EP1384143A2

EP1384143A2 - Computerized system for managing production orders of an industrial process

Info

Publication number: EP1384143A2
Application number: EP02703635A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Vladimir Filipov
Original assignee: ABB Service SRL
Current assignee: ABB SpA
Priority date: 2001-03-08
Filing date: 2002-03-07
Publication date: 2004-01-28
Also published as: WO2002071207A2; CN1514969A; ITMI20010491A1; WO2002071207A3; AU2002237329A1

Abstract

A computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process, comprising: -- a computerized unit that is at least partially accessible to the user and communicates with a system for controlling the industrial process, the computerized unit comprising at least one software architecture that includes: -- one or more first software modules suitable to perform one or more management functions and comprising one or more predefined software components; and -- a second software module suitable to manage the operations of the first software modules; -- first computerized means suitable to store data/information and accessible to the computerized unit; whose particularity consists of the fact that one or more of the first software modules comprise at least one of the following: -- a first software component suitable to implement user interface functions, a second software component suitable to implement a set of logic rules for executing the management operations, a third software component suitable to implement data and information archiving and storage; and furthermore comprise: -- a fourth software component, suitable to manage the operations of at least one of the first, second and third software components and to communicate with the second software module.

Description

COMPUTERIZED SYSTEM FOR MANAGING PRODUCTION ORDERS OF AN INDUSTRIAL PROCESS

DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process.

The present invention is described hereinafter with particular reference to a computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial rolling process. No limitation of the inventive scope is intended thereby: the computerized system according to the present invention can in fact be used successfully for managing production orders for industrial processes of any kind, both discrete and continuous.

It is known that the management of an industrial process can take place on various operational levels. A first operational level is the computerized control system, also known as Open Control System or, for the sake of brevity, OCS. The OCS generally comprises a plurality of field devices suitable to interact with one or more portions of the industrial process to be controlled. For example, in an industrial rolling process these field devices comprise motors for actuating the rolling cylinders, sensors for detecting the speed of the rolling strip and similar devices. The field devices are connected by means of a communications network, for example a Fieldbus network, to controllers which are capable of regulating the operation of the field devices according to the requirements.

A second operational level (of a higher tier) is the computerized system for managing production orders, also known as Manufacturing Execution System or, for the sake of brevity, MES. The MES receives in input information/data related to the orders to be executed, for example on a daily basis, and provides in output instructions related to the steps to be performed in order to complete/execute an order, i.e., to obtain the final product to which the order refers. The MES can communicate these instructions directly to the controllers of the OCS, for example over a TCP/IP network, which in turn, according to the received instructions, regulate the operation of the field devices that interact with the industrial process. In this manner, the various portions of the industrial process being controlled are conditioned so as to obtain the final product that is the subject of the production order.

A computerized MES is generally also assigned other management functions, such as for example supervisory functions related to the sequence of the orders to be executed, monitoring of the progress of an order, reporting functions, statistical analysis functions, management functions, and the like.

In the management of an industrial process there can also be higher-tier operational levels. For example, a third operational level can be a computerized system for resource planning, also known as Enterprise Resource Planning System or ERP system, which generally comprises SAP platforms or the like. The ERP system allows to formulate strategic-type schedules regarding the industrial process, perform administrative management, et cetera. The task of the ERP system is to provide in input to the MES the sequence of production orders to be completed, which is generated autonomously on the basis of the strategic and economic plans that have been formulated. In order to perform the required management functions, a computerized MES runs one or more application programs, which are normally coded according to the principles of structured programming, using programming languages such as for example C or C⁺⁺. The set of these application programs is organized according to a specific software architecture, which can be considered as a logical structure that determines the logic and timing criteria for execution of the application programs and for interaction among the various portions of each application program, among the application programs themselves or between one or more application programs and external application programs, et cetera. The conventional software architectures used in known computerized MESs are generally of the monolithic type. In other words, they are software architectures in which management functions are executed with a relatively low level of modularity and in practice in a substantially centralized manner, by means of a small number of relatively complex application programs, i.e., programs comprising a relatively large number of lines of executable code. The computerized MES can be organized according to a "client-server" structure, which uses a central unit (the server), which communicates with the OCS, and a human-machine interface (the client), which can be accessed by the user. In this case, the application programs used can be located variously on the "client" and on the "server", according to the requirements. The software architectures according to which these application programs are organized, however, are still substantially of the monolithic type. Computerized MESs of the traditional type have drawbacks. A first drawback arises from the fact that due to the monolithic structure of the software architectures that are used, the application programs that are used are often very complex, making them difficult to develop, implement and maintain. These complexity problems are particularly critical when it is necessary to use, in order to perform certain management functions, such as user interface management, mutually different languages, for example Visual Basic and C⁺⁺. Furthermore, conventional software architectures are often, due to their low level of modularity, scarcely flexible and difficult to adapt to the requirements of the user. Similar management operations and functions are often executed repeatedly in various parts of one or more application programs. Again owing to the low level of modularity, the software architectures commonly used in traditional MESs often have a high level of correlation among the various portions of the application programs that are used. Accordingly, if a certain portion of the application program is modified, for example in order to introduce new management functions, undesirable effects can arise in other portions of the application program. These undesirable effects are difficult to predict and trace and can lead to severe malfunctions of the computerized MES. This fact restricts considerably the possibility to modify/improve the application programs used, inserting new management functions/operations or modifying existing management functions/operations. Another drawback is the fact that the software architectures commonly used, owing to their low level of modularity, can incorporate with difficulty software programs developed from scratch and require a relatively onerous development activity in order to interact satisfactorily with external application programs. The aim of the present invention is to provide a computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process that allows to overcome the described drawbacks. Within the scope of this aim, an object of the present invention is to provide a computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process that comprises a software architecture characterized by a high level of modularity in performing the various required management functions. Another object of the present invention is to provide a computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process that allows to easily integrate new management function and/or modify/delete existing management functions.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process which allows, in performing the management functions, to interact easily with external application programs.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process that is easy to implement, manage and maintain for the user. This aim, these objects and others that will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process, comprising a computerized unit that is at least partially accessible to the user and communicates with a system for controlling said industrial process, said computerized unit comprising at least one software architecture that includes:

