JP4947366B2 - Plant operation support device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention provides a display means for displaying at least one of an operation procedure screen for displaying an operation procedure defined by component wiring in a flowchart format and an operation procedure screen for displaying an operation procedure defined by component wiring in a logic chart format. The present invention relates to a plant operation support apparatus comprising execution means for supporting plant operation according to the displayed operation procedure.

  In order to operate a plant safely and stably, a distributed control system is used in which an operator constantly monitors the occurrence of an alarm of a plant device, a state transition of a process, and the like. In recent years, in addition to this, the introduction of a plant operation support device has replaced the skills and know-how of skilled operators in alarm handling operations with computers, contributing to improvement of operating efficiency and reduction of operator load.

  In the plant operation support apparatus, there are mainly two types of techniques for describing the know-how of an expert operator: a flowchart format for unsteady operation and a logic chart format for steady operation.

  FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration example of a conventional plant operation support device disclosed in Patent Document 1, and shows a form in which the plant operation support device is connected as a host device of a distributed control system. .

  The operation monitoring device 1 of the distributed control system is connected to a control bus 2. The control device 3 is connected to the control bus 2 and communicates with the operation monitoring device 1, and also communicates with the devices 51, 52, 53,... 5n of the plant 5 via the field bus 4 and executes control of these devices. .

  The data communication server 6 is connected to the control bus 2, acquires the process data PD from the control device 3 by the data collection means 61 and holds it in the database 62. The database 62 holds real-time data for a predetermined period and historical data obtained by processing the real-time data into long-term trend information.

  The operation monitoring device 1 and the data communication server 6 are connected to a general-purpose network 7 represented by Ethernet (registered trademark), and communicate with a plant operation support device 8 that is also connected to the general-purpose network 7.

  The plant operation support device 8 acquires the process data PD from the database 62 of the data communication server 6 and outputs the control data CD for executing the processing result to the control device 3 via the data communication server 6 and the control bus 2. .

  In the plant operation support device 8, the business construction unit 81 having a builder function generates a part which is a unit of processing, registers an icon, and describes a sequence and logic by wiring connection between the parts.

  The display means 82 displays a work screen used by the builder of the business construction means 81 and an operation screen displayed when the constructed sequence or logic is executed. The execution means 83 executes the sequence or logic confirmed by the operator on the operation screen.

  The control data CD from the execution means 83 is notified to the data communication server 6 via the general-purpose network 7 and further notified to the control device 3 via the control bus 2 to execute a predetermined sequence or logic.

  In the plant operation support apparatus 8 shown in the figure, an operation screen 84 by the multi-window function of the display means 82 is displayed. This operation screen 84 is a flowchart format screen 84a displaying the entire sequence, a logic chart format screen 84b displayed in detail by clicking the monitoring unit U1 in the logic chart format described on this screen, and the progress of the sequence Is displayed on the message screen 84c.

  As described above, the conventional plant operation support apparatus can describe the operation in a flowchart format or a logic chart format. The flowchart and the logic chart can be described on the same sheet, and data can be exchanged between them.

  In the flowchart format, the process execution order is executed only once according to the wiring order of components. If an error occurs during execution of a part, the process is interrupted. When the processing of the component ends and the control signal flows through the wiring, the next component of the wiring destination is executed.

  In the logic chart format, all parts operate within the execution cycle, and the process is not interrupted. The process operates according to the order of wiring, but repeats every specified execution cycle. A control signal of “satisfied / unsatisfied” flows in the wiring between the parts, and determines whether or not to execute the next part.

JP 2004-164150 A

The conventional plant operation support apparatus has the following problems.
(1) In the flowchart and the logic chart, the transition condition cannot be defined for the wiring itself. That is, in the flowchart, it is a principle that the processing is performed in order according to the wiring, and in the logic chart, the whole logic is executed every cycle, and there is no concept of stopping the processing in the middle.

(2) The start condition and end condition in the process unit of the flowchart and the monitoring unit of the logic chart are controlled by a command from the outside.

(3) The branch condition of wiring cannot be written in the logic chart. That is, the logic chart has no concept of wiring branching.

(4) It is difficult to monitor steady conditions in the flowchart. In other words, there is no concept of constantly monitoring whether the condition is satisfied in the flowchart for performing processing according to the wiring.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to realize a plant operation support apparatus that can define state transitions that are difficult to define in flowcharts and logic charts.

In order to achieve such an object, the configuration of the present invention is as follows.
(1) Operation of the process of the component produced as a unit of processing of equipment to be operated is formed by wiring connection with plants, described in the operating procedure screen or logic chart format to display the operation procedure described in flow chart form In a plant operation support apparatus comprising display means for displaying at least one of operation procedure screens for displaying a procedure, and execution means for supporting plant operation according to the displayed operation procedure,
The display means includes
A plant operation support apparatus, wherein a transition unit capable of defining a transition condition for the wiring connection in the process is displayed.

According to the present invention, the following effects can be expected.
(1) By introducing a transition unit that defines state transitions into a plan having a flowchart or logic chart and a driving support device, it is possible to simplify and describe complex logic, resulting in a plant for operators. Wide range of driving assistance.

