JP2000295242A - Monitoring and control system using general-purpose products and its evaluation device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] The present invention can confirm whether a system constructed using a general-purpose product is operated stably after expansion or the like by a user or the like. An evaluation device that evaluates the operation of a monitoring and control system formed by a network, and stores module information indicating what event will occur next when an event related to a component occurs. While associating each component with the module information storage unit 200 based on the configuration information, simulating event occurrence in order,
A monitoring and control system evaluation device comprising: a simulator means for generating a next event based on the generated event and module information, and sequentially repeating the event generation to evaluate an operation of the monitoring and control system.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a supervisory control system using general-purpose products and an evaluation device therefor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Monitoring and control of a water distribution system, a power system, and the like include:
Supervisory control systems are widely used. As described above, for a system having a high public nature or having a large influence when an accident occurs, stable operation of the monitoring and control system is extremely important.

Therefore, in a conventional plant monitoring and control system, a dedicated computer, a controller, an application, and the like having necessary and sufficient capabilities for each system are manufactured or created to construct the system. Thereby, the stable operation assumed at the time of designing and manufacturing can be guaranteed.

[0004] Although this conventional monitoring and control system can ensure stable operation, it is difficult for the user to independently expand the system because the system components are dedicated products.

[0005] However, in recent years, with the increasing demand for open and downsizing and the reduction in the price of general-purpose equipment, there has been a demand for a monitoring and control system capable of easily expanding the system after manufacturing and utilizing general-purpose equipment. It has become.

[0006]

When a general-purpose device such as a commercially available personal computer or workstation is used to configure a plant monitoring and control system,
In addition to making the system inexpensive, it is easy for the user of the monitoring control system to add, change, and delete computers and peripheral devices as appropriate.

[0007] Therefore, the system is often modified by the user, but even after such modification, it is necessary to guarantee a stable operation of the monitoring and control system. For example, even when an accident occurs and a large amount of data flows on the system at one time, the system functions must be sufficiently maintained.

However, in a monitoring and control system using general-purpose products, for example, a new terminal or the like can be freely added on the user side in Ethernet or the like, so that a stable operation is ensured as compared with a conventional monitoring and control system including dedicated products. It is difficult to do.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and a first object of the present invention is to provide a system which is constructed by using general-purpose products when the system is extended or changed by a user or the like.
An object of the present invention is to provide a monitoring and control system using a general-purpose product that can confirm whether or not a stable operation is performed after the extension or the like, and an evaluation device for the system.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a monitoring system using a general-purpose product which can prevent the operation of a system constructed using the general-purpose product from being carelessly executed by a user or the like. It is to provide a control system.

[0011]

Means for Solving the Problems A first invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is made with respect to a monitoring control system evaluation device as simulation means for evaluating the operation of a monitoring control system constituted by a network. Things.

In this evaluation device, necessary information for performing a simulation is stored in a configuration description information storage, a module information storage, and a scenario storage.

That is, the configuration description information storage unit stores configuration information between components in the network.
The term “component” used herein has a broad meaning including not only the computer itself constituting the network node but also each component of software (OS or application) in a network transmission path or node. In the embodiment, a network component and an application component are given as examples.

The module information storage unit stores module information indicating what event will occur next when an event related to a component occurs. Here, an event is a unit for performing a simulation, and generally refers to an event that occurs on a network or its node, such as input, interrupt, and data transmission.

The scenario storage section stores event information scheduled at the start of the simulation. This serves as simulation initial information.

These pieces of information are used by simulator means to perform a system evaluation simulation. That is, first, each component is associated by the simulator means based on the configuration information in the configuration description information storage unit. Next, event occurrence is simulated in order from the event stored in the scenario storage unit, and the next event is generated based on the generated event and module information.

The operation of the monitoring and control system is evaluated by sequentially repeating the occurrence of the event by the simulator.

Therefore, when a system constructed using general-purpose products is extended or changed by a user or the like, it is possible to confirm whether or not the system operates stably after the extension or the like. Further, in the present apparatus, similar simulation can be performed not only when a general-purpose product is used but also when a dedicated product is used for a system.

Next, a second invention for solving the problem is directed to a monitoring and control system using a general-purpose product which is constituted by a network and includes a non-specific application computer as a network component device. The term "non-specific application computer" as used herein means not a computer having dedicated hardware created for a supervisory control system but a generally available personal computer or workstation.

The network is connected to the evaluation device and the evaluation device of the supervisory control system of the first invention.

This evaluation apparatus is provided with an abnormality detecting means for detecting an abnormality of a network component.

