Gateway-Based Remote Access for Browser-Compatible Automation UI
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Solution Overview
Problem
Industrial automation systems face challenges in providing flexible and secure remote access across diverse devices and software versions, requiring complex compatibility and security measures, especially with the increasing number of user devices and browser versions.
Innovation Solution
A system that utilizes a gateway unit to establish client instances for user devices, providing a secondary web browser to communicate with the automation system, and adapts the user interface based on feature information received from the user device, allowing for seamless remote access and improved security by acting as an intermediary for access protocols.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the automation system directly supports multiple user devices and browser versions, then accessibility and versatility are improved, but system complexity and compatibility maintenance increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a gateway unit as an intermediary between user devices and the automation system. This gateway performs protocol conversion and adaptation, allowing the automation system to communicate with diverse devices through a standardized interface. The gateway handles browser compatibility and device-specific protocols, shielding the core automation system from complexity while maintaining broad accessibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The system is segmented into distinct functional layers: the automation system core, the gateway unit for protocol adaptation, and the user device layer. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently - the gateway handles device-specific complexity while the automation system maintains simplicity, resolving the contradiction between versatility and complexity.
2Reliability
If the automation system implements comprehensive security measures for remote access, then security against malicious access is improved, but system complexity and processing overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway unit serves as a security intermediary, implementing authentication, authorization, and protocol validation before requests reach the automation system. This concentrates security functions in a dedicated component, improving security effectiveness while containing complexity within the gateway rather than distributing it throughout the entire system.
Solution Approach 2:
Security checks including authentication and protocol validation are performed preliminarily by the gateway before requests are forwarded to the automation system. This preliminary action filters out malicious access attempts early, reducing the security processing burden on the main system while maintaining comprehensive security measures.
3Ease of operation
If the system provides customized user interfaces for different devices, then user experience and ease of operation are improved, but development and maintenance effort increase
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway unit acts as an interface intermediary that adapts user interactions to device-specific characteristics. It translates between different input methods, display formats, and interaction patterns while maintaining a unified communication protocol with the automation system, thereby improving user experience without requiring multiple interface implementations.
Solution Approach 2:
The gateway provides universal interface adaptation capabilities, handling multiple device types and interaction patterns through a single unified component. This multi-functional approach allows the system to support diverse user devices with customized interfaces while concentrating development and maintenance effort in the gateway rather than requiring separate interface code for each device type.
Data Source
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AI summary
According to an example aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method, comprising: performing a second web browser accessible by a first web browser in a remote user device, communicating with a first web application in the first web browser of the user device, performing a second web application in the second web browser configured to communicate with an automation service of an automation system and provide a user interface to the automation service, receiving first feature information from the first web application, and providing, on the basis of the received first feature information, second feature information for adapting the user interface to the automation service for the user device.