JP4442430B2 - Programmable controller system, controller and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for executing an SFC (sequential function chart) in a programmable logic controller (PLC).

  A method using a program (hereinafter referred to as an SFC program) using an SFC (sequential function chart) in a control device such as a PLC (programmable logic controller) is becoming widespread.

  SFC is standardized as IEC61131-3 (JIS B 3503) as a common element for describing the processing structure indicating the execution order of PLC (refer to IEC61131-3 (JIS B 3503) for details of SFC).

  The SFC step / transition connection is configured by a combination of a single sequence, a sequence selection branch and convergence, a simultaneous sequence branch and convergence, a sequence loop, and the like as shown in FIGS. Usually, the SFC program is edited by a programming device (loader) prepared separately from the PLC, converted into a PLC execution format, and then loaded into the PLC. Or, after editing, it is converted into a format that matches the PLC interface, loaded into the PLC, and converted into an executable format within the PLC.

  As a method of executing the SFC program by the PLC, for example, there is a method in which the connection relationship between each step of the SFC and each transition is converted into a table format, and based on this, the SFC transition is executed by the PLC internal program (Patent Literature). 1). As for the execution method, only a rule that proceeds to the next step when a transition immediately under the active state is established is disclosed.

Further, Patent Document 2 discloses a method for realizing an SFC program by arranging necessary SET / RESET instructions so as to follow the above rules.
Further, Patent Document 3 discloses an example of a method of executing a plurality of steps at the same time when executing an SFC program. In this method, the transition destination step is executed immediately after the transition of the active step, and a plurality of steps are continuously executed.

Patent Document 4 discloses a method of preventing overtaking of a process by starting the process of the next step after the process of the active step being executed is completely completed.
JP-A-8-54911 JP 11-338525 A JP-A-8-63205 JP-A-5-241625

  In the configuration in which an instruction group corresponding to all the steps / transitions is created and executed as in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, all the steps / transitions are evaluated for each process for determining the transition of the step when the SFC program is executed. Therefore, the scan time of the program increases according to the number of steps / transitions. This becomes a significant problem particularly when a large-scale SFC program (the number of steps and the number of transitions is large) is executed. This problem is the same even when the simultaneous execution of a plurality of steps is allowed as in Patent Documents 3 and 4 above.

  An object of the present invention is to realize a high-speed scan execution even when a large-scale SFC program is executed, or to realize a high-speed scan execution while allowing a follow-up execution of steps in the same sequence. It is to provide a control system, a control device, a program, etc.

  The control system of the present invention is a control system in which a control device that controls various control target devices and a support device that supports the control device are connected by a communication line. Graphical representation program creation support means to be created, conversion means for converting the connection relationship between each step and each transition in the graphical representation program into a table format, and transmission means for transmitting the connection relationship data in the table format to the control device And the control device stores connection relation data storage means for saving the connection relation data in the table format sent by the transmission means, and performs control processing of the control target device using the connection relation data. Control process execution means to be executed, and a group of numbers of steps currently active during execution of the control process by the control process execution means A first temporary storage means for temporarily storing; a second temporary storage means for temporarily storing a number group of transitions to be evaluated according to the activation step; For each scan, only the transition of the evaluation target stored in the second temporary storage means is set as the evaluation target, and for each of the evaluation target transitions, the presence or absence of transition of the active step is determined based on the conditions for establishing the transition. The contents stored in the first and second temporary storage means are updated with reference to the connection relation data for the next scan regarding the step of judging and shifting.

  In the control system, first, an SFC illustrated representation program is converted into a format that can be executed on the PLC side in a support device that has a function of causing a user to create a program or the like and load it into a control device such as a PLC. That is, it is converted into tabular connection relation data, which is loaded on the control device side. On the control device side, the control processing execution means executes the control processing by referring to the tabular connection relation data. During execution, the stored contents are stored as needed using the first and second temporary storage means. By updating and referring, it is possible to process only the transition to be evaluated as an evaluation target.

  In the above control system, for example, the control processing execution means permits the follow-up execution of a step, and the top step is always in an active state for each scan, and when determining the transition of the active step Referring to the connection relation data, a subsequent step is identified, and it is determined by referring to the first temporary storage means whether the identified step is currently active. The step may not be shifted regardless of the conditions for establishing the transition.

  That is, the control device may allow the follow-up execution of steps within the same sequence. However, in order not to catch up with the step, the transition is not performed when the identified subsequent step is currently active.

  In the control system, for example, the first temporary storage means stores the active step number and a flag indicating whether or not the transition has already been performed, and the control processing execution means stores the active step number. In the determination of whether or not there is a transition, if the flag indicates that the transition has been completed, the transition of the step is not performed regardless of the conditions for the transition. That is, two or more steps are not erroneously activated in the execution of the “selective branch and convergence” sequence.

