JP7563044B2 - Information processing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device.

With the recent spread of IoT (Internet of Things), a technology called digital twin, which builds virtual models on a cloud server, is becoming more widespread. Digital twins are an extension of the traditional MES (Manufacturing Execution System), and are used to collect operational status and production information at production sites and to analyze defects and improve processes at the production site.

Furthermore, as shown in Patent Document 1, attempts are underway to use digital data, such as computer aided design (CAD) data, to create new information and use it in design.

JP 2015-212922 A

However, building digital twins and MES requires collaboration between OT (Operational Technology) engineers who are familiar with the equipment configuration, equipment operating status, and management items that affect product quality, and IT (Information Technology) engineers who process the above elements as data and register them in a database for use. This is because OT engineers lack knowledge of the IT field, and IT engineers lack knowledge of the OT field, and there is currently a shortage of engineers with both OT and IT knowledge.

Therefore, one aspect of the present invention aims to enable even OT engineers to easily build virtual models.

In order to solve the above problems, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information about the equipment to be used, a specification acquisition unit that acquires equipment specifications corresponding to the equipment, an association unit that creates association data that associates the equipment specifications and the design information with each other, and an output unit that outputs the association data to an external device that generates a virtual model using the association data.

According to the above configuration, association data for generating a virtual model can be generated from design information and device specifications. An external device that generates a virtual model can generate the virtual model by using the generated association data. In other words, even a user (OT engineer) who handles design information and has insufficient knowledge in the IT field can automatically and easily build a virtual model by combining design information and device specifications.

An information processing device according to another aspect of the present invention includes a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information about a device to be used, a specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device, an association unit that creates associated data that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other, and a virtual model generation unit that generates a virtual model using the associated data.

According to the above configuration, a virtual model can be generated from design information and device specifications. In other words, even users (OT engineers) who handle design information and have insufficient knowledge in the IT field can easily build a virtual model by using the design information and device specifications together.

The virtual model may include an equipment model based on the design information, and the virtual model generation unit may include an equipment model generation unit that generates the equipment model.

The virtual model may include metadata that defines characteristics of the data to be collected, and the virtual model generation unit may include a metadata generation unit that generates the metadata.

The virtual model may include a schema that defines a database structure of the data to be collected, and the virtual model generation unit may include a schema generation unit that generates the schema.

According to the above configuration, the virtual data may include a device model, metadata, and a schema, and the virtual model generation unit may generate these.

The design information may include a tree-like device configuration.

The association unit may identify a target device for the data to be collected from the design information, identify a higher-level device of the target device, and generate data that associates the device specifications of the target device and the higher-level device as associated data.

According to the above configuration, by including a tree-like device configuration, it is possible to associate device specifications taking into account the relationship between the target device and higher-level devices.

The device may be provided with a model identification unit that identifies the device model from the design information.

With the above configuration, it is possible to search for device specifications using the device model identified from the device configuration.

The device specifications may include units and/or physical quantities of the device's output.

According to the above configuration, units and/or physical quantities can be automatically added to the virtual model based on the equipment specifications, even if the units and/or physical quantities are not specified in the design information.

The device may include a collection target identification unit that identifies a portion of the design information as a collection target, and the association unit may associate the device specifications with the collection target.

According to the above configuration, instead of collecting all physical quantities that can be collected by the device configuration, it is possible to collect only a portion of them, which prevents excessive data collection and makes subsequent analysis easier.

The device specifications may include device accuracy, and the metadata generation unit may identify an overall accuracy that combines the accuracy of multiple devices related to the collection route of the data to be collected, and register the overall accuracy in the metadata.

The device specifications may include information on the resolution and measurement range or output range of the device, and the metadata generation unit may identify the output range of the higher-level device from the measurement range and resolution of the higher-level device and the output range of the lower-level device in the design information, and register the output range in the metadata.

The design information may include information about a control period by a controller, and the metadata generation unit may register the control period as a sampling rate in the metadata.

With the above configuration, the characteristics to be registered in the metadata are not limited to the device specifications and design information of the target device, but also include the device specifications of higher-level devices, making it possible to derive characteristic values.

