Apparatus, method, and program

Abstract

Provided is an apparatus including a first processing unit which performs regular processing within each cycle period, a request acceptance unit which writes, in response to reception of an execution request of non-regular processing that is to be performed by the first processing unit, content according to the execution request to a storage device, and causes the first processing unit to execute the content, and a prohibition unit which prohibits, in response to the request acceptance unit having written the content according to the execution request to the storage device, the first processing unit over a prohibition period of a reference length from executing the non-regular processing according to a subsequent execution request serving as the execution request.

Description

APPARATUS, METHOD, AND PROGRAM

[0001] The contents of the following patent application(s) are incorporated herein by reference: 　　NO. 2023-046789 filed in JP on March 23, 2023 　　The present invention relates to an apparatus, a method, and a program.

[0002] Patent Literature 1 describes "examples of processing critical to safety which is performed by a safety process 41 include, for example, processing such as processing to acquire a measurement result of a sensor unit 10, processing to convert the measurement result of the sensor unit 10 into a process value, and processing to cause the process value to be transmitted" (paragraph 0024) and the like. (Citation List) (Patent Literature) 　　(PTL 1) Japanese Patent No. 5862614General Disclosure

[0003] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus including a first processing unit which performs regular processing within each cycle period, and a request acceptance unit which writes, in response to reception of an execution request of non-regular processing that is to be performed by the first processing unit, content according to the execution request to a storage device, and causes the first processing unit to execute the content.

[0004] The above described apparatus may further include a prohibition unit which prohibits, in response to the request acceptance unit having written the content according to the execution request to the storage device, the first processing unit over a prohibition period of a reference length from executing the non-regular processing according to a subsequent execution request serving as the execution request.

[0005] In the above described apparatus having the prohibition unit, the prohibition unit may prohibit the request acceptance unit from receiving the subsequent execution request for only the prohibition period. The prohibition unit may cancel reception prohibition after the prohibition period.

[0006] In the above described apparatus having the prohibition unit, the prohibition unit may prohibit the request acceptance unit from writing the content according to the subsequent execution request for only the prohibition period.

[0007] In the above described apparatus having the prohibition unit, after the content according to the execution request is written to the storage device, by performing a notification to the first processing unit, the request acceptance unit may cause the first processing unit to execute the non-regular processing according to the execution request, and after the content according to the execution request is written to the storage device, the prohibition unit may prohibit the notification by the request acceptance unit according to the subsequent execution request for only the prohibition period.

[0008] In any of the above described apparatuses having the prohibition unit, the prohibition period may be longer than a cycle of the cycle period.

[0009] In the above described apparatus of the first aspect, the first processing unit may execute the non-regular processing in response to a state in which the content according to the execution request is written to the storage device and the regular processing is executed.

[0010] In any of the above described apparatuses, a sum of a regular processing period during which one regular processing continues and a non-regular processing period during which the non-regular processing continues may be shorter than a cycle of the cycle period.

[0011] In any of the above described apparatuses, the first processing unit may perform the regular processing and the non-regular processing on a secure area of the storage device, and the apparatus may perform processing on a non-secure area of the storage device, and may further comprise a second processing unit which transmits the execution request to the request acceptance unit.

[0012] The above described apparatus may further include the storage device, in which the storage device may have a first storage device having the secure area, and a second storage device having the non-secure area.

[0013] Any of the above described apparatuses may further include an acquisition unit which acquires measurement data, in which the regular processing may include processing of writing at least one of the measurement data acquired by the acquisition unit or a process value derived from the measurement data to the storage device. The non-regular processing may be processing executed in response to a request from an outside of the apparatus. The acquisition unit may acquire the measurement data from a sensor apparatus.

[0014] According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method including accepting a request by writing, in response to reception of an execution request of non-regular processing that is to be performed by a first processing apparatus which performs regular processing within each cycle period, content according to the execution request to a storage device, and causing the first processing apparatus to execute the content.

[0015] According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program for causing a computer to function as a first processing unit which performs regular processing within each cycle period, and a request acceptance unit which writes, in response to reception of an execution request of non-regular processing that is to be performed by the first processing unit, content according to the execution request to a storage device, and causes the first processing unit to execute the content.

[0016] Note that the above described summary clause does not necessarily describe all necessary features of the embodiments of the present invention. The present invention may also be a sub-combination of the features described above.

[0017] Fig. 1 illustrates field instrument 1 according to a first embodiment.Fig. 2 is a timing diagram illustrating a relationship between regular processing and non-regular processing.Fig. 3 illustrates an operation of a processing apparatus 4.Fig. 4 illustrates field instrument 1A according to a second embodiment.Fig. 5 is a timing diagram illustrating a relationship between the regular processing and the non-regular processing.Fig. 6 illustrates an operation of a processing apparatus 4A.Fig. 7 illustrates an example of a computer 2200 in which a plurality of aspects of the present invention may be entirely or partially embodied.

[0018] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to claims. In addition, not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential to the solution of the invention.

[0019] 1. First Embodiment 　　1.1. Field instrument 1 　　Fig. 1 illustrates field instrument 1 according to a first embodiment. The field instrument 1 may be instrument arranged in a field site where a process is to be executed, and may be able to communicate with a controller (not illustrated) which controls the process. As an example in the present embodiment, the field instrument 1 transmits a process value indicating a measurement result as an analog signal to the controller, and also communicates with the controller by superimposing various digital signals on the process value. The field instrument 1 may include a sensor apparatus 2, a communication apparatus 3, and a processing apparatus 4.

[0020] 1.1-1. Sensor apparatus 2 　　The sensor apparatus 2 measures a value indicating a physical quantity such as a pressure, a temperature, a humidity, a level, a pH, a speed, or a flow rate in a process of a plant. For example, the sensor apparatus 2 may be a flowmeter which measures a flow rate of a fluid which flows in a pipe, or a pressure gauge which measures a pressure of the fluid. As an example, the sensor apparatus 2 may detect, for example, a transmitted signal (ultrasound signal transmitted through the fluid) when an ultrasound signal is transmitted in a direction along a flow of the fluid and a transmitted signal when an ultrasound signal is transmitted in a direction against the flow of the fluid, and measure the flow rate of the fluid based on detection results of these transmitted signals. Note that the plant may include, for example, a factory facility, a machinery facility, a production facility, a power generation facility, a storage facility, a facility at a well source where oil, natural gas, or the like is extracted, and the like.

[0021] The sensor apparatus 2 may perform the measurement under control by the processing apparatus 4. The sensor apparatus 2 may supply measurement data indicating a measurement result to the processing apparatus 4. As an example in the present embodiment, the sensor apparatus 2 may sequentially supply the measurement data to the processing apparatus 4.

[0022] 1.1-2. Communication apparatus 3 　　The communication apparatus 3 performs communication with a controller (not illustrated) which controls a process. The communication apparatus 3 is connected, for example, to a transmission line laid in a field site of the plant (for example, a transmission line used to transmit a "4 to 20 mA" signal, and under the control by the processing apparatus 4, transmits an analog signal of the process value described above to the controller and also communicates various digital signals with the controller. The communication apparatus 3 may perform the communication by using, for example, a communication protocol for process industries such as HART (registered trademark) or BRAIN. Note that the communication apparatus 3 may perform wired communication or may perform wireless communication.