When an abnormality is detected in any one of the network components by the abnormality detecting means, the connection configuration between the components in the network except for the network component is reconfigured by the configuration description means.
The reconfigured configuration information is stored in the configuration description information storage. Furthermore, the configuration description means causes the simulator means to start evaluating the operation of the system.

Therefore, even if the system configuration state of the operating control and monitoring system changes,
It is possible to evaluate the system and to confirm whether the system operates stably in that state.

A third invention for solving the problem is directed to a monitoring and control system using a general-purpose product which is constituted by a network and includes a non-specific application computer as a network component. The computer for non-specific use here is the same as in the case of the second invention.

In this monitoring and control system, each non-specific application computer is provided with an information operation monitoring means, and when specific information is operated on the non-specific application computer, the information operation is notified. At the same time, the information operation is executed only when the operation permission is obtained.

Therefore, when the contents of the system constructed using general-purpose products are operated by a user or the like, it is possible to prevent the operations from being performed carelessly.

Next, a fourth invention for solving the problem is the general-purpose product according to the third invention, further comprising operation information recording means for storing the information operation record when specific information is operated. Is a monitoring and control system using a computer.

Therefore, when the system operation becomes unstable due to the information operation, it can be returned to the original state.

[0029]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

(First Embodiment of the Invention) FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a monitoring and control system using a general-purpose product according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

This monitoring and control system is for performing plant monitoring and control.
The terminal 10 is connected to the data transmission path (signal cable) 99 of the AN.
0, information distribution server 101, simulator 102, database server 103, operator station 10
4, the controller 105 and the sensor connection device 98 are connected to each other. A portable terminal 107 or a terminal 108 is connected to the information distribution server 101 via a communication network 109 such as a public line, and a sensor 106 for monitoring a process state is connected to the sensor connection device 98.

The simulator 102 is an example of a configuration of an evaluation device of a monitoring control system using a general-purpose product, and the system is connected to an evaluation device.

Here, each of the devices 100, 101, 102,
103, 104, 105, 98, 107, and 108 are commercially available personal computers and workstations. In addition, a modified product of a general-purpose product or a special-purpose product is used for these application software depending on the case.

Here, the terminal 100 is for monitoring the state of the plant and analyzing the process data, and the operator station 104 is a station for the operator to operate the plant. The database server 103 is a database for storing data such as process values. The sensor 106 acquires process information and the like, and the controller 105 controls the sensor and the device to be controlled. Further, the information distribution server 101 is an information distribution server for distributing plant information to the terminals 107 and 108 in a moving or remote place.
Portable terminal 1 that can be carried to the site via communication network 109
07 and a remote terminal 108 which is a remote terminal.

On the other hand, the simulator 102 is for predicting the performance in advance and examining the performance of the network when adding the devices 100, 101, 103, 104, 105 and 98 such as terminals. To this end, the simulator 102 describes a new communication network configuration and executes a simulation with the new network configuration.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the simulator.

As shown in FIG.
Is a simulator engine 201, a module library 200, an event list 202, a configuration description file 2
03, a scenario file 204 and a simulation result storage file 205.

The simulator engine 201 is a part for actually executing a simulation. Engine 20
1 reads the configuration of the simulation target from the configuration description file 203 and the module library 200, reads the simulation scenario and its respective events from the scenario file 204 and the event list 202, and executes the simulation.

That is, the simulator engine 201
At the start time, an event scheduled in advance is copied from the scenario file 204 to the event list 202, and simulation is performed by sequentially executing events on the event list. The device performance required for the simulation is described in the module library 200, and an event newly generated by executing the event is added to the event list 202.

The simulator engine 201 performs such a simulation until there are no more events on the event list 202 or until a certain period of time elapses, and the communication network throughput, response time, resource consumption, etc. , And outputs the simulation results to the simulation result storage file 205.

The configuration description file 203 and the module library 200 store information for reproducing the network configuration in the plant monitoring and control system on a computer. Here, the configuration description file 203 is a file describing the network configuration of the monitoring control system to be simulated. Further, the module library 200 defines parts for expressing each component of the network. More specifically, when an event is executed, information is described that determines what event will occur next as a result of executing the event.

The scenario file 204 and event list 202 record the overall flow of a simulation and individual events that occur in the same simulation. Here, the scenario file 204 stores various scenarios consisting of events scheduled in advance at the start time.

