Alarm-associated containers in plant diagrams of technical installations

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a control system for a technical plant, in particular a process or manufacturing plant, comprising an operator station server and an operator station client. The operator station server is configured to transmit a plant image of the technical plant to the operator station client for operation and monitoring purposes. The plant image comprises at least one variable image element. The operator station client is configured to display the plant image with the variable image element visually, and optionally audibly, to an operator of the technical plant. An alarm service is implemented on the operator station server, which is configured to transmit alarm messages arising in the control system to the operator station client for display to the operator. The invention also relates to a method for the visual display of a plant image of a technical plant.

[0002] For the operation and monitoring of process engineering plants, control systems of the process engineering plants create symbolic plant diagrams that abstractly represent the process engineering relationships - especially between individual process objects of the process engineering plants.

[0003] Plant diagrams consist of static symbols (e.g., lines, rectangles, etc.), dynamic symbols (e.g., lines with color changes or rectangles with fill levels that change depending on process measurements), block symbols (for the dynamic visualization of process engineering objects), complex controls (e.g., trend indicators, message sequence indicators, etc.), and containers in which content from independent and self-contained sources can be visualized. These sources can include, for example, webcams, diagrams of modular plant components (so-called "package units"), apps (e.g., controller optimizers, KPI calculations), and the like.

[0004] The containers are implemented using different technologies. In modern web-oriented control systems, so-called "iFrames" can be used for this purpose, which are used, for example, in the SWAC technology employed by Siemens (SWAC stands for "Siemens Web Application Collaboration").

[0005] The aforementioned complex controls (trend displays, XY graphs, message sequence displays, SFC step sequences, CFC visualization, batch, etc.) can also be embedded in plant images using containers, as this allows the underlying applications to be decoupled and distributed on the server side in order to achieve a higher level of robustness.

[0006] For example, if multiple webcams are to provide a real-time view of process plant components, a container must be configured for each webcam within a plant image. If an alarm occurs in a process plant component, the corresponding plant image containing the webcam must be opened, providing a view of that specific component. Often, neither message texts nor real-time views are sufficient for the efficient handling of complex alarms; additional context, such as P&ID diagrams, excerpts from operating manuals, and the like, may be required.

[0007] Known guidance systems that visually present plant images with various objects such as containers to an operator are disclosed, for example, in WO 2020 / 064712 A1 and EP 3680740 A1.

[0008] EP 3 495 903 A discloses a method for operating and monitoring a controlled technical system.

[0009] US patent 2018 / 286723 A1 discloses a method for controlling a display in semiconductor manufacturing.

[0010] EP 3 079 029 A1 describes a method for remotely determining user information in a building management system.

[0011] The invention is based on the objective of providing a control system for a technical plant that enables an operator of the control system to have a clearer overview of an operating state of the technical plant and can provide the operator with targeted information to remedy the alarm state in the event of an alarm state of the technical plant.

[0012] This problem is solved by a control system for a technical plant, in particular a manufacturing or process plant, with the features of claim 1. Furthermore, the problem is solved by a method for operating a technical plant, in particular a process or manufacturing plant, with the features of claim 7. Advantageous embodiments are described in the dependent claims.

[0013] A control system of the type described above comprises an operator station server and an operator station client. The operator station server is configured to transmit a system image of the technical equipment to the operator station client for operation and monitoring purposes. This system image includes at least one variable image element. The operator station client is configured to display the system image with the variable image element visually, and optionally audibly, to an operator of the technical equipment. An alarm service is implemented on the operator station server, which is configured to transmit alarm messages generated in the control system to the operator station client for display to the operator.

[0014] The control system is characterized according to the invention in that it is configured to provide the variable image element with a reference to a specific incoming alarm message and the specific incoming alarm message and / or the variable image element with a reference to an object, such that when the specific incoming alarm message occurs, the object is displayed visually and optionally audibly in the variable image element. Furthermore, the control system is characterized in that it is configured to generate a visual and optionally audible representation of an object different from the referenced object(s) in the variable image element during a time period in which none of the specific alarm messages occur.In other words, as long as no alarm message referenced by a variable image element is received, the variable image element represents an initial object that is not referenced by any alarm messages (i.e., a "neutral" third object). The initial image display can be specified during the automation design and / or by the operator.

[0015] In this context, a control system is understood to be a computer-aided technical system that includes functionalities for representing, operating, and controlling a technical system such as a manufacturing or production plant. In addition to the operator station server and the operator station client, the control system can also include, for example, so-called process- or production-related components that serve to control actuators or sensors.

