Method for representing equipment online state in PLC programming configuration software

Abstract

The invention discloses a method for representing an equipment online state in PLC programming configuration software, and relates to the technical field of industrial control, and the method comprises the steps of (1) basic primitive display, (2) module state display, (3) submodule state display, (4) submodule I / O data display and (5) module communication data display.The method is simple in operation and easy to implement. According to the method, the traditional desktop application can be met, and the requirements of mobile equipment or virtual reality and other novel representation forms or terminal equipment can also be met. According to different levels of online state display modes, the module state can be overlooked and checked, and phenomena and data can be analyzed in detail; according to the method, the basic graph and small graph superposition display mode is adopted, the display requirement is met, meanwhile, image loading resources are reduced, the software efficiency is improved, all operations in the method are carried out in the configuration scene, a user can check the module state and carry out data analysis operation in the same scene, and the user operation steps are reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of industrial control, and in particular to a method for representing the online status of equipment in PLC programming configuration software. Background Art

[0002] PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) programming software is an indispensable part of PLC application as a tool for PLC project configuration and engineering configuration. Users configure various PLC modules and various execution programs through PLC programming software to form configuration projects. After configuring the project, it is often necessary to connect the software to the configured PLC module for online communication, interpret the status of the PLC module from the online data of the PLC module, and then present the status and online data of the PLC module to the end user in various ways.

[0003] Different PLC programming and configuration software have different ways of expressing the online status of PLC modules. Some PLC programming and configuration software use tables to represent various PLC module states, some use different images to represent different states of PLC modules, and some use different colors to correspond to different states. Most PLC programming and configuration software on the market are accustomed to following early habits when expressing the online status of PLC modules. Limited by the PLC configuration method and the size of the PLC configuration graphics, as well as the software's operating habits, it is often not easy to express more online information of PLC modules. Users are required to open various interfaces in the software to view status information, data operation information, diagnostic information, etc. This operation method is relatively complicated and often requires users to have certain professional knowledge and skills.

[0004] The traditional online information display method requires a lot of user operations. When using new display terminal devices such as tablets and virtual displays, the operation method is different from the traditional operation method. The user's operation on these new devices is not as convenient as the traditional operation, making the software unable to be convenient in cross-platform applications. Summary of the invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a method for representing the online status of equipment in PLC programming configuration software, which solves the problems existing in the background technology.

[0006] To solve the above technical problems, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions: The present invention provides a method for representing the online status of equipment in PLC programming and configuration software, including: Step 1. Basic graphic element display: Use the basic graphic element layer to display the basic information of the PLC module, and display it when configuring the module used by the current project in the PLC programming and configuration software.

[0007] Step 2. Module status display: Use the module status layer to display the basic status of the PLC module when it is online, and display the basic module information when the PLC module just enters the online state.

[0008] Step 3. Submodule status display: Use the submodule status layer to display the status of the submodule of the PLC module. The submodule status layer is superimposed on the module status layer to display the submodule status information.

[0009] Step 4. Submodule I / O data display: Use the submodule I / O data layer to display the submodule real-time I / O data of the PLC module. The submodule data layer is superimposed on the submodule status layer to display the submodule data information.

[0010] Step 5. Module communication data display: Use the module communication data layer to display the current real-time communication data and the communication data snapshot of the current module.

[0011] The beneficial effects of the present invention are: 1. The method is simple to operate, and the display content can be switched by only zooming / expanding operations. It can not only meet the needs of traditional desktop applications but also meet the needs of new forms of expression or terminal devices such as mobile devices or virtual reality.

[0012] 2. The online status display methods at different levels of this method meet the needs of field engineers from different angles, and can both provide an overview of the module status and analyze phenomena and data in detail.

[0013] 3. This method uses a display method that overlays basic graphics with small graphics, which not only meets the display requirements, but also reduces the resources for loading images and improves software efficiency.

[0014] 4. In this method, all operations are performed in the configuration scene, which reduces the user's operation of switching interfaces. Users can view module status and perform data analysis operations in the same scene, reducing user operation steps. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative work.

[0016] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the method flow of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the module image.

[0018] Figure 3It is a module configuration diagram in the basic primitive layer.

[0019] Figure 4 Schematic diagram of the module status layer.

[0020] Figure 5 Schematic diagram of the submodule status layer.

[0021] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the submodule I / O data layer.

[0022] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the module communication data layer.

[0023] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of the data flow of the module online function in the PLC configuration application.

[0024] Fig. 9 It is a schematic diagram of module configuration implementation in the project configuration scenario. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0026] Reference Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides a method for representing the online status of a device in a PLC programming configuration software, comprising: Step 1. Basic graphic element display: using the basic graphic element layer to display the basic information of the PLC module, and displaying it when configuring the module used by the current project in the PLC programming configuration software.

