JP4919092B2 - Control program development support device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a control program development support apparatus incorporating an online editing function capable of being connected to a PLC via communication and editing a part of a control program being executed on the PLC during execution.

  Control program development support that incorporates an online editing function that can be connected to a programmable controller (hereinafter referred to as PLC) via communication and edits a part of the control program being executed on the PLC. The device is conventionally known.

  This type of development support apparatus generally has various functions such as a control program creation function, an edit function, an upload function to the PLC, a download function from the PLC, a monitor function for a program executed on the PLC, and the like. The online editing function according to the present invention is included as one of those functions.

  These various functions are generally realized by incorporating dedicated software into a personal computer (hereinafter simply referred to as a personal computer), and the user can use a display, mouse, keyboard, etc. provided on the personal computer. Perform input / output operations.

  When the online editing function is activated, a ladder diagram corresponding to a control program created by the user or downloaded from the PLC is displayed on the display of the personal computer. This ladder diagram includes a plurality of “circuits”. Here, “circuit” indicates a minimum unit of a ladder program having a logical meaning.

  An explanatory diagram of various circuit examples constituting the ladder diagram is shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the “circuit” constituting the ladder diagram has a one-to-one correspondence between the input and the output shown in the figure (a), and the input and the output shown in the figure (b). Corresponds to 1: n, the input and output shown in FIG. 5C correspond to n: 1, the input and output shown in FIG. 4D correspond to n: n, There are a combination of a contact point and an instruction shown in FIG. 5E and a command only shown in FIG.

  The user must determine one or a series of circuits to be edited online from the ladder diagram displayed on the display of the personal computer. The circuit to be edited is determined by using a rectangular cursor whose length and width can be freely changed using, for example, a keyboard or a mouse, and constituting one circuit, a series of circuits, and one circuit. This is done by selecting one of the circuit elements.

  FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example when a circuit is selected. As shown in FIG. 4A, when one circuit is selected, the selected one circuit is surrounded by a rectangular cursor 401. Further, as shown in FIG. 5B, when a plurality of circuits are selected, these circuits are surrounded by a similar rectangular cursor 402.

  Note that, as indicated by broken lines in FIGS. 14A and 14B, the cursors 401 and 402 in the middle of the selection operation have a predetermined display state indicating an undecided state. On the other hand, after the selection operation is completed (for example, double-clicking, predetermined key operation, etc.), when one circuit or a series of circuits thus selected is determined as the circuit to be edited, those rectangular cursors are determined. It is set as the predetermined display mode which shows that.

  On the other hand, since the online editing function is performed on a circuit basis in principle, it is not preferable that a circuit element constituting one circuit is determined as an object for online editing. Here, the circuit element means a contact, a coil, a command word, a connection line, and the like constituting the ladder program.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 15A, when a circuit element constituting one circuit is selected by the rectangular cursor 403, one circuit element is shown as shown in FIG. The circuit to which the element belongs is automatically selected as an object to be edited, and a rectangular cursor 404 is displayed so as to surround the circuit, and then, as shown by a solid line in the drawing, is determined as the circuit to be edited.

  By the way, the execution of the online editing function causes the PLC cycle time to increase because the PLC rewrites the control program while the control program is being executed. Therefore, an online editing execution mechanism on the PLC has been proposed in consideration of the influence on the cycle time associated with the execution of the online editing (also referred to as online editing) function (see, for example, Patent Document 1). On the other hand, there is a case where a restriction is provided on the control program development support apparatus side in order to reduce the influence on the cycle time. Specifically, an upper limit is set on the number of circuits that can be edited online. In order to realize the online editing function, it is necessary to complete the change processing of the ladder program within the cycle time of the PLC, so that the size of the program that can be changed by one online editing is limited, the PLC cycle This is because, in order to complete the change process within the time, the reception process of the program write command needs to be completed within one cycle, and therefore the frame size of the program write command is limited. Generally, it differs depending on the type of the device and the type of the transmission path.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 16, when a circuit exceeding the upper limit is selected by the rectangular cursor 405, a circuit exceeding the upper limit is selected as shown in FIG. 17, and online editing is not possible. A warning is made.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-249881

