Display support program, display support method, display support device and display support system

Abstract

A display support program according to the present disclosure causes a computer to implement: a reference function (111) which references property data (117) for processing project data (116) which controls the display of an image representation shown on a programmable display device, a difference extraction function (112) which compares the property data (117) with the project data (116) and extracts a difference between them, and an editing function (113) which edits the project data (116) based on the extracted difference.

Description

Technical area

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a display support program, a display support method, a display support apparatus, and a display support system. background

[0002] A programmable display device is connected to a control device, such as a programmable logic controller (PLC), and is used to display the states of the device itself and a connected control device, and to operate them. For example, project data is used as a data set that forms the content to be displayed on the programmable display device. The project data is data for displaying the state of the control device and for operating the control device, and is generated using a display support device, which is a computer in which display software is installed. The generated project data is transferred from the display support device to the programmable display device.Because the project data does not have a data format that is readable and writable by a general-purpose editor such as a text editor or a spreadsheet application, if the contents of the project data are to be changed after the project data is created, the contents are changed, for example, via a graphical user interface (GUI) included in the display software.

[0003] Generally, the project data newly generated by the display software does not contain content that meets the required specifications of an individual programmable display device. Therefore, a user who generates project data typically edits the contents of the project data via a GUI or the like provided in the display software, for example, to modify the project data to meet desired specifications. Furthermore, the user can edit project data via the GUI or the like to modify project data generated in the past according to the required specifications.

[0004] The user editing project data can create information for editing the project data as property data in advance in preparation for modifying the project data via the GUI or similar. Unlike project data, property data has a data format that is readable and writable by the general-purpose editor.

[0005] Various techniques have been proposed for processing project data. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which project data corresponding to the required specifications of an individual programmable display device is generated by considering the contents of project property data including individual setting information in accordance with the required specifications of the individual programmable display device in project data serving as a commonly used template. Here, the individual setting information is managed, for example, by a setting ID set for each object and background function included in the display data constituting the project data. Prior art documentsPatent document

[0006] Patent Document 1: International Publication of Unexamined Application No. WO 2013 / 080332 Brief description of the inventionProblems to be solved by the invention

[0007] However, for example, in Patent Document 1 described above, when an addition or deletion of a specific item managed with a setting ID is performed on the project property data to edit project data serving as a template, the editing content cannot be reflected in the project data. In this case, the user must manually edit and make the reflection in the project data regarding the addition or deletion of the specific item, for example, via a GUI or the like provided in the display software, and therefore a problem arises that the efficiency of editing the project data is low.

[0008] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above problem, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide a display support program, a display support method, a display support apparatus, and a display support system that can improve the efficiency of editing project data for controlling the display of an image display displayed on a programmable display device. Means to solve the problems

[0009] To achieve the above object, a display support program according to the present disclosure causes a computer to implement: an acquisition function that acquires property data for editing project data generated for controlling the display of an image displayed on a programmable display device, a difference extraction function that compares the property data with the project data and extracts a difference therebetween, and an editing function that edits the project data based on the difference. Effects of the invention

[0010] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a display support program, a display support method, a display support apparatus, and a display support system that can improve the efficiency of editing project data for controlling the display of an image display displayed on the programmable display apparatus. Short description of the drawing Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a presentation support system according to an embodiment. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a presentation support device according to the embodiment. Fig. 3 is a diagram for describing a data structure of project data according to the embodiment. Fig. 4 is a diagram for describing a data structure of property data according to the embodiment. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an operation example of the presentation support apparatus according to the embodiment. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of difference extraction processing executed by the presentation support apparatus according to the embodiment. Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of difference extraction result data according to the embodiment. Fig. 8 is a diagram for describing a relationship between a general-purpose editor, the property data, and the project data before editing according to the embodiment. Fig. 9 is a diagram for describing a relationship between the general-purpose editor, the property data, and the project data after editing according to the embodiment. Fig. 10 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a presentation support system according to a modification example. Fig. 11 is a configuration example of the display support device according to the modification example. Fig. 12 is a diagram showing an example of state monitoring processing executed by the display support device according to the modification example. Fig. 13 is a diagram for describing condition monitoring of the property data according to the modification example. Fig. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a notification method according to the modification example when a change in the property data is detected. Fig. 15 is a diagram for describing supplementary processing of the property data according to the modification example. Fig. 16 is a diagram for describing consideration processing of the property data according to the modification example when there is no project data to be edited. Embodiments for carrying out the invention

[0011] Hereinafter, a display support program, a display support method, a display support apparatus, and a display support system according to an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiment, the same parts with the same reference numerals operate in the same way, and repeated descriptions thereof will be omitted where appropriate.

[0012] Embodiment Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a display support system 1 according to an embodiment. The display support system 1 is a system including a display support device 10 and a programmable display device 20. The display support device 10 and the programmable display device 20 are communicatively connected to each other. The display support device 10 is a device that supports displaying a display image displayed on the programmable display device 20. For example, display software for displaying the display image displayed on the programmable display device 20 is installed in the display support device 10. A user using the display software can, for example, edit various image images displayed on the programmable display device 20 via a graphical user interface (GUI).

[0013] The programmable display device 20 displays, for example, information about the status of an external device connected to the programmable display device 20. The programmable display device 20 receives predetermined commands and controls the external device according to the received commands. The external device is, for example, a programmable logic controller (PLC).

[0014] Fig. Figure 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the display support device 10 according to the embodiment. The display support device 10 includes a processing circuit 11, an input interface 12, an output interface 13, a communication interface 14, and a storage circuit 15.

[0015] Processing circuit 11 is a processor that operates as a central unit of display support device 10. Processing circuit 11 executes a program stored in memory circuit 15, for example, to implement a function corresponding to the executed program. Note that processing circuit 11 may include a memory area for storing at least part of the data stored in memory circuit 15.