The information processing device according to each aspect of the present invention may be realized by a computer. In this case, the design acquisition program, specification acquisition program, and association program of the information processing device, which realize the information processing device by a computer by operating the computer as each unit (software element) of the information processing device, and the computer-readable recording medium on which they are recorded, also fall within the scope of the present invention.

According to one aspect of the present invention, even OT engineers can easily build virtual models.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of components of a virtual model generation system according to a first embodiment. 1 is an example of design information including a tree-shaped device configuration according to the first embodiment. 4 is a diagram showing an example of device specifications according to the first embodiment. 4 is an example of an apparatus model according to the first embodiment. 4 is an example of metadata according to the first embodiment. 4 is an example of a schema and a database according to the first embodiment. 4 is a flowchart of the virtual model input device according to the first embodiment. 4 is a flowchart of the virtual model generating device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating an example of components of a virtual model generation system according to a second embodiment. 10 is a flowchart of a virtual model generating device according to a second embodiment.

The following describes embodiment 1 of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

[Embodiment 1]
§1 Application Example The virtual model generation system is a system that generates a virtual model, which could previously only be created through collaboration between OT engineers and IT engineers, from design information and device specifications. The virtual model generation system includes a virtual model input device that reads in the design information and device specifications and performs operations up to calling the API, and a virtual model generation device that generates an actual virtual model, and is an embodiment suitable for using a platform specialized for generating virtual models.

It is easy to generate a virtual model that includes a device model that shows the device configuration, a schema that is a structure for storing data in IoT, and metadata that includes various information that shows the characteristics of the data.

In addition, while the quality of metadata traditionally depended on the detail of the OT engineer's design information, it is now possible to automatically obtain device specifications and add information, ensuring a certain level of quality.

§2 Configuration Example A configuration example of the virtual model generation system 1 will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 6. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of components of the virtual model generation system 1. Fig. 2 is an example including a tree-shaped device configuration as design information. Fig. 3 is an example of device specifications. Fig. 4 is an example of a device model. Fig. 5 is an example of metadata. Fig. 6 is an example of a schema and a database.

The virtual model generation system 1 includes a virtual model input device 10, a personal computer 20, a device information server 30, and a virtual model generation device 40. The personal computer 20 includes a first storage unit 21 and stores design information 22 related to the device. The device information server 30 includes a second storage unit 31 and stores device specifications 32 related to the device.

[Configuration of the virtual model input device 10]
The virtual model input device 10 reads and operates design information 22 and device specifications 32 from a personal computer 20 and a device information server 30. The virtual model input device 10 includes a configuration acquisition unit (design acquisition unit) 11, a type identification unit 12, a specification acquisition unit 13, a collection target identification unit 14, an association unit 15, and an output unit 16. The virtual model generation device 40 includes a virtual model generation unit 45 and a third storage unit 44. The virtual model generation unit 45 includes a device model generation unit 41, a metadata generation unit 42, and a schema generation unit 43.

The configuration acquisition unit 11 acquires design information 22, which includes digitized information about the equipment to be used, from the personal computer 20, and converts the acquired design information 22 into a form that can be processed by the virtual model input device 10. At this time, the design information 22 that is read in includes a tree-shaped device configuration. The configuration acquisition unit 11 outputs the read-in device configuration to the type identification unit 12.

As shown in FIG. 2, the device configuration shows multiple devices controlled by one controller in a parent-child relationship in a tree. In the device configuration, the relationship between higher-level devices and lower-level devices is defined as a parent-child relationship, and they can relate to each other. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 2, a controller of type 61 controls two devices, device A and device B. Device A has an AD (Analog Digital) unit of type 62. The AD unit inputs a pressure sensor (1) of type 64 and a pressure sensor (2) of type 65. Device B has a communication unit of type 63. The communication unit inputs a temperature sensor of type 66 and a power sensor of type 67.

The model identification unit 12 identifies the model of the device from the device configuration read by the configuration acquisition unit 11. The model identification unit 12 outputs the identified model to the specifications acquisition unit 13.

For example, if we use Figure 2 as an example, we would identify models 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, and 67.

