Integral alarm management for a control system for a technical installation

Abstract

The invention relates to a control system (11) for a technical installation, in particular a manufacturing or process installation, which control system comprises a computer-implemented alarm system (31) designed to monitor technical objects (25) with respect to predefinable criteria and to generate alarm messages with respect to the monitored technical objects (25), wherein it is possible to specify in the alarm system that a technical object (25) or a plurality of technical objects (25) is / are excluded for generating the alarm messages when one or more predefined conditions are met. The control system (11) is characterized in that, when the one or more predefined conditions are met, it is designed to additionally exclude documents, which are related to the technical object (25) affected by the generated alarm message and which are provided for a visual representation for an operator of the control system (11) as part of operation and observation of the technical installation, from the operation by the operator at the runtime of the technical installation, the documents representing installation images (5), visualized step chains, visualized flowcharts, user selections (10), batch recipes, safety plans or detail views of technical objects.

Description

[0001] Description

[0002] Holistic alarm management for a control system for a technical plant

[0003] The invention relates to a control system for a technical plant, in particular a manufacturing or process plant. The invention also relates to a method for operating a technical plant, in particular a manufacturing or process plant, and a method.

[0004] For the operation and monitoring of process engineering plants, symbolic plant diagrams are created that abstractly represent the process engineering relationships – especially between individual process objects. Plant diagrams consist of static symbols (e.g., pipes, rectangles, etc.), dynamic symbols (e.g., pipes changing color depending on process values, rectangles showing fill levels, etc.), block symbols (for the dynamic visualization of process engineering objects), complex controls (e.g., trend indicators, message sequence indicators, etc.), and containers to visualize content from independent and self-contained sources (e.g., webcams, plant diagrams of modular plant components, or applications such as a controller optimizer or KPI calculations).

[0005] Plant images are visualized in Operator Station Clients, and the process values ​​and process alarms necessary for dynamic operation are provided by Operator Station Servers via their process images. For operators to operate and monitor process plants, in particular, efficient alarm management is crucial for handling active alarms and proactively preventing them. Although continuous processes are automated in process plants, these plants can be in different states. Examples of such states include: "starting up," "shutting down," "in product changeover" (modular plant components are being replaced), "under maintenance," or "partial shutdown."

[0006] These conditions are taken into account in alarm management to prevent, for example, unnecessary alarms from being reported for plant components that have been intentionally shut down. This prevents operators from being distracted from handling genuinely relevant alarms. This proactive suppression of alarms based on plant status can be automated via "Alarm Suppression By Design (ASBD)," provided it has been configured accordingly. Figures 1 to 3 show an exemplary implementation of such an ASBD configuration for a control system alarm system according to the state of the art.As a first step, as shown in FIG. 1, during the creation of an automation system for the technical plant (also referred to as the project planning or engineering phase), a project engineer creates various alarm suppression groups (Alarm Suppression Groups 1 and 2) 1a, 1b with their respective relevant states 2 (listed exhaustively) using a suitably designed service of an engineering station server of a control system. In FIG. 1, these states are: "Operation", "Out_of_Operation", "Startup", "Shutdown", "Product_change", "Standby", "Emergency", and "Maintenance".

[0007] Furthermore, condition 3 can be defined, from which it can be derived whether this state is currently active – usually, the state is derived from process values. For example, the state “Startup” in FIG 1 is activated by a condition “SFC / Start / OpDi01.Out”, the state “Shutdown” by a condition “G05103 / CFC_MonDiL / MonDiL.Out”, the state “Emergency” by a condition “EC05403 / CFC_MotSpdCL / lntlock.Out”, and the state “Complete Shutdown” by a condition “Connectivity / Stop”.

[0008] In a second step, as shown in FIG. 2, the alarm suppression groups 1a and 1b are assigned to the process objects whose alarms are suitable for suppression in a specific plant state. FIG. 2 shows the assignment of alarm suppression group 1a to a process object "MonAnL", which indicates a water level.

[0009] In a subsequent step, as shown in FIG. 3, the specific alarms 4 of the process object “MonAnL” are defined, which are suppressed in a specific plant state. For example, the alarm “AlarmSD_2” of the process object MonAnL is suppressed when the plant state “Shutdown” is detected, whereby the plant state is determined via the process value “OUT” of “MonAnL”.

[0010] EP 2 092 499 B1 and EP 1 855 172 A1 disclose control systems, each of which has an alarm management function. These alarm management modules allow alarms from components of technical systems to be detected, visually displayed, and further processed, among other things.

