Information processing device and information processing method

Abstract

To extract necessary data from a large amount of measurement data and conditions.SOLUTION: An information processing device (100) receives and displays output data from an IO-Link master (200), which receives output data from a sensor (300), and the information processing device acquires device information (121) of the sensor or the IO-Link master and data type information about a data type included in the output data. The information processing device extracts and displays the data type information based on correspondence information (123) in which the data type information to be extracted is associated with the device information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus that displays data of sensors connected via a network.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, with the spread of IoT (Internet of Things) technology, a system that monitors the state of a monitoring target using a communication device having a sensor has attracted attention. In such a system, various data acquired by a large number of devices are centrally managed and displayed on a display device in various display methods.

[0003] When centrally managing data measured by production facilities / sensors of multiple manufacturers in a factory, the protocols are different depending on the manufacturer, which has become an obstacle to centralized management. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique that performs protocol conversion, data format conversion, and data type conversion to enable batch data collection, conversion, analysis, and visualization processing in an environment where the manufacturers of production facilities / sensors are different by making them in a unified format.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, even for a single production facility / sensor, there are a large number of measurement data and states, and it is difficult to understand which measurement data and states should be displayed on the display device. As a result, it is difficult to set and display appropriate items to be displayed for all facilities in a factory.

[0006] One aspect of the present invention aims to enable the extraction of data to be displayed from a large amount of measurement data and status. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] To solve the above problems, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing device that receives output data from one or more sensors from a data acquisition device and controls the display of the output data from the sensors, comprising: a first acquisition unit that acquires equipment information of the sensor or the data acquisition device; a second acquisition unit that acquires data type information for each of the one or more data types included in the output data of the sensor or the data acquisition device; an extraction unit that extracts data type information from the data type information acquired by the second acquisition unit that corresponds to the equipment information acquired by the first acquisition unit, based on correspondence information which associates the data type information to be extracted with each of the plurality of pieces of equipment information; and a display control unit that controls the display of the data type information extracted by the extraction unit.

[0008] To solve the above problems, a control method for an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention is a control method for an information processing device that receives output data from one or more sensors from a data acquisition device that receives output data from the sensors and performs control to display the output data of the sensors, and includes: a first acquisition step of acquiring device information of the sensors or the data acquisition device; a second acquisition step of acquiring data type information for each of the one or more data types included in the output data of the sensors or the data acquisition device; an extraction step of extracting data type information from the data type information acquired in the second acquisition step that corresponds to the device information acquired in the first acquisition step, based on correspondence information which associates the data type information to be extracted with each of the plurality of pieces of device information; and a display control step of performing control to display the data type information extracted in the extraction step.

[0009] According to the above configuration, data type information can be extracted based on corresponding information determined by the device information. Therefore, it is possible to easily extract and display the information that should be displayed from among a large amount of data type information.

[0010] The system includes a selection input receiving unit that receives input from the user to select the data type information to be displayed from among the data type information corresponding to the device information acquired by the first acquisition unit, and the selection input receiving unit may display a selection input screen under the control of the display control unit.

[0011] With the above configuration, the information processing device can receive user input to select the data type information to be displayed. Therefore, it becomes possible to narrow down the data type information to be displayed from the data type information extracted by the extraction unit. In addition, it becomes possible to select data type information to be displayed from the data type information that was not extracted by the extraction unit.

[0012] The data type information includes at least Boolean and numeric types, and the correspondence information may include at least one of the device information that associates the Boolean type as the data type information to be extracted, and the device information that associates the numeric type as the data type information to be extracted.

[0013] According to the above configuration, data type information can be appropriately extracted whether the device prefers to display a Boolean type or a numeric type.

[0014] The data acquisition device is an IO-Link master, and the first acquisition unit may acquire device information of IO-Link devices connected to the IO-Link master from the IO-Link master as the device information.

[0015] Since IO-Link devices can output many types of data, the number of data types collected by an IO-Link master can be very large. In contrast, with the above configuration, IO-Link can acquire device information from IO-Link devices, and based on that device information, it is possible to extract the information that should be displayed from among the many types of data.

[0016] The second acquisition unit may refer to the IODD file to obtain a list of data type information corresponding to the acquired device information.

[0017] According to the above configuration, data type information can be obtained based on the information contained in the IODD file.