[0016] The technical installation can be a plant from the process industry, such as a chemical, pharmaceutical, petrochemical, or food and beverage plant. This also includes any plant from the manufacturing industry, such as factories where cars or goods of all kinds are produced. Technical installations suitable for carrying out the process according to the invention can also originate from the energy generation sector. Wind turbines, solar power plants, or power plants for energy generation are likewise included in the term "technical installation."

[0017] In this context, an "Operator Station Server" is understood to be a server that centrally collects data from an operator control and monitoring system, as well as typically alarm and measurement data archives from a control system of a technical plant, and makes this data available to users. The Operator Station Server usually establishes a communication link to automation systems (such as an automation device) of the technical plant and forwards data from the technical plant to so-called "Operator Station Clients," which are used to operate and monitor the operation of the individual functional elements of the technical plant.

[0018] The Operator Station Server can itself have client functions to access the data (archives, messages, tags, variables) of other Operator Station Servers. This allows images of the operation of the technical plant on the Operator Station Server to be combined with variables from other Operator Station Servers (server-to-server communication). The Operator Station Server can be, but is not limited to, a SIMATIC PCS 7 Industrial Workstation Server from Siemens.

[0019] An operator is a human operator of the technical equipment. The operator interacts with the technical equipment and its control system via special user interfaces and controls specific technical functions of the equipment. For this purpose, the operator can use the control system's operating and monitoring system with the Operator Station Server and the Operator Station Client.

[0020] The plant image, which the Operator Station Server transmits to the Operator Station Client for visual display, is a user interface typically used for control systems. It comprises graphical representations of individual elements of the technical plant and serves to display the status of these elements, the relationship between them (e.g., process engineering relationships), or similar information. The individual elements of the technical plant are graphically represented in the plant image by their respective image elements. In this case, the plant image includes at least one variable image element.

[0021] The variable image element displays content that can be changed during the operation of the technical system, specifically a real-time image data source, another system image, a video, or a document such as a piping diagram of the technical system. The variable image element can also visually (and optionally audibly) display a trend indicator for measured values ​​of the technical system, a message sequence indicator for messages from the control system, or a controller optimization function. In other words, the variable image element can also be described as a so-called (web) container that can be dynamically filled with changing content.

[0022] An alarm message is a notification that typically requires an immediate response from the operator of the technical system. A message is understood as a report of the occurrence of an event that represents a transition from one discrete state within the technical system to another discrete state.

[0023] As part of the planning for the automation of a technical system, it is determined, among other things, which components of the system can trigger an alarm message under which conditions. For example, it can be specified that an alarm message is generated (or triggered) when the pressure in a boiler exceeds a certain threshold.

[0024] The guidance system according to the invention enables a fine-grained indication of the charging status of the image element for more efficient operation and monitoring of the technical system.

[0025] The operator receives information from the control system about when the displayed system image with at least one image element can be fully observed, or which parts of the image element still need to be loaded.

[0026] According to the invention, the control system is designed to provide the variable image element with a reference to a specific alarm message. This specific alarm message can, in turn, be linked to an object. The references can be defined during the design of the automation system. However, it is also possible for the operator to create or modify the references during operation of the system. Furthermore, the control system can automatically generate the references based on certain conditions.

[0027] When an alarm message is triggered, the referenced object is displayed visually within the variable image element and, if necessary, also audibly. An object can represent a real-time image data source, another system image, a video, or a document.

[0028] The reference to the object to be displayed can be linked to the alarm message and / or the variable image element. The only important thing is that when an alarm message of a predefined type occurs, the predefined object is displayed visually (and possibly audibly) in an assigned variable image element.

[0029] The control system according to the invention is therefore particularly advantageously designed to generate alarm-associated dynamic image elements (containers) in plant diagrams (e.g., process engineering plant diagrams) for improved operation and monitoring of the technical plant. The control system makes it possible to design plant diagrams (especially overview diagrams) in a more space-saving manner when content from independent and self-contained sources (e.g., objects hosted on a web server) is to be integrated. For handling complex alarms, the control system provides an (arbitrary) context more efficiently and in a targeted manner. Furthermore, the control system according to the invention enables an operator to be confronted only with the information that he or she specifically needs to handle the alarm message.

[0030] The control system can be configured to display information relating to the alarm message, in particular the alarm message text, in addition to the referenced object, within the variable image element when a referenced alarm message is received. This allows the operator to receive targeted information from both the referenced object and the alarm message.

[0031] The control system is not limited to displaying / processing a plant image with a single variable image element. Rather, the plant image can comprise multiple variable image elements, with the control system being configured to assign each variable image element a reference to a specific incoming alarm message and the specific incoming alarm message, and / or the variable image elements a reference to an object, such that when the specific incoming alarm message occurs, the object is displayed visually and, if necessary, audibly in the respective variable image element, whereby the specific incoming image elements and the objects can differ from one another.