[0011] EP 4 083 731 A1 discloses a control system with a computer-implemented alarm management service. EP 2 109 019 A1 describes a method for the flexible control of recipes in automated batch processes, in which recipe phases can be dynamically adjusted during execution without interrupting the process.

[0012] The Siemens catalog “The SIMATIC PCS 7 Process Control System Totally Integrated Automation” dated April 30, 2008, provides an overview of the SIMATIC PCS 7 control system from Siemens AG.

[0013] The invention is based on the objective of providing a control system for a technical plant which increases the efficiency and flexibility of the operation and monitoring of the technical plant.

[0014] This problem is solved by a control system for a technical plant, in particular a production or process plant, with the features of claim 1. Furthermore, the problem is solved by a method for operating a technical plant, in particular a production or process plant, according to claim 9. In addition, the problem is solved by a method according to claim 10. Advantageous embodiments are described in the dependent claims.

[0015] A control system according to the invention for a technical plant, in particular a manufacturing or process plant, comprising a computer-implemented alarm system designed to monitor technical objects with regard to predefinable criteria and to generate alarm messages relating to the monitored technical objects, wherein it is predefinable in the alarm system that a technical object or a plurality of technical objects are excluded from the generation of alarm messages when predefinable conditions are met, is characterized in that it is designed to additionally, when the predefinable conditions are met, documents that are related to the technical object affected by the generated alarm message and that are intended for visual display by an operator of the control system during operation and monitoring of the technical plant.to exclude operation by the operator during the running time of the technical system. The documents represent system images, visualized step sequences, visualized process diagrams, user selections, batch recipes, safety plans, or detailed views of technical objects. The technical system can be a system from the process industry, such as a chemical, pharmaceutical, petrochemical, or food and beverage industry system. This also includes any systems from the manufacturing industry, such as plants where cars or goods of all kinds are produced. Technical systems suitable for carrying out the method according to the invention can also come from the field of energy generation. Wind turbines, solar power plants, or power plants for energy generation are likewise included in the term "technical system."

[0016] In this context, a control system is understood to be a computer-aided, technical system that includes functionalities for displaying, operating, and controlling the technical plant. The control system can also include sensors for acquiring measured values ​​and various actuators. Furthermore, the control system can include so-called process- or production-related components that serve to control the actuators or sensors. In addition, the control system can include, among other things, means for visualizing the process plant and for engineering purposes. Optionally, the control system can also include additional computing units for more complex control systems and systems for data storage and processing.

[0017] The control system includes a known alarm system designed to generate alarm messages. These messages are triggered when predefined criteria, such as exceeding or falling below a threshold, are met and presented to an operator of the control system, particularly visually and / or audibly. As previously explained using a known alarm system as an example, the alarm system can be configured to exclude one or more technical objects from generating these alarm messages if one or more predefined conditions are fulfilled. As previously explained, this can be useful, for example, if a part of the technical system is currently out of operation for maintenance purposes.

[0018] The control system according to the invention features improved operation and monitoring compared to the prior art and, within the framework of selective deactivation, takes into account not only individual alarm messages but also documents that are not alarm messages but are related to the technical objects that are the cause of the generated alarm messages. As mentioned previously, these documents include plant diagrams, visualized sequences of steps, visualized process diagrams, user selections, batch recipes, safety plans, or detailed views of technical objects. It is essential that the technical object that causes the alarm message(s) is related to the document.This can mean, for example, that a visual representation of the technical object is part of the plant diagram, the (visualized) sequence of steps, or a (visualized) process plan.

[0019] The control system according to the invention therefore does not limit selective deactivation to alarm messages, but provides a holistic concept for the various aspects of operation and monitoring. This allows the presentations, especially the visual ones, to be reduced to the aspects essential for the operator during operation and monitoring, thereby increasing the overall efficiency and reliability of operation and monitoring.

[0020] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the control system is configured to exclude from operator access, during operation of the technical system, documents related to the technical object affected by the generated alarm message and intended for visual display by the control system operator during operation and monitoring of the technical system, until the specified conditions are no longer met. In other words, the selective deactivation of the documents is only active as long as the specified condition(s) are fulfilled. Thus, the selective deactivation is only activated for as long as it is necessary.

[0021] Preferably, the control system is designed to receive information from a project engineer during the development of an automation system for the technical plant, specifying which documents should be excluded from access. The project engineer can therefore define, during the design or engineering of the technical plant, which documents should be excluded from access if the condition(s) are met.