[0018] The correspondence information is information in which a Boolean type and / or numeric type corresponds to the device type in the IODD file, and the extraction unit may extract the data type information of the type corresponding to the device type from the correspondence information.

[0019] According to the above configuration, it is possible to select and extract the appropriate variable type according to the device type. Therefore, simply by connecting an IO-Link device, various information, including the device type, becomes available, and it becomes easy to select the items to display.

[0020] The extraction unit can be configured to refrain from extracting data type information that contains a specific word in the data name of the data type information.

[0021] According to the above configuration, if it is determined that data containing a specific word does not need to be displayed, such data type information can be avoided from being extracted. Therefore, it becomes possible to narrow down the data type information that should be displayed more appropriately.

[0022] The data collection device is a PLC, and the second acquisition unit may acquire a list of network variables as the data type information from the PLC.

[0023] According to the above configuration, the data type information can be acquired by the list of network variables publicly available on the network by the PLC.

[0024] The extraction unit may extract variables excluding the system variables of the PLC from the network variables.

[0025] Network variables may include system variables specific to the PLC system, but in many cases, such system variables do not need to be displayed. That is, according to the above configuration, it is possible to narrow down the data type information to be more appropriately displayed, excluding the system variables that do not need to be displayed.

[0026] The extraction unit may extract variables that use a predetermined format as a prefix in the variable names of the network variables.

[0027] In network variables, there may be cases where it can be determined that variables using a predetermined format as a prefix are variables to be displayed. In this case, according to the above configuration, by extracting such variables, it is possible to narrow down the data type information to be more appropriately displayed.

[0028] The correspondence information stores the data type information previously selected by the selection input reception unit for each device type of the sensor or the data collection device, and the extraction unit may extract the stored data type information.

[0029] According to the above configuration, since the data type information previously selected for display is likely to be selected again, by extracting the data type information, it is possible to narrow down the data type information to be more appropriately displayed.

Advantages of the Invention

[0030] According to one aspect of the present invention, data to be displayed can be extracted from a large amount of measurement data and status. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0031] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main parts of the display system according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] This is the display screen (selection input screen display) when the extraction unit does not perform extraction in the display system according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 3] This is a flowchart illustrating an example of operation in the information processing device according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of correspondence information. [Figure 5] This figure shows the variables extracted at stage S109. [Figure 6] This figure shows the variables extracted at stage S110. [Figure 7] This is an example of the extracted variables when variables that have been previously selected by S107 are extracted. [Figure 8] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main parts of the display system according to Embodiment 2. The display system comprises an information processing device, a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) (data acquisition device), and a sensor. [Figure 9] This is a flowchart illustrating an example of operation in the information processing device according to Embodiment 2. [Figure 10] This is the display screen (selection input screen display) in the display system according to Embodiment 2, when the extraction unit does not reduce the number of display items. [Figure 11] This is a display screen in the display system according to Embodiment 2, where the extraction unit reduces the number of display items. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0032] [Embodiment 1] Hereinafter, an embodiment relating to one aspect of the present invention (hereinafter also referred to as "this embodiment") will be described based on the drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their descriptions will not be repeated.

[0033] §1. Examples of Application Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main parts of the display system 1 according to Embodiment 1. The display system 1 comprises an information processing device 100, an IO-Link master (data acquisition device) 200, and sensors 300a and 300b.

[0034] Display System 1 is a system that aggregates data measured by multiple sensors, such as sensors 300a and 300b, into an information processing device via multiple IO-Link masters 200, and displays it all together. As a result, Display System 1 has a large number of sensors connected to it, making it difficult to determine which data should be displayed. In particular, when managing an entire factory, there are many devices, and it is difficult to understand and determine the role of each sensor.

[0035] The information processing device 100 is a device that can easily display data that it deems appropriate to display from among a large amount of data. Specifically, depending on the type of sensor equipment, the information processing device 100 displays only the data that it deems appropriate to display as options on a screen where the user can choose whether or not to display it. Therefore, the user can easily select the data to be displayed.

[0036] §2. Example Configuration (IO-Link configuration) The IO-Link master 200 and sensors 300a and 300b communicate via IO-Link.

[0037] The IO-Link master 200 performs data input and output to I / O devices such as sensors that comply with the IO-Link standard. The IO-Link master 200 outputs the data to the information processing device 100, which is a higher-level device. In other words, the IO-Link master 200 relays communication between the information processing device 100 and sensors 300a and 300b.

