Plant Control System Gateway for Field Data Filtering
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing amount of information from digitalized and intelligent field devices in plant control systems overwhelms controllers and managers, making it difficult to distinguish between necessary and unnecessary data, which hinders effective utilization of this information for improving plant normality.
Innovation Solution
A plant control system that includes a controller and a manager capable of processing and selecting field information from field devices, using communication processors, data processors, and device-device processors to transmit and analyze process data, diagnosis information, and optimization settings, thereby reducing the load on the system and optimizing alarm selection and processing at the field level.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If field devices are digitalized and made intelligent to obtain more information, then the amount of useful information increases, but the processing load on controllers and managers increases
Solution Approach 1:
A gateway device is introduced as an intermediary between field devices and controllers/managers. The gateway performs preliminary processing of field information, filtering and converting data before transmission to controllers or managers. This mediator reduces the direct processing burden on controllers and managers while maintaining effective utilization of field information.
Solution Approach 2:
The system segments information processing into multiple levels: field devices generate information, the gateway performs initial filtering and processing, and controllers/managers handle higher-level decisions. This segmentation distributes the processing load across different components, preventing overload on any single device.
2Loss of information
If all field information is transmitted to controllers and managers, then complete data availability is achieved, but communication load increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway extracts and transmits only necessary and useful field information to controllers and managers, filtering out redundant or unnecessary data. This selective extraction maintains data availability for critical information while significantly reducing communication load and energy consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
Different information processing approaches are applied locally based on the specific requirements of controllers and managers. The gateway performs localized filtering and processing tailored to the needs of each receiving device, optimizing communication efficiency while ensuring appropriate data availability.
3Reliability
If intelligent field devices perform self-diagnosis, then early abnormality detection is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Field devices perform self-diagnosis and generate abnormality information autonomously without requiring complex external monitoring systems. The devices themselves provide the diagnostic function, improving reliability through early detection while avoiding the need for additional complex monitoring equipment.
Data Source
AI summary
A plant control system includes a controller configured to control a plant by using process data, the controller transmitting the process data to a field device and receiving the process data from the field device, the controller obtaining field information indicating a state of the field device from the field device, the field device being installed in the plant, and the field device performing at least one of a measurement and a manipulation which are necessary for the control of the plant, and a manager configured to manage a state of the plant by collecting the field information from the field device, wherein at least one of the controller and the manager creates information indicating a normality of the plant by using the field information.