~ one or more first software modules suitable to perform one or more management functions, said first software modules comprising one or more predefined software components; and ~ a second software module suitable to manage the operations of said first software modules;

-- first computerized means suitable to store data/information, said first computerized means being accessible to said computerized unit; characterized in that one or more of said first software modules comprise at least one of the following:

~ a first software component for providing a user interface, a second software component for implementing a set of logic rules for executing said management operations, a third software component for managing and storing data and information; — and furthermore comprise:

— a fourth software component, suitable to manage the operations of at least one of said first, second and third software components and to communicate with said second software module. Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the computerized system according to the present invention, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a schematic view of an embodiment of the computerized system according to the present invention;

Figure 2 is a schematic view of a detail of the computerized system according to the present invention; and

Figure 3 is a schematic view of another detail of the computerized system according to the present invention;

Figure 4 is a schematic view of another embodiment of the computerized system according to the present invention.

With reference to Figure 1, the computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process (MES) according to the present invention comprises a computerized unit 200, which can be accessed at least partially by the user and communicates with a system 101 for controlling the controlled industrial process. The MES, according to the present invention, also comprises first computerized means 13 suitable to store data/information. The first computerized means 13 can advantageously be accessed by the computerized unit 200 and can advantageously comprise one or more databases, preferably one or more databases of the ORACLE type. The computerized unit 200 comprises a software architecture 1, which comprises one or more first software modules 2 (Figure 2) suitable to execute one or more management functions. Each first software module 2 comprises, in practice, an application program that is independent and orientated to the execution of a certain sequence of predefined management operations. The sequence of operations is required to execute a certain management function that must be performed by the MES, according to the requirements. Accordingly, there can be software modules assigned to performing order management functions, reporting functions, presetting functions, supervisory functions, et cetera.

With reference to Figure 2, the architecture 1 also comprises a second software module 3 whose particular task is to manage the activity of the first software modules 2. In practice, the second software module 3 comprises an application program that has the task of ensuring correct execution of the management functions assigned to the entire computerized MES. For example, the second software module 3 can be assigned to controlling the synchronization of the activity of the first software modules 2, controlling the execution of the management operations assigned to the first software modules 2, manage communication among the first software modules 2, et cetera. Within each software module 2 there are one or more software components, which comprise in practice application subprograms of a predefined type for performing specific management operations. In particular, the first software modules 2 comprise a first software component 4 for implementing user interface functions and/or a second software component 5 for implementing a set of logic rules for performing assigned operations of the functional type and/or a third software component 51 for implementing data and information archiving and storage functions. Within each software module 2 there can be one or more of the described software components, according to the requirements. Furthermore, one or more of the described software components can advantageously comprise one or more software subcomponents to be used according to the requirements. One of the particularities of the software architecture 1 is the fact that the first software module 2 also comprises a fourth software component 6, which is suitable to control the activity of the first software component 4 and/or of the second software component 5 and/or of the third software component 51. The fourth software component 6 is furthermore entrusted with the task of communicating with the second software module 3. Therefore, the fourth software component 6 is entrusted with the management of the functional operation of each software component included in a software module 2 and the management of the internal and external communication of each software module 2 ("component management" function). In a particularly advantageous embodiment, the second software module 3 comprises a fifth software component 7, which is suitable to communicate with the fourth software component 6. The fifth software component 7 has the exclusive task of communicating with the fourth software component 6 ("message dispatching" function). The fourth software component 7 can be provided so as to manage communication with the fourth software component of one or more first software modules 2 according to the requirements. With reference now to Figure 3, communication between the fifth software component 7 and the fourth software component 6 occurs advantageously by means of a single interface, constituted by the third software module 8. The third software module 8 also can be provided so as to interface one or more first software modules 2 with the second software module 3, according to the requirements. The software architecture 1 according to the present invention also comprises elements for mutually interfacing the various software components of a first software module 2. In particular, a first software module 2 can preferably comprise a sixth software component 9, which is suitable to allow communication between the fourth software component 6 and the first software component 4. Likewise, a first software module 2 can comprise a seventh software component 10, which is suitable to allow communication between the fourth software component 6 and the second software component 4. Finally, a first software module 2 can comprise an eighth software component 52, which is suitable to allow communication between the third software component 51 and the fourth software component 6. The communication of each software module 2 can also occur with the outside environment, particularly with the databases included in the first computerized means 13. Thus, preferably, the software architecture 1 also comprises a fourth software module 11, which is suitable to allow communication between one or more of the software components of one or more of the first software modules 2 and first computerized means 13 suitable to store data/information (for example a database). Accordingly, it is possible to constitute an interface between the first software modules and the second computerized means so that all the stored data and information can be accessed by each one of the first modules 2.

