WO2013079095A1

WO2013079095A1 - Method and control system for handling abnormal situations in an industrial process

Info

Publication number: WO2013079095A1
Application number: PCT/EP2011/071285
Authority: WO
Inventors: Susanne TIMSJÖ; Saad AZHAR; Hongyu PEI-BREIVOLD
Original assignee: Abb Research Ltd
Priority date: 2011-11-29
Filing date: 2011-11-29
Publication date: 2013-06-06

Abstract

A method of handling abnormal situations in an industrial process comprises the steps of receiving (SI) first process variable data indicating that a first abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process; recording (S2) the first process variable data; receiving (S3) a reference input from an operator for handling the first abnormal situation; recording (S4) the reference input; associating (S5)the reference input with the recorded first process variable data; receiving (S6) second process variable data indicating that a second abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process, the second process variable data indicating that the second abnormal situation is similar to the first abnormal situation; and displaying (S8) the reference input on a display unit to thereby help guiding an operator to handle the second abnormal situation.

Description

METHOD AND CONTROL SYSTEM FOR HANDLING ABNORMAL SITUATIONS IN AN INDUSTRIAL PROCESS

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to process control of an industrial process, and in particular to a method and a control system for handling abnormal situations which may occur in the industrial process.

BACKGROUND

Industrial control systems, process control systems, Supervisory Control and Data acquisition (SCAD A) systems and the like have displays for displaying a graphic diagram of an industrial process to operators monitoring the industrial process. Operators may thereby be able to recognize an alarm or a trend in the industrial process and, as a result, take measures to solve the problem giving rise to the alarm or trend.

Operators of an industrial process may have varying levels of experience and knowledge of handling abnormal situations, e.g. situations giving rise to alarms due to deviant behaviour of process components of the industrial process. Therefore, when for instance an alarm is detected, the abnormal situation giving rise to the alarm may be handled differently depending on the particular operator present at the time the abnormal situation occurs. A less experienced operator may for instance handle an abnormal situation differently than a senior operator.

In order to ensure that senior operator experience is utilised regulations may prohibit less experienced operators to handle abnormal situations themselves, only allowing the less experienced operator to handle an alarm accompanied by a senior operator. In such cases it is hence required that a less experienced operator is accompanied by an experienced operator in the control room from which process control is made at all times.

Hence, there is a need to improve the monitoring and control of an industrial process such that the operation of the industrial process can be made more reliable, even in a situation when a less experienced operator monitors the industrial process without the supervision of an experienced colleague.

SUMMARY

In view of the above, a general object of the present disclosure is to provide a method and a control system to improve the general operator control performance in an industrial process.

A further object is to relieve senior operators of some of their work duties while maintaining a high reliability of control of the industrial system.

Hence in a first aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a method of handling abnormal situations in an industrial process, the method comprising: receiving first process variable data indicating that a first abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process, recording the first process variable data, receiving a reference input from an operator for handling the first abnormal situation, recording the reference input, associating the reference input with the recorded first process variable data, receiving second process variable data indicating that a second abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process, the second process variable data indicating that the second abnormal situation is similar to the first abnormal situation, and displaying the reference input on a display unit to thereby help guiding an operator to handle the second abnormal situation.

Due to the previously recorded reference input, which may have been input by an experienced operator e.g. a senior operator, a less experienced operator can carry out input according to the reference input and handle the second abnormal situation the same way as an experienced operator would. Thereby, a less experienced operator may be able to handle an abnormal situation without having to consult a more experienced colleague. Moreover, the less experienced operator may be able to learn how to handle different abnormal situations without the presence of a senior operator.

In other words, alarm assistance information or abnormal situation assistance information is provided in real-time when a similar alarm or abnormal situation occurs, thereby facilitating the alarm handling for the operator that is present at the time.

One embodiment comprises receiving input essentially mimicking the reference input displayed on the display unit to thereby handle the second abnormal situation.

In one embodiment the step of recording the reference input is carried out

automatically in response to receiving the reference input. Hence, the recording of the reference input is automatically initiated such that the operator handling the abnormal situation does not have to worry about having to remember to initiate the recording of his input at the occurrence of an abnormal situation.

In one embodiment the step of recording the reference input is initiated manually by an operator. Recording is hence only initiated when it is deemed necessary to record a reference input regarding a specific abnormal situation.

