Apparatus, computer readable medium, and apparatus for communicatively coupling a field device to a controller of a process control system - Patents.com

Abstract

To provide an apparatus and a method to communicatively couple field devices to controllers in a process control system.SOLUTION: Included is a first interface to be communicatively coupled to one of a first field device or a second field device. The first interface communicates using a first fieldbus communication protocol when coupled to the first field device and communicates using a second fieldbus communication protocol when coupled to the second field device. The apparatus includes a second interface communicatively coupled to the communication processor and a bus in order to encode first information received from the one of the first field device or the second field device for communication via a bus using a third communication protocol and to transmit the first information to a controller in a process control system. The bus uses the third communication protocol to communicate second information received from the other one of the first field device or the second field device.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE This disclosure relates generally to process control systems, and more particularly to an apparatus and method for communicatively coupling field devices to a controller of a process control system. [Background technology]

[0002] Process control systems, such as those used in chemical, petroleum, pharmaceutical, pulp and paper, or other manufacturing processes, typically include one or more process controllers communicatively coupled to at least one host including at least one operator workstation, and one or more field devices configured to communicate via analog, digital, or combined analog / digital communication protocols. The field devices, which may be, for example, device controllers, valves, valve actuators, valve positioners, switches, and transmitters (e.g., temperature sensors, pressure sensors, flow sensors, and chemical composition sensors), or combinations thereof, perform functions within the process control system, such as opening and closing valves and measuring or inferring process parameters. The process controllers receive signals indicative of process measurements made by and / or other information about the field devices, and use this information to implement control routines and generate control signals that are sent over a bus or other communication lines to the field devices to control the operation of the process control system.

[0003] A process control system can include multiple field devices that provide a number of different functions and are often communicatively coupled to a process controller using a two-wire interface in a point-to-point (e.g., one field device communicatively coupled to a field device bus) or multi-drop (e.g., multiple field devices communicatively coupled to a field device bus) hardwired configuration, or using wireless communication. Some field devices are configured to operate using relatively simple commands and / or communications (e.g., ON and OFF commands). Other field devices are more complex and require more commands and / or more communication information, which may or may not include simple commands. For example, more complex field devices may communicate analog values ​​with digital communications superimposed on the analog values, for example, using the Highway Addressable Remote Transducer ("HART") communication protocol. Other field devices may use entirely digital communications (e.g., the FOUNDATION Fieldbus communication protocol).

[0004] In a process control system, each field device is typically coupled to a process controller via one or more I / O cards and a respective communication medium (e.g., a two-wire cable, a wireless link, or an optical fiber). Thus, multiple communication media are required to communicatively couple the multiple field devices to the process controller. Often, the multiple communication media coupled to the field devices are routed through one or more field junction boxes where the multiple communication media are coupled to each communication medium (e.g., each two-wire conductor) of a multi-conductor cable used to communicatively couple the field device to the process controller via one or more I / O cards. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] An exemplary apparatus and method for communicatively coupling a field device to a controller of a process control system is described. According to one embodiment, the exemplary apparatus includes a base and a module removably mounted to the base. The base includes a first physical interface communicatively coupled to one of a first field device of the process control system or a second field device of the process control system, and a second physical interface communicatively coupled to the controller of the process control system via a bus. The module communicates with the first field device using a first communication protocol when the first physical interface is communicatively coupled to the first field device. The module communicates with the second field device using a second communication protocol when the first physical interface is communicatively coupled to the second field device. The module communicates with the controller via the bus using a third communication protocol. The third communication protocol is different from the first and second communication protocols.

[0006] According to another embodiment, an exemplary method involves receiving first information at a base having a first physical interface communicatively coupled to one of a first field device of a process control system or a second field device of the process control system. The exemplary method also involves encoding the first information for communication using a first communication protocol at a module removably mounted to the base. The first information communicated from the first field device to the module using a second communication protocol when the first physical interface is coupled to the first field device. The first information communicated from the second field device to the module using a third communication protocol when the first physical interface is coupled to the second field device. The first communication protocol is separate from the first and second communication protocols. The method further involves communicating the encoded first information from the module via a second physical interface of the base to a controller via a bus using the first communication protocol.

[0007] According to yet another embodiment, an exemplary apparatus includes a first interface communicatively coupled to one of a first field device of a process control system or a second field device of the process control system. The first interface communicates using a first Fieldbus communication protocol when coupled to the first field device and communicates using a second Fieldbus communication protocol when coupled to the second field device. The exemplary apparatus includes a communication processor communicatively coupled to the first interface. The communication processor encodes first information received from one of the first field device or the second field device for communication over a bus using a third communication protocol different from the first and second Fieldbus communication protocols. The exemplary apparatus includes a second interface communicatively coupled to the communication processor and the bus for communicating the first information to a controller of the process control system over the bus using the third communication protocol. The bus communicates second information received from the other of the first field device or the second field device using the third communication protocol. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1A] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example process control system. [Figure 1B] FIG. 13 is a diagram of an alternative exemplary implementation that may be used to communicatively couple a workstation, a controller, and an I / O card. [Figure 1C] FIG. 13 is a diagram of an alternative exemplary implementation that may be used to communicatively couple a workstation, a controller, and an I / O card. [Figure 1D] FIG. 13 is a diagram of an alternative exemplary implementation that may be used to communicatively couple a workstation, a controller, and an I / O card. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1B is a detailed view of the example marshalling cabinet of FIG. [Diagram 3]1B is another example marshalling cabinet that may be used to implement the example marshalling cabinet of FIG. 1A. [Figure 4] 3A and 3B are plan and side views of the example termination module of FIGS. 1A and 2. [Diagram 5] 3A and 3B are plan and side views of the example termination module of FIGS. 1A and 2. [Figure 6] FIG. 1B is a detailed block diagram of an example termination module of FIGS. 1A, 2, 4, 5, 13A-13B, and 14A-14B. [Figure 7] FIG. 1B is a detailed block diagram of the example I / O card of FIG. 1A. [Figure 8] A detailed block diagram of an example labeler that may be used to display field device identification information and / or other field device information associated with the termination modules of Figures 1A, 2-6, 13A-13B, and 14A-14B. [Figure 9] 1B is a diagram of an isolation circuit configuration that may be implemented in association with the example termination module of FIG. 1A to electrically isolate the termination modules from each other, from field devices, and from the communication bus. [Figure 10A] A flowchart of an exemplary method that may be used to implement the termination modules of Figures 1A, 2-6, 13A-13B, and 14A-14B to convey information between a field device and an I / O card. [Figure 10B] A flowchart of an exemplary method that may be used to implement the termination modules of Figures 1A, 2-6, 13A-13B, and 14A-14B to convey information between a field device and an I / O card. [Figure 11A] 1B is a flowchart of an exemplary method that may be used to implement the I / O card of FIG. 1A to communicate information between a termination module and a workstation. [Figure 11B]1B is a flowchart of an exemplary method that may be used to implement the I / O card of FIG. 1A to communicate information between a termination module and a workstation. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart of an exemplary method that may be used to implement the labelers of FIGS. 2, 3, 6, and 8 to read and display information associated with field devices communicatively coupled to a termination module. [Figure 13A] 1 is a block diagram illustrating another example process control system before and after implementation of the teachings disclosed herein for an example Profibus PA process area and an example FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1 (FF-H1) process area. [Figure 13B] 1 is a block diagram illustrating another example process control system before and after implementation of the teachings disclosed herein for an example Profibus PA process area and an example FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1 (FF-H1) process area. [Figure 14A] FIG. 13 is a diagram of an alternative exemplary implementation of peer-to-peer communication of two FF-H1 compliant field devices communicatively coupled to corresponding termination modules. [Figure 14B] FIG. 13 is a diagram of an alternative exemplary implementation of peer-to-peer communication of two FF-H1 compliant field devices communicatively coupled to corresponding termination modules. [Figure 15] A flowchart of an exemplary method that can be used to implement the termination modules of Figures 1A, 2-6, 13A-13B, and 14A-14B to automatically detect a communication protocol associated with a corresponding field device connected to the termination module. [Figure 16] 1 is a block diagram of an example processor system that may be used to implement the example systems and methods described herein. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Although the following describes exemplary apparatus and systems that include, among other components, software and / or firmware executing on hardware, it should be noted that such systems are merely exemplary and should not be considered as limiting. For example, it is contemplated that some or all of these hardware, software, and firmware components may be embodied exclusively in hardware, exclusively in software, or in any combination of hardware and software. Thus, while the following describes exemplary apparatus and systems, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the provided examples are not the only way to implement such apparatus and systems.

[0010] An exemplary process control system includes a control room (e.g., control room 108 of FIG. 1A), a process controller area (e.g., process controller area 110 of FIG. 1A), a termination area (e.g., termination area 140 of FIG. 1A), and one or more process areas (e.g., process area 114 and process area 118 of FIG. 1A). A process area includes a number of field devices that perform operations (e.g., controlling valves, controlling motors, controlling boilers, monitoring, measuring parameters, etc.) associated with running a particular process (e.g., chemical process, petroleum process, pharmaceutical process, pulp and paper process, etc.). Some process areas are inaccessible to humans due to harsh environmental conditions (e.g., relatively high temperatures, airborne toxins, dangerous radiation levels, etc.). A control room typically includes one or more workstations within an environment that is safely accessible to humans. The workstations include user applications that allow users (e.g., engineers, operators, etc.) to access the control operations of the process control system, for example, by changing variable values, process control functions, etc. The process control area includes one or more controllers communicatively coupled to a workstation in the control room. The controllers automate the control of field devices in the process area by executing process control strategies implemented via the workstation. An exemplary process strategy involves measuring pressure using a pressure sensor field device and automatically sending commands to a valve positioner that opens and closes a flow valve based on the pressure measurement. The termination area includes a marshalling cabinet that allows the controllers to communicate with the field devices in the process area. Specifically, the marshalling cabinet includes a number of termination modules that are used to marshal, consolidate, or forward signals from the field devices to one or more I / O cards communicatively coupled to the controllers.The I / O cards convert information received from the field devices into a format compatible with the controller, and convert information from the controller into a format compatible with the field devices.

[0011] A known technique used to communicatively couple field devices in a process control system to a controller involves using a separate bus (e.g., wires, cables, or circuits) between each field device and each I / O card communicatively coupled to the controller (e.g., a process controller, a programmable logic controller, etc.). The I / O cards enable the controller to be communicatively coupled to multiple field devices associated with different data or signal types (e.g., analog in (AI) data type, analog out (AO) data type, discrete in (DI) data type, discrete out (DO) data type, digital in data type, and digital out data type) and different field device communication protocols by translating or converting information communicated between the controller and the field devices. For example, an I / O card may be provided with one or more field device interfaces configured to communicate information to and from the field devices using the field device communication protocol associated with the field device. Different field device interfaces communicate via different channel types (e.g., analog in (AI) channel type, analog out (AO) channel type, discrete in (DI) channel type, discrete out (DO) channel type, digital in channel type, and digital out channel type). Additionally, the I / O card can convert information received from the field device (e.g., voltage levels) into information (e.g., pressure measurements) that the controller can use to perform actions related to controlling the field device. Known techniques require a bundle of wires or buses (e.g., multi-conductor cables) that communicatively couple multiple field devices to the I / O card.Unlike known techniques that use a separate bus to communicatively couple each field device to an I / O card, the example apparatus and methods described herein may be used to communicatively couple multiple field devices to an I / O card by terminating the field devices at a termination panel (e.g., a marshalling cabinet) and communicatively coupling the field devices to the I / O card using a single bus (e.g., a conductive communication medium, an optical communication medium, a wireless communication medium) that is communicatively coupled between the termination panel and the I / O card.

[0012] The example apparatus and methods described herein involve using an example universal I / O bus (e.g., a common or shared communication bus) that communicatively couples one or more termination modules to one or more I / O cards that are communicatively coupled to a controller. Each termination module is communicatively coupled to one or more respective field devices using a respective field device bus (e.g., an analog bus or a digital bus). The termination module is configured to receive field device information from the field devices via the field device bus and communicate the field device information to the I / O cards via the universal I / O bus, for example, by packetizing the field device information and communicating the packetized information to the I / O cards via the universal I / O bus. Field device information may include, for example, field device identification information (e.g., device tag, electronic serial number, etc.), field device state information (e.g., communication state, diagnostic health information (open loop, short, etc.)), field device activity information (e.g., process variable (PV) value), field device description information (e.g., type or function of the field device, such as a valve actuator, temperature sensor, pressure sensor, flow sensor, etc.), field device connection configuration information (e.g., multi-drop bus connection, point-to-point connection, etc.), field device bus or field device segment identification information (e.g., the field device bus or field device segment via which the field device is communicatively coupled to the termination module), and / or field device data type information (e.g., a data type descriptor indicating the data type used by a particular field device). The I / O card can extract the field device information received over the universal I / O bus and communicate the field device information to a controller, which can then communicate some or all of the information to one or more workstation terminals for later analysis.

[0013] To communicate field device information (e.g., commands, instructions, queries, threshold activity values ​​(e.g., threshold PV values), etc.) from the workstation terminal to the field devices, the I / O cards can packetize the field device information and communicate the packetized field device information to a number of termination modules. Each of the termination modules can then extract or de-packetize the respective field device information from the packetized communications received from a respective I / O card and communicate the field device information to a respective field device.

[0014] In the exemplary embodiments described herein, a termination panel (e.g., a marshalling cabinet) is configured to receive (e.g., connect to) a plurality of termination modules, each of which is communicatively coupled to a different field device. To indicate which termination module is connected to which field device in the termination panel, each termination module is provided with a termination labeler (or tagging system). The termination labeler includes an electronic display (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD)) and components that determine which field device is connected to the termination module corresponding to the termination labeler. In some exemplary implementations, the displays are mounted on the termination panel in place of the termination modules. Each of the displays is mounted in association with a respective termination module socket. In this manner, when a termination module is removed from the termination panel, the corresponding display remains on the termination panel for use by a subsequently connected termination module.

