Method and Device for Planning a Specific Process System

Abstract

A method and a device for planning a specific process system, wherein during the planning of a specific process system, which consists of primary technology formed as components of the system that are interconnected with respect to process and at least one secondary technology that depends on the primary technology and enables operation of the system together with the primary technology, the primary technology is planned as a flow diagram of the system via a system planning tool, where configuration data formed as requirements, guidelines for operation of the system, system-specific basic conditions and/or specifications are added to the flow diagram, and where a data-processing device evaluates the flow diagram to which the configuration data have been added and automatically creates, optionally by accessing an archive having standard planning solutions, a specific planning solution for a secondary technology that meets the various requirements together with the planned primary technology.

Claims

1.-10. (canceled)

11. A method for project-planning of a specific process system comprising a primary technology formed as components of the specific process system connected to one another utilizing process technology and at least one secondary technology dependent on the primary technology and together therewith enables operation of the specific process system, the method comprising: creating a flow diagram of the specific process system utilizing a system planning tool by linking graphical process objects representing the components of a technical system to project-plan the primary technology; utilizing the system planning tool to supplement the flow diagram by configuration data formed as at least one of (i) requirements, (ii) specifications for operation of the specific process system, (iii) system-specific framework conditions and (iv) specifications; and creating automatically, by a data processing device, a specific project planning solution for a secondary technology which fulfills various requirements, together with the project-planned primary technology, by automatically evaluating the flow diagram supplemented with the configuration data.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the secondary technology to be project-planned comprises at least one of (i) automation software, (ii) automation hardware, (iii) operation & monitoring and (iv) electrification of the system.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the flow diagram is supplemented by the configuration data formed as at least one of (i) standardized tables, (ii) diagrams and (iii) active lines between graphical process objects.

14. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the flow diagram (4) is supplemented by the configuration data formed as at least one of (i) standardized tables, (ii) diagrams and (iii) active lines between graphical process objects.

15. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the data processing device automatically generates the specific project planning solution for the secondary technology based on the configuration data (5) in the created flow diagram and by accessing secondary technology knowledge.

16. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the data processing device automatically generates the specific project planning solution for the secondary technology based on the configuration data in the created flow diagram and by accessing standard project planning solutions provided in an archive.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the standard project planning solutions are provided in different versions formed as at least one of (i) total solutions and (ii) partial solutions.

18. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein different standard flow diagrams of at least of one systems and (ii) system parts together with associated versions of standard project planning solutions are further provided in the archive; wherein pattern recognition is utilized to determine an appropriate standard flow diagram during automatic evaluation of the created flow diagram; and wherein an appropriate version is determined from versions of standard project planning solutions associated with the determined standard flow diagram based on the configuration data contained in the created flow diagram.

19. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein different standard flow diagrams of at least one of (i) technical systems are provided in an archive, (ii) system parts are provided in an archive, and versions are at least partially provided with at least one version of standard configuration data; wherein an appropriate standard flow diagram is determined utilizing pattern recognition during automatic evaluation of the created flow diagram; and wherein the standard configuration data belonging to the determined appropriate standard flow diagram is displayed in the created flow diagram as a suggestion for supplementing the flow diagram.

20. A device for project planning of a specific process system comprising a primary technology formed as components of the specific process system connected to one another utilizing process technology and at least one secondary technology dependent on the primary technology and together therewith enables operation of the specific process system, the device comprising: a system planning tool containing a specific project planning document of the primary technology formed as a flow diagram of the specific process system which is supplemented by configuration data comprising at least one of (i) requirements and (ii) specifications for operation of the specific process system, (iii) system-specific framework conditions and (iv) specifications; and a data processing device configured to automatically create a specific project planning solution for a secondary technology which fulfills various requirements, together with project-planned primary technology, by automatically evaluating the flow diagram supplemented with the configuration data.