In the event list 202, events for which a transmission request scheduled at the start is generated are copied from the scenario file 204 at the beginning of the simulation, and new events generated by executing these events are also stored. It has become. Note that the types of events include events that occur on the network during the simulation and events such as external inputs and interrupts that affect the operation of the application.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of various events.

At the time of executing the simulation, these events are stored in the event list 202.

Next, the operation of the simulator 102 incorporated in the monitoring control system using general-purpose products according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described.

(Performance Prediction such as Throughput of Communication Network when Adding Terminals and Controllers) This performance prediction is performed, for example, when data is transmitted from the sensor connection device 98 to the terminal 100. , Response, resource consumption, and the like.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the simulator according to this embodiment.

In order to execute such a simulation, first, how the simulation target is configured is read from the configuration description file 203 by the simulator engine 201. As a result, the simulation target is determined.

At the start of the simulation, an event on the network such as “a transmission request scheduled in advance occurs” is described in the scenario file 204. This event starts with the simulator engine 20
1 is stored in the event list 202 in chronological order (S1).

Next, the events registered in the event list 202 are fetched one by one by the simulator engine 201 in the order of occurrence time, and the occurrence of the event is notified to the components related to the event. Each component that has been notified of the event occurrence performs a process corresponding to the event (S2), and a new event is registered in the event list if necessary (S3). Note that these notifications, processes, and registrations are simulated ones configured on the simulator 102, and the information of the above-described components is stored in the module library 200.

When the event registered in the event list 202 disappears or the simulation is performed for a certain period of time (S4), the simulation ends.
The performance data such as the communication speed is output to the simulation result storage file 205 by the simulator engine 201 (S5).

(Performance prediction of application processing speed, etc. when components such as terminals are replaced) This performance prediction is based on applications that operate on terminals or computers when components of terminals or computers are replaced, reduced, or added. It predicts the processing speed, resource consumption, and the like.

In response to such a case, the configuration of the application process is described in the configuration description file 203, and what kind of processing the application performs, such as file input / output processing, network communication processing, and arithmetic processing, is described. In addition, parameters such as input / output frequency and amount, CPU operation amount and performance, and main memory capacity are also described.

In the scenario file, events such as an external input and an interrupt that affect the operation of the application are set.

Under these circumstances, the simulator 102
Is started, the process proceeds along the flow shown in FIG.

First, the event scheduled at the start of the simulation is copied from the scenario file 204 to the event list 202 (S1), and the simulation is performed by the simulator engine 201 in the same manner as described above (S2 to S4). ), Performance data such as the processing speed of the application is output to the simulation result storage file 205 (S5).

(Estimation of Performance such as Throughput of Communication Network and Application Processing Speed when Adding Terminals and Controllers, etc.) In this performance estimation, the operation of an application operating on a terminal or a computer when an additional terminal or controller is added is described. In the case of simulating and involving data transmission / reception, a simulation is performed for a new communication network configuration described by the communication network configuration description device. Thereby, the response speed and the like of the application are predicted together with the throughput, the response time and the resource consumption of the communication network.

In response to such a case, the configuration description file 203 describes the network configuration to be simulated and the configuration of the application process. In the scenario file 204, events scheduled at the start of the simulation are described. The event list 202 stores communication, failures, and the like that occur in the communication network for performing the simulation, inputs that affect the application, and the like.

The simulation processing of FIG. 4 is executed by the simulator engine 201 based on the information of the configuration description file 203 and the scenario file 204 (S1 to S4). As a result, performance data such as the throughput of the communication network and the processing speed of the application are output to the simulation result storage file 205.

(Performance prediction such as throughput of communication network when terminal or controller stops) This performance prediction is based on a new communication network configuration described by the communication network configuration description device when a failure such as terminal or controller stop occurs. The simulation is performed to predict the performance of the communication network such as throughput, response time, and resource consumption. This simulates, in the monitoring control system, when any device goes down, how the effect of the device down affects the entire system.

In response to such a case, the configuration description file 203 describes the configuration excluding the stopped device when the terminal or the like is stopped. In the scenario file 204, events scheduled at the start of the simulation are described.

The simulation process of FIG. 4 is executed by the simulator engine 201 based on the information of the configuration description file 203 and the scenario file 204 (S1 to S4). As a result, performance data such as the throughput of the communication network is output to the simulation result storage file 205.

(Simulation Operation for Simulating Simultaneous Operation of Software and Hardware) Next, how to simultaneously simulate the operation of software and hardware to realize the above-described simulation will be described. The mechanism will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a mechanism for simultaneously simulating the operations of software and hardware.