  According to the control system, the control device, the program, and the like of the present invention, even when a large SFC program is executed, high-speed scan execution can be realized, or while stepping execution of steps in the same sequence is allowed. Even high-speed scan execution can be realized.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
In the following description, a programmable controller system will be described as an example of the control system, but the present invention is not limited to this example.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the programmable controller system of this example.
In the illustrated system, a controller support device 1 and a controller 2 that is a PLC main body (control device) are connected via a communication line 3. The controller support apparatus 1 is an apparatus for allowing a user (a worker, an operator, or the like) to create an arbitrary control program, or for monitoring the status of the controller 2 or various control target devices (not shown) controlled by the controller 2. . That is, it is a device having the above-described function as a programming device (loader) and the function as a monitoring device. The user uses the controller support device 1 to create an SFC program with a graphical representation. The controller support apparatus 1 converts the created SFC program into a format that can be executed by the controller 2, and then loads the program into the controller 2 via the communication line 3.

  In this example, the format that can be executed by the controller 2 is a step / transition connection relation table 13 to be described later. The controller 2 receives and stores the connection relation table 13 and executes the control. In order to manage the control execution procedure, the table 13 is referred to and an active step group management table 14 and an evaluation transition group table 15 described later are created as needed.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the programmable controller system of this example.
In FIG. 2, reference numeral 11 denotes an SFC illustrated representation program created by the user in the controller support apparatus 1. The controller support apparatus 1 includes an SFC graphical representation-step / transition connection relationship table conversion unit 12 (hereinafter, abbreviated as SFC-connection relationship table conversion unit 12), and thereby the SFC graphical representation program described above. 11 is converted into a step / transition connection relation table 13. The created step / transition connection relation table 13 is transmitted to the controller 2 and stored.

  The controller 2 has a control execution unit 16. The control execution unit 16 refers to the step / transition connection relation table 13, and creates and refers to the active step group management table 14 and the evaluation transition group table 15 as needed. However, control execution management is performed.

  In the following description, the names of the tables are omitted. That is, the step / transition connection relationship table 13 is described as a connection relationship table 13, the active step group management table 14 is described as an active SP table 14, and the evaluation transition group table 15 is described as an evaluation TN table 15.

  Here, the active SP table 14 and the evaluation TN table 15 are evaluated according to the currently active step group and each active step for each scan in order to limit the transition to be evaluated during one scan. It is a table that stores only transition groups to be processed. The transition evaluation unit 17 evaluates the “each transition to be evaluated”, and the control execution unit 16 proceeds to the next step while referring to the evaluation result, the connection relation table 13, the active SP table 14, and the evaluation TN table 15. The control execution management is performed by updating the contents of the active SP table table 14 and the evaluation TN table 15.

  The SFC program has one initial step (see JIS B3503 2.6.2 “Step”). This one step becomes active first, and then this active state is sequentially transmitted to the subsequent steps. In the SFC program, there is only one active step unless there is a simultaneous sequence branch, and the transition to be evaluated is only the transition following the active step. Even when there are simultaneous sequence branches, the number of steps that are active at the same time is at most the same as the number of sequences divided by the branches, and is limited to a small number from the steps of the entire SFC program. Since the transition evaluation and the step state change (transition) based on the evaluation result are effective only when the step preceding the transition is active, the transition evaluated during one scan becomes active. It is possible to speed up the execution of the program by limiting to only those following a certain step.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the SFC graphic representation program 11.
FIG. 4 shows an example of the data structure of the connection relationship table 13.
The illustrated representation program shown in FIG. 3 is a combination of “single sequence”, “sequence selection branching and convergence”, “simultaneous sequence branching and convergence”, etc., described in the prior art. S1, S2,... Are identification numbers assigned to each step (hereinafter referred to as SP numbers), and T1, T2,... Are identification numbers assigned to respective transitions (hereinafter referred to as TN numbers). It is. Further, SP and TN in the connection relation table 13 in FIG. 4 are abbreviations of steps and transitions, respectively. The connection relationship table 13 can be easily created by examining the connection relationship of the illustrated representation in the controller support device 1 as in the prior art.

  The connection relation table 13 in FIG. 4 includes a table relating to each step and a table relating to each transition. The table relating to each step stores the number of transitions subsequent to that step (the number of subsequent TNs) and the TN number of these subsequent TNs in association with the SP number of each step. For example, taking the step with the SP number S2 as an example, the number of subsequent TNs is two, and the TN numbers are T2 and T6. The table relating to each transition is associated with the TN number of each transition, the number of steps before the transition (the number of preceding SPs), the SP number of these preceding SPs, and the number of steps following the transition (following). SP number) and the SP numbers of these subsequent SPs are stored. For example, taking the transition with TN number T9 as an example, the number of preceding SPs is two (S8 and S10), and the number of subsequent SPs is also two (S9 and S11).

  FIG. 5A shows an example of the structure of the active SP table 14, and FIG. 5B shows an example of the structure of the evaluation TN table 15. The formats of these tables 14 and 15 are stored in advance in a storage device (not shown) in the controller 2, and the data stored in these tables 14 and 15 are updated as needed by the control execution unit 16.

