Emulation system

Abstract

To avoid executing emulation in a state where data necessary for the emulation is insufficient when acquiring data necessary for the emulation from a database in which a plurality of kinds of data are stored in a hierarchy structure.SOLUTION: An emulation system 10, which emulates an operation of an actual device in an operation environment of a device other than the actual device, includes: a database 12 in which a plurality of kinds of data are stored in a hierarchy structure; an acquisition unit 21 which acquires data necessary for emulation from the database; an execution unit 22 which executes the emulation by using data acquired by the acquisition unit; and a confirmation unit 23 which confirms whether there is shortage data which is not acquired by the acquisition unit among all the data necessary for the emulation. The execution unit executes the emulation when it is confirmed that there is no shortage data by the confirmation unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an emulation system that emulates the operation of an actual machine in an operating environment other than the actual machine. [Background technology]

[0002] Systems that virtually verify the operation of a real machine in an operating environment other than that of the real machine, so-called emulation systems, are being developed. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a system that performs virtual verification by deploying a container of an emulation program that executes emulation in a control device or a server. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2022-91301 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In recent years, the structure and operation of real machines, such as machinery and robots, have become more complex, and the data required for emulation has become more diverse, leading to greater complexity and volume. In light of this background, it has been considered in recent years to obtain various data required for emulation from a database in which multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure, such as a PLM database (PLM: Product Lifecycle Management), and use the data for emulation. This method makes it possible to efficiently obtain the necessary data from a diverse, complex, and voluminous data group to perform emulation, thereby making it possible to improve the efficiency and speed of emulation settings and the emulation itself.

[0005] However, even if data is acquired from a database such as a PLM database in which multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure, it is not always possible to acquire all the data required for emulation, and there may be cases where all the data required for emulation is not available and is insufficient. In such a state where data is insufficient, it is difficult to perform virtual verification with high accuracy even if emulation is performed.

[0006] The present disclosure provides an emulation system that can avoid emulation being performed in a state where the data required for emulation is insufficient when data required for emulation is obtained from a database in which multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The emulation system 10 of the present disclosure is an emulation system that emulates the operation of a real machine in an operating environment other than the real machine, and includes a database 12 in which multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure, an acquisition unit 21 that acquires data necessary for the emulation from the database, an execution unit 22 that performs the emulation using the data acquired by the acquisition unit, and a confirmation unit 23 that confirms whether or not there is any missing data that has not been acquired by the acquisition unit among all the data necessary for the emulation, and when the confirmation unit confirms that there is no missing data, the execution unit executes the emulation.

[0008] According to the emulation system 10 of the present disclosure, when data required for emulation is obtained from the database 12 in which multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure, emulation can be performed after confirming that there is no missing data, thereby preventing emulation from being performed in a state in which the data required for emulation is missing. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an emulation system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data structure of a database according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a software configuration of an emulator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a control flow by an emulation system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] An example of an embodiment of an emulation system according to the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. The emulation system 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 is a system for virtually verifying, or emulating, the operation of an actual machine in an operating environment other than the actual machine, and includes an emulator 11 and a database 12. The connection between the emulator 11 and the database 12 may be a wired connection, a wireless connection, or a connection form in which, for example, a network communication network is interposed between the emulator 11 and the database 12. The emulation system 10 may be configured as a single device including the emulator 11 and the database 12.

[0011] The emulator 11 is mainly composed of a control device or an arithmetic device such as a computer, and is configured to be able to perform emulation by executing an emulation program. That is, the emulator 11 is a component that forms an operating environment other than the actual machine, and is a component that performs virtual verification in the formed operating environment.

[0012] As is well known, emulation is a process of virtually verifying the operation of a real machine in an operating environment other than the real machine, in this case, an emulator 11. The real machine includes, for example, various types of machinery, robots, actuators, machine parts, and units configured from these, as well as a programmable logic controller (PLC) that controls the operation of these. The real machine is not limited to these listed elements, and various elements can be applied.