[0038] Sensors 300a and 300b are sensors compliant with the IO-Link standard. In this embodiment, sensor 300a is a pressure sensor and sensor 300b is a proximity sensor, but the type of sensor is not limited to these. Furthermore, although sensors 300a and 300b are described as sensors, they are not limited to input devices and may also be output devices such as valves or robots.

[0039] (About IO-Link) IO-Link is one of the communication standards for I / O devices. When communication is established using IO-Link, IO-Link compatible devices (in this case, sensors 300a and 300b) transmit the vendor ID, device ID, and product ID to the IO-Link master 200. This information is numerical data used to verify the details of the connected device. The IO-Link master 200 then forwards this information to a higher-level device (in this case, the information processing device 100).

[0040] The higher-level device refers to the vendor ID to identify the device manufacturer, the device ID to identify which product from that manufacturer it is, and the product ID to confirm the serial number of that product. In other words, by checking this information, the device can be uniquely identified. The higher-level device can also obtain the product manufacturer and model number as a string from the vendor ID and device ID.

[0041] Furthermore, the higher-level device references the vendor ID and device ID, searches for the IODD (IO Device Description) file, and identifies the corresponding IODD file.

[0042] An IODD file is a file provided by the manufacturer that contains various definitions for a device. In addition to device-specific information such as the vendor name, product name, and model number, the IODD file also contains information about the data format communicated by the device. This data format includes information such as the data name, data type, data unit, and decimal point position.

[0043] (Configuration of the information processing device 100) The information processing device 100 comprises a control unit 110 and a storage unit 120. The control unit 110 controls each part of the information processing device 100. The storage unit 120 stores programs, variables, data, etc., used by the information processing device 100.

[0044] The control unit 110 includes a communication unit 111, a first acquisition unit 112, a second acquisition unit 113, a selection input reception unit 114, an extraction unit 115, a display control unit 116, and a data visualization unit 117. The storage unit 120 stores device information 121, an IODD file 122, correspondence information 123, and a database 124 as data.

[0045] The communication unit 111 communicates with the IO-Link master 200 using a field network and performs I / O input and output to the IO-Link master 200. The data to be input and output at this time includes the vendor ID, device ID, and product ID. The communication unit 111 also outputs this acquired information to the first acquisition unit 112.

[0046] Examples of field networks include EtherCAT®, Profinet IRT, MECHATROLINK®-III, Powerlink, SERCOS®-III, CIP Motion, DeviceNet, and CompoNet / IP®. Various industrial Ethernet® technologies may also be used as field networks.

[0047] The first acquisition unit 112 stores the vendor ID, device ID, and product ID as equipment information 121 in the storage unit 120.

[0048] The second acquisition unit 113 refers to the vendor ID and device ID stored in the equipment information 121, and obtains data type information from the IODD file 122 regarding one or more data types (variables) included in the output data of sensors 300a and 300b, and outputs it to the extraction unit 115.

[0049] The selection input receiving unit 114 receives input from an input device such as a mouse 132 operated by the user and outputs the received input to the extraction unit 115. The inputs to be received are the selection of whether or not to perform extraction in the extraction unit 115, and the selection of a variable to display from among multiple variables.

[0050] The extraction unit 115 refers to the input data type information, sorts the variables into those that are likely to be displayed and those that are unlikely to be displayed, and extracts only the variables that are likely to be displayed. The actual extraction process in the extraction unit 115 will be described in detail later. The extraction unit 115 outputs the extracted IO to the display control unit 116.

[0051] The display control unit 116 outputs data type information related to the input variables as a list to the display 131 and displays it in a format that the user can view.

[0052] The data visualization unit 117 creates a display screen that is easy for the user to understand, based on the variables to be displayed selected by user input via the selection input reception unit 114. The data visualization unit 117 displays the created display screen on the display 131 via the display control unit 116.

[0053] Furthermore, the database 124 stores data related to the variables to be displayed, selected by user input, in chronological order. The data visualization unit 117 may refer to the database 124.

[0054] (Example of a list of variables) Before explaining the operation example of the information processing device 100, we will first explain the case in which no extraction is performed in the extraction unit 115.

[0055] Figure 2 shows the display screen (selection input screen display) 500 in the display system 1 according to Embodiment 1 when the extraction unit 115 does not perform extraction. As shown in Figure 2, various variables (data types) are displayed in a list. Processing all of these variables may be excessive, so information processing should be limited to only the necessary variables. The display screen 500 in Figure 2 is the screen for selecting the variables to be processed.