The specification acquisition unit 13 acquires device specifications 32 corresponding to the devices included in the design information 22. Specifically, the specification acquisition unit 13 acquires device specifications 32 related to the model identified by the model identification unit 12 from the device information server 30. The specification acquisition unit 13 outputs the identified model and the acquired device specifications 32 to the collection target identification unit 14.

The device specifications 32 are device-specific properties that represent the performance or characteristics of the device, and can be searched and acquired in association with the device model. For example, in the case of FIG. 3, the acquired device specifications 32 include the physical quantity, unit, measurement range, output range, accuracy, and resolution for each device model. The device specifications 32 are not limited to these characteristics, and may include other characteristics. Also, one device may have multiple measurable physical quantities. For example, the physical quantities that can be measured by a motor include multiple items such as torque, rotation speed, speed, position, and acceleration, and each of these corresponds to a unit, measurement range, output range, accuracy, and resolution.

The collection target identification unit 14 identifies a portion of the design information 22 as the collection target. Specifically, the collection target identification unit 14 lists the measurable physical quantities for each identified model, and identifies the measurement items to be collected from among them. The user may select them on the personal computer 20, etc., or the virtual model input device 10 may automatically determine them based on predetermined rules. In addition, in conjunction with identifying the physical quantities, the unit is also identified from the acquired equipment specifications 32. The collection target identification unit 14 outputs the identified collection target, the identified model, and the acquired equipment specifications 32 to the association unit 15.

For example, in the case of Figure 4, it is assumed that device B has collected the state of the communication unit, the temperature of the temperature sensor, the power of the power sensor, and the power factor of the power sensor. At this time, the collection target identification unit identifies the temperature of the temperature sensor as the device B temperature and the power of the power sensor as the device B power as the collection target, which is the example shown in Figure 5.

The associating unit 15 associates the device specifications 32 and the design information 22 with each other to generate associated data. Specifically, the associating unit 15 associates data such as the device specifications 32 with the collection target identified by the collection target identifying unit 14. The associated data is output to the output unit 16 through the association. The associated data is a pair of the collection target and one or more device specifications 32 associated with the collection target.

For example, when associating, the associating unit 15 identifies a target device corresponding to the collection target identified by the collection target identification unit 14 based on the device configuration, and identifies a higher-level device of the target device. Then, the associating unit 15 performs a process of associating the device specifications 32 of the target device (hereinafter also referred to as a lower-level device) and the higher-level device with the collection target.

To give an example based on Figures 2 and 4, when device A pressure (1) is identified as the collection target, the target device becomes a type 64 pressure sensor (1) and its higher-level device becomes a type 62 AD unit. For example, the association unit 15 associates the characteristics of both devices, types 62 and 64, with each other, derives the overall characteristics (total accuracy, overall resolution, measurement range, etc.) of the collection target, and sets them as associated data.

When associating, there is a lower-level device (e.g., pressure sensor (1) of type 64 in FIG. 2) and a higher-level device (e.g., AD unit of type 62 in FIG. 2) in accordance with the tree-like device configuration, and measurement values may be exchanged between them, with the accuracy and resolution changing between them.

In the example in parentheses, a type 64 pressure sensor (1) outputs pressure in the measurement range "0 to 100 kPa" as an analog voltage with an output range of "1 to 5 V" to a type 62 AD unit. The type 62 AD unit converts the analog voltage in the measurement range "-10 to 10 V" into a binary value with a resolution of "1/8000".

In this case, the actual accuracy is the total accuracy, which includes the measurement accuracy and analog output precision of the pressure sensor (1) as well as the AD conversion accuracy of the AD unit. When the accuracy of the lower device is Acc _L and the accuracy of the upper device is Acc _U , the total accuracy Acc _T is calculated using the following formula.

同様に、圧力センサ（１）の出力レンジ、ＡＤユニットの計測レンジ（入力レンジ）およびＡＤユニットの分解能が全て関与した総合分解能が実際の分解能である。下位機器の計測レンジがＩｎＬ１～ＩｎＬ２、出力レンジがＯｕｔＬ１～ＯｕｔＬ２であり、上位機器の計測レンジがＩｎＵ１～ＩｎＵ２であり、上位機器の分解能がＲｅｓＵの時、総合分解能ＲｅｓＴの算出は、次式で行う。

Similarly, the actual resolution is the total resolution which is a combination of the output range of the pressure sensor (1), the measurement range (input range) of the AD unit, and the resolution of the AD unit. When the measurement range of the lower device is InL1 to InL2, the output range is OutL1 to OutL2, the measurement range of the upper device is InU1 to InU2, and the resolution of the upper device is ResU, the total resolution ResT is calculated using the following formula.