[0023] 1.1-3. Processing apparatus 4 　　The processing apparatus 4 is an example of an apparatus, and has an acquisition unit 40, a storage unit 41, a first processing unit 42, a second processing unit 43, a request acceptance unit 44, and a prohibition unit 45.

[0024] 1.1-3.1. Acquisition unit 40 　　The acquisition unit 40 acquires measurement data. The acquisition unit 40 may acquire the measurement data from the sensor apparatus 2, or may supply the acquired measurement data to the first processing unit 42. The acquisition unit 40 may supply the measurement data to the first processing unit 42 each time the measurement data is acquired from the sensor apparatus 2. Instead of this, the acquisition unit 40 may supply the measurement data acquired from the sensor apparatus 2 to the first processing unit 42 every preset cycle (as an example, 100 ms). In this case, the acquisition unit 40 may supply the measurement data acquired from the sensor apparatus 2 to the first processing unit 42 every cycle, may supply the measurement data acquired from the sensor apparatus 2 within the cycle to the first processing unit 42 in a batch, or may average the measurement data acquired from the sensor apparatus 2 within the cycle to be supplied to the first processing unit 42.

[0025] 1.1-3.2. Storage unit 41 　　The storage unit 41 is an example of a storage device, and stores various data. The storage unit 41 may have a first storage device 411 and a second storage device 412. The first storage device 411 and the second storage device 412 may be separate storage devices, and each of the storage devices may be a volatile memory such as a random access memory (RAM), or may be a nonvolatile memory such as a flash read only memory (ROM) or an electrically erasable and programmable ROM (EEPROM).

[0026] 1.1-3.2(1). First storage device 411 　　The first storage device 411 may have a secure area 413. The secure area 413 may be a safe area in which information, a system, a communication channel, and the like are protected, and may be an area to which a direct access is not possible from the second processing unit 43. The secure area 413 may store safety-critical data among data used in the field instrument 1, and may have a secure data area 4130 and a buffer area 4131.

[0027] The secure data area 4130 may be an area accessible from only the first processing unit 42. Examples of the data to be stored in the secure area 413 include, for example, measurement data (which may also referred to as raw data) acquired by the sensor apparatus 2, a process value derived from the measurement data, "range setting" data for setting a measurement range of the sensor apparatus 2, "calibration" data for performing an adjustment or a calibration of the sensor apparatus 2, "sensor constant" data indicating a characteristic unique to a sensor element provided in the sensor apparatus 2, and the like. Write protection for preventing write may be applied to the secure data area 4130, and write may be allowed by performing preset cancel processing.

[0028] The buffer area 4131 may be an area accessible from the first processing unit 42 and the request acceptance unit 44, and may store information to be exchanged between the request acceptance unit 44 and the first processing unit 42. As an example in the present embodiment, an access request for requesting the first processing unit 42 to access data in the secure data area 4130 may be written to the buffer area 4131 from the request acceptance unit 44. The access request may request the first processing unit 42 to execute non-regular processing which will be described below, and is also referred to as an execution request of the non-regular processing. The access request may be a write request of data, or may be a read request of data. The write request may include data of a write target, and identification information of write data. The read request may include identification information of data of a read target. The identification information of the data may indicate a type of the data, and in addition to this, may indicate an address of the data in the secure data area 4130. The data read by the first processing unit 42 in response to the read request may be stored in the buffer area 4131.

[0029] 1.1-3.2(2). Second storage device 412 　　The second storage device 412 may have a non-secure area 414. The non-secure area 414 may be an area in which the information, the system, the communication channel, and the like are not protected as being different from the secure area 413, and may store safety-uncritical data among the data used in the field instrument 1. The safety-uncritical data may be data which is not related to the derivation of the process value or the like, and may be, for example, "communication setting" data indicating a setting of the communication performed with the controller, "display setting" data indicating a display setting of a display apparatus (not illustrated) which is provided in the field instrument 1, or the like.

[0030] 1.1-3.3. First processing unit 42 　　The first processing unit 42 is an example of a first processing apparatus, and performs the regular processing and the non-regular processing. The first processing unit 42 may perform the regular processing and the non-regular processing on the secure area 413 of the storage unit 41. The first processing unit 42 may perform the regular processing within each cycle period (which is also referred to as a cycle period T30; see Fig. 2 described below), and may irregularly perform the non-regular processing.

[0031] The cycle period T30 may be a period which repeats in a cyclic manner, and may be a period which repeats continuously, that is, without a pause as an example in the present exemplary operation. The cycle period T30 may be equal to a cycle in which the measurement data is acquired by the acquisition unit 40 from the sensor apparatus 2, and may be 100 ms as an example in the present embodiment.

[0032] The regular processing may include processing of writing, to the storage unit 41, at least one of measurement data acquired by the acquisition unit 40 or a process value derived from the measurement data. As an example in the present embodiment, the regular processing may include processing of deriving the process value from the measurement data acquired by the acquisition unit 40, and may include processing of writing both the measurement data and the process value to the storage unit 41. In the processing of deriving the process value from the measurement data, the process value may be calculated from a value of the measurement data by using the "sensor constant" data in the secure data area, and as an example, the process value may be calculated by multiplying the value of the measurement data by the sensor constant or the like.

[0033] The regular processing may further include processing of supplying the process value to the communication apparatus 3 to be transmitted to the controller as an analog signal. The regular processing may further include processing of supplying the process value to a communication processing unit 430 which will be described below in the second processing unit 43 to be transmitted to the controller as a digital signal from the communication apparatus 3.

[0034] The non-regular processing may be processing to be executed in response to a request from an external controller (not illustrated). The non-regular processing may be processing of reading the data in the secure data area 4130. The non-regular processing may be processing of writing the data in the secure data area 4130, and as an example, may be processing of writing, to the secure data area 4130, data other than the measurement data and the process value (as an example in the present embodiment, the "range setting" data, the "calibration" data, or the "sensor constant" data) to change the original data. The request from the controller may be supplied to the first processing unit 42 via the communication apparatus 3, the second processing unit 43, the request acceptance unit 44, and the buffer area 4131 of the storage unit 41 as an example in the present embodiment.

[0035] The first processing unit 42 has a signal processing unit 420, an access acceptance unit 421, a write processing unit 422, and a read processing unit 423. Note that the first processing unit 42 may be a central processing unit (CPU) as an example, and each unit of the first processing unit 42 may be achieved when a program stored in the storage unit 41 is read and executed by the CPU, for example.

[0036] 1.1-3.3(1). Signal processing unit 420 　　The signal processing unit 420 may perform processing mainly related to the regular processing. As an example in the present embodiment, the signal processing unit 420 may perform processing of acquiring measurement data from the acquisition unit 40, processing of converting the measurement data into a process value, processing of supplying, to the write processing unit 422, a write instruction of the measurement data and the process value to be written, processing of supplying the process value to the communication processing unit 430 described below in the second processing unit 43 to be transmitted to the controller as a digital signal from the communication apparatus 3, and processing of supplying the process value to the communication apparatus 3 to be transmitted to the controller as an analog signal. The write instruction supplied to the write processing unit 422 may include data of the write target (as an example in the present embodiment, safety-critical data) and identification information of the data. The signal processing unit 420 may further perform processing of supplying a read instruction to the read processing unit 423 to read data. The read instruction supplied to the read processing unit 423 may include identification information of the data of the read target.

