Management system, information processing device, method, and program

Abstract

To centrally manage the account of a user who operates an apparatus in a production line.SOLUTION: An information processing device connects the first and second networks. An apparatus that senses or drives an object in a production line belongs to the first network and a terminal that outputs an operation screen of the apparatus belongs to the second network. The information processing device manages a user ID and an authority to operate the apparatus. The information processing device transmits, when receiving a log-in operation to the apparatus via the operation screen of the terminal, an instruction to create an account to the apparatus; and transmits, when receiving a log-out operation via the operation screen, an instruction to delete the account to the apparatus.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to techniques for managing user accounts for devices. [Background technology]

[0002] JP 2022-156552 A (Patent Document 1) describes an authentication system including: "a user information registration unit in which authentication information for using an access-restricted web service is registered for each account; an SSO authentication unit that executes authentication processing for the web service when an access request is made from a client terminal to the web service; and an account setting unit that sets an account to log in to the specific web service based on an input operation of the client terminal when the web service is a specific web service that can be used with a non-login account other than the login account used for logging in, wherein the SSO authentication unit executes the authentication processing for the specific web service using the authentication information linked to the account set by the account setting unit, and executes the authentication processing for web services other than the specific web service using the authentication information linked to the login account" (Claim 1).

[0003] In addition, JP 2019-192089 A (Patent Document 2) describes an information processing system having an authentication unit that performs user authentication based on authentication information stored in the authentication information storage unit, an acquisition unit that acquires associated secret information on the condition that the user authentication by the authentication unit is successful, and a login unit that logs in to a system to be used using the secret information acquired by the acquisition unit (Claim 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-156552 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2019-192089 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In FA (Factory Automation) product production lines, especially in pharmaceutical production lines, an audit trail is required for the manufacturing process. In the audit trail, a management device centrally manages records of which operator performed what operation (such as changing settings) on the equipment (such as image sensors) that constitutes the production line by linking them to the user's account.

[0006] In this regard, in a conventional production line, in order to prevent unintended operations from being performed on the devices (such as image sensors) that make up the production line, the accounts of users (operators) are registered (added) to the storage unit of the devices and managed. In this case, there are accounts that are registered only in the devices and are not managed by the management device. In such a case, even if the devices are illegally operated by a user of an account that is not managed by the management device, the management device cannot trace the operation, and cannot meet the above-mentioned requirement for an audit trail.

[0007] Additionally, because a production line includes many machines, keeping the accounts consistent across all the machines can be a huge hassle.

[0008] Under these circumstances, a technology for centrally managing the accounts of users who operate devices on a production line is desirable. However, the technologies described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are not directed to managing information on a production line.

[0009] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and has an object to provide a technique that enables centralized management of accounts of users who operate equipment on a production line. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The management system of the present disclosure includes an apparatus that senses or drives an object in a production line and belongs to a first network, a terminal that outputs an operation screen of the apparatus and belongs to a second network, and an information processing device having first and second communication ports for connecting the first and second networks, respectively.

[0011] The information processing device has a management unit that manages user IDs and authority to operate the device for each user, and a command unit that sends an account creation command to the device when a login operation to the device is received from the user via the operation screen, and the creation command includes the user ID and authority managed by the management unit.

[0012] The device has a creation unit that creates an account based on the user ID and authority of the creation command from the information processing device in response to the creation command and stores the account in the storage unit, and a deletion unit that deletes the account from the storage unit when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the account is stored.

[0013] In the above disclosure, the information processing device manages the user ID and the authority to operate the device for each user, and transmits a creation command including the managed user ID and authority to the device. In response to the creation command from the information processing device, the device creates an account for the user in the device based on the user ID and authority included in the creation command.

[0014] This allows the information processing device to centrally manage the account information of the device user, and also reduces the amount of work required to manage the account information on the device.

[0015] In the above disclosure, when the information processing device accepts a logout operation from a user via the operation screen, it sends an account deletion command to the device, and the above-mentioned specified condition includes that the device receives the deletion command from the information processing device while the user is logged in.

[0016] According to this disclosure, the device can delete the account when it receives a deletion command from the information processing device, simplifying the mechanism for managing (deleting) the account in the device.

[0017] In the above disclosure, the predetermined condition includes that the device detects a continuous no-operation state exceeding a threshold time while the user is logged in.

[0018] According to this disclosure, the device determines the timing for deleting account information based on the duration of no-operation state, which simplifies the mechanism for managing (deleting) accounts in the device.

[0019] In the above disclosure, the authority includes a plurality of types of authority with different scopes of authority, and the type of operation screen output on the terminal is changed according to the scope of authority corresponding to the user logging in to the device.

[0020] According to this disclosure, the type of operation screen output to a user can be varied depending on the authority indicated by the user's account.

[0021] In the above disclosure, the operation screen includes an operation screen that accepts an operation for setting the type of authority corresponding to the user.

[0022] According to the above disclosure, it is possible to provide an operation screen for setting user authority. An information processing device according to one aspect of this disclosure is an information processing device having first and second communication ports for connecting first and second networks, respectively, where the first network includes equipment that senses or drives objects in a production line, and the second network includes a terminal that outputs an operation screen of the equipment.

[0023] The information processing device has a management unit that manages user IDs and authority to operate the device for each user, and a command unit that, when a login operation to the device from the user is received via the operation screen, sends a creation command to the device instructing it to create and store an account, and then, when a logout operation is received via the operation screen, sends a deletion command to the device instructing it to delete the account, where the creation command includes the user ID and authority managed by the management unit.

[0024] In the above disclosure, the information processing device manages the user ID and the authority to operate the device for each user, and transmits a creation command including the managed user ID and authority to the device. Therefore, in response to the creation command from the information processing device, the device can create an account for the user in the device based on the user ID and authority included in the creation command.

[0025] This allows the information processing device to centrally manage the account information of the device user, and also reduces the amount of work required to manage the account information on the device.