  In the active SP table 14 shown in FIG. 5A, the number of currently active steps and the SP numbers of these steps are stored and updated by the control execution unit 16. Further, a flag is prepared in association with each stored SP number. This flag is basically necessary only in the case of the “selection branch and convergence” sequence shown in FIG. 19B, and S2 is stored in the table 14 in the example of FIG. Only when it is necessary. That is, in the selective branch, only one step among a plurality of steps is activated, and thus the above flag is used to prevent two or more steps from being activated by mistake. Details will be described later.

In the evaluation TN table 15 of FIG. 5B, the number of transitions that are the current evaluation target and the TN numbers of these transitions are stored and updated by the control execution unit 16.
When executing the control management process, the control execution unit 16 first executes the initialization process of FIG. 6 and then executes the process of FIG. Note that an application program for causing the computer to execute the processes of FIGS. 6 and 7 is stored in a storage device (not shown) in the controller 2 in advance. The CPU / MPU (not shown) in the controller 2 reads out and executes the application program, thereby realizing the processes of FIGS.

  Here, the controller 2 usually executes not only one but also various control processes, and the connection relation table 13 is created for each of these various control processes and is stored in a storage device (not shown) in the controller 2. It is remembered. When executing any control process among these various control processes, the control execution unit 16 recognizes the connection relation table 13 corresponding to the control process, starts the application program, and recognizes the connection relation recognized. The processing of FIGS. 6 and 7 is executed using the table 13.

6A and 6B show a flowchart of the initialization process.
6A, the control execution unit 16 first stores the SP number of the initial step in the active SP table 14 (step S001). Naturally, the number of active steps is one. It is assumed that the SP number of the initial step is fixed (for example, S1) and registered in advance. As a result, only the initial step is activated and all other steps are deactivated.

  Next, the evaluation TN table 15 is initialized (step S002). A detailed flow of the processing in step S002 is shown in FIG. In FIG. 6B, first, the evaluation TN table 15 is cleared (step S011), and then the SP number currently stored in the active SP table 14 (active SP number; here, S1) is extracted (step S011). S012) Referring to the connection relation table 13, the subsequent TN number and the subsequent TN number group corresponding to this active SP number are acquired, and these acquired data are stored in the evaluation TN table 15 (step S013). When a plurality of SP numbers are stored in the active SP table 14, the processing of steps S012 and S013 is executed in the same manner for the remaining SP numbers, and the processing is performed for all the SP numbers (step S014, S014). YES) The process ends.

  Note that the process of step S014 is not necessary in the initialization process, but the process of FIG. 6B is also used in the process of step S109 of FIG. It is written. Note that the step numbers in the processing flowchart in this description are all shown in three digits to distinguish them from the step numbers of the SFC program.

  When the initialization process is completed, the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 7A is executed for each scan thereafter. 7B is a detailed flowchart of the SP / TN evaluation process in step S105 of FIG. 7A, and FIG. 7C is a detailed flowchart of the SP transition process in step S107 of FIG. 7A. It is.

  Hereinafter, the processing of FIGS. 7A to 7C will be described, and a specific example will be described with reference to a specific example. That is, FIG. 8 shows an example of the connection relation table 13 created based on the illustrated representation program of FIG. 3, and FIG. 9 shows the active SP table 14 and the evaluation TN table 15 for each scan according to this example. The stored SP number and TN number are shown. In FIG. 9, in the initial state of the first scan, S1 is stored in the active SP table 14 and T1 is stored in the evaluation TN table 15 by the initialization process. Further, FIGS. 10 and 11 show state transitions of the tables 14 and 15 and the next scan table being processed in FIG. Hereinafter, the processing of FIG. 7 will be described with reference to these drawings.

  In FIG. 7A, first, a copy of the current active SP table 14 is created (step S101). This copy is used to create an initial state of the table 14 at the next scan, and is hereinafter referred to as a next scan table. The state transition of the stored data in the active SP table 14, the next scan table, and the evaluation TN table 15 during the first scan is as shown in FIG. 10, the state transition of the active SP table 14 is shown on the left side of the figure, the state transition of the next scan table is shown in the middle of the figure, and the state transition of the evaluation TN table 15 is shown on the right side of the figure. As described above, since S1 is stored in the table 14 and the number of active SPs is 1 at the first scan, the state of the table 14 is as shown in FIG. Thus, the next scan table shown in FIG. 10B is created.

  Each flag in the active SP table 14 is in an indefinite state at the beginning of each scan, and when all the flags are set (ON) (step S102), the state shown in FIG. 10C is obtained. This flag indicates that the set state has not yet been transferred to all the next transition (activation) target steps, and the reset state indicates that the transition has already been made to one of the transition target steps. For example, in FIG. 3, the transition target steps from S2 are S3 and S6. However, when the process proceeds to S3, the flag corresponding to S2 is reset so that S6 is not activated.

