JP2009258790A - Control device and control method of the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a control device for reducing a load on a host unit to improve a processing speed of control; and to provide a control method of the control device. <P>SOLUTION: The host unit has a host-side control OS, and a subunit has a program step storage means storing content of a task by units of program steps; and a sub-side control OS. The host-side control OS sends the program steps of the task to the program step storage means, and the sub-side control OS sequentially executes the program steps stored in the program step storage means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a control device used for industrial use and a control method of the control device.

  Conventionally, control devices using a personal computer (PC) have been widely used as industrial machines and robot control systems. In a conventional control apparatus, a control unit having a dedicated control function and a subunit having a function board that realizes various functions are connected to a PC, which is a controller of the entire apparatus, via an expansion bus.

In the conventional control device, control commands are issued from the PC to the control boat as appropriate in order to achieve an arbitrary control purpose, and the control board executes these control commands and operates the function board. A required control operation is executed by driving an actuator or the like. In addition, these control operations include a mode in which information on the operation state or abnormality of the actuator or the like is unanswered from the control board to the PC. Note that communication between the PC and the subunit is performed by an expansion bus as disclosed in Patent Document 1.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-149308

  However, in the conventional control device, a control program is running on the PC that is the host unit, and the PC directly operates the control board, or the PC directly acquires information on the control board to execute the program. Since it is reflected in the operation, the control speed depends on the operation speed of the host unit and the processing speed cannot be improved.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a control device and a control method for the control device that can reduce the burden on the host unit and improve the processing speed of the control.

  The control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the host unit has a host-side control OS, and the subunit has a program-step storage means for storing task contents in units of program steps and a sub-side control OS, The OS sends task program steps to the program step storage means, and the sub-control OS sequentially executes the program steps stored in the program step storage means.

  The control device according to claim 2 is characterized in that the host-side control OS sends a program step to which various conditions for causing a task program step to be executed are added to a program step storage means.

  The control device according to claim 3 includes a plurality of subunits communicably connected to the host unit. When the host-side control OS sends the program step of the task to the program step storage means, the control device executes the program step after the program step. If the program step to be executed is to be executed in another subunit, the waiting program step waits for the end of the program step to be executed before the program step to be sent to the program step storage means of another subunit And a series of program steps are sent to the program step storage means of each subunit.

  In the control device according to claim 4, the sub-side control OS of the subunit determines whether or not the waiting program step is stored in the program step storage means, and if the waiting program step is stored, Prior to execution, it is instructed to send a message indicating the end of the program step to the subunit storing the immediately preceding program step to be waited for by the waiting program step when the immediately preceding program step ends. .

  The control device according to claim 5 is characterized in that a plurality of host units and subunits are connected by an IEEE 1394 serial bus.

  In the control method of the control device according to claim 6, the host-side control OS of the host unit sends the contents of the task executed by the subunit to the program step storage means of the subunit in units of program steps. The program steps stored in the program step storage means are sequentially executed.

  The control method of the control device according to claim 7 is characterized in that the host-side control OS sends the program step to which various conditions for executing the program step of the task are added to the program step storage means.

  In the control method of the control device according to claim 8, when a plurality of subunits are communicably connected to the host unit, the host side control OS sends the program step of the task to the program step storage means. If the program step to be executed next is to be executed in another subunit, the program step to be sent to the program step storage means of another subunit is waited for the end of the program step to be executed first. A waiting program step is added, and a series of program steps are sent to the program step storage means of each subunit.

  In the control method of the control device according to claim 9, when the sub-side control OS of the subunit determines whether the waiting program step is stored in the program step storage means, and when the waiting program step is stored, Prior to executing the program step, instruct the sub-unit storing the previous program step to be waited for by the waiting program step to send a message indicating the end of the program step when the immediately preceding program step ends. Features.

  The control method of the control device according to claim 10 is characterized in that a plurality of host units and subunits are connected by an IEEE 1394 serial bus.

  According to the first and sixth aspects of the present invention, the host-side control OS sends the program steps of the task to the program step storage means, and the sub-side control OS executes the program steps stored in the program step storage means sequentially. Therefore, the control can be left to the sub unit, the burden on the host unit can be reduced, and the processing speed of the control can be improved.

  According to the second and seventh aspects of the present invention, the host-side control OS sends the program step to which various conditions for executing the program step of the task are added to the program step storage means, so that the condition is grasped. Subunits need only execute program steps based on the conditions, and there is no need for the host unit and subunits to communicate each time a program step is executed, reducing the burden on the host unit and improving control processing speed. Can be planned.

