Process Element Version Control for Continuous Plant Operation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current process plant systems allow only one version of a process element to exist at a time, limiting the ability to modify and deploy new versions without downtime, which hampers productivity and increases the cost and time of auditing in heavily regulated industries like food and pharmaceuticals.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a version control system that enables multiple versions of process elements to be managed across build, run, and reporting environments, allowing simultaneous deployment and auditing of differences rather than the entire element.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If only one version of a process element is allowed to exist at a time, then system simplicity is maintained, but productivity decreases due to required downtime for modifications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the process element lifecycle into distinct version instances, allowing multiple versions to coexist simultaneously. Each version is treated as a separate entity with its own identification and state, enabling parallel operation of different versions in the process plant without conflict.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a version dimension to the process element management system. Instead of allowing only one version at a time (single-dimensional), the system now manages process elements across multiple version instances (multi-dimensional), adding the version identifier as an additional degree of freedom in the system state space.
2Productivity
If multiple versions of process elements are allowed simultaneously, then productivity increases by avoiding downtime, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal version control framework that handles multiple versions of process elements through a single integrated system. The version control mechanism provides multi-functional capabilities including version creation, identification, tracking, and management, allowing the system to handle diverse version scenarios through unified principles and data structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a version control system as an intermediary layer between the process elements and the plant operation systems. This intermediary manages the complexity of multiple versions by providing abstraction, version identification, and coordination mechanisms, shielding the core process control systems from version management complexity while enabling productive multi-version operation.
3Reliability
If the entire process element is audited, then auditing completeness is ensured, but auditing time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and isolates the version identification and comparison functionality from the comprehensive auditing process. By separating version-specific information from the overall process element audit, the system can focus auditing efforts on relevant differences between versions rather than re-auditing entire process elements, significantly reducing auditing time while maintaining completeness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements partial auditing by focusing only on the differences between process element versions rather than auditing the entire process element each time. This partial action approach audits only the changed portions (excessive action on differences) while skipping unchanged portions, reducing overall auditing time and cost while maintaining reliability through targeted verification of modifications.
Data Source
AI summary
Multiple versions of a process element in a process plant may run at the same time in different sub-systems of the plant such as configuration system, display system, and run time system. The ability to run multiple versions of process elements allows for more flexibility in production and reduces the time and costs in changes in product production. It is now possible to reduce auditing costs by performing an audit only on differences between versions instead of the entire process element.