[0027] Reference Figure 3 As shown, the basic graphic element layer includes the backplane module and slot information, and is composed of the module image. When the module is configured in the project configuration scene, this layer is displayed when the connection with the PLC module has not yet been established.

[0028] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the display is performed in a specific method as follows: the configured PLC module slot, the module image and the module name above the module image, and the basic configuration information below the module image are displayed through an image.

[0029] Reference Figure 2 As shown, the module map item includes a module entity image, brief basic information of the module, a module name, and a module image.

[0030] Step 2. Module status display: Use the module status layer to display the basic status of the PLC module when it is online, and display the basic module information when the PLC module just enters the online state.

[0031] Reference Figure 4 As shown in the figure, the module status diagram is composed of three status bitmaps on the module image. The slot status bitmap reflects whether the PLC module in the backplane slot is consistent with the slot configured in the project scenario. The self-diagnosis status indicates the self-test status of the module. The communication status indicates whether the communication with the PLC module is normal. The bitmap uses gray, green, and red colors to indicate the non-working state, normal working state, and fault state respectively.

[0032] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the basic module information is displayed in a specific display method as follows: the corresponding image is composed of three square status bitmaps superimposed on a regular layer.

[0033] When the online communication is maintained, the PLC programming configuration software and the PLC device perform data communication periodically, and the status bit and diagnostic bit data of the PLC module are obtained through the data software and displayed through the module status layer image.

[0034] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the module status layer image is displayed in a specific display method as follows: the status of the PLC module is represented by three sub-monochrome bitmaps in the upper layer image, with green representing a normal state and red representing a fault state.

[0035] The first monochrome image indicates whether the slot where the PLC module is located is consistent with the configuration slot, the second monochrome image indicates whether the PLC module has a self-diagnosis fault, and the third monochrome image indicates whether the PLC module has a communication fault.

[0036] Step 3. Submodule status display: Use the submodule status layer to display the status of the submodule of the PLC module. The submodule status layer is superimposed on the module status layer to display the submodule status information.

[0037] Reference Figure 5 As shown, the submodule status diagram is composed of a submodule bitmap superimposed on the module image. If the submodule bitmap is a data point, it is a circle. If it is a serial port or network port, it is an interface-shaped bitmap. The bitmap uses gray, green, and red to indicate the non-working state, normal working state, and fault state respectively.

[0038] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the submodule status information is displayed, and its specific display method is: composed of a circular status diagram or a submodule shape status diagram, the status diagram represents the status of each submodule, where green represents normal working status, red represents fault status, and gray represents non-working status.

[0039] Step 4. Submodule I / O data display: Use the submodule I / O data layer to display the submodule real-time I / O data of the PLC module. The submodule data layer is superimposed on the submodule status layer to display the submodule data information.

[0040] Reference Figure 6 As shown, the submodule I / O data layer is composed of the connection lines of the I / O data and the data bitmap superimposed on the submodule status diagram. The I / O data is real-time data obtained online, and the data point bitmap uses gray, green, and red colors to indicate the non-working state, normal working state, and fault state respectively.

[0041] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the submodule data information is displayed in a specific display method as follows: the submodule data layer is superimposed on the submodule status layer to display information, which is composed of a broken line of the submodule current I / O value and the submodule status layer image.

[0042] The color of the broken line is the color of the submodule status diagram. When the broken line and the submodule status diagram are red, the submodule is in a faulty state. Not all submodules require a submodule data display layer to display information. For example, Ethernet modules and serial port modules do not have current values ​​or have a large amount of current data that is inconvenient to display. The data channels of I / O modules such as digital and analog quantities need to display the current I / O value data through the submodule data display layer.

[0043] Step 5. Module communication data display: Use the module communication data layer to display the current real-time communication data and the communication data snapshot of the current module.

[0044] Reference Figure 7 As shown, the module communication data layer diagram is used to display the real-time communication data of the module. The communication protocol or other methods can be selected to display the data. The communication data can also be analyzed by conditional triggering and snapshot methods. The communication data layer is implemented by different module categories.

[0045] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the current real-time communication data and the communication data snapshot of the current module are displayed, and the specific display method is: the user can switch to the module communication data layer by zooming / expanding, and can also use the method supported by the device to open an independent data display interface, such as double-clicking under the Windows desktop operating system. In the data display interface, the module data or status can be analyzed by triggering and filtering.

[0046] When the module status layer is in a fault state, the cause of the fault can be determined through communication data.

[0047] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the specific method of switching to the module communication data layer by zooming / expanding is as follows: when the user uses the zoom / expand operation in the module configuration scene of the PLC programming configuration software, when the module is not selected, the PLC module configuration scene will be zoomed / expanded accordingly.

[0048] When a specific module is selected, the PLC programming configuration software switches the module configuration image to different presentation layers to display different status diagrams, thereby displaying different states of the module when it is online.