[0013] The database 12 is configured, for example, by a PLM database (PLM: Product Lifecycle Management). In the database 12, multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure. According to the database 12 in which multiple types of data are organized in a hierarchical structure, data management is easy and data search is also easy. To explain an example of the configuration of the database 12 in more detail, as shown in FIG. 2, the database 12 is provided with an equipment data section 12A and a related data section 12B.

[0014] In the equipment data section 12A, each of a plurality of lines installed in a factory (not shown) is linked to a plurality or a single piece of equipment constituting each line, and each of the plurality of pieces of equipment is linked to a plurality or a single unit constituting each of the pieces of equipment. That is, the data structure in the equipment data section 12A is a multi-stage hierarchical structure including at least a line layer, an equipment layer, and a unit layer. A data structure in which a plurality of components are organized in a hierarchical structure in this way may be called, for example, a BOM structure (Bill Of Materials).

[0015] According to the data structure example shown in Fig. 2, for example, the line [L1] is composed of multiple pieces of equipment, in this case two pieces of equipment [M1] and [M2]. The equipment [M1] is composed of multiple pieces of equipment, in this case three pieces of units [U1], [U2], and [U3]. The equipment [M2] is composed of a single unit [U4], not multiple units.

[0016] In the equipment data section 12A, the data of the line [L1] is the root, i.e., the starting point, and the data of the line [L1] is linked to the data of the multiple equipments [M1], [M2] that make up the line [L1] in a hierarchical structure. Furthermore, the data of the equipment [M1] is linked to the data of the multiple units [U1], [U2], [U3] that make up the equipment [M1] in a hierarchical structure. The data of the equipment [M2] is linked to the data of the unit [U4] that makes up the equipment [M2] in a hierarchical structure.

[0017] In the related data section 12B, data similar to each of the various data stored in the equipment data section 12A is stored. For example, the unit [U1] is a component that can be used not only in the equipment [M1] but also in the equipment [M3], and therefore the data of the unit [U1] is similar to the data of the unit [U5] that constitutes the equipment [M3]. Therefore, the data of the unit [U5] of the equipment [M3] is related as similar data to the data of the unit [U1] of the equipment [M1].

[0018] Although detailed explanation is omitted, other data stored in the related data section 12B is also appropriately associated with the data stored in the equipment data section 12A as similar data. One piece of data stored in the related data section 12B may be associated with multiple pieces of data stored in the equipment data section 12A as similar data. For one piece of data stored in the equipment data section 12A, multiple pieces of data stored in the related data section 12B may be associated with each other as similar data.

[0019] The data stored in the database 12 is of various types, including, for example, three-dimensional model data of equipment and units, program data for operating the equipment and units, drawing data showing the structure of the equipment and units, and various document data related to the equipment and units. In recent years, the data stored in the database 12 has become more complex and voluminous as the structure and operation of the actual machine have become more complex. Therefore, the types of data stored in the database 12 are not limited to the types exemplified in FIG. 2. Although not shown, the database 12 can store various types of data, such as time chart data showing the timing of operating the equipment and units, allocation table data showing the arrangement and allocation of the equipment and units, specification data showing the specifications of the equipment and units, setup list data showing the setup work required to operate the equipment and units, part number data of the equipment and units, planned operation rate data showing the operation rate of the equipment and units, and annotation data related to the equipment and units.

[0020] In the case where a plurality of data stored in the related data section 12B are associated as similar data with respect to one data stored in the equipment data section 12A, it is preferable to set a similarity degree for the plurality of similar data. The similarity degree may be set higher as the added score increases, for example, based on the following viewpoints.

[0021] That is, for example, Viewpoint 1: Similarity of attribute information of the target material, Viewpoint 2: Similarity of attribute information of materials that are in a hierarchical relationship with the object, Point 3: Approximation of the components of the target material; The higher the score, the higher the similarity is set. Materials specifically refer to lines, equipment, units, etc. Attribute information includes information at the time of actual use, such as the operating conditions of the material, information at the time of design, such as the design date of the material, and information on the function of the material.

