EP2691822A1 - Method for managing process automation control and associated system - Google Patents

Method for managing process automation control and associated system

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Publication number
EP2691822A1
EP2691822A1 EP12711198.7A EP12711198A EP2691822A1 EP 2691822 A1 EP2691822 A1 EP 2691822A1 EP 12711198 A EP12711198 A EP 12711198A EP 2691822 A1 EP2691822 A1 EP 2691822A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
input
output
logical nodes
actuation
protocol
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP12711198.7A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Inventor
Hervé SABOT
Valérie PERRIER
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
General Electric Technology GmbH
Original Assignee
Alstom Technology AG
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Alstom Technology AG filed Critical Alstom Technology AG
Priority to EP12711198.7A priority Critical patent/EP2691822A1/en
Publication of EP2691822A1 publication Critical patent/EP2691822A1/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G05—CONTROLLING; REGULATING
    • G05B—CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS
    • G05B19/00—Programme-control systems
    • G05B19/02—Programme-control systems electric
    • G05B19/04—Programme control other than numerical control, i.e. in sequence controllers or logic controllers
    • G05B19/042—Programme control other than numerical control, i.e. in sequence controllers or logic controllers using digital processors
    • G05B19/0426—Programming the control sequence
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G05—CONTROLLING; REGULATING
    • G05B—CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS
    • G05B19/00—Programme-control systems
    • G05B19/02—Programme-control systems electric
    • G05B19/418—Total factory control, i.e. centrally controlling a plurality of machines, e.g. direct or distributed numerical control [DNC], flexible manufacturing systems [FMS], integrated manufacturing systems [IMS] or computer integrated manufacturing [CIM]
    • G05B19/4185—Total factory control, i.e. centrally controlling a plurality of machines, e.g. direct or distributed numerical control [DNC], flexible manufacturing systems [FMS], integrated manufacturing systems [IMS] or computer integrated manufacturing [CIM] characterised by the network communication
    • G05B19/4186—Total factory control, i.e. centrally controlling a plurality of machines, e.g. direct or distributed numerical control [DNC], flexible manufacturing systems [FMS], integrated manufacturing systems [IMS] or computer integrated manufacturing [CIM] characterised by the network communication by protocol, e.g. MAP, TOP
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L41/00—Arrangements for maintenance, administration or management of data switching networks, e.g. of packet switching networks
    • H04L41/02—Standardisation; Integration
    • H04L41/0213—Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G05—CONTROLLING; REGULATING
    • G05B—CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS
    • G05B2219/00—Program-control systems
    • G05B2219/20—Pc systems
    • G05B2219/23—Pc programming
    • G05B2219/23255—Object oriented programming, OOP
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G05—CONTROLLING; REGULATING
    • G05B—CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS
    • G05B2219/00—Program-control systems
    • G05B2219/20—Pc systems
    • G05B2219/23—Pc programming
    • G05B2219/23258—GUI graphical user interface, icon, function bloc editor, labview
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G05—CONTROLLING; REGULATING
    • G05B—CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS
    • G05B2219/00—Program-control systems
    • G05B2219/30—Nc systems
    • G05B2219/32—Operator till task planning
    • G05B2219/32142—Define device, module description using xml format file
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02P—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS
    • Y02P90/00—Enabling technologies with a potential contribution to greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions mitigation
    • Y02P90/02—Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to the field of industrial automation systems and more particularly to the managing of process automation control in a plant.
  • Process automation control refers to the use of automatic actuation and control systems to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods or services.
  • the implementation of such a tool to a plant's scale requires means to establish communications between the different entities in order to transfer commands and data and to achieve a global supervision of the plant.
  • the present invention refers to a method for matching elements of a first protocol or standard with elements of a second protocol or standard in a process automation control planning of a plant wherein the elements of the first protocol or standard refer to input/output objects of logical nodes established according to an IEC 61850 protocol and wherein the elements of the second protocol or standard refer to input/output arguments of control programs established according to an IEC 61131-3 standard, said control programs being aimed at driving actuation equipments associated to the logical nodes, said method comprising the following steps:
  • the embodiments of the present invention also refers to a method for managing process automation control in a plant, the said plant comprising:
  • IED intelligent electronic devices
  • said method comprises the following steps:
  • said input/output arguments corresponds to the input/output objects of the logical nodes and are aimed at being used in the control programs of the actuation equipments associated to the said logical nodes,
  • the said method also comprises the step of:
  • the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using function block diagrams.