One embodiment comprises comparing the second data with the first process variable data. Thereby, it may be determined whether the first abnormal situation, which gave rise to the first process variable data, is similar to the second abnormal situation which gave rise to the second process variable data.

One embodiment comprises receiving a series of reference inputs and recording the series of reference inputs, wherein the step of displaying involves displaying the series of reference inputs. Thus, a set or series of reference inputs may be recorded such that the series of reference inputs can be displayed when a similar abnormal situation occurs. Thereby operator is guided how to handle the second abnormal situation on a step-by- step basis.

In a second aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a computer program product comprising computer-executable components for causing a system to perform the steps of the method according to the first aspect when the computer-executable components are run on a processing unit included in the system.

In a third aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a control system for handling abnormal situations in an industrial process, the system comprising: - a communications unit arranged to receive first process variable data indicating that a first abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process, a user input unit arranged to receive a reference input from an operator for handling the first abnormal situation, a memory unit arranged to record the first process variable data and the reference input, and a display unit, wherein the control system is arranged to associate the reference input with the recorded first process variable data such that when the communications unit receives second process variable data indicating that a second abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process, the second process variable data indicating that the second abnormal situation is similar to the first abnormal situation, the display unit displays the reference input to thereby help guiding an operator to handle the second abnormal situation.

In one embodiment the user input unit is arranged to receive a series of reference inputs and the display unit is arranged to display the series of reference inputs in such a way that an operator can follow the series of reference inputs to thereby handle the second abnormal situation.

Generally, all terms used in the claims are to be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the technical field, unless explicitly defined otherwise herein. All references to "a/an/the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc." are to be interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc., unless explicitly stated otherwise. It is to be noted that, although the steps of the methods presented herein are referred to by numbers; a particular step may for instance be called "a first step", the steps of any method disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless explicitly stated. Indeed, in the present disclosure, several alterative step sequence orders are presented in different examples. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The specific embodiments of the inventive concept will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of a control system for monitoring and control of an industrial process; and Fig. 2 is a flowchart describing a method of handling abnormal situations in an industrial process.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The inventive concept will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplifying embodiments are shown. The inventive concept may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the inventive concept to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout the description. Fig. 1 schematically shows an example of a control system 1 for monitoring and controlling an industrial process 2. The industrial process 2 typically involves various process steps carried out by one or more process component 5-A, 5-B, 5-C and 5-D. A process component may for instance be a tank, a valve, a turbine, a roller or a cluster or rollers for a pulp and paper mill, drying equipment, a refiner, a generator, a motor, a transformer or a boiler.

The process flow according to the example of Fig. 1 is in a direction from left to right, as indicated by arrows A.

An industrial process is to be understood to mean for instance a process relating to the refining of oil and gas, petrochemicals, power generation, power transmission, power distribution, metals and mining, chemical industry, pulp and paper, or automation in e.g. the manufacturing industry or food industry. It is to be noted that the present inventive concept can be utilised for monitoring and/ or controlling many different types of industrial processes, with only a few examples having been given above. In any of the mentioned fields of use, in one embodiment the control system 1 comprises a plurality of control units 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4 and a plurality of sensors 9-1, 9-2, 9-3, 9-4 associated with a respective control unit 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4. Each sensor 9-1, 9-2, 9-3, 9-4 of the plurality of sensors is arranged to measure one or more process variable(s) of a process component 5-A, 5-B, 5-C, 5-D. In one embodiment, each sensor 9-1, 9-2, 9-3, 9-4 provides its measurement data to the control unit 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4 which with it is associated with.

In one embodiment each control unit 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4 is arranged to control a process component 5-A, 5-B, 5-C, 5-D according to a respective setpoint value which can be set by means of the control system 1. A process variable is to be construed as a measurable quantity, such as pressure, temperature or voltage, associated with a process component.

The control units 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4 may for instance be Remote Terminal Units (RTU) or Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC). In one embodiment the control system comprises a combination of RTUs and PLCs. In one embodiment the control system is a distributed control system (DCS). In one embodiment the control system is a

SCAD A. Alternatively, the control system may be a centralised control system having one control unit, such as a PLC, providing control signals to one or more process components.