また、上位機器の計測レンジが下位機器の出力レンジを包含している場合、総合計測レンジは、下位機器の計測レンジが適用される。下位機器の出力レンジを上位機器の計測レンジが包含できていない場合、総合計測レンジは、入出力関係に合わせて、下位機器の計測レンジよりも範囲が狭まる。

In addition, if the measurement range of the higher-level device includes the output range of the lower-level device, the measurement range of the lower-level device is applied as the total measurement range. If the measurement range of the higher-level device does not include the output range of the lower-level device, the total measurement range is narrower than the measurement range of the lower-level device in accordance with the input/output relationship.

Furthermore, in the association, the sampling rate of each collection target may be set based on the control period of the controller included in the design information 22.

In addition, in the association, error codes that are generated when an error occurs in the controller, upper level equipment, etc., may be organized by category. Types of error codes include timeouts, calculation errors, and equipment abnormalities.

The output unit 16 outputs the association data associated by the association unit 15 to the virtual model generation device 40, which is an external device that generates a virtual model using the association data associated by the association unit 15. Specifically, the output unit 16 instructs the virtual model generation device 40 to generate a virtual model 50 using an API (Application Programming Interface) based on the input association data. In addition, the method of passing the association data to the virtual model generation device 40 is not limited to passing it to the virtual model generation device 40 via the API, and the output unit 16 may generate an intermediate file and pass the intermediate file to the virtual model generation device 40.

At this time, the virtual model 50 generated differs for each type of data, and the API used also differs. When processing data related to the device configuration, the output unit 16 activates the device model generation unit 41. When processing associated data, the output unit 16 activates the metadata generation unit 42 and the schema generation unit 43.

[Configuration of the virtual model generating device 40]
The device model generating unit 41 generates a device model 51 based on the input device configuration. The device model 51 is a plurality of trees divided into device units as shown in FIG.

For example, if device model 51 is created based on the device configuration in Figure 2, since the device configuration in Figure 2 controls two devices with one controller, device model 51 shown in Figure 4 is divided into a tree 1041 for device A and a tree 1042 for device B.

Also, unlike the device configuration, the model is not registered as data in the device model, but rather the name of the device (e.g., pressure sensor (1) in Figure 4) and the name of the object to be collected (e.g., device A pressure (1) in Figure 4) are registered.

The metadata generation unit 42 generates metadata 52, which is data that defines the characteristics of the data to be collected, based on the input associated data. An example of metadata 52 is shown in FIG. 5.

In the metadata 52, one row is assigned to each collection target, and one column is assigned to each characteristic. The characteristics are the physical quantities and units identified by the collection target identification unit 14, as well as the overall accuracy, overall resolution, overall measurement range, sampling rate, and error code (timeout code in FIG. 5) associated by the association unit 15. These characteristics are only a part of the characteristics to be registered in the metadata, and other characteristics that a person skilled in the art may envision may also be included.

Here, Figure 5 will be explained as an example of metadata 52. There are four items to be collected: device A pressure (1), device A pressure (2), device B temperature, and device B power. For these items, physical quantity, unit, overall accuracy, overall resolution, overall measurement range, sampling rate, and timeout code are listed as characteristics. The timeout code is an example of an error code, and "N/A" is written for items for which a timeout does not occur. Error codes are not limited to timeouts, and other errors may be defined.

The schema generation unit 43 generates a schema that defines the database structure of the data to be collected. Specifically, the schema generation unit 43 generates a database schema 53 that stores sampling data related to the collection target. Figure 6 shows an example of the schema 53 and a database TB1 based on the schema when viewed as a database in which several rows of data are registered.

Schema 53 has a timestamp in the first column, and collection targets are assigned to the following columns. When creating schema 53, variable types and other information are also set in schema 53 from the associated data.