  • the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using structured texts. According to another embodiment, the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using sequential function charts.
  • the step of configuring logical nodes comprises a step of checking the conformity of the created logical nodes to the standard defined in the protocol IEC 61850.
  • the embodiments of the present invention also refers to a system for establishing a matching of elements of a first protocol or standard with elements of a second protocol or standard in a process automation control planning of a plant, the said plant comprising:
  • the said system comprises:
  • - configuration means for configuring logical nodes associated to the actuation equipments, based on predefined classes of logical nodes established according to the protocol IEC 61850 in order to define the input/output objects used by said logical nodes,
  • the embodiments of the present invention also refers to a system for managing process automation control in a plant, the said plant comprising:
  • a plurality of intelligent electronic devices comprising a controller and at least one actuation equipment controlled by said controller
  • said system comprises:
  • - processing means adapted to:
  • control programs according to the IEC 61131-3 standard and using the created input/output arguments, said control programs being aimed at driving the actuation equipments,
  • the said system comprises implementing means for loading the control softwares generated by the application means in the intelligent electronic devices.
  • the said system comprises generation means for generating a database comprising the description of the configuration established by the processing means and the application means.
  • FIG.l shows a chart representing the data objects of a logical node class
  • FIG.2 shows a chart representing the data object of a logical node established based on the logical node class defined in Fig.l;
  • FIG.3 shows a diagram of the logical structure of a plant with the different logical levels
  • FIG.4 shows an example of program of a function block
  • FIG.5 shows an example of a representation of a function block with its input/ output arguments
  • FIG.6 shows a flowchart of the different steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present invention
  • FIG.7 shows a diagram representing the main steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present invention and their implementation
  • IEC International Electrotechnical Commission
  • FED refers to the acronym Intelligent Electrical Device (IED);
  • the embodiments of the present invention refer notably to a method for matching elements of a first protocol or standard for example an IEC 61850 protocol and elements of a second protocol or standard for example an IEC 61131-3 standard in the planning of a process automation control in a plant and means to establish the said matching.
  • the IEC 61850 protocol defines the constraints for the design of communications between electrical equipments, called Intelligent Electrical Devices (IEDs), in a plant.
  • IEDs Intelligent Electrical Devices
  • the plant is defined as a hierarchy of logical entities, the basic entity being the logical node which corresponds to a real entity, that is to say, a driving actuation equipment of the plant, for example a pump or an engine.
  • the IEC 61850 allows to define parameters for communication services such as reporting, data transfer and process commands used in the different logical entities.
  • the logical entities are created based on predefined classes of logical entities defining data objects processed by said entities. Said classes of logical entities are defined in the IEC 61850 protocol.
  • Fig.l refers to a chart representing an example of a logical node class named PMP class. This chart comprises four columns.
  • first column 100 corresponds the data object name of the class and comprises several categories of data objects or input/output objects of the logical node: description 101, status information 102, measured and metered values 103, controls 104 and settings 105 referring to standardized parameters which can be exchanged with other logical entities.
  • Each category comprises one or several data objects.
  • a second column 110 corresponds to the common data class and refers to the reference of the common data class to which the data object is associated.
  • a third column 120 corresponds to the explanation or description of the data object.
  • a fourth column 130 corresponds to a selection of the data objects of the class to configure a customized logical node.
  • the necessary data objects are selected to obtain the desired logical node by ticking off the desired data objects in the last column of the KPMP class diagram in Fig.l .
  • a logical node derived from the standard KPMP class and comprising the desired input/output objects is obtained as presented in Fig.2.
  • Some categories of the class may not be represented if no data object of this category has been selected.
