Unified Maintenance Display for Field Devices

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Solution Overview

Problem

In industrial plants, existing device maintenance systems face challenges in improving work efficiency due to complex display mode operations and inadequate visibility of maintenance items, leading to inefficient execution and storage of maintenance records.

Innovation Solution

A device maintenance apparatus with a touch panel interface that facilitates communication with field devices, providing a user-friendly interface for selecting and executing maintenance items based on device-specific parameters, displaying relevant information, and prompting workers for timely maintenance through intuitive graphical displays.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the device maintenance apparatus requires switching between different display modes to execute maintenance items and store/display records, then the system can separate maintenance execution and record management functions, but the workability decreases due to complex switching operations

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefunctional separationVSAvoidworkability

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines multiple display functions (maintenance item execution, record storage, and record display) into a single unified display mode. The display unit shows maintenance items with their execution status, elapsed time since execution, and next execution timing all together, eliminating the need to switch between different display modes while maintaining all necessary functions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

2Device complexity

If maintenance records are simply stored as history without additional information, then the storage system remains simple, but the number of days elapsed since maintenance execution and the timing for next maintenance cannot be immediately determined

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestorage simplicityVSAvoidmaintenance timing visibility

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the maintenance information display into distinct visual elements within the same display mode: maintenance item identification, execution status indication, elapsed time display, and next execution timing display. This segmentation allows all critical information to be visible simultaneously without requiring complex storage structures.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system provides immediate visual feedback by displaying elapsed time since maintenance execution and calculating/显示 next execution timing based on stored maintenance intervals. This feedback mechanism ensures that workers can immediately determine maintenance status and upcoming requirements without additional queries or calculations.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentEP3239797B1Field device maintenance apparatus, method for maintaining a field device, and storage medium

Publication Date: 2019.10.02 YOKOGAWA ELECTRIC CORP

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AI summary

A device maintenance apparatus includes a display configured to display an operator receivable of an operation for causing at least one maintenance item associated with a device of a maintenance target to be executed on the device and prompting information for prompting execution of the at least one maintenance item on the basis of execution information of the at least one maintenance item.