  Subsequently, the processing of steps S104 to S107 is executed for each evaluation target transition with all the transitions of the TN number stored in the evaluation TN table 15 as evaluation targets. First, one TN number stored in the table 15 is extracted (step S104), and SP / TN evaluation processing is performed (step S105). The process of this step S105 roughly determines whether or not to move to the subsequent step of the transition to be evaluated, and its detailed flow is as shown in FIG. 7B. That is, in FIG. 7B, first, the transition evaluation unit 17 evaluates the transition of the TN number extracted in step S104 (step S111).

  This evaluation is to determine whether or not the transition condition regarding the transition is satisfied. Transition conditions relating to all transitions used in the SFC are tabulated on the memory as shown in FIG. 5C, for example. The contents of the table on the memory are updated at any time by a separately existing program (a program for executing PLC I / O update, arithmetic processing, etc.). The transition evaluation unit 17 can know whether or not the transition condition regarding each transition is satisfied by referring to the table on the memory.

  If the transition condition is not satisfied as a result of the evaluation in step S111 (step S111, NO), it is determined that there is no SP transition (step S118), and the processing in step S106 (whether or not there is SP transition). Proceed to (Judgment). Accordingly, the determination in step S106 is NO, and the process returns to step S103 as it is.

  On the other hand, if the transition condition is satisfied as a result of the evaluation in step S111 (step S111, YES), the first preceding leading number from the preceding SP number group 33 corresponding to the transition to be evaluated is determined from the connection relation table 13. The SP number is extracted (step S112). Then, the active SP table 14 is searched using the extracted preceding SP number to obtain a record having the same SP number (step S113), and the flag is referred to to determine whether the flag is set or reset. (Step S114). If the flag is in the reset state (OFF) (step S114, NO), since the transition to the next step has already been performed by the transition evaluation before the transition currently being evaluated, the current evaluation is being performed. It is determined that the transition of the step cannot be performed depending on the transition (step S118).

  On the other hand, if the flag is in the set state (ON) (step S114, YES), the above determination is performed for all remaining preceding steps. That is, the next preceding SP number is extracted from the preceding SP number group 33 (step S115). If there is no next preceding SP number, the processing has been completed for all preceding steps (step S116, YES), so it is determined that there is an SP transition (step S117). If there is at least one preceding step whose flag is reset in the preceding SP number group 33, it is determined that there is no SP transition (step S118), so it is determined that there is SP transition (step S117). Is only when the flags are set for all preceding steps in the preceding SP number group 33.

  In the processing shown in FIG. 7B described above, the state of the tables 14 and 15 is as shown in FIGS. 10C and 10D in the above specific example. Therefore, the transition to be evaluated is T1. Since the preceding SP number group 33 corresponding to is only S1, and the flag of S1 is set as shown in FIG. 10C, it is determined that there is SP transition.

  If it is determined that there is no SP transition by the process of FIG. 7B (step S106, NO), the process returns to step S103 as it is, and if it is determined that there is an SP transition (step S106, YES). ), The process proceeds to the SP transition process in step S107.

A detailed flow of the processing in step S107 is shown in FIG.
7C, first, the preceding SP number group 33 and the succeeding SP number group 35 corresponding to the TN number of the transition to be processed are extracted from the connection relation table 13 (step S121), and the preceding SP number group in the active SP table 14 is extracted. The flag corresponding to each SP number in the SP number group 33 is reset (step S122). In the above example, since only S1 exists in the preceding SP number group 33, the flag of S1 is reset in the active SP table 14 as shown in FIG. Next, the record of each SP number in the preceding SP number group 33 is deleted from the next scan table created in step S101 (step S123). In the above example, since the record of S1 is deleted, the next scan table becomes empty as shown in FIG. Subsequently, each SP number in the subsequent SP number group 35 is added to the next scan table (step S124). In the above example, since the succeeding SP number group 35 includes S2 and S7, as shown in FIG. 10G, records S2 and S7 are added to the next scan table, and the number of active SPs is changed to ' 2 ′.

  It should be noted that when the subsequent SP number is added, in order to prevent the same SP number from existing in the next scan table, it is not added if the same SP number already exists in the table.

  When the above SP migration processing is completed, the process returns to step S103, and if there is still an evaluation target transition (NO in step S103), the next evaluation target TN number is extracted from the evaluation TN table 15 (step S104). Similarly to the above, the process of steps S105 to S107 is executed, and when the evaluation is completed for all the transitions to be evaluated (step S103, YES), the process proceeds to step S108. In step S108, the contents of the active SP table 14 are updated (overwritten copy) with the next scan table. Thus, in the above example, the table 14 is in the state shown in FIG. That is, the contents shown in FIG. 10G are overwritten and copied, and the data regarding S1 disappears.