In the figure, for easy understanding of the correspondence, the contents of the module library 200 are indicated by broken lines as if they act directly on the event list 202. However, these are actually read once by the simulator engine 201 and reflected on the event list 202 as the processing results of the engine 201. This is indicated by solid lines between the components 200, 201, and 202.

First, in order to simulate the network and the operation of the application, at the same time as simulating the data transmission on the network, the hardware of the computer corresponding to the node (mainly the computer) on the network and the It is necessary to simulate the behavior of a running application. FIG. 5 shows an example of a module configuration for this purpose.

Hardware components 1 to I in FIG.
Up to P16 are the modules of the simulator 102 (hereinafter referred to as
These are also stored in the module library 200. The simulation function of each of the modules 1 to 16 is actually realized on the simulator engine 201.

Modules 9, 10, 11, 1
Reference numerals 5 and 16 correspond to modules for simulating a network. To simulate transmission on the network, a network event 17 as shown in FIG.
2 by registering. At this time, the network event 17 has the information shown in FIG. That is, in addition to the address of the data transmission destination and the contents of the data, the application to process the data and the type of the device are described.

Accordingly, the application event 21 as shown in FIG. 3B is registered in the event list 202 corresponding to the last module (here, TCP 9) simulating the network operation. The event destination is a module that simulates the operation of an application such as the application 7 or 8.

On the other hand, the modules 3, 4, 4 in FIG.
5, 6, 7, 8, 12, 13 and 14 are modules for simulating the operation of the application. In the application module (here applications 7 and 8)
When the application event 21 as shown in FIG. 3B is received, the function event 18 as shown in FIG. This function event 1
The destination of 8 is a functional module such as modules 3, 4, 5, and 6.

In the function module, a function event 18 addressed to an OS module (here, OS2) is registered in the event list 202 in order to simulate hardware processing required for the processing. In order to simulate necessary hardware processing, the OS sends the function event 18 destined for an appropriate hardware module (here, hardware element 1) to the event list 202 on an appropriate schedule.
Register with.

After calculating the processing time, the hardware module registers a function completion event 19 destined for the OS module as shown in FIG.

Upon receiving the function completion event 19, the OS module registers the function completion event 19 destined for the processing module in the event list 202. Upon receiving the function completion event 19, the processing module receives the function completion event 19 destined for the application module.
Is registered in the event list 202. Upon receiving the function completion event 19, the application module registers the network event 17 for a data transmission request and the application event 21 for performing another process in the event list 202 as necessary.

As described above, the operations of the network, software, and hardware are simulated.

As described above, the monitoring and control system using the general-purpose product and the evaluation device thereof according to the embodiment of the present invention predict the performance of the application on the network and the computer by simulation. When the user independently expands, modifies, or reduces the system constructed using, the change can be evaluated, and a stable operation after the expansion change or the like can be guaranteed.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to support system construction utilizing general-purpose products for a plant monitoring control system and the like, and to partially support system expansion by a user, which has been difficult in the past. Can be. This facilitates expansion and reduction of the monitoring and control system constructed using general-purpose components.

Further, it is possible to ensure stable operation of the plant monitoring and control system constructed using general-purpose components, and to ensure stable operation of the plant monitoring and control system when the user expands the system.

As a result, the work of the user can be optimized and the operability can be improved, which can contribute to promotion of work efficiency. In this embodiment, similar effects can be expected not only when using general-purpose components but also when using dedicated components.

(Second Embodiment of the Invention) FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a monitoring and control system using general-purpose products according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. Here, only different parts will be described.

The monitoring control system using general-purpose products according to the present embodiment is configured in the same manner as the first embodiment, except that the diagnostic device 110 is connected to the data transmission line 99.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a diagnostic device according to the present embodiment.

The diagnostic device 110 includes an abnormality detecting section 251
, A configuration description section 252, and a configuration description file 253.

The abnormality detecting section 251 periodically checks the operating states of the devices 98, 100 to 105 in the monitoring control system shown in FIG. That is, each device performs regular communication and inquires whether the device is operating normally. If a response to the error is received or no response is received, the configuration notifying unit 252 is notified that an error has occurred in the device.

The configuration description section 252 stores the configuration description file 203 of the simulator 102 when the diagnostic apparatus 110 is started.
And the network configuration and the application configuration are copied and stored in the configuration description file 253. When a notification indicating that any device is abnormal is received from the abnormality detecting unit 251, the abnormality notification result is reflected in the network configuration and the application configuration of the system based on the contents of the configuration description file 253. Re-describe the configuration. Configuration description file 25 based on this reconfiguration result
3 and the configuration description file 203 of the simulator 102, and requests the simulator 102 to execute a simulation with the rewritten configuration.