[0015] 1A, an example process control system 100 includes a workstation 102 communicatively coupled to a controller 104 via a bus or local area network (LAN) 106, commonly referred to as an application control network (ACN). The LAN 106 may be implemented using any desired communication medium and protocol. For example, the LAN 106 may be based on a wired or wireless Ethernet communication protocol. However, other suitable wired or wireless communication media and protocols may be used. The workstation 102 may be configured to perform operations related to one or more information technology applications, user interaction applications, and / or communication applications. For example, the workstation 102 may be configured to perform operations related to process control related applications and communication applications that enable the workstation 102 and the controller 104 to communicate with other devices or systems using a desired communication medium (e.g., wireless, wired, etc.) and protocol (e.g., HTTP, SOAP, etc.). The controller 104 may be configured to execute one or more process control routines or functions that have been created by a systems engineer or other system operator, for example, using the workstation 102 or another workstation, and have been downloaded and instantiated into the controller 104. In the illustrated embodiment, the workstation 102 is located in a control room 108 and the controller 104 is located in a process controller area 110 that is separate from the control room 108.

[0016] In the illustrated embodiment, the example process control system 100 includes field devices 112a-c in a first process area 114 and field devices 116a-c in a second process control area 118. To communicate information between the controller 104 and the field devices 112a-c and the field devices 116a-c, the example process control system 100 is provided with field junction boxes (FJBs) 120a-b and a marshalling cabinet 122. Each of the field junction boxes 120a-b forwards signals from a respective one of the field devices 112a-c and the field devices 116a-c to the marshalling cabinet 122. The marshalling cabinet 122 then organizes (e.g., bundles, categorizes, etc.) the information received from the field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c and forwards the field device information to each I / O card (e.g., I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b) of the controller 104. In the illustrated embodiment, communication between the controller 104 and the field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c is bidirectional, such that the marshalling cabinet 122 is also used to forward information received from the I / O cards of the controller 104 to each one of the field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c via the field junction boxes 120a-b.

[0017] In an example embodiment, the field devices 112a-c are communicatively coupled to the field junction box 120a, and the field devices 116a-c are communicatively coupled to the field junction box 120b via an electrically conductive communication medium, a wireless communication medium, and / or an optical communication medium. For example, the field junction boxes 120a-b are provided with one or more electrical, wireless, and / or optical data transceivers for communicating with the electrical, wireless, and / or optical transceivers of the field devices 112a-c and the field devices 116a-c. In an example embodiment, the field junction box 120b is communicatively coupled wirelessly to the field device 116c. In an alternative example implementation, the marshalling cabinet 122 can be omitted, and signals from the field devices 112a-c and the field devices 116a-c can be directly transferred from the field junction boxes 120a-b to the I / O cards of the controller 104. In yet another example implementation, the field junction boxes 120a-b can be omitted and the field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c can be directly connected to the marshalling cabinet 122.

[0018] The field devices 112a-c and 116a-c can be fieldbus-compliant valves, actuators, sensors, etc., where the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c communicate over a digital data bus using the well-known FOUNDATION Fieldbus communication protocol (e.g., FF-H1). Of course, other types of field devices and communication protocols can be used instead. For example, the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c can be Profibus (e.g., Profibus PA), HART, or AS-i compliant devices that instead communicate over a data bus using the well-known Profibus and HART communication protocols. In some example implementations, the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c can communicate information using analog or discrete communication instead of digital communication. In addition, the communication protocols can be used to communicate information related to different data types.

[0019] Each of the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c is configured to store field device identification information. The field device identification information can be a physical device tag (PDT) value, a device tag name, an electronic serial number, etc., that uniquely identifies each of the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c. In the example embodiment of FIG. 1A, the field devices 112a-c store the field device identification information in the form of physical device tag values ​​PDT0-PDT2, and the field devices 116a-c store the field device identification information in the form of physical device tag values ​​PDT3-PDT5. The field device identification information may be stored or programmed into the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c by the field device manufacturer and / or by an operator or engineer involved in the installation of the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c.

[0020] To transfer information associated with the field devices 112a-c and the field devices 116a-c within the marshalling cabinet 122, the marshalling cabinet 122 is provided with a plurality of termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c. The termination modules 124a-c are configured to marshal information associated with the field devices 112a-c within the first process area 114, and the termination modules 126a-c are configured to marshal information associated with the field devices 116a-c within the second process area 118. As shown, the termination modules 124a-c and the termination modules 126a-c are communicatively coupled to the field junction boxes 120a-b via respective multi-conductor cables 128a and multi-conductor cables 128b (e.g., multi-bus cables). In an alternative exemplary implementation in which the marshalling cabinet 122 is omitted, the termination modules 124a-c and the termination modules 126a-c may be installed within each one of the field junction boxes 120a-b.

[0021] 1A illustrates a point-to-point configuration in which each conductor or conductor pair (e.g., a bus, a twisted pair communication medium, a two-wire communication medium, etc.) in the multi-core cable 128a-b communicates information uniquely associated with each one of the field devices 112a-c and the field devices 116a-c. For example, the multi-core cable 128a includes a first conductor 130a, a second conductor 130b, and a third conductor 130c. Specifically, the first conductor 130a is used to form a first data bus configured to communicate information between the termination module 124a and the field device 112a, the second conductor 130b is used to form a second data bus configured to communicate information between the termination module 124b and the field device 112b, and the third conductor 130c is used to form a third data bus configured to communicate information between the termination module 124c and the field device 112c. In alternative exemplary implementations using a multi-drop wiring configuration, each of the termination modules 124a-c and the termination modules 126a-c may be communicatively coupled to one or more field devices. For example, in a multi-drop configuration, the termination module 124a may be communicatively coupled to the field device 112a and to another field device (not shown) via the first conductor 130a. In some exemplary implementations, the termination modules may be configured to communicate wirelessly with multiple field devices using a wireless mesh network.

[0022] Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, a second field device (not shown) is communicatively coupled to the termination module 124a via the first conductor 130a as a redundant, spare, or replacement field device in addition to the field device 112a. In some such embodiments, the termination module 124a is configured to communicate only with the field device 112a until it needs to communicate with the spare device (e.g., when the field device 112a fails and an operator configures the spare device to replace the field device 112a). That is, although there are two devices communicatively coupled to the termination module 124a via the first conductor 130a, unlike a multi-drop configuration, the communication between the termination module 124a and either the field device 112a or the spare field device effectively operates as a point-to-point connection. More specifically, the termination module 124a can detect the standby field device, but all communications are directed to the primary or active device (e.g., field device 112a) until the active device fails, at which point communications are initiated (either automatically or at the direction of process control personnel) with the standby field device. In some embodiments, the standby field device is commissioned and begins communicating with the termination module 124a while the failed field device 112a is still within the process control system (e.g., before it is physically removed and / or erased from the system's logical configuration). In some such embodiments, the standby field device remains the "standby" destination until personnel designate the standby field device as the new primary device. In other embodiments, the termination module 124a automatically replaces the standby field device with the field device 112a once the field device 112a fails.The ability to configure a spare field device to take over communications in such a manner is typically not available in certain communication protocols (e.g., HART) because individual field devices are communicatively coupled directly to the I / O card in a point-to-point manner. As a result, replacement of a failed field device typically involves physical removal of the field device, installation of a new field device, and then manual assignment of the new field device. However, in some disclosed embodiments, as described more fully below, the field device 112a is indirectly connected to the I / O card via a termination module 124a on a high-speed universal I / O bus that has sufficient bandwidth to handle the presence of an independent spare field device on the first conductor 130a when implemented using the HART protocol for faster replacement. The spare field device on the first conductor 130a may also be implemented with other communication protocols (e.g., Profibus PA, FF-H1, etc.) in addition to or instead of HART.

[0023] Each of the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c may be configured to communicate with a respective one of the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c using a different data type. For example, the termination module 124a may include a digital field device interface for communicating with the field device 112a using digital data, while the termination module 124b may include an analog field device interface for communicating with the field device 112b using analog data.

[0024] To control I / O communications between the controller 104 (and / or workstation 102) and the field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c, the controller 104 is provided with a plurality of I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b. In the illustrated embodiment, the I / O cards 132a-b are configured to control I / O communications between the controller 104 (and / or workstation 102) and the field devices 112a-c in the first process area 114, and the I / O cards 134a-b are configured to control I / O communications between the controller 104 (and / or workstation 102) and the field devices 116a-c in the second process area 118.

[0025] 1A, I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b reside within controller 104. To communicate information from field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c to workstation 102, I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b communicate the information to controller 104, which communicates the information to workstation 102. Similarly, to communicate information from the workstation 102 to the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c, the workstation 102 communicates the information to the controller 104, which in turn communicates the information to the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b, which communicate the information to the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c via the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c. In an alternative exemplary implementation, the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b can be communicatively coupled to the LAN 106 internal to the controller 104, allowing the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b to communicate directly with the workstation 102 and / or the controller 104.

[0026] To provide fault-tolerant operation in the event that either I / O card 132a or I / O card 134a fails, I / O card 132b and I / O card 134b are configured as redundant I / O cards. That is, if I / O card 132a fails, redundant I / O card 132b assumes control and performs the same operations that I / O card 132a would have performed if it had not failed. Similarly, redundant I / O card 134b assumes control when I / O card 134a fails.

[0027] To enable communication between the termination modules 124a-c and the I / O cards 132a-b and between the termination modules 126a-c and the I / O cards 134a-b, the termination modules 124a-c are communicatively coupled to the I / O cards 132a-b via a first universal I / O bus 136a, and the termination modules 126a-c are communicatively coupled to the I / O cards 134a-b via a second universal I / O bus 136b. Unlike the multi-conductor cables 128a and 128b, which use separate conductors or communication media for each one of the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c, each of the universal I / O buses 136a-b is configured to communicate information corresponding to multiple field devices (e.g., field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c) using the same communication medium. For example, the communication medium may be a serial bus, a two-wire communication medium (e.g., twisted pair), optical fiber, a parallel bus, etc., through which information relating to two or more field devices may be communicated using, for example, packet-based communication techniques, multiplexed communication techniques, etc.

[0028] In an exemplary implementation, the universal I / O buses 136a-b are implemented using the RS-485 serial communications standard. The RS-485 serial communications standard may be configured to use less communication control overhead (e.g., less header information) than other known communications standards (e.g., Ethernet). However, in other exemplary implementations, the universal I / O buses 136a-b may be implemented using other suitable communications standards, including Ethernet, Universal Serial Bus (USB), IEEE 1394, and the like. Additionally, while the universal I / O buses 136a-b are described above as wired communications media, in another exemplary implementation, one or both of the universal I / O buses 136a-b may be implemented using wireless communications media (e.g., wireless Ethernet, IEEE-802.11, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and the like).

[0029] The universal I / O bus 136a and the universal I / O bus 136b are used to communicate information in substantially the same manner. In the illustrated embodiment, the I / O bus 136a is configured to communicate information between the I / O cards 132a-b and the termination modules 124a-c. The I / O cards 132a-b and the termination modules 124a-c use an addressing scheme that allows the I / O cards 132a-b to identify which information corresponds to which of the termination modules 124a-c and allows each of the termination modules 124a-c to determine which information corresponds to which of the field devices 112a-c. When a termination module (e.g., one of termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c) is connected to one of I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b, the I / O card automatically obtains the termination module's address (e.g., from the termination module) and communicates information with the termination module. In this manner, termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c may be communicatively coupled anywhere on their respective buses 136a-b without having to manually provide the termination module's address to I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b and without having to individually wire each of termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c to I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b.

[0030] By using the universal I / O buses 136a-b, the number of communication media (e.g., wires) required to convey information between the marshalling cabinet 122 and the controller 104 is significantly reduced relative to known configurations that require a separate communication medium for each termination module to communicate with the controller. Reducing the number of communication media (e.g., reducing the number of communication buses or communication wires) required to communicatively couple the marshalling cabinet 122 to the controller 104 reduces the engineering costs required to design and generate drawings to install connections between the controller 104 and the field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c. Additionally, reducing the number of communication media in turn reduces installation and maintenance costs. For example, one of the I / O buses 136a-b replaces multiple communication media used in known systems to communicatively couple the field devices to the controller. Thus, instead of maintaining multiple communication media to communicatively couple the field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c to the I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b, the example embodiment of FIG. 1A requires significantly less maintenance by using the I / O bus 136a-b. Furthermore, in the context of fieldbus-based field devices (e.g., Profibus PA-compliant devices or FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1 (FF-H1)-compliant devices), using the universal I / O bus 136a-b also reduces or eliminates costs associated with acquiring, installing, and maintaining other components used to implement the associated fieldbus architecture. For example, in addition to cables for the trunk or segment of the fieldbus architecture, each of the Profibus PA and FF-H1 typically requires a protocol-specific I / O card, a power conditioner (for FF-H1) or a DA / PA coupler (for Profibus PA), and a segment protector.However, such components are no longer required for field devices coupled to termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c to communicate with the controller over universal I / O bus 136a-b. Furthermore, in some embodiments where each Fieldbus device is connected to a corresponding termination module 124a-c or termination module 126a-c in a point-to-point architecture, the cost and complexity of fieldbus segment design work may be significantly reduced or eliminated because the ordering of device signals is handled electronically after being received by each corresponding termination module.