[0026] A method according to an aspect of the present disclosure is a method implemented by an information processing device having first and second communication ports for connecting a first and second network, respectively. The first network includes devices that sense or drive targets in a production line, and the second network includes terminals that output operation screens of the devices.

[0027] The method includes the steps of managing user IDs and authority to operate the device for users, sending a creation command to the device when a login operation to the device from the user is accepted via the operation screen, instructing the device to create and store an account, and sending a deletion command to the device when a logout operation is accepted via the operation screen after the creation command is accepted, instructing the device to delete the stored account, where the creation command includes the user ID and authority managed in the managing step.

[0028] In the above disclosure, when the method is performed, a user ID and an authority to operate the device are managed for the user, and the creation command is sent to the device with the managed user ID and authority included in the creation command. Therefore, the device can create an account for the user in the device in response to the transferred creation command based on the user ID and authority included in the creation command.

[0029] This allows the information on the accounts of the users of the devices to be managed in a centralized manner in the management step performed by the information processing device, and also reduces the number of steps required for managing the account information on the devices.

[0030] In another aspect of the present disclosure, a program is provided for causing a processor to execute the above-described method. Effect of the Invention

[0031] According to the present disclosure, it becomes possible to centrally manage the accounts of users who operate equipment on a production line. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0032] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing an overview of a production system according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a control device according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a field device according to the present embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an operation terminal 300 according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a SCADA 400 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a module according to the present embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of communication between devices according to the present embodiment. [Figure 8]FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a management table 800 of the SCADA 400 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of the management table of the SCADA 400 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of an account held by the field device 200 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an authority management table according to the embodiment; [Figure 12] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating changes to settings in a screen management table according to the present embodiment. [Figure 13] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating changes to settings in a screen management table according to the present embodiment. [Figure 14] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating changes to settings in a screen management table according to the present embodiment. [Figure 15] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating changes to settings in a screen management table according to the present embodiment. [Figure 16] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating changes to settings in a screen management table according to the present embodiment. [Figure 17] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating changes to settings in a screen management table according to the present embodiment. [Figure 18] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen according to the present embodiment. [Figure 19] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen according to the present embodiment. [Figure 20] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen according to the present embodiment. [Figure 21] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen according to the present embodiment. [Figure 22] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of the operation screen according to the embodiment. [Figure 23] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of the operation screen according to the embodiment. [Figure 24] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of the operation screen according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0033] Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and their description will not be repeated.

[0034] <A. Application Example> First, with reference to FIG. 1, an example of a scene to which the present invention is applied will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an overview of a production system according to the present embodiment. The production system according to the present embodiment controls equipment provided in relation to a production line to execute various processes related to the production of workpieces. The workpieces include final products or parts thereof, or intermediate products or parts thereof, etc.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 1, the production system mainly includes an apparatus NW (NW: abbreviation for network system) that constitutes a field system, and an IT (Information Technology) layer that constitutes a network for exchanging data with the apparatus NW.

[0036] The apparatus NW includes a control device 100, one or more field devices 200 (including field devices 200A and 200B), an operation terminal 300, a SCADA (Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition) 400, and a repeater 7A such as a switch. The IT layer includes devices 500 and 600 that communicate with the SCADA 400 via a repeater 7B such as a switch or a router. The repeaters 7A and 7B transfer data to a device on the destination network based on the data header (destination, source), etc.

[0037] The control device 100 is an industrial controller that controls various field devices 200 in a production line, and includes a computer that executes control calculations for controlling the field devices 200. The control device 100 transmits control commands based on the control calculations to the field devices 200, receives outputs (control results, sensing values) from the field devices 200, and executes the control calculations using the received outputs. The control device 100 typically corresponds to a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) or an IPC (Industrial Personal Computer). The control device 100 connects the field devices 200 to be controlled via a field network 110.

[0038] The field device 200 includes an actuator that exerts some kind of physical action on a manufacturing device, a production line, or the like (hereinafter collectively referred to as "the field"), a sensor that detects a feature of the field, an input / output device that exchanges information with the field, and the like. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the field device 200A is an image sensor, which is an example of a device that senses an object. The field device 200A performs image processing on an image that is captured of an object by a camera 201A connected by a cable and outputted, and transfers the processing result (output value) to the control device 100. The field device 200B is an example of an actuator that drives an object. Such an actuator may be constituted by a robot controller that controls the operation of a robot 201B connected by a cable.

[0039] The operation terminal 300 provides the user with an environment for operating the field device 200. More specifically, the operation terminal 300 provides an environment in which the user can interactively remotely operate the field device 200 by outputting an operation screen for accepting an operation of the field device 200 from the user and a screen for displaying information such as the output of the field device 200. For example, the operation terminal 300 includes a personal computer or an HMI (Human Machine Interface).

[0040] The SCADA 400 plays a role of collecting data exchanged in the device NW and monitoring the operation status of the device NW. For example, the SCADA 400 collects data exchanged between the field device 200 and the control device 100, and stores the collected data in a storage device or transfers the collected data to the device 500 or 600 in the IT layer.

[0041] The device 500 is a computer that stores data transferred from the production system in a storage device and also plays a role of a manufacturing execution system or enterprise resource planning related to the production system. The device 600 is a computer that manages the data transferred from the production system or the data from the device 500 as, for example, a log for auditing. Such a device 500 includes, for example, a database server.

[0042] In the device NW, the control device 100 has a communication port for connecting the field network 110 to which the field devices 200 belong, and another communication port for connecting the network 2 to which the operation terminal 300, the SCADA 40, etc. belong. As the protocol of the network 2, EtherNet / IP (registered trademark), which is an industrial open network that implements a control protocol on Ethernet (registered trademark), may be used. As the protocol of the field network 110, EtherCAT (registered trademark), which is an example of a machine control network that exchanges control commands from the control device 100 and outputs from the field devices 200, may be adopted.