21. The device as claimed in claim 20, wherein the device is configured to: create the flow diagram of the specific process system utilizing a system planning tool by linking graphical process objects representing the components of a technical system to project-plan the primary technology; utilize the system planning tool to supplement the flow diagram by configuration data formed as at least one of (i) the requirements, (ii) the specifications for operation of the specific process system, (iii) the system-specific framework conditions and (iv) the specifications; and create automatically, by the data processing device, the specific project planning solution for the secondary technology which fulfills the various requirements, together with the project-planned primary technology, by automatically evaluating the flow diagram supplemented with the configuration data.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0039] In the figures, exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown, which are explained in greater detail below, in which:

[0040] FIG. 1 a device for project planning of a specific process system in accordance with the invention;

[0041] FIG. 2 a flow diagram of the system in accordance with the invention;

[0042] FIG. 3 is a supplementation of the flow diagram of FIG. 2 with configuration data; and

[0043] FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the method in accordance with the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

[0044] FIG. 1 shows a device 1 for project planning of a specific process system, not shown here, which consists of a primary technology in the form of components of the system connected to one another using process technology and at least one secondary technology that is dependent on the primary technology and together therewith permits operation of the system, e.g., automation software, operation and monitoring of the system, automation hardware and electrification.

[0045] The primary technology is project-planned in that a flow diagram or piping diagram (P&I diagram) 4 of the system which, where appropriate, may consist of several partial images, is created in a known manner by a user 2 (system planner, technologist) by linking graphical process objects representing the components of the technical system using a system planning tool 3.

[0046] Using the system planning tool 3, the user 2 supplements the flow diagram 4 with configuration data 5 in the form of requirements and/or specifications for operation of the system, system-specific framework conditions and/or specifications.

[0047] An evaluation unit 6, as part of a data processing device 7, evaluates the flow diagram 4 supplemented with the configuration data 5. On the basis of this, a generating unit 8, which is likewise part of the data processing device 7, then automatically generates a specific project planning solution 9, 9, 9 for a secondary technology that fulfills the various requirements together with the project-planned primary technology. In the example shown, 9 for example designates a project planning solution for the automation software, 9 a project planning solution for the operation and monitoring of the system and 9 a common project planning solution for the automation hardware and electrification.

[0048] Secondary technology knowledge 10 is stored in the generating unit 8, based on which an automatic generation of the secondary technology solutions 9, 9, 9 is possible, solely based on the flow diagrams 4 with the configuration data 5. Alternatively and/or additionally, the generation unit 8 can access an archive 11 containing standard project planning solutions 12 and generate the secondary technology solutions 9, 9, 9 based on the standard solutions 12. The archive 11, which where appropriate includes several distributed databases, contains different standard flow diagrams 13 of systems and/or system parts, with which the standard project planning solutions 12 are associated. In an optional step, a standard flow diagram 13 that matches the flow diagram 4 or a part thereof can be determined in a unit for pattern recognition 14, which is part of the data processing device 7. On the basis of the configuration data 5 contained in the flow diagram 4 created, one or more appropriate standard project planning solutions 12 can ultimately be determined for the standard flow diagram 13 determined in this way and can be displayed to the user 2 for selection.

[0049] The standard flow diagrams 13 can also contain one or more versions of standard configuration data 15, with which the flow diagram 4 created during the project planning of the primary technology can be supplemented. If a flow diagram 4 that has not yet been configured or is incompletely configured is present, the unit for pattern recognition 14 can be used to automatically check whether corresponding subsystems or system parts are already described in the archive 11 by standard ready-configured flow diagrams 13 available there. If this is the case, then the already defined versions of configuration data 15 can be displayed to the user 2 for selection. Here, the user 2 does not have to perform any activities that go beyond system planning, as long as the available standard configuration data is also applicable for the system of the user.

[0050] From the perspective of the user, only system planning occurs, i.e., the project planning of the primary technology of the system, which is augmented in a configuration step with the information required for automatic generation of all specific project planning solutions of the secondary technology.

[0051] FIG. 2 shows a simplified example of the flow diagram 4 project-planned as part of the system planning. The flow diagram 4 contains graphical process objects 16 that represent different components of the system, such as pumps, containers, valves, and which are linked to one another corresponding to the piping of the system. The process objects 16 contain technical information about the parameters of the components they represent, such as pipeline diameter or filling volume of a container. The flow diagram 4 shown here also contains the sensors 17 and actuators 18 of the system with the corresponding technical information, based on which the software for inputting measurement signals and outputting control signals can be generated automatically.

[0052] In the following, FIG. 3 explains by way of example how the additional information or configuration data 5 for the automatic generation of a secondary technology can be added to the system planning. Both the listed configuration data and the way in which the additional information or configuration data 5 can be entered into the flow diagram 4 are only presented for better explanation and are to be understood as examples and are not to be understood as a restriction of the invention.