[0049] The method is simple to operate, and the displayed content can be switched by only zooming / expanding operations. It can not only meet the needs of traditional desktop applications, but also meet the needs of new forms of expression or terminal devices such as mobile devices or virtual reality.

[0050] The online status display modes at different levels of this method meet the needs of field engineers from different angles, and can both provide an overview of the module status and analyze phenomena and data in detail.

[0051] The method adopts a display mode of superimposing basic graphics and small graphics, which not only meets the display requirements, but also reduces the resources for loading images and improves software efficiency.

[0052] In this method, all operations are performed in the configuration scene, which reduces the user's operation of switching interfaces. The user can view module status and perform data analysis operations in the same scene, reducing the user's operation steps.

[0053] It should be noted that the programming platform in this embodiment is the QT programming platform, the kernel version is 5.14.2, and the software is the PLC programming configuration software.

[0054] In a specific embodiment, the software framework of the online function in the PLC programming configuration software is as follows: Figure 8 As shown in the figure, the main functional modules include engineering scene, backplane scene, module scene, sub-module status layer, sub-module I / O data layer, module configuration interface, configuration file, communication module, etc. Users configure modules in the engineering configuration scene, modify parameters in the module configuration interface, compile and generate configuration files and download them to the PLC module. After going online, the module scene and its sub-layers refresh the layer status and IO data according to the online communication data.

[0055] The engineering configuration scene provides backplane module and other PLC module configuration functions, including configuration of related modules and module copying, dragging and other operation functions. In the engineering configuration stage, the user configures the module into the scene, opens the module configuration interface, sets the relevant parameters of the module, and completes the functional configuration. In the PLC module online stage, the configuration software and the PLC module online data are analyzed and the layer status or I / O data is refreshed according to the currently active layer, and the online status is displayed in different ways.

[0056] The functions of the backplane scene, module scene, and sub-module status layer are mainly to display relevant images and layer information, such as text, bitmap, data, etc., according to the characteristics of this layer. The scene module reads module status data, sub-module status data, sub-module I / O data, sub-module communication data, etc. from the online data, and performs dynamic analysis. According to the analyzed online information, the text, bitmap, data and other layer elements of this layer are refreshed, and then the project configuration scene sends information to refresh the user view.

[0057] The main function of the module configuration interface is to provide an interface for configuring the module's parameters. The user clicks on the module scene in the project configuration scene to open the module configuration interface corresponding to the module, and configures the operating parameters of the module and submodules in the configuration interface. When the project configuration is completed, the configuration file is compiled and downloaded to the PLC module. After the PLC module reads the configuration file, it parses the configuration file and runs according to the parameters in the configuration file.

[0058] The online data module is the communication core of the application, and the services it handles include downloading configuration files, connecting the application to the PLC module, uploading PLC module operation data, parsing communication data, parameter setting commands when the application is running, communication exception error handling, etc. After the module is online, it first calls the PLCConnect() function to apply for connection with the PLC module, then calls the requestRegs() function to obtain the operation data of the PLC module, calls the setCommand() function to send commands, and after completing the parsing of the operation data, calls the freshFg() function of the current display interface to refresh the scene. Among them, the onlineTimeOut() function performs periodic data communication; the syncOnlineStatus() function processes the operation data of the PLC module.

[0059] In a specific embodiment, step 1, configuration and downloading of modules in the project: Preparation: open the PLC programming configuration software, prepare the CPU module and other necessary modules, and connect them using a network cable, and enable the CPU module to the debugging state.

[0060] Create a new project in the PLC programming software, select the appropriate backplane module, select the slot in the backplane configuration scene, and then configure the specified module in the slot. Figure 3 The basic primitive layer is shown in the figure, and reference Fig. 9 As shown in the figure, the module configuration scene in the project displays basic information about the backplane, slots, and modules.

[0061] Define the SlotItem backplane slot component class, use the setModuleItem(ModuleItem*item) method of the SlotItem object to set the created module component object to the backplane, and record the corresponding module configuration class ModuleCfg object in the configuration container.

[0062] Click the configured module in the slot to open the module configuration interface and configure the communication protocol or other parameters. When the module component is clicked, create the module-generated configuration interface and use the setModuleCfg(ModuleCfg*cfg) method to set the corresponding module configuration object in the configuration container to the interface and refresh the interface display.

[0063] Compile the entire project, download the project configuration to the module, traverse all module configuration objects in the configuration container, and call the compile() method of the module configuration class to compile and generate the corresponding configuration file. Then use the downloadFile(QString*fileName) method to download the configuration to the corresponding module and restart the module to start the module with the current configuration.

[0064] In a specific embodiment, step 2, the module is displayed online in the PLC programming configuration software: click "PLC Online" in the menu bar or toolbar, and the PLC programming configuration software starts to communicate with the module periodically.