However, in the control program development support device having such a conventional online editing function,
(1) If the number of circuits to be selected happens to exceed the upper limit, the user must reduce the number of circuits again and redo the selection operation.
(2) When online editing is performed by dividing a large-scale circuit into a plurality of parts, the maximum number of circuits that can be selected is not specified, so the user can select an upper limit to avoid redoing when the upper limit is exceeded. Tend to select a smaller number of circuits, resulting in an increase in the number of divisions,
(3) When the circuit selection function is activated in a state where the rectangular cursor is positioned on a certain circuit element on one circuit, only one circuit to which the circuit element belongs is determined as an editing target, so that the user can It is hard to notice that you can select a circuit at once,
There was a problem.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above-mentioned problems in the conventional control program development support apparatus, and its object is to provide a PLC control program development support apparatus having this type of online editing function. Is to improve operability when selecting a circuit to be edited.

  Other objects and operational effects of the present invention will be easily understood by those skilled in the art by referring to the following description of the specification.

  The problems to be solved by the above-described invention can be solved by a PLC control program development support apparatus having the following configuration.

  In other words, this control program development support apparatus can be connected to the PLC via communication, and has an online editing function for editing a part of the control program being executed on the PLC during execution. It is assumed that there is.

  In this control program development support device, a selection operation accepting unit for accepting a user's selection operation on a ladder diagram representing the control program, and a selection target by the selection operation accepted by the selection operation accepting unit are displayed in a ladder diagram. A selection target determining means for determining whether one or a series of circuits or a circuit element constituting one circuit, and when the determination means determines that one or a series of circuits is selected Only when the object size of the control program corresponding to one or a series of circuits does not exceed a predetermined upper limit size necessary for realizing the online editing function, the selected one or series of circuits is subject to online editing. A first editing object determining means for determining a circuit, and a circuit element constituting one circuit by the determining means; And a second editing target determining means for determining a series of circuits including one circuit to which the circuit element belongs and whose object size of the corresponding control program is the upper limit size as a target circuit for online editing. Contains.

  According to such a configuration, when the user tries to select a target circuit for online editing on a circuit basis, the number of circuits to be selected remains unchanged as long as the number of circuits to be selected does not exceed the upper limit. Since it is determined as a target circuit for online editing, the user can determine not only one circuit but also a plurality of arbitrary circuits as target circuits for online editing.

  Further, if the user selects an arbitrary circuit element constituting one circuit and tries to select a target circuit for online editing, not only one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs, but also a series adjacent to it. The multiple circuits are automatically selected up to the maximum number that can be selected, so if you use this automatic selection function, you can divide a large-scale circuit into multiple parts for online editing. This minimizes the amount of time required for online editing.

  In addition, when an arbitrary circuit element constituting one circuit is selected and an attempt is made to select a target circuit for online editing, a plurality of circuits are automatically selected and determined unintentionally. Through the automatic selection operation, the user can learn that online editing can be performed by simultaneously selecting a plurality of circuits as well as one circuit.

  As a result, according to the control program development support apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to remarkably improve the operability when determining the target circuit for online editing.

  In the second editing target determining means, one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs may be arranged at the head of a series of circuits determined as a target circuit for online editing. In other words, a series of circuits which are the target circuits for online editing may be determined by using one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs as a leading circuit.

  According to such a configuration, when it is desired to determine a series of circuits as a target circuit for online editing with the maximum number of circuits that can be selected, by selecting any circuit element of the first circuit, the circuit elements Since a series of circuits connected to one circuit to which the number belongs can be selected up to the maximum number of circuits, a group of circuits to be edited can be set as an editing target circuit without error.

  A series of circuits having a predetermined upper limit size necessary for realizing the online editing function, determined as the target circuit for online editing in the second editing target determining means, are obtained from one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs. It is obtained by repeating the operation of accumulating the object size of the control program for each circuit until the accumulated value exceeds the upper limit size while adding adjacent circuits as candidates for online editing one by one in order. Anyway.