  According to the third and eighth aspects of the present invention, when the host-side control OS sends the program step of the task to the program step storage means, the program step executed next to the program step is executed in another subunit. If a program step is to be sent to a program step storage means of another subunit, a waiting program step waiting for the completion of the program step to be executed first is added before the program step to be sent to the program step storage means of another subunit. Since it is sent to the program step storage means of the unit, each subunit can independently manage the transition from the waiting state of each program step to execution without the host unit needing to grasp the progress of overall control. , Reduce the burden on the host unit and improve the processing speed of the control Rukoto can.

  According to the invention of claim 4 and claim 9, when the sub-side control OS of the subunit determines whether the waiting program step is stored in the program step storage means, and the waiting program step is stored Prior to execution of the program step, instruct the sub-unit storing the immediately preceding program step to be waited for by the waiting program step to send a message indicating the end of the program step when the immediately preceding program step is completed. Therefore, it is not necessary for the host unit to manage the transition of the program steps across the subunits, the burden on the host unit can be reduced, and the control processing speed can be improved.

  According to the fifth and tenth aspects of the present invention, since a plurality of host units and subunits are connected by the IEEE 1394 serial bus, efficient communication is possible, and the processing speed of control is further improved. Can be planned.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. The control apparatus in the form of this invention is for controlling an industrial machine and a robot control system. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating an example of a control device according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a user program of the control device. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing transfer of program steps of tasks of the control device. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where a task of the control device is executed by a plurality of subunits. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing transfer of the program steps of the task of the control device. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an execution procedure of program steps of the control device. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where a plurality of tasks are executed by a single subunit of the control device. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where a plurality of tasks are executed by a plurality of subunits of the control device.

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the control device 100 has a host unit 4 composed of a controller such as a personal computer (PC), control boards 12, 22, and 32 for controlling the control, and various functions according to the control purpose. Sub-units 1 to N comprising functional boards 16a to 36c. The host unit 4 includes a central processing unit (CPU) and a memory. The CPU operates an OS (operating system) as a PC, and controls a host side that controls various controls as an industrial machine or a robot control system. The OS is operating. Further, a user program which is a specific control content of the control device 100 is stored in the memory of the host unit 4, and the user program stores the task content in units of program steps.

  Each of the subunits 1 to N has control boards 12, 22, 32, function boards 16a to 36c, and the like. The control boards 12, 22, and 32 have a central processing unit (CPU) and a memory that control the operations of the respective subunits 1 to N. The memory is a program step storage means (buffer 1 to buffer N) in which the subunits 1 to N store the task contents in units of program steps. In the present embodiment, buffers 1 to N as program step storage means secure different areas according to the type of task, for example, buffer 1 to buffer 50. Further, on the control boards 12, 22, 32, the sub-side control OS is operating. The function boards 16a to 36c are connected to the control boards 12, 22, and 32 via the buses 14, 24, and 34, respectively. And each function board 16a-36c is mounted with various functions according to the control purpose. The function is, for example, a function of moving an actuator or a drive shaft, a function of acquiring information of various sensors, or an A / D function of reading various signal levels.

  The host unit 4 and the subunits 1 to N are connected to each other by cables 6 and 8. In FIG. 1 and the like, the host unit 4 and the subunit 1 are connected by the cable 6 and the subunits 1 to N are cascade-connected by the cable 8, but the connection form is not particularly limited. Further, it is not limited by the communication mode of connection, and is arbitrary such as a serial method or a parallel method. The basic configuration of the control device 100 is one host unit 4 and subunits, but the number of subunits is arbitrary as indicated by N in the figure.

  Next, the operation of the control device 100 configured as described above will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 3, at the start of the operation of the control device 100, the host-side control OS sends a task to the subunit 1 in units of program steps, and the task received by the sub-side control OS is stored in the buffer 1. Save in units of program steps. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, program step 1 of task 1 is stored in buffer 1 as program step 1 of task 1, and stored in buffer 1 as needed with program step 2 and program step 3 of task 1. It will be done. FIG. 3 shows a case where there is one task, but FIG. 7 shows an example where there are a plurality of tasks. FIGS. 3 and 7 show a case where the number of subunits that execute a task is limited to one (subunit 1). However, subunits that want to execute a task are other subunits (2 to 2). N) in some cases. Further, an example in which one task is executed by a plurality of subunits will be described later. For example, DLL (Dynamic Link Library) is used as means for sending the task program steps to the buffer.

  When the program steps of task 1 are stored in the buffer 1 of the subunit 1, the subunit 1 executes sequentially from the program step 1 of the task 1. The specific task 1 is executed by the subunit 1. For example, when it is necessary to issue a command or read the state to the function boards 26a to 36c of the other subunits 2 to N, It communicates with the other subunits 2 to N as needed. Further, in response to a request from the host unit 4, the subunit 1 may inform the host unit 4 of the status of the currently executed task. That is, communication is appropriately performed between the host unit 4 and each of the subunits 1 to N.

