JPH03282902A - Program maintenance tool for programmable controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the reliability of operation by displaying the configuration of connection among respective programmable controllers and their program maintenance tool on a screen and specifying a control program to be maintained on the screen by means of a mouse or the like. CONSTITUTION:A picture indicating the system configuration of all programmable controllers(PCs) connected to the program maintenance tool 1 is displayed on the CRT screen of the tool 1. The names of respective PCs are displayed on the screen as function names in addition to numbers, a cursor 6 on the screen is moved by the mouse or the like and an optional PC is pointed out and selected. If a frame displaying a BFPT turbine control device is pointed out, the PC#3 is selected and displayed on a multiwindow. Similarly, a required area out of sheet diagram numbers of the screen of a control programs stored in the PC#3 is pointed out by the cursor 6 to select a required control program, and if all the sheet diagram numbers can not be displayed within a screen, the contents of the screen is scrolled. Consequently, the storage and input of numbers can be made unnecessary and the reliability of operation can be improved.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field]

The present invention relates to a program maintenance tool for programmable controllers that maintains each control program of one or more programmable controllers by changing, modifying, etc.

[Conventional technology]

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a program maintenance tool for a programmable controller disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-239203. In the figure, 1 is a program maintenance tool, 2-1.2-2. ..., 2-
N are programmable controllers #1, respectively. #2.
..., #n (hereinafter, the number will be omitted unless referring to a specific programmable controller), and the control program stored in each programmable controller can be changed or modified by the program maintenance tool 1. . 3 is a network transmission path for connecting the program maintenance tool 1 and the programmable controller through a data link. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a control program 4 (control procedure) stored in a program storage section (not shown) of each programmable controller, and this control program 4 is a "sheet". It is composed of r(>1) relatively small logic circuits called . Functions are programmed in the -sheets in the form of connections of control and calculation elements, and each sheet is assigned a figure number, that is, a drawing number. Note that this figure number will not be assigned twice within the same programmable controller. Next, the operation will be explained. In order to change or modify the control program 4 of the programmable controller, the program maintenance tool 1 is used to once read out the control program from the programmable controller, change or modify it, and then store it again. At this time, it is necessary to select the maintenance target (control program 4) by specifying the programmable controller number and "sheet" number, but this selection operation is performed as shown in the flowchart in Figure 4. First, a control program 4 to be maintained is stored. This is done by specifying the programmable controller by its number (Step 5T1), and further specifying the number of the "sheet" indicating the control program 4 (Step 5T2).
). Specifically, this is done from the CRT display screen and keyboard of the program maintenance tool 1. That is, a screen as shown in FIG. 5(a) is first displayed, and the number of the programmable controller that stores the control program 4 to be maintained is entered into the input section 5a using the keyboard. The number of this programmable controller is a predetermined number; for example, when selecting programmable controller #2, input 02 to notify it (press the return key). Once the notification is complete, the next step is shown in Figure 5(b).
A screen as shown in FIG. 2 is displayed, and in the same manner, the "sheet" number indicating the control program 4 to be maintained is entered into the input section 5b using the keyboard, and a selection operation is performed. When the above selection operation is completed, the function of the control program 4 to be maintained (the connection circuit status of the calculation element) is displayed on the CRT screen of the program maintenance tool 1, and maintenance such as changing the control program and correcting the current output is performed from now on. become executable.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

Conventional program maintenance tools for programmable controllers are configured as described above, so when performing maintenance such as changing or modifying a control program, in order to specify the control program to be maintained, the corresponding programmable controller and " It is necessary to memorize the number of the "sheet" and enter it from the keyboard, and if you forget the number or enter it incorrectly, you will not be able to specify the maintenance target, resulting in poor operational reliability of the program maintenance tool. There were issues such as: This invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and is a programmable programmable program with high operational reliability that allows the user to accurately select the control program to be maintained without the need for the user to input information such as numbers or names. The purpose is to obtain a controller program maintenance tool.

[Means to solve the problem]

In the program maintenance tool for a programmable controller according to the present invention, the connection between each programmable controller and the program maintenance tool is displayed on a screen by a display means, and the selecting means, which is a pointing device such as a mouse, is used on the screen. This makes it possible to specify control programs to be maintained.

[For use]

The program maintenance tool for a programmable controller according to the present invention is capable of selecting and instructing a maintenance target using a pointing device such as a mouse as a selection means on a screen showing a connection configuration between each programmable controller and the program maintenance tool displayed by a display means. This eliminates the need to memorize or enter numbers to select.

【Example】

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the configuration of a program maintenance tool for a programmable controller according to an embodiment of the present invention and the configuration of the control program stored in each programmable controller are the same as those in FIGS. 2 and 3, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted. The program maintenance tool 1 includes a display means for displaying the connection configuration between each programmable controller and the program maintenance tool 1 on a screen such as a CRT, and a control program 4 to be maintained on the displayed screen. In order to specify the information, a selection means such as a pointing device such as a mouse is provided. Next, the operation will be explained. Here, the selection operation of the control program 4 to be maintained will be explained. The display means first displays, on the CRT screen of the program maintenance tool 1, a screen showing the system configuration of all programmable controllers connected to the program maintenance tool 1, as shown in FIG. 1(a). This screen displays the name of each programmable controller not only by its number but also by its function name, which is familiar to users. and,
A selection means, which is a pointing device such as a mouse, moves the cursor 6 on the screen to a desired display area and selects the programmable controller by pointing it (this operation corresponds to step STI in FIG. 4). Next, when the selection means points to a frame displaying, for example, "BPPT turbine control device," programmable controller #3 is selected, and the display means displays a multi-window screen as shown in FIG. 1(b). be done. Then, by a similar operation, the selection means moves the cursor 6 on this screen to a desired display area among the "sheet" number-lists in the multi-window screen of the control program 4 stored in programmable controller #3. By moving and pointing, it becomes possible to select the control program 4 to be maintained (this operation corresponds to step ST2 in FIG. 4). Note that if the control program 4 cannot be displayed completely on the multi-window screen, all "sheets" can be selected by scrolling the list within the multi-window screen.

【Effect of the invention】

As described above, according to the present invention, the connection configuration between each programmable controller and the program maintenance tool is displayed on the screen by the display means, and the selection means, which is a pointing device such as a mouse, selects the maintenance target on the screen. Since we have made it possible to specify the control program that
There is no need to remember or enter numbers to select.
This has the effect of providing a program maintenance tool for programmable controllers with high operational reliability.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a C'RT screen displayed by a display means in a program maintenance tool for a programmable controller according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a program maintenance tool for a programmable controller. Figure 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a control program stored in each programmable controller, Figure 4 is a flowchart explaining the operation of a program maintenance tool for a programmable controller, and Figure 5 is a conventional program maintenance tool for a programmable controller. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a CRT screen displayed by the computer. In the figure, 1 is a program maintenance tool, 21.2-2
．． ..., 2-N is a programmable controller, and 3 is a network transmission path. In addition, in the figures, the same reference numerals indicate the same or equivalent parts.

Claims (1)

[Claims] In a program maintenance tool for a programmable controller that maintains control programs that are stored in one or more programmable controllers and that are necessary for the operation of each programmable controller, a screen showing the connection configuration between each programmable controller and the program maintenance tool is displayed. A program maintenance tool for a programmable controller, comprising a display means for displaying a display, and a selection means for specifying a control program to be maintained on the screen.