In reality, only numerical values are stored in database TB1, but in FIG. 6, the units defined by metadata 52 are also listed. This is because when database TB1 is retrieved, metadata 52 is referenced and the units are added.

The third storage unit 44 stores a virtual model 50, which is composed of an apparatus model 51, metadata 52, and a schema 53. The third storage unit 44 stores a database TB1.

§3 Example of Operation An example of operation of the virtual model generating system 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 7 and Fig. 8. Fig. 7 is a flowchart of the virtual model input device 10. Fig. 8 is a flowchart of the virtual model generating device 40.

[Example of operation of virtual model input device]
In S11, the configuration acquisition unit 11 acquires the device configuration from the digitized design information 22 in the personal computer 20. As the digitized design information 22, for example, a program and setting file of a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller), electrical CAD data, and digitized design forms are used, and a tree-shaped device configuration is acquired by analyzing these.

In S12, the model identification unit 12 identifies the device model from the acquired device configuration.

In S13, the specification acquisition unit 13 searches for and acquires the device specifications 32 from the device information server 30 using the identified device model. The device vendor may voluntarily register the device specifications 32 in the device information server 30 and use the data for searches.

In S14, the collection target identification unit 14 identifies collection targets to be sampled by the virtual model generation system 1 from the device configuration and device specifications 32. The identification work may be performed by a user using the personal computer 20. Also, the collection targets may be identified automatically.

The items to be collected are not limited to the end devices in the device configuration. For example, if the upper device is a driver and the lower device is a motor, the items to be collected may be the temperature of the driver and error codes in addition to the torque and RPM of the motor.

In S15, the association unit 15 associates the device specifications 32 and design information 22 for the identified collection target. Some of the details of the association have been described above, and any other items may be associated. At this stage, the data to be applied to the virtual model 50 is prepared.

In S16, the output unit 16 sets the association data to be applied to the virtual model 50 as parameters for each type of data and launches the API.

If the data is related to the device configuration, the API of the device model generation unit 41 is launched with a parameter indicating the parent-child relationship of the data added. If the data is related data, the API of the metadata generation unit 42 is launched with a parameter indicating the characteristics of the data added, and the API of the schema generation unit 43 is launched with a parameter defining the schema of the data added.

[Example of operation of the virtual model generating device]
In S21, the device model generation unit 41 generates a tree-shaped device model 51 based on the device configuration of the design information 22 in accordance with the parameters added to the API. The nodes of the tree are defined in the order from parent to child. When multiple devices are defined, multiple trees may be defined.

At S22, the metadata generation unit 42 generates metadata 52 based on the associated data in accordance with the parameters added to the API.

In S23, the schema generation unit 43 generates a schema 53 based on the associated data in accordance with the parameters corresponding to the API.

[Examples of using virtual models]
A method of using the generated virtual model 50 will be described. First, the virtual model generating device 40 uses the generated virtual model 50 to actually store variables defined as collection targets in the database TB1 defined by the schema 53. When storing, in addition to the variables, the sampling time is also stored as a timestamp.

Based on user instructions, the virtual model generating device 40 retrieves database TB1 or searches using the specified collection target as a key. When database TB1 is retrieved or searched, it is obtained in the format shown in FIG. 6. That is, a timestamp and the numerical values (measurement results) of the collection target defined in schema 53 with the units defined in metadata 52 added are obtained. The virtual model generating device 40 can present the measurement results of the collection target together with the device specifications (e.g. units) to the user.

Here, in database TB1, there are entries such as "T/O," "U/F," and "O/F," which are not combinations of numbers and units. These indicate that an error occurred during sampling.

For example, "T/O" means timeout, and if the device being collected outputs a timeout code (e.g., 8001 in Figure 5) at the time of sampling, the occurrence of a timeout error is converted to a numerical value and stored in the database. Similarly, "U/F" means underflow, and "O/F" means overflow, and each means that a numerical value that exceeds the lower or upper limit of the overall measurement range was measured at the time of sampling.