[0016] The input interface 12 receives various operations input by an operator to the display support device 10. The input interface 12 is implemented, for example, by a mouse, a keyboard, a touch panel to which an instruction is input by touching an operation screen, or the like. The input interface 12 is connected to the processing circuit 11, converts an operation instruction input by an operator into an electrical signal, and outputs the electrical signal to the processing circuit 11. Note that, in the present description, the input interface 12 is not limited to the interface including physical operating elements such as the mouse and the keyboard.For example, in one example, the input interface 12 also includes an electrical signal processing circuit that receives an electrical signal corresponding to the operation instruction input from an external input device separately provided from the display support device 10 and outputs the electrical signal to the processing circuit 11.

[0017] The output interface 13 is connected to the processing circuit 11 and outputs a signal provided by the processing circuit 11. The output interface 13 is implemented, for example, by a display circuit, an audio device, and the like. The display circuit includes, for example, a CRT display, a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, an LED display, a plasma display, and the like. The audio device includes, for example, a speaker. The audio device may include an output circuit that outputs an audio signal to the outside. Note that the output interface 13, together with the input interface 12, may be implemented as a touch panel or a touchscreen.

[0018] The communication interface 14 transmits and receives data to and from an external device. Any communication standard can be used between the communication interface 14 and the external device. In particular, the communication interface 14 transmits and receives various data to and from the programmable display device 20, for example.

[0019] The storage circuit 15 includes a processor-readable recording medium, such as a magnetic or optical recording medium, or a semiconductor memory. Furthermore, the storage circuit 15 may be a drive device or the like that reads or writes various types of information from or to a portable storage medium, such as a CD-ROM drive, a DVD drive, or a flash memory. Note that the storage circuit 15 is not necessarily implemented by a single storage device. For example, the storage circuit 15 may be implemented by a plurality of storage devices.

[0020] The memory circuit 15 stores, for example, project data 16 and property data 17, which are stored in Fig. 2 are shown.

[0021] The project data 16 is data for controlling the display of an image displayed on the programmable display device. The project data 16 includes, for example, information about project settings, information about an image to be displayed, information about background functions, and the like. The project data 16 is generated, for example, by the display software installed on the display support device 10. The generated project data 16 is transmitted from the display support device 10 to the programmable display device 20. The project data 16 transmitted to the programmable display device 20 is read and developed, for example, by a display program contained in the programmable display device 20 and is directly involved in display control of the image displayed on the programmable display device 20.The generated project data 16 is stored in the control circuit 15 and can be reloaded and reused, for example, by the display software. The contents of the project data 16 loaded into the display software are displayed on the image display, for example, via the output interface 13. It should be noted that the project data 16 does not have a data format that can be read and written by a general-purpose editor, such as a text editor or a spreadsheet application, but is data that can be edited, for example, on a GUI included in the display software.

[0022] Fig. 3 is a diagram for describing a data structure of the project data 16 according to the embodiment. Fig. The project data 16 shown in Figure 3 consists of elements (hereinafter referred to as functional elements) relating to various functions for controlling image display. Specifically, examples include a functional element 161 relating to project settings, a functional element 162 relating to an image display group, and a functional element 163 relating to background functions. The functional elements are configured hierarchically. For example, the functional element 161 includes a functional element 1611 relating to monitoring target information. The functional element 162 includes functional elements 1621 and 1622 relating to images. Furthermore, the functional element 163 includes a functional element 1631 relating to an alarm function and a functional element 1632 relating to a guidance function.Function element 1621 further comprises a function element 1623 relating to image display settings and a function element 1624 relating to object groups. Function element 1624 comprises function elements 1625 and 1626 relating to an individual object. In . Fig. 3, it can be seen that the functional elements 1622, 1631, and 1632 also have a similar hierarchical structure. Each functional element is associated with image data, various setting information, and the like according to, for example, a role, a function, and the like of the respective functional element.

[0023] As in Fig. 3, each functional element is assigned a "function name" and a "number." The functional element is identified, for example, using a combination of "function name" and "number" as an identifier. In particular, for the functional element 1624 shown in Fig. 3, the name of an object, that is, the "function name" is "Lamp," the "No." is "10001," and the identifier is "Lamp 10001." Hereinafter, the identifier represented by "function name + No. indicating a reference number in the function" is referred to as a function element ID. Note that the function element ID is not limited to the combination of a character string and a numeric value. The function element ID may be composed of only a numeric value or may contain other symbols.

[0024] In addition, information is added, updated, and deleted for each functional element in the project data 16. This means that the functional element is a record to be edited in the project data 16. Furthermore, editing the project data is processing in units of functional elements and includes at least adding a functional element to the project data, updating the contents of a functional element contained in the project data, and deleting a functional element contained in the project data.

[0025] The property data 17 is data for editing the project data 16. The property data 17 includes text data, for example, other than image data and template data such as a design theme, among the data sets constituting the project data 16. Unlike the project data 16, the property data 17 has a data format that is readable and writable by a general-purpose editor. Specifically, the property data 17 includes, for example, information in a record format in which the function element ID, an attribute name indicating an editable attribute in the function element identified by the function element ID, and an attribute value set for the attribute are associated with each other. The file format of the property data 17 is, for example, text, CSV, XML, HTML, JSON, or the like.It should be noted that the file format of the property data 17 is not limited to the above formats, as long as the display software can recognize the relationship between the function elements, the attribute names and the attribute values.

[0026] The property data 17 may include target scope information. The target scope information may limit the scope of the project data to be processed by importing the property data. Note that the target scope information may be omitted.

[0027] Fig. 4 is a diagram for describing a data structure of the property data 17 according to the embodiment. As shown in Fig. 4, the property data 17 includes text data. In the Fig. 4, the target scope of editing the project data 16 is limited by the target scope information.

