Network switch configuration in industrial automation system

Abstract

The invention relates to network switch configuration in an industrial automation system. A network device (102 to 108) for an automation system is provided. The network device includes a network switch, where the network device is configured to access a non-volatile storage device (116), the network device is communicatively coupled to the non-volatile storage device (116) to obtain configuration data for the network switch, wherein the configuration data comprises data enabling the network device to obtain at least a baseline configuration for the network switch. There is also provided a non-volatile storage (116) storing configuration data for a network switch, wherein the configuration data comprises data that enables network devices (102-108) comprising the network switch to obtain at least a baseline configuration for the network switch.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to apparatus and methods for facilitating automatic network switch configuration in an industrial automation system. Background Art

[0002] In the field of industrial automation, Ethernet-based communications are trending toward becoming the standard mode for interconnecting components such as engineering tools, operator interfaces, and controllers. Nevertheless, depending on their use, network switches may also need to be configured to separate communications between Ethernet-based and non-Ethernet-based parts of the network. Typically, network switches are configured manually. The manual switch configuration approach is error-prone, time-consuming, and prone to compatibility issues. Network switches can be implemented as standalone units, or they can be integrated into other components. In the case where a network switch is integrated into another component, additional physical constraints involving, for example, physical layer configurations or multiplexers required to contact other network nodes may have to be configured. Therefore, the proper configuration of network switches is becoming increasingly important in ensuring the availability of these critical components of process control systems. Summary of the invention

[0003] Therefore, it may be advantageous to automate the network switch configuration process as much as possible. According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a network device for an automation system, the network device comprising a network switch, wherein the network device is configured to access a non-volatile storage device to which the network device is communicatively coupled to obtain configuration data of the network switch, wherein the configuration data comprises data enabling the network device to obtain at least a baseline configuration of the network switch.

[0004] According to a second aspect, a non-volatile storage device storing configuration data of a network switch is provided, wherein the configuration data comprises data enabling a network device comprising the network switch to obtain at least a baseline configuration of the network switch.

[0005] According to a third aspect, there is provided an installation terminal unit for an automation system, the installation terminal unit comprising the non-volatile storage device of the second aspect.

[0006] According to a fourth aspect, there is provided a replaceable storage device communicatively coupled to the network device of the first aspect, the replaceable storage device comprising the non-volatile storage device of the second aspect. The replaceable storage device may comprise, for example, a USB stick, an SD card or the like.

[0007] In any of the aspects described herein, the configuration data may be stored in encrypted form in the non-volatile storage, and the network device may be configured to decrypt the encrypted configuration data for use by the network switch.

[0008] In any of the aspects described herein, the configuration data may be independent of the CPU and may be used by different hardware versions. That is, the configuration data may not be specific to any particular CPU or hardware version, so that the configuration data may be used by a variety of network devices regardless of their internal implementation.

[0009] According to a fifth aspect, a process control system is provided, comprising one or more of the following: the network device of the first aspect, the non-volatile storage device of the second aspect, the installation terminal unit of the third aspect, and the replaceable storage device of the fourth aspect. An automation system is also provided, comprising the process control system of the fifth aspect.

[0010] According to a sixth aspect, there is provided an automatic switch configuration method, the method comprising:

[0011] storing configuration data for the network switch in a non-volatile storage device, wherein the configuration data includes data that enables a network device including the network switch to obtain at least a baseline configuration of the network switch;

[0012] After the network device is installed in the installation terminal unit, the configuration data stored in the non-volatile storage device is accessed by the network device;

[0013] Using the configuration data to obtain a baseline configuration of the network switch; and

[0014] Use the obtained baseline configuration to configure the network switches.

[0015] Where a network device is used to replace a previously installed network device that is non-functional, the network device may be installed to an installation terminal unit wherein configuration data used to configure the network switches of the newly installed network device is also used to configure the network switches of the previously installed network device.

[0016] The method may also include: verifying the baseline configuration against a reference configuration. The reference configuration may be stored on an engineering server. After the network switch is configured, the controller can retrieve data from the engineering server. The reference configuration may include user modifications to the configuration data. If the user changes any configuration data, the consistency check provided by the verification will reveal this.

[0017] The configuration data may provide direct access or indirect access to the configuration data. More specifically, the step of using the configuration data to obtain a baseline configuration of the network switch may include retrieving the baseline configuration from a non-volatile storage device, where it is stored (i.e., directly) as at least a portion of the configuration data. In this case, retrieving the baseline configuration from the non-volatile storage device may include accessing the non-volatile storage device via a redundant bus to ensure availability of the configuration data in the event of a component failure. In addition to or as an alternative to directly retrieving the configuration data, the step of using the configuration data to obtain the baseline configuration may include retrieving the baseline configuration from a remote location indicated by the configuration data (i.e., indirectly).