[0022] For example, a case will be described in which the data of the unit [U1] of the equipment [M1] is associated with the data of the unit [U5] of the equipment [M3] and the data of the unit [U8] of the equipment [M4] as similar data.

[0023] In this case, for unit [U1] and unit [U5], Viewpoint 1: Similarity of attribute information between unit [U1] and unit [U5], Viewpoint 2: Similarity of attribute information between facilities [M1] and [M3] in a hierarchical relationship, Viewpoint 3: Similarity of components of unit [U1] and unit [U5], Add.

[0024] In addition, for unit [U1] and unit [U8], Viewpoint 1: Similarity of attribute information between unit [U1] and unit [U8], Viewpoint 2: Similarity of attribute information between facility [M1] and facility [M4] in a hierarchical relationship, Viewpoint 3: Similarity of components of unit [U1] and unit [U8], Add.

[0025] Then, the sum of the degrees of similarity of viewpoints 1, 2, and 3 for unit [U1] and unit [U5] is compared with the sum of the degrees of similarity of viewpoints 1, 2, and 3 for unit [U1] and unit [U8]. Then, the data of the unit that has a higher sum of the degrees of similarity of the units [U5] and [U8] is set to a higher similarity than the other unit. For example, if the sum of the unit [U5] is higher than the sum of the unit [U8], the data of unit [U5] is set to a higher similarity than the unit [U8], and the data of unit [U5] is registered as the similar data most similar to the data of unit [U1], and the data of unit [U8] is registered as the similar data next most similar to the data of unit [U1].

[0026] The similarity may be set based on the degree of similarity from any one of viewpoints 1, 2, and 3. The similarity may be set based on the degree of similarity from at least two of viewpoints 1, 2, and 3. The number of viewpoints to be referenced is not limited to three, and may be one, two, or four or more. The contents of the viewpoints are not limited to the contents of viewpoints 1, 2, and 3 described above, and may be changed and set as appropriate.

[0027] The similarity should be set at least for the material in the lowest layer of the hierarchical structure, in this case, the data of the unit. This allows the similarity of the material in the upper layer, for example, the data of the equipment, to be set based on the similarity of the units that make up the equipment. The similarity of the data of the material in the upper layer can be set appropriately as the average value, median value, maximum value, minimum value, etc. of the similarity of the data of the multiple materials in the lower layers that make up the material. The similarity of the data of the material in the upper layer may also be set in advance. In other words, the similarity of the material in the upper layer may be set independently for the material in the upper layer, rather than being set based on the similarity of the materials in the lower layer.

[0028] In the database 12, required data information indicating data necessary for emulation of material is registered. For example, for a unit [U1], required data indicating data necessary for emulation of the unit [U1] is registered in association with the unit [U1]. Similarly, for units other than the unit [U1], required data indicating data necessary for emulation of each unit is registered in association with each unit.

[0029] The required data information is registered for the material at the lowest level of the hierarchical structure, in this case, for each unit. As a result, for example, data required for emulation of the upper-level equipment [M1] can be obtained by aggregating the required data information of the units [U1], [U2], and [U3] that make up the equipment [M1]. The required data information of the upper-level materials may also be registered in advance. In other words, the required data information of the upper-level materials may be set not based on the required data information of the lower-level materials, but unique required data information of the upper-level materials.

[0030] 3, the emulator 11 executes an emulation program to virtually realize an acquisition processing unit 21, an execution processing unit 22, a confirmation processing unit 23, a storage processing unit 24, and a specific processing unit 25 by using software. The acquisition processing unit 21, the execution processing unit 22, the confirmation processing unit 23, the storage processing unit 24, and the specific processing unit 25 may be realized by using hardware or a combination of software and hardware.

[0031] The acquisition processing unit 21 is an example of an acquisition unit and is capable of executing an acquisition process. The acquisition process is a process of acquiring data required for emulation from the database 12.