[0031] In addition, reducing the number of communication media required to communicatively couple the marshalling cabinet 122 to the I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b results in more available space for more termination modules (e.g., termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c), thereby increasing the I / O density of the marshalling cabinet 122 relative to known systems. In the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 1A, the marshalling cabinet 122 can have more termination modules that would otherwise require more marshalling cabinets (e.g., three marshalling cabinets) in known system implementations. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the marshalling cabinet 122 can have more termination modules 124a-c corresponding to the field devices 112a-c that communicate data over one universal I / O bus 136a than the number of field devices that communicate data over other types of bus communication. For example, a fieldbus segment is typically limited to carrying signals for a maximum of 16 field devices. In contrast, in some embodiments, one of the universal I / O buses 136a-b may provide communications associated with up to 96 termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c.

[0032] By providing termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c that may be configured to use different data type interfaces (e.g., different channel types) to communicate with field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c, and configured to use common I / O buses 136a and 136b, respectively, to communicate with I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b, the example embodiment of FIG. 1A enables data associated with different field device data types (e.g., data types or channel types used by field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c) to be transferred to I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b without the need to implement multiple different field device interface types on I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b. Thus, an I / O card having one interface type (e.g., an I / O bus interface type for communicating via I / O bus 136a and / or I / O bus 136b) can communicate with multiple field devices having different field device interface types.

[0033] Using I / O bus 136a and / or I / O bus 136b to communicate information between controller 104 and termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c allows the connection routing from field devices to I / O cards to be defined late in the design or installation process. For example, termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c may be located in various locations within marshalling cabinet 122 while still maintaining access to each one of I / O bus 136a and I / O bus 136b.

[0034] In the illustrated embodiment, the marshalling cabinet 122, the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c, the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b, and the controller 104 facilitate migrating existing process control system equipment to a configuration substantially similar to that of the example process control system 100 of FIG. 1A. For example, the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c may be configured to include appropriate field device interface types such that the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c may be configured to be communicatively coupled to existing field devices already installed in the process control system. Similarly, the controller 104 may be configured to include a known LAN interface for communicating over a LAN to already installed workstations. In some example implementations, the I / O cards 132a-b and the I / O cards 134a-b can be installed or communicatively coupled to a known controller, eliminating the need to replace a controller already installed in the process control system.

[0035] In the illustrated embodiment, I / O card 132a includes a data structure 133, and I / O card 134a includes a data structure 135. Data structure 133 stores field device identification numbers (e.g., field device identification information) corresponding to field devices (e.g., field devices 112a-c) that are assigned to communicate with I / O card 132a over universal I / O bus 136a. Termination modules 124a-c can use the field device identification numbers stored in data structure 133 to determine whether a field device is incorrectly connected to one of termination modules 124a-c. Data structure 135 stores field device identification numbers (e.g., field device identification information) corresponding to field devices (e.g., field devices 116a-c) that are assigned to communicate with I / O card 134a over universal I / O bus 136b. The data structures 133 and 135 may be added by an engineer, operator, and / or user via the workstation 102 during configuration time or during operation of the example process control system 100. In some embodiments, the termination modules 124a-c may be communicatively coupled to a plurality of field devices (e.g., operational field devices and redundant or spare field devices). In such embodiments, the data structure 135 stores a field device identification number corresponding to each field device (e.g., the field devices 116a-c and corresponding spare field devices). Although not shown, the redundant I / O card 132b stores a data structure identical to the data structure 133, and the redundant I / O card 134b stores a data structure identical to the data structure 135. Additionally or alternatively, the data structures 133 and 135 may be stored within the workstation 102.

[0036] In the illustrated embodiment, the marshalling cabinet 122 is shown located within a termination area 140 that is separate from the process control area 110. Communicatively coupling the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c to the controller 104 using a significantly more extensive communication medium instead of the I / O buses 136a-b (e.g., multiple communication buses each uniquely associated with one of the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c, or a limited group thereof along a multi-drop segment) facilitates locating the controller 104 relatively farther from the marshalling cabinet 122 than known configurations without significantly decreasing communication reliability. In some example implementations, the process control area 110 and the termination area 140 may be combined such that the marshalling cabinet 122 and the controller 104 are located within the same area. In either case, locating the marshalling cabinet 122 and controller 104 in an area separate from the process areas 114 and 118 allows the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b, the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c, and the universal I / O bus 136a-b to be isolated from harsh environmental conditions (e.g., heat, moisture, electromagnetic noise, etc.) that may be associated with the process areas 114 and 118.In this manner, the cost and complexity of designing and manufacturing the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c and the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b can be significantly reduced relative to the cost of manufacturing the communication and control circuitry between the field devices 112a-c and field devices 116a-c, because the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c and the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b do not require operational specification characteristics (e.g., shielding, more robust circuitry, more complex error checking, etc.) necessary to ensure reliable operation (e.g., reliable data communication) necessary to operate in the environmental conditions of the process areas 114 and 118.

[0037] 1B-1D illustrate alternative exemplary implementations that may be used to communicatively couple a workstation, a controller, and an I / O card. For example, in the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1B, controller 152 (performing substantially the same functions as controller 104 of FIG. 1A) is communicatively coupled to I / O cards 154a-b and 156a-b via backplane communication bus 158. I / O cards 154a-b and 156a-b perform substantially the same functions as I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b of FIG. 1A and are configured to be communicatively coupled to universal I / O buses 136a-b to communicate information to and from termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c. To communicate with workstation 102, controller 152 is communicatively coupled to workstation 102 via LAN 106.

[0038] In another exemplary embodiment shown in Figure 1C, a controller 162 (performing substantially the same functions as controller 104 of Figure 1A) is communicatively coupled to workstation 102 and a plurality of I / O cards 164a-b and I / O cards 166a-b via LAN 106. I / O cards 164a-b and I / O cards 166a-b perform substantially the same functions as I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b of Figure 1A, and are configured to be communicatively coupled to universal I / O buses 136a-b for communicating information to and from termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c. 1A differ from I / O cards 154a-b and I / O cards 156a-b of FIGURE 1B in that I / O cards 164a-b and I / O cards 166a-b are configured to communicate with controller 162 and workstation 102 over LAN 106. In this manner, I / O cards 164a-b and I / O cards 166a-b can directly exchange information with workstation 102.

[0039] In yet another example embodiment shown in FIG. 1D, I / O cards 174a-b and I / O cards 176a-b (performing substantially the same functions as I / O cards 132a-b and I / O cards 134a-b of FIG. 1A) are implemented within a workstation 172 (performing substantially the same functions as workstation 102 of FIG. 1A). In some example implementations, the physical I / O cards 174a-b and I / O cards 176a-b are not included within workstation 172, but the functionality of I / O cards 174a-b and I / O cards 176a-b are implemented within workstation 172. In the example embodiment of FIG. 1D, I / O cards 174a-b and I / O cards 176a-b are configured to be communicatively coupled to universal I / O bus 136a-b to communicate information to and from termination modules 124a-c and termination modules 126a-c. 1D, the workstation 172 may be configured to perform substantially the same functions as the controller 104 such that it is not necessary to provide a controller to execute the process control strategy, although a controller may be provided.

[0040] FIG. 2 is a detailed view of the exemplary marshalling cabinet 122 of FIG. 1A. In the illustrated embodiment, the marshalling cabinet 122 is provided with socket rails 202a and 202b that receive the termination modules 124a-c. In addition, the marshalling cabinet 122 is provided with an I / O bus transceiver 206 that communicatively couples the termination modules 124a-c to the universal I / O bus 136a, as described above in connection with FIG. 1A. The I / O bus transceiver 206 may be implemented using transmitter and receiver amplifiers that condition signals transmitted between the termination modules 124a-c and the I / O cards 132a-b. The marshalling cabinet 122 is provided with another universal I / O bus 208 that communicatively couples the terminal modules 124a-c to the I / O bus transceiver 206. In the illustrated embodiment, the I / O bus transceiver 206 is configured to communicate information using a wired communication medium. Although not shown, the marshalling cabinet 122 may be provided with another I / O bus transceiver substantially similar or identical to the I / O bus transceiver 206 for communicatively coupling the termination modules 126a-c to the I / O cards 134a-b.

[0041] Using a common communications interface (e.g., I / O bus 208 and I / O bus 136a) to communicate information between I / O cards 132a-b and termination modules 124a-c allows the connection routing from field devices to the I / O cards to be defined late in the design or installation process. For example, termination modules 124a-c may be communicatively coupled to I / O bus 208 at various locations within marshalling cabinet 122 (e.g., at various termination module sockets of socket rails 202a-b). Additionally, the common communication interface between the I / O cards 132a-b and the termination modules 124a-c (e.g., I / O bus 208 and I / O bus 136a) reduces the number of communication media (e.g., the number of communication buses and / or wires) between the I / O cards 132a-b and the termination modules 124a-c, thus enabling a relatively larger number of termination modules 124a-c (and / or termination modules 126a-c) to be installed within the marshalling cabinet 122 than the number of known termination modules that may be installed in known marshalling cabinet configurations.

[0042] Each of the termination modules 124a-c is provided with a display 212 (e.g., an electronic termination label) to display field device identification information and / or other field device information associated with the termination module 124a-c. The display 212 of the termination module 124a displays the field device identification (e.g., a field device tag) of the field device 112a (FIG. 1A). In addition, the display 212 of the termination module 124a can be used to display field device activity information (e.g., measurement information, line voltage, etc.), data type information (e.g., analog signal, digital signal, etc.), field device status information (e.g., device on, device off, device error, etc.), and / or other field device information. If the termination module 124a is configured to be communicatively coupled to multiple field devices (e.g., the field device 112a of FIG. 1A and other field devices (not shown)), the display 212 can be used to display field device information associated with all of the field devices communicatively coupled to the termination module 124. In the illustrated embodiment, display 212 is implemented using a liquid crystal display (LCD), however, in other example implementations, display 212 may be implemented using other suitable display technologies.

[0043] To read the field device identification information and / or other field device information, each of the termination modules 124a-c is provided with a labeler 214 (e.g., a termination labeler). For example, when the field device 112a is communicatively coupled to the termination module 124a, the labeler 214 of the termination module 124a reads the field device identification information and / or other field device information from the field device 112a (and / or other field devices communicatively coupled to the termination module 124a) and displays the information via the display 212 of the termination module 124a. The labeler 214 is described in more detail below in connection with FIG. 8. Providing the display 212 and the labeler 214 reduces costs and installation time associated with manually labeling wires and / or buses associated with the termination modules and field devices. However, in some example implementations, manual wire labeling may also be used in connection with the display 212 and the labeler 214. For example, the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c can be relatively quickly communicatively coupled to the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b by using the display 212 and the labeler 214 to determine which of the field devices 112a-c and 116a-c are connected to the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c, respectively. Subsequently, after installation is complete, labels can optionally be added to the buses or wires extending between the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c and the field devices 112a-c and 114a-c.The display 212 and labeler 214 can also be configured to display status information (e.g., device error, device alarm, device on, device off, device disabled, etc.) to facilitate the troubleshooting process, thereby reducing costs and time associated with maintenance operations.

[0044] The marshalling cabinet 122 is provided with a power supply 216 to provide power to the termination modules 124a-c, the I / O bus transceiver 206, and the display 212. In an illustrated embodiment, the termination modules 124a-c use power from the power supply 216 to power communication channels or interfaces used to communicate with and / or provide power to field devices (e.g., the field devices 112a-c of FIG. 1A) for operation. Additionally, in some embodiments, the marshalling cabinet 122 is provided with a power conditioner 218 that regulates or controls the power provided to each termination module 124a-c along the socket rails 202a-b. In some embodiments, the termination modules 124a-c may be powered from an external power supply and / or power conditioner via an integrated power-on bus communicatively coupled to the socket rails 202a-b.

[0045] Figure 3 is another example marshalling cabinet 300 that may be used to implement the example marshalling cabinet 122 of Figure 1A. In the illustrated embodiment, the marshalling cabinet 300 is provided with a wireless I / O bus communication controller 302 for wirelessly communicating with the controller 104 of Figure 1A via a wireless universal I / O connection 304. As shown in Figure 3, a plurality of termination modules 306, which may be substantially similar or identical to the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c of Figure 1A, are plugged into rail sockets 308a and rail sockets 308b and are communicatively coupled to the wireless I / O bus communication controller 302 via a universal I / O bus 309 inside the marshalling cabinet 300. In the illustrated embodiment, the wireless I / O bus communications controller 302 emulates an I / O card (e.g., I / O card 134a in FIG. 1A) of the controller 104 in FIG. 1A to enable the termination module 306 to communicate with the controller 104.

[0046] Unlike the example embodiment of FIG. 2 in which the display 212 is mounted to the termination modules 124a-c, in the example embodiment of FIG. 3, a plurality of displays 310 are mounted within the marshalling cabinet 300 in association with sockets that receive the termination modules. In this manner, when one of the termination modules 306 is plugged in and communicatively coupled to a field device (e.g., one of the field devices 112a-c and the field devices 116a-c of FIG. 1A), the labeler 214 of the termination module 306 and each one of the displays 310 can be used to display field device identification information indicative of the field device connected to the termination module 306. The display 310 can also be used to display other field device information. The marshalling cabinet 300 is provided with a power supply 312 that is substantially similar to or the same as the power supply 216 of FIG. 2. Additionally, in some embodiments, the marshalling cabinet 300 is provided with a power regulator 314 that is substantially similar to or the same as the power regulator 218 of FIG. 2.

