JP6523226B2 - Time synchronization control system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention is based on a distributed system in which a plurality of control devices each including a plurality of interfaces for signal input / output and a main controller for arithmetic processing are juxtaposed, and between each control device and in each control device. The present invention relates to a time synchronization control system for performing time synchronization control between each interface and a main controller.

  In a plant control system, when plant equipments to be controlled are different from one another such as a boiler or a turbine, for example, a distributed system may be adopted in which a control device for controlling each plant equipment is individually provided. .

  In that case, in the control device provided corresponding to each plant device, a plurality of I / O cards serving as an interface for performing I / O signal processing for monitoring control of the plant devices are disposed, and each I / O card There is a system in which a main controller is provided which collects information from the system and performs arithmetic processing for controlling the plant equipment.

  Here, in order to monitor and control each plant device with high accuracy, it is necessary for the input / output card and the main controller in each control device to have time synchronization with the input / output signal. For this reason, in the prior art, time information representing time more than a minute is periodically transmitted from the main controller to the input / output card to synchronize time more than a minute between each input / output card, while one input / output is performed By transmitting contact pulses from the card (standard controller) to the remaining other I / O cards in response to the reception of time information from the main controller, the time less than a second can be synchronized between each I / O card What was made is proposed (for example, refer patent document 1).

  As described above, according to the conventional time synchronization method in each control device, millisecond accuracy time synchronization can be performed with a small amount of data between input and output cards by performing synchronization of minutes or more and synchronization of seconds or less by another means. I have to.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-319407

  However, according to the time synchronization method of the conventional control device, although it is possible to perform highly accurate time synchronization between the main controller and the input / output cards existing in each control device, the plurality of control devices There is no means for performing time synchronization between the two. Therefore, millisecond-accurate time synchronization can not be performed between the control devices.

  In particular, in recent years, a demand has arisen such that a plurality of control devices individually provided for each plant device cooperate to collect time-series information of each plant device and check the sequence operation of the entire plant system. However, in the prior art, there is a problem that it can not cope with advanced control systems in which time synchronization with millisecond accuracy is required between such control devices.

  Also, in the prior art, it is necessary to connect between the pulse output circuit of the input / output card (standard controller) and the pulse input circuit of the remaining other input / output cards for time synchronization in seconds or less. There is also a problem that the wiring in each control device becomes complicated.

  The present invention has been made to solve the problems as described above, and it is possible to perform time synchronization with millisecond accuracy between a plurality of control devices, and between input / output cards in each control device. It is an object of the present invention to obtain a time synchronization control system capable of simplifying wiring.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention is based on a distributed system in which a plurality of control devices each including a plurality of interfaces for signal input and output and a main controller for arithmetic processing are juxtaposed. The time synchronization control system for performing time synchronization control between devices and between each interface in each control device and the main controller is as follows.

  That is, in the first invention, while the interface in each control device and the main controller are connected to each other by the serial bus speeded up with each other, the FM clock which outputs contact pulses in a fixed cycle is provided, The control device has one interface for receiving the contact pulse from the FM watch, and this interface performs time synchronization at the timing when the contact pulse is received, and notifies time synchronization in response to the reception of the contact pulse. The output is characterized in that the main controller and the other interface perform time synchronization in response to the reception of the time synchronization notification.

  In the second aspect of the invention, the interface in each of the control devices and the main controller are connected to each other via a high-speed serial bus, and one of the control devices in each of the control devices is The main controller provided is set as a reference station for time synchronization and outputs a time synchronization notification on a regular cycle, while the pulse output circuit of one interface of each control unit is to the pulse input circuit of one interface of another control unit All interfaces of the control device cascaded in sequence and having the main controller of the reference station perform time synchronization in response to time synchronization notification from the main controller of the reference station, and pulse output circuits of cascaded interfaces Is the next control device interface at the timing when the time synchronization notification is received. The controller in the next stage transmits the contact pulse to the pulse input circuit in the next stage, and the control device in the next stage performs time synchronization at the timing at which the interface receiving the contact pulse in the pulse input circuit receives the contact pulse. A time synchronization notification is output in response to the reception of a pulse, and the main controller and the other interface are characterized by performing time synchronization in response to the reception of the time synchronization notification.

  According to the present invention, not only time synchronization control can be performed with millisecond accuracy between each interface in each control device and the main controller, but also time synchronization can be performed with another second accuracy between each control device. . Further, in each control device, it is only necessary to connect the main controller and each interface with a high-speed serial bus, and it is necessary to connect each interface with a signal line for separately inputting and outputting contact pulses. Therefore, simplification of wiring in each control device can be realized.