  • a global logical mapping of the plant can therefore be established by defining the logical entities corresponding to the actuation equipments of the plant, said logical mapping allowing to define the communication parameters that are required between the different equipments.
  • Fig-3 shows an example of hierarchy of the different levels of a logical mapping from the plant 1 to the logical nodes 3, comprising also logical devices 5 which gather several logical nodes 3.
  • IEDs intelligent electrical devices
  • the IEC 61131-3 standard established a normalization in the languages of the control programs used in programmable controllers controlled by the IEDs. Said standard gathers different programming languages such as structured texts, function block diagrams or sequential function charts.
  • arguments are used to define the input and output parameters of the program.
  • Said arguments refer for example to control or setting values and correspond to data objects defined in the logical nodes.
  • arguments corresponding to the data objects of the logical nodes and aimed at being used in the programming languages used in programmable controllers are automatically created based on the IEC 61131-3 standard.
  • a matching of said arguments with the corresponding data objects is achieved so that the definition of the parameters used in both the IEC 61850 protocol and the IEC 61131-3 standard is done only once and take into account the requirements of both protocol or standard.
  • a definition of the commands of the programmable controller is achieved using the created arguments.
  • a common application is used to define on one side the logical entities and their associated objects and on the other side the commands for the programmable controllers associated with logical entities.
  • the input arguments 7 are used to define the actuation commands of the equipments using the processing blocks 11.
  • an input argument may correspond to the control value of a valve position in the actuation equipment corresponding to the logical node previously defined.
  • the structured text or function block programs define the processing to apply to said arguments in order to actuate the corresponding equipments and reach the desired process automation control.
  • the output argument 9 in Fig.4 is for example the value or the status of a parameter such as the rotational speed of a pump.
  • Fig.5 represents an example of a function block 13 associated to a logical node such as presented in Fig.2 where the input 7 and output 9 arguments of the function block 13 correspond to data objects of the associated logical node.
  • the input argument Health_status of the function block corresponds to a value of the data object EEHealth of the logical node Pmpl of the logical device PresOil.
  • the input 7 and output 9 arguments corresponding to the other data objects of the logical node are implemented in the function block 13.
  • the embodiments of the present invention allow to gather the interfaces corresponding to the configuration of the parameters defined in the IEC 61850 protocol and the parameters defined in the IEC 61131-3 standard and to create a matching between the corresponding elements.
  • the first step 101 refers to the configuration of the logical nodes. Based on predefined classes or types of logical nodes provided in the IEC 61850 protocol, a configuration of the logical nodes corresponding to the selection of the desired input and output objects is achieved. Said first step also refers to the definition of the other logical entities such as the logical devices to define a global logical structure or hierarchy of the plant, the logical nodes corresponding to the basic stage of said logical structure and corresponding to actuation equipments of the plant. Furthermore, a checking of the conformity of the configured logical nodes to the specifications of the IEC 61850 protocol is done during step 101.
  • the second step 102 refers to the creation of input and output arguments corresponding to the input and output objects configured in the previous step. Said input and output arguments being used in control programs aimed at actuating the equipments corresponding to the logical nodes. Said creation of arguments is realized in taking into account the specifications of the IEC 61131-3 standard.
  • the third step 103 refers to the establishment of a matching between the created input and output arguments and the configured input and output objects. With the establishment of the said matching, a modification of the value of an object of a logical node produces the modification of the value of the corresponding argument.
  • the fourth step 104 refers to the definition of the control programs used to actuate equipments.
  • Said control programs define the different tasks of the actuation equipments. As described previously, the programming languages may be different from one equipment to another but all respect the specifications of the IEC 61131-3 standard.
  • Said control programs use the input and output arguments created at step 102 which correspond to control or setting values for example for the input arguments and to metric or status values for example for the output arguments.
  • the fifth step 105 refers to the configuration of the intelligent electronic devices by generating control softwares comprising the control programs and communication configuration established in the previous steps. Said softwares are loaded in the IEDs in order to implement the process defined in the previous steps and to lead to a process automation control of the plant.
  • the sixth step 106 corresponds to the generation or the update of a database comprising the description of the configuration of the IEDs which is based on the process automation control modelled in the previous steps.