[0047] FIGURE 4 illustrates a top view and FIGURE 5 illustrates a side view of the exemplary termination module 124a of FIGURES 1A and 2. In the exemplary embodiment of FIGURE 4, the display 212 is on the top surface of the exemplary termination module 124a such that the display 212 is visible to an operator or user during operation when the termination module 124a is plugged into the rail socket 202a (FIGURE 3). As shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIGURE 5, the exemplary termination module 124a includes a base 402 (Base unit)The exemplary termination module 124a includes a number of contacts 404 (two of which are shown) that communicatively and / or electrically couple the termination module 124a to the base 402. In this manner, the base 402 can be coupled to the marshalling cabinet 122 (FIGS. 1A and 2), and the termination module 124a can be coupled and detached from the marshalling cabinet 122 via the base 402. The base 402 includes a termination screw 406 (e.g., a field device interface screw) that fastens or secures a conductor communication medium (e.g., a bus) from the field device 112a. (First physical interface) ) is provided. When the termination module 124a is removably coupled to the base 402, the termination screw 406 is communicatively coupled to one or more of the contacts 404 to enable information to be communicated between the termination module 124a and the field device 112a. In other example implementations, the base 402 may be provided with other suitable types of field device interfaces (e.g., sockets) instead of the termination screw 406. Additionally, although one field device interface (e.g., the termination screw 406) is illustrated, the base 402 may be provided with more field device interfaces configured to enable multiple field devices to be communicatively coupled to the termination module 124a.

[0048] 2. To communicatively couple the termination module 124a to the universal I / O bus 208 of FIG. 2, the base 402 includes a universal I / O bus connector 408 (FIG. 5). , the second physical interface) is provided. When a user plugs the base 402 into the socket rail 202a or socket rail 202b (FIG. 2), the universal I / O bus connector 408 engages the universal I / O bus 208. The universal I / O bus connector 408 can be implemented using any suitable interface, including, for example, a relatively simple interface such as an insulating piercing connector. The I / O bus connector 408 is connected to one or more of the contacts 404 of the termination module 124a to allow information to be communicated between the termination module 124a and the I / O bus 208.

[0049] 5, the base 402 may also be provided with an optical display interface connector 410 that communicatively couples the termination module 124a to an external display (e.g., one of the displays 310 of FIG. 3). For example, if the termination module 124a is implemented without the display 212, the termination module 124a may use the display interface connector 410 to output field device identification information or other field device information to an external display (e.g., one of the displays 310 of FIG. 3).

[0050] Figure 6 is a detailed block diagram of an example termination module 124a of Figures 1A and 2, Figure 7 is a detailed block diagram of an example I / O card 132a of Figure 1A, and Figure 8 is a detailed block diagram of an example labeler 214 of Figures 2, 3, and 6. The example termination module 124a, the example I / O card 132a, and the example labeler 214 may be implemented using any desired combination of hardware, firmware, and / or software. For example, one or more integrated circuits, discrete semiconductor components, or passive electronic components may be used. Additionally or alternatively, the example termination module 124a, the example I / O card 132a, and the example labeler 214, some or all of the blocks, or portions thereof, may be implemented using instructions, code, and / or other software and / or firmware, etc., stored on a machine-accessible medium that, when executed by a processor system (e.g., the example processor system 1610 of FIG. 16), performs the operations depicted in the flowcharts of FIGs. 10A, 10B, 11A, 11B, and 12. Although the example termination module 124a, the example I / O card 132a, and the example labeler 214 are described as having one of the blocks described below, each of the example termination module 124a, the example I / O card 132a, and the example labeler 214 may be provided with two or more of the blocks described below.

[0051] 6, the example termination module 124a includes a universal I / O bus interface 602 that allows the example termination module 124a to communicate with the I / O cards 132a-b (or other I / O cards) of FIG. 1A. The I / O bus interface 602 may be implemented using, for example, the RS-485 serial communications standard, Ethernet, or the like. To identify the address of the termination module 124a and / or the address of the I / O card 132a, the termination module 124a is provided with an address identifier 604. The address identifier 604 may be configured to query the I / O card 132a (FIG. 1A) for a termination module address (e.g., a network address) when the termination module 124a is plugged into the marshalling cabinet 122. In this way, termination module 124a can use the termination module address as a source address when communicating information to I / O card 132a, and I / O card 132a uses the termination module address as a destination address when communicating information to termination module 124a.

[0052] To control various operations of the termination module 124a, the termination module 124a is provided with an operation controller 606. In an exemplary implementation, the operation controller may be implemented using a microprocessor or microcontroller. The operation controller 606 communicates instructions or commands to other parts of the exemplary termination module 124a to control their operation.

[0053] The exemplary termination module 124a is provided with an I / O bus communications processor 608 to communicate information with the I / O card 132a over the universal I / O bus 136a. In the exemplary embodiment, the I / O bus communications processor 608 packetizes information for transmission to the I / O card 132a and depacketizes information received from the I / O card 132a. In the exemplary embodiment, the I / O bus communications processor 608 generates header information for each packet to be transmitted and reads header information from received packets. The exemplary header information includes a destination address (e.g., a network address of the I / O card 132a), a source address (e.g., a network address of the termination module 124a), a packet or data type (e.g., analog field device information, field device information, command information, temperature information, real-time data values, etc.), and error checking information (e.g., a cyclic redundancy check (CRC)). In some example implementations, the I / O bus communications processor 608 and the operations controller 606 may be implemented using the same microprocessor or microcontroller.

[0054] To provide (e.g., obtain and / or generate) field device identification information and / or other field device information (e.g., activity information, data type information, status information, etc.), termination module 124a is provided with a labeler 214 (FIGS. 2 and 3). Labeler 214 is described in more detail below in connection with FIG. 8. Termination module 124a also includes a display 212 (FIG. 2) that displays the field device identification information and / or other field device information provided by labeler 214.

[0055] To control the amount of power provided to the field device 112a (or other field devices) of FIG. 1A, the termination module 124a is provided with a field power controller 610. In an example embodiment, the power source 216 (FIG. 2) of the marshalling cabinet 122 provides power to the termination module 124a to power a communication channel interface for communicating with the field device 112a. For example, some field devices communicate using 12 volts and others communicate using 24 volts. In an example embodiment, the field power controller 610 is configured to regulate, control, step up, and / or step down the power provided by the power source 216 to the termination module 124a. In some examples, the power regulation is accomplished via a power regulator 218 (FIG. 2) associated with the marshalling cabinet. In some example implementations, the field power controller 610 limits the amount of power used to communicate with the field device and / or the amount of power provided to the field device to significantly reduce or eliminate the risk of sparks in a flammable or combustible environment.

[0056] The termination module 124a is provided with a power converter 612 to convert power received from the power source 216 (FIG. 2) into power for the termination module 124a and / or the field device 112a. In the illustrated embodiment, the circuitry used to implement the termination module 124a uses one or more voltage levels (e.g., 3.3V) that are different from the voltage level required by the field device 112a. The power converter 612 is configured to provide the different voltage levels to the termination module 124a and the field device 112a using the power received from the power source 216. In the illustrated embodiment, the power output generated by the power converter 612 is used to power the termination module 124a and the field device 112a and to convey information between the termination module 124a and the field device 112a. Some field device communication protocols require voltage levels and / or current levels that are relatively higher or lower than other communication protocols. In the illustrated embodiment, the field power controller 610 controls the power converter 612 to provide voltage levels to power up the field device 112a and communicates with the field device 112a. However, in other example implementations, the power output generated by the power converter 612 can be used to power up the termination module 124a, while a separate power source external to the marshalling cabinet 122 can be used to power up the field device 112a.

[0057] To electrically isolate the circuitry of the termination module 124a from the I / O card 132a, the termination module 124a is provided with one or more isolation devices 614. The isolation devices 614 may be implemented using galvanic and / or optical isolators. Exemplary isolation structures are described in more detail below in connection with FIG. 9.

[0058] To convert between analog and digital signals, the termination module 124a is provided with a digital-to-analog converter 616 and an analog-to-digital converter 618. The digital-to-analog converter 616 is configured to convert a digitally represented analog value received from the I / O card 132a to an analog value that can be communicated to the field device 112a of FIG. 1A. The analog-to-digital converter 618 is configured to convert an analog value (e.g., a measurement value) received from the field device 112a to a digitally represented value that can be communicated to the I / O card 132a. In an alternative exemplary implementation in which the termination module 124a is configured to communicate digitally with the field device 112a, the digital-to-analog converter 616 and the analog-to-digital converter 618 can be omitted from the termination module 124a.

[0059] To control communication with the field device 112a, the termination module 124a is provided with a field device communication processor 620. The field device communication processor 620 ensures that information received from the I / O card 132a is in the correct format and voltage type (e.g., analog or digital) for transmission to the field device 112a. The field device communication processor 620 is also configured to packetize or depacketize information if the field device 112a is configured to communicate using digital information. In addition, the field device communication processor 620 is configured to extract information received from the field device 112a and transmit the information to the analog-to-digital converter 618 and / or the I / O bus communication processor 608 for subsequent transmission to the I / O card 132a. In some embodiments, the field device communication processor 620 assists in identifying the appropriate communication protocol associated with the field device 112a. For example, the termination module 124a can be configured to communicate with fieldbus-compliant devices, including Profibus PA devices or FF-H1 devices. In such an embodiment, the field device communication processor 620 implements an autosensing routine in which the field device communication processor 620 formats a test signal or test request that corresponds to the Profibus PA communication protocol. If the field device 112a responds to the request, the field device 112a is identified as a Profibus PA compliant device and all subsequent communications are formatted based on the Profibus PA protocol. If the field device 112a does not respond to the Profibus PA formatted request, the field device communication processor 620 formats a second request that corresponds to the FF-H1 communication protocol and determines whether the fieldbus device 112a is an FF-H1 compliant device based on whether the field device 112a responds to the second request.If the termination module 124a is configured to communicate using other protocols (e.g., HART), the field device communication processor 620 may generate additional requests until an appropriate communication protocol is detected for the field device 112a.

[0060] In some examples, such an auto-sensing routine is implemented periodically (or aperiodically) (e.g., after a certain threshold period) to detect changes in field devices communicatively coupled to the termination module 124a. For example, the auto-sensing routine may detect a first, active or primary field device (e.g., field device 112a) and a second, standby field device (not shown) on the conductor 130a communicatively coupled to the termination module 124a. If the first field device fails, the termination module 124a may detect this by a loss of communication with the first field device. In some such examples, the auto-sensing routine detects the standby device and compares device information (e.g., placeholder information, device type, vendor, version, etc.) with the device information of the failed device. In some embodiments, if the device information matches (e.g., the primary and backup field devices are the same device except for the serial number), the termination module 124a automatically replaces the first field device with the backup field device to continue control of the process system. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, if the device information includes some differences (e.g., different versions or vendors), the termination module 124a assigns and begins communication with the backup field device, but maintains the "backup" destination (while disconnected, continuing to present the first field device as the primary device) until an operator or engineer designates and removes the first field device and / or designates the backup field device as the new in-service or primary device.

[0061] In an example embodiment, the field device communication processor 620 is also configured to time stamp the information received from the field device 112a. Generating the time stamp in the termination module 124a facilitates implementing sequence of events (SOE) operations using time stamp accuracy in the sub-millisecond range. For example, the time stamp and the respective information can be communicated to the controller 104 and / or the workstation 102. For example, a sequence of events operation performed by the workstation 102 (FIG. 1A) (or other processor system) can then be used to analyze what happened before, during, and / or after a particular operating condition (e.g., a failure mode) to determine what caused the particular operating condition. Timestamping in the sub-millisecond range allows events to be captured using a relatively high degree of accuracy. In some example implementations, the field device communication processor and the operation controller 606 can be implemented using the same microprocessor or microcontroller.

[0062] Typically, a field device communication controller similar to the field device communication controller 620 is provided with a communication protocol or other communication functionality (e.g., Fieldbus communication protocol functionality, HART communication protocol functionality, etc.) that corresponds to the type of field device it is configured to communicate with. For example, if the field device 112a is implemented as a HART device, the field device communication controller 620 of the termination module 124a is provided with a HART communication protocol functionality. When the termination module 124a receives information from the I / O card 132a that is intended for the field device 112a, the field device communication controller 620 formats the information according to the HART communication protocol and delivers the information to the field device 112a.

[0063] In the illustrated embodiment, the field device communication controller 620 is configured to process pass-through messages. Pass-through messages originate at a workstation (e.g., workstation 102 of FIG. 1A) and are conveyed as a payload (e.g., data portion of a communication packet) to a termination module (e.g., termination module 124a of FIG. 1A) for delivery to a field device (e.g., field device 112a) via a controller (e.g., controller 104 of FIG. 1A). For example, a message originating at the workstation 102 and destined for delivery to the field device 112a is tagged at the workstation 102 with a communication protocol descriptor (e.g., HART protocol descriptor) and / or formatted according to the communication protocol of the field device 112a. The workstation 102 then encapsulates the message in a payload consisting of one or more communication packets and delivers the message from the workstation 102, via the I / O controller 104, to the termination module 124a as a pass-through message. Wrapping a message involves, for example, packetizing the message in header information according to a communication protocol (e.g., Fieldbus protocol, HART protocol, etc.) used to communicate with the field device. When the termination module 124a receives a communication packet containing a pass-through message from the I / O card 132, the I / O bus communication processor 608 (FIG. 6) extracts the payload from the received communication packet. The field device communication controller 620 (FIG. 6) then removes the pass-through message from the payload, formats the message according to the communication protocol descriptor generated by the workstation 102 (if not already formatted at the workstation 102), and conveys the message to the field device 112a.

[0064] The field device communication controller 620 is also configured to communicate pass-through messages to the workstation 102 in a similar manner. For example, when the field device 112a generates a message (e.g., a response to a workstation message or another message) to be delivered to the workstation 102, the field device communication controller 620 encapsulates the message from the field device 112a in a payload of one or more communication packets, and the I / O bus communication processor 608 communicates the packet or packets containing the encapsulated message to the I / O card 132a. When the workstation 102 receives the packet containing the encapsulated message from the controller 104, the workstation 102 extracts and processes the message.