[0056] The display screen 500 in Figure 2 mainly consists of a list 510, a device selection unit 520, and an extraction feasibility unit (selection input reception unit) 530. Various data type information is associated with each variable (data type).

[0057] The items listed in List 510 are as follows: The "Selection" column is a checkbox (selection input receiver) 511, and by selecting it, the selected variable is registered as the target of information processing.

[0058] The "Device Number" column displays the device number on the IO-Link Master 200 and the type of device (data type information) connected to it. For example, if it displays "1: Pressure Sensor," it indicates that a device that is a "Pressure Sensor" is connected to port "1." Regarding the device type, the product model number or other information may also be displayed.

[0059] The "Device Name (Device Type)" field displays the type of device (data type information) of the device connected to the IO-Link master, obtained from the IODD file.

[0060] The "Channel Name" field is an item that users enter individually, and it sets the name of the variable (data type information) in display system 1.

[0061] The "Data Name" column displays the name of the variable (data type information) in the IO-Link device, obtained from the IODD file.

[0062] The "Data Type" column displays the data type (data type information) of the variable, retrieved from the IODD file. For example, "BooleanT" is a Boolean type (logical type) that can take two values: "TRUE" or "FALSE". "IntegerT" is a signed integer type. "UIntegerT" is an unsigned integer type.

[0063] Generally, data types are known to include "Boolean types," "numeric types" (integers and floating-point numbers), "character types" (representing characters), and "datetime types" (representing dates or times). In this specification, we will focus on Boolean and numeric types, and not on other data types.

[0064] The "Unit" column is retrieved from the IODD file and indicates the unit of data (data type information). A hyphen ("-") indicates that there is no unit.

[0065] The "Decimal Point" field indicates which digit of the data will be used as the decimal point when an integer type is used as the "Data Type" instead of a floating-point type such as "Float32T". For example, if the data is "123" and the "Decimal Point" is "0.1", the actual number displayed will be "12.3".

[0066] Furthermore, the device selection unit 520 selects the IO-Link master 200 to which the information processing device 100 will connect. The device selection unit 520 may also display the IP address of the IO-Link master, etc.

[0067] The extraction feasibility unit 530 is a checkbox that allows you to select whether or not to perform extraction. The extraction feasibility unit 530 may be pre-checked (selected) to perform extraction (process to reduce the number of displayed items). However, please note that in Figure 2, the extraction feasibility unit 530 is unchecked in order to show the case where extraction has not been performed. §3. Example of Operation (Obtaining IODD files) Figure 3 is a flowchart showing an example of operation in the information processing device 100 according to Embodiment 1.

[0068] In S101, the first acquisition unit 112 communicates with the IO-Link master 200 via the communication unit 111 and acquires the vendor ID, device ID, and product ID as equipment information 121. The first acquisition unit 112 outputs the vendor ID and device ID to the second acquisition unit 113.

[0069] In S102, the second acquisition unit 113 refers to the input vendor ID and device ID, searches for the corresponding IODD file 122 stored in the storage unit 120, and acquires it.

[0070] In S103, the second acquisition unit 113 analyzes the IODD file 122 and acquires the "data name," "data type," "unit," and "decimal point" of each variable (data type) as data type information.

[0071] (Extraction using data type information) In S104, the selection input receiving unit 114 determines whether the extraction feasibility unit 530 is selected or not. If the extraction feasibility unit 530 is not selected, the process proceeds to S105; if it is selected, the process proceeds to S106.

[0072] In S105 (if No in S104), the extraction unit 115 extracts the variables to be judged. That is, if the extraction feasibility unit 530 is not selected, all variables are extracted. Then the process proceeds to S112.

[0073] If the extraction feasibility unit 530 is selected, the system will determine whether or not to extract each variable. In other words, from this point onward, the extraction unit 115 will read each variable one by one from among the multiple variables and determine whether or not to extract that variable.

[0074] In S106 (if Yes in S104), the extraction unit 115 determines whether the variable to be judged has been selected in the past. If the variable has been selected in the past, the process proceeds to S107; otherwise, the process proceeds to S108.