  Next, a case where one task is executed by a plurality of subunits 1 to N as shown in FIG. 4 will be described. When one task is executed by a plurality of subunits 1 to N, the host-side control OS performs the operation of the flowchart shown in FIG. 5 when sending the task from the host unit 4 to each subunit 1 to N. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, when sending from the program step 1 of the task 1 stored in the host unit 4, as shown in FIG. 5, first, as shown in FIG. It is confirmed whether or not the unit has been changed (S101). If it has not been changed (S101-NO), the number of the transmission destination subunit is stored (S103), and the program step is sent to the corresponding subunit (S104).

  If the subunit to be executed from the immediately preceding program step has been changed (S101-YES), it waits for the immediately preceding program step to be executed and waits to execute that program step. After issuing the program step and transmitting the waiting unit to a new subunit (S102), the program stores the number of the transmission destination subunit (S103) and sends the program step to the relevant subunit (S103). S104).

  FIG. 4 shows a state in which the task 1 is sent to each of the subunits 1 to N by the flowchart shown in FIG. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the task 1 is executed by the subunits 1 to N from the host unit 4 although the contents of the task are different from those in FIG. Note that the sub-side control OS of each of the subunits 1 to N confirms whether there is a waiting program step in the program steps stored in the buffers 1 to 50 prior to execution of the program step. If the waiting program step is stored, if the waiting program step is waiting for the end of the program step to be executed, the corresponding sub-unit Is instructed to be sent an end.

  After such pre-preparation, the sub-side control OS of each of the subunits 1 to N starts a program step for each buffer. The operation of the task shown in FIG. 6 will be described. The subunit 1 executes the program steps sequentially from the program step 1. On the other hand, the subunit 2 has the waiting program step of the program step 4 first, so executes the waiting program step of the program step 4 and enters the waiting state of the program step 4. Similarly, the subunit N also has the waiting program step of the program step 6 first, so the waiting program step of the program step 6 is executed and the waiting state of the program step 6 is entered.

  Then, the program steps of the subunit 1 are sequentially executed, and when the program step 4 is completed, the sub-side control OS of the subunit 1 transmits to the subunit 2 that the program step 4 has been completed. The subunit 2 that has received the end of the program step 4 exits the waiting program step of the program step 4 and executes the program step 5. During this time, the subunit 1 executes the waiting program step of the program step 8 and enters a waiting state. When the program step 6 ends, the sub-side control OS of the subunit 2 transmits to the subunit N that the program step 6 has ended. The subunit N that has received the end of the program step 6 exits the waiting program step of the program step 6 and executes the program step 7. Similarly, when the program step 8 ends, the sub-side control OS of the subunit N transmits to the subunit 1 that the program step 8 has ended. Receiving the end of program step 8, subunit 1 exits program step 8 waiting program step and executes program step 9. In this way, the task is executed while the subunits for which the control is substantially executed are switched at any time.

  FIG. 4 shows the case where the task is only task 1, but a plurality of tasks may be executed as in FIG. 7, and FIG. 8 shows the situation.

  As described above, according to the control device 100 of the present embodiment, the host-side control OS sends the program step of the task to the program step storage means, and the program step in which the sub-side control OS is saved in the program step storage means Are sequentially executed, the control can be left to the sub-unit, the burden on the host unit can be reduced, and the processing speed of the control can be improved.

  Further, when the host-side control OS sends the program step of the task to the buffer by the program step storage means, if the program step executed next to the program step is executed by another subunit, another sub-unit is executed. Sending a series of program steps to the program step storage means of each subunit by adding a waiting program step waiting for the end of the previously executed program step before the program steps to be sent to the program step storage means of the unit Therefore, it is not necessary for the host unit 4 to grasp the progress of the overall control, and each subunit can independently manage the transition from the waiting state of each program step to the execution, thereby reducing the burden on the host unit. The processing speed of control can be improved. In addition, when creating a program or checking its operation, the program creator does not need to be conscious of which program step is currently operating, and the operation suddenly shifts to another program step like an interrupt. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the complexity that it is difficult to grasp the operation status of the currently operating program step.

  Further, the sub-side control OSs of the subunits 1 to N determine whether or not the waiting program step is stored in the buffer. If the waiting program step is stored, the waiting program step is executed prior to execution of the program step. Is instructed to send a message indicating the end of the program step to the subunit in which the immediately preceding program step is stored. There is no need for the host unit 4 to manage, the burden on the host unit 4 can be reduced, and the control processing speed can be improved. In addition, since the communication between the subunits 1 to N is independently performed by the sub-side control OS, it is not necessary for the program creator to make a description for inserting and managing the waiting unit when creating the program. A program can be created. That is, the program creator only needs to create a user program by combining the minimum commands that realize only the control function, thereby improving work efficiency and suppressing mistakes in description.

