JP2760158B2 - Input/Output Signal Code Converter - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

FIELD OF THEINVENTION The present invention relates to a system in which a plurality of devices to be controlled are controlled by a control device such as a programmable controller (PC), and more particularly to an input/output signal code conversion device which makes it easier for users to use.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, limit switches (LS), solenoid valves (SOL), etc. have been used as input/output devices in processing machines, etc. That is, in processing machines, a specified operation is realized by giving a command to the LS, SOL, etc., and conversely, the operating state is output to the outside.

A PC is usually used to control these devices such as LS and SOL. The input and output cards, which are the components of the PC, are connected to the LS, SOL,
That is, the PC reads the status information of the controlled device through the input card, and executes a predetermined program (sequence diagram) according to this information.
The output card controls the device according to the above.

The input and output cards of the PC and the devices to be controlled are wired and connected by communication lines.
FIG. 9 shows an example of a conventional wiring configuration.

In this figure, there are shown devices 10 to be controlled, such as LS and SOL, and a PC 12 that controls them.
4, connected by a terminal block 16 and a communication line 18.

In general, the device 10 and the PC 12 may be connected only by a communication line without the terminal block 16.
The use of the terminal block 16 is beneficial in terms of workability when manufacturing or moving equipment using LS, SOL, etc. (e.g., manufacturing equipment in a factory, etc.). For example, when checking whether manufactured equipment is wired according to specifications, or whether moved equipment has the same wiring as before the move, if there is only a communication line, it is necessary to check the connection between the LS, SOL, etc. and the PC 12 by tracing the communication line.
is used in order to omit or shorten such work.

As shown in the figure, an address is displayed on the terminal block 16. This address is information that identifies the device (contact) to be controlled in the program (sequence diagram) of the PC 12. In the PC 12, the CPU 20
executes a specified operation. When creating this program, it is created as a collection of symbols called instruction words and signal names that specify the devices to be controlled according to specified rules. The peripheral device that inputs the program to the PC 12 or the PC 12 assigns addresses in accordance with this program. Addresses are assigned so that each device 10 is always assigned one address within the program of the PC 12.

The reason why the addresses are displayed on the terminal block 16 is because the signals handled by the PC 12 are addresses. In other words, the signal names are given in a manner that is human readable, as will be described later.
In the C12 (except for the PC described in Japanese Patent Application No. 2-74521, which will be described later), this cannot be handled directly, and the address is the object of direct handling.
To check the connection with C12, check whether the wiring is set to correspond to the address in the device 10 by checking the terminal block 1.
The user can check the status based on the display of the device 10, P
To facilitate and accurately perform wiring between the C12 and the terminal block 16, the communication lines 14 and 18 are covered with one or two mark tubes 22. Addresses are generally written on the mark tubes 22 as well. The signal lines 14 and 18 are connected to the terminal block 16 by Y-type crimp terminals.

[0010] Incidentally, the equipment 10 is often referred to and handled by the signal names mentioned above by the equipment designers, manufacturers, and users. The signal names are assigned according to the following rules, for example.

First, if the device 10 is an LS, then "LS"
For SOL, the symbol "SOL" is used. Usually, there are multiple LSs and SOLs, so to distinguish between them, a number is added after "LS" or "SOL". For example, the first LS is "LS1".
The code thus assigned is information for identifying the device 10 within the facility and is called a serial number.

As a rule for assigning signal names, a rule for assigning only the serial number may be considered, but a device code may also be used in addition. In the explanation of this conventional example, a signal name based on "device code + serial number" will be considered.

The device code is information that indicates which device each device 10 relates to. For example, if the corresponding device is a door, it is "T1", if it is a table, it is "T2", if it is a unit (responsible for processing, etc.), it is "11", if it is a jig, it is "F", etc.
1", the signal name will be "T1LS
"1" can be read by a human as the first LS of the door.

Therefore, signal names are more convenient than addresses for humans to handle information. For this reason, in addition to the electric circuit diagram shown in FIG. 9, for example, a hydraulic circuit diagram shown in FIG. 10, a pneumatic circuit diagram shown in FIG. 11,
In facility layout diagrams such as that shown in FIG. 2, the names of signals are indicated.