(2) In the introduction of the transition unit of the present invention, it is not necessary to modify the state transition logic provided in the existing control device, and it can be easily introduced. Therefore, it is easy to process the information that the operator wants to see.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an example of an operation screen of a plant operation support apparatus to which the present invention is applied. The same elements as those of the conventional apparatus described with reference to FIG.

  The characteristic part of the present invention is the transition unit 100 displayed together with the monitoring unit U1 in the logic chart format in the flowchart format screen 84a of the operation screen 84. By clicking this icon, a transition diagram of the entire process defined by the state transition unit is displayed on the lower transition state screen 84d.

  FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing an embodiment of a plant operation support apparatus to which the present invention is applied. The same elements as those of the conventional apparatus described with reference to FIG. In the plant operation support device 8, support control by the execution unit 83 is executed by an operation procedure based on the display of the operation screen 84 displayed by the display unit 82. The progress status of execution is displayed on the message screen 84c.

  FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration example of the transition unit of the present invention. The transition unit 100 has two definition methods: a status unit 101 and a state transition unit 102. The status unit 101 is mainly used when logic relating to state transitions of a start condition and an end condition is defined in the control device 3. That is, the status unit makes the same state transition according to the state transition logic of the start condition and end condition in the control device. This can be referred to as “control device mapping type”.

  FIG. 4 is a transition diagram for explaining the operation of the status unit. The feature is that support control is executed by acquiring a start condition and an end condition when executing an alarm (ALM) status from a status switching sequence of the control device.

  The state transition unit 102 is used when a logic related to a state transition is not defined in the control device 3 or when a new state transition is defined while keeping the logic of the control device. Since the state transition unit creates a new state transition in the control device, this can be referred to as an “intervention type for the control device”.

  FIG. 5 is a transition diagram for explaining the operation of the state monitoring unit. The start condition of the execution process is in accordance with the wiring from the initial process of the transition diagram, the end condition is in accordance with the logic of the end process, and the state transition is generated by forcibly intervening in the control device.

The characteristics of the definition of the status unit 101 are as follows:
(1) A start condition / end condition can be defined for a unit.
(2) By defining a transition condition similar to the state transition logic in the control device with respect to the start condition / end condition, it becomes “mapping of the control device”.
(3) In “control device mapping”, the transition condition follows the logic of the control device.

The characteristics of the definition of the state transition unit 102 are as follows:
(1) A start condition / end condition can be defined for a unit.
(2) The unit can be wired.
(3) The unit to be executed next can be specified by wiring.
(4) Transition conditions can be defined for units.
(5) A branch of wiring and a branch condition can be defined for the unit.

The common feature of the two units is
(1) Flows (flow charts and logic charts) can be freely defined in the unit. For example, by defining KPI calculation logic, it is possible to add value that is not included in the state transition diagram of the control device.

(2) Since communication is performed with the control device via the OPC server, not only data can be read but also data can be written. In a specific state, command logic such as setting value change can be defined for the control device in the unit.

(3) Neither the status unit nor the state transition unit needs to be modified with respect to the existing control device. Therefore, if the network can access one OPC server and one server PC for operation support, anyone can support the plant operation by the operator using the state transition diagram anywhere.

  FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram for explaining the definition of the state monitoring unit. The difference from the flowchart and the logic chart is that a definition in which the state transition changes depending on the result of the analysis process can be described.

  The state transition diagram defined by the transition unit of the present invention can also be used in combination with a flowchart and a logic chart. Thereby, each other can exchange data and control.

  FIG. 7 is a transition diagram illustrating a definition example in which a logic chart is embedded in a state transition. For example, by embedding a logic chart in the “state” of the state transition diagram, it is possible to write a definition for monitoring only when the state is the target state. In this example, KPI (Key Performance Indicator) calculation logic is defined.

  FIG. 8 is a transition diagram in which state transition information is incorporated in the logic chart. By incorporating the “state” information of the state transition diagram into the logic chart, it is possible to write a definition of “not established” in cases other than the target state.

It is an example of an operation screen of a plant operation support device to which the present invention is applied. It is a functional block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the plant operation assistance apparatus to which this invention is applied. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structural example of the transition unit of this invention. It is a transition diagram explaining operation | movement of a status unit. It is a transition diagram explaining operation | movement of a state monitoring unit. It is a functional block diagram explaining the definition of a state monitoring unit. It is a transition diagram which shows the example of a definition which embeds a logic chart in a state transition. It is the transition diagram which took in the state transition information in the logic chart. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structural example of the conventional plant operation assistance apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Operation monitoring apparatus 2 Control bus 3 Control apparatus 4 Field bus 5 Plant 51,52,53, ... 5n Equipment 6 Data communication server 61 Data collection means 62 Database 7 General-purpose network 8 Plant operation support apparatus 81 Business construction means 82 Display means 83 Execution means 84 Operation screen 84a Flowchart format screen 84c Message screen 84d State transition screen 100 Transition unit

Claims (1)

Displays the operation procedure described in the flow chart format or the operation procedure described in the logic chart format for the process formed by wiring and connecting the parts generated as the processing unit of the equipment operated in the plant In a plant operation support apparatus comprising display means for displaying at least one of the operation procedure screens to be performed, and execution means for supporting plant operation according to the displayed operation procedures,
The display means includes
A plant operation support apparatus, wherein a transition unit capable of defining a transition condition for the wiring connection in the process is displayed.