  • an embodiment of the invention refers to the saving of all the parameters modelled during the planning of the process automation control. Indeed, the plant structure or needs may evolve over time so that the configuration of the process automation control has to be modified to take into account this evolution so that the application provides new softwares and updates files at each modification. The database is therefore updated at each modification of the configuration of the process automation control.
  • a modification of the configuration of some equipments may occur in case of the implementation of an IED corresponding to an air pollution control system linked to many other equipments or IEDs.
  • Such modification induces the implementation of new communications between the newly installed IED and the other entities of the plant and therefore requires to reconfigure many parameters of the process automation control of the plant. Thanks to the embodiments of the method described herein, such reconfiguration is achieved by defining new logical nodes and redefining the configuration of the existing logical nodes needed to be reconfigured to take into account the presence of the new logical nodes, for example the addition of a new data object.
  • a step 201 corresponding to the configuration of the application defining the logical entities and associated commands and the compilation of the said applications
  • the embodiments of the present invention by matching corresponding elements defined in different protocols or standards allow to ease the planning at a logical level and the implementation at the equipment level of a process automation control in a plant. Moreover, the management of the implementation of the said process automation control is facilitated by the creation and the update of a database comprising a description of the equipments configuration.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Automation & Control Theory (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
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Abstract

The present invention refers to a method for matching elements of a first protocol or standard with elements of a second protocol or standard in a process automation control planning of a plant wherein the elements of the first protocol or standard refer to input/output objects of logical nodes (3) established according to an IEC 61850 protocol and wherein the elements of the second protocol or standard refer to input (7) /output (9) arguments of control programs established according to an IEC 61131-3 standard, said control programs being aimed at driving actuation equipments associated to the logical nodes (3), said method comprising the following steps: configuring logical nodes (3) based on predefined classes of logical nodes (3) established according to the protocol IEC 61850 in order to define the input/output objects used by the said logical nodes (3), creating input (7) /output (9) arguments of control programs corresponding to the input/output objects of the logical nodes (3), establishing a matching between the said input (7) /output (9) arguments and the said input/output objects.

Description

METHOD FOR MANAGING PROCESS AUTOMATION CONTROL AND
ASSOCIATED SYSTEM
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the field of industrial automation systems and more particularly to the managing of process automation control in a plant.
Process automation control refers to the use of automatic actuation and control systems to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods or services. The implementation of such a tool to a plant's scale requires means to establish communications between the different entities in order to transfer commands and data and to achieve a global supervision of the plant.
Furthermore, at the creation of the plant and during its evolution over time, planning is necessary to configure the equipments achieving the process automation control. Due in particular to the different protocols and standards applied in the different processes of the plant, planning can be cumbersome and small modifications in the process automation control may require a reconfiguration of many parameters and therefore a large amount of time. Furthermore, a documentation describing the configuration of the equipments of the plant has to be set up and updated at each reconfiguration to allow maintenance or repair in case of failure or dysfunction of an equipment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method allowing a matching between the parameters used in different protocols or standards to ease the configuration or reconfiguration of the parameters used in a process automation control of a plant. Thus, the present invention refers to a method for matching elements of a first protocol or standard with elements of a second protocol or standard in a process automation control planning of a plant wherein the elements of the first protocol or standard refer to input/output objects of logical nodes established according to an IEC 61850 protocol and wherein the elements of the second protocol or standard refer to input/output arguments of control programs established according to an IEC 61131-3 standard, said control programs being aimed at driving actuation equipments associated to the logical nodes, said method comprising the following steps:
- configuring logical nodes based on predefined classes of logical nodes established according to the protocol IEC 61850 in order to define the input/output objects used by the said logical nodes,
- creating input/output arguments of control programs corresponding to the input/output objects of the logical nodes,
- establishing a matching between the said input/output arguments and the said input/output objects.