[0037] 1.1-3.3(2). Access acceptance unit 421 　　The access acceptance unit 421 reads an execution request of the non-regular processing described above from the buffer area 4131, and supplies an instruction according to the execution request to the write processing unit 422 or the read processing unit 423.

[0038] The access acceptance unit 421 may supply, to the read processing unit 423, the read instruction to read the data in the secure data area 4130 in response to a state in which the execution request read from the buffer area 4131 is a read request. Since the read request which is read from the buffer area 4131 includes identification information of the data of the read target, the access acceptance unit 421 may include an address corresponding to the identification information in the read instruction to the read processing unit 423. The access acceptance unit 421 may have a table (which is also referred to as an address table) in which an address in the secure data area 4130 is associated with each identification information of the data, and may refer to the address table to identify the address. The access acceptance unit 421 may supply, to the communication processing unit 430, data supplied from the read processing unit 423 in response to the supply of the read instruction to the read processing unit 423.

[0039] The access acceptance unit 421 may supply, to the write processing unit 422, the write instruction to write the data in the secure data area 4130 in response to a state in which the execution request read from the buffer area 4131 is a write request. Since data of the write target and the identification information of the data are included in the write request read from the buffer area 4131, the access acceptance unit 421 may include the data and the address corresponding to the identification information in the write instruction to be supplied to the write processing unit 422. The access acceptance unit 421 may refer to the address table described above to identify an address of a write position. Note that the processing by the access acceptance unit 421 may be the non-regular processing.

[0040] 1.1-3.3(3). Write processing unit 422 　　The write processing unit 422 writes the data included in the write instruction to the secure data area 4130 in response to the write instruction supplied from the signal processing unit 420 or the access acceptance unit 421. The write processing unit 422 may write, to the secure data area 4130, the data included in the write instruction in response to the supply of the write instruction from the access acceptance unit 421 to update existing data. The write processing unit 422 may perform the write of the data according to the write instruction supplied from the access acceptance unit 421 in a free time during which processing is not performed in the signal processing unit 420. Among the processing to be performed by the write processing unit 422, the processing according to the write instruction from the signal processing unit 420 may be the regular processing, and the processing according to the write instruction supplied from the access acceptance unit 421 may be the non-regular processing.

[0041] 1.1-3.3(4). Read processing unit 423 　　The read processing unit 423 reads data from the secure data area 4130 in response to the read instruction supplied from the signal processing unit 420 or the access acceptance unit 421. The read processing unit 423 may supply, to the signal processing unit 420, the data which is read in response to the read instruction from the signal processing unit 420, and may supply, to the access acceptance unit 421, the data which is read in response to the read instruction from the access acceptance unit 421. Among the processing performed by the read processing unit 423, the processing according to the read instruction from the signal processing unit 420 may be the regular processing, and the processing according to the read instruction from the access acceptance unit 421 may be the non-regular processing.

[0042] 1.1-3.4. Second processing unit 43 　　The second processing unit 43 performs processing on the non-secure area 414 of the storage unit 41, and transmits the execution request of the non-regular processing to the request acceptance unit 44. The second processing unit 43 has the communication processing unit 430, a write processing unit 431, a read processing unit 432, and an access request unit 433. Note that as an example, the second processing unit 43 may be a central processing unit (CPU), and each unit of the second processing unit 43 may be achieved when the program stored in the storage unit 41 is read and executed by the CPU, for example.

[0043] 1.1-3.4(1). Communication processing unit 430 　　The communication processing unit 430 performs processing related to digital communication performed between the communication apparatus 3 and the controller (not illustrated). In response to supply of a process value from the signal processing unit 420 of the first processing unit 42, the communication processing unit 430 may cause the process value to be transmitted as a digital signal from the communication apparatus 3 to the controller.

[0044] In addition to this or instead of this, the communication processing unit 430 may perform processing according to various requests from the controller to the processing apparatus 4 via the communication apparatus 3. As an example in the present embodiment, the communication processing unit 430 may perform either the processing related to the read of the data from the storage unit 41 or the processing related to the write of the data to the storage unit 41.

[0045] The communication processing unit 430 may identify a type of the data of the write target in response to the reception of the write request of the data from the communication apparatus 3. As an example in the present embodiment, the write request may include the data of the write target and the identification information indicating the type. The type of the data of the write target may be any of the "range setting" data, the "calibration" data, the "sensor constant" data, the "communication setting" data, and the "display setting" data.

[0046] The communication processing unit 430 may identify whether the data of the write target is either the safety-critical data or the safety-uncritical data. As an example, the communication processing unit 430 may have a table (which is also referred to as a type table) for an association in which for each type of the data, the data of the type is the safety-critical data or the safety-uncritical data, and may refer to this type table to identify whether the data of the write target is either the safety-critical data or the safety-uncritical data.

[0047] In response to the identification that the data of the write target is the safety-critical data (as an example in the present embodiment, any of the "range setting" data, the "calibration" data, and the "sensor constant" data), the communication processing unit 430 may supply the write request of the data to the access request unit 433. The write request to the access request unit 433 may include the data of the write target and the identification information of the data.

[0048] In response to the identification that the data of the write target is the safety-uncritical data (as an example in the present embodiment, any of the "communication setting" data and the "display setting" data), the communication processing unit 430 may supply the write instruction of the data to the write processing unit 431. The write instruction of the write processing unit 431 may include data of the write target and the address of the write position according to the identification information of the data. The communication processing unit 430 may have a table (which is also referred to as an address table) in which an address in the non-secure area 414 is associated with each identification information of the data, and may refer to the address table to identify the address of the write position.

[0049] The communication processing unit 430 may identify a type of the data of the read target in response to the reception of the read request from the communication apparatus 3. As an example in the present embodiment, the read request may include a type of the data of the read target.

[0050] The communication processing unit 430 may identify whether the data of the read target is either the safety-critical data or the safety-uncritical data. The communication processing unit 430 may refer to the type table described above to identify whether the data of the read target is either the safety-critical data or the safety-uncritical data.

[0051] In response to the identification that the data of the read target is the safety-critical data, the communication processing unit 430 may supply the read request of the data to the access request unit 433. The read request to the access request unit 433 may include the identification information of the data of the read target.

[0052] In response to the identification that the data of the read target is the safety-uncritical data, the communication processing unit 430 may supply the read instruction of the data to the read processing unit 432. The read instruction to the read processing unit 432 may include an address according to the identification information of the data of the read target. The communication processing unit 430 may refer to the address table described above to identify an address of the data of the read target.

[0053] In response to the supply of the data of the read target from the access acceptance unit 421 of the first processing unit 42 or the read processing unit 432, the communication processing unit 430 may supply the data to the communication apparatus 3 to be transmitted to the controller as a digital signal.