[0014]

[Problem to be solved by the invention] In this way, in a system in which devices such as LS and SOL are controlled by a control device such as a PC, two types of information are used to identify the device to be controlled: signal name and address. Of these, signal name is information that is easy for humans to handle, but PCs cannot handle signal names directly using normal methods. As a result, there is a problem in that conversion between signal name and address must be frequently performed when wiring and maintaining the facility.

For example, in the case of maintenance, when an abnormality is found on the PC side, the information obtained is based on the address. When removing the abnormality, the worker must know which device this address corresponds to. Therefore, it is necessary to convert the address into a signal name that the worker can read. The need to convert between addresses and signal names in this way can lead to mistakes and prolong the work required to remove the abnormality.

Incidentally, the applicant of this application has previously proposed a PC that can directly handle signal names (Japanese Patent Application No. 2002-200343).
This PC has a function to automatically convert signal names to addresses.
The user has fewer opportunities to handle addresses.

[0017] The present invention is based on the same concept as the PC of the earlier application, and aims to improve the connection between the controlled device and the control device. That is, the object of the present invention is to:
The automatic conversion of signal names and addresses enables workers to perform wiring while dealing only with signal names.

[0018]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a signal name setting means for associating a signal name with an address, and an interface between a control device and a controlled device.
and a signal name/address conversion means for converting between a signal name and an address by referring to the signal name setting means,
When handling components, users should use signal names instead of addresses.
It features automatic conversion between signal names and addresses so that users can refer to them when working .

[0019]

[Function] In the present invention, a controlled device specified by a signal name is handled in the control device by an address corresponding to the signal name. At this time, the signal name is converted to an address by the signal name/address conversion means with reference to the signal name setting means. Conversion in the reverse direction is also performed in the same manner. Therefore, in the connection wiring between the control device and the controlled device, the device of the present invention allows the worker to handle only the signal names, eliminating the need to convert between signal names and addresses.

[0020]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the same components as those in the conventional example shown in Figures 9 to 12 are given the same reference numerals and their description will be omitted.

1 shows the configuration of an input/output signal code conversion device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In this figure, an input/output signal code conversion device 26 according to this embodiment is provided between a signal line 14 and a signal cable 24. That is, the device of this embodiment is provided at a position corresponding to the terminal block 16 of the conventional example shown in FIG.

Input/output signal code conversion device 2 of this embodiment
The terminal 6 is connected to the equipment 10 to be controlled, such as LS and SOL, via a signal line 14, and to a communication module (remote I/O) 27 of the PC 12 via a signal cable 24. The signal line 14 is covered with a mark tube 22 as in the conventional example, but in this embodiment, the signal name of the equipment 10 to be connected is written instead of the address. The signal cable 24 is connected to the terminal 27 of the terminal 6, which is connected to the terminal 27 of the PC 12 via a signal line 14.
It is equivalent to bundling the above.

In this embodiment, for example, when wiring,
The worker only needs to know the signal name of the device 10 to which the wiring connection is to be made. That is, the worker affixes the mark tube 22 on which the signal name of the device 10 is written to the signal line 14.
Then, one end of the signal line 14 is connected to the device 10 corresponding to the signal name, and the other end is connected to a terminal 28 provided on the I/O signal code conversion device 26 by screwing the crimp terminal.
6, a plurality of terminals 28 are provided, and each terminal 28 is associated with a device 10. For example, an operator need only connect one end of a signal line 14 connected to a device 10 represented by a signal name "T1LS1" to the terminal 28 associated with the signal name "T1LS1." For example, if the signal name "T1LS1" has a one-to-one correspondence with the address "2000," the input/output signal code conversion device 26 will
The terminal 28 corresponding to LS1'' is connected to the signal line corresponding to the address "2000" among the signal lines constituting the signal cable 24.

[0033] Such functions are realized by a signal name setting section 30 and a communication section 32 which are circuits constituting the input/output signal code conversion device 26 .