[0018] In any of the aspects described herein, the non-volatile storage device storing the configuration data may form part of a redundant partner that is installed to the same installation terminal unit as the network device. Using a redundant partner in this way ensures the availability of the configuration data when a component fails to function.

[0019] Any of the methods described herein may be implemented by a computer. Any of these methods may form part of a method of producing a product using an industrial automation system comprising a network switch configured in the manner described herein.

[0020] According to a seventh aspect, a computing system is provided, the computing system being configured to execute the method of the sixth aspect.

[0021] According to an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer program (product), which comprises instructions which, when implemented by a computing system, enable the computing system to perform the method of the sixth aspect or cause the computing system to perform the method of the sixth aspect.

[0022] According to a ninth aspect, there is provided a computer-readable (storage) medium, the computer-readable (storage) medium comprising instructions which, when implemented by a computing system, enable the computing system to perform the method of the sixth aspect or enable the computing system to perform the method of the sixth aspect. The computer-readable medium may be transient or non-transient, volatile or non-volatile.

[0023] The present invention may include one or more aspects, examples or features, either independently or in combination, whether specifically disclosed in the combination or disclosed independently. Any optional features or sub-aspects of one of the above aspects are applicable to any other aspect, as appropriate.

[0024] The key benefits of the automated network switch configuration approach described in this article are as follows:

[0025] -The operator interaction required to start up a newly installed network device is limited to a minimum. After the network switch is configured with the baseline configuration, the newly installed network device is able to retrieve additional configuration data over the network.

[0026] -Other components that may have relied on the failed network switch are able to communicate again immediately after its replacement. There is no need to set up a newly installed network switch via a service interface.

[0027] A “(process) automation system” is understood to mean an industrial plant or a production plant which comprises one or more pipelines, production lines and / or assembly lines for converting one or more educts into products and / or assembling one or more components into a final product.

[0028] As used herein, the term "configuration data" or "configuration" refers to data used to configure a network switch so that the network switch can access a network and / or use network equipment. Therefore, the configuration data may be described as "network switch configuration data" or simply "network configuration data."

[0029] The term "configuration data" is used herein to refer to the configuration data itself and / or data from which the configuration data can be obtained. Thus, the configuration data can enable a network device to obtain the configuration data by including the configuration data itself or by providing instructions about where or how to find the configuration data. In other words, the configuration data can provide direct access or indirect access to the configuration data. Direct access means that the configuration data is available at the non-volatile storage device, while indirect access means that the configuration data is stored at a location remote from the non-volatile storage device, for example, on an engineering server, in which case the non-volatile storage device stores an indicator, link, address, redirection, or other indication of a location (e.g., a remote location where the configuration data is stored and from which the configuration data can be retrieved).

[0030] "Storing" configuration data refers to the act of writing configuration data to a storage device and / or the act of maintaining the written configuration data in a storage device.

[0031] "Redundant" means that the component in question represents one of two or more identical or similar components that are included to ensure availability in the event that one of the components fails to function.

[0032] The term "obtaining" as used herein may include, for example, receiving from another system, device, or process; receiving via interaction with a user; loading or retrieving from storage or memory; measuring or capturing using a sensor or other data acquisition device.

[0033] As used herein, the term "determining" includes a wide variety of actions, and may include, for example, calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, searching (e.g., searching in a table, database, or other data structure), confirming, etc. Furthermore, "determining" may include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), etc. Furthermore, "determining" may include resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, etc.

[0034] The indefinite article "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. In addition, "a" or "an" as used herein are generally to be construed as meaning "one or more", unless specified otherwise or clearly directed to the singular from the context.

[0035] Unless otherwise specified or clear from the context, the phrases "one or more of A, B, and C," "at least one of A, B, and C," and "A, B, and / or C" as used herein are intended to mean all possible permutations of one or more of the listed items. That is, the phrase "A and / or B" means (A), (B), or (A and B), and the phrase "A, B, and / or C" means (A), (B), (C), (A and B), (A and C), (B and C), or (A, B, and C).