The control system 1 of Fig. 1 further comprises a communications network N and a Human-Machine-Interface (HMI) 11. The communications network N is arranged to enable data communication between the control units 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4 and the HMI 11. Thereby interaction between a control system operator and the industrial process 2 may be achieved. The HMI 11 comprises a computer device 13 having a user input unit 21, a communications unit 15 for receiving data from the communications network N, a processing unit 17 and a memory unit 19. The HMI 11 further comprises a display unit 23 for displaying e.g. industrial process related data.

The communications unit 15 is arranged to communicate with the control units 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4. The communications unit 15 is arranged to receive data, such as process variable data pertaining to one or more process variables, from the control units 7-1, 7- 2, 7-3, 7-4. Alternatively, the communications unit may directly receive data from the sensors 9-1, 9-2, 9-3, 9-4. The communications unit 15 may also be arranged to send data such as a control command, received via the user input unit 21, to the control units 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4 for controlling the industrial process 2, e.g. by changing the setpoint value of one or more control units 7-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4.

The user input unit 21 is arranged to receive input commands from a user of the control system 1, e.g. a process operator.

The processing unit 17 is arranged to receive data such as process variable data from the communications unit 15 or a user input from the user input unit 21, to process the data, and optionally store the data in the memory 19. Furthermore, the processing unit 17 is arranged to communicate with the display unit 23 such that data may be displayed on the display unit 23. Such data may for instance be displayed on the display device 23 in the form of one or more process related images.

A process related image is to be construed as a graphical image showing a view of a graphical representation of one or more process components, trend charts, process statistics or any other type of data relating to the industrial process.

Beneficially, the HMI 11 defined by the display unit 23, the computer device 13 and the user input unit 21 allows a user such as an operator to interact with the industrial process 2. The industrial process 2 may thereby be monitored and controlled. In one embodiment the display unit is also the user input unit. In this case the display unit may be a touch-screen device. In one embodiment, the user input unit may be a gesture-based detection unit arranged to detect gestured-based input by a user. In further embodiments, the user input unit may be a mouse, a keyboard or any other similar traditional input means. The processing unit 17 may comprise computer-executable components i.e. software, for inter alia processing process variable data, and for associating process variable data with a reference input. Here a reference input is to be construed as a user input or a series of user inputs provided by an experienced operator for handling an abnormal situation which has occurred in the industrial process 2.

Examples of methods of monitoring and controlling an industrial process will now be described in more detail with reference to Fig. 2.

Fig. 2 is a flowchart depicting a method of handling abnormal situations in an industrial process. In a first step SI, the communications unit 15 receives first process variable data, which has been detected by the plurality of sensors 9-1, 9-2, 9-3, 9-4, from the

communications network N. The first process variable data relates to the process components 5-A, 5-B, 5-C, 5-D. The process variable data may for instance comprise current process variable values associated with the process components 5-A, 5-B, 5-C, 5-D. The first process variable data is analysed for instance by the processing unit 17 so as to determine whether an abnormal situation has occurred. The analysis may e.g. comprise comparing the first process variable data with reference data for the industrial process.

In the present example, the first process variable data indicates that a first abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process. For example it may have been determined that process component 5-A, which may be exemplified by a tank, has a process variable having a value outside a predefined accepted range of values. Thus, the industrial process 2 is subject to a first abnormal situation which is to be handled by the control system 1. Since it has been determined that an abnormal situation has occurred, in a second step S2, the first process variable data is recorded. The recording can for instance be made by storing the first process variable data in the memory unit 19.

In a third step S3, the processing unit 17 receives, via the user input unit 21, a reference input from an operator. As mentioned above, a reference input is an input for handling the abnormal situation such that the industrial process is set into a normal state.

Typically, the reference input is made by an experienced operator who knows how to handle the abnormal situation which has occurred.

In a fourth step S4, the reference input is recorded, for instance by storing the reference input in the memory unit 19. In one embodiment, the reference input is recorded automatically in response to receiving the reference input. The recording may in one embodiment be initiated when the operator selects an alarm he or she wants to handle, presented to the operator for instance on the display unit. Alternatively, the recording of the reference input is initiated manually by an operator. In one embodiment it is possible to set the recording to be either initiated manually or automatically, for instance via a control panel which can be shown on the display unit 23.