[0043] In the production system, accounts for authenticating users to operate each field device 200 are centrally managed by an information processing device. Such an information processing device may be implemented in either the SCADA 400 or the control device 100, or a combination of both.

[0044] The information processing device manages, for a user, a user ID and the authority to operate the field device 200 assigned to the user. When the information processing device receives a login operation from the operation terminal 300 to the user's field device 200 via the network 2, it issues a command (command) to instruct the creation of an account for authenticating the user for the operation of the field device 200, and transmits a creation command 9 including the user ID and the corresponding authority to the field device 200 via the field network 110.

[0045] When the field device 200 receives the creation command 9 from the information processing device, it creates an account including the user ID and the authority according to the creation command 9 and stores it in the storage unit. The field device 200 also deletes the account from the storage unit when a predetermined condition is satisfied after such an account is stored.

[0046] While an account corresponding to the storage unit is stored in the field device 200, the field device 200 grants the user the operation authority of the field device 200. Therefore, the user can operate the field device 200 via the operation screen of the operation terminal 300 only during the period from when the user's account is created (stored) until the account is deleted.

[0047] In this way, in the production system, for each field device 200 (200A, 200B), an account (user ID and authority) for granting the operation authority to the user can be centrally managed by the information processing device instead of each field device 200.

[0048] Next, a specific example of the production system according to the present embodiment will be described. <B. Hardware Configuration Example> Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a control device according to the present embodiment. Referring to Fig. 2, the control device 100 includes a processor 102 such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or an MPU (Micro-Processing Unit), a chipset 104, a main memory device 106, a secondary memory device 108, a network controller 101, a memory card interface 114, an internal bus controller 119, field bus controllers 118 and 120, and I / O (Input / Output) units 124-1, 124-2, ...

[0049] The processor 102 reads out various programs such as a control program 112 and a management program 113 stored in the secondary storage device 108, and deploys and executes them in the main storage device 106, thereby implementing control according to the control target and processing of the information processing device. The chipset 104 controls the processor 102 and each component, thereby implementing processing of the control device 100 as a whole.

[0050] The control device 100 has a communication port 10A. The network controller 101 controls data exchange with other devices via a network 2 connected to the communication port 10A. The network 2 mainly transfers information related to control in the production system. The memory card interface 114 is configured to allow a memory card 116 to be attached and detached, and allows data to be written to the memory card 116 and various data to be read from the memory card 116.

[0051] The internal bus controller 119 is an interface for transmitting and receiving data between the I / O units 124-1, 124-2, . . . mounted on the control device 100.

[0052] The control device 100 has a communication port 10B. The field bus controller 118 controls the exchange of data (output from the field device 200, control commands, etc.) with other devices including the field device 200 via the field network 110 connected to each communication port 10B. The field network 110 mainly constitutes a control system network that transfers data related to the control of the field device 200 (output from the field device 200, control commands, etc.).

[0053] The processing in the control device 100 is realized by a control program 112 and a management program 113 executed by the processor 102. Such control program 112 and management program 113 are stored in advance in the secondary storage device 108. Alternatively, the control program 112 and management program 113 may be stored in a memory card 116 and distributed as a program product. Alternatively, the control program 112 and management program 113 may be provided as a downloadable program product by an information provider connected to the Internet.

[0054] FIG. 2 shows an example of a configuration in which the necessary functions are provided by the processor 102 executing a program, but some or all of these provided functions may be implemented using a dedicated hardware circuit (for example, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array)). Alternatively, the main part of the control device 100 may be realized using hardware that conforms to a general-purpose architecture (for example, an industrial PC based on a general-purpose PC). In this case, virtualization technology may be used to run multiple OSs (Operating Systems) with different uses in parallel, and necessary applications may be executed on each OS.

[0055] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a field device according to the present embodiment. Fig. 3 shows the hardware configuration of a field device 200A that operates as an image sensor. The field device 200A typically has a structure that conforms to a computer architecture.

[0056] More specifically, the field device 200A includes a processor 210 such as a CPU or MPU, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 212, a system controller 216, an I / O (Input / Output) controller 218, a network interface 219, a hard disk 220, a camera interface 222, a controller interface 226, a communication interface 228, and a memory card interface 230. These components are connected to each other with the system controller 216 at the center so as to be able to communicate data with each other.

[0057] The processor 210 exchanges programs (codes) with the system controller 216 and executes them in a predetermined order to realize the desired computational processing.

[0058] The system controller 216 is connected to the processor 210, the RAM 212, and the I / O controller 218 via respective buses, and performs data exchange with each of the components, while also controlling the overall processing of the field device 200A.

[0059] The RAM 212 is typically a volatile storage device such as a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), and holds programs read from the hard disk 220, images (image data) captured by the camera 201A, image processing results, etc. The hard disk 220 stores a management program 221 for managing the accounts of users of the field device 200, and a program for controlling the entire field device 200.

[0060] The I / O controller 218 controls data exchange with a recording medium and external devices connected to the field device 200A. More specifically, the I / O controller 218 is connected to a hard disk 220, a camera interface 222, a controller interface 226, a communication interface 228, and a memory card interface 230. The memory card interface 230 mediates data transmission between the processor 210 and a recording medium 232 via the I / O controller 218.

[0061] The hard disk 220 is typically a non-volatile magnetic storage device, and stores programs executed by the processor 210, various setting values, image data captured by the camera 201A, data for an operation screen for operating the field device 200A, and the like.

[0062] Camera interface 222 corresponds to an input unit that accepts image data captured by camera 201A, and mediates data transmission between processor 210 and camera 201A. Camera interface 222 includes an image buffer for temporarily storing image data from camera 201A.

