Plant operation support system

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to: when a sensor failure occurs during plant operations, provide support by comparing amounts of decrease in production quantity for various possible operational actions and performing guidance display of operation actions which are optimal from the perspective of productivity; and minimize the amount of decrease in production quantity. To accomplish this, this plant operation support system performs a guidance display of provisional action information in a case in which, in a state in which a sensor has failed, the post-provisional action production quantity, for when a provisional action is implemented on the plant and operations are continued in accordance with provisional action information for continuing operations of the plant, is greater than or equal to the post-replacement production quantity, for when restarting operations after work for replacing the failed sensor with a normal sensor is performed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a plant operation support system.

Background Art

[0002] For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, there is known an operation support system that displays on a screen an operation measure to be taken for an abnormal case when an abnormality occurs in a plant. In a conventional operation support system, from the viewpoint of operation stability, when an abnormal state such as a device failure occurs, an operator is informed of a danger avoidance operation method and a treatment method according to the operation state of the plant, thereby supporting stable operation. The operator further collects judgment information and determines whether to continue the operation.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, a conventional operation support system based on the viewpoint of operation stability does not quantitatively determine an optimal treatment method and operation method and automatically inform them from the viewpoint of productivity. Therefore, it was not a mechanism that directly minimized the drop in production volume.

[0005] In addition, regarding the continuation of operation by temporary treatment, which is one of the operation treatment methods when a device failure occurs, a conventional operation support system based on the viewpoint of operation stability avoids automatically performing the temporary treatment on the software from the viewpoint of safety. Therefore, there were problems such as no established temporary treatment method according to the target device in advance, time required until treatment, and time required until resumption of operation.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems. When a device failure occurs, it compares the amount of production drop for each possible operation measure, supports the optimal operation measure from the viewpoint of productivity by guidance display, and provides a plant operation support device capable of minimizing the amount of production drop.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The first aspect relates to a plant operation support system. The plant operation support system includes sensors installed in the plant and used for operation, at least one processor and a memory, and a human-machine interface for displaying information. The memory stores temporary measure information for continuing the operation of the plant in a state where the sensor is malfunctioning. Guide the operator to the temporary treatment method to be implemented The temporary treatment method includes at least one of changing the control program for controlling the plant and reorganizing the circuit. When the sensor is malfunctioning, the processor The temporary treatment method If the post-temporary measure production amount when performing a temporary measure on the plant according to the above and continuing the operation is greater than or equal to the post-replacement production amount when resuming the operation after replacing the failed sensor with a normal sensor, The temporary treatment method Outputs a signal for causing the human-machine interface to display the above.

[0008] According to this, when a sensor affecting the operation fails, the plant operation support system compares the amount of production drop due to the temporary measure and sensor replacement, automatically determines the optimal measure, and displays the registered temporary measure information when the temporary measure should be implemented. This supports the operator and can minimize the amount of production drop.

[0009] The second aspect further has the following features in addition to the first aspect. ​When the sensor is malfunctioning, if the production volume after the temporary measure is less than the production volume after replacement, the processor outputs a signal to display replacement information instructing the replacement operation of the sensor.

[0010] In addition to the first or second aspect, the third aspect further has the following features. The memory stores the temporary treatment productivity in the operation after the temporary measure corresponding to the malfunctioning sensor and the replacement time required for the operation of replacing the malfunctioning sensor with the normal sensor. The production volume after the temporary measure is a value obtained by multiplying the temporary treatment productivity by the remaining operation time from now until the regular repair time. The production volume after replacement is a value obtained by multiplying the productivity of normal operation using the normal sensor by the time obtained by subtracting the replacement time from the remaining operation time.

Advantages of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, when a device failure occurs, the drop in production volume for each possible operation measure is compared, and the optimal operation measure is supported by guidance display from the perspective of productivity, so that the drop in production volume can be minimized.

Brief Description of the Drawings

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Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numerals are given to common elements, and redundant descriptions are omitted.

