JP2011086305A - Plant operation support apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To implement a plant operation support apparatus which can efficiently recognize a plurality of pieces of information. <P>SOLUTION: The plant operation support apparatus for use in a plant control system includes: a communication part for receiving a plurality of pieces of process information; a display part; and an operation control part for drawing the plurality of pieces of process information in different layers and displaying them in a display part so that respective layers are arranged to overlap with gaps therebetween and overlapped parts are seen through. The operation control part uses a pre-display processing function not only to draw the plurality of pieces of process information in different layers but also to arrange respective layers in a virtual three-dimensional space to virtually project them on a two-dimensional plane. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a plant operation support apparatus used in a plant control system, and more particularly to a plant operation support apparatus that can efficiently grasp a plurality of information.

  In plants such as chemical, petroleum, electric power, gas, steel, chemicals, food, and water and sewage systems, physical quantities such as temperature, voltage, pressure, etc. are calculated by simulation using plant models to realize optimal operation of the plant. ing.

  A simulation using a plant model will be described. The plant model is a model of a device constituting an actual plant (hereinafter referred to as an actual plant), and the characteristics of the device are stored in the database in advance. The plant model operates in parallel with the actual plant.

  And the simulator using a plant model always calls the actual measurement value from the sensor of an actual plant, the monitoring information, and the operation amount output from the driving device (hereinafter, the actual measurement value, the monitoring information, and the operation amount are called process information. ), And the parameters of the plant model are changed so that the simulation value, which is the output of the plant model, matches this actual measurement value.

  In this way, the behavior of the plant model and the actual plant can be tracked in real time, and the part that cannot be measured in the actual plant, that is, the part that cannot be actually measured because the sensor is not installed, and the measurement time. It is possible to estimate the state quantity of such a portion (hereinafter, this state quantity is referred to as an estimated value).

  Furthermore, by advancing the simulation time of the plant model, it is possible to predict the behavior of the actual plant and calculate a state quantity (hereinafter, this state quantity is referred to as a future predicted value).

  Prior art documents related to conventional plant operation support devices include the following.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of such a conventional plant operation support apparatus. In FIG. 5, 1 and 7 are arithmetic control units such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), 2 is an input / output unit used for data input / output, 3 and 11 are display units such as a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube), and 4 and 10. Is an input unit such as a keyboard, 5 and 8 are ROM (Read Only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory), flash memory (electrically rewritable ROM), or a storage unit such as a hard disk, and 6 and 9 are data It is a communication part which transmits / receives.

  Reference numeral 100 denotes a plant to be measured, and reference numeral 101 denotes a network such as the Internet or an intranet.

  The input / output terminal of the arithmetic control unit 1 is connected to the input / output terminal of the input / output unit 2, the input / output terminal of the storage unit 5 and the input / output terminal of the communication unit 6, and the output terminal of the arithmetic control unit 1 is the display unit. 3 input terminals. The output terminal of the input unit 4 is connected to the input terminal of the calculation control unit 1, and the plant 100 is connected to the input / output unit 2. The communication unit 6 is connected to the network 101.

  The input / output terminal of the calculation control unit 7 is connected to the input / output terminal of the storage unit 8 and the input / output terminal of the communication unit 9, and the output terminal of the calculation control unit 7 is connected to the input terminal of the display unit 11. The output terminal of the input unit 10 is connected to the input terminal of the arithmetic control unit 7, and the communication unit 9 is connected to the network 101.

  The calculation control unit 1, the input / output unit 2, the display unit 3, the input unit 4, the storage unit 5, and the communication unit 6 constitute a plant operation device 50, and the calculation control unit 7, the storage unit 8, the communication unit 9, and the input unit 10. And the display part 11 comprises the plant operation assistance apparatus 51. FIG.

  Here, the operation of the conventional example shown in FIG. 5 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is a display example of a trend graph, and FIG. 7 is a display example of a display unit of a conventional plant operation support apparatus.

  The arithmetic control unit 1 receives data including actual measurement values and monitoring information from various sensors installed in the plant 100 via the input / output unit 2 and displays them as actual measurement values on the display unit 3. Further, the arithmetic control unit 1 controls the operation amount of each part of the plant 100, for example, the opening degree of the valve, etc. via the input / output unit 2 in accordance with the operation command input from the input unit 4.