The configuration description file 253 stores the network configuration and application configuration of the system.

Next, the operation of the monitoring and control system using general-purpose products according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described.

(Processing Related to Network Configuration) When the monitoring and control system is operating, the operating state of the device is periodically checked by the abnormality detecting unit 251 of the diagnostic device 110. That is, the operating state of the device is checked depending on whether or not there is a response from the network node.

Here, when an abnormality of any device is detected, the abnormality detection information and the configuration description file 253 are detected.
Based on this information, the configuration description unit 252 creates a new configuration description file 203 excluding abnormal devices.

Further, the configuration description unit 252 notifies the simulator engine 101 of the simulator 102 of the reconfiguration, and based on the reconfigured configuration excluding the abnormal equipment, the simulator 102 performs a simulation similar to that of the first embodiment. Be executed.

As a result, performance such as the throughput, response time, and resource consumption of the communication network is predicted, and the performance data is output to the simulation result storage file 205.

(Processes Related to Both Network Configuration and Application Configuration) In this case, the simulator 102 is set with scenarios such as communication and failures occurring in the communication network for simulation and inputs that affect applications. I have.

The abnormality detection by the abnormality detection unit 251 is performed in the same manner as in the above case. When an abnormality occurs in a terminal or a part of a computer or when the terminal is stopped for inspection, the abnormality is detected as an abnormality. You.

Based on this abnormality detection, the system is reconfigured by the configuration description unit 252 in the same manner as described above, the result is stored in the simulator 203, and the simulation of the system reconfigured in the simulator 102 is performed. Is required.

In response to this request, the simulator 102
In this case, the operation of an application running on a terminal or a computer is simulated in the same manner as in the first embodiment. In the case where the application simulation involves data transmission / reception, the reconfiguration of the communication network excluding the abnormal device or the device stopped for inspection or the like is automatically or manually performed by the configuration description device of the diagnostic device 110. It has been described. In this case, the simulation by the simulator engine 201 is also performed on the described communication network configuration.

As a result, the performance such as the response speed of the application is predicted together with the throughput, the response time, and the resource consumption of the communication network, and the performance data is output to the simulation result storage file 205.

As described above, the monitoring and control system using a general-purpose product and the evaluation device according to the embodiment of the present invention have the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, and have the diagnosis device 110 provided. The state of each device is checked while the system is operating, and if an abnormality is detected, the contents of the configuration description file 203 are reconfigured accordingly and a simulation is executed except for a device that has failed or stopped. Therefore, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained, and the system can be appropriately evaluated in response to a state change during operation of the system.

Therefore, for example, when the state changes so that the system configuration becomes inappropriate, it is possible to take quick action.

(Third Embodiment of the Invention) The monitoring and control system according to the present embodiment is the same as the monitoring and control system according to the first or second embodiment except that the devices 98, 98
This is to prevent the important files from being deleted in 100 to 105 and to ensure the stable operation of the system.

For this purpose, in the monitoring and control system of the present embodiment, each device 98, 100 to 105 is provided with a software configuration shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an example of the software configuration provided for each component in the monitoring and control system using a general-purpose product according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG.
The operating system 305
The shared library 304 is provided thereon, and the application process 300 and the resident monitoring process 301 are provided on the shared library 304.

Here, the application process 300
Is a general application executed on a computer, and accesses the file 302 on the disk via the I / O-related shared library 303 in the shared library 304.

The resident monitoring process 301 monitors access to the file 302 via the I / O-related shared library 303 by the application process 300, and notifies the user when file deletion or file rewriting is executed. It is supposed to. Further, when the file 302 on the disk is operated, the resident monitoring process 301 records a record of the file operation in the file operation record file 306 so that it can be restored before the operation.

The shared library 304 is a shared library commonly used by application programs. The library related to file operation in the shared library 304 has been replaced with the file operation related library 303 for monitoring file operation from the existing library.

The file operation-related shared library 303 (hereinafter, also referred to as a file operation and monitoring shared library 303) handles not only the access to the file 302 on the disk by the application process 300 but also the access. In this case, this is notified to the resident monitoring process 301, and
The file operation record can be recorded in the file operation record file 302.

Next, the operation of the monitoring and control system using general-purpose products according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. The I / O-related shared library 303 and the file operation record file 306 shown in FIG. 3 are provided in each computer constituting the monitoring control system as shown in FIG. 1 or FIG.
Has been operated.