  Finally, the evaluation TN table 15 is initialized for the next scan (step S109). This process is the same as the process of FIG. In the above example, since S2 and S7 are stored in the table 14, the subsequent TN number group 23 of S2 is T2 and T6, and the subsequent TN number group 23 of S7 is T8. The contents of the table 15 are as shown in FIG.

As described above, the contents of the tables 14 and 15 are reconfigured for the next scan in steps S108 and S109.
As described above, processing for one scan is executed.

When the next scan is started, the process shown in FIG. 7 is executed again using the reconstructed tables 14 and 15.
The process of the second scan will be described along the above example.

  FIG. 11 shows the state transition of the data storage contents of the active SP table 14 and the next scan table being processed in the second scan. The left side of the figure shows the state transition of the table 14, and the right side of the figure shows the state transition of the next scan table. Although not shown in FIG. 11, the contents of the table 15 are as shown in FIG.

  In the second scan, the content of the active SP table 14 starts from the state of FIG. 10 (h) as shown in FIG. 11 (a). By copying this in step S101, the next scan table becomes as shown in FIG. Further, in step S102, all the flags in the table 14 are set as shown in FIG.

  First, if T2 is an evaluation target and the determination in step S111 is YES, the corresponding SP number is only S2, and the flag of S2 is set as shown in FIG. It is determined that there is a migration (step S117), and the SP migration process shown in FIG. 7C is executed. Accordingly, first, in step S121, S2 is extracted as the preceding SP number and S3 is extracted as the subsequent SP number. In step S122, the flag of S2 in the table 14 is reset, so that the table 14 is changed to FIG. It will be in the state shown in In step S123, S2 is deleted from the next scan table, and the state shown in FIG. Further, S3 is added to the next scan table in step S124, and the state shown in FIG. That is, the process proceeds from S2 to S3.

  When the process for T2 is completed as described above, the process returns to step S103, and the evaluation object still remains (T6 and T8), so this time the process is executed for T6. Since this is a selective branch to one of S3 and S6, it should not be transferred to S6 as long as it has already been transferred to S3 as described above. For this reason, the flag is prepared. Since the flag of S2 is reset in step S122, the process does not proceed to S6. That is, in the process for T6, in the process shown in FIG. 7B, first, S2 is extracted in step S112, and when the processes of steps S113 and S114 are executed, the flag of S2 is set to the reset state as described above. Therefore, the determination in S114 is NO and it is determined that there is no SP transition (step S118). Therefore, the SP transition processing in step S107 is not executed, and the process returns to step S103, and this time T8 is targeted. Execute the process.

  The preceding SP number corresponding to T8 is only S7, the determination in step S114 regarding S7 is YES, and the flag of S7 is reset by S122, so the active SP table 14 is in the state shown in FIG. The next scan table is in the state shown in FIG. 11H because S7 is deleted in step S123, and the subsequent SP number group 35 of T8 is S8 and S10. 11 (i). This is the initial state of the table 14 for the third scan.

For the third and subsequent scans, FIG. 9 shows the state of the tables 14 and 15 at the beginning of each scan, and is not specifically described.
As described above, according to the programmable controller system of this example, not only the step / transition connection relation table 13 but also the active step group management table 14 and the evaluation transition group table 15 are updated as needed. Accordingly, for each scan, only the transition to be evaluated can be processed and evaluated, so that even when a large SFC program is executed, high-speed scan execution can be realized. It is also possible to prevent two or more steps from being erroneously activated in the execution of the “selective branch and convergence” sequence.

The embodiment described above is the first embodiment, and the second embodiment will be described below.
Here, in the first embodiment, as described above, in the normal SFC program, there is only one step activated at a certain moment in the entire program unless there is a simultaneous sequence branch. However, the present invention is not limited to such a normal method, and there is a method that allows a plurality of steps to be activated simultaneously even if there is no simultaneous sequence branch.

  In order to simplify this explanation, FIG. 12 shows an example of an SFC graphical representation program in which a single sequence is arranged in series. This program is arranged in the order of S1, S2, S3, and S4 as shown in FIG. Of course, there is a transition between each step, but it will be ignored here.

  In the first embodiment, when this program is executed, activation is performed in the order of S1, S2, S3, and S4 as shown in FIGS. 12B to 12E. That is, if there is only a single sequence, only one step is always active. In the figure, the steps marked with black circles are the active steps.

  On the other hand, in the second embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 12F to 12H, a plurality of steps are allowed to be simultaneously activated even in a single sequence. This is applied to, for example, a program for managing processes. That is, it is well known to perform a plurality of processes from raw material input to intermediate product completion in a production line or the like, and S1 to S4 correspond to, for example, the first to fourth processes. To do. 12 (f) to 12 (h), for example, in the middle of performing the operation of the first process → the second process → the third process by introducing the first lot, the second lot is also input to the first process. This is equivalent to performing the same work as following the first lot.