[0054] The communication processing unit 430 may inspect whether content received via the communication apparatus 3 is legitimate. For example, the communication processing unit 430 may inspect whether a transmission source of the received request is the controller. In addition to this, the communication processing unit 430 may inspect whether the data of the write target is legitimate data, and may inspect whether the data of the write target is legitimate data based on, for example, the type of the data of the write target and the content of the data of the write target. As an example, in response to a state in which the data of the write target is the "range setting" data, the communication processing unit 430 may inspect whether a value of the data falls within a range that can be set by the sensor apparatus 2.

[0055] 1.1-3.4(2). Write processing unit 431 　　In response to a write instruction supplied from the communication processing unit 430, the write processing unit 431 writes data included in the write instruction to the non-secure area 414. The data written by the write processing unit 431 may be, as an example, the "communication setting" data or the "display setting" data.

[0056] 1.1-3.4(3). Read processing unit 432 　　The read processing unit 432 reads data from the non-secure area 414 in response to the read instruction supplied from the communication processing unit 430. The read processing unit 432 may supply the read data to the communication processing unit 430.

[0057] 1.1-3.4(4). Access request unit 433 　　The access request unit 433 performs the execution request of the non-regular processing that is to be performed by the first processing unit 42. The access request unit 433 may supply, to the request acceptance unit 44, each of the write request and the read request supplied from the communication processing unit 430 as the execution request of the non-regular processing. Communication between the access request unit 433 and the request acceptance unit 44 may be serial communication as an example, but may be of another communication system.

[0058] 1.1-3.5. Request acceptance unit 44 　　In response to reception of an execution request of the non-regular processing, the request acceptance unit 44 writes content according to the execution request to the storage unit 41 to be executed by the first processing unit 42. As an example in the present embodiment, in response to the reception of the execution request from the access request unit 433 of the second processing unit 43, the request acceptance unit 44 may write the content according to the execution request to the buffer area 4131 of the storage unit 41. In response to reception of a write request, the request acceptance unit 44 may write content of the write request (as an example in the present embodiment, data of the write target and identification information of the data) to the buffer area 4131. In response to reception of a read request, the request acceptance unit 44 may write content of the read request (as an example in the present embodiment, identification information of the data of the read target) to the buffer area 4131.

[0059] In response to write of content of one or more execution requests (as an example in the present embodiment, one of execution requests) with regard to the non-regular processing to the buffer area 4131, the request acceptance unit 44 may supply a notification of that effect (which is also referred to as a write completion notification) to the prohibition unit 45. In addition to this, the request acceptance unit 44 may supply the write completion notification to the access acceptance unit 421 of the first processing unit 42. The request acceptance unit 44 may be achieved by a direct memory access (DMA) controller as an example.

[0060] 1.1-3.6. Prohibition unit 45 　　In response to the write of the content according to the execution request by the request acceptance unit 44 to the storage unit 41, the prohibition unit 45 prohibits execution of the non-regular processing according to a subsequent execution request by the first processing unit 42 over a prohibition period of a reference length (which is also referred to as a prohibition period T33. See Fig. 2 described below). The prohibition unit 45 may prohibit reception of the subsequent execution request by the request acceptance unit 44 for only the prohibition period T33. The prohibition unit 45 may be achieved by the DMA controller as an example similarly as in the request acceptance unit 44.

[0061] In accordance with the processing apparatus 4 described above, the regular processing is performed within each cycle period T30 by the first processing unit 42, and when an execution request of the non-regular processing is received by the request acceptance unit 44, content according to the execution request is written to the storage unit 41 and executed by the first processing unit 42. Therefore, since the regular processing and the non-regular processing can be executed by the first processing unit 42, as being different from a case where the non-regular processing is executed by the second processing unit 43, security of the data set as the target of the non-regular processing can be increased.

[0062] In addition, in response to the write of the content according to the execution request of the non-regular processing by the request acceptance unit 44 to the storage unit 41, the execution of the non-regular processing by the first processing unit 42 according to the subsequent execution request is prohibited for only the prohibition period T33, Therefore, while the first processing unit 42 is caused to reliably perform the non-regular processing according to the execution request, it is possible to prevent hindrance of the execution of the regular processing within each cycle period T30 by the non-regular processing according to the subsequent execution request.

[0063] In addition, since the reception of the subsequent execution request by the request acceptance unit 44 is prohibited, it is possible to reliably prevent the hindrance of the execution of the regular processing by the non-regular processing according to the subsequent execution request.

[0064] In addition, the regular processing includes processing of writing, to the storage unit 41, at least one of measurement data acquired by the acquisition unit 40 or a process value derived from the measurement data. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the hindrance of the execution of the regular processing such as the write of the measurement data by the non-regular processing.

[0065] In addition, the regular processing and the non-regular processing are performed on the secure area 413 of the storage unit 41 by the first processing unit 42, the processing on the non-secure area 414 of the storage unit 41 is performed by the second processing unit 43, and also the execution request of the non-regular processing is transmitted to the request acceptance unit 44. Therefore, the secure area 413 can be securely maintained by performing the non-regular processing on the secure area 413 from the first processing unit 42 due to the execution request from the second processing unit 43. In addition, as being different from the processing on the secure area 413, the processing on the non-secure area 414 can be promptly performed by the second processing unit 43.

[0066] In addition, since the first storage device 411 is provided with the secure area 413 and the second storage device 412 is provided with the non-secure area 414, the secure area 413 and the non-secure area 414 can be physically separated from each other to increase the security of the secure area 413.

[0067] 1.2. Timing diagram 　　Fig. 2 is a timing diagram illustrating a relationship between the regular processing and the non-regular processing. In the drawing, a horizontal axis represents time.

[0068] When a cycle period T30 starts from a time point t4, the first processing unit 42 executes the regular processing during a regular processing period T31 within the cycle period T30. The first processing unit 42 may execute the regular processing over the regular processing period T31. A length of each regular processing period T31 may be any length as long as the length is shorter than the cycle period T30, or may be the same within each cycle period T30. The regular processing may start at any time point as long as the time point falls within the cycle period T30, and as an example in the present exemplary operation, the regular processing may start at the time point t4.

[0069] Similarly, when a next cycle period T30 starts from a time point t5, the first processing unit 42 executes the regular processing during the regular processing period T31 (as an example in the present exemplary operation, a period from the time point t5 to a time point t6) within the cycle period T30. On the other hand, since the controller requests write or read with regard to the safety-critical data, when the request acceptance unit 44 receives an execution request of the non-regular processing from the access request unit 433 of the second processing unit 43, the request acceptance unit 44 writes content according to the execution request to the buffer area 4131 of the storage unit 41. As an example, the request acceptance unit 44 may transfer the execution request to the buffer area 4131 as it is. Note that a start timing of the transfer may be before or may be after the time point t6 at which the regular processing period T31 ends.

[0070] When the transfer of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed at a time point t7, the prohibition unit 45 prohibits the execution of the non-regular processing by the first processing unit in response to the subsequent execution request over the prohibition period T33 of the reference length. As an example in the present exemplary operation, the prohibition unit 45 may prohibit the reception of the subsequent execution request by the request acceptance unit 44 for only the prohibition period T33. The prohibition period T33 may be longer than the cycle period T30. As an example in the present exemplary operation, the prohibition period T33 is a period from the time point t7 to a time point t9, and an end of period of the prohibition period T33 is the time point t9 at which the next cycle period T30 starts, but may be before or may be after the time point t9.

