Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

Markus Erlmann

Thomas Talanis

Frank Volkmann

Christian Hock

Sven Kerschbaum

Hendrik Gerlach

Karl-Heinz Deiretsbacher

Jens Grebner

Thomas Banik

Reiner Plaum

Bernd Schönmüller

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.

Provision of process values in a process installation

An OPC UA session is interpreted as a single transaction according to the invention. In this case, a transaction means that all service calls, apart from the abovementioned calls, are initially only simulated and are not executed and the execution of the service calls is shifted to the termination of the transaction. Each operation inside a session is formally checked and then simulated. The simulated result or the result of the formal check is immediately sent to the client. The client therefore receives a preview of the result of the operations. If the client determines that one of the operations carried out would not lead to the desired result, the client can reject the operations. If the client wants the set operation to be carried out, the client terminates the current session.

Method and apparatus for expanding transactions in OPC UA

A method for providing clients with access to a service of a server in a network using an OPC-UA, the server service making available varying values of at least one variable to the clients, wherein a client registers for the server service by sending a subscription request for the server service to the server which sets up a subscription structure including a unique subscription ID as well as a TCP/IP multicast group associated with the subscription structure and including a unique multicast address, and there server communicates the multicast address and the subscription ID to every client submitting a subscription request to register for the server service, the server additionally sends each change in value of each variable of the server service to the multicast address over a network via a multicast message so that all clients registered for the server service receive the same multicast message.

Providing clients access to a server service using an OPC unified architecture (OPC-UA)

A method for optimizing repeated write access by a client to at least one variable in a server via OPC UA, wherein a call method for repeated write access is provided on the server, the call method includes notification of an access time interval and at least one variable for the repeated write access, the client calls the call method on the server, the server is notified of an access time interval and the at least one variable for the repeated write access in the process, where the server creates a data structure for the repeated write access and maintains said data structure during the access time interval, values of the at least one variable which are to be written are transmitted to the server by the client during the access time interval, and the server allocates each value transmitted by the client to the associated variable.

Write access to a variable in a server

A method for communication between two clients via a server in a network using OPC Unified Architecture (OPC-UA), wherein a virtual server object that provides a server functionality to a first of two clients is implemented in the server by making available to the first client a virtual address space in an address space of the server, and a process for generating and modifying virtual server nodes in said virtual address space. The server allows the second client to access virtual server nodes in the virtual address space and informs the first client each time that the second client accesses a virtual server node in the virtual address space.

Communication between two clients via a server

A coordination node in a communication system, a communication system and methods for operating the communication system which allows data transmission with a guaranteed latency even when there are a relatively large number of network nodes, wherein a plurality of network nodes in the communication system are combined to form a group. The network nodes in the group are allocated a respective common address, and at least one guaranteed timeslot within a transmission frame is made available to the network nodes in the group solely for use for the data transmission by assigning it to the common address.

Method for operating a communication system, coordination node in a communication system and communication system

A network node, a coordination node, a management node, a communication system and method for operating a communication system having a first type of communication network and a second type of communication network, wherein a request message identifying a network node in the first type of communication network is sent to the coordination node in the first type of communication network by the management node in the second type of communication network, the network node is removed from the first type of communication network by the coordination node, the removed network node is included in the second type of communication network by the management node, and a data interchange is performed between the management node and the network node inserted in the second type of communication network.

Growing community of inventors

Mainleus, Germany

Markus Erlmann