Automation Object Libraries for Cross-Project IDE Change Propagation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing industrial automation systems require separate development environments for different aspects such as control programming, visualization, and device configuration, leading to piecemeal design and significant debugging efforts due to inconsistent integration.
Innovation Solution
An integrated development environment (IDE) that uses automation objects as building blocks, supporting a common data model for designing, programming, and configuring industrial automation systems, with features for notification of edits to shared libraries and propagation of changes across projects.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If separate development environments are used for control programming, visualization, and device configuration, then each aspect can be developed independently, but integration consistency deteriorates and debugging effort increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges separate development environments into a single integrated development environment (IDE) that provides unified project management, consistent data models, and coordinated editing across control programming, visualization, and device configuration. This integration ensures that changes in one area automatically reflect in related areas, maintaining integration consistency while enabling independent development of each aspect through modular project structures.
2Adaptability or versatility
If automation objects are shared across multiple projects in a library, then project reuse and consistency are improved, but change management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the system automatically tracks which projects reference automation objects from the library and notifies all affected projects when an object is edited. This feedback loop enables seamless change propagation across multiple projects, allowing high reuse capability while managing change complexity automatically through the IDE's notification and update distribution system.
3Reliability
If manual updates are performed for each project when library objects change, then change control is maintained, but time consumption and productivity are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a self-service update mechanism where the IDE automatically detects changes to automation objects in the library, identifies all projects referencing those objects, and propagates the changes to all affected projects without requiring manual intervention. This self-service approach maintains reliable change control through automatic tracking while dramatically improving productivity by eliminating manual update efforts.
Data Source
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AI summary
An industrial integrated development environment (IDE) provides a development framework for designing, programming, and configuring multiple aspects of an industrial automation system using a common design environment and data model. Projects creating using embodiments of the IDE system can be built on an object-based model rather than, or in addition to, a tag-based architecture. To this end, the IDE system can support the use of automation objects that serve as building blocks for this object-based development structure. These automation objects represent corresponding physical industrial assets and have associated programmatic attributes relating to those assets. Automation objects can be maintained in shared libraries that can be referenced by system projects. The IDE system can notify projects that reference these automation objects of updates to the object libraries, including edits to existing objects or addition of new objects.