§4 Actions and Effects The virtual model input device 10 can organize and associate data required for generating a virtual model 50 by using the digitized design information 22 and device specifications 32. Then, by starting an API based on the associated data, the virtual model generating device 40 can generate a virtual model 50 composed of a device model 51, metadata 52, and a schema 53. Therefore, even an OT engineer with poor IT skills can generate the virtual model 50, and the device can be made IoT-enabled.

Furthermore, the device model 51 can have a tree-like device structure, and the parent-child relationships clarify the connection status or relationships of the devices, thereby improving the usefulness of the virtual model 50.

In addition, the equipment specifications 32 can be searched based on the equipment model. This makes it possible to clarify units and physical quantities that were not guaranteed to be included in the design information, improving the usefulness of the virtual model 50.

Furthermore, according to the tree-like device configuration, the overall accuracy, overall resolution, and overall measurement range as a result of the association of multiple devices can be calculated and registered in the metadata 52. Since the overall accuracy and overall resolution are known, it is easy to check the reliability of the data sampled by the virtual model generation system 1.

In addition, the control period of each device to be collected can be determined from the design information program, improving the usability of the sampled data.

Furthermore, not only during the creation of the virtual model 50 but also during the use stage, the characteristics of the virtual model 50 are summarized in the metadata 52, making the virtual model 50 highly usable.

[Embodiment 2]
A second embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to Fig. 9 and Fig. 10. For ease of explanation, the same reference numerals are given to members having the same functions as those described in the above embodiment, and the description thereof will not be repeated.

The virtual model generation system includes a virtual model generation device that reads design information and device specifications and performs a process from generating an actual virtual model to generating a virtual model. Therefore, this embodiment is suitable for generating a virtual model in a local environment.

§2 Configuration Example An example of the configuration of the virtual model generation system 2 will be described with reference to Fig. 9. Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of components of the virtual model generation system 2.

The virtual model generation system 2 includes a virtual model generation device 100, a personal computer 20, and a device information server 30.

The virtual model generating device 100 includes a configuration acquisition unit 11, a type identification unit 12, a specification acquisition unit 13, a collection target identification unit 14, an association unit 15, a virtual model generating unit 45, and a third storage unit 44. The virtual model generating unit 45 includes a device model generating unit 41, a metadata generating unit 42, and a schema generating unit 43.

The operation of each unit is the same as in the first embodiment, but differs in that the association unit 15 directly calls the device model generation unit 41, the metadata generation unit 42, and the schema generation unit 43. That is, in the second embodiment, the association unit 15 also performs the function of the output unit 16 in the first embodiment.

§3 Operation Example An operation example of the virtual model generating system 2 will be described with reference to Fig. 10. Fig. 10 is a flowchart of the virtual model generating device 100.

The second embodiment differs from the combination of Figures 7 and 8 in the first embodiment in that S16 is not included, and S21 follows S15.

§4 Actions and Effects The virtual model generating device 100 can organize and associate data required for generating a virtual model 50 by using the digitized design information 22 and device specifications 32. Then, based on the associated data, a virtual model 50 consisting of a device model 51, metadata 52, and a schema 53 can be generated. Therefore, even an OT engineer with poor IT skills can generate the virtual model 50, and the device can be made IoT-enabled.

Also, unlike the first embodiment, there is an advantage that input of the design information 22 and the device specifications 32 and generation of the virtual model 50 can be completed in one device. Therefore, the virtual model 50 can be generated even in a local environment that is separated from the network, improving convenience.

[Software implementation example]
The control blocks of the virtual model input device 10 or the virtual model generating device 100 (particularly the configuration acquisition unit 11, the specifications acquisition unit 13, the association unit 15, and the output unit 16) may be realized by a logic circuit (hardware) formed in an integrated circuit (IC chip) or the like, or may be realized by software.

In the latter case, the virtual model input device 10 or the virtual model generating device 100 includes a computer that executes instructions of a program, which is software that realizes each function. This computer includes, for example, one or more processors, and a computer-readable recording medium that stores the program. The object of the present invention is achieved by the processor reading the program from the recording medium and executing it in the computer. The processor can be, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The recording medium can be a "non-transient tangible medium," such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), tape, disk, card, semiconductor memory, programmable logic circuit, or the like. The device may also include a RAM (Random Access Memory) that expands the program. The program may be supplied to the computer via any transmission medium (such as a communication network or broadcast waves) that can transmit the program. One aspect of the present invention can also be realized in the form of a data signal embedded in a carrier wave, in which the program is embodied by electronic transmission.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. The technical scope of the present invention also includes embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments.