[0032] Furthermore, the control system is not limited to referencing only a single incoming alarm message in each variable image element. Rather, the control system can be configured to provide the variable image element with multiple references to specific incoming alarm messages, and the specific incoming alarm messages and / or the variable image elements with a reference to an object, such that when one of the specific incoming alarm messages occurs, the respective referenced object is displayed visually and, if necessary, audibly in the variable image element.

[0033] The control system is preferably designed to display, in the event that several referenced incoming alarm messages occur within the same time period, the object referenced by the incoming alarm message with the highest priority, the most recent time rank, or the unacknowledged message in the variable image element. This results in an automated prioritization of the objects to be displayed according to predefined criteria. This allows the operator to be shown the most critical alarm message and the referenced object particularly effectively, enabling them to initiate immediate action.

[0034] The control system can also be configured to display the objects referenced by multiple incoming alarm messages within the same time period, either manually by an operator or in an automatic, time-based rotation. This allows the operator to gain an improved overview of the objects related to the alarm messages (such as multiple camera images).

[0035] The previously formulated task is also solved by a method for operating a technical plant, in particular a process or manufacturing plant, which has a control system comprising an operator station server and an operator station client, and wherein the operator station client is configured to visually, and optionally acoustically, display the plant image with the variable image element to an operator of the technical plant, and wherein an alarm service is implemented on the operator station server, which is configured to transmit alarm messages arising in the control system to the operator station client for presentation to the operator.

[0036] The process includes the following steps: a) Providing the variable image element with a reference to a specific incoming alarm message, b) Providing the specific incoming alarm message with a reference to an object, c) Upon occurrence of the specific incoming alarm message, visual and, if applicable, acoustic representation of the object in the variable image element by the Operator Station Client, wherein the object represents a real-time image data source, another plant image, a video or a document, and wherein, in a time period in which none of the specific alarm messages occur, a visual and, if applicable, acoustic representation of an object different from the referenced object(s) is generated in the variable image element.

[0037] Preferably, a plurality of variable image elements are each provided with a reference to one or more specific incoming alarm messages, and the specific incoming alarm message(s) are each provided with a reference to an object, which can be a single object or a plurality of objects, wherein, upon the occurrence of one of the specific incoming alarm messages, a visual and, if necessary, acoustic representation of the object or objects in the variable image element(s) is provided by the Operator Station Client.

[0038] In an advantageous further development of the invention, in the variable image element, in addition to the referenced object, information relating to the alarm message is also displayed when a referenced alarm message appears, in particular an alarm message text.

[0039] The variable image element can be provided with a plurality of references to specific incoming alarm messages, and each of the specific incoming alarm messages can be provided with a reference to an object, such that when one of the specific incoming alarm messages occurs, the respective referenced object is displayed visually and, if necessary, audibly in the variable image element.

[0040] Preferably, if several of the referenced incoming alarm messages occur within the same time period, the object is displayed in the variable image element that is referenced by the incoming alarm message which has the highest priority or most recent time rank, or which has not been acknowledged.

[0041] Alternatively or additionally, in the event that several of the referenced incoming alarm messages occur within the same period, the objects referenced by the incoming alarm messages can be manually changed by an operator of the control system or displayed in an automatic time-based rotation.

[0042] The properties, features, and advantages of this invention described above, as well as the manner in which they are achieved, will become clearer and more readily understandable in connection with the following description of an exemplary embodiment, which is explained in more detail in conjunction with the drawings. The drawings show: FIG 1 a control system according to the invention in a schematic diagram; FIG 2 an object model of a control system according to the invention; FIG 3 a first visual representation of a plant image by a control system according to the invention; and FIG 4 a second visual representation of a plant image by a control system according to the invention.

[0043] Figure FGI 1 shows a part of a control system 1 according to the invention for a technical plant designed as a process plant, i.e., as a process engineering plant. The control system 1 comprises an operator station server 2 and an operator station client 3.

[0044] The Operator Station Server 2 and the Operator Station Client 3 are connected to each other via a terminal bus 4 and optionally to other components of the control system 1, such as a process data archive, which are not shown.

[0045] For the purpose of operation and monitoring, a user or operator can access the Operator Station Server 2 via the Terminal Bus 4 using the Operator Station Client 3. The Terminal Bus 4 can be configured as, for example, Industrial Ethernet, but is not limited to this.