  At this time, the actual measurement value received from the plant 100, the monitoring information, and the operation amount transmitted from the calculation control unit 1 are stored in a process information database (not shown) on the storage unit 5. The arithmetic control unit 1 transmits process information to the plant operation support device 51 via the communication unit 6.

  The plant operation support system 51 performs a simulation using a plant model based on the received process information. By this simulation, an estimated value and a future predicted value are calculated and displayed on the display unit 11 together with the actual measured value.

  In a general plant operation support apparatus, a trend graph as shown in FIG. 6 is used for display. In FIG. 6, 12 is a graph display unit, and 13 is a tag display unit that displays display items (hereinafter referred to as tags) corresponding to the graph displayed on the graph display unit 12 and instantaneous values of the tags.

  In the graph display unit 12, the horizontal axis indicates time, and the vertical axis indicates state quantities such as temperature and pressure. In addition, in order to distinguish the graph, each tag is displayed using a different line type or line color. In the example of FIG. 6, it is indicated by a solid line and a chain line.

  FIG. 7 is a display example of the display unit 11 of the plant operation support apparatus 51 disclosed in Patent Document 1. In FIG. 7, (a) is an actual measurement value from various sensors installed in the plant, (b) is an estimated value obtained by estimating a non-measurable part in the plant by the plant simulator, and (c) is a time by the plant simulator. (D) is an enlarged width designation indicator that represents a portion that is desired to be enlarged and (e) is a predicted alarm occurrence marker that is displayed when an alarm is generated in the future prediction.

  (F) represents a prediction start time indicating a time when the future prediction is started, and (g) represents a current time. In the display example shown in FIG. 7, in order to display the actual measurement value (a), the estimated value (b), and the future prediction value (c) at the same time, the display is performed using different line types and line colors as in FIG. It was.

  The actual measurement value (a) is indicated by a solid line, the estimated value (b) is indicated by a dotted line, the future prediction value (c) is indicated by a chain line, the prediction start time (f) is indicated by a marker “Δ”, and the current time (g) is indicated. Each marker “▲” is used for easy-to-understand display.

  As a result, since the trend graph displayed on the display unit 11 of the plant operation support apparatus 51 displays the actual measurement value, the estimated value, and the future predicted value by using different line types and line colors, it becomes easy to distinguish them. It becomes possible to display simultaneously.

JP 2005-332360 A

  However, in the conventional examples shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 7, when a plurality of actual measurement values, estimated values, and future predicted values are displayed, the lines overlap each other, making it very difficult to see. There was a problem that it was difficult to stick.

  Further, when a plurality of future predicted values are displayed, there are a plurality of prediction start time markers, and it is difficult to distinguish which marker corresponds to which future predicted value. Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to realize a plant operation support apparatus capable of efficiently grasping a plurality of information.

In order to achieve such a problem, the invention according to claim 1 of the present invention is:
In a plant operation support device used in a plant control system,
A communication unit that receives a plurality of process information, a display unit, and the plurality of process information are drawn on different layers, and the layers are arranged so as to overlap each other at an interval, and the overlapped portion can be seen through. A calculation control unit for displaying the display unit on the display unit, wherein the calculation control unit draws the plurality of process information on the separate layers using a display preprocessing function, and each layer is represented in a virtual three-dimensional space. A plurality of pieces of information can be efficiently grasped by arranging them above and virtually projecting them onto a two-dimensional plane.

The invention according to claim 2
In the plant operation assistance device according to claim 1,
The arithmetic control unit is
By arranging each layer so as to overlap each other according to a preset rotation amount or translation amount and displaying them on the display unit so that the overlapping portions can be seen through, it is possible to efficiently grasp a plurality of information. It becomes possible.

The invention described in claim 3
In the plant operation assistance device according to claim 2,
Add an input unit to the plant operation support device,
The arithmetic control unit is
By displaying each layer on the display unit according to the setting of the rotation amount or the parallel movement amount input from the input unit, a plurality of pieces of information can be efficiently grasped.