  The connection between the host unit 4 and the subunits 1 to N is not particularly limited, but by connecting a plurality of IEEE1394 serial buses, efficient communication is possible, and the control processing speed is further increased. Improvements can be made.

  The program steps of the task sent from the host unit 4 to the subunits 1 to N by the host side control OS are not only commands for causing the function boards 16a to 36c to function, but also for executing the program steps. Various conditions can also be added. For example, a command for driving one axis can be described, and a condition such as which sensor to stop driving when the sensor for that axis is turned on can be described as a condition in one program step. As described above, by describing the conditions in the program steps, the subunits 1 to N that have grasped the conditions may execute the program steps based on the conditions, and the host unit 4 and the subunit 1 each time the program steps are executed. ˜N need not perform communication, the burden on the host unit can be reduced, and the processing speed of control can be improved.

  As described above, it is possible to provide a control device and a control method for the control device that can reduce the burden on the host unit and improve the processing speed of the control.

It is a block diagram which shows an example of the control apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the user program of the same control apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows transfer of the program step of the task of the same control apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows the case where the task of the same control apparatus is performed by a some subunit. It is a flowchart which shows transfer of the program step of the task of the same control apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows the execution procedure of the program step of the same control apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows the case where a some sub-unit of the same control apparatus performs a some task. It is explanatory drawing which shows the case where a some task is performed in the some subunit of the same control apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Control device 4 ... Host unit 6 ... Cable 8 ... Cable 12 ... Control board 14 ... Bus 16a ... Function board 16b ... Function board 16c ... Function board 22 ... Control board 24 ... Bus 26a ... Function board 26b ... Function board 26c ... Function board 32 ... Control board 34 ... ..Bus 36a ... Function board 36b ... Function board 36c ... Function board

Claims (10)

It has a host unit that consists of a controller such as a personal computer, and a sub unit that consists of a control board that controls the function and a function board that implements various functions according to the control purpose. The host unit and the sub unit can communicate with each other. In the control device connected to
The host unit has a host-side control OS, and the subunit has a program step storage means for storing task contents in units of program steps and a sub-side control OS,
The host-side control OS sends the program steps of the task to the program step storage means, and the sub-side control OS sequentially executes the program steps stored in the program step storage means Control device.   2. The control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the host-side control OS sends the program step added with various conditions for executing the program step of the task to the program step storage means. A plurality of the subunits communicably connected to the host unit;
When the host-side control OS sends the program step of the task to the program step storage means,
If the program step to be executed next to the program step is to be executed in another subunit, it is executed first before the program step to be sent to the program step storage means of the other subunit. 3. The control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a waiting program step waiting for completion of the program step is added and a series of the program steps are sent to the program step storage means of each subunit.   The sub-side control OS of the subunit determines whether the waiting program step is stored in the program step storage means. If the waiting program step is stored, prior to execution of the program step, Instructing the subunit storing the program step immediately before the waiting program step to wait to send a message indicating the end of the program step when the immediately preceding program step ends. The control device according to claim 3.   5. The control device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the host units and the subunits are connected by an IEEE 1394 serial bus. A host unit composed of an electronic computer such as a personal computer, and a sub-unit composed of a control board for controlling the control and a control board mounted with various control functions in accordance with the control purpose. The host unit and the sub-unit In a control method of a control device that is communicably connected,
The host-side control OS of the host unit sends the contents of the task executed by the subunit to the program step storage means of the subunit in units of program steps.
A control method for a control device, wherein the sub-side control OS sequentially executes the program steps stored in the program step storage means.   7. The control method of a control device according to claim 6, wherein the host-side control OS sends the program step to which various conditions for executing the program step of the task are added to the program step storage means. When a plurality of the subunits are communicably connected to the host unit,
When the host-side control OS sends the program step of the task to the program step storage means,
If the program step to be executed next to the program step is to be executed in another subunit, it is executed first before the program step to be sent to the program step storage means of the other subunit. 8. A control apparatus according to claim 6 or 7, wherein a waiting program step waiting for completion of said program step is added and a series of said program steps are sent to the program step storage means of each subunit. Method.   The sub-side control OS of the subunit determines whether or not the waiting program step is stored in the program step storage means, and when the waiting program step is stored, prior to execution of the program step, Instructing the subunit storing the program step immediately before the waiting program step to wait to send a message indicating the end of the program step when the immediately preceding program step ends. The control method of the control apparatus according to claim 8.   The control method of the control device according to claim 6, wherein a plurality of the host units and the subunits are connected by an IEEE 1394 serial bus.

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