JP2023000152A - Information provision system, information provision device, and information provision program - Google Patents

Abstract

To improve a technique for detecting plant conditions.SOLUTION: An information provision system 1 includes a sensor 11 installed in a plant 10 for detecting information required to analyze the state of the plant 10, a transfer device 15 for transferring detection information detected by the sensor 11 to a storage area, a cloud storage area that can be accessed via a communication network 3 and access rights for which can be managed by an owner or an administrator of the plant 10, an analysis unit configured to analyze, in the cloud, the detection information stored in the storage area, and a presentation unit configured to present, from the cloud, analysis results obtained by the analysis unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present disclosure relates to technology for providing information about plants.

A large number of plants of various types and sizes, such as petroleum plants and chemical plants, are in operation. The number of years of operation of each plant is also various, and there are many plants that have passed a considerable number of years since the start of operation.

"Society 5.0", Cabinet Office, https://www8.cao.go.jp/cstp/society5_0/

In a plant that has been in operation for a long time, the cost for safely operating the plant is increasing year by year due to deterioration of facilities and the like. In addition, problems such as a labor shortage due to the declining birthrate and a decrease in experienced workers are becoming apparent.

In order to solve these problems, plants should incorporate the Society 5.0 mechanism that aims to achieve both economic development and the resolution of social issues through a system that highly integrates cyberspace (virtual space) and physical space (real space). is desired (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1).

However, for many years, a closed system built with a unique architecture and specifications has supported safe operation with Operational Technology (OT), which ensures high safety and real-time performance. The inventors of the present invention have recognized that there is a high barrier to entry in terms of security and investment effectiveness.

An object of the present disclosure is to improve techniques for detecting plant conditions.

In order to solve the above problems, an information providing system according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes sensors installed in a plant for detecting information necessary for analyzing the state of the plant, detection information detected by the sensor, a transfer device that transfers to a storage area, a cloud storage area that can be accessed via a network and the access rights of which can be managed by the owner or manager of the plant, and the detection information stored in the storage area in the cloud and a presentation unit that presents the results of analysis by the analysis unit from the cloud.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is an information providing device. This device is accessible via a network and is stored in a storage area in which access rights can be managed by the owner or manager of the plant in order to detect information necessary for analyzing the state of the plant. Equipped with a detection information acquisition unit that acquires detection information detected by a sensor installed in the plant, an analysis unit that analyzes the detection information acquired by the detection information acquisition unit, and a presentation unit that presents the analysis results of the analysis unit. .

Yet another aspect of the present disclosure is an information providing program. This program detects information necessary for analyzing the state of a plant stored in a storage area that can be accessed by a computer via a network and whose access rights can be managed by the owner or manager of the plant. A detection information acquisition unit that acquires detection information detected by sensors installed in the plant in order to do so, an analysis unit that analyzes the detection information acquired by the detection information acquisition unit, and a presentation that presents the analysis result by the analysis unit functions as a department.

Any combination of the above constituent elements, and any conversion of expressions of the present invention into methods, devices, systems, recording media, computer programs, etc. are also effective as embodiments of the present invention.

According to the present disclosure, techniques for detecting plant conditions can be improved.

It is a figure showing the whole information service system composition concerning an embodiment. It is a sequence diagram showing the procedure of the information providing method according to the embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a presentation screen of analysis results provided from the information providing device to the owner terminal; It is a figure which shows the structure of the information provision apparatus which concerns on embodiment. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of an owner terminal according to an embodiment; FIG.

In the present disclosure, a technique will be described for analyzing the state of a plant and providing the analysis results to the manager, owner, or the like of the plant. An information providing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure acquires detection information necessary for analyzing the state of a plant from sensors installed in the plant, and provides analysis results obtained by analyzing the acquired detection information to the owner of the plant. etc. to provide. This enables the owner of the plant to accurately grasp the state of the plant, maintain the deteriorated parts, predict the occurrence of failures, etc., and reflect them in the repair plan. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of accidents and reduce the cost for operating the plant safely.

In order to operate such information providing services at low cost, it is conceivable to use information technology (IT) such as cloud computing and IoT. Cloud computing services and IoT devices have exploded in popularity in a short period of time due to overwhelming technological innovation and standardization, and can be operated at a lower cost than when dedicated storage and sensors are provided. In addition, by accumulating and storing the detection information detected by IoT devices in the cloud, it is possible not only to grasp the state of the plant, but also to predict the future state of the plant, optimize the operation, and detect abnormalities. It can also be used for

However, as described above, the fusion of OT and IT presents a high threshold for plant owners in terms of security and investment efficiency. Therefore, there is a need for a technology that eliminates plant owners' concerns about security and investment efficiency.