Note that the simultaneous execution of a plurality of steps which is allowed even if there is no simultaneous sequence branch as described above is referred to as “step chase execution”.
In the second embodiment, first, as shown in FIG. 13, the head step of the SFC program is always activated every scan. As a result, if the transition condition immediately after the first step is satisfied, even if there is another active step in the sequence, a new step can be activated. Further, the last step of the SFC program is a step that is always inactive at the end of each scan even if control is transferred from the immediately preceding active step.

  A specific example of the SFC program in the description of the second embodiment is shown in FIG. The specific example shown in FIG. 15 is almost the same as FIG. 3, but in FIG. 3, after the last transition T5, it loops to the first step S1, but in FIG. Since it is necessary to provide an active step, as shown in the figure, after the transition T5, there is a step S12 that is always inactive. FIG. 16 shows a specific example of a connection relationship table corresponding to the SFC graphic representation program shown in FIG. This is also almost the same as the specific example shown in FIG. 8, and the difference is that there is S12, so that a record with SP number 21 of “S12” and subsequent TN number 22 of “0” is added, and T5 The subsequent SP number group 35 corresponding to is S12.

  The data structures of the tables 14 and 15 are the same as those shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b). However, data stored in the tables 14 and 15 in each scan is as shown in FIG. The processing executed by the application program is basically as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7C and FIG. That is, the difference from the first embodiment is basically a detailed flow of the SP / TN evaluation process, which is shown in FIG. Therefore, the description of FIGS. 7A and 7C will be omitted here (except for the differences described later), and FIG. 14 will be described. In other words, the second embodiment achieves high-speed execution of the SFC program as in the first embodiment, but this can be realized while allowing “step-following execution”. Is. However, as described above, regarding S12 which is the last step, if it becomes active in a certain scan, it is necessary to deactivate it at the end of the scan, so step S109 in FIG. After the above processing, referring to the table 14, if S12 is stored in the table 14, processing for deleting it is added.

  Of the processes shown in FIG. 14, the processes of steps S201, S202, S203, S204, and S209 are substantially the same as the processes of steps S111, S112 and S115, S113, and S114 of FIG. Then, I will not explain in particular. In FIG. 14, the processes of steps S205 to S208 are added to the process of FIG. This is a process for preventing the succeeding one from catching up with the preceding one in the “step chase execution”. For example, referring to the examples of FIGS. 12 (f) to 12 (h), when the activation step relating to the first lot is S3, the activation step relating to the second lot is S1 → S2 → S3 while stagnating for some reason. You must avoid the situation where you have caught up and caught up. As a result, when the activation step related to the second lot is S2, even if it is determined that “SP transfer is present”, unless the activation step related to the first lot shifts to S4, “SP transfer” Processing for determining “None” is processing in steps S205 to S208.

  That is, if it is determined in step S204 that the flag corresponding to the preceding SP number is set (YES in step S204), first, the connection relation table 13 is referred to and the current process target transition is determined. The subsequent SP number group 35 corresponding to the TN number is extracted, and then the active SP table 14 or the next scan table is searched using each extracted subsequent SP number (step S206). If any one of the SP numbers is registered in the active SP table 14 or the next scan table (YES in step S207), it is determined that “no SP migration” (step S211). If none of the subsequent SP number group 35 is registered in the next scan table, the process proceeds to step S209, and the above-described process is repeatedly executed until all the preceding SPs are evaluated.

  The processing in steps S205 to S208 will be described using a specific example shown in FIG. First, the data storage content of the table 14 in FIG. 17 is different from that in FIG. 9 in that S1 is always included in all scans. This is because the first step is always activated in this example, as described with reference to FIG. Thus, in this example, the process of step S124 is slightly different from that of the first example. That is, in step S124, the subsequent SP number group is added to the next scan table, but S1 is also necessarily added. Thus, for example, in the second scan, S2 and S7 in FIG. 9 are added, but S1 is further added.

  Further, the contents of the evaluation transition group table 15 are also different from those in FIG. For example, taking the second scan as an example, when the process of step S109 is performed at the end of the first scan, the contents of the table 14 are already S1, S2, and S7. , T1, T2, T6, and T8.

Note that the “subsequent SP number” shown in FIG. 17 does not mean the data stored in the table, but the number extracted in step S205.
Taking the second scan as an example, T1, T2, T6, and T8 are subject to evaluation. If processing is performed sequentially from the top (T1), the next scan table is the state when the contents of the table 14 are copied. That is, since S1, S2, and S7 are stored, S2 and S7 are extracted as the subsequent SP number group of T1 in step S205, and if the determination in step S206 is made, the determination becomes YES and there is no SP transition. End up. This is good when processing is desired as in the example shown in FIGS. 12 (f) to 12 (h). However, when it is desired to move continuously without a gap, processing is performed in order from the tail (T8). To do.