[0075] In S107 (if Yes in S106), the extraction unit 115 checks the correspondence information 123 and extracts the variable (data type) if it has been selected in the past. In other words, variables that have been selected in the past are included in the extraction target regardless of the variable's data type information. This is because variables that have been selected in the past are likely to be treated as data that should be displayed again. The process then proceeds to S111.

[0076] In S108 (if No in S106), the extraction unit 115 extracts the variable (data type) if its data type (data type information) is numeric or Boolean.

[0077] In S109, the extraction unit 115 further refers to the IODD file 122 associated with the variable and confirms the correspondence information 123 regarding the "device name (device type)". After confirming the correspondence information 123, the extraction unit 115 extracts the data type (data type information) defined by the device type in the correspondence information 123.

[0078] Figure 4 shows an example of correspondence information. The correspondence information defines the data types to be extracted for each device type, such as "pressure sensor" and "proximity sensor." Furthermore, a device name is associated with each device type.

[0079] In other words, the device type of the device whose name is "Pressure Sensor" as determined by IODD file 122 is "Pressure Sensor," and the data type to be extracted is "Numeric," so "Numeric" data is extracted. Also, the device type of the device whose name is "Proximity Sensor" as determined by IODD file 122 is "Proximity Sensor," and the data type to be extracted is "Boolean," so "Boolean" data is extracted.

[0080] Figure 5 shows the variables extracted at step S109. Comparing Figure 2 and Figure 5, it can be seen that the number of variable items displayed in the list has been reduced. Specifically, for the item with the device name "Pressure Sensor," only numerical types are extracted, and boolean types are no longer displayed. Similarly, for the item with the device name "Proximity Sensor," only boolean types are extracted, and numerical types are no longer displayed.

[0081] In S110, the extraction unit 115 extracts variables (data types) whose data names (data type information) do not contain specific words. These specific words include strings representing states such as "normal," "abnormal," "warning," "busy," and "standby," or strings representing non-data information such as "display," "unit," and "mode." In an information processing device that should display data, states and information that are not data are not the data to be acquired, so the extraction is performed to exclude these strings, appropriately narrowing down the data to be displayed.

[0082] Figure 6 shows the variables extracted at stage S110. Comparing Figure 5 and Figure 6, it can be seen that the number of IO items displayed in the list has been reduced. Specifically, for items with the device name "Pressure Sensor," only two data names, "Pressure" and "Temperature," were extracted, and for items with the device name "Proximity Sensor," only the data name "Control Output" was extracted. In other words, in the example in Figure 6, variables with the data name "Abnormal Number" in "Pressure Sensor" and variables with the data names "Status Indicator Light (Red)," "Status Indicator Light (Green)," and "Abnormal" in "Proximity Sensor" were excluded.

[0083] In S111, the extraction unit 115 determines whether there are any variables whose extraction feasibility is undetermined. If there are undetermined variables, the process returns to S106 to determine whether or not to extract those variables. If there are no undetermined variables, the process proceeds to S112. In other words, S111 performs the processes from S106 to S111 for all the variables that have been read.

[0084] In S112 (if the answer in S111 is No), the display control unit 116 displays data type information related to the extracted variable on the display 131. If the answer in S104 was Yes, Figure 6 is displayed on the display 131; if the answer in S104 was No, Figure 2 is displayed on the display 131.

[0085] Here, the extraction of data type information in the extraction unit 115 is performed through a multi-stage process, but the feasibility of these extractions may be determined by a single extraction feasibility unit 530 or by multiple extraction feasibility units 530. In other words, there may be multiple checkboxes that have the function of the extraction feasibility unit 530, each corresponding to the feasibility of extraction in each stage.

[0086] For example, Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating the extraction process in the extraction unit 15. In reality, the processes in S109 and S110 are performed by information processing calculations in the extraction unit 115, so the display of the stages shown in Figure 5 is not performed. However, for example, after the process in S109, the display in Figure 5 may be shown, and the system may accept user input on whether or not to perform the extraction process in S110. If the user gives an instruction, the extraction process in S110 may be performed and the display in Figure 6 may be shown.

[0087] (Extraction based on past selection history) Furthermore, if any variables were selected in the past through S106-S107, even if the answer in S104 was Yes, the extracted variables will not be as shown in Figure 6, but rather, as an example, as shown in Figure 7 below.