[0036] The term "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps. Furthermore, the terms "comprising", "including", "having" and the like can be used interchangeably herein. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0037] A detailed description of embodiments will now be given, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

[0038] Figure 1 The process control system is illustrated;

[0039] Figure 2 Schematically illustrates Figure 1 Field components of process control systems; and

[0040] Figure 3 Illustrated is a computing system that may be used in accordance with the systems and methods disclosed herein. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] Figure 1 Illustrated is a process control system 100 for controlling an industrial process performed by an automation system (not shown). The process control system 100 includes several different hardware units 102 to 108 physically and communicatively coupled to each other via a mounting terminal unit (MTU) 110, commonly referred to as a backplane. Figure 1The unit illustrated in the figure includes an independent controller 102, an independent fieldbus adapter of the first type 104, an independent bus adapter of the second type 106, and a controller 108 including an integrated fieldbus adapter. Each controller 102, 108 communicates with other components of the automation system (such as the engineering tool 200 described herein) via a control network. To this end, each controller 102 and 108 is provided with a network interface, such as the network interface illustrated at 114, for communicating via at least one Ethernet-based fieldbus.

[0042] The mounting terminal unit (MTU) 110 includes a number of slots 112 for accommodating the units 102 to 108. Each unit 102 to 108 can be removably connected to the mounting terminal unit 110 via a corresponding slot 112. The mounting terminal unit 110 also includes a non-volatile storage device 116 for storing data that can be accessed by the units 102 to 108. The mounting terminal unit 110 may also include circuitry (not shown) for powering the unit and / or for accommodating a power module.

[0043] Each controller 102, 108 is configured to control a corresponding process performed by an automation system (not shown). The process control system 100 can be found to be applied to any industrial field where process automation is desired, such as energy, oil and gas, chemical industry, petrochemical industry, etc. The controller 102, 108 handles process control and monitoring of the automation system by receiving input signals from sensors and instruments and outputting control signals for controlling plant equipment such as pumps, valves, conveyors, mixers and heaters. Any such sensor, instrument or plant equipment can form a part of one or more field devices 202 in the field device 202 described herein. The controller 102, 108 is configured to implement a process control application to generate a control signal based on the input signal. The control application may include a control logic that instructs the controller 102, 108 how to respond to all input signals using appropriate control signals to maintain the normal operation of the process. In a non-limiting example, the control application complies with the international standard IEC 61131.

[0044] Figure 2 A process control system 100 is schematically illustrated that is in the field (that is, in communication with an engineering tool 200 and one or more field devices 202), which in the non-limiting example depicted in the figure include a field device 202-A and a field device 202-B. For convenience, Figure 2 Only the controller 102 and the adapter 104 are shown in FIG.

[0045] The engineering tool 200 (typically implemented as a software package) is used to create configuration data for the process control system 100 , which may be downloaded to the controller 102 .

[0046] Controller 102 includes logic circuit system 204, which is configured to implement the control application. Logic circuit system 204 may include a CPU, MCU, SoC, FPGA, DSP and / or AI engine, as well as any memory to be used for processing signals. Logic circuit system 204 may also be configured to perform any one or more of the other operations described herein.

[0047] Controller 102 also includes a communication interface 206 for handling communications between logic circuitry 204 and field bus adapter 104 .

[0048] The controller 102 also includes power down circuitry 208 for handling power down sequencing in the event of a power loss.

[0049] Fieldbus adapter 104 includes a fieldbus communication interface (FCI) 210 for interfacing with field device 202 via a communication network in the form of a fieldbus. Adapter 104 also includes non-volatile storage 212 that stores data including an identifier of adapter 104, such as its serial number.

[0050] The process control system 100 includes a network switch whereby at least one of the controllers 102, 108 is able to communicate via at least one Ethernet-based fieldbus. In one example, one or both of the controllers 102, 108 include a network switch, but it should be appreciated that the network switch may equally be accommodated by any MTU-installable module, such as the adapters 104, 106 or a separate switch module. For simplicity, the modules including the network switch are hereinafter referred to as network devices 102 to 108.

[0051] A network switch requires a configuration data set that may include one or more of the following:

[0052] - At least one IP address;

[0053] - At least one MAC address;

[0054] -VLAN information;

[0055] - routing information for at least one port;

[0056] - routing information for at least one hardware multiplexer;

[0057] -PHY (physical layer) configuration.

[0058] Typically, this configuration data set is composed by an engineering tool 200 and downloaded to the network device 102 to 108 during factory commissioning when it is deployed or later during factory operation when it is used to replace a pre-existing network device. This manual switch configuration approach is error-prone, time-consuming, and prone to compatibility issues.

[0059] Therefore, the present disclosure provides an apparatus and method for facilitating automated switch configuration. According to the present disclosure, the installation terminal unit 110 is provided with a non-volatile storage device 116 storing configuration data, whereby the network devices 102 to 108 can obtain a set of configuration data.