[0065] The termination module 124a is provided with a field device interface 622 configured to communicatively couple the termination module 124a to a field device (e.g., the field device 112a of FIG. 1A). For example, the field device interface 622 may be communicatively coupled to the termination screw 406 of FIGS. 4 and 5 via one or more of the contacts 404 (FIG. 4).

[0066] In some embodiments, the termination module 124a is provided with a fieldbus diagnostic analyzer 624 configured to provide advanced diagnostics regarding an associated field device when the field device is fieldbus compliant. The fieldbus diagnostic analyzer 624 makes measurements regarding the condition of the physical wiring (e.g., the first conductor 130a of FIG. 1A) and associated communications during operation. For example, the fieldbus diagnostic analyzer 624 may measure supply voltage, load current, signal levels, line noise, and / or jitter. Although advanced diagnostic modules with similar capabilities can be incorporated into traditional fieldbus architectures, the diagnostics provided by the fieldbus diagnostic analyzer 624 may be more reliable and / or robust because the termination module 124a is coupled to only one field device in a point-to-point architecture rather than having to diagnose multiple devices in the multi-drop architecture of a traditional fieldbus segment.

[0067] 7, the example I / O card 132a of FIG. 1A includes a communications interface 702 for communicatively coupling the I / O card 132a to the controller 104 (FIG. 1A). In addition, the example I / O card 132a includes a communications processor 704 that controls communications with the controller 104 and inputs and outputs information to and from the controller 104. In the illustrated embodiment, the communications interface 702 and the communications processor 704 are configured to communicate to the controller 104 information to be delivered to the controller 104 and information to be delivered to the workstation 102 (FIG. 1A). To convey information to be delivered to the workstation 102, the communication interface 702 may be configured to encapsulate the information (e.g., information from the field devices 112a-c, the termination modules 124a-c, and / or the I / O card 132a) in a payload of one or more communication packets according to a communication protocol (e.g., Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), etc.) and convey the packets containing the information to the workstation 102. The workstation 102 then extracts the payload from the received packets and extracts the information in the payload. In an example embodiment, the information in the payload of the packets conveyed to the workstation 102 by the communication interface 702 may include one or more wrappers. For example, information originating at a field device (e.g., the field device 112a) may be encapsulated in a field device communication protocol wrapper (e.g., a FOUNDATION Fieldbus communication protocol wrapper, a HART communication protocol wrapper, etc.) where the communication interface 702 encapsulates the information according to a TCP-based protocol, a UDP-based protocol, or other protocol that enables the controller 104 to subsequently convey the information to the workstation 102.In a similar manner, the communications interface 702 may be configured to retrieve information communicated by the workstation 102 to the controller 104 for delivery to the field devices 112a-c, the termination modules 124a-c, and / or the I / O card 132a.

[0068] In an alternative exemplary implementation, the communications interface 702 and communications processor 704 can communicate the information (with or without a field device communication protocol wrapper) to the controller 104, which can packetize the information to be delivered to the workstation 102 in the same manner as described above. The communications interface 702 and communications processor 704 can be implemented using wired or wireless communications standards.

[0069] For example, in an alternative exemplary implementation, such as the illustrative embodiment of FIG. 1C, the communications interface 702 and communications processor 704 may be configured to communicate with the workstation 102 and / or the controller 162 via the LAN 106.

[0070] To allow a user to interact with and / or access I / O card 132a, I / O card 132a is provided with one or more user interface ports 706. In the illustrated embodiment, user interface ports 706 include a keyboard interface port 703 and a portable handheld computer (e.g., personal digital assistant (PDA), tablet PC, etc.) interface port 707. For example, a PDA 708 is shown communicatively coupled to user interface port 706 using wireless communications.

[0071] To communicatively couple the I / O card 132a to the universal I / O bus 136a (FIG. 1A), the I / O card 132a is provided with an I / O bus interface 710. To process communication information exchanged over the I / O bus 136a and to control communication taking place over the I / O bus 136a, the I / O card 132a is provided with an I / O bus communication processor 712. The I / O bus interface 710 can be similar to or the same as the I / O bus interface 602 of FIG. 6, and the I / O bus communication processor 712 can be similar to or the same as the I / O bus communication processor 608 of FIG. 6. The I / O card 132a is provided with a power converter 714 to convert power provided by the controller 104 of FIG. 1A into the power required to power and operate the I / O card 132a and / or communicate with the termination modules 124a-c.

[0072] 8, the example labeler 214 includes a communication interface 802 configured to communicatively couple the labeler 214 to a termination module (e.g., the termination module 124a of FIGS. 1A, 2, 4, 5, and 6) and / or a field device (e.g., the field device 112a of FIG. 1A) to read field device identification information (e.g., device tag value, device name, electronic serial number, etc.) and / or other field device information (e.g., activity information, data type information, status information, etc.). To control communications with the termination module 124a and / or the field device 112a, the labeler 214 is provided with a communication processor 804.

[0073] To detect a connection to a field device (e.g., field device 112a of FIG. 1A), the labeler 214 is provided with a connection detector 806. The connection detector 806 may be implemented using, for example, a voltage sensor, a current sensor, logic circuitry, etc., that detects when the field device 112a is connected to the termination module 124a. In the illustrated embodiment, when the connection detector 806 determines that the field device 112a is connected to the termination module 124a, the connection detector 806 causes a notification (e.g., an interrupt) to be communicated to the communication processor 804 indicating the detected connection. The communication processor 804 then queries the termination module 124a and / or the field device 112a for the field device identification information of the field device 112a. In an exemplary implementation, the connection detector 806 may also be configured to determine the type of connection communicatively coupling the field device 112a to the termination module 124a, such as, for example, a multi-drop connection, a point-to-point connection, a point-to-point connection to an in-service field device and an out-of-service standby field device, a wireless mesh network connection, an optical connection, etc.

[0074] To display the field device identification information and / or other field device information, the labeler 214 is provided with a display interface 808. In the illustrated embodiment, the display interface 808 is configured to drive and control a liquid crystal display (LCD). For example, the display interface 808 may be configured to control the LCD display 212 (FIG. 2) mounted on the termination module 124a or the LCD display 310 mounted on the marshalling cabinet 300 (FIG. 3). However, in other example implementations, the display interface 808 may instead be configured to drive other display types.

[0075] To detect operation of the field device 112a, the labeler 214 is provided with a field device activity detector 810. In the illustrated embodiment, when the communication processor 804 receives data from the termination module 124a and / or the field device 112a, the communication processor 804 communicates the received data to the field device activity detector 810. The field device activity detector 810 then extracts process variable (PV) values ​​from data including, for example, measurement information (e.g., temperature, pressure, line voltage, etc.) or other monitoring information (e.g., valve closed, valve open, etc.) generated by the field device 112a. The display interface 808 can then display the field device activity information (e.g., PV values, measurement information, monitoring information, etc.).

[0076] To detect the status of the field device 112a, the labeler 214 is provided with a field device status detector 812. The field device status detector 812 is configured to extract status information related to the field device 112a (e.g., device on, device off, device error, device alarm, device health (open loop, short, etc.), device communication status, etc.) from data received from the termination module 124a and / or the field device 112a by the communication processor 804. In some embodiments, the status information includes information based on data obtained via the fieldbus diagnostic analyzer 624 (FIG. 6). The display interface 808 can then display the received status information.

[0077] To identify the field device 112a, the labeler 214 is provided with a field device identifier 814. The field device identifier 814 is configured to extract field device identification information (e.g., a device tag value, a device name, an electronic serial number, etc.) from data received by the communication processor from the termination module 124a and / or the field device 112a. The display interface 808 can then display the field device identification information. In an example implementation, the field device identifier 814 may also be configured to detect a field device type (e.g., a valve actuator, a pressure sensor, a temperature sensor, a flow sensor, etc.). In some examples, the field device identifier 814 is configured to identify an appropriate communication protocol associated with the field device 112a in the same or similar manner as or in combination with the field device communication processor 620 described above in connection with FIG. 6.

[0078] To identify a data type (e.g., analog or digital) associated with the field device 112a, the labeler 214 is provided with a data type identifier 816. The data type identifier 816 is configured to extract data type identification information from data received from the termination module 124a and / or the field device 112a by the communication processor. For example, the termination module 124a can store a data type descriptor variable indicating the type of field device (e.g., analog, digital, etc.) that it is configured to communicate, and the termination module 124a can communicate the data type descriptor variable to the communication processor 804 of the labeler 214. The display interface 808 can then display the data type. In some embodiments, the data type identifier 816 determines the data type associated with the field device 112a using the communication protocol identified by the field device identifier 814.

[0079] 9 illustrates an isolation circuit configuration that may be implemented in association with the exemplary termination modules 124a-b of FIG. 1A to electrically isolate the termination modules 124a-b from each other and the field devices 112a-b from the universal I / O bus 136a. In the illustrated embodiment, each of the termination modules 124a-b includes a respective termination module circuit 902 and a termination module circuit 904 (e.g., one or more of the blocks described above in connection with FIG. 6). In addition, the termination modules 124a-b are connected to their respective field devices 112a-b via the field junction box 120a. The termination modules 124a-b are also connected to the universal I / O bus 136a and the power supply 216. To electrically isolate the termination module circuit 902 from the universal I / O bus 136a, the termination module 124a is provided with an isolation circuit 906. In this manner, the termination module circuitry 902 may be configured to follow (e.g., float) the voltage level of the field device 112a if a power surge or other power fluctuation occurs at the field device 112a without affecting the voltage of the universal I / O bus 136a and without damaging the I / O card 132a (FIG. 1A). The termination module 124b also includes an isolation circuit 908 configured to isolate the termination module circuitry 904 from the universal I / O bus 136a. The isolation circuitry 906, isolation circuitry 908, and other isolation circuits implemented in the termination modules 124a-b may be implemented using optical or galvanic isolation circuits.

[0080] To isolate the termination module circuitry 902 from the power source 216, the termination module 124a is provided with isolation circuitry 910. Similarly, the termination module 124b is provided with isolation circuitry 912 that isolates the termination module circuitry 904 from the power source 216. By isolating the termination module circuitry 902 and the termination module 904 from the power source 216, power fluctuations (e.g., power surges, current spikes, etc.) associated with the field devices 112a-b do not damage the power source 216. Additionally, power fluctuations in one of the termination modules 124a-b do not damage or affect the operation of the other of the termination modules 124a-b.

[0081] In known process control systems, isolation circuits are provided within known marshalling cabinets, thereby reducing the amount of space available for known termination modules. However, providing isolation circuits 906, 910, 908, and 912 within termination modules 124a and 124b, as shown in the illustrative embodiment of FIG. 9, reduces the amount of space required within marshalling cabinet 122 (FIGS. 1A and 2) for the isolation circuits, and therefore increases the amount of space available for termination modules (e.g., termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c). In addition, implementing the isolation circuits (e.g., isolation circuits 906, 908, 910, and 912) within the termination modules (e.g., termination modules 124a-b) allows for selective use of the isolation circuits in only those termination modules where isolation is required. For example, some of the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c of FIG. 1A may be implemented without isolation circuitry.

[0082] 10A, 10B, 11A, 11B, 12, and 15 are flow charts of example methods that may be used to implement a termination module (e.g., termination module 124a of FIGS. 1A, 2, and 4-6 and / or termination module 1332a of FIG. 13B), an I / O card (e.g., I / O card 132a of FIGS. 1A and 7), and a labeler (e.g., labeler 214 of FIGS. 2, 3, and 8). In some example implementations, the example methods of FIGS. 10A, 10B, 11A, 11B, 12, and 15 may be implemented using machine-readable instructions that comprise a program executed by a processor (e.g., processor 1612 shown in example processor system 1610 of FIG. 16). The program may be embodied in software stored on a tangible medium, such as a CD-ROM, a floppy disk, a hard drive, a digital versatile disk (DVD), or memory associated with the processor 1612, and / or may be embodied in firmware and / or dedicated hardware, in a well-known manner. Additionally, although the exemplary program is described with reference to the exemplary flow charts in Figures 10A, 10B, 11A, 11B, 12, and 15, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many other ways of implementing the exemplary termination module 124a, the exemplary termination module 1332a, the exemplary I / O card 132a, and the exemplary labeler 214 described herein may alternatively be used. For example, the order of execution of the blocks may be changed, and / or some of the blocks described may be changed, deleted, or combined.

[0083] With particular reference to FIGS. 10A and 10B, the exemplary method of FIGS. 10A and 10B will be described in conjunction with the exemplary termination module 124a of FIGS. 1A, 2, and 4-6. However, the exemplary method of FIGS. 10A and 10B can be used to implement other termination modules. The flowchart of FIGS. 10A and 10B will be used to describe how the exemplary termination module 124a conveys information between the field device 112a and the I / O card 132a. First, the termination module 124a determines whether it has received communication information (block 1002). For example, the termination module 124a determines that it has received communication information if the I / O bus communication processor 608 (FIG. 6) or the field device communication processor 620 indicates, for example, via an interrupt or status register, that it has received communication information. If the termination module 124a determines that a communication has not been received (block 1002), control remains at block 1002 until the termination module 124a receives a communication.