The resident monitoring process 301 always operates on the computer, and the monitoring process 301 constantly monitors the operation of the application process 300 on the file 302 on the disk.

Here, the operation in the case where there is a certain operation request from the application 300 to the file 302 on the disk will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 9A is a diagram showing the operation of the shared library for file operation and monitoring and the operation of the resident process in this embodiment. For comparison with FIG. 9B, the operation of the conventional shared library for file operation is shown. Is shown.

In the conventional shared library for file operation shown in FIG. 9B, only the creation and deletion of a file and the input / output of a file are performed in response to a request (t1) from an application (t2). This conventional shared library does not have a function to record creation and deletion of files, record input and output, and monitor the operation (creation, deletion, input and output) of a specified file. This embodiment shown in FIG. 9A replaces this with a shared library 303 for file operation and monitoring.

When the shared library 303 for file operation and monitoring of this embodiment shown in FIG. 9A is used, a file operation request (u
Consider the case where 1) occurs.

In this case, first, prior to execution of the file operation, permission to start the file operation is requested from the shared library 303 for file operation and monitoring to the resident monitoring process 301 (u2). The resident monitoring process 301 notifies the user that this file operation request has been made. If the file operation is permitted, the resident monitoring process 301 gives the file operation start permission to the shared library 303 (u3). ). It should be noted that the resident monitoring process 301 may notify the user and request the permission only for the file specified in advance, and may automatically give the search start permission for the other files.

Only when the operation start permission is received, the file operation by the shared library 303 is executed.
Before the execution, it is notified from the shared library 303 that the file operation is started from the file operation record file 30.
6 (u4).

Subsequently, a file operation is performed on the file 302 on the disk (u5), and after the completion of this file operation, the completion of the file operation is recorded in the file operation recording file (u6).

As described above, when a file operation such as access, update, or deletion of the file 302 occurs, the resident monitoring process 301 is sent from the file operation related library 303.
Is notified, and the user is notified when an arbitrary file is deleted or rewritten.

When the contents of the file 302 are changed or deleted, the fill operation record is recorded in the file operation record file 306. If necessary, the file record before the change is used by using this operation record. Return to the state.

In order to return to the state before the change, the operation contents of all the files or the operation contents of the file specified in advance are recorded in the file operation record 306.
When part or all of the file contents are deleted or changed, the difference is also recorded.

As described above, the monitoring and control system using the general-purpose product according to the embodiment of the present invention is configured in the same manner as the first and second embodiments. File-related shared library 30
3 and a resident monitoring process 301 to monitor file operations such as access, update, and deletion of all files on the computer, and to perform operations such as deletion and update of files specified in advance. , It is possible to monitor unauthorized file operations that cause system instability, prevent operations from being performed, and ensure stable operation of the system using general-purpose products. it can. Therefore, occurrence of a failure can be prevented.

In the monitoring control system of the present embodiment, the record of the operation of the file 302 on the disk is recorded in the file operation record 306, so that the operation becomes unstable due to the change of the file. Can be returned to the previous state. In addition, since a record of the file operation remains, recovery at the time of occurrence of a failure and analysis after the fact can be easily performed.

With these, optimization of the user's work,
It is expected to improve operability and contribute to the promotion of business efficiency.

[0122]

EXAMPLES Examples of the embodiments will be described below. Here, a monitoring control system in which the first, second, and third embodiments are combined will be described as an example.

A case will be considered where a new sensor 106 is added to the current configuration in the plant monitoring and control system. The sensor 106 periodically transmits data to the database server 103 and the operator station 104.
Therefore, if the sensor 106 is added, the traffic on the LAN increases, and the transmission capacity of the LAN may be exceeded.
Therefore, the performance of the network is predicted using the simulator 102 assuming a steady state or when an abnormality occurs.

First, the parameters and connection status of each component are described in the configuration description file 203 of the simulator 102. The scenario file 204 is described so as to simulate the occurrence of a transmission request event suitable for an assumed situation.

The configuration description file 203 in this case
Is shown below.

Here, the components corresponding to each node are described according to the protocol layer of the network.