[0028] An area R1, which is in Fig. 4, includes the target circumference information. In the Fig. In the area R1 shown in Figure 4, it is shown that the inventory to be processed includes the functional elements of the identifier "Image Display 101." Furthermore, it is shown that the function names of the functions to be processed are "Lamp" and "Numerical Display."

[0029] One in Fig. The area R2 shown in Figure 4 comprises information that represents an entry set relating to functional elements. In particular, the area shown in Fig. 4 contains information indicating the entry set in which a function name, a number, an attribute name, and an attribute value, which indicate elements constituting an entry, are associated with each other. Specifically, for example, the entry includes "Function Name: Lamp," "No.: 10001," "Attribute Name: Image Representation," and "Attribute Value: Image Representation 101." Note that the function element ID of this entry is "Lamp 10001," which is obtained by adding No. to the function name. Furthermore, in the property data 17, there may be multiple entries associated with a single function element ID. According to Fig. 4, for example, the second entry, which is assigned to the function element ID "Lamp 10001," includes an entry with "Function Name: Lamp," "No.: 10001," "Attribute Name: Device," and "Attribute Value: Y1." The other entries have the same data structure and therefore their description is omitted.

[0030] The memory circuit 15 reads stored data according to a control of the processing circuit 11. For example, the memory circuit 15 reads a stored program according to the control of the processing circuit 11. In addition, the memory circuit 15 reads the project data 16, the property data 17, and other miscellaneous data stored therein according to the control of the processing circuit 11.

[0031] The processing circuit 11 according to the present embodiment processes, for example, the Fig. 3 by executing a program according to the present embodiment. Specifically, the processing circuit 11 implements a reference function 111, a difference extraction function 112, and an editing function 113 by, for example, executing the program stored in the storage circuit 15.

[0032] The acquisition function 111 is a function of acquiring the attribute data 17 for editing the project data. The processing circuit 11 acquires the attribute data 17, for example, with a user operation as a starting point using the acquisition function 111. Specifically, a user generates the attribute data 17 by any method, such as using a general-purpose editor or a tool for converting a design document into an attribute data format, and performs an operation of inputting the generated attribute data 17 to the display support device 10. At this time, the project data 16 in which the contents of the attribute data 17 are to be incorporated is read, for example, by the display software, and can be referenced by the processing circuit 11.When an input operation of the characteristic data 17 is performed, the processing circuit 11 acquires the input characteristic data 17.

[0033] The difference extraction function 112 is a function of comparing the project data 16 with the associated property data 17 and extracting the difference between them. In the difference extraction function 112, the processing circuit 11 extracts the difference between the two data using, for example, an ID that can be recognized jointly by the project data 16 and the property data 17. The ID is, for example, a functional element ID.

[0034] The editing function 113 is a function of editing the project data 16 based on the difference between the project data 16 and the attribute data 17 obtained by executing the difference extraction function 112. For example, when a predetermined functional element is included only in the attribute data 17, the processing circuit 11 adds the functional element to the project data 16 through the editing function 113. Specifically, the processing circuit 11 considers, for example, information of an entry concerning the predetermined functional element included in the attribute data 17 in the project data 16 in association with image data, various setting information, and the like, as necessary. Therefore, the contents of the predetermined functional element are added to the project data 16.Furthermore, for example, if the predetermined functional element is included in both the project data 16 and the property data 17, the processing circuit 11 updates the contents of the project data 16 with the contents of the property data 17. For example, if a functional element with a certain ID is included only in the project data 16, the processing circuit 11 deletes the functional element from the project data 16.

[0035] The operation of the display support device 10 configured as described above will be described according to the processing procedure of the processing circuit 11. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an operation example of the presentation support device 10 according to the embodiment. Fig. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of difference extraction processing performed by the display support device 10 according to the embodiment. The following description will be made with reference to the flowcharts of Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 given.

[0036] In this operation example, it is assumed that the project data 16 generated at a predetermined time is read into the display software, and the contents of the associated attribute data 17 are to be reflected in the project data 16. Here, it is assumed that the attribute data 17 is incorporated into the display software, for example, through a user operation as a starting point. Note that it is assumed that the user generates the attribute data 17 in advance by any method and reflects its contents once in the project data 16. It is assumed that, after reflecting it in the project data 16, the user performs a predetermined editing process on the attribute data 17. It is assumed that the user then performs an operation of inputting the attribute data 17 after editing into the display software.It is assumed that when the input operation of the characteristic data 17 is performed after the processing, the processing circuit 11 executes the reference function 111.

[0037] Furthermore, the target scope information contained in the property data 17 after processing assumes that the stock to be processed is "Image Display 101" and the function to be processed is "Lamp." The target scope information is, for example, information indicating which function element group among the function elements contained in the project data 16 is set as the processing target. In addition, it is assumed that information indicating the entry set concerning function elements included in the property data 17 after processing includes an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10001”, “Attribute name: Image representation” and “Attribute value: Image representation 101”, an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10001”, “Attribute name: Device” and “Attribute value: Y1”, an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10001”, “Attribute name: Color” and “Attribute value: Red”, an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10002", "Function name: Image representation" and "Attribute value: Image representation 101", an entry "Function name: Lamp", "No.: 10002", "Attribute name: Device" and "Attribute value: Y2" and an entry "Function name: Lamp", "No.: 10002", "Attribute name: Color" and "Attribute value: Red". It should be noted that, for example, the function element with the function element ID "Object group 3001", which is in . Fig. 3, is present in the lower layer of the inventory “Image Representation 101”, but by setting the target function to “Lamp”, it is possible to specify a functional element that is one layer below the functional element with the functional element ID “Object Group 3001”.

[0038] In addition, as information contained in the project data 16, in which the contents of the property data 17 before processing, ie the contents of the property data 17 newly created by the user as described above, are taken into account, it is assumed that only the functional elements with the functional element ID "Lamp 10001" and "Lamp 10003" are included in the functional elements which have the functional element ID "Image representation 101" which is assigned to the inventory to be processed, and the function "Lamp".