[0022] The specified condition(s) can refer to a state of the technical system or a part thereof. Such a state could be, for example: "Operation," "Out of Operation," "Startup," "Shutdown," "Product Change," "Standby," "Emergency," or "Maintenance." The control system is preferably configured to receive information from an operator during the operation of the technical system, specifying which documents should be excluded from operation if the condition(s) are met. The operator can specify the documents and the condition(s) for selective deactivation while operating and monitoring the technical system, i.e., while the system is already in operation.It can therefore react flexibly and dynamically to changing conditions in order to improve its operation and monitoring.

[0023] Preferably, the guidance system is designed to indicate to the operator, in the visual display, the documents that are excluded from operation by means of a change in contrast or color, in particular by covering the visual display of the documents with a gray overlay. This provides the operator with immediate information that the documents are locked. The use of, for example, the gray overlay may allow the operator to still observe the marked documents but not to interact with them. This may be advantageous for the operator in certain circumstances.

[0024] However, it can also be stipulated that the additional documents, upon fulfillment of the specified condition(s), are excluded from monitoring by the operator during the operation of the technical system. The operator therefore has neither access to nor the ability to monitor the documents in question.

[0025] In an advantageous further development of the invention, the control system comprises an Engineering Station Server for generating the automation for the technical plant, an Operator Station Server for generating a visual representation for the operation and monitoring of the technical plant, and an Operator Station Client for the visual representation of the operation and monitoring, wherein the alarm system is implemented on the Operator Station Server.

[0026] In this context, an "Operator Station Server" is understood to be a server that centrally collects data from an operator control and monitoring system, as well as typically alarm and measurement archives from a control system of a technical plant, and makes this data available to users. The Operator Station Server usually establishes a communication link to the automation systems of the technical plant and forwards data from the plant to so-called Operator Station Clients, which are used to operate and monitor the operation of the individual functional elements of the technical plant. The Operator Station Server can have client functions to access the data (archives, messages, tags, variables) of other Operator Station Servers. This allows for combining images of the technical plant's operation on the Operator Station Server with variables from other Operator Station Servers (server-to-server communication).The Operator Station Server can be, but is not limited to, a SIMATIC PCS 7 Industrial Workstation Server from SIEMENS.

[0027] It is assumed that the Operator Station Server includes at least one software component capable of generating an alarm of a specific severity level for a certain period of time following an error occurring within that software component. Such a software component could be, for example, a process imaging service, a visualization service, an archiving service, or a communication service implemented on the Operator Station Server, providing various functionalities for operating and monitoring the technical system.

[0028] In this context, an error is generally understood as a deviation of the actual state of the software component from the target state of the software component.

[0029] The alarm generated by the alarm system is sounded for a specific period of time and usually indicates a certain severity level. This provides information about the presence of a fault, its duration, and its severity.

[0030] The previously formulated task is also solved by a method for operating a technical plant, in particular a manufacturing or process plant, with a control system which is designed as previously explained.

[0031] The previously formulated task is also solved by a procedure comprising the following steps: a) By means of a computer-implemented alarm system (31) of a control system (11) for a technical plant, in particular a process or manufacturing plant, monitoring of technical objects (25) with regard to predefinable criteria and generation of alarm messages concerning the monitored technical objects (25) when the predefinable criteria are met, b) specifying in the alarm system (31) that a technical object (25) or a plurality of technical objects (25) are excluded from the generation of alarm messages when one or more predefinable conditions are met, c) When one or more predefinable conditions are met, additional exclusion of documents,which are related to the technical object affected by the generated alarm message and which are intended for visual representation by an operator of the control system during operation and monitoring of the technical system, from operation by the operator during the running time of the technical system, wherein the documents represent system images, visualized step sequences, visualized process plans, user selections, batch recipes, safety plans or detailed views of technical objects.

[0032] The properties, features, and advantages of this invention described above, as well as the manner in which they are achieved, will become clearer and more readily understandable in connection with the following description of exemplary embodiments, which are explained in more detail in conjunction with the drawings. The drawings show:

[0033] FIG 4 shows a design of a plant layout of a process plant;

[0034] FIG 5 shows a visual representation of the plant layout according to a first aspect;

[0035] FIG 6 shows a visual representation of the plant image according to a second aspect;

[0036] FIG 7 shows a visual representation of the plant layout according to a third aspect; and

[0037] FIG 8 shows a guidance system in a schematic representation.

