Trend Curve Visualization With Fuzziness Cues for Plant Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing control systems for technical plants struggle to accurately represent temporally aggregated measurement data, leading to fuzziness and increased loading times, making it difficult for operators to identify sections requiring raw data examination and causing loss of focus on the central theme due to overlapping periods.
Innovation Solution
A control system that includes an operator station server and client, which calculates and visually represents the fuzziness of temporally aggregated measured values relative to non-aggregated values, allowing operators to easily identify high fuzziness and switch to raw data without increasing the time period, using a visualization service to transmit this information and represent values in a circular shape for intuitive understanding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If measured values are temporally aggregated to reduce the number of data points for display, then the data volume is reduced and display performance is improved, but fuzziness increases and measurement precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the data representation by visually distinguishing between aggregated data points and underlying raw data points. The trend curve is divided into sections, with some sections showing aggregated values and others showing raw data, allowing operators to selectively examine different data granularities without processing the entire dataset at full resolution.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by varying the representation quality across different sections of the trend curve. High-fidelity raw data representation is applied only to sections where operators need detailed examination, while other sections use lower-fidelity aggregated representation, optimizing both precision and performance locally rather than uniformly.
2Measurement precision
If operators increase the time period to view raw data instead of aggregated data, then measurement precision is improved, but loading time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by pre-calculating and storing both aggregated and raw data representations, and by pre-identifying sections where raw data examination would be beneficial. When operators need detailed views, the system can quickly switch to showing raw data in those specific sections without requiring a complete recalculation or time period adjustment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent adds a dimensional aspect to data representation by incorporating visual indicators that show whether a data point is aggregated or raw, and by providing interactive capabilities to toggle between views. This additional dimension allows operators to access raw data detail on-demand without expanding the time period, as the raw data is already prepared and integrated into the current view structure.
3Productivity
If aggregated data is used to maintain overview of the central theme, then productivity is improved, but operators lose awareness of data fuzziness and measurement precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback by providing visual indicators that inform operators about the aggregation status and associated fuzziness of displayed data points. These indicators give continuous feedback about data quality, allowing operators to make informed decisions about when to examine raw data versus relying on aggregated representations, thus preventing information loss while maintaining operational efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses visual differentiation (such as color changes or other visual indicators) to distinguish between aggregated and raw data points, and to indicate sections with high fuzziness. This visual coding allows operators to quickly identify areas where aggregation may have obscured important information, enabling them to maintain awareness of data quality without sacrificing the overview provided by aggregated data.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for visually representing temporally aggregated measurement values includes generating image information over a period of time from temporally aggregated measurement values of a measurement variable associated with a technical object of a technical plant by an operator station server of a control system of the technical plant, adding information to the image information concerning fuzziness of the temporal aggregation of a specific temporally aggregated measurement value by comparison with the non-aggregated measurement values taken into consideration for the temporal aggregation of the specific measurement value, transmitting the image information to an operator station client, visually presenting the time profile of the temporally aggregated measurement values and the information concerning the fuzziness of the specific temporal aggregation of the temporally aggregated measurement points to an operator of the technical plant.