[0039] This means that it is assumed that information indicating the entry set concerning function elements contained in the property data 17 before processing includes an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10001”, “Attribute name: Image representation” and “Attribute value: Image representation 101”, an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10001”, “Attribute name: Device” and “Attribute value: Y1”, an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10001”, “Attribute name: Color” and “Attribute value: Red”, an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10003”, “Attribute name: Image representation” and “Attribute value: Image representation 101”, an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10003”, “Attribute name: Device” and “Attribute value: Y3” and an entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10003”, “Attribute name: Color” and “Attribute value: Red”.

[0040] In Fig. 5, when an operation of inputting the feature data 17 after editing is performed, the processing circuit 11 executes the acquisition function 111 to acquire the input feature data 17 (step S1). At this time, the processing circuit 11 extracts, for example, functional elements in the range corresponding to the target scope information of the feature data 17 from the project data 16. Specifically, the functional element with the functional element ID including the function name "lamp" is extracted as the inventory from among the functional elements with the functional element ID "image display 101".

[0041] When the feature data 17 is acquired, the processing circuit 11 performs the difference extraction function 112 to compare the project data 16 with the feature data 17 and extract the difference between them (step S2). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 compares the project data 16 with the feature data 17 based on the identifier for identifying a functional element that is part of the project data 16, ie, the functional element ID, and extracts the difference between them. Hereinafter, a specific flow of the difference extraction processing will be described with reference to Fig. 6 described.

[0042] In Fig. 6, the processing circuit 11 reads one of the function elements in the attribute data 17 based on the function element ID (step S21). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 reads, for example, an entry "Function Name: Lamp", "No.: 10001", "Attribute Name: Image Representation", and "Attribute Value: Image Representation 101". Note that in the entry "Function Name: Lamp", "No.: 10001", "Attribute Name: Device", and "Attribute Value: Y1", and the entry "Function Name: Lamp", "No.: 10001", "Attribute Name: Color", and "Attribute Value: Red", the "Function Name" and "No." are the same, that is, the function element IDs are the same, and therefore they are treated as the checked entries in the subsequent processing.

[0043] When the processing circuit 11 reads the entry "Function Name: Lamp", "No.: 10001", "Attribute Name: Image Representation", and "Attribute Value: Image Representation 101", the processing circuit 11 searches the project data 16 for a function element corresponding to the function element identified from the read entry (step S22). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 searches the project data 16 for a function element with the function element ID "Lamp 10001".

[0044] The processing circuit 11 determines whether a corresponding functional element exists in the project data 16 (step S23). Here, since the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10001" exists in the project data 16 (Yes in step S23), the processing circuit 11 stores the fact that the functional element read from the attribute data 17 is "present in both data" (step S24). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 generates difference extraction result data and sets the functional element ID and the comparison result as one entry. The processing circuit 11 stores, for example, the entry "Functional Element ID: Lamp 10001" and "Comparison Result: Present in Both Data" in the difference extraction result data. Note that the difference extraction result data is generated, for example, for each difference extraction processing.

[0045] After executing step S24, the processing circuit 11 determines whether or not an unchecked function element exists in the attribute data 17 (step S26). Since an unchecked entry corresponding to the function element with the function element ID "Lamp 10002" remains in the attribute data 17, the processing circuit 11 determines that an unchecked function element exists in the attribute data 17 (Yes in step S26) and reads an unchecked function element in the attribute data 17 based on the function element ID (step S21). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 reads, for example, an entry of "Function Name: Lamp," "No.: 10002," "Attribute Name: Image Representation," and "Attribute Value: Image Representation 101." It should be noted that for the entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10002”, “Attribute name: Color” and “Attribute value: Y2” and the entry “Function name: Lamp”, “No.: 10002", "Attribute Name: Color" and "Attribute Value: Red", the "Function Name" and the "No." are the same, that is, the function element IDs are the same, and therefore they are treated as the checked entries in the subsequent processing.

[0046] When processing circuit 11 reads the entry "Function Name: Lamp," "No.: 10002," "Attribute Name: Image Representation," and "Attribute Value: Image Representation 101," processing circuit 11 searches project data 16 for a function element corresponding to the function element identified from the read entry (step S22). Specifically, processing circuit 11 searches project data 16 for a function element with the function element ID "Lamp 10002."

[0047] The processing circuit 11 determines whether a corresponding functional element exists in the project data 16 (step S23). Since the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10002" does not exist in the project data 16 (No in step S23), the processing circuit 11 stores the fact that the functional element read from the attribute data 17 "only exists in attribute data" (step S25). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 stores, for example, an entry "Functional Element ID: Lamp 10002" and "Comparison Result: Only exists in attribute data" in the difference extraction result data.

[0048] After executing step S25, the processing circuit 11 determines whether or not an unchecked function element exists in the property data 17 (step S26). Since no unchecked entry remains in the property data 17, the processing circuit 11 determines that no unchecked function element exists in the property data 17 (No in step S26) and reads one of the function elements in the project data 16 based on the function element ID (step S27). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 reads from the project data 16 a function element with the function element ID "Lamp 10001" in the processing target scope of the asset to be processed "Image Display 101" and the function to be processed "Lamp" in the project data 16.

[0049] The processing circuit 11 determines whether the functional element read from the project data 16 is also present in the property data 17 (step S28). The processing circuit 11 determines this based, for example, on whether the read functional element was determined to be "present in both data" in step S23. Since the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10001" was determined to be "present in both data" in step S23, the processing circuit 11 determines that the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10001" is also present in the property data 17 (Yes in step S28) and determines whether an unchecked functional element is present in the project data 16 (step S30).