The embodiments of the present invention also refers to a method for managing process automation control in a plant, the said plant comprising:
- a plurality of intelligent electronic devices "IED" comprising a controller and at least one actuation equipment controlled by said controller,
said method comprises the following steps:
- configuring logical nodes, associated to the actuation equipments, based on predefined classes of logical nodes established according to the IEC 61850 protocol in order to define the input/output objects used by the said logical nodes,
- creating input/output arguments according to the IEC 61131-3 standard, said input/output arguments corresponds to the input/output objects of the logical nodes and are aimed at being used in the control programs of the actuation equipments associated to the said logical nodes,
- establishing a matching between the said input/output arguments and the said input/output objects,
- defining control programs of the actuation equipments, according to the IEC 61131-3 standard, using the created input/output arguments, said control programs being aimed at driving the actuation equipments, - configuring the intelligent electronic devices by generating control softwares aimed at being loaded in the relevant intelligent electronic devices of the plant to implement the process automation control planning established in the previous steps of the said method. According to another embodiment, the said method also comprises the step of:
- generating a database comprising the description of the configuration of the intelligent electronic devices.
According to a further embodiment, the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using function block diagrams.
According to an additional embodiment, the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using structured texts. According to another embodiment, the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using sequential function charts.
According to a further embodiment, the step of configuring logical nodes comprises a step of checking the conformity of the created logical nodes to the standard defined in the protocol IEC 61850.
The embodiments of the present invention also refers to a system for establishing a matching of elements of a first protocol or standard with elements of a second protocol or standard in a process automation control planning of a plant, the said plant comprising:
- a plurality of actuation equipments,
the said system comprises:
- configuration means for configuring logical nodes associated to the actuation equipments, based on predefined classes of logical nodes established according to the protocol IEC 61850 in order to define the input/output objects used by said logical nodes,
- creation means for creating input/output arguments according to the IEC 61131-3 standard and corresponding to the input/output objects of the logical nodes and aimed at being used in the control programs of the associated actuation equipments,
- matching means for establishing a matching between the said input/output arguments and the said input/output objects. The embodiments of the present invention also refers to a system for managing process automation control in a plant, the said plant comprising:
- a plurality of intelligent electronic devices comprising a controller and at least one actuation equipment controlled by said controller,
said system comprises:
- processing means adapted to:
- configure logical nodes associated to the actuation equipments, based on predefined classes of logical nodes established according to the protocol IEC 61850 in order to define the input/output objects used by said logical nodes,
- create input/output arguments according to the IEC 61131-3 standard and corresponding to the input/output objects of the logical nodes and aimed at being used in the control programs of the associated actuation equipments,
- establish a matching between the said input/output arguments and the said input/output objects,
- define control programs according to the IEC 61131-3 standard and using the created input/output arguments, said control programs being aimed at driving the actuation equipments,
- application means adapted to generate control softwares comprising the features established by the processing means. According to another embodiment of the present invention, the said system comprises implementing means for loading the control softwares generated by the application means in the intelligent electronic devices.
According to an additional embodiment, the said system comprises generation means for generating a database comprising the description of the configuration established by the processing means and the application means. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG.l shows a chart representing the data objects of a logical node class;
FIG.2 shows a chart representing the data object of a logical node established based on the logical node class defined in Fig.l;
FIG.3 shows a diagram of the logical structure of a plant with the different logical levels;
FIG.4 shows an example of program of a function block;
FIG.5 shows an example of a representation of a function block with its input/ output arguments; FIG.6 shows a flowchart of the different steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present invention;
FIG.7 shows a diagram representing the main steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present invention and their implementation;
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
As used herein, the term "IEC" refers to the acronym International Electrotechnical Commission;
As used herein, the term "FED" refers to the acronym Intelligent Electrical Device (IED);
The embodiments of the present invention refer notably to a method for matching elements of a first protocol or standard for example an IEC 61850 protocol and elements of a second protocol or standard for example an IEC 61131-3 standard in the planning of a process automation control in a plant and means to establish the said matching.
The IEC 61850 protocol defines the constraints for the design of communications between electrical equipments, called Intelligent Electrical Devices (IEDs), in a plant.
In the IEC 61850, the plant is defined as a hierarchy of logical entities, the basic entity being the logical node which corresponds to a real entity, that is to say, a driving actuation equipment of the plant, for example a pump or an engine. The IEC 61850 allows to define parameters for communication services such as reporting, data transfer and process commands used in the different logical entities.