[0088] Figure 7 shows an example of extracted variables when variables that have been previously selected by S107 are extracted. Comparing Figure 6 and Figure 7, in this example, for the item with the device name "Pressure Sensor", "Severe Abnormality" is additionally extracted, and for the item with the device name "Proximity Sensor", "Detection Level" is additionally extracted. These are just examples, and other variables may also be extracted.

[0089] If these variables were not extracted in the past, it is because those data names were selected as part of a bug fix or other past work.

[0090] (Regarding the data visualization unit 117) From the variables (data types) extracted by the extraction unit 115, the user selects the checkbox 511 for each variable they want to display and inputs it into the selection input reception unit 114. This action allows the user to select the variables to display. The selected variables are also stored in the correspondence information 123.

[0091] The data visualization unit 117 creates a display screen to show the state and changes of the selected variables in a way that is easy for the user to understand. The created display screen is displayed on the display 131 via the display control unit 116.

[0092] If the selected variable is of numerical type, the changes in the data are read from database 124 and a graph representing the changes in the data is displayed. Information such as thresholds may be added to the graph. The current value may also be displayed to allow for verification of the current value. There are no particular restrictions on the type of graph; line graphs, histograms, etc., are acceptable.

[0093] If the selected variable is of Boolean type, a screen will be displayed that shows the current value of the data using color. Specifically, multiple rectangular boxes with the variable name written on them will be arranged, and the color of these boxes will change according to the data value. In other words, if the Boolean value is TRUE, the background color of the box will be green, and if it is FALSE, it will be red. Alternatively, a timing chart showing the changes in the data may also be displayed for Boolean types.

[0094] Furthermore, when using multiple Boolean types to represent the state (defect) of a workpiece or the type of defect, the results of multiple Boolean types can be combined and represented using a pie chart or a stacked bar chart. §4. Action and Effects Therefore, depending on the selection status of the extraction feasibility unit 530, data types can be extracted based on data type information. By extracting data types, the number of items that the user must decide whether or not to display can be reduced, and the data acquisition settings in the information processing device can be easily established.

[0095] Furthermore, by not checking (deactivating) the extraction feasibility unit 530, the extraction unit 115 can re-select the items related to the data types that were excluded.

[0096] In the extraction process in the extraction unit 115, the data type to be extracted is determined based on the device information 121 and by referring to the correspondence information 123. This makes it possible to select the appropriate data type according to the device name, which is the type of device.

[0097] Furthermore, in the extraction process of the extraction unit 115, by not extracting non-data states or information, only data is extracted, making it easy to establish data acquisition settings in the information processing device.

[0098] [Embodiment 2] Other embodiments of the present invention are described below. For the sake of clarity, components having the same function as those described in the above embodiments will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and their descriptions will not be repeated.

[0099] (Configuration of display system 1a) Figure 8 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main parts of the display system 1a according to Embodiment 2. The display system 1a comprises an information processing device 100a, a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) (data acquisition device) 400, and sensors 300c and 300d. The information processing device 100a and the PLC 400 communicate via a field network. The PLC 400 does not have to be a PLC; any type of control device will suffice.

[0100] Sensors 300c and 300d are either digital output sensors or analog output sensors, and the PLC400 receives the output of these sensors as input. Furthermore, sensors 300c and 300d are not limited to input devices such as sensors, but may also be output devices such as valves or robots.

[0101] (Configuration of information processing device 100a) The information processing device 100a comprises a control unit 110a and a storage unit 120a. The control unit 110a includes a communication unit 111a, a first acquisition unit 112a, a second acquisition unit 113a, a selection input reception unit 114a, an extraction unit 115a, a display control unit 116, and a data visualization unit 117. The storage unit 120a stores device information 121, variable information 122a, correspondence information 123, and a database 124 as data.

[0102] The communication unit 111a communicates with the PLC 400 using a field network and acquires device information indicating that the PLC 400 is a PLC, as well as network variables of the PLC 400. The device information and shared variables are output to the first acquisition unit 112a.

[0103] The first acquisition unit 112a stores the input device information in device information 121 and the input network variables as variable information 122a.

[0104] The second acquisition unit 113a reads variable information 122a from the storage unit 120a, replacing the IODD file 122 in the second acquisition unit 113. The variable information 122a contains information such as the variable name, the variable type, and a comment for the variable.

[0105] Unlike the selection input receiving unit 114, the selection input receiving unit 114a accepts string input from the keyboard 133 in addition to the mouse 132. The received input is output to the extraction unit 115. The input accepted is the content of the selection input receiving unit 114, plus an input specifying a prefix for the variable name to be extracted.