[0071] On the other hand, when the transfer of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed at the time point t7, the access acceptance unit 421 of the first processing unit 42 reads the execution request of the non-regular processing from a buffer area to execute the non-regular processing. The access acceptance unit 421 may cause the write processing unit 422 to write or may cause the read processing unit 423 to read according to the content of the execution request.

[0072] Note that the access acceptance unit 421 may detect that the write of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed by receiving a write completion notification indicating that the write of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed from the request acceptance unit 44. Instead of this, the access acceptance unit 421 may detect that the write of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed by monitoring the buffer area 4131. The access acceptance unit 421 may execute the non-regular processing in response to the detection that the write of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed.

[0073] After the execution of the regular processing, the first processing unit 42 may end the execution of the non-regular processing before the next regular processing is executed. As an example in the present exemplary operation, a non-regular processing period T32 during which the non-regular processing continues may be a period from the time point t7 to a time point t8 at which a next cycle period T30 starts, an end of period of the non-regular processing period T32 may be before the time point t8 or may be after the time point t8.

[0074] A length of the non-regular processing period T32 may vary according to the content of the non-regular processing. It is noted however that the length of the non-regular processing period T32 during which the non-regular processing continues may be shorter than a length obtained by subtracting the regular processing period T31 from the cycle period T30. In other words, a sum of the regular processing period T31 during which one regular processing continues and the non-regular processing period T32 during which the non-regular processing continues may be shorter than the cycle period T30. To restrict the length of the non-regular processing period T32, a number of times for the non-regular processing to be executed in one non-regular processing period T32 may be set to be lower than a reference number, or a data amount of the execution request of the non-regular processing which is transmitted from the access request unit 433 to the request acceptance unit 44 may be set to be lower than a reference number (as an example, 255 bytes).

[0075] When a next cycle period T30 starts from the time point t8, the first processing unit 42 executes the regular processing during the regular processing period T31 within the cycle period T30. As an example in the present exemplary operation, since the non-regular processing is ended at the time point t8, the regular processing is started at the time point t8. However, when the non-regular processing ends after the time point t8, the regular processing may start after the end of the non-regular processing.

[0076] Then, when a next cycle period T30 starts from the time point t9 (as an example in the present exemplary operation, a period from the time point t9 to a time point t10), the first processing unit 42 executes the regular processing during the regular processing period T31 within the cycle period T30. On the other hand, the prohibition period T33 ends at the time point t9, and the reception prohibition of the subsequent execution request by the request acceptance unit 44 is cancelled. With this configuration, a state is established in which the request acceptance unit 44 can receive the execution request of the non-regular processing from the access request unit 433 of the second processing unit 43.

[0077] Note that the first processing unit 42 in the present exemplary operation may be in a standby state when any of the regular processing and the non-regular processing are not performed, but may perform diagnosis processing for a diagnosis on whether data that is to be maintained to have the preset content does not vary among the data in the first storage device 411.

[0078] In accordance with the above described operation, since the prohibition period T33 during which the execution of the non-regular processing is prohibited is longer than the cycle period T30, it is possible to prevent one non-regular processing executed by the first processing unit 42 and the subsequent non-regular processing to be executed by the first processing unit 42 after the prohibition period T33 from being performed in the same cycle period T30. Therefore, even when the execution request of the non-regular processing is frequently performed, it is possible to reliably prevent the hindrance of the execution of the regular processing by the non-regular processing.

[0079] In addition, since a sum of the regular processing period T31 during which the regular processing continues and the non-regular processing period T32 during which the non-regular processing continues is shorter than the cycle period T30, a period from the execution start to completion of the regular processing and a period from the execution start to completion of the non-regular processing fall within the cycle period T30. Therefore, the regular processing and the non-regular processing are separated in terms of time from each other, and can be performed in separate times. Thus, it is possible to reliably prevent the hindrance of the execution of the regular processing by the non-regular processing.

[0080] 1.3. Operation 　　Fig. 3 illustrates an operation of the processing apparatus 4. The processing apparatus 4 may perform processing according to a request from the controller by processing in step S11 to step S67. Note that the first processing unit 42 may perform the regular processing within each cycle period T30 in addition to the operation illustrated in Fig. 3.

[0081] In step S11, the communication processing unit 430 of the second processing unit 43 receives a request from the controller via the communication apparatus 3. As an example in the present embodiment, the request from the controller may be either the write request to the storage unit 41 or the read request from the storage unit 41

[0082] In step S13, the communication processing unit 430 inspects whether the receive content is legitimate. For example, the communication processing unit 430 may inspect whether a transmission source of the received request is the controller.

[0083] In step S15, the communication processing unit 430 determines whether the received content is legitimate. When it is determined that the received content is not legitimate (step S15; No), the operation may be ended. When it is determined that the received content is legitimate (step S15; Yes), the processing may shift to step S17.

[0084] In step S17, the communication processing unit 430 determines whether the content of the request is related to a type of either the safety-critical data or the safety-uncritical data. When it is determined that the content of the request is related to the safety-critical data (step S17; secure), the processing may shift to step S19. When it is determined that the content of the request is related to the safety-uncritical data (step S17; non-secure), the processing may shift to step S61.

[0085] In step S19, the access request unit 433 of the second processing unit 43 performs the execution request of the non-regular processing. The access request unit 433 may supply, to the request acceptance unit 44, each of the write request and the read request supplied from the communication processing unit 430 as the execution request of the non-regular processing. The access request unit 433 may assign a sequence number to each communication frame of the execution request to be supplied to the request acceptance unit 44.

[0086] In step S21, the request acceptance unit 44 determines whether a current time point is within the prohibition period T33. When it is determined that the current time point is the prohibition period T33 (step S21; Yes), the operation may be ended. When it is determined that the current time point is not the prohibition period T33 (step S21; No), the processing may shift to step S23.

[0087] In step S23, the request acceptance unit 44 writes the content according to the execution request to the buffer area 4131 of the storage unit 41. With this configuration, the non-regular processing is to be executed by the first processing unit 42 in the processing in step S41 to S49 which will be described below or the like. Note that the request acceptance unit 44 may perform an abnormally diagnosis on the second processing unit 43 by using the sequence number assigned to each communication frame of the execution request received from the access request unit 433 of the second processing unit 43. For example, the request acceptance unit 44 may determine that an abnormally occurs in the second processing unit 43 in response to a state in which duplication, missing, repetition, or the like occurs in sequence numbers. The request acceptance unit 44 may shut down the communication with the access request unit 433 to protect the first processing unit 42 in response to the determination that the abnormally occurs in the second processing unit 43.

[0088] When the write of the content according to the execution request is completed, in step S25, the request acceptance unit 44 transmits a write completion notification to the prohibition unit 45 and the first processing unit 42.

[0089] When the write completion notification is transmitted from the request acceptance unit 44, in step S31, the prohibition unit 45 starts the prohibition period T33. The prohibition unit 45 may prohibit the reception of the subsequent execution request by the request acceptance unit 44 in the prohibition period T33.

[0090] In step S33, the prohibition unit 45 determines whether a time of the reference length has elapsed from the start of the prohibition period T33 in step S31. When it is determined that the time of the reference length has not elapsed (step S33; No), the processing may shift to step S33. When it is determined that the time of the reference length has elapsed (step S33; Yes), the processing may shift to step S35.