The logical entities are created based on predefined classes of logical entities defining data objects processed by said entities. Said classes of logical entities are defined in the IEC 61850 protocol.
Fig.l refers to a chart representing an example of a logical node class named PMP class. This chart comprises four columns.
- a first column 100 corresponds the data object name of the class and comprises several categories of data objects or input/output objects of the logical node: description 101, status information 102, measured and metered values 103, controls 104 and settings 105 referring to standardized parameters which can be exchanged with other logical entities. Each category comprises one or several data objects.
- a second column 110 corresponds to the common data class and refers to the reference of the common data class to which the data object is associated.
- a third column 120 corresponds to the explanation or description of the data object.
- a fourth column 130 corresponds to a selection of the data objects of the class to configure a customized logical node.
Based on the requirements of the actuation equipment corresponding to the logical node, the necessary data objects are selected to obtain the desired logical node by ticking off the desired data objects in the last column of the KPMP class diagram in Fig.l .
Thus, a logical node derived from the standard KPMP class and comprising the desired input/output objects is obtained as presented in Fig.2. Some categories of the class may not be represented if no data object of this category has been selected.
A global logical mapping of the plant can therefore be established by defining the logical entities corresponding to the actuation equipments of the plant, said logical mapping allowing to define the communication parameters that are required between the different equipments.
Fig-3 shows an example of hierarchy of the different levels of a logical mapping from the plant 1 to the logical nodes 3, comprising also logical devices 5 which gather several logical nodes 3.
Said logical mapping modelled a network of intelligent electrical devices (IEDs). Besides, the IEC 61131-3 standard established a normalization in the languages of the control programs used in programmable controllers controlled by the IEDs. Said standard gathers different programming languages such as structured texts, function block diagrams or sequential function charts.
In said programming language, arguments are used to define the input and output parameters of the program. Said arguments refer for example to control or setting values and correspond to data objects defined in the logical nodes.
Thus, according to the embodiments of the present invention, at the creation of the logical nodes, arguments corresponding to the data objects of the logical nodes and aimed at being used in the programming languages used in programmable controllers are automatically created based on the IEC 61131-3 standard. Moreover, during said creation, a matching of said arguments with the corresponding data objects is achieved so that the definition of the parameters used in both the IEC 61850 protocol and the IEC 61131-3 standard is done only once and take into account the requirements of both protocol or standard.
After the creation of the logical node described in Fig.2, a definition of the commands of the programmable controller is achieved using the created arguments. To do so, a common application is used to define on one side the logical entities and their associated objects and on the other side the commands for the programmable controllers associated with logical entities.
For example, in the case of a function block as shown in Fig.4, the input 7 and output 9 arguments are already defined in the application and the programs may use them to set up the commands of the programmable controllers.
In Fig.4, the input arguments 7 are used to define the actuation commands of the equipments using the processing blocks 11. For example, an input argument may correspond to the control value of a valve position in the actuation equipment corresponding to the logical node previously defined.
[ Here, it would be interesting if you could give us more details and/ or examples of the actions achieved by the block 11 of the function block] The structured text or function block programs define the processing to apply to said arguments in order to actuate the corresponding equipments and reach the desired process automation control. The output argument 9 in Fig.4 is for example the value or the status of a parameter such as the rotational speed of a pump.
Fig.5 represents an example of a function block 13 associated to a logical node such as presented in Fig.2 where the input 7 and output 9 arguments of the function block 13 correspond to data objects of the associated logical node. For example, the input argument Health_status of the function block corresponds to a value of the data object EEHealth of the logical node Pmpl of the logical device PresOil. In the same way, the input 7 and output 9 arguments corresponding to the other data objects of the logical node are implemented in the function block 13.
Thus, the embodiments of the present invention allow to gather the interfaces corresponding to the configuration of the parameters defined in the IEC 61850 protocol and the parameters defined in the IEC 61131-3 standard and to create a matching between the corresponding elements.