[0053] FIG. 3 shows the flow diagram 4 from FIG. 2 which, after entry of the corresponding configuration data 5, contains further information that is required for generating secondary technologies. This information is given from a purely technological perspective, i.e., the operator 2 merely, for example, specifies how the system is to be operated in automatic mode without having to know the background of an automation system or having to have knowledge of the structure of open-loop or closed-loop control functions. Such information must be provided by the system planner 2 in any case. The system planner 2 can now enter the corresponding information directly into the flow diagram 4. The transposition of these specifications into a secondary technology, such as the software of an automation system, in other words automation engineering, can then be performed automatically in the digital system environment.

[0054] The configuration data 5 to be specified here includes:

[0055] Redundancy or area splitting active lines 19 to indicate which units are redundant with respect to one another or additionally work in different operating ranges. For example: two pumps P1, P2 are redundant in respect of one another and are operated in parallel if both pumps P1, P2 are running.

[0056] Closed-loop control active lines 20 for indicating which measurement variable (closed-loop control variable) is regulated by which actuator (final controlling element). For example: the pressure in the line is regulated with the pump P1. In the example the pumps P1 and P2 are defined as redundant in respect of one another. As a result, the active line 20 simultaneously shows that the pressure is regulated by the pump P2 if the pump P1 is not running, and that both pumps P1, P2 regulate the pressure together if both pumps are running.

[0057] Setpoint values 21 for the closed-loop control active lines 20, where the user 2 can enter values and select units from a menu.

[0058] Limiting active lines 22 for indicating which measured variables limit the regulation of which closed-loop control variables. For example: the pressure in the line must be set such that valve V1, which regulates the mass flow, does not reach the limits of its operating range.

[0059] Limit value specifications 23 for the limiting active lines, where the user 2 can enter values and select comparison operands and units from corresponding menus.

[0060] Logic specifications 24 from a technological perspective, where the user 2 can select the modules of the logic specification from corresponding menus. For example: the pump P1 can only be switched on when the valve KL1 is closed.

[0061] Further examples of configuration data 5 that can be indicated in the flow diagram 4 are fault active lines of the closed-loop control technology, information on automatically starting and stopping the system such as the activation and deactivation sequences of units, parameters that influence the secondary technology, such as characteristic curves of units, running times of valves, power consumption of drives, labeling of objects that are to be shown on an operating screen, labeling of information that should be made available to the system operator, such as signals for curve images, alarms, system-specific framework conditions, such as spatial conditions, distances, specifications, such as products to be employed, properties of the products to be used.

[0062] It should be noted here that this information 5 must always be specified by the system planner 2. In accordance with the present invention, these specifications can be made in an integrated system 1, and further work steps for the project planning of the secondary technology are then no longer necessary.

[0063] Certain configuration data 5 can have an effect on several areas of secondary technology. For example, the statement that two pumps are redundant with respect to one another impacts on among other things the closed-loop and open-loop control structures of the two pumps, on the assignment of the input/output modules of the automation hardware, on the design and assignment of the busbars in the electrification, on the preparation of information and design of the operating options for the system operator.

[0064] FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the method for project-planning of a specific process system comprising a primary technology formed as components of the specific process system connected to one another utilizing process technology and at least one secondary technology dependent on the primary technology and together therewith enables operation of the specific process system. The method comprises creating a flow diagram 4 of the specific process system utilizing a system planning tool 3 by linking graphical process objects 16 representing the components of a technical system to project-plan the primary technology, as indicated in step 410.

[0065] Next, the system planning tool 3 is utilized to supplement the flow diagram 4 by configuration data 5 formed as at least one of (i) requirements, (ii) specifications for operation of the specific process system, (iii) system specific framework conditions and (iv) specifications, as indicated in step 420.

[0066] Next, a specific project planning solution 9, 9, 9 is created automatically, by a data processing device 7, for a secondary technology which fulfills various requirements, together with the project planned primary technology, by automatically evaluating the flow diagram 4 supplemented with the configuration data 5, as indicated in step 430.

[0067] Thus, while there have been shown, described and pointed out fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of the methods described and the devices illustrated, and in their operation, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, it is expressly intended that all combinations of those elements and/or method steps which perform substantially the same function in substantially the same way to achieve the same results are within the scope of the invention. Moreover, it should be recognized that structures and/or elements and/or method steps shown and/or described in connection with any disclosed form or embodiment of the invention may be incorporated in any other disclosed or described or suggested form or embodiment as a general matter of design choice. It is the intention, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto.