Industrial Development Hub for Virtual Control Project Analysis

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Solution Overview

Problem

Industrial automation systems face challenges in efficient development and testing due to complexity and custom nature, leading to long development cycles and cost overruns, with existing solutions lacking virtualization and simulation capabilities, making it difficult to manage OT-level systems and protect proprietary intellectual property from failures or cyber-attacks.

Innovation Solution

A cloud-based Industrial Development Hub (IDH) with enhanced storage and design tools supports development and testing, providing a repository for control project code, device configurations, and digital aspects, facilitating easy management, backup, restore, code conversion, and version management, along with analytics and simulation capabilities.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If industrial automation systems use traditional development and testing methods, then systems can be deployed, but development cycles are long and costs overrun

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedevelopment cycle speedVSAvoiddevelopment time
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary analysis of control projects using telemetry data and simulation before actual deployment. The IDH analyzes control logic, device configurations, and system interactions in advance to identify potential issues, optimize performance, and validate designs virtually, thereby accelerating the actual development and deployment process.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Ease of operation

If industrial automation systems lack virtualization capabilities, then systems can operate, but it is difficult to manage OT-level systems and protect proprietary intellectual property

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesystem management easeVSAvoidmanagement complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system creates virtual copies and digital representations of OT-level systems through telemetry data collection and simulation environments. These virtual models allow engineers to manage, analyze, and optimize control projects remotely without direct access to physical systems, simplifying management while protecting proprietary intellectual property by keeping sensitive data in virtualized form.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

Data Source

PatentUS12153396B2Industrial automation asset and control project analysis
Publication Date: 2024.11.26 ROCKWELL AUTOMATION TECH INC
  • US12153396B2 patent drawing
  • US12153396B2 patent drawing
  • US12153396B2 patent drawing

AI summary

An industrial development hub (IDH) supports industrial development and testing capabilities that are offered as a cloud-based service. The IDH comprises an enhanced storage platform and associated design tools that serve as a repository on which customers can store control project code, device configurations, and other digital aspects of an industrial automation project. The IDH system can facilitate discovery and management of digital content associated with control systems, and can be used for system backup and restore, code conversion, and version management.