[0084] If the termination module 124a receives a communication (block 1002), the termination module 124a determines whether it received the communication from a field device (e.g., the field device 112a of FIG. 1A) based on, for example, an interrupt or status register of the field device communication processor 620 (FIG. 6) (block 1004). If the termination module 124a determines that it received the communication from the field device 112a (block 1004), the field device communication processor 620 extracts field device information and field device identification information from the received communication associated with the field device 112a based on a field device communication protocol (block 1006). Field device information may include, for example, field device identification information (e.g., device tag, electronic serial number, etc.), field device status information (e.g., communication status, diagnostic health information (open loop, short, etc.)), field device activity information (e.g., process variable (PV) value), field device description information (e.g., field device type or function, such as, for example, a valve actuator, a temperature sensor, a pressure sensor, a flow sensor, etc.), field device connection configuration information (e.g., a multi-drop bus connection, a point-to-point connection, etc.), field device bus or segment identification information (e.g., the field device bus or field device segment via which the field device is communicatively coupled to the termination module), and / or field device data type information (e.g., analog in (AI) data type, analog out (AO) data type, discrete in (DI) data type (e.g., digital in data type), discrete out (DO) data type (e.g., digital out data type), etc.).The field device communication protocol can be any protocol used by the field device 112a (e.g., Fieldbus protocol (e.g., FF-H1), HART protocol, AS-I protocol, Profibus protocol (e.g., Profibus PA), etc.). In an alternative exemplary implementation, in block 1006, the field device communication processor 620 extracts only the field device information from the received communication information, and field device identification information identifying the field device 112a is stored in the termination module 124a. For example, when the field device 112a is initially connected to the termination module 124a, the field device 112a can communicate its identification information to the termination module 124a, and the termination module 124a can store the identification information.

[0085] The field device communication processor 620 then determines whether analog-to-digital conversion is required (block 1008). For example, if the field device 112a communicates an analog measurement, the field device communication processor 620 determines that analog-to-digital conversion is necessary or required (block 1008). If analog-to-digital conversion is required, the analog-to-digital converter 618 (FIG. 6) performs the conversion on the received information (block 1010).

[0086] After analog-to-digital conversion (block 1010), or if analog-to-digital conversion is not required (block 1008), the field device communication processor 620 identifies a data type (e.g., analog, digital, temperature measurement, etc.) associated with the received field device information (block 1012) and generates a data type descriptor corresponding to the received field device information (block 1014). For example, the termination module 124a can store a data type descriptor indicating the data type it always receives from the field device 112a, or the field device 112a can communicate to the termination module 124a the data type that the field device communication processor 620 uses to generate the data type descriptor in block 1010.

[0087] The I / O bus communication processor 608 (FIG. 6) determines a destination address of the I / O card 132a to which the termination module 124a will convey the information received from the field device 112a (block 1016). For example, the communication processor 608 (FIG. 6) can obtain the destination address of the I / O card 132a from the address identifier 604 (FIG. 6). In addition, the I / O bus communication processor 608 determines or generates error check data to convey to the I / O card 132a to ensure that the field device information was received by the I / O card 132a without error (block 1020). For example, the I / O bus communication processor 608 can generate cyclic error check (CRC) error check bits.

[0088] The I / O bus communication processor 608 then packetizes the field device information, the field device identification information, the data type descriptor, the destination address of the I / O card 132a, the source address of the termination module 124a, and the error check data based on an I / O bus communication protocol (block 1022). The I / O bus communication protocol may be implemented using, for example, a TCP-based protocol, a UDP-based protocol, or the like. The I / O bus communication processor 608 may obtain the source address of the termination module 124a from the address identifier 604 (FIG. 6). The I / O bus interface 602 (FIG. 6) then communicates the packetized information over the universal I / O bus 136a (FIGS. 1A and 2) along with packetized information generated and communicated by other termination modules (e.g., termination module 124b and termination module 124c of FIG. 1A) (block 1024). For example, the I / O bus interface 602 may be provided with an arbitration circuit or device that intercepts or monitors the universal I / O bus 136a to determine when the universal I / O bus 136a is available (e.g., not being used by termination modules 124b-c) to communicate information from the termination module 124a to the I / O card 132a.

[0089] If the termination module 124b determines in block 1004 that the communication detected in block 1002 is not from the field device 112a (e.g., the communication is from the I / O card 132a), the I / O bus communication processor 608 (FIG. 6) extracts a destination address from the received communication (block 1026). The I / O bus communication processor 608 then determines whether the extracted destination address matches the destination address of the termination module 124a obtained from the address interface 604 (block 1028). If the destination address does not match the address of the termination module 124a (e.g., the received information was not intended for delivery to the termination module 124a) (block 1028), control returns to block 1002 (FIG. 10A). Otherwise, if the destination address matches the address of termination module 124a (e.g., the received communication was intended for delivery to termination module 124a) (block 1028), then I / O bus communications processor 608 extracts field device information from the received communication based on the I / O bus communications protocol (block 1030) and verifies the integrity of the data using, for example, a CRC verification process based on error detection information in the received communication (block 1032). Although not shown, if I / O bus communications processor 608 determines in block 1032 that an error exists in the received communication, then I / O bus communications processor 608 sends a message to I / O card 132a requesting a retransmission.

[0090] After verifying data integrity (block 1032), the I / O bus communication processor 608 (or the field device communication processor 620) determines whether digital-to-analog conversion is required (block 1034). For example, if the data type descriptor stored in the termination module 124a indicates that the field device 112a requires analog information, the I / O bus communication processor 608 determines that digital-to-analog conversion is required (block 1034). If digital-to-analog conversion is required (block 1034), the digital-to-analog converter 616 (FIG. 6) performs digital-to-analog conversion on the field device information (block 1036). After performing the digital-to-analog conversion (block 1036) or if digital-to-analog conversion is not required (block 1034), the field device communication processor 620 communicates the field device information to the field device 112a via the field device interface 622 (FIG. 6) using the field device communication protocol of the field device 112a (block 1038).

[0091] After the field device communication processor 620 communicates the field device information to the field device 112a or after the I / O bus communication processor 608 communicates the field device information to the I / O card 132a, the process of Figures 10A and 10B ends and / or control returns to, for example, a calling process or function.

[0092] 11A and 11B show a flow chart of an exemplary method that may be used to implement the I / O card 132a of FIG. 1A to communicate information between the termination module 124a and the controller 104 of FIG. 1A. Initially, the I / O card 132a determines whether it has received communication information (block 1102). For example, the I / O card 132a determines that it has received communication information if the communication processor 704 (FIG. 7) indicates, for example, via an interrupt or status register, that it has received communication information. If the I / O card 132a determines that it has not received communication information (block 1102), control remains at block 1102 until the I / O card 132a receives communication information.

[0093] If the I / O card 132a receives a communication (block 1102), the I / O card 132a determines whether it received the communication from the controller 104 (FIG. 1A) based on, for example, an interrupt or status register of the communications processor 704 (block 1104). If the I / O card 132a determines that it received the communication from the controller 104 (block 1104), the communications processor 704 extracts termination module information (which may include field device information) from the received communication associated with the termination module 124a (block 1106).

[0094] The communications processor 704 identifies a data type associated with the received termination module information (e.g., field device analog information, field device digital information, termination module control information for controlling or configuring a termination module, etc.) (block 1108) and generates a data type descriptor corresponding to the received termination module information (block 1110). In an alternative exemplary implementation, the data type descriptor is generated at the workstation 102 (FIG. 1A) and the communications processor 704 does not need to generate the data type descriptor.

[0095] The I / O bus communications processor 712 (FIG. 7) then determines the destination address of the termination module 124a (block 1112). In addition, the I / O bus communications processor 712 determines error checking data to communicate along with the termination module information to the termination module 124a to ensure that the termination module 124a received the information without error (block 1114). For example, the I / O bus communications processor 712 may generate cyclic error check (CRC) error checking bits.

[0096] The I / O bus communication processor 712 then packetizes the termination module information, the data type descriptor, the destination address of the termination module 124a, the source address of the termination module 124a, and the error check data based on the I / O bus communication protocol (block 1116). The I / O bus interface 710 (FIG. 7) then communicates the packetized information along with packetized information destined for other termination modules (e.g., termination module 124b and termination module 124c of FIG. 1A) over the universal I / O bus 136a (FIGS. 1A and 2) (block 1118). For example, the I / O bus communication processor 704 can packetize other termination module information using, for example, the destination addresses of the termination modules 124b and 124c, and communicate the termination module information for all of the termination modules 124a-c over the universal I / O bus 136a using the RS-485 standard. Each of the termination modules 124a-c can extract its respective information from the universal I / O bus 136a based on the destination address provided by the I / O card 132a.

[0097] If the I / O card 132a determines in block 1104 that the communication detected in block 1102 is not from the controller 104 (e.g., the communication is from one of the termination modules 124a-c), the I / O bus communications processor 712 (FIG. 7) extracts a source address (e.g., the source address of one of the termination modules 124a-c) from the received communication (block 1122). The I / O bus communications processor 712 then extracts a data type descriptor (e.g., digitally encoded analog data type, digital data type, temperature data type, etc.) (block 1124). The I / O bus communications processor 712 also extracts termination module information (which may include field device information) from the received communication based on the I / O bus communications protocol (block 1126) and verifies the integrity of the data using, for example, a CRC verification process based on error detection information in the received communication (block 1128). Although not shown, if the I / O bus communications processor 712 determines in block 1128 that an error exists in the received communication information, the I / O bus communications processor 712 sends a resend request message to the termination module associated with the source address obtained in block 1122.

[0098] After verifying data integrity (block 1128), the communications processor 704 packetizes the termination module information (using the source address and data type descriptor of the termination module) and the communications interface 702 communicates the packetized information to the controller 104 (block 1130). If the information is to be delivered to the workstation 102, the controller 104 may then communicate the information to the workstation 102. After the communications interface 702 communicates the information to the controller 104 or after the I / O bus interface 710 communicates the termination module information to the termination module 124a, the process of Figures 11A and 11B ends and / or control returns to, for example, the calling process or function.

[0099] FIG. 12 is a flow chart of an exemplary method that may be used to implement the labeler 214 of FIGS. 2, 3, and 8 to retrieve and display information associated with a field device (e.g., field device 112a of FIG. 1A) communicatively coupled to a termination module (e.g., termination module 124a of FIGS. 1, 2, and 4-6). Initially, the connection detector 806 (FIG. 8) determines whether a field device (e.g., field device 112a) is connected to the termination module 124a (e.g., connected to the termination screw 406 of FIGS. 4 and 5 and / or the field device interface 622 of FIG. 6) (block 1202). If the connection detector 806 determines that the field device 112a (or other field device) is not connected to the termination module 124a (block 1202), control remains at block 1202 until the connection detector 806 determines that the field device 112a (or other field device) is connected to the termination module 124a.

[0100] If the connection detector 806 determines that the field device 112a is connected to the termination module 124a (block 1202), the field device identifier 814 obtains field device identification information (e.g., a device tag value, a device name, an electronic serial number, etc.) that identifies the field device 112a (block 1204). For example, the field device identifier 814 sends a query to the field device 112a requesting the field device 112a to send its field device identification information. In another example implementation, after an initial connection to the termination module 124a, the field device 112a can automatically communicate its field device identification information to the field device identifier 814.

[0101] The field device identifier 814 then determines whether the field device 112a is assigned to communicate with the I / O card 132a via the universal I / O bus 136a based on the field device identification information (block 1206). For example, the field device identifier 814 can communicate the field device identification information to the I / O card 132a via the termination module 124a, and the I / O card 132a can compare the field device identification information to a field device identification number stored in a data structure 133 (FIG. 1A) or a similar data structure stored in the workstation 102. An engineer, operator, or user can populate the data structure 133 with the field device identification number of the field device (e.g., field devices 112a-c) communicated to the I / O card 132a via the universal I / O bus 136a. If the I / O card 132 a determines that the field device 112 a is assigned to the I / O bus 136 a and / or the I / O card 132 a , the I / O card 132 a communicates a confirmation message to the field device identifier 814 .

[0102] If the field device identifier 814 determines that the field device 112a is not assigned to communicate over the I / O bus 136a (block 1206), the display interface 808 (FIG. 8) displays an error message (block 1208). Otherwise, the display interface 808 displays the field device identification information (block 1210). In the illustrated embodiment, the field device status detector 812 detects the field device status (e.g., device on, device off, device error, etc.), and the display interface 808 displays the status information (block 1212). In addition, the field device activity detector 810 (FIG. 8) detects the activity (e.g., measurement information and / or monitoring information) of the field device 112a, and the display interface 808 displays the activity information (block 1214). Also, the data type detector 816 (FIG. 8) detects the data type (e.g., analog, digital, etc.) of the field device 112a, and the display interface 808 displays the data type (block 1216).

[0103] After the display interface 808 displays an error message (block 1208) or after the display interface 808 displays the data type (block 1216), the labeler 214 determines whether it should continue monitoring based on, for example, whether the termination module 124a has been turned off or unplugged from the marshalling cabinet 122 (FIGS. 1A and 2) (block 1218). If the labeler 214 determines that it should continue monitoring, control is returned to block 1202. If not, the example process of FIG. 12 ends and / or control is returned to the calling process or function.

[0104] 13A-13B are block diagrams illustrating an example process control system 1300 before and after implementing the teachings disclosed herein with respect to an example Profibus PA process area 1302 and an example FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1 (FF-H1) process area 1304. Although it may not be common for a process control system to include a Profibus PA process area and a FOUNDATION Fieldbus process area, both are shown in the illustrated embodiment for purposes of explanation. Additionally, for purposes of explanation, the example process control system 1300 of FIGS. 13A-13B is described using the same reference numbers for common parts described in connection with the example process control system 100 of FIG. 1A. Thus, in the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 13A, the process control system 1300 includes a workstation 102 communicatively coupled to a controller 1306 via a LAN 106. The example controller 1306 can be substantially similar to or the same as one of the controllers 104, 152, and 162 of FIGS. 1A-1C. Additionally, the example process control system 1300 includes a first process area 114 associated with the field devices 112a-c, which is communicatively coupled to the termination modules 124a-c within an example marshalling cabinet 1308. The example marshalling cabinet can be substantially similar to or the same as any of the marshalling cabinets 122 and 300 of FIGS. 1A, 2, and 3. The termination modules 124a-c are communicatively coupled to the I / O cards 132a-b within the controller 1306 via a first universal I / O bus 136a. Additionally, in the example embodiment, the marshalling cabinet 1308 includes a socket rail 1310 that receives additional termination modules that are substantially similar to or the same as the socket rails 202a-b and socket rails 308a-b described above in connection with FIGS. 2 and 3.