In order to better understand the embodiments of the present invention, the steps of the method will now be described in detail based on the flowchart shown in Fig.6.
The first step 101 refers to the configuration of the logical nodes. Based on predefined classes or types of logical nodes provided in the IEC 61850 protocol, a configuration of the logical nodes corresponding to the selection of the desired input and output objects is achieved. Said first step also refers to the definition of the other logical entities such as the logical devices to define a global logical structure or hierarchy of the plant, the logical nodes corresponding to the basic stage of said logical structure and corresponding to actuation equipments of the plant. Furthermore, a checking of the conformity of the configured logical nodes to the specifications of the IEC 61850 protocol is done during step 101. The second step 102 refers to the creation of input and output arguments corresponding to the input and output objects configured in the previous step. Said input and output arguments being used in control programs aimed at actuating the equipments corresponding to the logical nodes. Said creation of arguments is realized in taking into account the specifications of the IEC 61131-3 standard.
The third step 103 refers to the establishment of a matching between the created input and output arguments and the configured input and output objects. With the establishment of the said matching, a modification of the value of an object of a logical node produces the modification of the value of the corresponding argument.
The fourth step 104 refers to the definition of the control programs used to actuate equipments. Said control programs define the different tasks of the actuation equipments. As described previously, the programming languages may be different from one equipment to another but all respect the specifications of the IEC 61131-3 standard. Said control programs use the input and output arguments created at step 102 which correspond to control or setting values for example for the input arguments and to metric or status values for example for the output arguments.
The fifth step 105 refers to the configuration of the intelligent electronic devices by generating control softwares comprising the control programs and communication configuration established in the previous steps. Said softwares are loaded in the IEDs in order to implement the process defined in the previous steps and to lead to a process automation control of the plant.
Thus, configuration of the communications, within and between the IEDs, and control programs controlling the tasks of the actuation equipments of the IEDs are implemented to apply the process automation control planned with the logical entities. The sixth step 106 corresponds to the generation or the update of a database comprising the description of the configuration of the IEDs which is based on the process automation control modelled in the previous steps.
Indeed, to allow maintenance or repair on the IEDs, their configuration and the configuration of the communication parameters has to be clearly defined. As a consequence, an embodiment of the invention refers to the saving of all the parameters modelled during the planning of the process automation control. Indeed, the plant structure or needs may evolve over time so that the configuration of the process automation control has to be modified to take into account this evolution so that the application provides new softwares and updates files at each modification. The database is therefore updated at each modification of the configuration of the process automation control.
For example, a modification of the configuration of some equipments may occur in case of the implementation of an IED corresponding to an air pollution control system linked to many other equipments or IEDs. Such modification induces the implementation of new communications between the newly installed IED and the other entities of the plant and therefore requires to reconfigure many parameters of the process automation control of the plant. Thanks to the embodiments of the method described herein, such reconfiguration is achieved by defining new logical nodes and redefining the configuration of the existing logical nodes needed to be reconfigured to take into account the presence of the new logical nodes, for example the addition of a new data object.
The different steps presented previously may be distributed in three main steps presented in A step 201 corresponding to the configuration of the application defining the logical entities and associated commands and the compilation of the said applications
A step 202 corresponding to the implementation in the IEDs of the communication parameters and the commands defined in step 201.
A step 203 corresponding to the establishment of configuration files, for example IED capability description files, comprising a documentation describing the configuration of the IEDs defined in steps 201 and 202.
Thus, the embodiments of the present invention, by matching corresponding elements defined in different protocols or standards allow to ease the planning at a logical level and the implementation at the equipment level of a process automation control in a plant. Moreover, the management of the implementation of the said process automation control is facilitated by the creation and the update of a database comprising a description of the equipments configuration.

