Cloud based control for remote engineering

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10955833-B2
Application number	US-201815991996-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 29, 2018
Priority date	May 29, 2018
Publication date	Mar 23, 2021
Grant date	Mar 23, 2021

Abstract

A method in an industrial process control and remote engineering system comprises receiving, by a remote control system, a control configuration, interfacing, by the remote control system, via a network, with at least one process equipment, and remotely controlling, by the remote control system, the at least one process equipment according to the control configuration. In some embodiments of the method, the remote control system is a twin of a local control system.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method comprising:
receiving, by a remote control system, a control configuration;
interfacing, by the remote control system, via a network, with at least one process equipment, the at least one process equipment is part of a skid that includes at least one local controller that is interfaced with the at least one process equipment; and
remotely controlling, by the remote control system, the at least one process equipment according to the control configuration, wherein remotely controlling the at least one process equipment further comprises performing a validation test on the control configuration for the remote control system and the at least one process equipment, including generating simulated values of process variables by process equipment in a final process installation, and wherein the remote control system is a twin of a local control system;
moving the validated control configuration from the remote control system to the local control system on a process site without further validation; and
transmitting the simulated values to the local controller of the at least one process equipment to be treated as process variable inputs.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the validation test is also valid for the local control system.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the remote control system is a virtual distributed control system (DCS) and the local control system is an local DCS.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the remote control system is located at a physical site of a manufacturer of the remote control system or at an industrial process site, and
the at least one process equipment is located at another physical site.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the remote control system replaces functionality of the local control system during a live process operation.

6. A system, comprising:
at least one process equipment; and
a remote control system interfaced with the at least one process equipment via a network, the at least one process equipment is part of a skid that includes at least one local controller that is interfaced with the at least one process equipment, the remote control system configured to:
receive a control configuration; and
remotely control the at least one process equipment according to the control configuration, wherein remotely control the at least one process equipment further comprises performing a validation test on the control configuration for the remote control system and the at least one process equipment, including generating simulated values of process variables by process equipment in a final process installation, and wherein the remote control system is a twin of a local control system;
move the validated control configuration from the remote control system to the local control system on a process site without further validation; and
transmit the simulated values to the local controller of the at least one process equipment to be treated as process variable inputs.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the validation test is also valid for the local control system.

8. The system of claim 6 , wherein the remote control system is a virtual distributed control system (DCS) and the local control system is a local DCS.

9. The system of claim 6 , wherein:
the remote control system is located at a site of a manufacturer of the remote control system or at an industrial process site, and
the at least one process equipment is located at another physical site.

10. The system of claim 6 , wherein the remote control system is further configured to replace functionality of the local control system during a live process operation.

11. A non-transitory computer readable medium containing instructions that, when executed by at least one processing device of a remote control system, cause the at least one processing device to:
receive a control configuration;
interface, via a network, with at least one process equipment, the at least one process equipment is part of a skid that includes at least one local controller that is interfaced with the at least one process equipment; and
remotely control the at least one process equipment according to the control configuration, wherein remotely control the at least one process equipment further comprises performing a validation test on the control configuration for the remote control system and the at least one process equipment, including generating simulated values of process variables by process equipment in a final process installation, and wherein the remote control system is a twin of a local control system;
move the validated control configuration from the remote control system to the local control system on a process site without further validation; and
transmit the simulated values to the local controller of the at least one process equipment to be treated as process variable inputs.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the instructions that cause the at least one processing device to remotely control the at least one process equipment further cause the at least one processing device to:
wherein the validation test is also valid for the local control system.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processing device to replace functionality of the local control system during a live process operation.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11 , wherein:
the remote control system is located at a site of a manufacturer of the remote control system or at an industrial process site, and
the at least one process equipment is located at another physical site.

Assignees

• Honeywell Int Inc
• Uop Llc

Inventors

• Bandekar Raj
• Waynick Michael James
• Drayton Gary

Classifications

• H04L67/125 Primary

  involving control of end-device applications over a network · CPC title

• H04L67/10

  in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network (software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46) · CPC title

• G05B19/41835

  characterised by program execution · CPC title

• G05B19/41885 Primary

  characterised by modeling, simulation of the manufacturing system · CPC title

• G05B19/41855

  by local area network [LAN], network structure · CPC title