[0060] In one example, the configuration data includes the entire configuration data set. In another example, the configuration data includes an indication of a network location where the configuration data set can be obtained. In another example, the configuration data includes at least a portion of the configuration data set and an indication of a network location where the remainder of the configuration data set can be obtained. The network location where the configuration data set can be at least partially obtained can correspond to an engineering tool or an engineering server. It should be understood that the configuration data may only include or point to the configuration data required to establish a preliminary network connection, i.e., a baseline configuration, which can be supplemented with non-essential configuration data after the preliminary network connection is established. In a non-limiting example, the baseline configuration includes data specifying a physical port that can be used to receive other configuration data from an external source (e.g., an engineering server).

[0061] The configuration data is stored in a predetermined or standardized format in the non-volatile storage device 116 of the installation terminal unit 110. In this way, the configuration data can be stored in a hardware-independent manner for retrieval and use by a variety of network devices 102-108.

[0062] The network devices 102 - 108 are configured to retrieve configuration data from the non-volatile storage device 116 after the network devices 102 - 108 are installed in the installation terminal unit 110 .

[0063] Network devices 102 to 108 may be configured to obtain an identifier of installation terminal unit 110 after its installation, such as its serial number, based on which it may be determined that installation terminal unit 110 is of the type that includes non-volatile storage device 116 storing configuration data.

[0064] In use, when the network devices 102 to 108 are installed (i.e., physically installed) to the installation terminal unit 110, the configuration data is loaded into the network devices 102 to 108 under the control of the processor, which in this example forms part of the network device. The configuration data can then be obtained in one of the ways described herein and stored in a non-volatile storage device in the network devices 102 to 108. Therefore, the apparatus and method disclosed herein facilitate automatic configuration of network switches, that is, with minimal operator involvement, towards zero-touch configuration.

[0065] Any unit, module, circuit system or method described herein can be implemented using hardware, software and / or firmware configured to perform any of the operations described herein. Hardware may include one or more processor cores, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application specific standard products (ASSPs), systems on chips (SOCs), complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs), etc. Software may be embodied as software encapsulation, code, instructions, instruction sets and / or data recorded on at least one transient computer-readable storage medium or non-transient computer-readable storage medium. Firmware may be embodied as code, instructions or instruction sets and / or data hard-coded in a memory device (e.g., a non-volatile memory device).

[0066] If these functions are implemented in software, they can be stored on a computer-readable medium or transmitted as one or more instructions or codes. Computer-readable media include computer-readable storage media. Computer-readable storage media can be any available storage media that a computer can access. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable storage media can include FLASH storage media, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage devices, magnetic disk storage devices or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of an instruction or data structure and can be accessed by a computer. As used herein, dish and disk include optical disks (CDs), laser disks, optical disks, digital versatile disks (DVDs), floppy disks and blue-ray disks (BDs), wherein the dish usually reproduces data magnetically, and the disk usually uses a laser to reproduce data optically. Further, the propagated signal can be included in the scope of computer-readable storage media. Computer-readable media also include communication media, which includes any medium that facilitates the transmission of a computer program from one place to another. For example, connection can be a communication medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair or DSL or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio and microwave are also included in the definition of communication media. The above combinations should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0067] Figure 3 An exemplary computing system 800 that can be used in accordance with the systems and methods disclosed herein is illustrated. The computing system 800 can form or include a portion of any desktop, laptop, server, or cloud-based computing system. The computing system 800 includes at least one processor 802 that implements instructions stored in a memory 804. The instructions can be, for example, instructions for implementing functions described as being performed by one or more components described herein, or instructions for implementing one or more of the methods described herein. The processor 802 can access the memory 804 via a system bus 806. In addition to storing executable instructions, the memory 804 can also store session inputs, scores assigned to session inputs, and the like.

[0068] The computing system 800 also includes a data repository 808, which can be accessed by the processor 802 via the system bus 806. The data repository 808 can include executable instructions, log data, etc. The computing system 800 also includes an input interface 810, which allows external devices to communicate with the computing system 800. For example, the input interface 810 can be used to receive instructions from an external computer device, a user, etc. The computing system 800 also includes an output interface 812, which interfaces the computing system 800 with one or more external devices. For example, the computing system 800 can display text, images, etc. through the output interface 812.