[0038] Figure 4 shows the design of a plant diagram 5, which is carried out by a designer of a technical plant configured as a process plant using a specially designed computer-implemented design tool 6. The plant diagram 5 comprises a visual representation 7 of a first technical object (a valve) and a visual representation 8 of a second technical object (a tank). In a right-hand section of the design tool, the designer can specify that the properties of the plant diagram 5 also take into account the different plant states 2 of previously defined alarm suppression groups 1a.

[0039] In this embodiment, the following was specified:

[0040] • If the system state 2 “Shutdown” of alarm suppression group 1a is detected, system screen 5 is completely removed from operation and monitoring – i.e., as long as the “Shutdown” state is present, this system screen 5 can neither be opened, nor is it offered in the system screen hierarchy, nor does it contribute to a group alarm formation in a system screen hierarchy.

[0041] If the system status 2 "Out of Service" of alarm suppression group 1a is detected, system screen 5 should be offered with restricted operation and monitoring – i.e., as long as system status 2 "Out of Service" is active, system screen 5 can be opened and monitored, but not operated. System screen 5 is overlaid with a gray veil to graphically represent this status. Furthermore, while system screen 5 is offered in the system screen hierarchy, its group alarm does not contribute to the coding of higher-level group alarms.

[0042] FIG. 5 shows a visual representation of the previously designed plant image 5 in a computer-implemented tool 9 for operating and monitoring the process plant. The image depicts the state in which none of the plant states 2 to be considered are present; thus, the process plant is operating normally. FIG. 6 shows the same plant image 5 with a gray overlay, as the plant state "Out of Service" (see FIG. 4) has been detected at this point. The plant image 5 remains observable but cannot be operated. Furthermore, the group alarm of the plant image 5 is not ORed – that is, its alarm state does not contribute to the ORing during group alarm generation.

[0043] Selective deactivation can be applied not only to plant images, but also to other documents, such as...

[0044] • Visualized step sequences (SFC Visu), which can be opened, for example, from the technological hierarchy or from plant images.

[0045] • Visualized process flowcharts (CFG Visu), which can be opened, for example, from the technological hierarchy or from plant images.

[0046] • User selections - these are associated with the alarm suppression groups at runtime after creation.

[0047] • Batch recipes, which can be opened, for example, from the technological hierarchy or from plant diagrams • Process safety plans, which can be opened, for example, from the technological hierarchy or from plant diagrams

[0048] • Detailed views of process objects.

[0049] Figure 7 shows that user selections 10 created at runtime can also be associated with the system state. These user selections 10 can also be associated at runtime with the alarm suppression groups 1a and 1b configured in the project and with the respective system states 2. In this embodiment, the operator has decided to offer ("enable") the user selection "Tank 1 Alarms" for a message sequence display only if the system state 2 is "Operation". In contrast, the user selection "Tank Overview Alarms" should always be offered, except when the system is in the "Out_of_Operations" state.

[0050] Figure 8 schematically illustrates a control system 11 according to the invention for a process plant. The control system 11 comprises an operator station server 12, an operator station client 13, an engineering station server 14, and an automation device 15. The operator station server 12 has a device interface 16 that is connected to a plant bus 17. Via this device interface 16, the operator station server 12 is connected to the automation device 15 and to other components of the process plant, such as peripheral devices 17, 18, and 19, and can communicate with them. The plant bus 17 can, but is not limited to, be configured as Industrial Ethernet.

[0051] The Operator Station Server 12 implements (among other things) a visualization service 21, a process image 22, and a configuration memory 23 ("Config"). The visualization service 21 integrated into the Operator Station Server 12 initiates the transmission of visualization information to the Operator Station Client 13. The Operator Station Client 13 is configured to display a visualization, i.e., a graphical representation 24, in particular of plant images ("Plant Display"), measurement trends, controls, and similar elements for operating and monitoring the process plant.

[0052] The process image 22 of the Operator Station Server 12 contains a snapshot of the (signal) states of devices 25 and / or applications connected to the Operator Station Server 12. In this embodiment, these are transmitted from the automation device 15 to the Operator Station Server 12. Furthermore, an alarm service 31 ("Alarm Manager") is implemented on the Operator Station Server 12, which, in conjunction with the automation device 15, forms an alarm system. This system is designed to monitor the process objects 25 with respect to predefined criteria and to generate alarm messages regarding the monitored process objects 25.

[0053] After a project engineer has completed the automation for the process plant, the automation data is converted by a compilation service 26 ("Compile & Load") of the Engineering Station Server 14 into a data format understandable to the automation device 15 and the Operator Station Server 12, and then transferred to both devices. The portion of the automation data intended for operating and monitoring the process plant is stored in the configuration memory 23 of the Operator Station Server 12. The portion pertaining to the automation device 15 is stored accordingly in a data memory of the automation device 15.

