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Aug. 21,2014
US 2014/0236318 A1
SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR FIELD
DEVICE FEEDBACK
[0009] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of
an industrial controller and a pneumatic valve;
[0010] FIG. 3 is a ?owchart ofan embodiment ofa process
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
suitable for detecting, communicating, and ameliorating an
undesired condition in ?eld devices;
[0001] The subject matter disclosed herein relates to sys
tems and methods for feedback of certain devices, and more
speci?cally, in ?eld devices.
[0002] Certain systems, such as industrial control systems,
may include capabilities that enable the system to detect and
correct undesired conditions within the system. For example,
the Foundation Fieldbus protocol provides smart ?eld devices
with the ability to communicate conditions that are related to
the hardware and/or software health of the device to the
[0011]
FIG. 4 is a timing diagram of an embodiment of an
Output function block using a ReadBack facility to indicate
an undesired condition during a macrocycle; and
[0012]
FIG. 5 is an information ?ow diagram showing
embodiments of information being transferred between a
control block, output block, and transducer block.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
control system’s control strategy. However, when the undes
[0013]
ired condition is not part of the hardware or software, the
smart ?eld device by itself may be unable to communicate the
presence of the undesired condition. This could include con
ditions like insuf?cient air pressure to a pneumatic digital
valve.
invention will be described below. In an effort to provide a
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Certain embodiments commensurate in scope with
the originally claimed invention are summarized below.
These embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the
claimed invention, but rather these embodiments are intended
only to provide a brief summary of possible forms of the
invention. Indeed, the invention may encompass a variety of
One or more speci?c embodiments of the present
concise description of these embodiments, all features of an
actual implementation may not be described in the speci?ca
tion. It should be appreciated that in the development of any
such actual implementation, as in any engineering or design
project, numerous implementation- speci?c decisions must be
made to achieve the developers’ speci?c goals, such as com
pliance with system-related and business-related constraints,
which may vary from one implementation to another. More
over, it should be appreciated that such a development effort
might be complex and time consuming, but would neverthe
less be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, and
manufacture for those of ordinary skill having the bene?t of
this disclosure.
forms that may be similar to or different from the embodi
ments set forth below.
[0004] In a ?rst embodiment, a system includes an indus
[0014] When introducing elements of various embodi
ments of the present invention, the articles “a,” “an,” “the,”
trial controller con?gured to control a ?rst ?eld device. The
?rst ?eld device includes an actuator and a positioner coupled
the elements. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “hav
to the actuator. The positioner is con?gured to position the
actuator. The ?rst ?eld device is con?gured to detect an
undesired condition and to communicate the undesired con
dition to the industrial controller by using a ReadBack facility
of the ?rst ?eld device.
[0005] In a second embodiment, a method includes deter
mining a state of a ?eld device. And if the state includes an
undesired condition, then deriving an indication of an undes
ired condition and adding the indication of the undesired
condition to a ReadBack facility. The method further includes
communicating the indication to a control block.
[0006] In a third embodiment, a non-transitory tangible
computer-readable medium storing a plurality of instructions
executable by a processor of an electronic device, the instruc
tions include instructions to determine a state of a ?eld device.
If the state includes an undesired condition, the instructions
also include instructions to derive an indication of the undes
ired condition. The instructions further include instructions to
add the indication of the undesired condition to a ReadBack
facility and instructions to communicate the indication to a
control block.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007]
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of
the present invention will become better understood when the
following detailed description is read with reference to the
accompanying drawings in which like characters represent
like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:
[0008] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of
an industrial control system, including an industrial control
ler and a valve;
and “said” are intended to mean that there are one or more of
ing” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be
additional elements other than the listed elements.
[0015] Certain industrial control systems include industrial
controllers suitable for interfacing with a variety of ?eld
devices, such as sensors, pumps and valves. For example, an
industrial controller may direct a pneumatic valve to set the
valve’s actuator at a certain position to affect the ?ow through
the valve. However, desired functioning of the pneumatic
valve may be affected by undesired conditions, such as insuf
?cient air pres sure used to control the valve or a foreign object
in the valve. In order for the industrial controller to take
appropriate ameliorative action, undesired conditions may be
detected and communicated to the industrial controller.
[0016] In ?eld devices compliant with a Foundation Field
bus protocol, the ?eld devices will have the capability to
transmit feedback to the industrial controller issues that relate
to the hardware and/or software of the device on a periodic
basis. For example, the Foundation Fieldbus protocol, Inter
national Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61804, is a two
way communication system, which interconnects various
?eldbus devices such as sensors, pumps, valves, industrial
controllers, and the like, via a local area network (LAN).
However, the Foundation Fieldbus protocol does not include
the same feedback ability for communicating undesired con
ditions, such as insu?icient air pressure, because the ?eld
device itself is not defective or faulted. The insu?icient air
pressure may be attributed to an air supply external to the ?eld
device. Other undesired conditions may include low actua
tion amperage, a sticky valve, or a foreign object in a valve. It
may be plausible to implement a solution that uses additional
function blocks to speci?cally monitor parameters like sup
ply air pressure. However, the use of the additional function