[0069] It should be envisioned that external devices that communicate with the computing system 800 via the input interface 810 and the output interface 812 may be included in an environment that provides a user interface of substantially any type with which the user can interact. Examples of user interface types include graphical user interfaces, natural user interfaces, and the like. For example, a graphical user interface may accept input from a user using one or more input devices (such as a keyboard, a mouse, a remote controller, and the like), and provide output on an output device such as a display. Further, a natural user interface may enable a user to interact with the computing system 800 in a manner that is not constrained by input devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, a remote controller, and the like. In contrast, a natural user interface may rely on speech recognition, touch and stylus recognition, gesture recognition on and adjacent to the screen, air gestures, head and eye tracking, voice and speech, vision, touch, gestures, machine intelligence, and the like.

[0070] Additionally, although illustrated as a single system, it is to be understood that the computing system 800 may be a distributed system. Thus, for example, several devices may be in communication via a network connection and may jointly perform the tasks described as being performed by the computing system 800.

[0071] Applicants hereby independently disclose each individual feature described herein and any combination of two or more such features, as long as such features or combinations can be made according to the common general knowledge of a person skilled in the art based on the specification as a whole, regardless of whether such features or feature combinations solve any problems disclosed herein, and are not limited to the scope of the claims. Applicants indicate that various aspects of the present invention may consist of any such individual features or feature combinations.

[0072] It must be noted that various embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to different categories. Specifically, some examples are described with reference to methods, while other examples are described with reference to devices. However, a person skilled in the art will learn from the description that, unless otherwise notified, any combination of features related to different categories, in addition to any combination of features belonging to one category, is also considered to be disclosed by the present application. However, all features can be combined to provide synergistic effects, rather than just a simple addition of features.

[0073] Although the present invention has been shown and described in detail in the drawings and the foregoing description, such illustration and description should be regarded as exemplary rather than restrictive. The present invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Other variations of the disclosed embodiments can be understood and implemented by those skilled in the art based on a study of the drawings, the present disclosure, and the appended claims.

[0074] The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

[0075] Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.

Claims

1. A network device (102 to 108) for an automation system, the network device comprising a network switch, wherein the network device is configured to access a non-volatile storage device (116), the network device being communicatively coupled to the non-volatile storage device (116) to obtain configuration data for the network switch, wherein the configuration data comprises data enabling the network device to obtain at least a baseline configuration for the network switch.

2. A non-volatile storage device (116) storing configuration data for a network switch, wherein the configuration data comprises data enabling a network device (102 to 108) comprising the network switch to obtain at least a baseline configuration for the network switch.

3. An installation terminal unit (110) for an automation system, the installation terminal unit comprising the non-volatile storage device (116) according to claim 2.

4. A replaceable storage device capable of being communicatively coupled to the network device according to claim 1, the replaceable storage device comprising the non-volatile storage device (116) according to claim 2.

5. The network device according to claim 1 or the non-volatile storage device according to claim 2, wherein the configuration data is stored in the non-volatile storage device in an encrypted form, and wherein the network device is configured to decrypt the encrypted configuration data for use by the network switch. 6 . The network device according to claim 1 or the non-volatile storage device according to claim 2 , wherein the configuration data is independent of the CPU and can be used by different hardware versions.

7. A method for automatic switch configuration, the method comprising: storing configuration data for a network switch in a non-volatile storage device (116), wherein the configuration data includes data that enables a network device (102 to 108) including the network switch to obtain at least a baseline configuration for the network switch; After the network device is installed in an installation terminal unit (110), the configuration data stored in the non-volatile storage device is accessed by the network device; using the configuration data to obtain the baseline configuration for the network switch; as well as The network switch is configured using the obtained baseline configuration.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the network device (102 to 108) is installed into the installation terminal unit (110) in a case where the network device is used to replace a previously installed network device that is not functioning, wherein the configuration data used to configure the network switch of the newly installed network device is also used to configure the network switch of the previously installed network device.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, further comprising: The baseline configuration is validated against a reference configuration.

10. The method of any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein using the configuration data to obtain the baseline configuration for the network switch comprises: The baseline configuration is retrieved from the non-volatile storage device (116).

11. The method of claim 10, wherein retrieving the baseline configuration from the non-volatile storage device (116) comprises: The non-volatile storage device is accessed via a redundant bus.

12. The method of claim 9 or 10, wherein using the configuration data to obtain the baseline configuration comprises: The baseline configuration is retrieved from a remote location indicated by the configuration information.

13. A method according to any one of claims 7 to 12, wherein the non-volatile storage device (116) storing the configuration data forms part of a redundant partner, which is installed to the same installation terminal unit (110) as the network device (102 to 108).

14. A computer readable medium (804, 808) comprising instructions which, when executed by a computing system (800), cause the computing system to perform the method according to any one of claims 7 to 13.

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