When the abnormal situation has been handled by means of the reference input, the recording of any input via the user input unit 21 is generally stopped.

In a fifth step S5, the first process variable data is associated with the reference input. The association between the first process variable data and the reference input is stored in the memory unit 19, for instance in a data structure such as a matrix.

In one embodiment the, the first process variable data is associated with the reference input prior to storage of the first process variable data, the reference input and the association therebetween in the memory. In a sixth step S6, second process variable data is received by the communications unit 15, the underlying process variable values having been detected by the sensors 9-1, 9-2, 9-3, 9-4. The second process variable data is analysed for instance by the processing unit 17 so as to determine whether an abnormal situation has occurred. If it is determined that an abnormal situation has occurred, in a seventh step S7, the second process variable data and the first process variable data are compared so as to determine whether the first process variable data and the second process variable data relate to similar abnormal situations.

Generally, the second process variable data is compared to all sets of previously recorded process variable data until a similarity match is found with a previously recorded set of process variable data. If the second process variable data does not match any previously recorded process variable data and the second process variable data indicates that an abnormal situation is present, the process jumps to the second step S2.

If it is determined that the first process variable data and the second process variable data relate to a similar abnormal situation, i.e. that the first abnormal situation is similar to the second abnormal situation, the reference input is in an eight step S8 displayed on the display unit 23 to thereby help guiding an operator to handle the second abnormal operation. Two abnormal situations are herein deemed to be similar if the reference input for the first abnormal situations is able to handle the second abnormal situation in essentially the same manner as it handles the first abnormal situation.

In one embodiment, in an eight step S9, an input is received by means of the user input unit 21, the input essentially mimicking the reference input having been displayed on the a display of the display unit 23, thereby handling the second abnormal situation. Hence, control of the industrial process may be achieved in accordance with the user input.

The inventive concept has mainly been described above with reference to a few embodiments. However, as is readily appreciated by a person skilled in the art, other embodiments than the ones disclosed above are equally possible within the scope of the invention, as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method of handling abnormal situations in an industrial process (2), the method comprising: receiving (SI) first process variable data indicating that a first abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process (2), recording (S2) the first process variable data, receiving (S3) a reference input from an operator for handling the first abnormal situation, recording (S4) the reference input, associating (S5)the reference input with the recorded first process variable data, receiving (S6) second process variable data indicating that a second abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process (2), the second process variable data indicating that the second abnormal situation is similar to the first abnormal situation, and displaying (S8) the reference input on a display unit to thereby help guiding an operator to handle the second abnormal situation.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, comprising receiving (S9) input essentially mimicking the reference input displayed on the display unit to thereby handle the second abnormal situation.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the step of recording the reference input is carried out automatically in response to receiving the reference input.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the step of recording the reference input is initiated manually by an operator.

5. The method as claimed in any of the preceding claims, comprising comparing (S7) the second data with the first process variable data.

6. The method as claimed in any of the preceding claims, comprising receiving a series of reference inputs and recording the series of reference inputs, wherein the step of displaying involves displaying the series of reference inputs in such a way that an operator can follow the series of reference inputs to thereby handle the second abnormal situation.

7. A computer program product comprising computer-executable components for causing a control system to perform the steps recited in any one of claims 1-6 when the computer-executable components are run on a processing unit included in the control system.

8. A control system (1) for handling abnormal situations in an industrial process (2), the system comprising: a communications unit (15) arranged to receive first process variable data indicating that a first abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process (2), a user input unit (21) arranged to receive a reference input from an operator for handling the first abnormal situation, a memory unit (19) arranged to record the first process variable data and the reference input, and a display unit (23), wherein the control system (1) is arranged to associate the reference input with the recorded first process variable data such that when the communications unit (15) receives second process variable data indicating that a second abnormal situation has occurred in the industrial process, the second process variable data indicating that the second abnormal situation is similar to the first abnormal situation, the display unit (23) displays the reference input to thereby help guiding an operator to handle the second abnormal situation.

9. The control system (1) as claimed in claim 8, wherein the user input unit (21) is arranged to receive a series of reference inputs and the display unit (23) is arranged to display the series of reference inputs in such a way that an operator can follow the series of reference inputs to thereby handle the second abnormal situation.