It is a system configuration | structure figure in the time synchronous control system of the reference technology of this invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the time synchronous control in the time synchronous control system of the reference technology of this invention. It is a system configuration | structure figure in the time synchronous control system of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the operation timing of each part in the time synchronous control system of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the time synchronous control in the time synchronous control system of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the operation timing of each part in the time synchronous control system of Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a system configuration | structure figure in the time synchronous control system of Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a system configuration | structure figure in the time synchronous control system of Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a system configuration | structure figure in the time synchronous control system of Embodiment 5 of this invention.

Embodiment 1
In order to facilitate understanding of the contents of the present invention, before describing the first embodiment of the present invention, first, the contents of the reference technology will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

  In the distributed system shown in FIG. 1, as an example, two control devices 10a and 10b both having the same configuration are provided side by side, and each control device 10a and 10b is an interface for signal input / output and four input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 and one main controller 1a and 1b for arithmetic processing.

  Here, each of the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 is provided with a timer circuit having a crystal oscillator, though not shown, and has a capability of managing time of seconds or less with millisecond resolution. Also, the main controllers 1a and 1b are provided with a timer circuit that outputs time information every one minute.

  In the distributed system having the configuration shown in FIG. 1, when focusing on one control device 10a, in the time synchronization system of this control device 10a, the main controller 1a applies to each input / output card 2a1 to 2a4 every one minute. The time information is sent, and one I / O card (standard controller) 2a1 transmits the pulse output circuit 3a to the remaining other I / O cards 2a2 to 2a4 in accordance with the reception of the time information from the main controller 1a. The contact pulse is transmitted via the other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 and this contact pulse is received via the pulse input circuit 4a.

  As shown in FIG. 2, each input / output card 2a1 to 2a4 increments the time data by the timing when the time information is received from the main controller 1a, and the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 transmits a contact pulse. Clear the millisecond data at the specified timing. The other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 clear millisecond data at the timing of receiving the contact pulse transmitted from the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1. Thereby, each of the input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 realizes time synchronization in millisecond units. The operations of the other control devices 10b are the same.

  As described above, in the reference technology, a small amount of data is held between the input / output cards 2a1-2a4 and 2b1-2b4 by performing synchronization in minutes or more and synchronization in seconds or less by different means in each control device 10a, 10b. Time synchronization can be performed with millisecond accuracy.

  However, in the time synchronization method of the reference technology, even if highly accurate time synchronization can be performed between input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 present in each control device 10a or 10b, each control device 10a , 10b are not provided at all with each other. Therefore, time synchronization can not be performed between the control devices 10a and 10b as well as between the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 in the control devices 10a and 10b.

  Also, between the pulse output circuits 3a and 3b of the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 and 2b1 and the pulse input circuits 4a and 4b of the other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 and 2b2 to 2b4 for time synchronization of less than a second The wiring in each control device 10a, 10b is complicated because it is necessary to connect

Next, the time synchronization control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 3 is a system configuration diagram of the time synchronization control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and the same reference numerals are given to components corresponding to or corresponding to the reference technology shown in FIG.

  In the distributed system according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3, as an example, two control devices 10a and 10b having the same configuration are provided side by side, and each control device 10a and 10b is an interface for signal input / output. There are four input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 and one main controller 1a and 1b for arithmetic processing.

  In this case, in one control device 10a, the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and the main controller 1a are connected to each other by the serial bus 6a in which the speeds are increased. Similarly, also in the other control device 10b, the input / output cards 2b1 to 2b4 and the main controller 1b are connected to each other by the serial bus 6b whose speed is increased.

  Note that, for example, a PCI bus (Peripheral Componet Interconnect Bus) is applied as the serial buses 6a and 6b which have been speeded up. Also, each input / output card 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 are provided with timer circuits each equipped with a crystal oscillator, though not shown, as in the reference technology, and are capable of managing time of less than a second with millisecond resolution. Have. Also, the main controllers 1a and 1b are provided with a timer circuit that outputs time information every one minute.

  Furthermore, in the first embodiment, while the FM watch 5 is provided which outputs contact pulses serving as a reference for time synchronization in a fixed cycle (every minute in this case), one of the control devices 10a and 10b is turned on. The output cards, here 2a1 and 2b1, are commonly connected to the FM clock 5 via the pulse input circuits 4a, 4b, and these respective input / output cards 2a1, 2b1 receive the contact pulses from the FM clock 5. It is set as a standard controller.