[0014] Embodiment 1. Overall Configuration FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the overall configuration of a plant according to an embodiment. The plant 1 shown in FIG. 1 further includes a configuration not shown, but for simplicity of explanation, the description of other configurations is omitted.

[0015] The plant 1 is an industrial plant for producing products. Industrial plants include, for example, steel plants, paper mills, petrochemical plants, food plants, power generation plants, and the like. The plant 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes field devices 2, a programmable logic controller (hereinafter, PLC) 3, a server 10, and a human machine interface (hereinafter, HMI) 20.

[0016] The PLC 3 and the server 10 are connected by a dedicated control LAN 4 for interfacing data. The PLC 3, the server 10, and the HMI 20 are connected by a general-purpose control LAN 5 for interfacing data.

[0017] The field devices 2 are sensors and actuators for monitoring and controlling the operation of the plant 1. The actuators operate in response to control signals from the PLC 3. The sensors detect the state of the target. The device status signals of the actuators and sensors are taken into the PLC 3 via an I / O card.

[0018] PLC3 is a controller for plant control. PLC3 sends a control signal to field device 2. PLC3 outputs the device status signal received from field device 2 to dedicated control LAN4. Also, PLC3 receives a PLC setting signal from the PLC software engineering tool provided in HMI20 and can perform changes to the control program and circuit recombination.

[0019] Server 10 is a data collection server for device failure monitoring. Server 10 monitors the device status signals of sensors and actuators flowing through dedicated control LAN4. When Server 10 detects the device failure status of a sensor, which is one of the device status signals, it executes the operation resumption processing flow of FIG. 2 described later. In the case where the device failure status of an actuator is detected, it is assumed that the operation will resume after the device is replaced.

[0020] Server 10 is equipped with a database 11 including various setting tables 12. The various setting tables 12 include a sensor type table A41, a temporary treatment productivity table B42, an inventory table C43, and a replacement required time table D44 shown in FIG. 4 described later. Also, the various setting tables 12 include temporary treatment information for continuing the operation of the plant in a state where a sensor is faulty. In the temporary treatment information, a temporary treatment method by PLC software is registered in advance for each sensor.

[0021] HMI20 is an HMI & PLC software engineering tool. HMI20 has a function of displaying a temporary treatment guidance screen 21 according to the display signal (including temporary treatment information) received from server 10 (a table display example of the temporary treatment guidance screen 21 is drawn in FIG. 1). In addition, HMI20 has a function as an engineering tool having a PLC software editor 22 that can edit the settings of PLC3 by the operation of an operator (a display example of the PLC software editor 22 is drawn in FIG. 1). HMI20 transmits the PLC setting signal by the PLC software engineering tool to PLC3 via general-purpose control LAN5.

[0022] 2. Plant Operation Support System Next, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4, a plant operation support system including the server 10 and the HMI 20 will be described.

[0023] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining an operation recovery process flow when a device failure occurs in the plant operation support system according to the embodiment. The operation recovery process flow shown in FIG. 2 is implemented as software in the server 10 of FIG. 1.

[0024] 2-1. Outline of Operation Recovery Process Flow When the server 10 detects a device failure state, it executes the operation recovery process flow shown in FIG. 2. Here, it is assumed that the device failure is a sensor failure.

[0025] First, in step S100, it is determined whether the current plant operation state is in operation or under regular maintenance. If it is determined that the plant is in operation, the process of step S110 is executed. If it is determined that the plant is under regular maintenance, the process of step S140 described later is executed.

[0026] In step S110, the operation measure determination algorithm of FIG. 3 described later is executed, and one of the processes from step S120 to step S140 is executed according to the determination result.

[0027] When step S120 is selected, the plant continues normal operation. Step S120 is selected when a device that does not affect the production volume fails, for example, when a monitoring-only sensor fails.

[0028] When step S130 is selected, the plant is operated with the operator performing temporary measures on the PLC 3 according to the temporary measure guidance screen 21 (Fig. 1). Step S130 is selected when the operation changes from automatic to manual, resulting in a decrease in production volume. However, considering the time required for equipment repair, continuing operation with temporary measures can suppress the impact on production volume. When temporary measures are implemented, the main measures (such as equipment replacement) will be carried out during the next regular repair.

