Johnson Service Company

Johnson Controls Technology Company

Dennis E Burkhardt

David E Rasmussen

Clay G Nesler

Gaylon M Decious

Michael E Wagner

Karen L Woest

James K Stark

Robert R Singers

Gregory A Pascucci

Otto M Mageland

Dan J Spacek

Paul W Madaus

Darrell E Standish

David L Koch

Vairavan Vairavan

Susan M Hyzer

James R Garbe

Donald A Gottschalk, Jr

Donald A Gottschalk

Vairavan E Vairavan

A networked system having a wide variety of applications and particularly applicable to facilities management systems has multiple levels of software in processing nodes. The levels include a 'features' processing level which communicates requests for data to a software object level containing databases of processes and attributes and database managers. The database managers in the software object level operate to provide data to the high level features in the same format. The software object level communicates with a hardware object level which also contains databases and database managers to mask differences between operational hardware units. By categorizing operational units by type, additional units of a known type can be added with only low level hardware object database changes. Adding units of a new type is facilitated by software changes confined to the lower level hardware and software objects, avoiding software changes at high level features. Individual software objects are tailored for typical types of inputs and output devices encountered by facilities management systems. Universal drive circuitry also provides applicability to a broad range of devices.

Networked facilities management system

A networked system having a wide variety of applications and particularly applicable to facilities management systems has multiple levels of software in processing nodes. The levels include a 'features' processing level which communicates requests for data to a software object level containing databases of processes and attributes and database managers. The database managers in the software object level operate to provide data to the high level features in the same format. The software object level communicates with a hardware object level which also contains databases and database managers to mask differences between operational hardware units. By categorizing operational units by type, additional units of a known type can be added with only low level hardware object database changes. Adding units of a new type is facilitated by software changes confined to the lower level hardware and software objects, avoiding software changes at high level features. Individual software objects are tailored for typical types of inputs and output devices encountered by facilities management systems. Universal drive circuitry also provides applicability to a broad range of devices. Nodes store restoration characteristics of loads controlled by the nodes. After being shed to limit energy consumption, software local to the node restores the loads under predefined circumstances independently of the load shed commands to achieve distributed load management.

Networked facilities management system having a node configured with

A networked system having a wide variety of applications and particularly applicable to facilities management systems has multiple levels of software in processing nodes. The levels include a 'features' processing level which communicates requests for data to a software object level containing databases of processes and attributes and database managers. The database managers in the software object level operate to provide data to the high level features in the same format. The software object level communicates with a hardware object level which also contains databases and database managers to mask differences between operational hardware units. By categorizing operational units by type, additional units of a known type can be added with only low level hardware object database changes. Adding units of a new type is facilitated by software changes confined to the lower level hardware and software objects, avoiding software changes at high level features. Individual software objects are tailored for typical types of inputs and output devices encountered by facilities management systems. Universal drive circuitry also provides applicability to a broad range of devices. An optical isolator is connected between signal line outputs from a node and a line driver connected to a pair of lines on a bus. Similarly, an optical isolator is connected between signal line receiving inputs and a line receiver. The signal lines can be biased to predetermined levels to reduce node sensitivity to noise.

Networked facilities management system with optical coupling of local

A networked system having a wide variety of applications and particularly applicable to facilities management systems has multiple levels of software in processing nodes. The levels include a 'features' processing level which communicates requests for data to a software object level containing databases of processes and attributes and database managers. The database managers in the software object level operate to provide data to the high level features in the same format. The software object level communicates with a hardware object level which also contains databases and database managers to mask differences between operational hardware units. By categorizing operational units by type, additional units of a known type can be added with only low level hardware object database changes. Adding units of a new type is facilitated by software changes confined to the lower level hardware and software objects, avoiding software changes at high level features. Individual software objects are tailored for typical types of inputs and output devices encountered by facilities management systems. Universal drive circuitry also provides applicability to a broad range of devices. Nodes are provided with ports which may accommodate a non-configured device. When a non-configured device is identified on a port, a drop identifier specifying the port is transmitted to the non-configured device for use in establishing a network address by which the non-configured device can be accessed.

A networked system having a wide variety of applications and particularly applicable to facilities management systems has multiple levels of software in processing nodes. The levels include a 'features' processing level which communicates requests for data to a software object level containing databases of processes and attributes and database managers. The database managers in the software object level operate to provide data to the high level features in the same format. The software object level communicates with a hardware object level which also contains databases and database managers to mask differences between operational hardware units. By categorizing operational units by type, additional units of a known type can be added with only low level hardware object database changes. Adding units of a new type is facilitated by software changes confined to the lower level hardware and software objects, avoiding software changes at high level features. Individual software objects are tailored for typical types of inputs and output devices encountered by facilities management systems. Universal drive circuitry also provides applicability to a broad range of devices. In each node a time stamp indicates the most recent update of the node's data base. Periodically each node transmits its time stamp. When a node receives a time stamp later than its own, the receiving node requests the transmitting node to transmit its data base to update the receiving node with the earlier time stamp.

Networked facilities management system with time stamp comparison for

A network system having a wide variety of applications and particularly applicable to facilities management systems includes network controllers which continuously process data related to building and industrial, environmental, security and other automated system controls. Each network controller has a network address indicative of a communication link to which the network controller is connected, a local address and a node drop ID to determine whether the network controller is a configured or non-configured device. Data stored in an archive device is downloaded to a destination network controller in the absence of a routing table in the destination network controller by transmitting a download request message from the archive device to an intermediate network controller with a routing table. The intermediate network controller assumes control of the download request by transmitting the message to the destination controller. The destination controller acknowledges receipt of the message by transmitting an acknowledge message back to the intermediate network controller, which passes the acknowledge message to the archive device in accordance with the routing information stored in the intermediate network controller. Thus, as certain network controllers are connected, disconnected or disabled during the operation of the network, the control of a process is not interrupted. Additionally, the network controllers are not configured to store large amounts of routing data because a path to a device can be established through other controllers with routing information.

Method of downloading information stored in an arching device to

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Franklin, WI, United States of America

Dennis E Burkhardt