  Next, the time synchronization control operation in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 4 and FIG. In addition, although the operation | movement is demonstrated paying attention to one control apparatus 10a, the operation | movement is fundamentally the same also about the other control apparatus 10b here.

  The FM clock 5 transmits contact pulses to the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 in a one-minute cycle. In response to this, the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 increments the data of the internal time at the timing when the contact pulse is detected by the pulse input circuit 4a, and clears the second or less data to 0 and A time synchronization notification is sent to the main controller 1a via the bus 6a.

  The main controller 1a increments the data of the internal time at the timing when the time synchronization notification from the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 is received and increments the time of the other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 via the serial bus 6a. Send synchronization notifications by multicast.

  The input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 increment the minute data of each internal time and clear the data of less than a second to 0 at the timing when the time synchronization notification from the main controller 1a is received.

  As described above, since the time synchronization notification from the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 and the main controller 1a is performed on the speeded-up serial bus 6a, the time of the main controller 1a and the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 is The deviation is on the order of microseconds, time synchronization with millisecond accuracy is possible, and wiring in the control device 10a can be simplified.

  Further, since the FM watch 5 is connected not only to one control device 10a but also to another control device 10b, each of the control devices 10a, 10b can be operated by performing the above operation with a plurality of control devices 10a and 10b. It becomes possible to synchronize the time of the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 in units of milliseconds between the terminals 10b.

Second Embodiment
In the first embodiment described above, as shown in FIG. 4, the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 receiving the contact pulse from the FM clock 5 in the control device 10a is different from the other input / output card 2a2 2a4 causes a time delay Td by the amount of completion of time synchronization via the main controller 1.

  Therefore, in the second embodiment, in order to shorten the delay time Td between the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 and the input / output card 2a2 to 2a4 and further improve the time synchronization accuracy, the following is performed. I have to. Hereinafter, this point will be described with reference to FIG.

  The FM clock 5 transmits contact pulses to the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 in a one-minute cycle. In response to this, the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 increments the data of the internal time at the timing when the contact pulse is detected by the pulse input circuit 4a, and clears the second or less data to 0 and A time synchronization notification is sent to the main controller 1a via the bus 6a.

  The main controller 1a increments the data of the internal time at the timing when the time synchronization notification from the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 is received, and the time is inputted to the other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 via the serial bus 6a. Multicast synchronization notifications. The operation up to this point is the same as that of the first embodiment.

  Furthermore, in the second embodiment, when the main controller 1a receives the time synchronization notification from the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1, the main controller 1a notifies the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 accordingly. ACK) on multicast data and sent.

  The other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 increment the minute data of the respective internal times at the timing when the time synchronization notification from the main controller 1a is received. Further, when the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 receives the time synchronization notification (ACK) from the main controller 1a, the I / O card 2a1 notifies the main controller 1a of the time synchronization notification at the timing when the time synchronization notification (ACK) is received. The delay time Td required from the time of transmission of the time t1 to the time of reception of the time synchronization notification (ACK) transmitted from the main controller 1a according to this is calculated. Then, the delay time Td is subtracted from the data of its own second or less. Furthermore, the correction time is notified to the other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 via the serial path 6a.

  When the time synchronization notification has already been received from the main controller 1a and the correction time has been received from the input / output card (standard controller) 2a1, the other I / O cards 2a2 to 2a4 are received at the timing when the correction time is received. Clear the data below the second of the internal time to 0.

As described above, by performing time synchronization correction for the time less than a second, the delay time between the input / output card 2a1 (standard controller) and the other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 becomes Ts (<Td) It can be shortened than in the case of mode 1.
In addition, since the operation is the same for the other control devices 10b, detailed description will be omitted here.

Third Embodiment
FIG. 7 is a system configuration diagram in a time synchronization control system according to the third embodiment, and the same reference numerals are given to components corresponding to or corresponding to the first embodiment shown in FIG.

  In the first embodiment described above, the time synchronization is performed by performing time synchronization notification on the serial buses 6a and 6b in each of the control devices 10a and 10b. However, in the third embodiment, FIG. As shown, the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 and the main controllers 1a and 1b are added to the serial buses 6a and 6a and further connected by interrupt signal lines 7a and 7b.

  The input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 increments the internal time data by the timing when the contact pulse from the FM clock 5 is detected by the pulse input circuit 4a, and clears the second or less data to 0. An interrupt signal is transmitted to the main controller 1a and the other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 in the control device 10a through the interrupt signal line 7a.

