A Multi-Purpose Dynamic Simulation and run-time Control platform includes a virtual process environment coupled to a physical process environment, where components/nodes of the virtual and physical process environments cooperate to dynamically perform run-time process control of an industrial process plant and/or simulations thereof. Virtual components may include virtual run-time nodes and/or simulated nodes. The MPDSC includes an I/O Switch which delivers I/O data between virtual and/or physical nodes, e.g., by using publish/subscribe mechanisms, thereby virtualizing physical I/O process data delivery. Nodes serviced by the I/O Switch may include respective component behavior modules that are unaware as to whether or not they are being utilized on a virtual or physical node. Simulations may be performed in real-time and even in conjunction with run-time operations of the plant, and/or simulations may be manipulated as desired (speed, values, administration, etc.). The platform simultaneously supports simulation and run-time operations and interactions/intersections therebetween.

A Multi-Purpose Dynamic Simulation and run-time Control platform includes a virtual process environment coupled to a physical process environment, where components/nodes of the virtual and physical process environments cooperate to dynamically perform run-time process control of an industrial process plant and/or simulations thereof. Virtual components may include virtual run-time nodes and/or simulated nodes. The MPDSC includes an I/O Switch which delivers I/O data between virtual and/or physical nodes, e.g., by using publish/subscribe mechanisms, thereby virtualizing physical I/O process data delivery. Nodes serviced by the I/O Switch may include respective component behavior modules that are unaware as to whether or not they are being utilized on a virtual or physical node. Simulations may be performed in real-time and even in conjunction with run-time operations of the plant, and/or simulations may be manipulated as desired (speed, values, administration, etc.). The platform simultaneously supports simulation and run-time operations and interactions/intersections therebetween.

A method and system for publish-subscribe communication architecture for highly-versatile (HV) field devices in control and automation system implements reception at an HV field device, from a client device or application, of a message indicating a selection of one of a plurality of publish categories. The publish category corresponds to a type of information desired by the client device or application. The field device transmits to the client device or application an identification of each of a plurality of publish lists corresponding to the selected publish category, which publish lists are each stored on the field device and each include a set of parameters associated with the field device. The field device receives, from the client device or application, a selection of one of the publish lists identified by the field device, and transmits to the client device or application the set of parameters associated with the selected publish list.

A Multi-Purpose Dynamic Simulation and run-time Control platform includes a virtual process environment coupled to a physical process environment, where components/nodes of the virtual and physical process environments cooperate to dynamically perform run-time process control of an industrial process plant and/or simulations thereof. Virtual components may include virtual run-time nodes and/or simulated nodes. The MPDSC includes an I/O Switch which delivers I/O data between virtual and/or physical nodes, e.g., by using publish/subscribe mechanisms, thereby virtualizing physical I/O process data delivery. Nodes serviced by the I/O Switch may include respective component behavior modules that are unaware as to whether or not they are being utilized on a virtual or physical node. Simulations may be performed in real-time and even in conjunction with run-time operations of the plant, and/or simulations may be manipulated as desired (speed, values, administration, etc.). The platform simultaneously supports simulation and run-time operations and interactions/intersections therebetween.

The process control unit is configured to execute a plurality of control processes, wherein a first control process executed on the process control unit is configured such that there is no provision for direct exchange of process variables with a second control process, but rather this exchange takes place via an interposed association module. An association specification is used to ascertain the control process(es) to which the process variable needs to be handed over. One advantage includes the increased flexibility in the exchange of process variables, which now takes place in the individual control processes by an association module. Restarts of the process control unit and associated production losses advantageously become unnecessary. Additional resources in the process control unit or in an engineering system may be reduced or avoided. The decreased complexity means that the control systems and engineering systems are developed more easily and hence also more quickly.

A real-time automation. device includes a real-time databus, and a memory device, wherein the databus is configured to transmit values associated with defined bus variables and configured to communicate a value associated with a bus variable from a bus variable source in accordance with a bus database via a databus to a bus variable receiver associated with the bus variable in accordance with the bus database such that, following transfer of the value from the bus variable source to the databus, the value is transferred within a predefined time period to the bus variable receiver, wherein the memory device also includes a software application which receives values associated with the bus variable from the databus or sends values associated with the bus variable to the databus, and wherein the automation device registers the software application as a bus variable receiver or as a bus variable source for the bus variables.

A method for operating a server device in a system is disclosed. The server device determines a current process value of at least one process parameter of a process controlled by the system and transmits the determined current process values to a plurality of client devices in the system for each process parameter or a subset thereof via a data network. According to the invention, the server device forms a variable group for at least one process parameter which is to be transmitted to more than one of the client devices. The server device then combines in each case the current process values of the at least one process parameter in the variable group at the different transmission times to form a single multi-target message and at the different transmission times to form a single multi-target message and transmits the multi-target message to a group address in the data network.

A robot controller for controlling a robotic device within a robot cell including multiple robotic devices is presented. The controller is configured to wirelessly receive control data comprising cell state data indicative of a current state of the robot cell. The control data are received via one of a broadcast and a multicast transmission directed to the multiple robotic devices in the robot cell.

Embodiments of the present invention may provide an improved distributed computing system. Entities in the distributed computing system may be divided into four categories: writers, readers, gateways, and applications. End users may interact with the system via the applications through the gateways. The role of writers and readers may be separated to distribute computational burdens. Writers may generate messages for an event stream. The messages may include a timestamp for consistent global ordering. The readers may arrange messages from various writers based on the timestamps to generate globally time-consistent event streams.

A Multi-Purpose Dynamic Simulation and run-time Control platform includes a virtual process environment coupled to a physical process environment, where components/nodes of the virtual and physical process environments cooperate to dynamically perform run-time process control of an industrial process plant and/or simulations thereof. Virtual components may include virtual run-time nodes and/or simulated nodes. The MPDSC includes an I/O Switch which delivers I/O data between virtual and/or physical nodes, e.g., by using publish/subscribe mechanisms, thereby virtualizing physical I/O process data delivery. Nodes serviced by the I/O Switch may include respective component behavior modules that are unaware as to whether or not they are being utilized on a virtual or physical node. Simulations may be performed in real-time and even in conjunction with run-time operations of the plant, and/or simulations may be manipulated as desired (speed, values, administration, etc.). The platform simultaneously supports simulation and run-time operations and interactions/intersections therebetween.