[0063] The field device 200A has a communication port for connecting the field network 110, and the controller interface 226 controls communication between the processor 210 and the control device 100 via the communication port. The field device 200A has a communication port for connecting the network 2, and the network interface 219 controls communication between the processor 210 and an external device via the communication port. Data communicated by the field device 200A with the external device via the network interface 219 may include image data captured by the camera 201A, data of an operation screen for operating the field device 200A, data of user operations accepted via the operation screen, and the like.

[0064] The field device 200A has a connector for connecting a communication cable. The communication interface 228 controls communication between the field device 200A and the operation terminal 300A via the connector. The communication interface 228 controls communication according to, for example, Ethernet (registered trademark) or USB (Universal Serial Bus). The operation terminal 300A displays an operation screen of the field device 200A on a monitor 3070B, and outputs a user operation accepted via the operation screen to the field device 200A.

[0065] The robot controller field device 200B has a configuration similar to that of the field device 200A shown in Fig. 3 except for the camera interface 222. The field device 200B includes a robot interface instead of the camera interface 222. The robot interface mediates data transmission between the I / O controller 218 and the robot 201B.

[0066] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of an operation terminal 300 according to the present embodiment. The operation terminal 300 in FIG. 4 has a configuration of a personal computer. More specifically, the operation terminal 300 includes, as main components, a processor 301 that executes a program, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 302, a RAM 303 that volatilely stores data, a HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 304 that nonvolatilely stores data, a keyboard 305 and a mouse 306, a monitor 307, a drive device 308, and a communication IF (Interface) 309. The components are mutually connected by a data bus 310. A recording medium 320 such as a DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disc-ROM) is attached to the drive device 308.

[0067] The processing in the operation terminal 300 is realized by an operation program 313 executed by each piece of hardware and the processor 301. Such an operation program 313 is stored in advance in the HDD 304. Alternatively, the operation program 313 may be stored in the recording medium 320 and distributed as a program product. Or, the operation program 313 may be provided as a program product downloadable by an information provider connected to the so-called Internet.

[0068] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the SCADA 400 according to the present embodiment. The SCADA 400 in FIG. 5 has the configuration of a personal computer. More specifically, the SCADA 400 mainly includes a processor 401 that executes a program, a ROM 402, a RAM 403 that stores data volatily, an HDD 404 that stores data non-volatily, a keyboard 405 and a mouse 406, a monitor 407, a drive device 408, and a communication IF (Interface) 409. Each component is connected to each other by a data bus 410. A recording medium 420 such as a DVD-ROM is mounted on the drive device 408.

[0069] The processing in the SCADA 400 is realized by a management program 413 executed by each piece of hardware and the processor 401. Such a management program 413 is stored in advance in the HDD 404. Alternatively, the management program 413 may be stored in the recording medium 420 and distributed as a program product. Or, the management program 413 may be provided as a program product downloadable by an information provider connected to the so-called Internet.

[0070] <C. Configuration of the operation screen and modules> In this embodiment, an "operation screen" has "part attributes" for each of one or more parts (buttons, edit boxes, images, figures, text, etc.) laid out on the screen. This attribute indicates an attribute that specifies the display state of the part, or an attribute that specifies the function of the part (data input / output function, operation reception function, etc.), or both. An "attribute value" is a value given to an attribute, and is given by a constant, variable, or formula. The "screen data" of the operation screen includes one or more attributes associated with each part laid out on the operation screen, and a command to be executed to determine the attribute value of each attribute. Here, the term "operation screen" may refer to the screen data of the operation screen.

[0071] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a module configuration according to the present embodiment, which shows modules related to account management that are installed in an operation terminal 300 as an HMI that outputs an operation screen, a SCADA 400, a control device 100 as a PLC, and a field device 200A as an image sensor.

[0072] 6, the operation terminal 300 mainly includes a device screen display unit 321 that displays an operation screen of the information processing device as the SCADA 400 on the monitor 307, a request transmission unit 322, and a device screen display unit 323 that receives an operation screen from the field device 200 and displays it on the monitor 307. The request transmission unit 322 accepts a user operation on the operation screen and transmits a request based on the user operation to the information processing device. The user operation includes, for example, a click operation on a part. The operation terminal 300 determines a type of request corresponding to the attribute value defined for the operated part based on the attribute value, and transfers it to the SCADA 400. Such types of requests include a request for logging in to the SCADA 400 and requests for starting and ending operation of the field device 200.

[0073] The SCADA 400 includes a device account management unit 421 that manages user accounts, a communication unit 422 that communicates with the control device 100, and a request processing unit 423 that receives requests from the operation terminal 300 and processes the received requests.

[0074] The control device 100 includes a command conversion unit 105 that converts a request from the SCADA 400 into a command, and a command transmission unit 103 that transmits the converted command to the field device 200 via the field network 110. The command transmission unit 103 is an embodiment of a command unit. The command conversion unit 105 converts the received request into a command, for example, by executing a predetermined ladder program for the request. The command may include a create command 9 and a delete command 10.

[0075] The field device 200 includes a unit 21 that manages the accounts of users who operate the field device 200 from the operation terminal 300 and outputs an operation screen via the operation terminal 300, and a unit 22 that manages the accounts of users who operate the field device 200 from a cable-connected operation terminal 300A and outputs an operation screen via the operation terminal 300A.

[0076] The unit 21 has a command receiving unit 21A that receives commands transferred from the control device 100, a device account management unit 21B that manages the accounts of users who log in to the field device 200 from the operation terminal 300, and a device screen transmission unit 21C that transfers the operation screen of the field device 200 to the operation terminal 300 via the network 2. The device account management unit 21B has a creation unit 21-1 that creates and stores an account based on creation command 9 when it receives creation command 9, and a deletion unit 21-2 that deletes the account based on deletion command 10 when it receives deletion command 10.

[0077] The unit 22 has a device account management unit 22B that manages the account of a user who logs in to the field device 200 from the operation terminal 300A, and a device screen transmission unit 22C that transfers the operation screen of the field device 200 to the operation terminal 300A via a cable.