[0105] In the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 13A, the example process control system 100 includes field devices 1312a-c in a Profibus PA process area 1302 and field devices 1314a-c in an FF-H1 process control area 1304 implemented using traditional fieldbus architecture and components (both Profibus PA and FF-H are protocols related to the family of fieldbus protocols). Thus, the field devices 1312a-c and the field devices 1314a-c are communicatively coupled to the controller 1306 via corresponding trunks or segments 1316a-b. Typically, a fieldbus trunk or fieldbus segment is a single cable that includes twisted pairs of wires that carry both digital signals and DC power to connect multiple field devices to a distributed control system (DCS) or other control system host. Due to various constraints, a fieldbus segment is typically limited to a maximum length of 1900 meters and can connect to a maximum of 16 different field devices. As shown in the illustrated embodiment, the segments 1316a-b are communicatively coupled to corresponding I / O cards 1318a-b and I / O cards 1320a-b within the controller 1306. In the illustrated embodiment, each of the segments 1316a-b is connected to two I / O cards 1318a-b or I / O cards 1320a-b to provide redundancy. In some embodiments, the I / O cards 1318a-b and / or I / O cards 1320a-b can be in different controllers that are separate from each other and / or separate from the I / O cards 132a-b associated with the field devices 112a-c in the first process area 114.

[0106] In the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 13A , the segment 1316a corresponding to the exemplary Profibus PA process area 1302 is coupled to I / O cards 1318a-b via a DP / PA segment coupler 1322. Similarly, the segment 1316b corresponding to the exemplary FF-H1 process area 1304 is coupled to I / O cards 1320a-b via a power supply 1324. In some embodiments, the DP / PA segment coupler 1322 and power supply 1324 provide power conditioning functionality to each segment 1316a-b. Additionally, in the illustrated embodiment, the DP / PA segment coupler 1322 and power supply 1324 are coupled to each advanced diagnostic module 1325a-b that can monitor the physical layer of the corresponding segment 1316a-b and communications over the segments 1316a-b during operation.

[0107] In the illustrated embodiment, the field devices 1312a-c and the field devices 1314a-c are coupled to the corresponding segments 1316a-b via respective spools 1326a-c and spools 1328a-c. In a fieldbus architecture, each spool connects a corresponding field device to a segment in parallel. As a result, in many process control systems illustrated in the illustrated embodiment, each spool 1326a-c and spool 1328a-c is coupled to the corresponding segment 1316a-b via a segment protector 1330a-b (sometimes called a device coupler or field barrier) to provide short circuit protection against a short in one of the field devices 1312a-c and the field devices 1314a-c shorting out the entire segment. In some embodiments, the segment protectors 1330a-b limit the current in each of the spools 1326a-c and spools 1328a-c (e.g., to 40 mA). In some embodiments, the segment protectors 1330a-b also function to properly terminate each segment 1316a-b at an end near the field device, while the DP / PA segment coupler 1322 and power supply 1324 function to terminate the segments 1316a-b at an end near the controller. Without proper termination at both ends of the segments 1316a-b, communication errors may occur due to signal reflections.

[0108] As discussed above, while the Fieldbus architecture offers many advantages, it also brings challenges related to implementation complexity and cost. For example, the complexity of a Fieldbus system requires engineers to carefully design each segment, particularly considering the number of devices handled by each segment, the length of cable required, and the power requirements involved, while ensuring that each segment is properly terminated and protected against short circuits, open circuits, and / or other segment faults. In addition to the time and cost of initially configuring such a Fieldbus architecture, there are additional costs associated with the many components associated with such implementations, including DP / PA segment couplers 1322 or power supplies 1324, segment protectors 1330a-b, the length of segment cables (including multiple cables for redundancy in some cases), and I / O cards 1318a-b and I / O cards 1320a-b. However, through implementation of the teachings disclosed herein, the design complexity and costs associated with implementing and maintaining a Fieldbus system are significantly reduced.

[0109] FIG 13B is a block diagram illustrating the example process control system 1300 of FIG 13A after implementing the teachings disclosed herein. As shown in the illustrated embodiment, the spools 1326a-c and 1328a-c of the field devices 1312a-c and 1314a-c are directly communicatively coupled to respective termination modules 1332a-f that are plugged into sockets on the socket rail 1310 of the marshalling cabinet 1308 shown in FIG 13A. That is, in contrast to the typical topology of field devices in a multi-drop architecture, in the illustrated embodiment, each Fieldbus-compliant field device 1312a-c and fieldbus-compliant field device 1314a-c is in point-to-point communication with each termination module 1332a-f. The termination modules 1332a-f can be substantially similar or the same as the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c described above, enabling communication between the field devices 1312a-c and 1314a-c and the I / O cards 132a-b over the universal I / O bus 136a in the same manner as described above. In this manner, the need for separate I / O cards 1318a-b and I / O cards 1320a-b (FIG. 13A) specific to the corresponding fieldbus protocols (e.g., Profibus PA or FF-H1) associated with the process areas 1302 and 1304 can be eliminated, and any type of field device and associated I / O can be combined within one marshalling cabinet 1308. Similarly, the need for cable trunks or segments 1316a-b (FIG. 13A) along with associated insulation is eliminated. Additionally, in some embodiments, the universal I / O bus 136a provides a high-speed communications backbone (e.g., via fiber optic cable) for even faster communications than the relatively slow communications backbone of a typical copper-based Fieldbus segment.Furthermore, in some embodiments, the universal I / O bus 136a can maintain communications for up to 96 field devices, whereas a typical fieldbus segment is limited to connecting 16 devices. Thus, the number of wires coupled to a controller for the same number of field devices is significantly reduced.

[0110] Although multiple field devices may be configured in a multi-drop configuration communicatively coupled to a single termination module 1332a-f, as is typical in fieldbus architectures in some embodiments, the point-to-point or single-loop architecture shown in the illustrated embodiment provides several advantages and simplifications over traditional fieldbus configurations. For example, with field devices 1312a-c and field devices 1314a-c wired as shown in the illustrated embodiment, the termination modules 1332a-f can provide power and power conditioning to each field device (e.g., via the field power controller 610 described in connection with FIG. 6). In this manner, the separate DP / PA segment couplers 1322 and / or power supplies 1324 shown in FIG. 13A are no longer needed. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the marshalling cabinet 1308 includes a power conditioner substantially similar to or the same as the power conditioner 218 (FIG. 2) to eliminate the need for the separate DP / PA segment couplers 1322 and / or power supplies 1324 shown in FIG. 13A. Moreover, in such embodiments, because the power source is local to the field devices of the example embodiment (e.g., in the marshalling cabinet 1308), the power requirements are lower (e.g., due to voltage drops resulting from the length of the cable) than a power source providing power along a typical Fieldbus segment. Additionally, in some embodiments, the termination modules 1332a-f provide short circuit protection (e.g., via the corresponding field power controller 610) to limit the current to and from each spool 1326a-c and spool 1328a-c, thereby eliminating the need for separate segment protectors 1330a-b.

[0111] Additionally, the individual coupling of the field devices 1312a-c and 1314a-c to separate termination modules 1332a-f provides single-loop integrity, making concerns about proper termination in conventional Fieldbus architectures less of a concern. Furthermore, the direct point-to-point connections between each field device 1312a-c and 1314a-c and the corresponding termination modules 1332a-f significantly reduces the complexity and design work involved in developing and implementing conventional Fieldbus segments, since signals from each field device are received separately and electronically handled or organized on the back end. Thus, the cost of acquiring, configuring, and maintaining the many components of conventional Fieldbus architectures, and the time and expense of designing such architectures and ensuring their proper operation, are significantly reduced through implementation of the teachings disclosed herein. In other words, in some embodiments, Fieldbus compliant devices can be incorporated into a process control system without any DP / PA couplers and / or power sources in the segment (e.g., other than the power supplies and / or power conditioners in the marshalling cabinet 122 and / or in the termination modules 1332a-f), without segment protectors, without protocol-specific I / O cards, and without significant segment design work.

[0112] Additionally, in some embodiments, the termination modules 1332a-f may provide advanced diagnostics (e.g., via the fieldbus diagnostic analyzer 624 of FIG. 6) without a separate advanced diagnostic module 1325a-b. Further, in some embodiments, the diagnostics performed by the termination modules 1332a-f may be more reliable and / or robust than known advanced diagnostic modules because each termination module 1332a-f only needs to monitor one field device via a point-to-point connection, rather than multiple devices on a typical Fieldbus segment.

[0113] Both Profibus PA and FF-H1 are fieldbus protocols with the same physical layer. Thus, in some embodiments, the termination modules 1332a-c associated with the field devices 1312a-c in the Profibus PA process area 1302 are identical to the termination modules 1332d-f associated with the field devices 1314a-c in the FF-H1 process area 1304. In other words, in some embodiments, the spools 1326a-c connected to the termination modules 1332a-c may be connected to the termination modules 1332d-f, while the spools 1328a-c are connected to the termination modules 1332a-c instead of the termination modules 1332d-f. In some such embodiments, the termination modules 1332a-f include an auto-sense feature that automatically detects the particular protocol (e.g., either Profibus PA or FF-H1) associated with the particular field devices 1312a-c and field devices 1314a-c to which the termination modules 1332a-f are connected. As a result, process control system engineers are free to use any fieldbus device they desire, regardless of the associated communications protocol (even mixing devices conforming to different protocols), without concern for having to design separate fieldbus segments or obtaining the corresponding components necessary to implement such fieldbus segments.

[0114] In some embodiments, the termination modules 1332a-f are constructed to be intrinsically safe (e.g., Fieldbus Intrinsically Safe Concept (FISCO) compliant) for mounting the field devices 1312a-c and the field devices 1314a-c in hazardous environments. In such embodiments, the socket rails 1310 of the marshalling cabinet 1308 are also intrinsically safe. In some embodiments, the termination modules 1332a-f are constructed to be energy limited certified and / or with a safety rating sufficient to meet the Fieldbus Non-Incendive Concept (FNICO). In some such embodiments, the termination modules 1332a-f can comply with FNICO requirements even when plugged into a marshalling cabinet having socket rails that are not intrinsically safe.

[0115] Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the termination modules described herein are adapted to communicate with field devices based on a communication protocol other than Profibus PA or FF-H1. For example, in some embodiments, the termination module may be wired to a wireless HART gateway and interface with one or more wireless HART devices using the HART-IP application protocol. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, wireless devices may interface using other wireless technology standards, such as ISA (International Society of Instrumentation and Control Engineers) 100.11a or WIA-PA (Wireless Networks for Industrial Automation-Process Automation). In some embodiments, the termination modules described herein may be adapted to interface with devices using a protocol based on the Internet Protocol (IP), such as, for example, using the 6TiSCH standard (IP version 6 over Time Slotted Channel Hopping (TSCH)). In some embodiments, the termination module interfaces with devices using the Message Queue Telemetry Transport (MQTT) protocol. Additionally, in some embodiments, safety field devices may be integrated using a tunneling protocol between the safety environment and an associated safety controller, such as, for example, PROFIsafe (Profibus safety device).

[0116] 14A and 14B illustrate alternative exemplary implementations of peer-to-peer communication of two FF-H1 compliant field devices 1402a-b communicatively coupled to corresponding termination modules 1404a-b. The exemplary termination modules 1404a-b can be substantially similar to or the same as the termination modules 1332a-f described above. Although peer-to-peer communication between devices in the field is not provided using the Profibus PA fieldbus protocol, such communication is possible when using the FF-H1 protocol, thereby enabling control in the field independent of a controller (e.g., controller 1306 of FIG. 13A). In the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 14A, the termination modules 1404a-b are coupled to corresponding terminal block bases 1406a-b, which are substantially similar to or the same as base 402 (FIG. 4), except that bases 1406a-b are shown having four corresponding terminals 1408a-b. In the illustrated embodiment, the pair of wires for each spool 1410a-b corresponding to a field device 1402a-b is connected to a first pair of terminals 1408a-b, while a corresponding one of the second pair of terminals 1408a-b from each base 1406a-b are coupled to each other. In this manner, both the field devices 1402a-b are communicatively coupled to each of the termination modules 1404a-b and to each other.

[0117] Direct coupling of separate field devices 1402a-b to each of the termination modules 1404a-b is possible, as shown in the example embodiment of FIG. 14A, because the termination modules 1404a-b provide individual power conditioning functionality to each field device 1402a-b (e.g., via the field device controller 610). That is, the power conditioning provided by each termination module 1404a-b serves to prevent signals from one of the field devices (e.g., field device 1402a) from interfering with communication with the other field devices (e.g., field device 1402b). However, as described above, in some embodiments, power conditioning is provided collectively (e.g., via injected power) to all of the field devices on the same socket rail by a separate power conditioner 218. In some such embodiments, as illustrated in FIG. 14B, the field devices 1402a-b are communicatively coupled to the termination modules 1404a-b via segment protectors 1412. That is, each field device 1402a-b is still associated with a corresponding termination module 1404a-b, but peer-to-peer communication between the field devices 1402a-b is accomplished through the segment protector 1412. Additionally, the segment protector 1412 prevents power provided through the termination modules 1404a-b corresponding to each field device 1402a-b from affecting communications among any of the field devices 1402a-b. In the illustrated embodiment of Figures 14A and 14B, additional wiring (e.g., for shielding and / or grounding) has been omitted for clarity.