[0032] The execution processing unit 22 is an example of an execution unit and is capable of executing emulation. The execution processing unit 22 executes emulation using the data acquired by the acquisition processing unit 21.

[0033] The confirmation processing unit 23 is an example of a confirmation unit and is capable of executing a confirmation process. The confirmation process is a process for confirming whether or not there is missing data that has not been acquired by the acquisition processing unit 21 among all data required for emulation.

[0034] The storage processing unit 24 is an example of a storage unit and is capable of executing storage processing. The storage processing is processing for storing data used by the execution processing unit 22 when emulation is executed as past data. The storage processing unit 24 executes the storage processing every time emulation is executed by the execution processing unit 22, thereby accumulating data used in emulations executed in the past as past data. The storage processing unit 24 stores the past data in a storage medium (not shown). As the storage medium, various media such as, for example, a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, an optical disk, etc. can be applied.

[0035] The identification processing unit 25 is an example of an identification unit and is capable of executing identification processing. The identification processing is processing for identifying data other than past data among data required for the emulation to be executed by the execution processing unit 22, i.e., the current emulation, as difference data. The identification processing unit 25 compares the data required for the current emulation with the past data stored in the storage processing unit 24, and identifies data required for the current emulation that is not stored as past data as difference data.

[0036] The execution processing unit 22 is configured to be able to execute emulation when the confirmation processing unit 23 confirms that there is no missing data.

[0037] The acquisition processing unit 21 is configured to be able to acquire similar data similar to the missing data from the database 12 when the confirmation processing unit 23 confirms that there is missing data. The execution processing unit 22 is configured to be able to execute emulation when the acquisition processing unit 21 acquires similar data, using the similar data acquired by the acquisition processing unit 21 as substitute data for the missing data.

[0038] The acquisition processing unit 21 is configured to be able to, when the confirmation processing unit 23 confirms that there is missing data, acquire a plurality of similar data similar to the missing data from the database 12. The execution processing unit 22 is configured to, when the acquisition processing unit 21 acquires a plurality of similar data, execute emulation by using similar data selected from the plurality of similar data acquired by the acquisition processing unit 21 as substitute data for the missing data.

[0039] The acquisition processing unit 21 is configured to be able to newly acquire the difference data from the database 12 when the difference data is identified by the identification processing unit 25. The execution processing unit 22 is configured to be able to execute emulation using the past data stored in the storage processing unit 24 and the difference data newly acquired by the acquisition processing unit 21 when the difference data is acquired by the acquisition processing unit 21.

[0040] Next, an example of a control flow by the emulation system 10 will be described. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the emulator 11 checks whether or not a target for emulation has been selected by the user (step S1). The user can select the target for emulation via an operation input device (not shown) provided in the emulator 11. Specifically, the user can select, for example, a line [L1], a facility [M2], or a unit [U3] as a target for emulation. The operation input device (not shown) is, for example, equipment such as a keyboard or a mouse.

[0041] When an emulation target is selected (step S1: YES), the emulator 11 refers to the database 12 and identifies the structure of the selected emulation target (step S2). At this time, if equipment [M1] is selected, for example, the emulator 11 identifies the connection relationship between the equipment [M1] and the units [U1], [U2], and [U3] linked to the equipment [M1], and identifies a hierarchical structure in which the three units [U1], [U2], and [U3] are connected to the equipment [M1] as the structure of the emulation target.

[0042] When the emulator 11 identifies the structure of the emulation target, it acquires data necessary for the emulation from the equipment data section 12A (step S3). When the emulator 11 acquires the data from the equipment data section 12A, it checks whether there is any missing data that has not been acquired among all the data necessary for the emulation (step S4). At this time, the emulator 11 can check whether there is any missing data by comparing the acquired data with the required data information of the entire emulation target.

[0043] If there is no missing data (step S4: NO), the emulator 11 proceeds to step S5. If there is missing data (step S4: YES), the emulator 11 acquires similar data similar to the missing data from the related data section 12B as replacement data for the missing data (step S6). If there is only one similar data acquired from the related data section 12B (step S7: NO), the emulator 11 proceeds to step S5. If there are multiple similar data acquired from the related data section 12B (step S7: YES), the emulator 11 selects one similar data from the multiple similar data (step S8) and proceeds to step S5.