[0091] In step S35, the prohibition unit 45 ends the prohibition period T33. The prohibition unit 45 may cancel the reception prohibition of the subsequent execution request by the request acceptance unit 44. Note that the processing in step S35 may be performed after step S49 which will be described below. When the processing in step S35 is ended, the prohibition unit 45 may be put into a standby state until the write completion notification is received from the request acceptance unit 44.

[0092] On the other hand, when the write completion notification is transmitted from the request acceptance unit 44 by the processing in step S25, the access acceptance unit 421 of the first processing unit 42 in step S41 reads the execution request of the non-regular processing which has been written to the buffer area 4131.

[0093] In step S43, the access acceptance unit 421 determines whether the execution request read from the buffer area 4131 is either the read request or the write request. When it is determined that the execution request is the write request (step S43; W), the processing may shift to step S45. When it is determined that the execution request is the read request (step S43; R), the processing may shift to step S47.

[0094] In step S45, the write processing unit 422 of the first processing unit 42 writes the data included in the write request at the address of the secure data area 4130 which is included in the write request. The write processing unit 422 may perform the write after the cancel processing of write protection is performed on the secure data area 4130. When the processing in step S45 is ended, the processing apparatus 4 may end the operation according to the request from the controller.

[0095] In step S47, the read processing unit 423 of the first processing unit 42 reads the data at the address of the secure data area 4130 which is included in the read request.

[0096] In step S49, the access acceptance unit 421 transmits the data read by the read processing unit 423 in step S47 to the communication processing unit 430 of the second processing unit 43.

[0097] In step S55, the communication processing unit 430 of the second processing unit 43 supplies, to the read request, the data which has been read in response to the communication apparatus 3, and the data is transmitted to the controller as a digital signal. With this configuration, the data read in response to the read request is returned to the controller. When the processing in step S55 is ended, the processing apparatus 4 may end the operation according to the request from the controller.

[0098] On the other hand, in step S61, the communication processing unit 430 of the second processing unit 43 determines whether the request from the controller is either the read request or the write request. When it is determined that the request from the controller is the write request (step S61; W), the processing may shift to step S63. When it is determined that the request from the controller is the read request (step S61; R), the processing may shift to step S65.

[0099] In step S63, the write processing unit 431 of the second processing unit 43 writes the data included in the write request at an address of the non-secure area 414 which is included in the write request. When the processing in step S63 is ended, the processing apparatus 4 may end the operation according to the request from the controller.

[0100] In step S65, the read processing unit 432 of the second processing unit 43 reads the data at the address of the non-secure area 414 which is included in the read request.

[0101] In step S67, the communication processing unit 430 of the second processing unit 43 supplies the data read in response to the read request to the communication apparatus 3, and the data is transmitted to the controller as a digital signal. With this configuration, the data read in response to the read request is returned to the controller. When the processing in step S67 is ended, the processing apparatus 4 may end the operation according to the request from the controller.

[0102] 1.4. Variations of the first embodiment 　　Note that in the above described first embodiment, the description has been provided where the processing apparatus 4 has the prohibition unit 45, but a configuration may also be adopted where the prohibition unit 45 is not provided. In this case, when an execution request of the non-regular processing is received by the request acceptance unit 44, content according to the execution request may be written to the storage unit 41 to be executed by the first processing unit 42.

[0103] In addition, the description has been provided where by prohibiting the reception of the subsequent execution request by the request acceptance unit 44 for only the prohibition period T33, the prohibition unit 45 prohibits the execution of the non-regular processing according to the subsequent execution request by the first processing unit 42, but the execution of the non-regular processing may be prohibited by another technique. For example, the prohibition unit 45 may prohibit the write of the content according to the subsequent execution request to the buffer area 4131 by the request acceptance unit 44 for only the prohibition period T33. When the request acceptance unit 44 causes the first processing unit 42 to execute the non-regular processing by performing the write completion notification to the first processing unit 42, after the content according to the execution request of the non-regular processing is written to the buffer area 4131, the prohibition unit 45 may prohibit the write completion notification by the request acceptance unit 44 according to the subsequent execution request for only the prohibition period T33. The prohibition unit 45 may prohibit the execution itself of new non-regular processing by the first processing unit 42. In this case, the prohibition unit 45 may be achieved by reading a program stored in the storage unit 41 to a CPU of the first processing unit 42 to be executed.

[0104] 2. Second Embodiment 　　2.1. Field instrument 1A 　　Fig. 4 illustrates field instrument 1A according to a second embodiment. The field instrument 1A includes a processing apparatus 4A, and the processing apparatus 4A has a first processing unit 42A. Note that in the field instrument 1A according to the present embodiment, a component that is substantially the same as that illustrated in Fig. 1 is assigned with a same reference sign, and a description thereof is not repeated.

[0105] The first processing unit 42A is different from the first processing unit 42 in the above described embodiment in that the content according to the execution request of the non-regular processing is written to the storage unit 41 and also the non-regular processing is executed in response to the execution of the regular processing. The first processing unit 42A may have an access acceptance unit 421A.

[0106] The access acceptance unit 421A may read the execution request of the non-regular processing which has been written to the buffer area 4131 by the request acceptance unit 44 after the execution of the regular processing. With this configuration, the non-regular processing is executed after the execution of the regular processing. Similarly as in the access acceptance unit 421 in the embodiment described above, the access acceptance unit 421A may supply an instruction according to the read execution request to the write processing unit 422 or the read processing unit 423.

[0107] In accordance with the processing apparatus 4A described above, the content according to the execution request is written to the storage unit 41, and also the non-regular processing is executed in response to the execution of the regular processing, so that it is possible to prevent the hindrance of the execution of the regular processing within each cycle period T30 by the execution of the non-regular processing.

[0108] 2.2. Timing diagram 　　Fig. 5 is a timing diagram illustrating a relationship between the regular processing and the non-regular processing. In the drawing, a horizontal axis represents time.

[0109] When a cycle period T30 starts from the time point t5, the first processing unit 42A executes the regular processing during the regular processing period T31 (as an example in the present exemplary operation, a period from the time point t5 to the time point t6) within the cycle period T30. On the other hand, since the controller has requested write or read with regard to the safety-critical data, when the request acceptance unit 44 receives an execution request of the non-regular processing from the access request unit 433 of the second processing unit 43, the request acceptance unit 44 writes the content according to the execution request to the buffer area 4131 of the storage unit 41. As an example, the request acceptance unit 44 may transfer the execution request to the buffer area 4131 as it is. Note that the start timing of the transfer may be before or may be after the time point t6 at which the regular processing period T31 ends.

[0110] When the transfer of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed at the time point t7 and a next cycle period T30 starts from the time point t8, the first processing unit 42A executes the regular processing during the regular processing period T31 (as an example in the present exemplary operation, a period from the time point t8 to a time point t81) within the cycle period T30.

[0111] When the regular processing is ended at the time point t81, the access acceptance unit 421A of the first processing unit 42A reads the execution request of the non-regular processing from the buffer area to execute the non-regular processing. The access acceptance unit 421A may cause the write processing unit 422 to write or may cause the read processing unit 423 to read according to the content of the execution request.

