Fisher-rosemount Systems, Inc

Fieldbus Foundation

National Instruments Corporation

Berge, L. Jonas F.

Glanzer, David A.

Ramachandran, Ram

Mitschke, Steven B.

Duffy, Joseph D.

Gabler, John Carl

Ram Ramachandran

Mark J Nixon

Trevor Duncan Schleiss

David A Glanzer

Marion A Keyes, Iv

Kenneth D Krivoshein

John Carl Gabler

Ron Eddie

Joseph D Duffy

Terrence L Blevins

Julian Kevin Naidoo

Alper Turhan Enver

John Michael Lucas

Stephen B Mitschke

L Jonas F Berge

Hiroshi Mori

Mitsugu Tanaka

David R Denison

Brandon Hieb

Thomas B Kinney

Lee Allen Neitzel

Prashant Joshi

Dan Dean Christensen

Duncan Schleiss

Jack Elias

Chuji Akiyama

Michael J Lucas

Yasuo Kumeda

Robert Gretta

William R Hodson

Patricia E Brett

Frank Lynch

Ashok K Gupta

Terrence L Belvins

Donald B Goff

Sherwin Su

Gary Keith Law

Evren Eryurek

Larry Oscar Jundt

Daniel R Strinden

Daniel Dean Christensen

Cindy Alsup Scott

Neil J Peterson

Cristopher Ian Sarmiento Uy

Deji Chen

Ebtesam S Tanyous

Hubbard F Fellows

Robert E Gretta, Jr

Steve Bonwell

DeAnn DelGuzzi

Terrance L Blevins

Mike Klopfer

Danny Strinden

Ian Uy

Steven B Mitschke

Techniques for previewing an operator display of a process section in a process plant include presenting a process section on a user interface device, where the process section includes a user control for presenting and/or displaying another process section on the process plant display. In response to receiving user input indicative of a request to display a preview of the other process section via the user control, the user interface device presents the other process section while simultaneously presenting the process section in a preview mode. The process sections in the preview mode may be presented side-by-side, above and below each other, in separate display windows, etc.

Operator display switching preview

Methods, apparatus and systems are disclosed for multi-module process control management. A multi-module view is presented, via a user interface, including a plurality of control modules corresponding to functions of a control process. The multi-module view provides a first set of configuration capabilities associated with the control modules, including the capability to logically connect respective ones of the control modules. In response to the selection of one of the control modules of the multi-module view, a single-module view is presented, via the user interface, including a functional block associated with the selected one of the control modules of the multi-module view. The single-module view provides a second set of configuration capabilities associated with the functional block, including the capability to logically connect the functional block to a respective one of the control modules.

Methods, apparatus and systems for multi-module process control management

Methods and apparatus to configure process control systems based on generic process system libraries are disclosed. An example method includes instantiating an instance of a generic process system library. The instance is associated with items of equipment and corresponding process signals of a process control system. The generic process system library comprises at least one of generic process graphic data or generic control strategy data corresponding to the items of equipment and the corresponding process signals of the process control system. The example method further includes configuring the instance of the generic process system library by incorporating process-specific data associated with the operation of the process control system with the at least one of the generic process graphic data or the generic control strategy data.

Methods and apparatus to configure process control systems based on generic process system libraries

An operator interface within a process plant includes an execution engine that implements process flow modules made up of interconnected smart process objects that are aware of devices and other entities within the plant and that can perform methods to detect conditions within the plant, especially on a system-level basis. The smart process objects include a display element to be displayed to the operator, data storage for storing data pertaining to and/or received from an associated entity within a plant, inputs and outputs for communicating with other smart process objects and methods that may be executed on the stored and received data to detect plant conditions, including system-level conditions, such as leaks, errors and other conditions. Process flow modules, which may be made up of numerous interconnected smart process objects, may also include flow algorithms associated therewith to calculate mass balances, flows, etc. for the process elements within the process flow modules.

Smart process modules and objects in process plants

An example customized documentation generation apparatus is disclosed that generates documents relevant to a software update/upgrade of a particular process control system. A notes instrumentation module instruments general release notes for at least one of an update or an upgrade of a process control system to correlate the release notes with a general process control system configuration to produce instrumented notes. An upgrade assessment module determines configuration information for a particular process control system to provide default filter settings. An items of interest filter applies the default filter settings for the particular process control system to the instrumented notes to filter the instrumented notes and produce custom release notes for the particular process control system. The custom release notes are provided to a user to alert the user regarding potential effects of the update/upgrade on the particular process control system.

Systems and methods to provide customized release notes during a software system upgrade of a process control system

An appendable system includes a plurality of appendable devices that are adapted to interoperate with each other and/or a workstation via a communication network to monitor and/or control a process. Each of the appendable devices can communicate with one or more sensors and/or control outputs and includes a housing that facilitates mounting of the appendable device to a surface.

Appendable system and devices for data acquisition, analysis and control

A method or apparatus automatically configures a control module for synchronous execution on a Fieldbus segment of a process control network by determining if all of the critical function blocks of a particular control module can be assigned to FOUNDATION&#xae; Fieldbus field devices or to the I/O device associated with a particular Fieldbus segment. If so, the method or apparatus automatically assigns the function blocks of the control module, which would otherwise be scheduled to execute in a controller, to the I/O device for the Fieldbus segment. This technique enables all of the critical or necessary function blocks within the control module to execute in one macrocycle of the Fieldbus segment, thereby executing synchronously on a Fieldbus segment. This operation, in turn, increases the overall execution rate of the control module with respect to control modules that have function blocks split between a controller and field devices on a Fieldbus segment, which has been the traditional manner of configuring control modules implemented using devices on a Fieldbus segment.

Automatic configuration of synchronous block execution for control modules run in fieldbus networks

An example apparatus includes a first interface configured to identify a first function associated with a process control routine. The example apparatus also includes a sub-schedule generator configured to generate a first sub-schedule associated with a first time period. The first sub-schedule indicates a first execution time at which the first function is to be executed. The example apparatus also includes a schedule generator configured to form a schedule associated with a second time period based on two instances of the first sub-schedule. The schedule indicates the first execution time and a second execution time at which the first function is to be executed.

Methods and apparatus to generate schedules to execute functions in a process control system

Enhanced Fieldbus device alerts enable Fieldbus devices within a process control system to report alarm or alert conditions that are detected within the devices to a system user or operator using a plurality of independently reportable device alarm parameters, each of which corresponds to a different level of severity and each of which may require a different type of response by the system user or operator. The independently reportable device alarm parameters include a parameter associated with a failure of a Fieldbus device, a parameter associated with maintenance needed by a Fieldbus device and an advisable action in connection with a Fieldbus device.

Enhanced fieldbus device alerts in a process control system

An apparatus, system and process is provided for communicating safety-related data, over an open system, from a sender to a receiver. Safety-related components, including function blocks, flexible function blocks, resource blocks and transducer blocks, as well as, safety-related objects are provided. Also, a time synchronization monitor is provided for monitoring timing distributions and determining when such distributions have drifted beyond an acceptable limit.

System and method for implementing time synchronization monitoring and detection in a safety instrumented system

An apparatus, system and process is provided for communicating safety-related data, over an open system, from a sender to a receiver. Safety-related components, including function blocks, flexible function blocks, resource blocks and transducer blocks, as well as, safety-related objects are provided. Also, an extended safety-related protocol provides for authenticating communications between safety-related components over an existing black channel, such as one using a fieldbus Architecture.

System and method for implementing safety instrumented systems in a fieldbus architecture

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Austin, TX, United States of America

Ram Ramachandran