  According to such a configuration, a series of circuits reaching the maximum number of circuits that can be selected can be reliably determined as a target circuit for online editing without excess or deficiency.

  The second editing target determining means displays a series of circuits determined as online editing target circuits based on the selected circuit element so that they can be distinguished from other circuits on a ladder diagram representing a control program. A function may be incorporated.

  According to such a configuration, a series of circuits selected unintentionally can be surely recognized by the user.

  The series of the present invention described above can be understood as a computer program for realizing such functions from another aspect.

  As described above, according to the present invention, in this type of program development support apparatus incorporating an online editing function, the operation for determining a circuit to be subjected to online editing is simplified, and the online editing work efficiency is correspondingly increased. Can be improved.

  A preferred embodiment of a development support apparatus for a PLC control program and a computer program for realizing the apparatus according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  A configuration diagram of a PLC system to which the present invention is applied is shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, this PLC system is configured by connecting a control program development support apparatus 1 to which the present invention is applied and a PLC 2 via a communication means 3.

  In the illustrated example, the control program development support apparatus 1 is configured by installing software for realizing various functions necessary for the control program development support apparatus in a personal computer.

  In the illustrated example, the PLC 2 is configured as a building block type including a power supply unit 21, a CPU unit 22, an input / output unit 23, and a communication unit 24. As other units constituting the PLC, there are special function units that perform special functions such as a unit dedicated to motion control and a unit dedicated to process control.

  A hardware configuration diagram of the control program development support apparatus is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, the control program development support apparatus 1 includes a personal computer main body 11, a display 12, a keyboard 13, and a pointing device 14.

  The personal computer main body 11 is configured by connecting a CPU 11a, a hard disk drive 11b, a memory 11c, and a COM port (for serial communication) 11d through a system bus 11e. The CPU 11a reads various software necessary for the control program development support device stored in the hard disk drive 11b, and implements various functions as the control program development support device by executing the memory 11c as a work area. It is possible. Further, the CPU 11a communicates with the PLC 2 via the COM port 11d.

  Among these functions, when the online editing function according to the present invention is realized, a ladder diagram corresponding to the contents of the control program is displayed on the display 12 as described above with reference to FIGS. In this state, when the user operates the keyboard 13 and the pointing device (for example, a mouse) 14, the personal computer and the user can interact with each other.

  Next, a basic configuration of the PLC 2 will be described. The CPU unit 22, the input / output unit 23, and the communication unit 24 operate with power supplied from the power supply unit 21. The input / output unit 23 includes an input / output circuit for exchanging input / output data between the external input / output terminal and the input / output bus. The communication unit 24 incorporates a communication circuit for performing communication with other PLCs or remote IO terminals.

  On the other hand, the CPU unit 22 performs overall control of the PLC 2, and includes a CPU mainly composed of a microprocessor and an ASIC, a user memory for storing a control program created by the user, An input / output memory serving as a buffer area for input / output data of the input / output unit 23 is incorporated.

  The microprocessor included in the CPU implements various functions as a PLC by executing the basic processing shown in FIG.

  A flowchart showing the entire basic processing of the PLC is shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the entire PLC basic process is a power-on process (step 101), a common process (step 102), an arithmetic process (step 103), and an I / O refresh process (step 104). And peripheral service processing (step 105).

  The power-on process (step 101) is a so-called initial process immediately after power-on, and includes various processes such as initialization of hard memory / system work, recognition of mounted units, and user memory (UM) check. The processing is executed in this power-on processing (step 101).

  The common process (step 102) is a common process in various modes of the PLC (only the operation mode is shown in the illustrated example). For example, battery abnormality check, DIP switch monitoring, I / O bus check, Processing such as memory check of the user program is executed.

  In the calculation process (step 103), an execution process of the user program is executed as an in-operation process, and an output is turned off as an abnormal process. Here, execution of the user program refers to the data in the input / output memory, sequentially executes each instruction word constituting the user program (control program), and outputs the output data of the input / output memory according to the execution result. It is a process of rewriting.