[0112] Note that the access acceptance unit 421A may detect that the write of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed by receiving the write completion notification indicating that the write of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed from the request acceptance unit 44. Instead of this, the access acceptance unit 421A may detect that the write of the execution request of the non-regular processing is completed by monitoring the buffer area 4131. The access acceptance unit 421A may execute the non-regular processing in response to the completion of the write of the execution request of the non-regular processing and the detection of the completion of the regular processing.

[0113] The non-regular processing period T32 during which the non-regular processing continues may be a period from the time point t81 to a time point t82 as an example in the present exemplary operation. The time point t82 may be before or may be after the time point t9 at which the next cycle period T30 starts. A length of the non-regular processing period T32 may vary according to the content of the non-regular processing. It is noted however that the length of the non-regular processing period T32 during which the non-regular processing continues may be shorter than the length obtained by subtracting the regular processing period T31 from the cycle period T30. In other words, the sum of the regular processing period T31 during which one regular processing continues and the non-regular processing period T32 during which the non-regular processing continues may be shorter than the cycle period T30.

[0114] Then, when a next cycle period T30 starts from the time point t9 (as an example in the present exemplary operation, a period from the time point t9 to the time point t10), the first processing unit 42A executes the regular processing during the regular processing period T31 within the cycle period T30.

[0115] 2.3. Operation 　　Fig. 6 illustrates an operation of the processing apparatus 4A. The processing apparatus 4A may perform the processing according to the request from the controller by the processing in step S11 to step S77.

[0116] In the present embodiment, in response to the execution request of the non-regular processing which is issued to the request acceptance unit 44 from the access request unit 433 of the second processing unit 43 in step S19, the request acceptance unit 44 in step S71 writes the content according to the execution request to the buffer area 4131 of the storage unit 41.

[0117] When the write of the content according to the execution request is completed, in step S73, the request acceptance unit 44 transmits the write completion notification to the first processing unit 42A.

[0118] On the other hand, in step S75, the signal processing unit 420, the write processing unit 422, and the read processing unit 423 of the first processing unit 42A perform the regular processing within the cycle period T30. The processing in step S75 may be performed before the processing in step S73.

[0119] In step S77, the access acceptance unit 421A of the first processing unit 42A determines whether the write completion notification is received from the request acceptance unit 44, that is, whether the content of the execution request of the non-regular processing is written to the buffer area 4131. When it is determined that the write completion notification is not received (step S77; No), the processing may shift to step S75. When it is determined that the write completion notification is received (step S77; Yes), the processing may shift to step S41 described above. With this configuration, in response to a state in which the content according to the execution request of the non-regular processing is written to the buffer area 4131 and also the non-regular processing is executed by the first processing unit 42A in response to the execution of the regular processing. The non-regular processing may be executed immediately after the regular processing, and may be executed without a pause after the end of the regular processing.

[0120] 3. Variations 　　Note that in the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above, the description has been provided where the processing apparatus 4 or 4A has the acquisition unit 40, the storage unit 41, and the second processing unit 43, but a configuration may also be adopted where any of these units is omitted. For example, when the processing apparatus 4 or 4A does not have the acquisition unit 40, the measurement data or the like by the sensor apparatus 2 may be stored in the storage unit 41 in advance. When the processing apparatus 4 or 4A does not have the storage unit 41, the first processing unit 42 or 42A may perform the regular processing and the non-regular processing on a storage device externally connected to the processing apparatus 4 or 4A.

[0121] In addition, the description has been provided where the processing apparatus 4 or 4A has the acquisition unit 40 which acquires the measurement data from the sensor apparatus 2, but the processing apparatus 4 or 4A may have the sensor apparatus 2 itself as the acquisition unit 40.

[0122] In addition, various embodiments of the present invention may be described with reference to flowcharts and block diagrams, wherein the block may serve as (1) a stage in a process in which an operation is performed, or (2) a section of an apparatus having a role of performing an operation. Certain stages and sections may be implemented by a dedicated circuit, a programmable circuit supplied with computer readable instructions stored on computer readable media, and / or processors supplied with computer readable instructions stored on computer readable media. A dedicated circuit may include digital and / or analog hardware circuits, and may include integrated circuits (IC) and / or discrete circuits. The programmable circuit may include a reconfigurable hardware circuit including logical AND, logical OR, logical XOR, logical NAND, logical NOR, and other logical operations, a memory element such as a flip-flop, a register, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) and a programmable logic array (PLA), and the like.

[0123] A computer readable medium may include any tangible device that can store instructions to be executed by a suitable device, and as a result, the computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon includes an article of manufacture including instructions which can be executed in order to create means for performing operations designated in the flowcharts or block diagrams. Examples of the computer readable medium may include an electronic storage medium, a magnetic storage medium, an optical storage medium, an electromagnetic storage medium, a semiconductor storage medium, and the like. More specific examples of the computer readable medium may include a floppy disk, a diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a static random access memory (SRAM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a Blu-ray (registered trademark) disk, a memory stick, an integrated circuit card, and the like.

[0124] The computer readable instruction may include: an assembler instruction, an instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instruction; a machine instruction; a machine dependent instruction; a microcode; a firmware instruction; state-setting data; or either a source code or an object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Smalltalk (registered trademark), JAVA (registered trademark), C++, or the like; and a conventional procedural programming language such as a "C" programming language or a similar programming language.

[0125] A computer readable instruction may be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatuses, or to a programmable circuit, locally or via a local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, or the like, to execute the computer readable instructions to create means for performing operations specified in the flowcharts or block diagrams. Examples of the processor include a computer processor, a processing unit, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor, a controller, a microcontroller, and the like.

[0126] Fig. 7 illustrates an example of a computer 2200 in which a plurality of aspects of the present invention may be entirely or partially embodied. A program installed in the computer 2200 may cause the computer 2200 to function as an operation associated with the apparatuses according to the embodiments of the present invention or as one or more sections of the apparatuses, or may cause the operation or the one or more sections to be executed, and / or may cause the computer 2200 to execute a process according to the embodiments of the present invention or a stage of the process. Such programs may be executed by a CPU 2212 in order to cause the computer 2200 to perform certain operations associated with some or all of the blocks in the flowcharts and block diagrams described in the present specification.

[0127] The computer 2200 according to the present embodiment includes the CPU 2212, a RAM 2214, a graphics controller 2216, and a display device 2218, which are mutually connected by a host controller 2210. The computer 2200 further includes input / output units such as a communication interface 2222, a hard disk drive 2224, a DVD-ROM drive 2226, and an IC card drive, which are connected to the host controller 2210 via an input / output controller 2220. The computer also includes legacy input / output units such as a ROM 2230 and a keyboard 2242, which are connected to the input / output controller 2220 via an input / output chip 2240.

[0128] The CPU 2212 operates according to programs stored in the ROM 2230 and the RAM 2214, thereby controlling each unit. The graphics controller 2216 obtains image data generated by the CPU 2212 on a frame buffer or the like provided in the RAM 2214 or in itself, and causes the image data to be displayed on the display device 2218.