[0050] Since the untested functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10003" remains in the project data 16, the processing circuit 11 determines that an untested functional element exists in the project data 16 (Yes in step S30) and reads an untested functional element in the project data 16 based on the functional element ID (step S27). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 reads from the project data 16 a functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10003" in the processing target scope of the stock to be processed "Image Display 101" and the function to be processed "Lamp" in the project data 16.

[0051] The processing circuit 11 determines whether the functional element read from the project data 16 is also present in the attribute data 17 (step S28). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 determines this based on whether the read functional element was determined to be "present in both data" in step S23. In this case, since the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10003" was not determined to be "present in both data" in step S23, the processing circuit 11 determines that the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10003" is not present in the input data 17 (No in step S28) and stores the fact that the read functional element is "present only in the project data" (step S29). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 stores, for example, an entry "Functional Element ID: Lamp 10003" and "Comparison Result: Present only in the project data" in the difference extraction result data.

[0052] After executing step S29, the processing circuit 11 determines whether or not an unchecked functional element exists in the project data 16 (step S30). Since there is no unchecked functional element left in the project data 16 at this time, the processing circuit 11 determines that no unchecked functional element exists in the project data 16 (No in step S30) and terminates the difference extraction processing.

[0053] Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the difference extraction result data according to the embodiment. According to Fig. 7 indicates that the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10001" is assigned "present in both data sets." It also indicates that the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10002" is assigned "present only in property data." It also indicates that the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10003" is assigned "present only in project data."

[0054] From step S3 onwards, processing is again carried out with reference to Fig. 5. After performing the difference extraction processing, Fig. 5, the processing circuit 11 executes the editing function 113 for editing the project data 16 based on, for example, the generated difference extraction result data.

[0055] The processing circuit 11 reads, for example, an entry from the Fig. 7, generated in the difference extraction processing in step S2 (step S3). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 reads the entry of the functional element ID "Lamp 10001" from the difference extraction result data.

[0056] The processing circuit 11 refers to a comparison result item of the read entry (step S4). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 refers to the contents of the comparison result item of the entry with the functional element ID "Lamp 10001."

[0057] Because the contents of the comparison result item of the entry of the functional element ID "Lamp 10001" indicate "present in both data" ("present in both data" in step S4), the processing circuit 11 updates the functional element of the project data 16 with the contents of the functional element of the property data 17 (step S6). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 updates the contents of the functional element included in the project data 16 with the contents of the property data 17 for the functional element with the functional element ID "Lamp 10001." Note that the processing circuit 11 may check in advance whether the contents of the functional element to be updated need to be changed or not, and may skip the update processing if there is no change.

[0058] After executing step S6, the processing circuit 11 determines whether or not an unchecked entry exists in the difference extraction result data (step S8). Here, because the unchecked entry of the functional element ID "Lamp 10002" and "Lamp 10001" remain in the difference extraction result data, the processing circuit 11 determines that an unchecked functional element exists in the difference extraction result data (Yes in step S8) and reads an unchecked entry from the difference extraction result data (step S3). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 reads, for example, the entry of the functional element ID "Lamp 10002" from the difference extraction result data.

[0059] The processing circuit 11 refers to the comparison result element of the read entry (step S4). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 refers to the contents of the comparison result element of the entry with the functional element ID "Lamp 10002."

[0060] Because the comparison result item of the entry of the function element ID "Lamp 10002" indicates "only present in property data" ("only present in property data" in step S4), the processing circuit 11 adds the function element corresponding to the function element ID "Lamp 10002" to the project data 16 (step S5). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 newly incorporates the contents of the entry "Function Name: Lamp," "No.: 10002," "Attribute Name: Image Representation," and "Attribute Value: Image Representation 101" contained in the property data 17 into the project data 16.

[0061] After executing step S5, the processing circuit 11 determines whether or not an unchecked entry exists in the difference extraction result data (step S8). Here, because the unchecked entry of the functional element ID "Lamp 10001" remains in the difference extraction result data, the processing circuit 11 determines that an unchecked functional element exists in the difference extraction result data (Yes in step S8) and reads an unchecked entry from the difference extraction result data (step S3). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 reads the entry of the functional element ID "Lamp 10003" from the difference extraction result data.

[0062] The processing circuit 11 refers to the comparison result element of the read entry (step S4). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 refers to the contents of the comparison result element of the entry with the functional element ID "Lamp 10003."

[0063] Since the comparison result item of the entry of the functional element ID "Lamp 10003" indicates "only present in project data" ("only present in project data" in step S4), the processing circuit 11 deletes the functional element corresponding to the functional element ID "Lamp 10003" from the project data 16 (step S7). Specifically, the processing circuit 11 deletes from the project data 16 information related to the functional element ID "Lamp 10003," such as the attribute name and attribute value, contained in the project data 16.

[0064] After executing step S5, the processing circuit 11 determines whether or not an unchecked entry exists in the difference extraction result data (step S8). Since there is no unchecked entry in the difference extraction result data, the processing circuit 11 determines that no unchecked functional element exists in the difference extraction result data (No in step S8) and terminates the processing.

[0065] Next, a process is described in which the contents of the newly created property data are taken into account in the project data and then the contents of the newly created property data are changed and the changed contents are taken into account in the project data.

[0066] In the following description, it is assumed that the stock to be processed in the project data 16 is "Image Display 101" and the function to be processed is "Lamp." Furthermore, the information indicating the entry set concerning the function elements contained in the property data 17 before processing and the information indicating the entry set concerning the function elements contained in the property data 17 after processing are the same as those described as the assumption of the description of the above-described operation example and the difference extraction processing.

[0067] Fig. 8 is a diagram for describing a relationship between the property data 17 and the project data 16 before processing according to the embodiment. Fig. 8 shows an image representation showing the contents of the property data 17 displayed via the general-purpose editor, a CSV file output as the output data 17, and an image representation showing the contents of the project data 16 displayed via the display software.