[0078] Each module in the operation terminal 300, SCADA 400, control device 100, and field device 200 shown in Fig. 6 may be realized by executing a program in each of these devices, or a part of the module may be implemented as a hardware circuit. Also, the module configuration shown in Fig. 6 is one example, and two or more modules shown in Fig. 6 may be combined and implemented as one module, or one module in Fig. 6 may be divided and implemented into two or more modules.

[0079] <D.シーケンス> FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing a schematic diagram of communication between devices according to the present embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a management table 800 of the SCADA 400 according to the present embodiment. The management table 800 is generated by the device account management unit 421 and stored in, for example, the HDD 404. As shown in FIG. 8, the management table 800 includes, for each of one or more users who are candidates for operating the field device 200A, a user ID 801 that is an identifier of the user, a password (PW) 802, and operation authority for the field device 200A granted to the user. The operation authority includes an authority type 803 that indicates the type of authority, and an authority level 804 that indicates the size of the scope of the authority corresponding to the authority type 803. Details of the authority will be described later.

[0080] 7, the device screen display unit 321 of the operation terminal 300 displays an operation screen from SCADA 400 on the monitor 307. The request transmission unit 322 accepts a login operation to SCADA 400 from a user via the operation screen (step S1). The accepted login operation includes a user ID and a PW (Password) for identifying the user. The request transmission unit 322 generates an account authentication request including the accepted user ID and PW, and transfers it to SCADA 400 (step S2).

[0081] Based on the user ID and PW included in the account authentication request received from the operation terminal 300, the request processing unit 423 of the SCADA 400 searches the management table in Fig. 8 for a user ID 801 and PW 802 that match the user ID and PW. When the user ID 801 and PW 802 are found, the request processing unit 423 transfers an authentication reply to the operation terminal 300 so as to grant authority to the user (step S3).

[0082] In response to receiving the reply of authentication, the operation terminal 300 accepts a user operation for starting the operation of the field device 200A from the user via the operation screen of the monitor 307 (step S4). In this way, the user operation for requesting the start of the operation (use) of the field device 200A may be configured to include the login operation of step S1. Based on the user operation, the request transmission unit 322 transfers a request for requesting the start of the operation of the field device 200A to the SCADA 400 (step S5). This request includes the user ID, PW, and authority searched from the management table 800.

[0083] In this manner, in steps S1 to S3, the SCADA 400 authenticates the user as a valid user of the field device 200 on the condition that the authority of the field device 200 corresponding to the user is managed (registered) in the management table 800.

[0084] Based on the request received in step S5, the request processing unit 423 of the SCADA 400 transfers the sign-up and login request to the control device 100 (step S6). The control device 100 converts the request from the SCADA 400 into a command, and transfers the converted command to the field device 200A (step S7). This command includes the user ID, PW, and authority searched from the management table 800, and is a creation command 9 that instructs the field device 200A to create an account for authenticating the use of the device.

[0085] In response to the creation command 9 from the control device 100, the creation unit 21-1 of the field device 200A creates an account based on the user ID and authority of the creation command 9, and stores the account in the storage unit (hard disk 220) (step S7a). Following the creation command 9, the control device 100 transfers a login command having the user ID and PW to the field device 200 (step S8). The field device 200A searches the storage unit (hard disk 220) based on the login command from the control device 100, and authenticates the validity of the logged-in user based on the search result (step S8a).

[0086] In this manner, after the process of logging in to the field device 200A (the user's account is created and stored), the field device 200A maintains a connection with the operation terminal 300 for exchanging operation screens (step S9) until a logout command for that user is received from the field device 200A (step S14).

[0087] More specifically, during this period, the field device 200A searches the HDD 220 for an operation screen (screen data) according to the scope of the user's authority, and transfers it via the network 2. The operation terminal 300 outputs the operation screen transferred from the field device 200A. The user operation accepted via the operation screen is output to the field device 200A via the network 2. The field device 200A transfers, for example, a new operation screen instructed based on the user operation to the operation terminal 300 via the network 2.

[0088] Thereafter, the operation terminal 300 receives a user operation to end the operation of the field device 200A from the user via the operation screen of the monitor 307 (step S10). This user operation to end the operation of the field device 200A is an example of an operation to log out from the field device 200. Based on the user operation to end the operation, the request transmission unit 322 instructs the field device 200A to disconnect the remote operation via the network 2 (step S11). In response to the instruction, the field device 200A cuts off the connection for exchanging the operation screen with the operation terminal 300.

[0089] The operation terminal 300 then transfers a request to end the operation to the SCADA 400 (step S12).

[0090] Based on the request received in step S12, the request processing unit 423 of the SCADA 400 transfers a request for logout and account deletion to the control device 100 (step S13). The control device 100 converts the request from the SCADA 400 into a command, and transfers the converted command to the field device 200A (steps S14, S15). This command is a command to instruct the user to log out from the field device 200A, and a deletion command 10 to instruct the account including the user ID and PW searched for in the management table 800 to be deleted from the hard disk 220 of the field device 200.

[0091] The device account management unit 21B of the field device 200A logs out the user from the field device 200A in response to a logout command from the control device 100 (step S14a). Further, the deletion unit 21-2 deletes the account created and stored by the creation command 9 from the storage unit (hard disk 220) in response to the deletion command 10 (step S15a).

[0092] In FIG. 7, the field device 200A corresponding to the image sensor is shown, but the sequence of FIG. 7 can be similarly applied to the field device 200B corresponding to the robot controller.

[0093] In this way, the user accounts (user IDs and authorities) in each field device 200 (200A, 200B) can be centrally managed by the management table 800 of the information processing device (SCADA 400 or control device 100). Also, in the field device 200, the user account in the own device is held only during the period when the user is logged in (deleted when logged out), so the possibility of leakage or tampering of the account from the field device 200 can be reduced, ensuring security.

