Alarm Template Rationalization for Nuisance Alarm Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Industrial process control systems face challenges with frequent nuisance alarms, alarm floods, and inconsistent prioritization, overwhelming operators and leading to missed critical alarms, which are labor-intensive and time-consuming to rationalize.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for rationalizing alarms by identifying alarms requiring rationalization, creating customizable templates with standardized properties, and applying these templates to target tags, allowing for efficient standardization and validation of alarm settings across the control system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional alarm rationalization techniques review every configurable alarm tag, then alarm settings can be optimized, but the process becomes labor-intensive and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the alarm rationalization process by identifying and focusing on critical subsets of alarms rather than reviewing all alarms. It uses criteria such as alarm frequency, severity, and operational impact to divide alarms into priority groups, allowing rationalization efforts to concentrate on the most problematic portions of the alarm system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by implementing rationalization strategies for only the most critical alarms initially, rather than attempting to optimize all alarms simultaneously. This allows for quicker implementation and validation of rationalization techniques on high-impact alarms, with the ability to expand to other alarms progressively.
2Reliability
If alarm experts and operators manually rationalize alarms, then alarm settings can be optimized, but the process becomes labor-intensive given the volume of tags
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service capabilities where the alarm management system automatically identifies candidate alarms for rationalization, applies rationalization rules, and validates results with minimal human intervention. The system uses automated analysis of alarm data, frequency patterns, and operational context to perform rationalization tasks that would otherwise require extensive manual expert review.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical review processes with automated computational analysis. Instead of experts manually examining each alarm tag, the system uses algorithms to analyze alarm data, identify patterns, and apply rationalization criteria automatically, significantly reducing the labor required while maintaining or improving rationalization quality.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If existing solutions use multi-level alarm configuration thresholds, then alarm frequency can be reduced, but acquiring thresholds becomes time-consuming and complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by pre-configuring rationalization rules, criteria, and templates that can be automatically applied to alarms. Instead of requiring complex threshold acquisition during implementation, the system comes pre-loaded with rationalization strategies, alarm classification frameworks, and decision rules that can be deployed immediately with minimal customization.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses copying mechanisms where proven rationalization configurations, alarm templates, and rule sets can be replicated across different alarm systems or applications. Once rationalization parameters and rules are established for one system, they can be copied and adapted to similar systems, avoiding the need to重新 acquire and develop thresholds for each new application.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a method for rationalizing alarms and tags in a control system. The method comprises steps of identifying one or more alarms associated with tags in the control system that require rationalization, creating an alarm template from existing alarm settings or selecting a predefined alarm template that includes standardized properties and values. The method further comprises applying the created or selected alarm template to the identified one or more alarms and selecting a source tag with rationalized alarm settings and copying the source tag properties, including at least one of alarm properties, boundary properties, and operational mode-specific settings. The method further comprises applying the copied source tag properties to one or more target tags and validating the applied target tags being consistent with the requirements of the control system.