[0046] The Operator Station Server 2 has a device interface 5, which is connected to a plant bus 6. Via this device interface 5, the Operator Station Server 2 can communicate with an automation device 7 and with any other optional components of the process plant. The plant bus 6 can be, but is not limited to, a standard such as Industrial Ethernet. The automation device 7 can be connected to any number of subsystems (not shown).

[0047] The Operator Station Server 2 implements an alarm notification service 8, a process image 9, and a visualization service 10. The Operator Station Client 3 is configured to display a plant image 11 with a variable image element 12, which will be discussed in detail later.

[0048] Automation device 7 is designed to control and monitor the automation of a technical system. For this purpose, a control program 13 is implemented on the automation device, which was loaded onto the automation device 7 as part of the design of the automation system. If a fault occurs during operation of the technical system, automation device 7 generates an alarm message according to predefined rules, which is transmitted to the process image 9 of the operator station server 2.

[0049] The alarm notification service 8 transmits information about the newly generated / emerged alarm message to the visualization service 10. The visualization service 10 then checks whether the alarm message is associated with the variable image element 12, i.e., whether the variable image element 12 has a reference to the alarm message. Strictly speaking, the variable image element 12 does not have a reference to the (instantiated) alarm message itself, but rather to the type of alarm message. This is expressed in the present disclosure by the fact that the variable image element 12 has a reference to a specific "emerging" alarm message. The visualization service 10 can check every emerging alarm message to see whether the underlying type of the respective alarm message is referenced by a variable image element 12.The alarm message(s) can also have a special, additional attribute that indicates the association with the variable image element 12, so that the visualization service 10 has to use less capacity for the recognition of the references.

[0050] If such a reference exists in the generated / occurring alarm message, the visualization service 10 determines that an object 14, referenced by the alarm message, is displayed visually and, if necessary, audibly in the variable image element 12. Alternatively or additionally, the reference to the object 14 to be displayed can also be linked to the variable image element 12. The only important thing is that when an alarm message of a predefined type occurs, the predefined object 14 is displayed visually (and, if necessary, audibly) in an assigned variable image element 12. The predefined object 14 must be integrable into the image generation for the Operator Station Client 3 by the visualization service 10.

[0051] In FIG 2 An object model 15 belonging to the control system 1 is shown. A plant image 16 consists of 1 to n image elements 17 (screen items). A specialization of an image element 18 is, for example, a block symbol of a technical object of the technical plant, which in turn can represent, for example, a user object 19 (also referred to as a "faceplate").

[0052] The plant image 16 can include 1 to m additional plant images 20 (also referred to as "screen windows") that can be displayed within the plant image 16. One special type of these additional plant images 20 is a dynamic image element 21. Instances of this dynamic image element 21 can have references to types of alarm messages 22. The alarm messages 22 are in turn linked to technical objects 23 or their associated tags 24. The alarm messages 22 and the dynamic image elements 21 each have a reference to an object 25, which has already been explained.

[0053] In FIG 3 This is the plant image 11 from FIG 1 The image is enlarged and shown without further parts of the control system 1. It can be seen that the plant image 11, in addition to various symbols, has a variable image element 12, which is characterized by a thicker border. A camera image 14 is displayed in the variable image element 12, showing a process engineering object.

[0054] FIG 4 The plant image 12 shows this. FIG 3 , where the variable image element 12 shows a piping plan of a process engineering plant.

[0055] Overall, the invention can contribute to greater reliability and improved usability of the control system of the technical plant, especially when using a web-based control system.

Claims

1. Control system (1) for a technical plant, in particular processing or manufacturing plant, which has an operator station server (2) and an operator station client (3), wherein for activation and monitoring, the operator station server (2) is embodied to transmit a plant diagram (11) of the technical plant to the operator station client (3), wherein the plant diagram (11) comprises at least one variable diagram element (12), and wherein the operator station client (3) is embodied to visually, and optionally acoustically, represent the plant diagram (11) with the variable diagram element (12) to an operator of the technical plant, and wherein an alarm service (8) is implemented on the operator station server (2), and is embodied to transmit alarm notifications (8) occurring in the control system (1) to the operator station client (3) for presentation to the operator, characterised in that the control system (1) is embodied to provide the variable diagram element (12) with a reference to a particular alarm notification that can occur and the particular alarm notification that can occur and / or the variable diagram element (12) with a reference to an object (14) in such a way that when the particular alarm notification that can occur does occur, the object (14) is visually and optionally acoustically represented in the variable diagram element (12), wherein the object (14) represents a real-time diagram data source, a further plant diagram, a video or a document, and wherein in a time range in which none of the particular alarm notifications occurs, the control system (1) is embodied to generate in the variable diagram element (12) a visual and optionally an acoustic representation of an object different from the referenced object(s) (14).

