Prioritized Live Thumbnail Display for Process Graphics
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Solution Overview
Problem
Operators in industrial automation systems face challenges in monitoring multiple graphic views simultaneously, as current systems do not prioritize alarms based on importance or tag priority, leading to increased human effort and decreased productivity.
Innovation Solution
A system that automatically identifies and displays prioritized live thumbnails of process graphic views using real-time data sources, graphic file repositories, and engineering information data sources, with modules like Graphic File Monitor, Tag Monitor, View Ranker, and Prioritized Graphic Thumbnail Presenter to rank and highlight critical views, reducing the need for manual configuration and improving operator focus.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If operators manually monitor multiple graphic views simultaneously, then complete plant status information is obtained, but operator workload increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the comprehensive plant monitoring task into prioritized thumbnail views. Each thumbnail represents a specific graphic view with associated alarms, allowing operators to divide their attention across multiple segmented displays rather than forcing simultaneous monitoring of all views. The segmentation is based on alarm priority and tag importance, creating manageable information units.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates thumbnail copies of the actual graphic views. These thumbnails are simplified representations that display essential information (alarm status, tag priority) without requiring operators to view the full detailed graphics. This copying approach preserves information availability while reducing the cognitive load of monitoring multiple complete views simultaneously.
2Loss of information
If all alarms are displayed with equal priority, then no information is lost, but operator ability to focus on critical alarms is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies local quality by differentiating the display characteristics of alarms based on their priority and importance. Critical alarms with high priority and important tags are highlighted more prominently in the thumbnails, while less critical alarms are displayed with lower visual emphasis. This allows operators to quickly identify which specific areas require immediate attention without losing awareness of overall system status.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the display parameters of alarm information based on priority levels. Thumbnails associated with high-priority alarms or important tags are displayed differently (e.g., more prominent positioning, visual highlighting) compared to low-priority alarms. This parameter-based differentiation enables operators to focus on critical issues while maintaining awareness of the complete alarm landscape.
3Reliability
If overview graphics are manually configured to display all critical views, then complete monitoring coverage is achieved, but engineering effort and time are increased
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs self-service by automatically generating and updating thumbnail displays based on real-time alarm data and pre-defined priority rules. Rather than requiring engineers to manually configure and maintain overview graphics for every critical view, the system autonomously identifies which graphic views contain important tags or high-priority alarms and displays them as thumbnails. This self-configuration capability maintains comprehensive monitoring coverage while eliminating the time-consuming manual setup and maintenance of overview graphics.
Data Source
AI summary
The system for displaying prioritized live thumbnail of process graphic views includes at least one real time data source 406 for providing live data information and at least one engineering information data source 409. Graphic File Monitor 401 is configured for monitoring change in graphic files repository 405 and Tag Extractor 407 is configured for extracting tags from graphic file for monitoring based on predefined rules. The system also includes Tag Monitor 402 for monitoring alarm status and/or data status changes of monitored tags and reading tag importance and alarm priority for monitored tags and View Ranker 408 for prioritizing the graphic views by ranking. Prioritized Thumbnail Presenter System 403 is used for displaying top most prioritized graphics that requires attention. Display system 404 is provided for displaying the prioritized live thumbnails and enlarged view of the process graphic views and update data into graphic objects displayed in graphic views.