  Here, assuming that processing is performed as in the example shown in FIGS. 12F to 12H, first, the processing related to T1 is determined to have no SP transition as described above, and when the processing related to T1 ends, It is in a state close to FIGS. 11C and 11B (however, the data of S1 remains, but is ignored here). Subsequent processing is as shown in FIGS. That is, in the evaluation process of T2, the subsequent SP number group is S3, and the determination in step S206 is NO, so it is determined that there is SP transition. Regarding T6, since the determination in step S204 is NO, it is determined that there is no SP transition. Regarding T8, the subsequent SP number group is S8 and S10, and the contents of the next scan table at this time are S3 and S7 as shown in FIG. 11 (f), so the determination in step S206 is NO. It is determined that there is SP transition.

  Then, the contents of the next scan table are as shown in FIG. 11 (i). When S1 is added to this and the initial state of the table 14 for the third scan is created, the evaluation of T1 at the third scan is as follows. Since S1, S3, S8, and S10 are stored in the next scan table, and S2 and S7 are extracted as the subsequent SP number group of T1 in step S205, the determination in step S206 is NO and it is determined that there is an SP transition. Is done.

Finally, FIG. 18 shows a hardware configuration example of the controller support device 1.
A computer 100 shown in the figure includes a CPU 101, a memory 102, an input unit 103, an output unit 104, a storage unit 105, a recording medium drive unit 106, and a network connection unit 107, which are connected to a bus 108. It has become. The configuration shown in the figure is an example, and the present invention is not limited to this.

The CPU 101 is a central processing unit that controls the entire computer 100.
The memory 102 is a memory such as a RAM that temporarily stores a program or data stored in the storage unit 105 (or the portable recording medium 109) during program execution, data update, or the like. The CPU 101 uses the program / data read out to the memory 102 to execute the above-described SFC graphic representation program creation support function, a function of converting this into the step / transition connection relation table 13, and the like.

The output unit 104 is a display or the like, for example. When the user creates an SFC graphical representation program, the graphical representation program corresponding to the input is displayed.
The input unit 103 is, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, and the like, and the user operates these to perform an input operation of the SFC illustrated expression program.

  The network connection unit 107 is connected to the communication line 3 and transmits / receives commands / data and the like to / from the controller 2 via the communication line 3. Alternatively, the network connection unit 107 may be further connected to a network such as an intranet or the Internet to perform command / data transmission / reception with another information processing apparatus.

  The storage unit 105 is, for example, a hard disk or the like, and stores predetermined application programs and data for causing the CPU 101 to execute the various functions described above. Alternatively, these programs / data may be stored in the portable recording medium 109. In this case, the program / data stored in the portable recording medium 109 is read by the recording medium driving unit 106. The portable recording medium 109 is, for example, an FD (flexible disk) 109a, a CD-ROM 109b, a DVD, a magneto-optical disk, or the like.

  Alternatively, the program / data may be downloaded from another apparatus via a network connected by the network connection unit 107. Or you may download further what was memorize | stored in the other external apparatus via the internet.

  The hardware configuration of the controller 2 is not particularly shown, but includes, for example, a CPU / MPU, a storage unit (ROM, RAM, flash memory, etc.), a communication unit, and the like. The communication unit is connected to the communication line 3 and communicates with the controller support device 1. For example, the connection relation table 13 is downloaded. The communication unit is also connected to a control network (not shown), and performs data transmission / reception with various control target devices (not shown).

  The storage unit included in the controller 2 stores an application program for causing the CPU / MPU to execute the processes shown in FIGS. 6, 7A to 7C, FIG. 14 and the like. In addition, the downloaded connection relation table 13 is stored in the storage unit. Further, the formats of the tables 14 and 15 shown in FIG. 5 are also stored, and data is stored and updated in these tables 14 and 15 during processing.

  In addition, the present invention can be configured not only as a portable storage medium recording a program for realizing the various processes of the present invention on a computer, but also as the program itself.