[0068] According to Fig. 8, information to be output to the property data 17 is edited by the general-purpose editor and the property data 17 is recreated. As in Fig. For example, as shown in Figure 8, the timestamp at which the property data 17 was generated is “8 / 1 / 2022 13:00” and the file path of the saved property data is “D:¥Work¥HMIDesign¥PD.csv”.

[0069] In addition, according to Fig. 8, the newly generated property data 17 is incorporated into the display software by the processing circuit 11, for example. The contents of the property data 17 thus incorporated are therefore, for example, processed as described in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 is taken into account in the project data 16. As a result of taking into account the contents of the newly generated property data 17 in the project data 16, according to Fig. 8, the image display shows two images, which are a functional element relating to a "red" color lamp display for the device "Y1" and a functional element relating to a "red" color lamp display for the device "Y3", which are functional elements contained in the functional elements of the functional element ID "Image Display 101". As shown in Fig. 8, the “No.” of the two functional elements concerning the lamp display are “10001” and “10003”, and it is therefore understood that the functional element IDs are “Lamp 10001” and “Lamp 10003”.

[0070] Fig. 9 is a diagram for describing a relationship between the property data and the project data after processing according to the embodiment. Fig. 9 shows an image representation showing the contents of the property data 17 displayed via the general-purpose editor, a CSV file output as the property data 17, and an image representation showing the contents of the project data 16 displayed via the display software.

[0071] Referring to Fig. 9 the contents of the property data 17, which are in Fig. 8 were newly created, are edited on the general-purpose editor. The contents of the edit are the addition of an entry concerning the functional element ID "Lamp 10002" and the deletion of an entry concerning the functional element ID "Lamp 10003." The result of the edit is output to property data 17, and the edited property data 17 is created. As shown in Fig. For example, as shown in Figure 9, the timestamp at which the edited property data 17 was created is “8 / 02 / 2022 14:00” and the file path of the saved property data is “D:¥Work¥HMIDesign¥PD.csv”. As a result, the Fig. 8 newly created property data 17 overwritten with the edited property data 17.

[0072] Furthermore, according to Fig. 9, the newly generated property data 17 are recorded by the processing circuit 11, for example, in the display software. The contents of the property data 17 recorded in this way are, for example, processed as described in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 is taken into account in the project data 16. As shown in Fig. As shown in Figure 9, as a result of considering the contents of the property data 17 after processing in the project data 16, an image representation is added, which represents a functional element concerning a "red" color lamp display for the device "Y2" (functional element ID "Lamp 10002"), which is the functional element included in the functional elements of the functional element ID "Image Representation 101". As a result of considering the property data 17 after processing in the project data 16, in Fig. 9 an image is deleted which represents the functional element (functional element ID “on lamp 10003”) concerning the “red” lamp display for the device “Y3”, which is the functional element included in the functional elements of the functional element ID “image display 101”.

[0073] As described above, even if the contents of the newly created property data 17 are edited and some functional elements are deleted, the edited contents can be stored in the project data 16 without the user's intervention by executing the Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 shown processing must be taken into account.

[0074] According to the embodiment described above, the processing circuit 11 obtains the characteristic data 17 for processing the project data 16 generated to control the display of the image displayed on the programmable display device 20. The processing circuit 11 compares the characteristic data 17 with the project data 16 and extracts the difference between them. The processing circuit 11 processes the project data 16 based on the extracted difference.

[0075] Therefore, even if the contents of the property data 17 have been taken into account once in the project data 16 and then a change, such as an addition or deletion of a functional element, is made in the property data 17, the changed contents can be taken into account in the project data 16 without the user's intervention.

[0076] Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to improve the efficiency of editing the project data for controlling the display of an image displayed on the programmable display device.

[0077] Modification Although the embodiment of the present disclosure has been described above, modifications and applications can be made in any manner by implementing the present disclosure. Specifically, in the above embodiment, the case was described where the difference between the property data after editing and the project data was extracted, and the project data was edited based on the extracted difference. In the modification, a case is described where property data is periodically monitored, and when the state of the property data changes, the change is notified to the outside. In the modification, a case is described where, when information included in property data is partially insufficient, the insufficient information is supplemented.Furthermore, the modification describes a case in which, even if project data to be edited does not exist, project data is newly created when an input of property data is received, and the contents of the property data are reflected in the newly created project data.

[0078] Fig. 10 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a display support system 1A according to the modification. The display support system 1A is a system including a display support device 10A and a programmable display device 20. The display support device 10A and the programmable display device 20 are communicatively connected to each other.

[0079] Fig. 11 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the display support device 10A according to the modification. The display support device 10A includes a processing circuit 11A, the input interface 12, the output interface 13, the communication interface 14, and the storage circuit 15.

[0080] The processing circuit 11A according to the modification example processes, for example, the Fig. 3 by executing a program according to the modification example. Specifically, the processing circuit 11A executes the program stored in the memory 15 to implement the reference function 111, the difference extraction function 112, the editing function 113, a monitoring function 114, a supplementation function 115, and a regeneration function 116.

[0081] The reference function 111, the difference extraction function 112, and the editing function 113 are the same as those in the above-described embodiment, and therefore the description thereof is omitted.

[0082] The monitoring function 114 is a function of periodically monitoring the property data 17 and, when the state of the property data 17 changes, notifying the outside world of the change. In the monitoring unit 114, the processing circuit 11A references the property data 17 stored in the storage circuit 15 at predetermined time intervals. At this time, the processing circuit 11A stores, for example, information of a monitoring target in association with the project data 16 to be processed. The monitoring target information is, for example, a file path of the property data 17 or a timestamp of the last update date and time.

[0083] The processing circuit 11A, for example, references a file path in which the attribute data 17 is stored at predetermined intervals. Then, the processing circuit 11A obtains, for example, information of a timestamp of the attribute data 17. When the acquired timestamp information is updated, the processing circuit 11A notifies the user of the change, for example, via the output interface 13.