[0065] The module configuration scene in the project of the PLC programming configuration software displays various online states of the configured modules according to the communication data, such as Figure 4 As shown in the module status layer, each module displays the communication status, self-diagnosis status, and slot status.

[0066] In the module scene of the PLC programming configuration software, use the mouse wheel or the corresponding shortcut keys to zoom in / out the scene. At this time, the zoom / expand ratio can be obtained through the levelOfDetailFromTransform() method, and the current layer display can be switched according to the ratio. According to the ratio from small to large, it switches to the module status layer, submodule status layer, submodule I / O data layer and module communication data layer in turn.

[0067] At this point, the relevant operations of the online display function of the module in the PLC programming configuration software are completed.

[0068] The above contents are merely examples and explanations of the concept of the present invention. Those skilled in the art may make various modifications or additions to the specific embodiments described or replace them in a similar manner. As long as they do not deviate from the concept of the invention or exceed the scope defined by the present invention, they shall all fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for indicating the online status of a device in a PLC programming configuration software, characterized in that: include: Step 1. Basic graphic element display: Use the basic graphic element layer to display the basic information of the PLC module, and display it when configuring the module used in the current project in the PLC programming configuration software; Step 2. Module status display: Use the module status layer to display the basic status of the PLC module when it is online, and display the basic module information when the PLC module just enters the online state; Step 3. Submodule status display: Use the submodule status layer to display the status of the submodule of the PLC module, and the submodule status layer is superimposed on the module status layer to display the submodule status information; Step 4. Submodule I / O data display: Use the submodule I / O data layer to display the submodule real-time I / O data of the PLC module, and the submodule data layer is superimposed on the submodule status layer to display the submodule data information; Step 5. Module communication data display: Use the module communication data layer to display the current real-time communication data and the communication data snapshot of the current module.

2. The method for indicating the device online status in PLC programming configuration software according to claim 1, characterized in that: The specific display method is as follows: The image displays the configured PLC module slot, module image and module name above the module image, and basic configuration information below the module image.

3. The method for indicating the device online status in the PLC programming configuration software according to claim 1, characterized in that: The basic module information is displayed in the following way: The corresponding image consists of three square state bitmaps superimposed on the regular layer; When the online communication is maintained, the PLC programming configuration software and the PLC device perform data communication periodically, and the status bit and diagnostic bit data of the PLC module are obtained through the data software and displayed through the module status layer image.

4. The method for indicating the device online status in PLC programming configuration software according to claim 3, characterized in that: The module status layer image is displayed, and the specific display method is as follows: The upper image uses three sub-monochrome bitmaps to represent the status of the PLC module, using green to represent a normal state and red to represent a fault state; The first monochrome image indicates whether the slot where the PLC module is located is consistent with the configuration slot, the second monochrome image indicates whether the PLC module has a self-diagnosis fault, and the third monochrome image indicates whether the PLC module has a communication fault.

5. The method for indicating the device online status in PLC programming configuration software according to claim 1, characterized in that: The specific display method of the display submodule status information is as follows: It consists of a circular state diagram or a sub-module shape state diagram, which represents the state of each sub-module, where green represents normal working state, red represents fault state, and gray represents non-working state.

6. The method for indicating the device online status in PLC programming configuration software according to claim 1, characterized in that: The specific display method of the display submodule data information is as follows: The submodule data layer is superimposed on the submodule status layer to display information, which is composed of the current I / O value of the submodule and the broken line of the submodule status layer image; The color of the broken line is the color of the submodule status diagram. When the broken line and the submodule status diagram are red, the submodule is in a faulty state. Not all submodules require a submodule data display layer to display information. For example, Ethernet modules and serial port modules do not have current values ​​or have a large amount of current data that is inconvenient to display. The data channels of I / O modules such as digital and analog quantities need to display the current I / O value data through the submodule data display layer.

7. The method for indicating the device online status in PLC programming configuration software according to claim 1, characterized in that: The specific display method of displaying the current real-time communication data and the communication data snapshot of the current module is as follows: Users can switch to the module communication data layer by zooming / expanding, and can also open an independent data display interface using the device supported method, such as double-clicking in the Windows desktop operating system. In the data display interface, module data or status can be analyzed by triggering and filtering; When the module status layer is in a fault state, the cause of the fault can be determined through communication data.

8. The method for indicating the device online status in PLC programming configuration software according to claim 7, characterized in that: The specific method of switching to the module communication data layer by scaling / expanding is as follows: When the user uses the zoom / expand operation in the module configuration scene of the PLC programming configuration software, if no module is selected, the PLC module configuration scene will be zoomed / expanded accordingly; When a specific module is selected, the PLC programming configuration software switches the module configuration image to different presentation layers to display different status diagrams, thereby displaying different states of the module when it is online.

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