[0094] <E. Other Examples of Management Tables> FIG. 9 is a diagram showing another example of the management table of the SCADA 400 according to the present embodiment. The management table 900 in FIG. 9 includes the user ID 901, PW 902, and authority 903 of the SCADA 400 for the user, and also includes information on the user ID 906 of the field device 200, the user group 904 corresponding to the authority of the field device 200, and the startup screen layout 905 for the user.

[0095] 8, the user ID 801, PW 802, and authority of SCADA 400 are used as information for configuring an account of the field device 200. In contrast, when the management table is configured as in Fig. 9, the information for creating an account of the field device 200 can be information (user ID 906 and user group 904) that is different from that of SCADA 400.

[0096] Furthermore, when a user logs in to the field device 200, the SCADA 400 may notify the field device 200 of information on a startup screen layout 905 corresponding to the user. The field device 200 transfers an operation screen corresponding to the notified startup screen layout 905 to the operation terminal 300. This allows the operation screen output to the operation terminal 300 at the time of login to be different for each user authority.

[0097] Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of an account held by the field device 200 according to this embodiment. The account in Fig. 10 is created in response to a creation command 9 and stored in the hard disk 220. In this embodiment, the field device 200 holds an account 910 of the user shown in Fig. 10 in the hard disk 220 in order to verify the authenticity of the user only while the user is logged in. The user ID of the account 910 is the same as the user ID 801 or the user ID 901, but the PW of the account 910 can be automatically generated in the field device 200 for each login, and can be different from the PW 802 or 902.

[0098] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of an authority management table according to the present embodiment. The authority management table 920 in FIG. 11 is stored in the hard disk 220 of the field device 200. The authority management table 920 has information for defining an operation screen that can be used by a user corresponding to the type of authority (for example, user group 921). Such definition information includes, as shown in FIG. 11(A), for example, a layout restriction 922, an operation restriction 923, and a command restriction 924 regarding components on the operation screen. For example, the layout restriction 922 indicates that the type of component and the layout of the component are made different according to the authority. The operation restriction 923 indicates that the functions indicated by the attributes of the components are made different according to the authority. The command restriction 924 indicates that the commands executed to determine the attribute values of the components are made different according to the authority. FIG. 11(B) shows an example of the setting of the operation restriction 923.

[0099] <Other examples of account management> The unit 21 of the field device 200 manages (creates and deletes) accounts in response to a creation command 9 and a deletion command 10 from an information processing device (SCADA 400, control device 100). In contrast, the unit 22 of the field device 200 creates and stores an account according to a user operation received via the operation terminal 300A, and sets a definition of an operation screen according to the user's authority.

[0100] Figs. 12 to 14 are diagrams showing other examples of account management according to the present embodiment. Figs. 12 to 14 are examples of screens that the device account management unit 22B of the unit 22 causes to be displayed on the monitor 307B of the operation terminal 300A. In the screen of the account list 123 in Fig. 12, when a new user account is to be added to the field device 200 and the button 121 is clicked, the device account management unit 22B causes the screen of Fig. 13 to be displayed on the monitor 307B. In the screen of Fig. 13, when user information (user name 131, group 132, PW 133) is set and the button 134 is clicked, a user account is added, and a list 40C of user accounts in Fig. 14 is displayed in the area 129 of Fig. 12. In the screen of Fig. 14, when the button 122 is clicked, the device account management unit 22B deletes the account of the user specified from the list 40C in Fig. 14. The user account set in Fig. 14 is stored in the hard disk 220 of the field device 200.

[0101] In this way, the field device 200 can add or delete a user account by the unit 22 without relying on the information processing device (SCADA 400, control device 100).

[0102] <G. Operation of the Screen Management Table> The field device 200 sets or changes the screen management table stored in the hard disk 220 according to the user operation received via the operation terminal 300A. FIGS. 15 to 17 are diagrams for explaining the change of the setting of the screen management table according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 15, buttons 125, 126, and 127 indicating items of the definition of the operation screen are displayed on the monitor 307B. For example, when the button 125 is operated, the field device 200 displays a list 128 and receives an operation for setting whether to apply layout restrictions for each user group (authority). In the screens of FIGS. 16 and 17, a list 130 composed of a plurality of items related to operation restrictions is displayed on the left side, and a list 133 of a plurality of user groups (authorities) for each item is displayed on the right side. A check 13A is set for the set items. For the items for which the check 13A is set, a check 13B is set for the user groups that permit the operation corresponding to the item (do not restrict the operation). In FIG. 17, for the users belonging to each of the user groups UG1 to UG7, the operation of the item "flow editing" on the operation screen is restricted, that is, it is shown that the operation cannot be performed.

[0103] In the present embodiment, the image sensor of the field device 200A performs processing of a plurality of items on the captured image in a predetermined order. Such a predetermined order of the processing items is called a measurement flow. "Flow editing" includes operations of changing the order of the processes constituting such a measurement flow, adding a process to the flow, and deleting a process from the flow.

[0104] The screen management table set by the procedure shown in FIGS. 15 to 17 is stored in the hard disk of the field device 200. Note that the screens of FIGS. 15 to 17 may be displayed on the operation terminal 300. The field device 200 sets or changes the screen management table stored in the hard disk 220 according to the user operation received via the operation terminal 300.

[0105] <H. Operation Screen for Login and Logout> When account information (user ID, PW, authority) for a user is set in the management tables 800, 900, etc. managed by the information processing device, the user can log in to the information processing device and the field device 200. Fig. 18 to Fig. 21 are diagrams showing examples of operation screens according to this embodiment. These screens show examples of operation screens displayed on the monitor 307 of the operation terminal 300 by the unit 21 of the field device 200.