  The I / O refresh process (step 104) rewrites the contents of the input area of the input / output memory with the input data fetched from the external terminal of the input / output unit 23 (see FIG. 1), This is a process of sending data to the output terminal of the input / output unit 23.

  The peripheral service process (step 105) executes an event service with a special function unit, an RS-232C port service, a file access service, a communication port service, and the like. In this peripheral service processing (step 105), reception of a program write command for realizing an online editing function, update of program data, and the like are executed.

  Here, a time for executing a series of processes including the common process (step 102), the calculation process (step 103), the I / O refresh process (step 104), and the peripheral service process (step 105) is generally a cycle time. Called. In order to execute the online editing process, the reception of the program write command, the update of the program data, etc. must be completed within this cycle time. Will occur.

  An explanatory diagram showing the format of the program write command is shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the program write command includes a transmission destination address, a transmission source address, a command code, and command data. A command write command is stored in the command code, and program data is stored in the command data. A program write command having such a configuration is transmitted from the control program development support apparatus 1 to the CPU unit 22 and received by the peripheral service processing 105, and update processing of program data for online editing processing is performed. It is.

  Next, FIG. 5 shows a flowchart showing the entire online editing process executed in the control program development support apparatus 1. As shown in the figure, the entire online editing process includes an online editing start process (step 21) for determining an editing target circuit, and a circuit editing process (step 21) performed on the determined editing target circuit. 22) and change transfer processing (step 23) for transferring the circuit whose editing has been completed to the PLC 2.

  Details of the online editing start process (step 21) are shown in the flowchart of FIG. In the figure, when processing is started, input determination processing (step 211) is first executed.

  In this input determination process (step 211), as shown in FIG. 7, a series of processes (steps 2111 to 2115) are executed. That is, in the first process (step 2111), the cursor position input from the input device (pointing device 14 or keyboard 13) is acquired. In the following step 2112, the acquired cursor position is converted into a position on the window that is formed into a matrix as shown in FIG. 9, thereby acquiring the selected position. As is clear from FIG. 9, the selected position is expressed as coordinates (Ak, Bk) (k = 1, 2, 3,... N).

  In the following step 2113, it is determined whether or not the cursor exists on the A1 column shown in the matrix of FIG. 9 based on the selected position represented by the coordinates (Ak, Bk). If it is determined that the cursor exists on the A1 column (YES in step 2113), the process proceeds to step 2114, and the circuit including the cell in the A1 column is set as the selected circuit, and the selected circuit information is held. . On the other hand, when it is determined that the cursor does not exist on the A1 column (NO in step 2113), the process proceeds to step 2115, and it is determined that an element (circuit element) is selected instead of a circuit. Hold. For example, when selecting a circuit existing in columns B2, B3, and B4 in the matrix of FIG. 9, the user first moves the cursor placed in the B2 row on the A1 column, This is because it is decided to drag three rows to B4 row of the same A1 column.

  Returning to FIG. 6, when the input determination process (step 211) is completed, the circuit that has been selected based on the selected circuit information or the selected element information held in the input determination process (step 211) is subsequently selected. Is determined (step 212).

  If it is determined that the selected circuit is a circuit (YES in step 212), the size of the selected circuit, that is, the object size when the selected circuit is converted into an object code that can be executed by the PLC 2, is known. After the calculation by the above method (step 214), it is determined whether or not the circuit thus selected fits within the command data transmission capacity for one frame of the program write command shown in FIG. 4 (step 215).

  Here, if it is determined that the selected circuit fits in the command data transmission capacity for one frame as the above object size (YES in step 215), the selected circuit is determined as the circuit to be edited, and thus on the screen. The rectangular frame is in a predetermined display mode indicating the determined (determined) state, whereas if it is determined that the selected circuit does not fit in one frame (NO in step 215), refer to FIG. 17 first. As described above, the selection range abnormality warning is displayed (step 217).