[0029] A specific example will be described with reference to Fig. 1. When the operation after temporary measures (step S130) is selected as the optimal operation, the database 11 in which the software temporary measure method for equipment failure in the plant is registered in advance is searched, and the software temporary measure method for the target failed equipment is displayed on the temporary measure guidance screen 21 of the HMI 20 in Fig. 1. The operator performs temporary measures using the PLC software editor 22 of the HMI 20 according to the temporary measure guidance screen 21. The temporary measures implemented by the PLC software editor 22 are reflected in the PLC software in the PLC 3. In the example shown in Fig. 1, since the current sensor A is malfunctioning, the guidance on the temporary measure guidance screen 21 is to jumper the contact A in the MS10. The operator performs the temporary measure of jumpering the sensor signal contact A using the PLC software editor 22 according to the guidance.

[0030] When step S140 is selected, after repairing the failed equipment with a normal one, the plant resumes operation. Step S140 is selected when the operation cannot be carried out without repairing the failed equipment. Stopping the operation and repairing (replacing) the failed equipment can suppress the impact on production volume more than continuing operation with temporary measures.

[0031] 2-2. Operation Measure Judgment Algorithm With reference to Fig. 3, the details of the operation measure judgment algorithm executed in step S100 of Fig. 2 will be described.

[0032] First, in step S200, server 10 executes sensor type determination using sensor type table A41. The sensors are classified into three types. Type 1 is a sensor that has no impact on continuous operation when the sensor fails. Type 2 is a sensor that affects operation when the sensor fails but allows continuous operation with temporary measures. Type 3 is a sensor that affects operation when the sensor fails and does not allow continuous operation with temporary measures. In an example of sensor type table A41 shown in FIG. 4, sensor A is defined as type 2, sensor B as type 1, sensor C as type 2, and sensor D as type 3.

[0033] In step S200, it is determined whether the failed sensor is of type 1. If it is determined that the failed sensor is of type 1, the failed sensor is a device that does not affect the production volume, such as a monitoring-only sensor. Therefore, the plant continues normal operation (step S210). Step S210 corresponds to step S120 in FIG. 2. Thereafter, whether to continue operation is left to the operator's judgment.

[0034] On the other hand, in step S200, if it is determined that the failed sensor is not of type 1, the process of step S220 is executed.

[0035] In step S220, server 10 determines whether the failed sensor is of type 2 or type 3 using sensor type table A41. If it is determined to be type 2, the processes after step S230 are executed to determine the feasibility of temporary operation (manual operation by temporary measures). On the other hand, if it is determined to be type 3, the processes after step S270 are executed because temporary operation is impossible.

[0036] In step S230, server 10 determines the presence or absence of spare parts inventory using inventory table C43. In inventory table C43 shown in FIG. 4, the presence or absence of inventory for each sensor is defined. If there are spare parts for the sensor (type 2), the process of step S240 is executed. If there are no spare parts for the sensor (type 2), the process of step S250 is executed.

[0037] In step S240, the server 10 compares the production reduction amount due to the temporary treatment operation and the production reduction amount due to the repair of the failure sensor (type 2) using the temporary treatment production rate table B42 and the replacement required time table D44.

[0038] The server 10 determines whether the post-temporary treatment production amount when the plant is temporarily treated according to the temporary treatment information and the operation is continued is equal to or greater than the post-replacement production amount when the operation is resumed after replacing the failed sensor with a normal sensor. Specifically, the post-temporary treatment production amount is a value obtained by multiplying the temporary treatment production rate by the remaining operation time from the present to the regular repair time. The post-replacement production amount is a value obtained by multiplying the production rate of the normal operation using a normal sensor by the time obtained by subtracting the replacement time (the time required for the work of replacing the failed sensor with a normal sensor) from the remaining operation time.