The main controller 1a that has received this interrupt signal increments data for the internal time. Also, the other input / output cards 2a2 to 2a4 that have received this interrupt signal increment the data of each internal time at the timing of receiving the interrupt signal and clear the data of less than a second to zero.
The operations of the other control devices 10b are the same.

  Thus, not only can time synchronization control be performed with millisecond accuracy between each of the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 in each control device 10a and 10b and the main controller 1a and 1b, each control device 10a Time synchronization can be performed with millisecond accuracy even between 10b and 10b. In addition, without exchanging time synchronization notifications between the respective input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 and the main controllers 1a and 1b, the respective input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 can be main Since time synchronization can be performed between the controllers 1a and 1b, the delay time can be further shortened compared to the case of the first and second embodiments.

Fourth Embodiment
FIG. 8 is a system configuration diagram of a time synchronization control system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, and the same reference numerals are given to components corresponding to or corresponding to the first embodiment shown in FIG.

  In the first to third embodiments described above, one input / output card 2a1, 2b1 of the control devices 10a, 10b is commonly connected to the FM watch 5 via the pulse input circuits 4a, 4b, In the fourth embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, the pulse input circuit of one input / output card (standard controller) 2a1 of one control unit 10a of each control unit 10a, 10b, 10c,. Only 4a is connected to the FM watch 5 to receive contact pulses.

  In addition, regarding the connection among the control devices 10a, 10b, 10c, ..., the pulse output circuits 3a, 3b, 3c, ... of the lowermost input / output cards 2a4, 2b4, ... of the own device are next The pulse input circuits 4 b of the uppermost input / output card (standard controller) 2 b 1, 2 c 1,...

  In this configuration, the control device 10a connected to the FM clock 5 performs the same operation as in the case of the first embodiment, but the lowermost input / output card 2a4 of its own device is synchronized with the time from the main controller 1a. At the timing when the notification is received, the minute data of the internal time is incremented, and the data less than a second is cleared to 0 simultaneously with the contact pulse from the pulse output circuit 3a being the top input / output card of the next control device 10b (standard controller 2.) Output toward the pulse input circuit 4b of 2b1.

  As for the control devices 10b, 10c, and so on, since the uppermost input / output card (standard controller) 2b1, 2c1 receives the contact pulse through the pulse input circuit 4b, the contact from the FM watch 5 The same operation as in the first embodiment for receiving a pulse is sequentially performed.

  Thereby, also in the fourth embodiment, milliseconds between each of the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 and 2b1 to 2b4 in each control device 10a, 10b, 10c, ... and the main controllers 1a, 1b, 1c, ... Not only can time synchronization control be performed with accuracy, but also time synchronization with millisecond accuracy can be performed among the control devices 10a, 10b, 10c,.

  Further, in the case of the configuration of the fourth embodiment, as the control devices 10b, 10c,... On the lower side connected in cascade from the control device 10a connected to the FM clock 5, the delay time accompanying time synchronization becomes longer. However, the connection between the FM watch 5 and the control devices 10a, 10b, 10c, ... can be simplified.

Embodiment 5
FIG. 9 is a system configuration diagram in a time synchronization control system according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention, and the same reference numerals are given to components corresponding to or corresponding to the fourth embodiment shown in FIG.

  In the fourth embodiment described above, the FM clock 5 is used as the reference time of time synchronization, but in the fifth embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the FM clock 5 is omitted and each control is performed. The main controller 1a included in one of the control devices 10a of the devices 10a, 10b, 10c,... Is set as a time synchronization reference station.

  In the fifth embodiment, as in the fourth embodiment, the pulse output circuits 3a, 3b, and so on of the lowermost input / output cards 2a4, 2b4, and so on of the control devices 10a, 10b, 10c, and so on. Are cascade-connected sequentially to the pulse input circuits 4b, 4c,... Of the input / output cards (standard controllers) 2b1, 2c1,.

  The control device 10a having the main controller 1a set as a reference station transmits time synchronization notifications by multicast from the main controller 1a to the other input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 via the serial bus 6a every minute, so Each of the input / output cards 2a1 to 2a4 increments the minute data of each internal time and clears the second or less data to 0 at the timing when the time synchronization notification from the main controller 1a is received.

  Furthermore, for the lowermost input / output card 2a4 of the control device 10a, the contact pulse is output from the pulse output circuit 3a at the timing when the time synchronization notification from the main controller 1a is received. Output toward the pulse input circuit 4b of the card (standard controller) 2b1.

  Since the pulse input circuits 4b of the uppermost input / output cards (standard controllers) 2b1 and 2c1 receive the contact pulses for the control devices 10b, 10c,... Thereafter, the same operation as that of the fourth embodiment is performed. Do it sequentially.