2. Control system (1) according to claim 1, wherein the plant diagram (11) comprises a plurality of variable diagram elements (12), wherein the control system (1) is embodied to provide the variable diagram elements (12) with one reference respectively to a particular alarm notification that can occur and the particular alarm notification that can occur and / or the variable diagram elements (12) with a reference to an object (14) in such a way that when the particular alarm notification that can occur does occur, the object is respectively visually and optionally acoustically represented in the variable diagram element (12), wherein the particular diagram elements that can occur and the objects (14) can differ from each other.

3. Control system (1) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, in addition to the referenced object (14), the control system (1) is embodied to also represent items of information relating to the alarm notification, in particular an alarm notification text, in the variable diagram element (12) or in the plurality of variable diagram elements (12) when a referenced alarm notification occurs.

4. Control system (1) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the control system (1) is embodied to provide the variable diagram element (12) or the plurality of variable diagram elements (12) with a plurality of references to particular alarm notifications that can occur and the particular alarm notifications that can occur and / or the variable diagram elements (12) with one reference respectively to an object (14), in such a way that when one of the particular alarm notifications that can occur does occur, the respective referenced object (14) is visually and optionally acoustically represented in the variable diagram element (12).

5. Control system (1) according to claim 4, wherein for the case where a plurality of the referenced alarm notifications that can occur do occur in the same period, the control system (1) is embodied to represent that object (14) in the variable diagram element (12) which is referenced by that alarm notification that occurs, which has the highest priority or the most recent time ranking or which has not been acknowledged.

6. Control system (1) according to claim 4, wherein for the case where a plurality of the referenced alarm notifications that can occur do occur in the same period, the control system (1) is embodied to represent the objects (14) referenced by the occurring alarm notifications and / or the variable diagram elements (12) in a manner which can be manually changed by an operator of the control system (1) or in a manner which changes automatically over time.

7. Method for operating a technical plant, in particular processing or manufacturing plant, which has a control system (1), which has an operator station server (2) and an operator station client (3), and wherein the operator station client (3) is embodied to visually, and optionally acoustically, represent a plant diagram (11) with a variable diagram element (12) to an operator of the technical plant, and wherein an alarm service (8) is implemented on the operator station server (2) and is embodied to transmit alarm notifications occurring in the control system (1) to the operator station client (3) for presentation to the operator, the method comprising: a) providing the variable diagram element (12) with a reference to a particular alarm notification that can occur, b) providing the particular alarm notification that can occur with a reference to an object (14), c) when the particular alarm notification that can occur does occur, visual and optionally acoustic representation of the object (14) in the variable diagram element (12) by the operator station client (3), wherein the object (14) represents a real-time diagram data source, a further plant diagram, a video or a document, wherein in a time range in which none of the particular alarm notifications occurs, a visual and optionally an acoustic representation of an object (14) different from the referenced object(s) (14) is generated in the variable diagram element (12).

8. Method according to claim 7, wherein a plurality of variable diagram elements is provided with one reference respectively to one or more particular alarm notification(s) that can occur, and wherein the particular alarm notification(s) that can occur are provided with one reference respectively to an object (14), wherein this can be a single object (14) or a plurality of objects (14), wherein when one of the particular alarm notifications that can occur does occur, the object (14) or the objects (14) is / are visually and optionally acoustically represented in the variable diagram element(s) (12) by the operator station client (3).

9. Method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein, in addition to the referenced object (14), items of information relating to the alarm notification, in particular an alarm notification text, are also represented in the variable diagram element (12) or in the plurality of variable diagram elements (12) when a referenced alarm notification occurs.

10. Method according to one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the variable diagram element (12) or the plurality of variable diagram elements (12) is provided with a plurality of references to particular alarm notifications that can occur and the particular alarm notifications that can occur is provided with one reference respectively to an object (14) in such a way that when one of the particular alarm notifications that can occur does occur, the respective referenced object (14) is visually and optionally acoustically represented in the variable diagram element (12).

11. Method according to one of claims 7 to 10, wherein for the case where a plurality of the referenced alarm notifications that can occur does occur in the same period, the object (14) is represented in the variable diagram element (12) which is referenced by that alarm notification that occurs, which has the highest priority or the most recent time ranking or which has not been acknowledged.

12. Method according to one of claims 7 to 10, wherein for the case where a plurality of the referenced alarm notifications that can occur does occur in the same period, the objects (14) referenced by the occurring alarm notifications are represented in a manner which can be manually changed by an operator of the control system (1) or in a manner which changes automatically over time.