[0039] A specific example will be described. The temporary treatment production rate table B42 shown in FIG. 4 defines the production rate of the manual operation after the temporary treatment with respect to the production rate (100%) of the automatic operation when the target sensor is normal. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the sensor A is defined as having a temporary treatment production rate of 70% and the sensor C is defined as having a temporary treatment production rate of 40%. Also, in an example of the replacement required time table D44 shown in FIG. 4, the sensor A is defined as having a replacement required time of 8 hours and the sensor C is defined as having a replacement required time of 4 hours.

[0040] As a first example, the case where the failed sensor is the sensor A and the time until the next regular repair is 10 hours will be described. When performing the temporary treatment operation, if the production amount when operating for 1 hour at a production rate of 100% is set to 100, then it is calculated by multiplying this by the temporary treatment production rate of 70% and the remaining operation time (10 hours) until the next regular repair, and is 700. On the other hand, when replacing the failed sensor A, the replacement work requires 8 hours (replacement required time table D44) and the production rate during that time is 0%. Even if the remaining 2 hours are used for normal operation at a production rate of 100%, the production amount is 200. That is, in the first example, implementing the temporary treatment operation results in less reduction in production volume. In step S240, if it is determined that (a) implementing the temporary treatment operation results in less reduction in production volume, the process of step S250 described below is executed.

[0041] As a second example, the case where the failed sensor is sensor C and the time until the next regular repair is 10 hours will be described. Regarding the production volume when performing the temporary treatment operation, assuming the production volume when operating for 1 hour at a production rate of 100% is 100, it is calculated by multiplying this by the temporary treatment production rate of 40% and the remaining working time until the next regular repair (10 hours), resulting in 400. On the other hand, when replacing the failed sensor C, it takes 4 hours for the replacement work (replacement required time table D44), and the production rate during that time is 0%. If the remaining 6 hours are normally operated at a production rate of 100%, the production volume is 600. That is, in the second example, resuming normal operation after sensor replacement results in less reduction in production volume. In step S240, if it is determined that (b) resuming normal operation after sensor replacement results in less reduction in production volume, the process of step S290 described below is executed.

[0042] In step S240 described above, if it is determined that (a) implementing the temporary treatment operation results in less reduction in production volume, or if it is determined in step S230 that there is no spare parts inventory, the process of step S250 is executed.

[0043] In step S250, when the production volume after temporary treatment is equal to or greater than the production volume after replacement, server 10 outputs a signal to display the temporary treatment information. HMI20 that has received the signal displays the temporary treatment guidance screen 21 corresponding to the temporary treatment information. The operator implements the temporary treatment of the PLC software in the PLC software editor 22 of HMI20 according to the temporary treatment method shown on the temporary treatment guidance screen 21. The plant is operated after the temporary treatment (step S260). Steps S250 and S260 correspond to step S130 described above.

[0044] On the other hand, in the above-described step S220, when it is determined that the failed sensor is of type 3, since the operation cannot be carried out without repairing the failed equipment, the process of step S270 is then executed.

[0045] In step S270, the server 10 determines the presence or absence of spare parts inventory using the inventory table C43. If there are spare parts for the sensor (type 3), the process of step S290 is executed. If there are no spare parts for the sensor (type 3), after the sensor is procured in step S280, the process of step S290 is executed.

[0046] The process of step S290 is executed not only after the process of step S280, but also when it is determined in step S270 that there is no spare parts inventory, or when it is determined in step S240 that the production volume after the temporary measure is less than the production volume after the replacement. In step S290, the server 10 outputs a signal for displaying replacement information instructing the replacement operation of the sensor. The HMI 20 displays the replacement information on the screen. The operator performs measures such as replacing the failed sensor with a spare part. Thereafter, in step S300, the plant resumes normal operation. Steps S290 and S300 correspond to the above-described step S140.

[0047] 3. Effects As described above, according to the routines shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, when a sensor failure occurs during the operation of the plant, among continuing normal operation, resuming operation after a temporary measure, and resuming operation after repairing the failed equipment, an operation method that minimizes the drop in production volume from the viewpoint of productivity can be automatically selected. In addition, regarding the operation by the software temporary measure, which is one of the operation treatment methods, the temporary measure method is registered in advance for each target device, and the temporary measure content is displayed as guidance when a device failure occurs. Therefore, it is possible to support resuming operation in the shortest time and improve productivity.