[0118] The exemplary method of FIG. 15 is described in relation to the exemplary termination module 1332a of FIG. 13B. However, other termination modules can be implemented using the exemplary method of FIG. 15. The flowchart of FIG. 15 is used to describe how the exemplary termination module 1332a automatically detects a communication protocol associated with a corresponding field device (e.g., field device 1312a) connected to the termination module 1332a. First, the termination module 1332a determines (e.g., via the connection detector 806 of FIG. 8) whether a field device (e.g., field device 1312a) is connected to the termination module 1332a (block 1502). If the termination module 1332a determines that the field device 1312a (or other field device) is not connected to the termination module 1332a (block 1502), control remains in block 1502 until the termination module 1332a determines that the field device 1312a (or other field device) is connected to the termination module 1332a.

[0119] If the termination module 1332a determines that the field device 1312a is connected to the termination module 1332a (block 1502), the termination module 1332a transmits (e.g., via the field device communication processor 620 of FIG. 6) a request formatted according to a first communication protocol (e.g., Profibus PA) (block 1504). In some embodiments, the request may correspond to a query requesting the field device to transmit its field device identification information, as described above in connection with block 1204 of FIG. 12. The termination module 1332a then determines whether a response to the request has been received (block 1506). As described above in connection with block 1504, the request is formatted according to a particular protocol. As a result, the only way the field device 1312a can recognize and therefore respond to the request is if the field device 1312a is associated with the same protocol. Thus, if the termination module 1332a determines that a response has been received (block 1506), the termination module 1332a designates the communication protocol of the responded to request as the protocol corresponding to the field device 1312a (block 1506). For example, if the first request was formatted according to the Profibus PA protocol and a response to the request is received, the communication protocol corresponding to the field device 1312a is designated as Profibus PA.

[0120] If the termination module 1332a determines in block 1506 that a response to the request has not been received, the termination module 1332a sends (e.g., via the field device communication processor 620) another request formatted according to another communication protocol (e.g., FF-H1) (block 1508). The termination module 1332a then determines whether a response to the request has been received (block 1510). If the termination module 1332a determines that a response to the request has been received (block 1510), the termination module 1332a designates the communication protocol of the responded request as the protocol corresponding to the field device 1312a (block 1516). If the termination module 1332a determines that a response to the request has not been received (block 1510), the termination module 1332a determines whether there are additional communication protocols to try (e.g., other than Profibus PA and FF-H1 (e.g., HART)). If there are additional communication protocols, control returns to block 1508 to send another request formatted according to the other communication protocols. If the termination module 1332a determines that there are no additional communication protocols to try, the termination module 1332a generates an error message (block 1514). For example, the error message may indicate that the field device 1312a is not responding and / or that a communication protocol corresponding to the field device 1312a cannot be identified.

[0121] After the termination module 1332a generates an error message (block 1514) or designates the communication protocol of the responded to request as the protocol corresponding to the field device 1312a (block 1516), the process of FIG. 15 ends and / or control returns, for example, to the calling process or function.

[0122] 16 is a block diagram of an example processor system 1610 that may be used to implement the apparatus and methods described herein. For example, a processor system similar or the same as the example processor system 1610 may be used to implement the workstation 102, controller 104, I / O card 132a, and / or termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c of FIG. 1A. The example processor system 1610 is described below as including multiple peripherals, interfaces, chips, memory, etc., although one or more of these elements may be omitted from other example processor systems used to implement one or more of the workstation 102, controller 104, I / O card 132a, and / or termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c.

[0123] As shown in FIG. 16, the processor system 1610 includes a processor 1612 coupled to an interconnect bus 1614. The processor 1612 includes a register set or register space 1616, which is illustrated in FIG. 16 as being fully on-chip, but may alternatively be fully or partially off-chip and directly coupled to the processor 1612 via a dedicated electrical connection and / or via the interconnect bus 1614. The processor 1612 can be any suitable processor, processing unit, or microprocessor. Although not shown in FIG. 16, the system 1610 can be a multiprocessor system and thus can include one or more additional processors the same as or similar to the processor 1612 and communicatively coupled to the interconnect bus 1614.

[0124] The processor 1612 of FIG. 16 is coupled to a chipset 1618, which includes a memory controller 1620 and a peripheral input / output (I / O) controller 1622. As is well known, the chipset typically provides I / O management functions, memory management functions, and a number of general-purpose and / or special-purpose registers, timers, etc. that are accessible or used by one or more processors coupled to the chipset 1618. The memory controller 1620 performs functions that allow the processor 1612 (or multiple processors, if there are multiple processors) to access a system memory 1624 and a mass storage memory 1625.

[0125] The system memory 1624 may include any desired type of volatile and / or non-volatile memory, such as, for example, static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), etc. The mass storage memory 1625 may include any desired type of mass storage device. For example, when the exemplary processor system 1610 is used to implement the workstation 102 (FIG. 1A), the mass storage memory 1625 may include a hard disk drive, an optical drive, a tape storage device, etc. Alternatively, when the exemplary processor system 1610 is used to implement the controller 104, one of the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b, or one of the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c, the mass storage memory 1625 may include semiconductor memory (e.g., flash memory, RAM memory, etc.), magnetic memory (e.g., a hard drive), or other memory suitable for mass storage within the controller 104, the I / O cards 132a-b and 134a-b, or the termination modules 124a-c and 126a-c.

[0126] The peripheral I / O controller 1622 performs functions that allow the processor 1612 to communicate with peripheral input / output (I / O) devices 1626, peripheral input / output (I / O) devices 1628, and a network interface 1630 via a peripheral I / O bus 1632. The I / O devices 1626 and I / O devices 1628 can be any desired type of I / O device, such as, for example, a keyboard, a display (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), a cathode ray tube (CRT) display, etc.), a navigation device (e.g., a mouse, a trackball, a capacitive touch pad, a joystick, etc.), etc. The network interface 1630 can be, for example, an Ethernet device, an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) device, an 802.11 device, a DSL modem, a cable modem, a cellular modem, etc. that allows the processor system 1610 to communicate with other processor systems.

[0127] Although the memory controller 1620 and the I / O controller 1622 are shown in FIG. 16 as separate functional blocks within the chipset 1618, the functions performed by these blocks may be incorporated within a single semiconductor circuit or may be implemented using two or more separate integrated circuits.

[0128] Although particular methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture have been described herein, the scope of coverage of this patent is not limited thereto. To the contrary, this patent covers all methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture fairly falling within the scope of the appended claims either literally or under the doctrine of equivalents.

Claims

1. 1. An apparatus for communicatively coupling a field device to a controller of a process control system, comprising: a first physical interface communicatively coupled to one of a first field device of the process control system and a second field device of the process control system, the first field device being a primary field device and the second field device being a backup field device; a second physical interface communicatively coupled to a controller of the process control system via a bus; A base unit comprising: a module removably attached to the base unit; the module includes a field device status detector for determining whether the first field device is in service; (a) the module, (i) the first field device is determined to be in service; and (ii) the first physical interface is communicatively coupled to the first field device; and communicating with the first field device using a first communication protocol when (b) the module, (i) the first field device is determined to be out of service; (ii) the first physical interface is communicatively coupled to the second field device; and (iii) a field device communication processor of the module compares device information of the second field device with device information of the first field device, and if the device information matches, the module automatically replaces the first field device with the second field device, and if the device information does not match, the module communicates with the second field device as the spare field device. communicating with the second field device using a second communication protocol when the module communicates with the controller over the bus using a third communication protocol; The apparatus, wherein the second communication protocol is different from the first communication protocol, and the third communication protocol is different from the first communication protocol and the second communication protocol.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first communication protocol or the second communication protocol is a Fieldbus protocol.

3. 3. The apparatus of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first communication protocol is FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the second communication protocol is Profibus PA.

5. 4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the first field device is communicatively coupled to the first physical interface in a FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1 compliant point-to-point architecture without a segment protector.

6. 3. The device of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein at least one of the first communication protocol or the second communication protocol is WirelessHART.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first communication protocol or the second communication protocol is based on the Internet Protocol.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first communication protocol or the second communication protocol is Message Queue Telemetry Transport.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first communication protocol or the second communication protocol implements a tunneling protocol, and at least one of the corresponding first field device or the second field device is a safety device.

10. The apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the module sends a first request formatted according to the first communication protocol to the first field device and sends a second request formatted according to the second communication protocol to the first field device, and the communication protocol associated with the first field device is automatically determined based on a response to one of the first request and the second request.

11. The apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 10, further comprising a diagnostic analyzer that generates diagnostic information corresponding to an analysis of the physical layer and communication between the first physical interface and the first field device.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the diagnostic information comprises measurements of at least one of a supply voltage, a load power, a signal level, a line noise, or a jitter.

13. The apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the third communication protocol conveys information on the bus from a second module in communication with the bus and in communication with the first field device.

14. 1. An apparatus for communicatively coupling a field device to a controller of a process control system, comprising: a first physical interface communicatively coupled to a first field device of the process control system and a second field device of the process control system, the first field device being a primary field device and the second field device being a backup field device; a second physical interface communicatively coupled to a controller of the process control system via a bus; A base unit comprising: a module removably attached to the base unit; the module includes a field device status detector for determining whether the first field device is in service; (a) the module, (i) the first field device is determined to be in service; and (ii) the first physical interface is communicatively coupled to the first field device; and communicating with the first field device using a first communication protocol when (b) the module, (i) the first field device is determined to be out of service; and (ii) a field device communication processor of the module compares device information of the second field device with device information of the first field device, and if the device information matches, the module automatically replaces the first field device with the second field device, and if the device information does not match, the module communicates with the second field device as the spare field device. communicating with the second field device using a second communication protocol when when the first physical interface is communicatively coupled to the second field device, the module communicates with the controller over the bus using a third communication protocol; the third communication protocol is different from the first communication protocol and the second communication protocol; the third communication protocol communicates information on the bus from another of the first field device or the second field device and a second module in communication with the bus; The apparatus, wherein the first physical interface of the base unit is communicatively coupled to a third physical interface of a second base unit removably mounted to the second module to facilitate peer-to-peer communication between the first field device and the second field device.

15. 1. A computer readable medium having instructions for execution on a module removably mounted to a base unit for communicating first information to a controller, the first information being received at the base unit via a first physical interface communicatively coupled to one of a first field device that is a primary field device of a process control system or a second field device that is a standby field device of the process control system, the module having a field device status detector that determines whether the first field device is in operation, the first information being communicated from the first field device to the module using a second communication protocol when the first field device is determined to be in operation, and the first information being communicated from the second field device to the module using a third communication protocol when the first field device is determined to be out of operation, the third communication protocol being different from the second communication protocol, the instructions comprising: comparing device information of the second field device with device information of the first field device, and if the device information matches, the module automatically replaces the first field device with the second field device, and if the device information does not match, the module communicates with the second field device as the spare field device; encoding the first information for communication using a first communication protocol; wherein the first communication protocol is different from the second communication protocol and the third communication protocol; communicating the encoded first information from the module through a second physical interface of the base unit to a controller over a bus using the first communications protocol; is an instruction to execute A computer readable medium.

16. 16. The computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the second communication protocol is Profibus PA and the third communication protocol is FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15 or 16, further comprising automatically detecting the second communication protocol or the third communication protocol associated with one of the first field device or the second field device when the one of the first field device or the second field device is communicatively coupled to the first physical interface.

18. a first interface communicatively coupled to a first field device of the process control system and a second field device of the process control system, the first field device being a primary field device and the second field device being a backup field device; a field device status detector for determining whether the first field device is in service; a field device communication processor communicatively coupled to the first interface, the field device communication processor comparing device information of the second field device with device information of the first field device, automatically replacing the first field device with the second field device if the device information matches, and communicating with the second field device as the spare field device if the device information does not match, and encoding first information received from the one of the first field device or the second field device for communication over a bus using a third communication protocol different from the first Fieldbus communication protocol and the second Fieldbus communication protocol; a second interface communicatively coupled to the field device communication processor and the bus for communicating the first information to a control unit of the process control system via the bus using the third communication protocol, the bus communicating second information received from another of the first field device or the second field device using the third communication protocol; Equipped with The apparatus, wherein the first interface is coupled to the first field device and communicates using the first Fieldbus communication protocol when the first field device is determined to be in operation, and is coupled to the second field device and communicates using the second Fieldbus communication protocol when the first field device is determined to be out of operation, the second Fieldbus communication protocol being different from the first Fieldbus communication protocol.

19. 20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the first field device is Profibus PA compliant and is communicatively coupled to the first interface in a point-to-point architecture without a DP / PA segment coupler.

20. A computer-readable medium having instructions for execution by a module, The instruction: Determining whether a first field device is in service; receiving first information from the first field device using a second communication protocol when the first field device is determined to be in operation, and receiving first information from the second field device using a third communication protocol different from the second communication protocol when the first field device is determined to be out of operation, wherein the first field device is a primary field device and the second field device is a standby field device; comparing device information of the second field device with device information of the first field device, and if the device information matches, automatically replacing the first field device with the second field device, and if the device information does not match, communicating with the second field device as the spare field device; automatically detecting the second communication protocol or the third communication protocol; encoding the first information for communication using a first communications protocol, the first communications protocol being different from the second communications protocol and the third communications protocol; communicating the encoded first information to a second physical interface using a control unit using the first communication protocol; A computer-readable medium that has instructions for execution.

21. 21. The computer readable medium of claim 20, wherein the second communication protocol is Profibus PA and the third communication protocol is FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1.

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