[0106] More specifically, in step S1 (FIG. 7), for example, an operation screen of FIG. 18 is displayed. When the user operates icon 400J on the operation screen, an operation screen of FIG. 19 for logging in is displayed. On the operation screen of FIG. 19, a user name (user ID) and PW are set in a text box 400F of a dialog by a user operation. If the user name (user ID) and PW indicated by the setting operation on text box 400F are those of a valid user, operation terminal 300 receives an authentication reply, and the screen switches to the operation screen of FIG. 20.

[0107] FIG. 20 shows a screen for accepting a user operation for starting the operation of the field device 200 from the user in step S4 (FIG. 7). The screen in FIG. 20 includes windows W1 and W2. The window W1 includes a box 400C in which an identifier of the field device 200 to be operated, for example an IP address, is set, and a button 400G operated to accept a user instruction to start the operation of the field device 200. The window W2 also displays a graphic (image) showing the network configuration of the device NW. An object (partial image) showing each field device 200 shown by the network configuration in the window W2 is shown in association with an IP address assigned to the field device 200. The user can specify the field device 200 to be operated by setting the IP address assigned to the device to be operated from among the multiple field devices 200 in the window W2 in the box 400C.

[0108] In this way, by selecting the field device 200 to be operated (here, setting an IP address in box 400C) and operating button 400G, it is possible to start operation of the target field device 200 (steps S4 and S5 in FIG. 1).

[0109] When the processes of steps S5 to S9 are performed, an operation screen for accepting operations for the field device 200 is displayed on the operation terminal 300. In a state in which sign-up and login to the field device 200 are performed using an account of the SCADA 400, for example, the operation screen of FIG. 21 is started (displayed).

[0110] 21 notifies the user that the user has switched from a logged-out state to a logged-in state for the field device 200, that is, that the user has been authenticated. In the window W2, the captured image 241 output by the field device 200 is displayed, and the result 400I of image processing of the captured image 241 is also displayed.

[0111] When the user operates the button 400H in the window W1 in Fig. 21, the SCADA 400 accepts the operation and executes logout and account deletion (steps S11 to S15 in Fig. 1) according to the accepted user operation. When the logout operation is performed, the field device 200 enters a state in which the logout and account deletion have been performed, and the operation screen returns to the screen that was displayed before the button 400G in Fig. 20 was operated.

[0112] 22 to 24 are diagrams showing other examples of the operation screen according to the present embodiment. These screens show examples of the operation screen displayed on the monitor 307B of the operation terminal 300A by the unit 22 of the field device 200. FIG. 22 shows an operation screen for accepting a login operation. When the icon 400E of the operation screen of FIG. 22 is operated by the user, the operation screen of FIG. 23 is displayed. In the operation screen of FIG. 23, a user name (user ID) and PW are set in the text box 400F. If the unit 22 determines that the user name (user ID) and PW indicated by the setting operation in the text box 400F are those of a valid user, the display mode of the icon 400E of the operation screen is changed, for example, to inverted display, as shown in FIG. 24. Such a change in the display mode notifies that the user has switched from a logged-out state to a logged-in state for the field device 200.

[0113] (Modification) In the screen of FIG. 12, a threshold value for determining logout is set in the text box of the part 400D by a user operation. More specifically, this threshold value is referred to in order to evaluate the time during which a user operation on the operation screen outputted to the operation terminal 300 (300A) is not continuously detected (continuation time of no operation state) during login to the field device 200. More specifically, the field device 200 measures the time during which a no operation state on the operation screen outputted to the operation terminal 300 (300A) continues. When the deletion unit 21-2 detects that a condition is satisfied, for example, that the no operation state continues beyond a threshold time, as a predetermined condition for deleting an account, the field device 200 deletes the account of the logged-in user. This reduces the risk that a third party will operate the field device 200 by impersonating the user during the period during which a no operation state continues during login.

[0114] The information processing device may record, in the management table 800, the history of operations performed by each user. The operation history includes the type of operation screen output to the user, the type of operation received on the operation screen, and the date and time of the operation. Thereby, the information processing device can perform account management and operation history management of the field device 200.

[0115] The GUI (Graphical User Interface) composed of the screens shown in FIGS. 12 to 17 described above can be provided via the monitor of the operation terminal 300 (300A) or the monitor of the information processing device. For example, the operation terminal 300 or the SCADA 400 can set or change data including the authority of the management tables 800 and 900 based on the user operation received from the GUI provided via the monitor.

[0116] <I. Supplementary Note> As described above, the present embodiment and the modified example include the following disclosures.

[0117] (Configuration 1) Devices (200, 200A, 200B) that sense or drive objects in the production line, which belong to the first network (110), A terminal (300) that outputs an operation screen of the device, which belongs to the second network (2), An information processing device (400, 100) having first and second communication ports (10B, 10A) for connecting the first and second networks respectively, The information processing device, A management unit (421) that manages, for a user, a user ID and the authority to operate the device, When receiving a login operation from the user to the device via the operation screen, a command unit (103) that transmits an account creation command (9) to the device, and the creation command includes the user ID and the authority managed by the management unit, The device, a creation unit (21-1) that creates the account based on the user ID and the authority in the creation command in response to the creation command from the information processing device and stores the account in a storage unit; and a deletion unit (21-2) that deletes the account from the storage unit when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the account is stored.

[0118] (Configuration 2) when the information processing device receives a logout operation from the user via the operation screen, the information processing device transmits a deletion command for the account to the device; 2. The management system according to configuration 1, wherein the predetermined condition includes that the device receives the deletion command from the information processing device while the user is logged in.

[0119] (Configuration 3) 3. The management system according to configuration 1 or 2, wherein the predetermined condition includes the device detecting a continuous no-operation state exceeding a threshold time while the user is logged in.

[0120] (Configuration 4) The authority includes a plurality of types of authority having different scopes of authority, 4. The management system according to any one of configurations 1 to 3, wherein the type of the operation screen output on the terminal is changed depending on the scope of authority corresponding to a user who logs in to the device.