FIG. 2 shows the signal name setting unit 3 according to this embodiment.
0 configuration is shown.

The signal name setting section 30 shown in this figure includes rotary switches 34 and 36. The rotary switch 34 is a switch for setting facility information, and the rotary switch 36 is a switch for setting the device type.

For example, when the rotary switch 34 is set to "T1",
When the rotary switch 36 is set to "LS", the input/output signal code conversion device 26 detects the door ("T
In this case, for example, if the terminals 28 in FIG. 1 are assigned numbers "1", "2", ... from the top, the uppermost terminal 28 among the multiple terminals 28 will be assigned the signal name "T1L
S1", and the terminal 28 below it is associated with the signal name "T1LS2", and so on, so that the signal names and the terminals 28 are associated with each other.

In this case, if each terminal 28 is connected to a constituent signal line of the signal cable 24 in correspondence with an address, it will appear to the worker as if the signal name were associated with the address, and the address will not appear on the device table. This makes it possible to carry out the wiring work described above.

Such a correspondence, that is, the correspondence between the terminals 28 and the addresses, is performed by the communication section 32. Fig. 3 shows the configuration of the communication section 32 in this embodiment.

The communication unit 32 includes a communication control unit 38 and a signal name conversion unit 40. The communication control unit 38 is connected to the remote I/O 26 via the signal cable 24, and has an interface function related to communication. The communication control unit 38 can be configured by a conventionally known method. The signal name conversion unit 40 is a component that converts between signal names and addresses.

[0031] That is, the signal name conversion unit 40 refers to a signal name-address conversion table stored in its own internal or external memory to convert between signal names and addresses. As shown in Fig. 4, the signal name-address conversion table associates signal names with addresses, for example, associating the signal name "T1LS1" with the address "2000" and the signal name "T1LS2" with the address "2001". Therefore, the information exchanged between the terminal 28 assigned to a specific signal name by the operation of the signal name setting unit 30 described above and the communication unit 32 is converted by the signal name conversion unit 40 by associating each signal name with an address and executing a conversion operation, so that
The signal is transmitted to and received from the remote I/O 27 of the PC 12 via a signal line related to the corresponding address among the signal lines constituting the signal cable 24 .

In this embodiment, the signal name setting unit 30 assigns the terminals 28 to signal names, and the signal name conversion unit 40 converts between signal names and addresses using a signal name address conversion table, allowing the worker to carry out wiring work related to manufacturing, maintenance, etc. without handling any addresses, and therefore without converting between addresses and signal names. This achieves a reduction in work time and an increase in work accuracy.

Moreover, the device of this embodiment can be realized using simple means. As mentioned above, the communication control unit 38
For this purpose, conventionally known technology can be used, and conventional terminal blocks can be utilized. Furthermore, the assignment of addresses itself can be done by P
This can be done on the C12 side. The signal name address conversion table may be rewritable.

5 shows an input/output signal code conversion device according to a second embodiment of the present invention, in particular the configuration of its signal name setting unit 30. The overall configuration of this embodiment is similar to that of the first embodiment, except that the signal name setting unit 30 includes an external input/output circuit 42 and a name storage unit 44 instead of the rotary switches 34 and 36.

That is, in this embodiment, the equipment information and the equipment type are stored in the name storage unit 44 via the external input/output circuit 42 from a setting device 46 that outputs information related to a peripheral device, for example, equipment information and equipment type. Even in this way, the terminals 28 can be assigned to predetermined signal names, and the same operation as in the first embodiment becomes possible.

In the first and second embodiments, the signal name conversion section 40 is provided inside the communication section 32 .
However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. That is, the signal name conversion unit 40 may be provided outside the communication unit 32, or further, may be provided in the remote I/O 26 of the PC 12. In this case, the PC 12
It will take on part of the function of an input/output signal code conversion device, and the information transmitted via the signal cable 24 together with the status information of the device 10 and the like will be a signal name instead of an address.