[0129] The communication interface 2222 communicates with other electronic devices via a network. The hard disk drive 2224 stores programs and data used by the CPU 2212 in the computer 2200. The DVD-ROM drive 2226 reads the programs or the data from the DVD-ROM 2201, and provides the hard disk drive 2224 with the programs or the data via the RAM 2214. The IC card drive reads the programs and the data from the IC card, and / or writes the programs and the data to the IC card.

[0130] The ROM 2230 stores therein boot programs and the like executed by the computer 2200 at the time of activation, and / or programs that depend on the hardware of the computer 2200. The input / output chip 2240 may also connect various input / output units to the input / output controller 2220 via a parallel port, a serial port, a keyboard port, a mouse port, and the like.

[0131] The program is provided by a computer readable medium such as the DVD-ROM 2201 or the IC card. The program is read from a computer readable medium, installed in the hard disk drive 2224, the RAM 2214, or the ROM 2230 which are also examples of the computer readable medium, and executed by the CPU 2212. The information processing described in these programs is read by the computer 2200 and provides cooperation between the programs and the above described various types of hardware resources. The apparatus or method may be configured by realizing operations or processing of information according to use of the computer 2200.

[0132] For example, in a case where communication is performed between the computer 2200 and an external device, the CPU 2212 may execute a communication program loaded in the RAM 2214 and instruct the communication interface 2222 to perform communication processing on the basis of a process described in the communication program. Under the control of the CPU 2212, the communication interface 2222 reads transmission data stored in a transmission buffer processing area provided in a recording medium such as the RAM 2214, the hard disk drive 2224, the DVD-ROM 2201, or the IC card, transmits the read transmission data to the network, or writes reception data received from the network in a reception buffer processing area or the like provided on the recording medium.

[0133] In addition, the CPU 2212 may cause the RAM 2214 to read all or a necessary part of a file or database stored in an external recording medium such as the hard disk drive 2224, the DVD-ROM drive 2226 (DVD-ROM 2201), the IC card, or the like, and may execute various types of processing on data on the RAM 2214. Next, the CPU 2212 writes back the processed data to the external recording medium.

[0134] Various types of information such as various types of programs, data, tables, and databases may be stored in a recording medium and subjected to information processing. The CPU 2212 may execute various types of processing on the data read from the RAM 2214 to write back a result to the RAM 2214, the processing being described throughout the present disclosure, designated by instruction sequences of the programs, and including various types of operations, information processing, condition determinations, conditional branching, unconditional branching, information searches / replacements, or the like. In addition, the CPU 2212 may search for information in a file, a database, etc., in the recording medium. For example, when a plurality of entries, each having an attribute value of a first attribute associated with an attribute value of a second attribute, are stored in the recording medium, the CPU 2212 may search for an entry matching the condition whose attribute value of the first attribute is designated, from among the plurality of entries, and read the attribute value of the second attribute stored in the entry, thereby obtaining the attribute value of the second attribute associated with the first attribute satisfying the predetermined condition.

[0135] The programs or software modules described above may be stored in a computer readable medium on or near the computer 2200. In addition, a recording medium such as a hard disk or a RAM provided in a server system connected to a dedicated communication network or the Internet can be used as a computer readable medium, thereby providing a program to the computer 2200 via the network.

[0136] While the present invention has been described above by way of the embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above described embodiments. It is apparent to persons skilled in the art that various alterations or improvements can be made to the above described embodiments. It is also apparent from the description of the claims that embodiments added with such alterations or improvements can be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0137] Note that the operations, procedures, steps, and stages of each process performed by an apparatus, system, program, and method shown in the claims, embodiments, or diagrams can be performed in any order as long as the order is not indicated by "prior to," "before," or the like and as long as the output from a previous process is not used in a later process. Even if the operation flow is described by using phrases such as "first" or "next" in the scope of the claims, specification, or drawings, it does not necessarily mean that the process must be performed in this order.

[0138] 1: field instrument; 　　2: sensor apparatus; 　　3: communication apparatus; 　　4: processing apparatus; 　　40: acquisition unit; 　　41: storage unit; 　　42: first processing unit; 　　43: second processing unit; 　　44: request acceptance unit; 　　45: prohibition unit; 　　411: first storage device; 　　412: second storage device; 　　413: secure area; 　　414: non-secure area; 　　420: signal processing unit; 　　421: access acceptance unit; 　　422: write processing unit; 　　423: read processing unit; 　　430: communication processing unit; 　　431: write processing unit; 　　432: read processing unit; 　　433: access request unit; 　　2200: computer; 　　2201: DVD-ROM; 　　2210: host controller; 　　2212: CPU; 　　2214: RAM; 　　2216: graphics controller; 　　2218: display device; 　　2220: input / output controller; 　　2222: communication interface; 　　2224: hard disk drive; 　　2226: DVD-ROM drive; 　　2230: ROM; 　　2240: input / output chip; 　　2242: keyboard; 　　4130: secure data area; 　　4131: buffer area.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising: 　　a first processing unit which performs regular processing within each cycle period; and 　　a request acceptance unit which writes, in response to reception of an execution request of non-regular processing that is to be performed by the first processing unit, content according to the execution request to a storage device, and causes the first processing unit to execute the content.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a prohibition unit which prohibits, in response to the request acceptance unit having written the content according to the execution request to the storage device, the first processing unit over a prohibition period of a reference length from executing the non-regular processing according to a subsequent execution request serving as the execution request.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the prohibition unit prohibits the request acceptance unit from receiving the subsequent execution request for only the prohibition period.

4. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the prohibition unit prohibits the request acceptance unit from writing the content according to the subsequent execution request for only the prohibition period.

5. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein 　　after the content according to the execution request is written to the storage device, by performing a notification to the first processing unit, the request acceptance unit causes the first processing unit to execute the non-regular processing according to the execution request, and 　　after the content according to the execution request is written to the storage device, the prohibition unit prohibits the notification by the request acceptance unit according to the subsequent execution request for only the prohibition period.

6. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the prohibition period is longer than a cycle of the cycle period.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first processing unit executes the non-regular processing in response to a state in which the content according to the execution request is written to the storage device and the regular processing is executed.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a sum of a regular processing period during which one regular processing continues and a non-regular processing period during which the non-regular processing continues is shorter than a cycle of the cycle period.

9. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein 　　the first processing unit performs the regular processing and the non-regular processing on a secure area of the storage device, and 　　the apparatus performs processing on a non-secure area of the storage device, and further comprises a second processing unit which transmits the execution request to the request acceptance unit.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising: 　　the storage device, wherein 　　the storage device has a first storage device having the secure area, and a second storage device having the non-secure area.

11. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: 　　an acquisition unit which acquires measurement data, wherein 　　the regular processing includes processing of writing at least one of the measurement data acquired by the acquisition unit or a process value derived from the measurement data to the storage device.

12. A method comprising: 　　accepting a request by writing, in response to reception of an execution request of non-regular processing that is to be performed by a first processing apparatus which performs regular processing within each cycle period, content according to the execution request to a storage device, and causing the first processing apparatus to execute the content.

13. A program for causing a computer to function as: 　　a first processing unit which performs regular processing within each cycle period; and 　　a request acceptance unit which writes, in response to reception of an execution request of non-regular processing that is to be performed by the first processing unit, content according to the execution request to a storage device, and causes the first processing unit to execute the content.

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