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AssigneeRockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
InventorsClark Case, Taryl Jasper, Michael Bush
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Techniques to facilitate protection of control system content used in an industrial automation environment are disclosed herein. In at least one implementation, the control system content for use in the industrial automation environment is received, wherein the control system content comprises controller program code that directs an industrial controller to drive a machine system. Content protection instructions for the control system content are also received, wherein the content protection instructions comprise restrictions on execution of the control system content. An execution license that includes process-related constraints for the control system content is generated based on the content protection instructions. The execution license is applied to the control system content to generate protected content, wherein use of the control system content is granted subject to the process-related constraints of the execution license.
A method of operating a computing system to facilitate protection of control system content used in an industrial automation environment, the method comprising:
One or more computer-readable storage media having program instructions stored thereon to facilitate protection of control system content used in an industrial automation environment, wherein the program instructions, when executed by a computing system, direct the computing system to at least:
The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 8 wherein the process-related constraints of the execution license comprise controller limits that restrict a number of controllers on which the control system content may be run, and wherein the program instructions direct the computing system to apply the execution license to the control system content to generate the protected content by directing the computing system to apply the controller limits that prevent execution of the control system content on more controllers than the number of controllers on which the control system content may be run.
The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 8 wherein the process-related constraints of the execution license comprise production limits that restrict a number of products that the control system content can be used to produce, and wherein the program instructions direct the computing system to apply the execution license to the control system content to generate the protected content by directing the computing system to apply the production limits that prevent execution of the control system content after the number of products that the control system content can be used to produce has been met.
The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 8 wherein the process related constraints of the execution license comprise performance limits that restrict a level of performance at which the control system content can be used to operate the machine system, and wherein the program instructions direct the computing system to apply the execution license to the control system content to generate the protected content by directing the computing system to apply the performance limits that prevent execution of the control system content to operate the machine system at a higher level of performance than the level of performance at which the control system content can be used to operate the machine system.
An apparatus to facilitate protection of control system content used in an industrial automation environment, the apparatus comprising:
The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the process-related constraints of the execution license comprise performance limits that restrict a level of performance at which the control system content can he used to operate the industrial automation device, and wherein the program instructions direct the processing system to apply the execution license to the control system content to generate the protected content by directing the processing system to apply the performance limits that prevent execution of the control system content to operate the industrial automation device at a higher level of performance than the level of performance at which the control system content can be used to operate the industrial automation device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.