# Level Protocol Processing Element ######## IP ############################ ################# Type IP # Type of component Name Ifzc001 # Name of component Ipadrs A30: B03: C01: 001 # Parameter of component (IP address) UpperP Tfzc001 # Parameter of component (upper protocol) LowerP Cfzc001 # Parameter of component (lower protocol) Type IP Name Ifzc002 Ipadrs A30: B03: C01: 002 UpperP Tfzc002 LowerP Cfzc002 ・ ・ <Omitted> ・ Type IP Name Ifzc020 Ipadrs A30: B03 : C01: 020 UpperP Tfzc020 LowerP Cfzc020

# Component of communication processing level by Ethernet ######## MAC ############################### ################ Type CSMACD # Type of component Name Cfzc001 # Name of component UpperP Ifzc001 # Parameter of component (upper protocol) MACadrs A0: 01: 00: 00: 00 # Component parameter (MAC address) Cable Cable: A # Component connection information Type CSMACD Name Cfzc002 UpperP Ifzc002 MACadrs A0: 00: 01:00: 00: 00 Cable Cable: A Type CSMACD Name Cfzc020 UpperP Ifzc020 MACadrs A0: 01: 00: 00: 00: 19 Cable Cable: A

# Communication cable level components and connection status ##################################### ########################## Type etherCable # Type of component Name Cable: A # Name of component SPV 0.77 # Parameter of component ConnectCSMACDN 20 # Component connection information (number of connected nodes) ConnectCSMACD Cfzc001 10 # Component connection information (connection position) ConnectCSMACD Cfzc002 20 ・ ・ <Omitted> ・ ConnectCSMACD Cfzc020 200

It is assumed that a data transmission request is periodically generated in a steady state, and a large amount of data transmission request is generated in an abnormal state. Therefore, the scenario file 20 is set so as to simulate the occurrence of a transmission request event that matches the expected situation.
4 is set a plurality. FIG. 10 shows a description example of the scenario file 204.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a description example of the scenario file 204 in the embodiment.

In the figure, #first field: transmission request occurrence #second field: component notifying the event #third field: event occurrence time #fourth field: event parameter (data length) #fifth Field: Event parameters (source) #Sixth field: Indicates event parameters (destination).

The simulator engine 201 reads the configuration description file 203, builds a network model on the computer on the computer, reads the scenario file 204, and records the events (transmission requests and the like) scheduled in the event list 202 in time series. Register with.

Next, the events are taken out one by one from the event list 202 in order of time, and each component is notified of the event. The operation of each component according to the event is defined in the module library 200, and processing is performed according to the operation. If necessary as a result of the processing, a new event is registered in the event list 202.

The simulator engine 201 continues the processing until there is no event in the event list 202 or until a simulation is performed up to a certain time. This allows
It calculates the data transmission throughput and the number of collision occurrences during communication. Examples of the results of the transmission throughput and the number of collisions are shown in FIGS.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the result of the transmission throughput in the embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the result of the number of collisions in the embodiment.

From the above, it can be seen that the performance prediction such as the throughput of the communication network at the time of adding a terminal, a controller and the like has been made.

Next, in the performance prediction such as the application processing speed when the components such as the terminals are replaced, the configurations of the file input / output unit and the network communication unit are described in the same format as described above. The processing speed, memory, etc. are given as parameters. Similarly, by describing a scheduled event (such as reading from a disk) in the scenario file 204, a simulation is executed, and the processing speed of the application is obtained.

Next, the module library 200 corresponding to each of the above-mentioned components is also provided for the performance prediction such as the throughput of the communication network and the application processing speed when a terminal or a controller is added. The configuration description file 203 describes the configuration of the network and the configuration of the application, and the scenario file 204 describes events such as a data transmission request on the network and a data request of the application. By treating events on the network and events of the application as events of the same level, in an application involving communication, the operation of the application and the network can be simulated collectively.

Next, for the performance prediction such as the throughput of the communication network when the terminal or the controller is stopped, the transmission throughput is calculated by the same simulation. As a result, it is possible to predict a decrease in communication performance, a communication failure, and the like.

When the diagnostic apparatus 110 is connected, the operating state can be checked without a response to the ping command if the communication is performed according to the TCP / IP protocol. By re-creating the configuration description file 203 from the contents of the configuration description file 203 created in advance, excluding devices that do not respond, it is possible to execute simulation to predict a decrease in communication performance and the like. In addition, the operating state of the device is similarly checked, and if necessary, a simulation can be performed to predict a decrease in throughput at the application level when the device fails.

Further, a routine that does not normally perform processing for debugging is incorporated in the file operation related library 303 in the shared library 304 of each computer. Thereby, when the application process 300 requests the operation of the file 302 on the disk, the resident monitoring process 301 is notified, and all the operations of the file 302 on the disk from the application process 300 can be monitored.