[0044] The selection of similar data can be performed, for example, based on the level of similarity set to the similar data. That is, the emulator 11 can select the similar data to which the highest similarity is set among the plurality of similar data. Alternatively, the emulator 11 may be configured to display the plurality of similar data on a display output device (not shown) and allow the user to select any one of the similar data. In this case, the emulator 11 can provide the similarity to the user as reference information by displaying the similarity of each similar data together with the plurality of similar data. Based on the displayed similarity, the user can select the similar data to which the highest similarity is set, or can select similar data other than the similar data to which the lowest similarity is set. The display output device (not shown) is, for example, a device such as a display.

[0045] The emulator 11 may be configured to change the similarity in response to an operation by the user. In this case, the emulator may display, for example, a method of calculating the similarity based on a plurality of viewpoints as described above on a display output device (not shown). This allows the user to refer to the similarity calculation method and, for example, reset the similarity based on a calculation method different from the calculation method.

[0046] When the emulator 11 proceeds to step S5, it checks whether or not there is data other than past data, i.e., differential data, among the data required for the emulation to be executed. If there is no differential data (step S5: NO), the emulator 11 proceeds to step S9. If there is differential data (step S5: YES), the emulator 11 acquires the differential data from the database 12 (step S10). At this time, the emulator 11 first attempts to acquire the differential data from the equipment data section 12A of the database 12. If the emulator 11 is unable to acquire the differential data from the equipment data section 12A, it acquires data similar to the differential data from the related data section 12B as alternative data for the differential data.

[0047] The presence or absence of differential data may be checked simply or in detail. The simple check for the presence or absence of differential data is a method for determining the presence of differential data when the length of the time interval from the previous emulation to the current emulation, the difference between the amount of data used in the previous emulation and the amount of data required for the current emulation, etc., exceeds a predetermined value. The detailed check for the presence or absence of differential data is a method for specifically identifying data required for the current emulation that is not included in the data used in the previous emulation, by comparing the contents of the data used in the previous emulation with the contents of the data required for the current emulation, for example.

[0048] When the emulator 11 proceeds to step S9, it creates an emulation scenario. The scenario specifies the specific steps and assumed conditions of the emulation. That is, the scenario specifies the specific contents of the emulation, such as "under assumed conditions, execute step 1, step 2, step 3, ... in that order." When the emulator 11 completes the creation of the scenario, it executes the emulation according to the scenario using various data acquired from the database 12 (step S11). When the emulator 11 completes the emulation, it stores information such as the data used in the emulation, the scenario, the settings, and the emulation results (step S12), and ends this control flow.

[0049] According to the emulation system 10 of the present disclosure, the emulator 11 is configured to be able to execute emulation (step S11) when it is confirmed that there is no missing data that has not been acquired from the database 12 among all data required for emulation (step S4: NO). According to this configuration example, when acquiring data required for emulation from the database 12 in which multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure, it is possible to perform emulation after confirming that there is no missing data, and it is possible to avoid executing emulation in a state in which the data required for emulation is insufficient.

[0050] According to the emulation system 10, data can be quickly searched and acquired from the database 12 in which multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure, and emulation can be set and executed efficiently and quickly.

[0051] According to the emulation system 10, when there is a shortage of data (step S4: YES), the emulator 11 can acquire similar data similar to the shortage data from the database 12 (step S6) and execute emulation (step S11) using the acquired similar data as a substitute for the shortage data. According to this configuration example, even if there is a shortage of data, it is possible to execute emulation using data similar to the shortage data, and it is possible to avoid the emulation becoming impossible to execute. That is, according to the emulation system 10, when there is a shortage of data, it is possible to execute emulation by supplementing the shortage of data.