The software architecture 1 according to the present invention has considerable advantages. The software architecture 1 is in fact completely modular. Production order management functions are not entrusted to a few application programs but are logically separated and entrusted to a plurality of specialized software modules. Interaction among different software modules is managed by a single dedicated software module. Moreover, interaction among various components of a same software module is managed in a preordered fashion. This fact ensures very easy development, implementation and maintenance of the management application programs. Each software module 2 can in fact be provided substantially independently, using the most suitable programming languages. It is merely necessary to comply with the predefined criteria for interaction among the various software components provided by the software architecture 1. Accordingly, the software architecture 1 according to the present invention is highly flexible and adaptable to the requirements of the user. Each software module 2 can be modified/improved or developed from scratch, according to the requirements, without undesirable effects on the overall behavior of the MES. Each software module 2 can interact, by means of the control software module 3, with external application programs. The software architecture 1 according to the present invention is furthermore easy to implement in practice with software technologies known as "COM" or "ActiveX" technologies. It is also possible to use structured or unstructured programming languages, such as for example C⁺⁺ or Visual Basic. With reference now to Figure 4, the computerized platform 200 can advantageously comprise a "client-server" structure that comprises second computerized means 14 ("server" unit) suitable to communicate with the OCS 102 and to perform a predefined first series of order management functions. The second computerized means 14 can be constituted for example by a server of the API (Application Programming Interface), provided with a dedicated virtual interface for the OCS, and communicate with the first computerized means 13. The computerized platform 200 can also comprise third computerized means 103 which are connected to the second computerized means 14 and the first computerized means 13. The third computerized means ("client" unit) are suitable to constitute a Human System Interface and to perform a predefined second series of order management functions. The software architecture 1 according to the present invention is advantageously included in the third computerized means 103 and/or in the second computerized means 14. As an alternative, the computerized platform 200 can comprise a "stand-alone" structure, i.e. a structure that is not organized according to "client-server" criteria, which is capable of interfacing with the user and of communicating with the OCS (see Figure 1). The computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept. All the details may furthermore be replaced with other technically equivalent elements.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. A computerized system for managing production orders for an industrial process, comprising:

~ a computerized unit that is at least partially accessible to the user and communicates with a system for controlling said industrial process, said computerized unit comprising at least one software architecture that includes:

~ one or more first software modules suitable to perform one or more management functions, said first software modules comprising one or more predefined software components; and

-- a second software module suitable to manage the operations of said first software modules;

~ first computerized means suitable to store data/information, said first computerized means being accessible to said computerized unit; characterized in that one or more of said first software modules comprise at least one of the following:

~ a first software component suitable to implement user interface functions, a second software component suitable to implement a set of logic rules for executing said management operations, a third software component suitable to implement data and information archiving and storage functions; and furthermore comprise:

~ a fourth software component, suitable to manage the operations of at least one of said first, second and third software components and to communicate with said second software module.

2. The computerized system according to claim 1, characterized in that said second software module comprises at least one fifth software component suitable to communicate with said fourth software component.

3. The computerized system according to claim 2, characterized in that said software architecture comprises a third software module suitable to allow communication between said fifth software component and said fourth software component, so as to constitute an interface between said at least one first software module and said second software module.

4. The computerized system according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that one or more of said first software modules comprise a sixth software component suitable to allow communication between said fourth software component and said first software component.

5. The computerized system according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that one or more of said first software modules comprise a seventh software component suitable to allow communication between said fourth software component and said second software component.

6. The computerized system according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that one or more of said first software modules comprise an eighth software component suitable to allow communication between said fourth software component and said third software component.

7. The computerized system according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said software architecture comprises a fourth software module suitable to allow communication between at least one of said first, second and third software components and said first computerized means.

8. The computerized system according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said computerized platform comprises a structure of the client-server type, which includes:

~ second computerized means suitable to communicate with the system for controlling said industrial process and to perform a predefined first series of order management functions; and

— third computerized means suitable to implement a user-system interface and to perform a predefined second series of order management functions; one or more of said second and third computerized means comprising said software architecture.

9. The computerized system according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that it is used for managing production orders for an industrial rolling process.