Industrial Controller Multicast Processing for Scalable Vision Data Throughput

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Solution Overview

Problem

Industrial control systems are not designed for high-performance computing of high-volume rich context data, leading to a technology gap in processing high-speed, high-definition vision data for real-time applications like quality assessment and production line control.

Innovation Solution

A system utilizing packetization, sequential tagging, and multicast communication of streaming sensor data, combined with a modular design, distributes processing tasks across multiple processing units connected to an industrial controller, enabling scalable throughput without network bandwidth constraints.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If traditional industrial controllers are used for processing high-volume rich context data, then reliability and determinism are maintained, but computational performance and processing throughput are insufficient

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontroller reliabilityVSAvoiddata processing throughput

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system divides the control architecture into two segments: a traditional industrial controller that maintains reliability and determinism for control functions, and multiple external processing units that handle high-volume data processing. This segmentation allows each component to specialize in its strength while working together through standardized interfaces.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an intermediary communication layer with standardized data interfaces between the industrial controller and external processing units. This intermediary enables reliable control commands to be issued while high-speed data processing occurs externally, resolving the contradiction between controller reliability and processing throughput.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Device complexity

If a single processing unit handles all data processing tasks, then system complexity is low, but processing throughput and scalability are limited

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem complexityVSAvoidprocessing throughput

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The processing function is segmented into multiple independent processing units that can be distributed across different hardware platforms. Each unit handles specific data streams or processing tasks, enabling parallel processing and scalable throughput while maintaining manageable complexity through modular design.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The processing units are designed with universal interfaces and standardized communication protocols, allowing them to perform multiple functions and be deployed in various configurations. This multi-functionality enables the system to scale processing capacity without proportionally increasing system complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Productivity

If high frame rate vision data is processed in real time, then quality assessment and production line control are enabled, but network bandwidth requirements increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvereal-time processing capabilityVSAvoidnetwork bandwidth consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the high-bandwidth data processing function from the control network by implementing external processing units that receive data through efficient interfaces. This extraction reduces the bandwidth burden on the control network while maintaining real-time processing capability for quality assessment and production line control.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS12517487B2System and method for enabling scalable processing throughput of high-volume data on industrial controllers

Publication Date: 2026.01.06 SIEMENS AG

AI summary

A system for processing data in an industrial environment includes a sensor that communicates sensor data acquired from a factory floor as a multicast data stream where each frame is tagged with a sequence identifier indicative of a position of that frame in the data stream. A network switch distributes the data stream to a group of multicast endpoints. The system includes a controller with a plurality of modularly connected processing units. Each processing unit is further connected to the network switch and configured as a respective endpoint of the group of multicast endpoints. Each processing unit selectively processes frames of the data stream in dependence of the sequence identifier of individual frames by executing a data processing module, to produce an output result associated with each processed frame. The controller assembles the output result and the sequence identifier of each processed frame from the plurality of processing units.