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the selected circuit is not a circuit (that is, a circuit element) (NO in step 212), an edit target circuit automatic selection process (step 213), which is one of the main parts of the present invention, is executed. Is done.

  FIG. 8 shows a flow chart showing the edit target circuit automatic selection processing. As shown in the figure, the edit target circuit automatic selection process is composed of a series of processes including steps 2131 to 2138.

  First, in step 2131, a frame size that can be transmitted by a program write command is acquired from the model of the target PLC and the type of transmission path. As described above, in order to realize the online editing function, it is necessary to complete the ladder program change process within the cycle time in the flowchart showing the entire basic process of the PLC shown in FIG. Limits on the size of programs that can be changed in one online edit. Further, in order to complete the change process within one cycle time, it is necessary to complete the program write command reception process within one cycle time. This limits the frame size of the program write command. These limit sizes differ depending on the PLC model and the type of transmission path. Therefore, the process of step 2131 exists.

  In the subsequent step 2132, the circuit to which the element belongs is acquired from the selected element information acquired in the input determination process (step 211). For example, when the circuit element (A2, B2) is selected in the matrix of FIG. 9, all the circuit information existing in one circuit to which the circuit element belongs, that is, the A1 to An columns of the B2 row is acquired.

  In the following step 2133, the ladder program in the circuit is converted to mnemonic (character string information). For this conversion, although not shown, a conversion table of element codes and mnemonics (character string information) is used.

  In the subsequent step 2134, the object size when the mnemonic is converted into an object code (a machine language understandable by the PLC) is acquired from a conversion table (see FIG. 10) in the control program development support apparatus. As is clear from FIG. 10, in this object size acquisition table, each mnemonic and its object size are stored in association with each other.

  Thereafter, in step 2135, it is determined whether or not the object size is equal to or smaller than the limit frame size (not exceeding a predetermined upper limit). That is, in this step 2135, it is determined whether or not the object size of the first circuit is equal to or smaller than the limit frame size among all the selected circuits.

  If it is determined here that the object size is equal to or smaller than the limit frame size (YES in step 2135), the process proceeds to step 2136, and the circuit is determined and held as an editing target circuit. In addition to the above, the series of processes (steps 2133 to 2136) are repeatedly executed. As a result, the selected series of circuits is sequentially added to the circuit to be edited from the top circuit.

  In the meantime, if it is determined in step 2135 that the object size has exceeded the limit frame size (NO in step 2135), the circuit determined and held as the editing target at that time is clearly displayed on the ladder program window on the display (others). It is displayed in such a manner that it can be distinguished from this circuit.

  That is, as a result of executing the above-described series of processing (steps 2131 to 2138), adjacent circuits are added as candidates for online editing one by one from the one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs, and each circuit is added to each circuit. By repeating the operation of accumulating the object size of the corresponding control program until the accumulated value exceeds the upper limit size, a series of circuits having a predetermined upper limit size necessary for realizing the online editing function can be It is determined as a target circuit.

  Since a series of circuits determined as the target circuits for online editing are arranged at the head of one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs, the user operation has a certain scale, for example. When it is desired to determine a series of circuits as a target circuit for online editing, a selection operation is performed by placing a rectangular cursor 301 on one of the circuit elements of the first circuit of the series of circuits, for example, as shown in FIG. For example, as shown in FIG. 12, a circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs is set as a head circuit, and a series of circuits corresponding to the maximum allowable number of circuits are surrounded by a rectangular cursor 302. The series of circuits is determined as the circuit to be edited.

  Returning to FIG. 5, when the online editing start processing (step 21) is completed, the editing processing is performed on the circuit determined as the editing target by a known method (step 22), and then the change is completed. A series of object codes corresponding to the circuit is stored as command data of a program write command and transferred to the target PLC 2 (step 23).

  Then, as described above with reference to FIG. 3, in the peripheral service process (step 105), the program write command is received and the program data is updated, thereby realizing a so-called online editing function.