Further, when there is an operation request for the file 302 on the disk, the resident monitoring process 301 is notified, so that all the operation contents or the operation contents for the file specified in advance are recorded in the file operation record 306. . When part or all of the file contents are deleted or changed, the difference is also recorded. This enables a return to the state before the operation.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments and examples, but can be variously modified without departing from the gist thereof. In addition, each embodiment
Examples may be implemented in combination as appropriate as possible,
In that case, a combined effect is obtained.

The methods described in the embodiments and examples include, as programs (software means) which can be executed by a computer (computer), for example, a magnetic disk (floppy disk, hard disk, etc.), an optical disk (CD-ROM). , DVD, etc.), a semiconductor memory or the like, and can also be transmitted and distributed via a communication medium. The program stored on the medium side includes a setting program for causing the computer to execute software means (including not only an execution program but also a table and a data structure) to be executed in the computer. A computer that realizes the present apparatus reads a program recorded in a storage medium, and in some cases, constructs software means by using a setting program, and executes the above-described processing by controlling the operation of the software means.

[0147]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, when a system constructed using general-purpose products is extended or changed by a user or the like, it is confirmed whether or not the system operates stably after the extension or the like. It is possible to provide a monitoring control system using a general-purpose product and an evaluation device therefor.

Further, according to the present invention, when the contents of a system constructed using a general-purpose product are operated by a user or the like, the monitoring using the general-purpose product can prevent the operation from being performed carelessly. A control system can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a monitoring control system using a general-purpose product according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a simulator.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a data configuration of various events.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the simulator in the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a mechanism for simultaneously simulating the operations of software and hardware.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a monitoring control system using general-purpose products according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a diagnostic device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an example of a software configuration provided for each component in a monitoring control system using a general-purpose product according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an exemplary view showing operations of a shared library for file operation and monitoring and a resident process in the embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a view showing a description example of a scenario file in the embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a result example of transmission throughput in the embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the result of the number of collisions in the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 98 sensor connection device 99 data transmission path 100 terminal 101 information distribution server 102 simulator 103 database server 104 operator station 105 controller 106 sensor 107 portable terminal 108 remote terminal 109 communication network 110 diagnosis Device 200 Module library 201 Simulator engine 202 Event list 203 Configuration description file 204 Scenario file 205 Simulation result storage file 251 Abnormality detector 252 Configuration description 253 Configuration description file 300 Application process 301 Resident Monitoring process 302: File on disk 303: File operation related library 304: Shared library 305: Operating system 306: File operation record storage unit

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yasuyuki Miyajima 1 Toshiba-cho, Fuchu-shi, Tokyo F-term in the Fuchu factory of Toshiba Corporation 5B048 AA18 DD14 5B089 GA23 JA35 KA12 KB03 KC60 MC13 5K030 KA07 MB01 MC01 5K033 BA08 EA04 9A001 CC07 CC08 JJ27 JJ61 KK56 LL03 LL05 LL08 LL09

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An evaluation device for evaluating an operation of a monitoring control system constituted by a network, comprising: a configuration description information storage unit for storing configuration information between components in the network; and an event related to the components. A module information storage unit that stores module information indicating what event will occur next when a simulation occurs; a scenario storage unit that stores event information scheduled at the start of a simulation; and the configuration description information storage While associating each component based on the configuration information in the unit, simulating event occurrence in order from the event stored in the scenario storage unit, generating the next event based on the generated event and the module information, The operation of the monitoring and control system is performed by repeating the occurrence of events sequentially. Evaluation device monitoring and control system is characterized in that a simulator means for evaluating. 2. A monitoring and control system using a general-purpose product including a network and including a non-specific application computer as a network component device, wherein the monitoring and control system evaluation device according to claim 1 connected to the network. And an apparatus connected to the network, an abnormality detecting means for detecting an abnormality of a network component, and, when an abnormality is detected in any of the network components by the abnormality detecting means, the network component Configuration description means for reconfiguring a connection configuration between components in the network except for the above, storing the reconfigured configuration information in the configuration description information storage unit, and causing the simulator means to start system operation evaluation Monitoring using a general-purpose product characterized by comprising a diagnostic device comprising: Your system. 3. In a monitoring and control system using a general-purpose product which is configured by a network and includes a non-specific application computer as a network component device, when operating specific information on the non-specific application computer, , And inform you of the information operation,
A monitoring control system using general-purpose products, comprising an information operation monitoring means for executing the information operation only when an operation permission is obtained. 4. The monitoring and control system according to claim 3, further comprising an operation information recording means for storing the information operation record when the specific information is operated.