[0037] Fig. 6 shows the configuration of an input/output signal code conversion device according to a third embodiment of the present invention. As shown in this figure, the input/output signal code conversion device according to this embodiment is built into the device 10 to be controlled as a signal name setting unit 30 and a communication unit 32.

In this embodiment, the signal name setting unit 30
7. That is, in addition to the configuration shown in FIG. 2, a rotary switch 46 for setting the device number is provided. This is based on the fact that in this embodiment, the device 10 and the input/output signal code conversion device correspond one-to-one. For example, the rotary switches 34, 36 and 46 are "T
If it is set to "1", "LS", or "2", device 1
0 is named "T1LS2".

In this embodiment, the same effect as in the first embodiment can be obtained. In this embodiment, the wiring corresponding to the terminal 28 is not required, so that the work is further simplified.
0 may have the same configuration as in the second embodiment.

8 shows the configuration of an input/output signal code conversion device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is configured integrally with the PC 12. In other words, the present applicant has proposed the same as in Japanese Patent Application No. 2-745.
This configuration utilizes PC No. 21.

That is, the PC 12 according to this embodiment is
It comprises a control information storage means 48 and a control processing means 50 .
The control information storage means 48 is a memory that stores programs related to the operation of the PC, and its storage area is divided into an instruction word storage section 100, an input/output address storage section 102, and a signal name storage section 104 according to the stored contents. The control processing means 50 is a member such as the CPU 20 connected to the remote I/O 26 (not shown), and incorporates a signal name information interpretation section 52 related to the feature of the present invention.

The signal name information interpretation unit 52 is a circuit that interprets information transmitted to and received from the device 10 in the form of a signal name and converts it into an address.
02 and by referring to the signal name storage unit 104.
In other words, the contents of the input/output address storage unit 102 and the contents of the signal name storage unit 104 are mutually associated in the same manner as the signal name⇔address conversion table shown in FIG. 4, and by utilizing this correspondence, signal names and addresses can be converted into each other.

[0043] Therefore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to obtain the same effects as the embodiments described above. In addition, since only signal names are handled from the device 10 side to the remote I/O 26 of the PC 12, the effects of simplification and accuracy of work become more pronounced. The conversion between signal names and addresses may be direct or indirect. In other words, the signal names may be converted into information equivalent to, but not into, the addresses themselves.

[0044]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Signal names and addresses are automatically converted by associating them with each other, eliminating the need to convert between signal names and addresses.
This makes it possible to carry out wiring, maintenance, and other work more quickly and accurately.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an input/output signal code conversion device according to first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a signal name setting unit in the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a communication unit in the first and third exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the contents of a signal name address conversion table.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the configuration of a signal name setting unit in a second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an input/output signal code conversion device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the configuration of a signal name setting unit in a third embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an input/output signal code conversion device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration around a terminal block according to a conventional example.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a hydraulic circuit.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a pneumatic circuit.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of equipment layout.

[Explanation of symbols]

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 Control target device 12 Programmable controller (PC) 26 Input/output signal code conversion device 30 Communication unit 32 Signal name setting unit 34, 36, 46 Rotary switch 38 Communication control unit 40 Signal name conversion unit 42 External input/output circuit 44 Name storage unit 48 Control information storage means 50 Information processing means 52 Signal name information interpretation unit 102 Input/output address storage unit 104 Signal name storage unit

───────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Continued from the front page (72) Inventor Toru Motoshima 1-7 Kitajizoyama, Noda-cho, Kariya-shi, Aichi-ken, Toyota Machine Works Ltd. (56) References JP 2-72407 (JP, A) JP 2-121002 (JP, A) JP 3-276202 (JP, A) (58) Field of investigation (Int.Cl. ⁶ , DB name) G05B 19/05

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] [Claim 1] A signal name setting means for associating a visually identifiable signal name given to each controlled device with an address, which is information for identifying the controlled device to be handled and controlled by a control device such as a programmable controller, and an interface section between the control device and the controlled device.
and a signal name/address conversion means for converting between a signal name and an address by referring to the signal name setting means ,
Users can refer to signal names instead of addresses.
2. An input/output signal code conversion device which automatically converts signal names and addresses so as to