[0054] As described in Figures 4 to 7, a plant image editor 27 (or the respective editors for other document types) of the Engineering Station Server 14 is extended so that the visualization of the respective plant states can also be taken into account during selective deactivation. In the group alarm ("GA: Plant_Display1") of the plant image, the dependency of the plant image on a plant state from the alarm suppression group is stored such that a suppression service 28 ("Suppression Manager") implemented on the Operator Station Server 12, upon detection of a relevant plant state, executes the configured sequence ("remove", "disable", ...) can be entered, which is then taken into account by the plant image hierarchy service 29 ("Display Hierarchy") implemented on the Operator Station Server 12 for navigation and group alarm formation, and by a plant image service 30 ("SOM") implemented on the Operator Station Server 12 for displaying the plant image.

[0055] As described, the software components of the user selections are also being extended so that, specifically for user selections, it can be defined across all types for which system states these should be offered or reserved.

[0056] Although the invention has been illustrated and described in detail by the preferred embodiment, the invention is not limited by the disclosed examples and other variations can be derived by the person skilled in the art without leaving the scope of protection of the invention.

Claims

Patent claims 1. Control system (11) for a technical plant, in particular a manufacturing or process plant, comprising a computer-implemented alarm system (31) designed to monitor technical objects (25) with regard to predefinable criteria and to generate alarm messages concerning the monitored technical objects (25), wherein it is predefinable in the alarm system (31) that a technical object (25) or a plurality of technical objects (25) are exempt from the generation of alarm messages when one or more predefinable conditions are met, characterized in that the control system (11) is designed to additionally generate documents when one or more predefinable conditions are met,to exclude from operation by the operator during the operation of the technical system which are related to the technical object (25) affected by the generated alarm message and which are intended for visual representation by an operator of the control system (11) in the context of operation and monitoring of the technical system, wherein the documents represent system images (5), visualized step sequences, visualized process plans, user selections (10), batch recipes, safety plans or detailed views of technical objects.

2. Control system (11) according to claim 1, which is configured to exclude from operation by the operator during the operation of the technical system the documents which are related to the technical object (25) affected by the generated alarm message and which are intended for a visual representation for an operator of the control system (11) in the context of operation and monitoring of the technical system, until the specified or specified conditions are no longer met.

3. Control system (11) according to claim 1 or 2, which is configured to receive information from a project engineer during the creation of an automation for the technical plant, indicating which documents are to be excluded from operation in the event of the fulfillment of the condition or conditions.

4. Control system (11) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the specified condition or conditions relate to a state of the technical system or a part of the technical system.

5. Control system (11) according to one of the preceding claims, which is configured to receive information from an operator of the control system (11) during the operation of the technical system, indicating which documents are to be excluded from operation in the event of the fulfillment of the condition or conditions.

6. Guidance system (11) according to one of the preceding claims, which is configured to indicate in the visual representation for the operator the documents which are excluded from operation by a changed contrast or a changed color scheme, in particular by covering the visual representation of the documents with a grey veil.

7. Control system (11) according to one of the preceding claims, which is designed to exclude the additional documents from observation by the operator during the running time of the technical system when the specified condition or conditions are met.

8. Control system (11) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising an Engineering Station Server (14) for generating the automation for the technical plant, an Operator Station Server (12) for generating a visual representation for the operation and monitoring of the technical plant and an Operator Station Client (13) for the visual representation of the operation and monitoring, wherein the alarm system (31) is at least partially implemented on the Operator Station Server (12).

9. Method for operating a technical plant, in particular a manufacturing or process plant, with a control system (11) according to one of claims 1 to 8.

10. Method comprising the following steps: a) By means of a computer-implemented alarm system (31) of a control system (11) for a technical plant, in particular a process or manufacturing plant, monitoring of technical objects (25) with regard to predefinable criteria and generating alarm messages concerning the monitored technical objects (25) when the predefinable criteria are met; b) specifying in the alarm system (31) that a technical object (25) or a plurality of technical objects (25) are exempt from the generation of alarm messages when one or more predefinable conditions are met; c) When one or more predefinable conditions are met, additionally excluding documents that are related to the technical object (25) affected by the generated alarm message and that are used for a visual representation for an operator of the control system (11) in the context of operating and monitoring the technical system, from the operation by the operator during the running time of the technical system, wherein the documents represent system images (5), visualized step sequences, visualized process plans, user selections (10), batch recipes, safety plans or detailed views of technical objects.

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