1, 2 Virtual model generation system 10 Virtual model input device 11 Configuration acquisition unit (design acquisition unit)
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 13 Specifications acquisition unit 15 Association unit 16 Output unit 22 Design information 32 Device specifications 40, 100 Virtual model generation device 41 Device model generation unit 42 Metadata generation unit 43 Schema generation unit 45 Virtual model generation unit 50 Virtual model 51 Device model 52 Metadata 53 Schema

Claims (17)

a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
A virtual model generating device is an external device that generates a virtual model using the association data.
and an output unit that outputs the association data.
The virtual model generating device ,
The design information is a virtual model generation system including a tree-shaped device configuration. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
an output unit that outputs the association data to a virtual model generation device that is an external device that generates a virtual model using the association data ; and
The virtual model generating device ,
The association unit is
Identifying a target device for which data is to be collected from the design information;
Identifying a host device of the target device;
A virtual model generation system that generates associated data in which the design information is associated with the device specifications of the target device and the higher-level device. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
an output unit that outputs the association data to a virtual model generation device that is an external device that generates a virtual model using the association data ; and
The virtual model generating device ,
A virtual model generation system in which the equipment specifications include a unit and/or a physical quantity of the equipment output. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
a collection target specifying unit that specifies a part of the design information as a collection target;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
A virtual model generating device is an external device that generates a virtual model using the association data.
and an output unit that outputs the association data.
The virtual model generating device ,
The association unit is a virtual model generation system that associates the device specifications with the collection target. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
a virtual model generation unit that generates a virtual model using the association data,
The virtual model includes metadata that defines characteristics of the data to be collected;
The information processing apparatus includes a metadata generation unit, wherein the virtual model generation unit generates the metadata. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
a virtual model generation unit that generates a virtual model using the association data,
The virtual model includes a schema that defines a database structure of the data to be collected;
The virtual model generation unit is an information processing apparatus including a schema generation unit that generates the schema. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
a virtual model generation unit that generates a virtual model using the association data,
The design information of the information processing device includes a tree-shaped device configuration. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
a virtual model generation unit that generates a virtual model using the association data,
The association unit is
Identifying a target device for which data is to be collected from the design information;
Identifying a host device of the target device;
An information processing apparatus which generates associated data in which the design information is associated with the device specifications of the target device and the higher-level device. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
a virtual model generation unit that generates a virtual model using the association data,
The device specifications include a unit and/or a physical quantity of the device output. a design acquisition unit that acquires design information including digitized information on a device to be used;
A specification acquisition unit that acquires device specifications corresponding to the device;
an association unit that associates the device specifications and the design information with each other to generate associated data;
a virtual model generation unit that generates a virtual model using the association data,
a collection target specifying unit that specifies a part of the design information as a collection target;
The associating unit is an information processing device that associates the device specifications with the collection target. The device specifications include the accuracy of the device,
The metadata generation unit
The information processing apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising: specifying an overall accuracy obtained by combining accuracies of a plurality of devices related to a collection route of collected data, and registering the overall accuracy in the metadata. The device specifications include information on the resolution, measurement range, and output range of the device;
The metadata generation unit
The information processing apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the output range of the higher-level device is specified from the measurement range and the resolution of the higher-level device and the output range of the lower-level device in the design information, and is registered in the metadata. The design information includes information on a control period by a controller,
The metadata generation unit
The information processing apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the control period is registered as a sampling rate in the metadata. the virtual model includes an equipment model based on the design information;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the virtual model generation unit includes an equipment model generation unit that generates the equipment model. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising a model identification unit that identifies a device model from the design information. 10. A program for causing a computer to function as the information processing device according to claim 7 , the program causing a computer to function as the design acquisition unit, the specification acquisition unit, and the association unit. A computer-readable recording medium having the program according to claim 16 recorded thereon.

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