It is a schematic block diagram of the programmable controller system of this example. It is a functional block diagram of a programmable controller system. It is a figure which shows an example of a SFC illustration representation program. It is a figure which shows the example of a data structure of a step / transition connection relationship table. (A) is an active step group management table, (b) is an evaluation transition group table, (c) is a figure which shows an example of a transition formation condition table. (A), (b) is a flowchart figure of the initialization process in a control process. It is a control process flowchart figure, (a) is a whole flow, (b), (c) is the detailed flow of step S105, S107. FIG. 4 is an example of a connection relationship table created based on the illustrated representation program example of FIG. 3. FIG. It is a figure which shows SP number and TN number which are stored in an active step group management table and an evaluation transition group table for every scan. FIG. 8 is a diagram (part 1) illustrating a state transition of each table being processed in FIG. 7; FIG. 8 is a diagram (part 2) illustrating a state transition of each table being processed in FIG. 7; It is a figure which shows the transition state of the active step in the example of a SFC illustration representation program in which a single sequence is located in series. It is a figure which shows the process which implement | achieves "step chasing execution." It is a detailed flowchart figure of SP / TN evaluation processing in the 2nd example. It is a figure which shows an example of the SFC illustration representation program in a 2nd Example. FIG. 16 is an example of a connection relationship table created based on the illustrated representation program example of FIG. 15. FIG. It is a figure which shows the data storage state transition example of each table in a 2nd Example. It is a computer hardware block diagram. (A)-(d) is a figure which shows the example of a basic connection relationship of the step / transition in a SFC program.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Controller support apparatus 2 Controller 3 Communication line 11 SFC illustration representation program 12 SFC illustration representation-step / transition connection relation table conversion part 13 Step / transition connection relation table 14 Active step group management table 15 Evaluation transition group table 16 Control execution part 17 Transition evaluation unit 21 SP number 22 Subsequent TN number 23 Subsequent TN number group 31 TN number 32 Predecessor SP number 33 Predecessor SP number group 34 Subsequent SP number 35 Subsequent SP number group 100 Computer 101 CPU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 102 Memory 103 Input part 104 Output part 105 Storage part 106 Recording medium drive part 107 Network connection part 108 Bus 109 Portable recording medium 109a FD (flexible disk)
109b CD-ROM

Claims (6)

In a control system in which a control device that controls various devices to be controlled and a support device that supports the control device are connected by a communication line.
The support device includes:
Graphic representation program creation support means for creating an SFC graphic representation program,
Conversion means for converting the connection relationship between each step and each transition in the illustrated representation program into a table format;
Transmission means for transmitting the tabular connection relation data to the control device,
The controller is
Connection relation data storage means for storing the tabular connection relation data sent by the transmission means;
Control processing execution means for executing control processing of the device to be controlled using the connection relation data;
During the execution of the control process by the control process execution means, a first temporary storage means for temporarily storing a number group of steps currently active, and a transition number to be evaluated according to the active step Second temporary storage means for temporarily storing the group,
The control processing execution means sets, for each scan, only the evaluation target transition stored in the second temporary storage means as an evaluation target, and for each evaluation target transition based on a condition for establishing the transition. A control system for determining whether or not there is a transition of an active step and updating the storage contents of the first and second temporary storage means with reference to the connection relation data for the next scan regarding the transition step .   The control processing execution means allows a follow-up execution of a step, and the first step is always in an active state for each scan, and the connection relation data is referred to when determining the transition of the active step. The subsequent step is identified, and it is determined whether or not the identified step is currently active by referring to the first temporary storage means. If the current step is currently active, the condition for establishing the transition is determined. 2. The control system according to claim 1, wherein the step transition is not performed regardless of the above.   In the initialization process of the control process by the control process execution unit, the first temporary storage unit stores the number of the topmost step, and the second temporary storage unit stores the topmost step. The control system according to claim 1, wherein the numbers of all the transitions following are stored. A control device in a control system in which a control device that controls various devices to be controlled and a support device that supports the control device are connected by a communication line,
A connection relation data storage means for storing a connection relation table formed by converting the connection relation between each step and each transition in the SFC graphical representation program into a table format, when the connection relation table is transmitted from the outside;
Control processing execution means for executing control processing of the device to be controlled using the connection relation data;
During the execution of the control process by the control process execution means, a first temporary storage means for temporarily storing a number group of steps currently active, and a transition number to be evaluated according to the active step Second temporary storage means for temporarily storing the group,
The control processing execution means sets, for each scan, only the evaluation target transition stored in the second temporary storage means as an evaluation target, and for each evaluation target transition based on a condition for establishing the transition. A control device that judges whether or not there is a transition of an active step and updates the storage contents of the first and second temporary storage means with reference to the connection relation data for the next scan regarding the transition step .   The control processing execution means allows a follow-up execution of a step, and the first step is always in an active state for each scan, and the connection relation data is referred to when determining the transition of the active step. The subsequent step is identified, and it is determined whether or not the identified step is currently active by referring to the first temporary storage means. If the current step is currently active, the condition for establishing the transition is determined. 5. The control device according to claim 4, wherein step transition is not performed regardless of whether or not. A computer of the control device in a control system in which a control device that controls various control target devices and a support device that supports the control device are connected by a communication line.
When a connection relation table in which the connection relation between each step and each transition in the SFC graphic representation program is converted into a table format is transmitted from the outside, a storage function for saving the connection relation table;
A control processing execution function for executing control processing of the control target device using the connection relation data;
During execution of the control process by the control process execution function, a first temporary storage function for temporarily storing a group of steps that are currently active, and a transition number to be evaluated according to the active step A second temporary storage function for temporarily storing the group;
In the control processing execution function, for each scan, only the transition of the evaluation target stored in the second temporary storage function is set as an evaluation target, and the condition for establishing the transition is determined for each transition of the evaluation target A function for determining whether or not there is a transition of the active step based on, and updating the storage contents of the first and second temporary storage functions with reference to the connection relation data for the next scan with respect to the transition step;
A program to realize

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