For example, general consumer IoT devices use CPUs made by various manufacturers and OSs whose specifications are open to the public, so they run the risk of being attacked by cyberattacks from the outside. Energy plants, chemical plants, and other plants where accidents can cause serious damage require extremely high levels of security and safety. Not enough.

Therefore, it is necessary to install IoT sensors with advanced security and safety such as explosion protection in plants, but such sensors are expensive. The initial cost of doing so can be significant. Therefore, the cost-effectiveness is poor for the plant owner, and it is difficult to obtain a sense of satisfaction with the introduction of the IoT sensor.

In order to solve such problems, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, a sensor having high security and safety provided by a service provider of the service according to the present disclosure is installed in the plant. As a result, the state of the plant can be visualized while maintaining a high level of plant security and safety. In addition to simply providing the detection information detected by the sensor, the plant owner is provided with the analysis results obtained by analyzing the detection information. As a result, the added value of the introduction of the IoT sensor can be increased, and the plant owner can be satisfied with the investment required for the introduction of the IoT sensor. In addition, since it is possible to provide accurate information by experts, it is possible to appropriately operate the plant and to save labor in daily work regardless of the experience and level of the workers. It can also be used to educate unskilled workers. Furthermore, as compensation for the information provision service, not only the compensation for the analysis results, but also the costs for the installation, use, maintenance, etc. of the IoT sensor and communication device itself, etc., will be charged to the plant owner through a subscription system. . As a result, the initial cost can be greatly reduced, so that the threshold for introduction of IoT sensors can be lowered and the introduction of IoT sensors can be promoted.

In addition, in IoT platforms and data platforms that use conventional cloud computing services, data is directly stored in storage built in cloud tenants by service providers, so end users such as plant owners can Manage access rights to data, check access history, manage confidentiality and soundness of data, analyze data by end users themselves, and share data with other service providers It was difficult to use it next time.

In order to solve such a problem, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the detection information detected by the IoT sensor is stored by the plant owner himself in the cloud where the storage device is installed at the location specified by the plant owner. store in the tenant of The plant owner uses the function provided by the cloud computing service to provide the information providing service provider with access rights to the detection information necessary for the information providing service. An information providing service provider constructs an information providing device in its own tenant in the same cloud. The information providing device uses a data acquisition function provided in the cloud computing service to acquire necessary detection information in units of necessary from the tenant of the owner of the plant. As a result, the plant owner can manage the detection information detected by the IoT sensor by himself/herself, thereby ensuring the security and soundness of the information. In addition, data obtained by analysis and processed data are also fed back to the owner's tenant as necessary. As a result, the plant owner can reliably manage all the data, so that a sense of security can be obtained. Moreover, since the detection information can be disclosed to another service provider and reused, the value of introducing the IoT sensor can be increased. In addition, information such as detection information is stored in a location designated by the plant owner, such as a data center installed within the country or the region to which the country belongs, and detected by an information provision device built in the same data center. Since information is analyzed, it is possible to prevent important information from leaking outside the country or region.

FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of an information providing system according to an embodiment. The information providing system 1 includes a plant 10 , a cloud 20 and an owner terminal 12 .

A sensor 11 for detecting information necessary for analyzing the state of the plant 10 is installed in the plant 10 . The sensor 11 has specifications designed by the service provider 2, which is the vendor of the plant 10, to satisfy the necessary security and functional requirements so that the security and safety required in the plant 10 are guaranteed. Detection information detected by the sensor 11 is transferred to the cloud 20 via the communication network 3 by the transfer device 15 . The transfer device 15 may be built into the sensor 11 . The transfer device 15 may acquire detection information from a plurality of sensors 11 and transfer it to the cloud 20 .

Cloud 20 is provided by a cloud computing service provider. The storage device that constitutes the cloud 20 is provided with an owner tenant 21 that is a storage area assigned to the owner of the plant 10 and a vendor tenant 22 that is a storage area assigned to the service provider 2 . The owner tenant 21 is provided for each owner of the multiple plants 10 . The plant owner can arbitrarily designate the installation location of the storage device in which the owner tenant 21 is constructed.

The service provider 2 stores data and programs for realizing the information providing apparatus 100 of the present embodiment in the vendor tenant 22 and builds the information providing apparatus 100 .

The owner terminal 12 is used by the owner of the plant 10 to manage access rights to detection information stored in the owner tenant 21 and display analysis results provided from the information providing device 100 .

FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram showing the procedure of the information providing method according to the embodiment. The owner of the plant 10 applies to the service provider 2 for information provision service. The service provider 2 discusses with the owner of the plant 10 the details of the service to be provided to the owner of the plant 10 . Specifically, the content of the analysis on the plant 10, the type of detection information required for the analysis, the type, number, and specifications of the sensors 11 required to acquire the detection information, the type and number of transfer devices 15 , specifications, the capacity of the owner tenant 21, the specifications, the installation location of the storage device, the amount charged to the owner of the plant 10, the charging method, and the like. When the consultation is established, a contract is concluded between the service provider 2 and the owner of the plant 10 (S10).

Based on the contract, the service provider 2 installs the sensor 11 and transfer device 15 in the plant 10 for detecting information necessary for analyzing the state of the plant 10 (S12).

The owner of the plant 10 uses the access right management function provided in the cloud 20 to give the service provider 2 the right to access the detection information uploaded from the sensor 11 to the owner tenant 21 from the vendor tenant 22. (S14).

The sensor 11 detects the detection information and transmits it to the owner tenant 21 via the transfer device 15 (S20). The transfer device 15 may transmit detection information to the owner tenant 21 of the cloud 20 via the communication network 3 using a communication method designed based on the Zero Trust Policy. Programs used by the sensor 11 and the transfer device 15 to perform functions such as detection and communication may be provided from the information providing device 100 to the sensor 11 and the transfer device 15 and updated as needed. As a result, appropriate countermeasures can be taken against new threats, so high security can be maintained.

The information providing device 100 requests the detection information stored in the owner tenant 21 using the cloud cooperation data acquisition function provided in the cloud 20 (S22). The data acquisition function returns the requested detection information to the information providing device 100 (S24).

The information providing apparatus 100 analyzes the acquired detection information (S26). The information providing device 100 analyzes the state of the plant 10 based on the detection information and generates a display screen for visualizing the state of the plant 10 .

The owner terminal 12 accesses the information providing device 100 and requests the analysis result (S28). The information providing device 100 presents the analysis result to the owner terminal 12 (S30).

The information providing device 100 charges the owner of the plant 10 for the service based on the contract (S32). This price includes not only the price for providing the analysis results but also the price for installing, using, and maintaining the sensor 11 . The information providing device 100 charges the owner of the plant 10 for the service by a subscription method. The information providing device 100 may charge the owner of the plant 10 for a predetermined period, for example, every month, two months, three months, half a year, and one year. The owner of the plant 10 pays the service provider 2 (S34).

FIG. 3 shows an example of a presentation screen of analysis results provided from the information providing device 100 to the owner terminal 12. As shown in FIG. The information providing device 100 not only presents detection information, but also presents advanced analysis results that take into consideration the knowledge of the vendor of the plant 10 .

FIG. 4 shows the configuration of the information providing device 100 according to the embodiment. The information providing device 100 is built in the vendor tenant 22 of the cloud 20 .

The information providing apparatus 100 includes an application reception unit 121 , a detection information acquisition unit 122 , a detection information analysis unit 123 , an analysis result presentation unit 124 and a billing management unit 125 . In terms of hardware components, these configurations are implemented by the CPU, memory, and programs loaded into the memory of any computer, and functional blocks implemented by their cooperation are depicted here. Therefore, those skilled in the art should understand that these functional blocks can be realized in various forms by hardware alone, software alone, or a combination thereof.

The application accepting unit 121 accepts an application for service from the owner of the plant 10 . The application reception unit 121 receives the contents of the analysis on the plant 10, the type of detection information necessary for the analysis, the type, number, and specifications of the sensors 11 necessary to acquire the detection information, the capacity of the owner tenant 21, The specifications, the charge amount for the owner of the plant 10, the charge method, etc. are received from the owner terminal 12. - 特許庁

The detection information acquisition unit 122 acquires detection information stored in the owner tenant 21 . The detection information analysis unit 123 analyzes the detection information acquired by the detection information acquisition unit 122 . The analysis result presentation unit 124 presents the result analyzed by the detection information analysis unit 123 to the owner terminal 12 . The billing management unit 125 bills the owner of the plant 10 for the service.

FIG. 5 shows the configuration of the owner terminal 12 according to the embodiment. The owner terminal 12 includes a communication device 31 , a display device 32 , an input device 33 , a processing device 40 and a storage device 34 .

The communication device 31 controls wireless or wired communication. The communication device 31 transmits and receives data to and from another device via the communication network 3 . The display device 32 displays the display image generated by the processing device 40 . The input device 33 inputs instructions to the processing device 40 . Storage device 34 stores data and computer programs used by processing device 40 .