The present invention has the following effects.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, a plurality of process information is received via the communication unit, the plurality of process information is processed to be drawn on different layers, and the layers are overlapped at intervals. By displaying on the display part so that the overlapping part can be seen through, it becomes easy to distinguish the trend graphs and it is possible to compare multiple trend graphs at one time on one display part. It becomes possible to grasp information efficiently.

  According to the invention of claim 2, by arranging the layers so as to overlap each other according to a preset rotation amount or parallel movement amount and displaying them on the display unit so that the overlapping portions can be seen through, Since it becomes easy to distinguish the trend graphs and a plurality of trend graphs can be compared at a time on one display unit, a plurality of pieces of information can be efficiently grasped.

  According to the invention of claim 3, by displaying each layer on the display unit according to the setting of the rotation amount or the parallel movement amount input from the input unit, it becomes easy to distinguish the trend graph and on one display unit. Since a plurality of trend graphs can be compared at a time, a plurality of pieces of information can be efficiently grasped.

It is a block diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment of a plant operation support apparatus according to the present invention. It is explanatory drawing explaining the function of an Example. It is explanatory drawing explaining operation | movement of a display pre-processing function. It is an example of a display of the display part of the plant operation assistance apparatus of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the conventional plant operation assistance apparatus. It is a display example of a trend graph. It is a display example of the display part of the conventional plant operation assistance apparatus.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of a plant operation support apparatus according to the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 50, 100 and 101 are assigned the same reference numerals as in FIG. 5, 14 is an arithmetic control unit such as a CPU, 15 is a ROM, RAM, flash memory, Alternatively, a storage unit such as a hard disk, 16 a communication unit that transmits and receives data, 17 an input unit such as a keyboard, and 18 a display unit such as a CRT.

  The input / output terminal of the calculation control unit 14 is connected to the input / output terminal of the storage unit 15 and the input / output terminal of the communication unit 16, and the output terminal of the calculation control unit 14 is connected to the input terminal of the display unit 18. The output terminal of the input unit 17 is connected to the input terminal of the arithmetic control unit 14, and the communication unit 16 is connected to the network 101.

  The calculation control unit 14, the storage unit 15, the communication unit 16, the input unit 17, and the display unit 18 constitute a plant operation support device 52.

  Here, the operation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the function of the embodiment, FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the operation of the display preprocessing function, and FIG. 4 is a display example of the display unit of the plant operation support apparatus of the present invention.

  In FIG. 2, 14, 15, 16 and 18 are assigned the same reference numerals as in FIG. 1, 19 is a state quantity prediction function for performing future prediction, 20 is a state quantity estimation function for estimating state quantities, and 21 is a display unit 18. A display preprocessing function for generating data to be displayed on the screen, 22 is a prediction information database for storing prediction information, and 23 is an estimation information database for storing estimation information.

  The state quantity prediction function 19, the state quantity estimation function 20, and the display preprocessing function 21 are programs that operate by being expanded on the arithmetic control unit 14, and the prediction information database 22 and the estimation information database 23 are expanded on the storage unit 15. The

  The communication unit 16 receives process information from the plant operating device 50 via the network 101. This process information is sent to the calculation control unit 14, and is input to the state quantity prediction function 19, the state quantity estimation function 20, and the display preprocessing function 21, respectively.

  The state quantity prediction function 19 predicts a future state quantity by simulation using a plant model based on this process information, and stores prediction information as a prediction result in the prediction information database 22 of the storage unit 15.

  Similarly, the state quantity estimation function 20 estimates a state quantity that cannot be measured in real time by simulation using a plant model based on the process information, and sends estimated information that is an estimation result to the estimated information database 23 of the storage unit 15. Store.

  Then, the processing shown in FIG. Prediction information from the prediction information database 22, estimation information from the estimation information database 23, and process information from the communication unit 16 are input to the display preprocessing function 21.

  Each information is drawn on a virtual two-dimensional screen called a layer in the process of the display preprocessing function 21. Actually, the data is processed for drawing on the two-dimensional screen in the program of the display preprocessing function 21 and is not displayed on the display unit 18.

  Data processing is performed in a separate layer for each piece of information. Specifically, the prediction information is processed in the prediction layer, the estimation information is processed in the estimation layer, and the process information is processed in the process layer. Therefore, data processing of certain information does not affect processing of other information.