  In the fifth embodiment, since the time of the main controller 1a of one control device 10a is set as the reference time, the FM clock 5 can be eliminated by this, and the control devices 10a, 10b, 10c,. It is possible to realize time synchronization between each other.

  In the first to third embodiments, the case where two control devices 10a and 10b are juxtaposed is described as an example, but the number of control devices is not limited to this and three or more are provided. This invention is applicable even if it is. Further, the present invention is not limited to only the configurations of the first to fifth embodiments described above, and a part of the configurations of the first to fifth embodiments may be modified without departing from the scope of the present invention. Alternatively, part of the configuration can be omitted, and the configurations of the first to fifth embodiments can be combined as appropriate.

10a, 10b, 10c controller, 1a, 1b, 1c main controller,
2a1-2a4, 2b1-2b4, 2c1-2c4 Input / output card (interface), 3a, 3b, 3c pulse output circuit, 4a, 4b, 4c pulse input circuit,
5 FM clock, 6a, 6b serial bus, 7a, 7b interrupt signal line.

Claims (5)

Assuming a distributed system in which a plurality of control devices comprising a plurality of interfaces for signal input / output and a main controller for arithmetic processing are provided side by side, each interface between each control device and each interface in each control device A time synchronization control system for performing time synchronization control between main controllers, comprising:
The above-mentioned interface in each control device and the above-mentioned main controller are connected with each other by a high-speed serial bus, and an FM watch outputting contact pulses in a constant cycle is provided, while each of the above-mentioned control devices And an interface that performs time synchronization at the timing when the contact pulse is received, and outputs a time synchronization notification in response to the reception of the contact pulse, and the main controller and the other A time synchronization control system characterized in that the interface performs time synchronization in response to the reception of the time synchronization notification. The main controller transmits the time synchronization notification by multicast to all the interfaces in the control device in response to the reception of the time synchronization notification from the interface that has received the contact pulse from the FM clock, while the FM clock The interface that has received the contact pulse from calculates the delay time required from the time when it sent the time synchronization notification to the time when it received the time synchronization notification sent from the main controller, and based on that delay time While correcting the synchronization time and transmitting the information of the delay time to another interface, the other interface is characterized in that the synchronization time is corrected at the timing when the information of the delay time is received. The time synchronization control system according to 1. The interface that receives the contact pulse from the FM watch while connecting each of the above interfaces and the above main controller with an interrupt signal line, instead of outputting the above time synchronization notification, Transmit an interrupt signal to the interface through the interrupt signal line, and the main controller and other interfaces that have received the interrupt signal perform time synchronization with the interface that has transmitted the interrupt signal in response to the reception of the interrupt signal. The time synchronization control system according to claim 1, characterized in that Instead of each interface having one interface for receiving contact pulses from the FM watch, only the pulse input circuit of one interface of one controller of each controller may be used for the FM watch. And the pulse output circuit of one interface of each controller is cascaded in sequence to the pulse input circuit of one interface of the other controller,
The pulse output circuit of the cascaded interface of each of the control devices is connected to the pulse input circuit of the interface of the next control device cascaded at the timing when the time synchronization notification output from the main controller is received. 2. The time synchronization control system according to claim 1, wherein a contact pulse is transmitted to perform time synchronization between the respective control devices. Assuming a distributed system in which a plurality of control devices comprising a plurality of interfaces for signal input / output and a main controller for arithmetic processing are provided side by side, each interface between each control device and each interface in each control device A time synchronization control system for performing time synchronization control between main controllers, comprising:
The main controller provided in the control device of each of the control devices is connected in time synchronization, while connecting the interface of the control devices and the main controller with each other via a high-speed serial bus. The pulse output circuit of one interface of each control device is cascaded in sequence to the pulse input circuit of one interface of the other control device while being set as a reference station and outputting time synchronization notification in a fixed cycle,
All interfaces of the control device having the main controller of the reference station perform time synchronization in response to a time synchronization notification from the main controller of the reference station, and pulse output circuits of cascaded interfaces receive the time synchronization notification Send contact pulses to the pulse input circuit of the interface of the next controller at the specified timing,
The control device in the next stage performs time synchronization at the timing at which the interface receiving the contact pulse in the pulse input circuit receives the contact pulse, and outputs a time synchronization notification in response to the reception of the contact pulse, A time synchronization control system characterized in that the main controller and the other interface perform time synchronization in response to the reception of the time synchronization notification.

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