[0121] (Configuration 5) 5. The management system according to any one of configurations 1 to 4, wherein the operation screen includes an operation screen for accepting an operation for setting the type of the authority corresponding to the user.

[0122] (Configuration 6) An information processing device (100, 400) having first and second communication ports (10B, 10A) for connecting first and second networks (110, 2), respectively, The first network includes devices (200, 200A, 200B) that sense or drive objects in the production line, A terminal (300) that outputs an operation screen of the device belongs to the second network, The information processing device includes: A management unit (421) for managing user IDs and the authority to operate the device for each user; an instruction unit (103, 105) that, when a login operation to the device from the user is accepted via the operation screen, sends to the device a creation command (9) instructing the device to create and store an account, and thereafter, when a logout operation is accepted via the operation screen, sends to the device a deletion command (10) instructing the device to delete the account, wherein the creation command includes the user ID and the authority managed by the management unit.

[0123] (Configuration 7) A method implemented by an information processing device (400, 100) having first and second communication ports (10B, 10A) for connecting first and second networks (110, 2), respectively, comprising: The first network includes devices (200, 200A, 200B) that sense or drive objects in the production line, A terminal (300) that outputs an operation screen of the device belongs to the second network, The method comprises: managing user IDs and authorizations to operate the device for users; when a login operation to the device is accepted from the user via the operation screen, sending to the device a creation command instructing the device to create and store an account; and when a logout operation is received via the operation screen after the sending of the creation command, sending a deletion command to the device instructing the device to delete the stored account, wherein the creation command includes the user ID and the authority managed in the managing step.

[0124] (Configuration 8) A program for causing a processor to execute the method according to configuration 7.

[0125] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described, the embodiment disclosed herein should be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in all respects. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, and it is intended to include all modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0126] 2 network, 7A, 7B repeater, 9 creation command, 10 deletion command, 10A, 10B communication port, 13A, 13B check, 21-1 creation section, 21-2 deletion section, 21A command receiving section, 21B, 22B device account management section, 21C, 22C device screen sending section, 100 control device, 101 network controller, 102, 210, 301, 401 processor, 103 command sending section, 104 chip set, 105 command conversion section, 106 main memory device, 108 secondary memory device, 110 field network, 112 control program, 113, 221, 413 management program, 114, 230 memory card interface, 116 memory card, 118, 120 field bus controller, 119 internal bus controller, 121, 122, 125, 134 button, 123 Account list, 129 Area, 131 User name, 132 Group, 200, 200A, 200B Field device, 201A Camera, 201B Robot, 212, 303, 403 RAM, 216 System controller, 218 I / O controller, 219 Network interface, 220 Hard disk, 222 Camera interface, 226 Controller interface, 228 Communication interface, 232, 320, 420 Recording medium, 300, 300A Operation terminal, 307, 307B, 407 Monitor, 305, 405 Keyboard, 306, 406 Mouse, 308, 408 Driving device, 310, 410 Data bus, 313 Operation program, 321 Device screen display unit, 322 Request transmission unit, 323 Device screen display unit, 400D Parts, 400E Icon, 400F Text box, 402 ROM, 421 device account management section, 422 communication section, 423 request processing section, 500, 600 device, 800, 900 management table, 801 user ID, 802 PW, 803 authority type, 804 authority level, 903 authority.

Claims

1. A device that senses or drives an object in a production line and belongs to a first network; a terminal that outputs an operation screen of the device and that belongs to a second network; an information processing device having first and second communication ports for connecting the first and second networks, respectively; The information processing device includes: A management unit that manages user IDs and authorities to operate the devices for each user; a command unit that transmits an account creation command to the device when a login operation to the device is accepted from the user via the operation screen, the creation command including the user ID and the authority managed by the management unit, The device comprises: a creation unit that creates the account based on the user ID and the authority in response to the creation command from the information processing device and stores the account in a storage unit; a deletion unit that deletes the account from the storage unit when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the account is stored.

2. when the information processing device receives a logout operation from the user via the operation screen, the information processing device transmits a deletion command for the account to the device; The management system according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition includes that the device receives the deletion command from the information processing device while the user is logged in.

3. The management system according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition includes a condition in which the device detects a continuous no-operation state exceeding a threshold time while the user is logged in. 3 .

4. The authority includes a plurality of types of authority having different scopes of authority, 3. The management system according to claim 1, wherein a type of the operation screen outputted on the terminal is changed depending on a range of authority corresponding to a user logging in to the device.

5. The management system according to claim 1 , wherein the operation screen includes an operation screen for receiving an operation for setting the type of the authority corresponding to the user.

6. An information processing device having first and second communication ports for connecting a first network and a second network, The first network includes a device that senses or drives an object in a production line, A terminal that outputs an operation screen of the device belongs to the second network, The information processing device includes: A management unit that manages user IDs and authorities to operate the devices for each user; an instruction unit that, when a login operation to the device is accepted from the user via the operation screen, sends a creation command to the device instructing the device to create and store an account, and then, when a logout operation is accepted via the operation screen, sends a deletion command to the device instructing the device to delete the account, wherein the creation command includes the user ID and the authority managed by the management unit.

7. 1. A method implemented by an information processing device having first and second communication ports for connecting first and second networks, respectively, comprising: The first network includes a device that senses or drives an object in a production line, A terminal that outputs an operation screen of the device belongs to the second network, The method comprises: managing user IDs and authorizations to operate the device for users; receiving a login operation from the user to the device via the operation screen, transmitting a creation command to the device instructing the device to create and store an account; a step of sending a deletion command to the device instructing the device to delete the stored account when a logout operation is accepted via the operation screen after sending the creation command, wherein the creation command includes the user ID and the authority managed in the managing step.

8. A program for causing a processor to execute the method according to claim 7.

Images