[0106] The extraction unit 115a extracts data type information of variables (data types) based on variable information, using conditions different from those of the extraction unit 115.

[0107] (Example of extraction operation for PLC400) Figure 9 is a flowchart of an example of operation in the information processing device 100a according to Embodiment 2. The basic processing flow differs in that variable information 122a is used instead of the IODD file 122, and the extraction process in the extraction unit 115a is different.

[0108] In S101a, the first acquisition unit 112a acquires device information from the PLC 400 via the communication unit 111a. In S102a, the first acquisition unit 112a acquires network variables from the PLC 400 as variable information 122a via the communication unit 111a.

[0109] In S103a, the "variable name" and "data type" of each variable (data type) are obtained from variable information 122a as data type information.

[0110] In S109a, the extraction unit 115a extracts data type information, excluding system variables of the PLC 400 (variables, time, and status, etc., that are predefined in the PLC).

[0111] In S110a, the extraction unit 115a extracts data type information for variables whose prefix in the variable information is a string determined by the input received from the selection input receiving unit 114a, and outputs the extracted data type information to the display control unit 116.

[0112] (Results of extraction using PLC400) Figure 10 shows the display screen (selection input screen display) 600 in the display system 1a according to Embodiment 2 when the extraction unit 115a does not reduce the number of display items. Figure 11 shows the display screen 600 in the display system 1a according to Embodiment 2 when the extraction unit 115a reduces the number of display items.

[0113] The display screen 600 mainly consists of a list 610, a device selection unit 520, an extraction feasibility unit (selection input reception unit) 530, and a prefix specification unit (selection input reception unit) 540. The list 610 has a "Select" column for each variable, and this "Select" column is a checkbox (selection input reception unit) 611. By selecting this checkbox, the variable is registered as a variable to be displayed by the display system 1a.

[0114] The prefix specification unit 540 is user input that determines the extraction conditions for variable names using the keyboard 133. The extraction unit performs extraction based on the conditions specified in the prefix specification unit 540.

[0115] In List 610, the "Data Type," "Channel Name," "Data Name," "Unit," and "Decimal Point" are the same as in Figure 2. However, for the Channel Name, you may display the comment from PLC400. Also, you may combine the "Data Name" and "Unit" and set them together as "Data Name."

[0116] Furthermore, the "Variable Name" column in List 610 represents the variable name in PLC400. In Embodiment 2, extraction is performed based on the variable naming convention.

[0117] Here, the "variable name" and "data type" can be obtained from the PLC400, but other values ​​require user input. This is because there is no definition file equivalent to IODD file 122 in IO-Link.

[0118] Comparing Figure 10 and Figure 11, it can be seen that the number of variable items displayed in the list has been reduced. The prefix "_" in the variable name "_CurrentTime" indicates that it is a system variable. Therefore, this variable was not extracted by the process in S109a. Here, we determined whether or not it was a system variable using the prefix, but it would also be acceptable to determine this by referring to a database or other source.

[0119] Furthermore, the variable name "PARTICLE" is not a system variable, but it does not begin with the prefix "S%_". Therefore, it was not extracted by the processing in S110a. Here, "%" is assumed to correspond to any number, so by specifying "S%_", both "S1_" and "S2_" are selected as extraction targets. Also, multiple prefixes can be specified.

[0120] (The function and effect of extraction in PLC400) Therefore, data type information can be extracted according to the selection status of the extraction feasibility unit 530. By extracting data type information, the number of items that the user must confirm can be reduced, and the data acquisition settings in the information processing device can be easily established.

[0121] Furthermore, by not checking (deactivating) the extraction feasibility unit 530, the data type items that were excluded by the extraction unit 115a can be selected again.

[0122] Furthermore, by checking whether each variable is a system variable and whether the variable name begins with a predetermined prefix, based on the data type information, the number of variables to be extracted can be reduced. Therefore, it becomes easier to establish data acquisition settings in the information processing device.

[0123] [Examples of implementation using software] The functions of the information processing devices 100 and 100a (hereinafter referred to as "devices") can be realized by programs that cause the devices to function as computers, and by programs that cause each control block of the devices (particularly each part included in the control units 110 and 110a) to function as a computer.