[0084] In addition, the processing circuit 11A notifies the user of the deletion of the property data 17, for example, via the output interface 13 when the property data 17 has been deleted.

[0085] Furthermore, in the monitoring function 114, when the state of the property data 17 has been changed, the processing circuit 11A can notify the change to, for example, the reference function 111, the difference extraction function 112 and the editing function 113 and take the change into account in the project data 16 to be edited.

[0086] The supplement function 115, for example, is a function of supplementing insufficient information when the information contained in the property data is partially insufficient at the time of updating the contents of the project data. In the supplement function 115, for example, the processing circuit 11A receives input of the property data 17 via the input interface 12. The processing circuit 11A acquires the contents of the input property data 17. If the processing circuit 11A determines that the acquired information of the property data 17 is partially insufficient, the processing circuit supplements the insufficient information through a predetermined method and updates the contents of the property data 17.

[0087] The regeneration function 116 is, for example, a function of generating new project data and incorporating the contents of property data into the newly generated project data when input of property data is received, even if project data to be edited does not exist. In the regeneration function 116, the processing circuit 11A receives, for example, input of property data 17 via the input interface 12. The processing circuit 11A determines whether or not project data 16 to be edited exists, for example, by referring to the storage circuit 15 or a memory reserved for the display software. If it is determined that no project data 16 to be edited exists, the processing circuit 11A regenerates project data 16. The processing circuit 11A incorporates the contents of the property data 17 whose input was received into the newly generated project data 16.

[0088] The operation of the display support device 10A configured as described above will be described according to the processing procedure of the processing circuit 11A. Fig. Fig. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a state of state monitoring processing executed by the display support device 10A according to the modification. The following description will be made with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 12. Note that, in the present operation example, in the monitoring function 114, the processing circuit 11A refers to the characteristic data 17 at a plurality of preset times or at predetermined time intervals from a predetermined time. Furthermore, a timestamp is added to the characteristic data 17, and each time the contents of the characteristic data 17 are updated, the value of the timestamp is updated with the time at which the contents are updated.

[0089] For example, when a preset time is reached, Fig. 12, the processing circuit 11A refers to the characteristic data 17 stored in the memory circuit 15 (step S1A).

[0090] The processing circuit 11A determines whether the state of the property data 17 has changed or not (step S2A). Specifically, the processing circuit 11A acquires a timestamp assigned to the property data 17, compares the value of the retained timestamp with the value of the acquired timestamp, and determines whether or not there is a difference.

[0091] If the processing circuit 11A determines that there is a difference between the value of the held timestamp and the value of the acquired timestamp, and therefore the state of the attribute data 17 has changed (Yes in step S2A), the processing circuit notifies the user of the change in the attribute data 17, for example, via the output interface 13 (step S3A). Then, the processing circuit 11A terminates the processing and waits until the next preset time. The processing circuit 11A executes step S1A again at the next preset time.

[0092] Note that if the processing circuit 11A determines that there is no difference between the value of the held timestamp and the value of the acquired timestamp, and therefore the state of the attribute data 17 has not changed (No in step S2A), the processing circuit terminates the processing and waits until the next preset time. The processing circuit 11A executes step S1A again at the next preset time.

[0093] Fig. 13 is a diagram for describing the condition monitoring of the property data 17 according to the modification. According to the Fig. In the diagram shown in Figure 13, for example, the contents of the property data 17 stored in the memory circuit 15 are first considered in the project data 16 in the display software. By executing the monitoring function 114, the processing circuit 11A then waits, for example, until a first preset time (t = t1). After that, the processing circuit 11A references the property data 17 at the first preset time. Because the property data 17 is unchanged, the processing circuit 11A terminates the reference processing and waits until a second preset time (t = t2 > t1).

[0094] Thereafter, the processing circuit 11A refers to the characteristic data 17 at the second preset time. Because the characteristic data 17 is unchanged, the processing circuit 11A here ends the reference processing and waits until a third preset time (t = t3 > t2).

[0095] As in Fig. 13, for example, an entry concerning the functional elements concerning the functional element ID “Lamp 10002” is deleted from the property data 17 between the second time and the third time.

[0096] The processing circuit 11A refers to the property data 17 at the third preset time. Because the property data 17 has been changed, the change in the property data 17 is detected and communicated to the user, for example, via the output interface 13.

[0097] Fig. Fig. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a notification method when a change in the property data 17 is detected according to the modification. An example of notification to the user is described below with reference to Fig. 14 described. Fig. 14 shows an example of an editing window of the presentation software displayed on a display as an example of the output interface 13. According to Fig. 14, "There is a change not reflected in the attribute data" is displayed on the image display 191. Examples of the display format include a banner display and a pop-up window. Processing circuit 11A can communicate the difference extraction result.

[0098] According to Fig. 14, the user can recognize that the property data 17 has been changed, and in particular, that the image display setting 101 has been changed. This means that the user can recognize that the inconsistency between the property data 17 and the project data 16 occurred due to the reprocessing of the property data 17 after the contents of the property data 17 were reflected in the project data 16. It is therefore possible to prevent a failure to reflect the changed contents of the reprocessed property data 17 in the project data 16.

[0099] Next, the modification describes a case in which, if some information contained in the property data 17 is partially insufficient, the insufficient information is supplemented. If, in the modification, an entry concerning a functional element contained in the property data 17 has a setting deficiency, the setting can be supplemented at the time of loading into the display software and then reflected in the project data 16.

[0100] Fig. 15 is a diagram for describing supplementary processing of the property data 17 according to the modification. In Fig. 15 shows that, for example, there is project data 16 in which No. “10001” is not used for the “Numeric value display” function and the “Numeric value display” function, in which the No. is not set, is added to the project data 16. According to Fig. 15, in the supplementary function 115, when the property data 17 is input, the processing circuit 11A supplements the entry by detecting an entry of the function name “numeric display” as having the value “10001” set for the No. value, and takes into account the information of the entry concerning the function element ID “numeric display 10001” in the project data 16.