  Next, each layer is rotated or translated in a virtual three-dimensional space and arranged, and data processing is performed in order to virtually project it on a two-dimensional plane. After the data processing, the layers are arranged on the display unit 18 so as to overlap each other with a certain space. At this time, it is processed and displayed so that the overlapped portion can be seen so that the inner layer can be seen.

  FIG. 4 shows a display example at this time, in which the layers of the actual measurement value, the estimated value, and the future predicted value are arranged side by side so as to overlap each other with a certain space therebetween. Further, the rotation amount and the parallel movement amount of each layer can be arbitrarily set from the input unit 17.

  As a result, process information is received from the plant operating apparatus 50 via the network 101, and based on this process information, the prediction information is calculated by the state quantity prediction function 19 and the estimation information is calculated by the state quantity estimation function 20. Each information is processed in the prediction layer, the estimation layer, and the process layer by the display pre-processing function 21, and the layers are arranged in a virtual three-dimensional space by rotating or translating them. By virtually projecting on a plane and displaying it on the display unit 18, it becomes easy to distinguish between actual measurement values, estimated values, and future prediction values, and a plurality of trend graphs can be compared at a time on one display unit. As a result, it is possible to efficiently grasp a plurality of information.

  In addition, although the object displayed in the Example shown in FIG.1, FIG.2, FIG.3 and FIG. 4 is three, an actual measurement value, an estimated value, and a future prediction value, it is not necessarily limited to this, Display There may be a plurality of objects to be processed.

  Moreover, although the actual measured value, the estimated value, and the future predicted value are respectively displayed in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4, it is not always necessary to do so, and the same item is displayed in a plurality. May be. For example, two actual measurement values, two estimation values, one future prediction value, and a total of five may be displayed.

  Moreover, although the item displayed in the Example shown in FIG.1, FIG.2, FIG.3 and FIG. 4 is made into the actual measurement value, an estimated value, and a future prediction value, it is not necessarily limited to this, The item to display is Anything For example, alarm information, guidance information, and various messages may be displayed.

  Further, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, the actual measurement value, the estimated value, and the future predicted value are displayed in separate layers, but it is not always necessary to do so. The actual measured value, estimated value, and future predicted value may be displayed as one set on the same layer, and another set of actual measured value, estimated value, and future predicted value may be displayed on another layer.

  Further, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, the rotation amount and the parallel movement amount can be arbitrarily set from the input unit 17, but it is not always necessary to do so. Each layer may be arranged using the set rotation amount and parallel movement amount.

  Further, in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, the layers are arranged by rotating or translating in a virtual three-dimensional space, but this is not necessarily required. The layers may be arranged so as to be simply overlapped, and the overlapped portions may be displayed through.

1, 7, 14 Operation control unit 2 Input / output unit 3, 11, 18 Display unit 4, 10, 17 Input unit 5, 8, 15 Storage unit 6, 9, 16 Communication unit 12 Graph display unit 13 Tag display unit 19 Status Quantity prediction function 20 State quantity estimation function 21 Pre-display processing function 22 Prediction information database 23 Estimation information database 50 Plant operation device 51, 52 Plant operation support device 100 Plant 101 Network

Claims (3)

In a plant operation support device used in a plant control system,
A communication unit that receives a plurality of process information; and
A display unit;
The plurality of process information is drawn on separate layers, and each layer is arranged so as to overlap each other with an interval, and an arithmetic control unit that displays on the display unit so that the overlapped portion can be seen through, is provided.
The arithmetic control unit is
A plant operation support characterized by drawing the plurality of process information on the separate layers using a display pre-processing function and arranging the layers in a virtual three-dimensional space and virtually projecting them on a two-dimensional plane. apparatus. The arithmetic control unit is
The plant according to claim 1, wherein the layers are arranged so as to overlap each other at intervals according to a preset rotation amount or parallel movement amount, and are displayed on the display unit so that the overlapped portion can be seen through. Driving assistance device. Add an input unit to the plant operation support device,
The arithmetic control unit is
The plant operation support apparatus according to claim 2, wherein each layer is displayed on the display unit according to the setting of the rotation amount or the parallel movement amount input from the input unit.