[0124] In this case, the device includes a computer having at least one control device (e.g., a processor) and at least one storage device (e.g., memory) as hardware for executing the program. By executing the program using this control device and storage device, the functions described in each of the embodiments are realized.

[0125] The above program may be recorded on one or more computer-readable recording media, not temporary ones. These recording media may or may not be provided by the above device. In the latter case, the program may be supplied to the above device via any wired or wireless transmission medium.

[0126] Furthermore, some or all of the functions of each of the above control blocks can also be realized by logic circuits. For example, an integrated circuit in which logic circuits functioning as each of the above control blocks are formed is also included in the scope of the present invention. In addition, it is also possible to realize the functions of each of the above control blocks by, for example, a quantum computer.

[0127] Furthermore, each process described in the above embodiments may be performed by AI (Artificial Intelligence). In this case, the AI ​​may operate on the control device described above, or it may operate on other devices (for example, an edge computer or a cloud server).

[0128] [Additional Notes] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. Embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0129] 1. 1a Display System 100, 100a Information Processing Device 110, 110a Control Unit 111, 111a Communication Department 112, 112a 1st acquisition part 113, 113a 2nd acquisition part 114, 114a Selection Input Reception Section 115, 115a Extraction part 116 Display Control Unit 120, 120a storage section 121 Device information 122 IODD files 122a Variable Information 123 Correspondence Information 200 CC-Link Master 300a, 300b, 300c, 300d sensors 400 PLC 500, 600 display screen Lists 510 and 610 511, 611 Combination 520 Device Selection Section 530 Extraction possibility section 540 prefix specification part

Claims

1. An information processing device that receives output data from one or more sensors and controls the display of the output data from the sensors, A first acquisition unit acquires equipment information which includes the equipment type of the sensor or the data acquisition device, A second acquisition unit acquires data type information, which is information that includes information for identifying the type of data included in the output data of the sensor or the data acquisition device. For each of the multiple pieces of equipment information, an extraction unit extracts the data type information from the data type information acquired by the second acquisition unit that corresponds to the equipment type included in the equipment information acquired by the first acquisition unit, based on correspondence information which associates the equipment type included in the equipment information with the data type information to be extracted. A display control unit that controls the display of data type information extracted by the extraction unit, An information processing device equipped with the following features.

2. The system includes a selection input receiving unit that receives input from the user to select the data type information to be displayed from among the data type information corresponding to the device information acquired by the first acquisition unit, The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the selection input receiving unit displays a selection input screen under the control of the display control unit.

3. The aforementioned data type information includes at least Boolean and numeric types, The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the corresponding information includes at least one of the device information to which the Boolean type is associated as the data type information to be extracted, and the device information to which the numeric type is associated as the data type information to be extracted.

4. The data acquisition device is an IO-Link master, The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first acquisition unit acquires device information of an IO-Link device connected to the IO-Link master from the IO-Link master as the device information.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the second acquisition unit refers to an IODD file and acquires a list of data type information corresponding to the acquired device information.

6. The aforementioned correspondence information is information in which a Boolean and / or numeric type corresponds to the device type in the IODD file. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the extraction unit extracts data type information of a type corresponding to the equipment type from the corresponding information.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the extraction unit does not extract data type information that contains a specific word in the data name of the data type information.

8. The data acquisition device is a PLC, The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the second acquisition unit acquires a list of network variables as data type information from the PLC.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the extraction unit extracts variables from the network variables, excluding the system variables of the PLC.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the extraction unit extracts from the network variables variables whose variable names use a predetermined format as a prefix.

11. The aforementioned correspondence information stores data type information that was previously selected by the selection input reception unit for each type of the sensor or data acquisition device. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the extraction unit extracts the stored data type information.

12. A control method for an information processing device that receives output data from one or more sensors and controls the display of the output data from the sensors, A first acquisition step of acquiring equipment information which is information including the equipment type of the sensor or the data acquisition device, A second acquisition step of acquiring data type information which is information that includes information for identifying the type of data included in the output data of the sensor or the data acquisition device, For each of the multiple pieces of equipment information, based on correspondence information that associates the equipment type included in the equipment information with the data type information to be extracted, an extraction step is performed to extract the data type information from the data type information obtained in the second acquisition step that corresponds to the equipment type included in the equipment information obtained in the first acquisition step, A display control step that controls the display of data type information extracted by the extraction step, A control method for an information processing device, including the device itself.

Images