[0048] 4. Modification Example Incidentally, although the plant operation support system of the above-described embodiment is configured to separately include the server 10 and the HMI 20, it may be configured to include a single device having both the functions of the server 10 and the HMI 20. Further, it may be configured to include three or more devices.

[0049] 5. Hardware Configuration Example FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration example of the server 10 and the HMI 20.

[0050] Each process of the server 10 described above is realized by a processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured by connecting a processor 10a, a memory 10b, and a network interface 10c. The processor 10a realizes each function of the server 10 by executing various programs stored in the memory 10b. The memory 10b includes a main storage device and an auxiliary storage device. The memory 10b stores in advance the above-described preliminary treatment information and various setting tables 12. The network interface 10c is a device that can connect to the PLC 3 and the HMI 20 via a computer network and transmit and receive signals.

[0051] Each process of the HMI 20 described above is realized by a processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured by connecting a processor 20a, a memory 20b, a network interface 20c, an input interface 20d, and at least one monitor 20e. The processor 20a realizes each function of the HMI 20 by executing various programs stored in the memory 20b. The memory 10b includes a main storage device and an auxiliary storage device. The network interface 20c is a device that can connect to the server 10 via a computer network and transmit and receive signals. The input interface 20d is an input device such as a keyboard, a mouse, or a touch panel. A plurality of monitors 20e may be provided.

[0052] The embodiments of the present invention have been described above. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be implemented with various modifications without departing from the spirit of the present invention. In the above-described embodiments, when referring to numbers such as the number, quantity, amount, range, etc. of each element, the present invention is not limited to the recited number, except when specifically stated or clearly specified by the principle. Also, the structures and the like described in the above-described embodiments are not necessarily essential to the present invention, except when specifically stated or clearly specified by the principle.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0053] 1 Plant 2 Field Device 3 PLC 4 Dedicated Control LAN 5 General-Purpose Control LAN 10 Server 10a Processor 10b Memory 10c Network Interface 11 Database 12 Various Setting Tables 20 HMI 20a Processor 20b Memory 20c Network Interface 20d Input Interface 20e Monitor 21 Provisional Treatment Guidance Screen A41 Sensor Type Table B42 Provisional Treatment Productivity Table C43 Inventory Table D44 Replacement Time Required Table

Claims

1. A sensor installed in a plant and used in operation, at least one processor and a memory, and a human-machine interface for displaying information, wherein the memory stores temporary treatment information that guides an operator to perform temporary treatment methods that should be carried out in order to continue the operation of the plant when the sensor is malfunctioning, and the temporary treatment information includes at least one of changing a control program for controlling the plant and reorganizing a circuit, and the processor when the sensor is malfunctioning, if the production volume after the temporary treatment when performing the temporary treatment on the plant according to the temporary treatment method and continuing the operation is equal to or greater than the production volume after replacement when restarting the operation after replacing the malfunctioning sensor with a normal sensor, outputs a signal to display the temporary treatment method to the human-machine interface, A plant operation support system characterized by the above.

2. The processor when the sensor is malfunctioning, if the production volume after the temporary treatment is less than the production volume after replacement, outputs a signal to display replacement information instructing the replacement operation of the sensor, The plant operation support system according to claim 1, characterized by the above.

3. The memory stores the temporary treatment productivity in the operation after the temporary treatment according to the malfunctioning sensor, and the replacement time required for the operation of replacing the malfunctioning sensor with the normal sensor, and the production volume after the temporary treatment is a value obtained by multiplying the temporary treatment productivity by the remaining operation time from now until the regular repair time, and the production volume after replacement is a value obtained by multiplying the productivity of normal operation using the normal sensor by the time obtained by subtracting the replacement time from the remaining operation time, The plant operation support system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by

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