Fail-Safe Controller Software Approval in Hyperconverged IT
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge of operating cycle-oriented controller software in hyperconverged IT infrastructures for fail-safe control is exacerbated by the unknown hardware properties during design phase, making it difficult to implement and review functional safety features (F-features) due to dynamic changes in computing resource assignments.
Innovation Solution
A method is introduced to automatically check hardware and software properties as safety features (F-features) during commissioning and operation, ensuring compliance with fail-safe requirements by querying and verifying these features before allowing regular operation, and maintaining a safe state if conditions are not met.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If controller software is executed in a hyperconverged IT infrastructure with abstracted hardware, then adaptability and ease of deployment are improved, but hardware properties become unknown during design phase making functional safety review difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by checking hardware and software properties (F-features) during the commissioning phase before the controller software begins regular operation. This ensures that safety-critical hardware characteristics are verified in advance, when the system is still being set up and before any automated safety checks during operation would be needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms that automatically query and verify hardware properties and F-features during commissioning and operation. The system continuously monitors whether the actual hardware configuration matches the required safety features, providing feedback that enables automatic safety verification without requiring manual hardware documentation or configuration files.
2Ease of operation
If hardware abstraction through containers and hypervisors is used, then ease of operation and deployment are improved, but reliability for fail-safe control deteriorates due to unknown hardware properties
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies self-service by enabling the controller software to automatically query and verify its own hardware properties and F-features during commissioning and operation. The system performs self-verification of safety-critical hardware characteristics without requiring external manual verification or configuration files, thus maintaining ease of deployment while ensuring reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the approach from static hardware configuration files to dynamic parameter verification. Instead of relying on pre-defined hardware parameters in configuration files, the system dynamically queries actual hardware properties during commissioning and operation, allowing the hardware abstraction layer to maintain ease of deployment while ensuring reliability through actual parameter verification.
3Reliability
If manual configuration and review of hardware properties is performed, then reliability for functional safety is improved, but productivity and ease of deployment deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical processes (manual configuration and review of hardware properties) with automated software-based verification. The system automatically queries hardware properties, verifies F-features, and determines suitability for fail-safe operation without requiring manual intervention, thus maintaining functional safety reliability while significantly improving productivity and ease of deployment.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs self-verification of hardware properties and F-features automatically during commissioning and operation, eliminating the need for manual configuration reviews. This self-service approach ensures functional safety through automated verification while maintaining high productivity by removing manual bottlenecks from the deployment process.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for operating a segment of cycle-oriented controller software for the fail-safe control of automation sequences of a process, wherein the controller software is executed within an IT infrastructure, where hardware properties and/or software properties are queried and checked as safety features to review the suitability of the IT infrastructure for performing the fail-safe automation sequences, and if the check is successful, then it can be inferred therefrom that the prerequisites for fail-safe operation are met, and thereupon the controller software obtains approval for regular operation, otherwise a safe state is adopted.