  According to the present invention described above, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, if any one of the circuit elements constituting one circuit is selected with the rectangular cursor 301, one circuit to which the circuit element belongs is included. Since a series of circuits corresponding to the maximum allowable number of selections are automatically determined as selection target circuits and displayed so as to be distinguishable from other circuits by the rectangular cursor 302, a user who knows such a function is not recommended. For example, when it is desired to divide a large-scale circuit into a plurality of parts and perform online editing, the rectangular cursor 301 is placed on one of the circuit elements of one circuit located at the head of the large-scale circuit, and a predetermined selection operation is performed. Since it is possible to perform online editing for the maximum number of circuits that can be selected by simply performing the Can achieve online editing a circuit, it is possible to improve the work efficiency significantly compared with the conventional.

  In other words, as described above, if such a large-scale circuit division editing is performed by a conventional method, the maximum number of circuits that can be selected cannot be known. On the other hand, online editing is repeated with a larger number of divisions, and as a result, the work efficiency decreases.In the present invention, a series of circuits are edited each time with the maximum allowable number. Since it can be determined as a target, efficient and efficient online editing becomes possible.

  Also, without knowing such a convenient function, if a predetermined selection operation is performed in a state where the rectangular cursor 301 is accidentally placed on any circuit element, a series of multiple circuits are automatically created as shown in FIG. By observing such operations, the user learns that not only one circuit but also a series of subsequent circuits can be simultaneously selected and determined for online editing. can do.

  Therefore, the user who has learned as described above uses a selection function in units of circuits that has been conventionally provided, and as described above with reference to FIG. You will be conscious of your choice.

  That is, according to the conventional method, as described above with reference to FIG. 15, when a predetermined selection operation is performed in a state where the rectangular cursor 403 is placed on any of the circuit elements, the circuit elements are displayed. Since only one circuit that is included is selected and determined as an editing target and is displayed surrounded by a rectangular cursor 404, the user tends to misunderstand that the determination as the editing target can be performed only by a single circuit. On the other hand, according to the present invention, as described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12, when any one of the circuit elements is selected with the rectangular cursor 301 and a predetermined selection operation is performed, as shown in FIG. Since a series of circuits are displayed surrounded by the rectangular cursor 302, it is easy to notice that a plurality of circuits can be selected and determined simultaneously by checking such an operation.

  Note that the rectangular cursor 301 shown in FIG. 11 is a display mode indicating unconfirmed, and the rectangular cursor 302 shown in FIG. 12 is a display mode indicating the finalized state. In addition, in the example of FIG. 12, the internal region surrounded by the rectangular cursor 302 is drawn with brightness or color that can be distinguished from other regions. This allows the user to easily see that a series of circuit areas have been automatically selected and determined.

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 12, one circuit including the initially selected circuit element is arranged as the top circuit of the automatically selected and determined area. Should be understood as an example of the present invention.

  In addition, the selection target circuit may be determined so as to include one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs and a series of circuits before and after that.

  In this way, if one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs is in the middle and a predetermined number of allowable circuits are connected before and after the circuit, it will be roughly included including one specific circuit as a center. This would be suitable when it is desired to perform on-line editing with respect to the above circuit.

  According to the present invention, in the program development support apparatus incorporating this kind of online editing function, the operation for determining the circuit to be edited online is simplified, and the work efficiency of online editing is improved accordingly. Can be made.

1 is a configuration diagram of a PLC system to which the present invention is applied. It is a hardware block diagram of a control program development support apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the whole basic process of PLC. It is explanatory drawing which shows the format of a program write command. It is a flowchart which shows the whole online edit process. It is a flowchart which shows online edit start processing. It is a flowchart which shows an input determination process. It is a flowchart which shows an edit object circuit automatic selection process. It is explanatory drawing of the matrix for cursor position conversion. It is explanatory drawing of the table for object size acquisition. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display when one circuit element is selected. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display when a some circuit is automatically determined as edit object from one circuit element. It is explanatory drawing of the various circuit examples which comprise a ladder diagram. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display when a circuit is selected. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display in the case of circuit automatic selection. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display in the middle of the circuit exceeding the upper limit being selected. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display when the warning that the circuit exceeding an upper limit is selected and online editing is not performed is performed.