[0101] Furthermore, Fig. 15 is an example where project data 16 exists in which the color of the default setting of the lamp is “red” and a function element whose color is not set is added to the project data 16. According to Fig. 15, in the supplementary function 115 in the property data 17 that has been input, the processing circuit 11A supplements the entry by, for example, interpreting the entry "function name: lamp", "No.: 10001", "attribute name: color", and "attribute value: empty" as if "red" were set for the attribute value, and considers the information of the entry concerning the function element ID "lamp 10001" in the project database 16. In addition, although an entry with "attribute name: color" does not exist for the entry "function name: lamp" and "No.: 10002", the processing circuit 11A supplements the entry by, for example, interpreting the entry "function name: lamp", "No.: 10002", "attribute name: color", and "attribute value: red" as if it were present, and considers the information of the entry concerning the function element ID "lamp 10002" in the project data 16.

[0102] Therefore, the user can add a functional element without the trouble of checking and setting which number of which function is unused in the project data 16, or without the trouble of checking and setting an attribute value that can be set for each attribute of a functional element. Therefore, the user's editing work of the attribute data 17 can be supported, and the editing efficiency of the project data for controlling the display of the image displayed on the programmable display device can be improved.

[0103] Finally, the modification describes a case where, even if project data to be edited does not exist, project data is newly created when an input of property data is received, and the contents of the property data are reflected in the newly created project data.

[0104] Fig. 16 is a diagram for describing consideration processing of the property data 17 when there is no edited project data 16 according to the modification. Fig. 16 shows a state in which the property data 17 is entered by a user's drag-and-drop operation into the display window W1 in which no edited project data 16 exists.

[0105] At this time, even in a state where the edited project data 16 does not exist in the display software, when the property data 17 is input, the processing circuit 11A in the new generation function 116 generates new project data 16 associated with the input property data 17, and incorporates the contents of the property data 17 in the newly generated project data 16. Therefore, for example, when the user edits the generated property data 17, it is possible to reduce the time and effort for the user to prepare the project data 16 associated with the property data 17 after editing, even if there is no project data 16 in which the property data 17 is incorporated before editing.

[0106] In the above embodiment, the display support device 10 includes the output interface 13, but this is not a limitation. Specifically, the output interface 13 may be provided externally to the display support device 10, and therefore, the display support device 10 may not need to include the output interface 13.

[0107] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the project data 16 before being modified by the edited property data 17 is the project data 16 in which the user has previously generated the property data 17 by any method and the contents of the property data 17 are taken into account, but this is not a limitation. The project data 16 before being modified may be model data generated by a predetermined method or project data 16 generated by any method in the past.

[0108] Furthermore, by applying an operation program defining the operation of the presentation support apparatus 10 according to the above embodiment to an existing personal computer or an information terminal, the personal computer or the information terminal can be caused to operate as the presentation support apparatus 10 according to the embodiment.

[0109] Furthermore, the program may be distributed in any manner. For example, the program may be stored on a computer-readable recording medium, such as a read-only compact disc (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disc (DVD), or a memory card, and distributed, or it may be distributed over a communications network, such as the Internet.

[0110] Various embodiments and modifications of the present disclosure are possible without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the present disclosure. The above-described embodiment is intended to describe the present disclosure and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, the scope of the present disclosure is not indicated by the embodiment, but by the scope of the claims. Various modifications made within the scope of the claims and within the meaning of the equivalent disclosure are considered to be within the scope of this disclosure. Industrial applicability

[0111] With the present disclosure, it is possible to provide the display support program, the display support method, the display support device, and the display support system that can improve the efficiency of editing project data for controlling the display of an image display displayed on the programmable display device. List of reference symbols 1, 1A Display support system 10, 10A Display support device 11, 11A processing circuit 111 Reference function 112 Difference extraction function 113 Editing function 114 Monitoring function 115 Supplementary function 116 New generation function 12 Input interface 13 Output interface 14 Communication interface 15 memory circuit 16 Project data 17 Property data 20 programmable display device QUOTES CONTAINED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents submitted by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the convenience of the reader. This list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] WO 2013 / 080332

[0006]

Claims

[1] Display support program that causes a computer to implement: a reference function that obtains property data for editing project data created to control the display of an image displayed on a programmable display device; a difference extraction function that compares the property data with the project data and extracts a difference between them; and an editing function that edits the project data based on the difference. [2] The display support program according to claim 1, wherein the difference is extracted based on an identifier for identifying a functional element which is part of the project data. [3] The display support program according to claim 2, wherein, when a functional element having the predetermined identifier is included only in the project data, the editing function deletes the functional element having the predetermined identifier from the project data. [4] The display support program according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the computer is further caused to implement a monitoring function which refers to the property data at predetermined time intervals and, when a content of the property data is changed, notifies a change to an outside. [5] A display support program according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, when the property data has insufficient information, the computer is further caused to implement a supplementary function that supplements the insufficient information. [6] The display support program according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, when an input of the property data is received, the computer is further caused to implement a regeneration function that regenerates project data corresponding to the property data when the project data to be compared does not exist. [7] Representation support methods comprising: Obtaining property data for editing project data created to control the display of an image displayed on a programmable display device; Comparing the property data with the project data and extracting a difference between them; and Edit the project data based on the difference. [8] A display support device comprising: a reference unit that obtains property data for editing project data generated to control the display of an image displayed on a programmable display device; a difference extraction unit that compares the property data with the project data and extracts a difference between them; and a processing unit that processes the project data based on the difference. [9] Display support system, comprising: a programmable display device; and the display support device according to claim 8.

Images