Indicator Lamp Recognition for Control Unit Identification
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Solution Overview
Problem
In factory control systems, it is difficult to easily distinguish the operating state of multiple control units with different display light specifications and to identify which control unit is experiencing a communication abnormality due to unclear arrangements and complex data association processes.
Innovation Solution
A control system that communicates with multiple control units equipped with indicator lamps capable of changing lighting states, using a control device and terminal with camera and monitor to recognize and specify control units through identification patterns, facilitating easy identification and display of control unit information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If multiple control units are arranged collectively at one location inside a control panel, then space utilization is improved, but it becomes difficult to easily distinguish and identify specific control units and their operating states
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses display lights with different colors (e.g., green for normal operation, red for abnormality) to visually distinguish control unit states. This allows operators to quickly identify the status of individual control units within a densely arranged control panel without needing to physically examine each unit, thus maintaining space efficiency while improving identifiability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a camera as an intermediary device that captures images of the control panel and transmits them to a terminal device. This intermediary system allows remote viewing and identification of control unit states, eliminating the need for operators to physically approach the control panel, thereby maintaining compact arrangement while improving accessibility and identification ease.
2Adaptability or versatility
If display lights of control units have different specifications, then individual unit functionality is optimized, but it becomes impossible to easily distinguish operating states at first glance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent standardizes the visual language by using consistent color codes across all control units regardless of their different specifications. Each control unit uses the same color scheme (e.g., green for normal, red for abnormal) even though the units themselves have different functionalities and specifications. This allows operators to universally interpret operating states across diverse control units without confusion.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal identification system that works across all control units with different specifications. The camera-based imaging system and standardized display light color codes provide a common language for status indication that transcends individual unit differences, allowing a single operational procedure to manage heterogeneous control units effectively.
3Measurement precision
If data association between captured LED images and control units is implemented, then control unit specification capability is improved, but the data input process becomes complicated and difficult to handle layout changes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables the system to automatically identify and associate control units with their corresponding data without requiring manual configuration. The camera captures the actual physical arrangement of control units, and the system automatically maps the captured image data to the appropriate control unit records, eliminating the need for complex manual data association processes and making the system automatically adaptable to layout changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary capture of the control panel layout image before any control unit identification or troubleshooting operations. This preliminary imaging action establishes the baseline spatial relationships, allowing the system to subsequently automatically associate control unit states with their correct locations without requiring reconfiguration when layouts change, thus simplifying the overall data association process.
Data Source
AI summary
A control device in a control system has a lighting control section which requests so as to cause the lighting state of an indicator lamp of a specific control unit to change in a predetermined identification pattern, and the control device or a terminal has: an indicator lamp recognition section which recognizes the indicator lamp in an image; a change pattern recognition section which recognizes a change in the lighting state of the indicator lamp in the image; an indicator lamp specification section which specifies the indicator lamp having a change pattern in lighting state which matches the identification pattern, as the indicator lamp of the control unit which the lighting control section caused the lighting state to change in the identification pattern; and a display control section which causes information related to the control unit to be displayed on the monitor of the terminal.