Explanation of symbols

1 Control program development support device 2 PLC
3 Communication means 11 PC body 11a CPU
11b Hard disk drive 11c Memory 11d COM port (for serial communication)
11e System bus 12 Display 13 Keyboard 14 Pointing device 21 Power supply unit 22 CPU unit 23 Input / output unit 24 Communication unit 301, 302, 401, 402, 403, 404, 405 Rectangular cursor 406 Warning window

Claims (8)

A control program development support device incorporating an online editing function that is connectable to a PLC via communication and edits a part of the control program being executed on the PLC during execution,
A selection operation receiving means for receiving a user's selection operation on a ladder diagram representing a control program;
A selection target determining means for determining whether a selection target by the selection operation received by the selection operation receiving means is one or a series of circuits constituting a ladder diagram, or a circuit element constituting one circuit;
When it is determined by the determination means that the circuit is one or a series of circuits, the object size of the control program corresponding to the selected one or a series of circuits has a predetermined upper limit size necessary for realizing the online editing function. First editing target determining means for determining the selected one or a series of circuits as a target circuit for online editing only when not exceeding,
When the determination means determines that the circuit element constitutes one circuit, a series of circuits including one circuit to which the circuit element belongs and the object size of the corresponding control program is the upper limit size are edited online. A control program development support device, comprising: a second editing target determining unit that determines a target circuit.   The circuit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second edit target determining means includes, at the head of a series of circuits determined as a target circuit for online editing, one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs. A control program development support apparatus according to 1.   A series of circuits having a predetermined upper limit size necessary for realizing the online editing function, determined as the target circuit for online editing in the second editing target determining means, are obtained from one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs. Acquired by repeating the operation of adding the object size of the control program corresponding to each circuit until the integrated value exceeds the upper limit size while adding adjacent circuits as candidates for online editing one by one in order. The apparatus for supporting development of a control program according to claim 1, wherein:   The second editing target determining means displays a series of circuits determined as online editing target circuits based on the selected circuit element so that they can be distinguished from other circuits on a ladder diagram representing a control program. 2. The control program development support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the function is incorporated. Computer
A selection operation receiving means for receiving a user's selection operation on a ladder diagram representing a control program;
A selection target determining means for determining whether a selection target by the selection operation received by the selection operation receiving means is one or a series of circuits constituting a ladder diagram, or a circuit element constituting one circuit;
When it is determined by the selection target determining means that the circuit is one or a series of circuits, the object size of the control program corresponding to the selected one or a series of circuits is a predetermined upper limit required for realizing the online editing function. First editing target determining means for determining the selected one or a series of circuits as a target circuit for online editing only when it does not exceed the size;
When the selection target determining means determines that the circuit element constitutes one circuit, the series of circuits including one circuit to which the circuit element belongs and the object size of the corresponding control program is the upper limit size are online. Second editing target determining means for determining the target circuit for editing,
Computer for functioning as a control program development support device that is connectable to a PLC via communication and incorporates an online editing function for editing a part of the control program executed on the PLC during execution program.   The second editing target determining means is characterized in that one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs is arranged at the head of a series of circuits determined as a target circuit for online editing. Item 6. The computer program according to Item 5.   A series of circuits having a predetermined upper limit size necessary for realizing the online editing function, determined as the target circuit for online editing in the second editing target determining means, are obtained from one circuit to which the selected circuit element belongs. Acquired by repeating the operation of adding the object size of the control program corresponding to each circuit until the integrated value exceeds the upper limit size while adding adjacent circuits as candidates for online editing one by one in order. The computer program according to claim 5, wherein:   The second editing target determining means displays a series of circuits determined as online editing target circuits based on the selected circuit element so that they can be distinguished from other circuits on a ladder diagram representing a control program. 6. The computer program according to claim 5, wherein a function is incorporated.

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