[0052] According to the emulation system 10, when there is missing data (step S4: YES), the emulator 11 can acquire multiple similar data similar to the missing data from the database 12 (step S6), and select (step S8) from the multiple acquired similar data, and use the selected similar data as substitute data for the missing data to perform emulation (step S11). According to this configuration example, when there are multiple similar data, it is possible to select the most appropriate similar data from among them and perform emulation, and even if there is missing data, it is possible to perform accurate emulation using the most appropriate substitute data.

[0053] According to the emulation system 10, when there is data required for the emulation to be executed that has not been used in past emulations, that is, differential data (step S5: YES), the emulator 11 can newly acquire the differential data from the database 12 (step S10) and execute the emulation (step S11) using the data used in the past emulations and the newly acquired differential data. According to this configuration example, by using the past data, it is only necessary to acquire the differential data for each emulation, and it is not necessary to acquire all data including the past data again. This reduces the load of the data acquisition process and allows the emulation to start quickly.

[0054] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified or expanded as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. For example, the database 12 may be a database other than the PLM database, so long as it is a database in which multiple types of data are organized in a hierarchical structure. It is preferable that the database 12 is one in which multiple types of data are organized as much as possible and has a data structure that makes it easy to search for desired data.

[0055] Although the present disclosure has been described based on the embodiment, it is understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiment or structure. The present disclosure also includes various modifications and modifications within the equivalent range. In addition, various combinations and forms, and other combinations and forms including only one element, more than one element, or less than one element, are also within the scope and concept of the present disclosure.

[0056] The control unit and the method described in the present disclosure may be realized by a special-purpose computer provided by configuring a processor and a memory programmed to execute one or more functions embodied in a computer program. Alternatively, the control unit and the method described in the present disclosure may be realized by a special-purpose computer provided by configuring a processor with one or more dedicated hardware logic circuits. Alternatively, the control unit and the method described in the present disclosure may be realized by one or more special-purpose computers configured by a combination of a processor and a memory programmed to execute one or more functions and a processor configured with one or more hardware logic circuits. Also, the computer program may be stored in a computer-readable non-transitory tangible storage medium as instructions executed by a computer. [Explanation of symbols]

[0057] In the drawing, 10 indicates an emulation system, 12 indicates a database, 21 indicates an acquisition processing unit (acquisition unit), 22 indicates an execution processing unit (execution unit), 23 indicates a confirmation processing unit (confirmation unit), 24 indicates a storage processing unit (storage unit), and 25 indicates a specific processing unit (specification unit).

Claims

1. An emulation system (10) that emulates an operation of an actual machine in an operating environment other than the actual machine, A database (12) in which multiple types of data are stored in a hierarchical structure; an acquisition unit (21) that acquires data necessary for the emulation from the database; an execution unit (22) that executes the emulation using the data acquired by the acquisition unit; a confirmation unit (23) for confirming whether or not there is any missing data that has not been acquired by the acquisition unit among all data necessary for the emulation; Equipped with The execution unit executes the emulation when the confirmation unit confirms that the missing data does not exist.

2. When the confirmation unit confirms that the missing data exists, the acquisition unit acquires similar data similar to the missing data from the database; 2. The emulation system according to claim 1, wherein the execution unit executes the emulation using the similar data acquired by the acquisition unit as substitute data for the missing data.

3. When the confirmation unit confirms that the missing data exists, the acquisition unit acquires a plurality of similar data items similar to the missing data items from the database; 3. The emulation system according to claim 2, wherein the execution unit executes the emulation by using similar data selected from the plurality of similar data acquired by the acquisition unit as substitute data for the missing data.

4. a storage unit (24) for storing data used by the execution unit during execution of the emulation as past data; a specification unit (25) that specifies data other than the past data as difference data from among data necessary for the emulation to be executed by the execution unit; Equipped with The acquisition unit newly acquires the difference data from the database, 2. The emulation system according to claim 1, wherein the execution unit executes the emulation using the past data stored in the storage unit and the difference data newly acquired by the acquisition unit.

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