of the respective control node according to the action associated to the control node.

2. The control system according to claim 1, wherein the data transmission between the control node in the data communication network takes place in the form of data packets, each control node comprising a transmitter module configured to manage the data to be transmitted in an output process image, to convert the output process image into a data packet and to output the data packet to the data communication network at a predetermined point in time, as well as comprising a receiver module configured to log on for the data packets of one or more transmitter modules of further control nodes and to convert a received data packet into an input process image.

3. The control system according to claim 1, the transmitter module of each control node being configured to directly address the data packet to one or more further control nodes.

4. The control system according to claim 1, the transmitter module of each control node being configured to directly transmit non-real time data to one or more further control nodes in an acyclic manner.

5. The control system according to claim 1, the transmitter module being configured to transmit real-time data to all control nodes connected via the data communication network in a cyclic manner.

6. The control system according to claim 1, wherein a data transmission is carried out between the subscribers within the control node in the form of a data imaging process.

7. The control system according to claim 1, wherein a subscriber in a control node may be configured as a master subscriber and a further subscriber in the same or in a further control node may be configured as a slave subscriber, the master subscriber using the slave subscriber as a functional object in the master-slave connection.

8. The control system according to claim 7, the master subscriber comprising a proxy and the slave subscriber comprising a stub, wherein the proxy converts input variables for a functional object into a data telegram and transmits it to the stub, and the stub converts output variables of the functional object into a data telegram and transmits it to the proxy.

9. The control system according to claim 7, wherein the master-slave connection is configured and dismantled by means of a network configurator.

10. The control system according to claim 7, wherein the master-slave connection is configured and dismantled by means of a master subscriber.

11. The control system according to claim 1, the sequence interpreter of the subscriber processing the sequence table on the basis of signalling data of further subscribers.

12. The control system according to claim 1, the synchronization component generating the signalling data for further subscribers by means of a logic operation of applied signalling data, the logic operation being provided by the associated action.

13. The control system according to claim 1, the parameter set associated with an action comprising:

a product state output date for a comparison with the actual product state value prior to executing the action,

a product state final date for rendering the actual product state value upon finalizing the action, and

action parameters determining the functionality of the action.

14. The control system according to claim 13, the parameter set associated with an action further comprising a timeout date for the action.

15. The control system according to claim 1, wherein each subscriber receives as a signalling date an actual product state value for a product to be processed in the context of the action.

16. The control system according to claim 1, wherein each subscriber issues an actual product state value for a product processed in the context of the action as a signalling date upon successful termination of the action.

17. The control system according to claim 1, comprising a memory for the parameter sets associated with the manufacturing sequence, wherein the subscriber retrieves a parameter set upon initializing the action, respectively.

18. A control system for executing manufacturing processes comprising control nodes connected to each other via a data communication network, wherein the manufacturing process is divided up into manufacturing sequences comprising actions, the manufacturing sequences to be carried out by the respective control nodes and each control node as a subscriber comprises a receiving synchronization component for receiving signalling data from further control nodes as well as a transmitting synchronization component for outputting signalling data to further control nodes.

19. The control system according to claim 18, wherein a synchronization component comprising signalling outputs operates as a receiving as well as a transmitting synchronization component, wherein the double function is controlled by means of OR operations of the signalling outputs.

20. The control system according to claim 18, wherein the data transmission between the control node in the data communication network takes place in the form of data packets, each control node comprising a transmitting module configured to manage the data to be transmitted in an output process image, to convert the output process image into a data packet and to output the data packet to the data communication network at a predetermined point in time, as well as comprising a receiving module configured to log on for the data packets of one or more transmitting modules of further control nodes and to convert a received data packet into an input process image.

21. The control system according to claim 18, wherein the transmitting module of each control node is configured to directly address the data packet to one or more further control nodes.

22. The control system according to claim 18, wherein the transmitting module of each control node is configured to directly transmit non-real time data to one or more further control nodes in an acyclic manner and to transmit real-time data to all control nodes connected via the data communication network in a cyclic manner.

23. The control system according to claim 18, wherein in that a data transmission is carried out between the subscribers within the control node in the form of a data imaging process.

24. The control system according to claim 18, wherein a subscriber in a control node may be configured as a master subscriber and a further subscriber in the same or in a further control node may be configured as a slave subscriber, the master subscriber using the slave subscriber as a functional object in the master-slave connection.

25. The control system according to claim 24, wherein the master subscriber comprises a proxy and the slave subscriber comprises a stub, wherein the proxy converts input variables for a functional object into a data telegram and transmits it to the stub, and the stub converts output variables of the functional object into a data telegram and transmits it to the proxy.

26. The control system according to claim 24, wherein in that the master-slave connection is configured and dismantled by means of a network configurator or by means of a master subscriber.