The processing device 40 includes a service application section 41 , an access right management section 42 , an analysis result acquisition section 43 , an analysis result display section 44 and a payment management section 45 . These configurations can also be realized in various forms by hardware only, software only, or a combination thereof.

The service application unit 41 applies to the information providing apparatus 100 for provision of services. The service application unit 41 receives a request from the owner of the plant 10 regarding the content of the service, and transmits the request to the information providing device 100 .

The access right management unit 42 accesses the cloud 20 and manages access rights to data stored in the owner tenant 21 . The access right management unit 42 may acquire information such as an access history for the detection information stored in the owner tenant 21 from the cloud service and present it. The analysis result acquisition unit 43 accesses the information providing device 100 and acquires the analysis result. The analysis result display unit 44 displays the analysis result acquired by the analysis result acquisition unit 43 on the display device 32 . The payment management unit 45 executes processing for paying the service provider 2 the billing amount notified from the information providing device 100 .

In the cloud computing service, if the function for managing the access rights to the data stored in the owner tenant 21 of the cloud 20 is provided in a manner accessible by a web browser, the access rights management unit 42 can be accessed by the web browser. may be implemented. The access right management unit 42 may be implemented by a dedicated application or the like provided by a cloud computing service.

If the analysis result display function of the information providing apparatus 100 is provided so as to be accessible by a web browser, the analysis result acquisition unit 43 and the analysis result display unit 44 may be realized by the web browser. The analysis result acquisition unit 43 and the analysis result display unit 44 may be realized by a dedicated application provided by the service provider.

The present disclosure has been described above based on the examples. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that this embodiment is merely an example, and that various modifications can be made to combinations of each component and each treatment process, and such modifications are within the scope of the present invention. .

In the embodiments, the technology for providing information about plants has been described, but the technology of the present embodiment can also be applied to fields other than plants managed by OT, such as power plants and railways. be.

1 Information Providing System 2 Service Provider 3 Communication Network 10 Plant 11 Sensor 12 Owner Terminal 15 Transfer Device 20 Cloud 21 Owner Tenant 22 Vendor Tenant 31 Communication Device 32 Display Device 33 Input Device , 34 storage device, 40 processing device, 41 service application unit, 42 access right management unit, 43 analysis result acquisition unit, 44 analysis result display unit, 45 payment management unit, 100 information provision device, 121 application reception unit, 122 detection information Acquisition unit, 123 detection information analysis unit, 124 analysis result presentation unit, 125 billing management unit.

Claims (10)

A sensor installed in the plant to detect information necessary for analyzing the state of the plant;
a transfer device that transfers detection information detected by the sensor to a cloud storage area;
a storage area of the cloud that is accessible via a network and whose access rights can be managed by the owner or administrator of the plant;
an analysis unit that analyzes the detection information stored in the storage area in the cloud;
a presentation unit that presents an analysis result by the analysis unit from the cloud;
Information provision system. 2. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein the detection information is stored in a storage area of the cloud installed at a location designated by the owner or manager of the plant. to the plant for detecting information necessary for analyzing the state of the plant, which is stored in a storage area accessible via a network and whose access rights can be managed by the owner or administrator of the plant; a detection information acquisition unit that acquires detection information detected by the installed sensor;
an analysis unit that analyzes the detection information acquired by the detection information acquisition unit;
a presentation unit that presents an analysis result by the analysis unit;
An information providing device. 4. The information providing device according to claim 3, wherein the information providing device is provided in another storage area in the cloud in which the storage area storing the detection information is provided. 5. The information providing device according to claim 4, wherein access rights of the information providing device to the detection information are managed by the owner or manager of the plant using functions provided in the cloud. 6. The information providing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the detection information acquisition unit acquires the detection information stored in the storage area using a function provided in the cloud. 7. The information providing apparatus according to any one of claims 3 to 6, further comprising a charging management unit that manages charging for the provision of said analysis result. 8. The information providing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said consideration includes installation, use, or maintenance costs of said sensor. 9. The information providing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said billing management unit bills said price by a subscription method. the computer,
to the plant for detecting information necessary for analyzing the state of the plant, which is stored in a storage area accessible via a network and whose access rights can be managed by the owner or administrator of the plant; a detection information acquisition unit that acquires detection information detected by the installed sensor;
an analysis unit that analyzes the detection information acquired by the detection information acquisition unit;
a presentation unit that presents an analysis result by the analysis unit;
Information provision program to function as.

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