Claims

1. Method for matching elements of a first protocol or standard with elements of a second protocol or standard in a process automation control planning of a plant wherein the elements of the first protocol or standard refer to input/output objects of logical nodes (3) established according to an IEC 61850 protocol and wherein the elements of the second protocol or standard refer to input (7)/output (9) arguments of control programs established according to an IEC 61131-3 standard, said control programs being aimed at driving actuation equipments associated to the logical nodes (3), said method comprising the following steps:
- configuring logical nodes (3) based on predefined classes of logical nodes (3) established according to the protocol IEC 61850 in order to define the input/output objects used by the said logical nodes (3),
- creating input (7)/output (9) arguments of control programs corresponding to the input/output objects of the logical nodes (3),
- establishing a matching between the said input (7)/output (9) arguments and the said input/output objects.
2. Method for managing process automation control in a plant, the said plant comprising:
- a plurality of intelligent electronic devices "IED" comprising a controller and at least one actuation equipment controlled by said controller,
said method comprises the following steps:
- configuring logical nodes (3), associated to the actuation equipments, based on predefined classes of logical nodes (3) established according to the IEC 61850 protocol in order to define the input/output objects used by the said logical nodes (3),
- creating input (7)/output (9) arguments according to the IEC 61131-3 standard, said input (7)/output (9) arguments corresponds to the input/output objects of the logical nodes (3) and are aimed at being used in the control programs of the actuation equipments associated to the said logical nodes (3), - establishing a matching between the said input (7)/output (9) arguments and the said input/output objects,
- defining control programs of the actuation equipments, according to the IEC 61131-3 standard, using the created input (7)/output (9) arguments, said control programs being aimed at driving the actuation equipments,
- configuring the intelligent electronic devices by generating control softwares aimed at being loaded in the relevant intelligent electronic devices of the plant to implement the process automation control planning established in the previous steps of the said method.
3. Method for managing a process automation control according to one of the previous claims wherein the said method also comprises the step of:
- generating a database comprising the description of the configuration of the intelligent electronic devices.
4. Method for managing a process automation control according to one of the previous claims wherein the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using function block diagrams (13).
5. Method for managing a process automation control according to one of the previous claims wherein the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using structured texts.
6. Method for managing a process automation control according to one of the previous claims wherein the step of defining control programs of the actuation equipments is achieved using sequential function charts.
7. Method for managing a process automation control according to one of the previous claims wherein the step of configuring logical nodes comprises a step of checking the conformity of the created logical nodes to the standard defined in the protocol IEC 61850.
8. System for establishing a matching of elements of a first protocol or standard with elements of a second protocol or standard in a process automation control planning of a plant, the said plant comprising:
- a plurality of actuation equipments,
the said system comprises:
- configuration means for configuring logical nodes (3) associated to the actuation equipments, based on predefined classes of logical nodes (3) established according to the protocol IEC 61850 in order to define the input/output objects used by said logical nodes (3),
- creation means for creating input (7)/output (9) arguments according to the IEC 61131-3 standard and corresponding to the input/output objects of the logical nodes (3) and aimed at being used in the control programs of the associated actuation equipments,
- matching means for establishing a matching between the said input (7)/output (9) arguments and the said input/output objects.
9. System for managing process automation control in a plant, the said plant comprising:
- a plurality of intelligent electronic devices comprising a controller and at least one actuation equipment controlled by said controller,
said system comprises:
- processing means adapted to:
- configure logical nodes (3) associated to the actuation equipments, based on predefined classes of logical nodes (3) established according to the protocol IEC 61850 in order to define the input/output objects used by said logical nodes (3),
- create input (7)/output arguments (9) according to the IEC 61131-3 standard and corresponding to the input/output objects of the logical nodes and aimed at being used in the control programs of the associated actuation equipments,
- establish a matching between the said input (7) /output (9) arguments and the said input/output objects,
- define control programs according to the IEC 61131-3 standard and using the created input (7) /output (9) arguments, said control programs being aimed at driving the actuation equipments, - application means adapted to generate control softwares comprising the features established by the processing means.
10. System according to claim 9 wherein the said system comprises implementing means for loading the control softwares generated by the application means in the intelligent electronic devices.
11. System according to claim 9 or 10 wherein the said system comprises generation means for generating a database comprising the description of the configuration established by the processing means and the application means.
EP12711198.7A 2011-03-31 2012-03-30 Method for managing process automation control and associated system Withdrawn EP2691822A1 (en)

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