I/o mesh architecture for an industrial automation system
AssigneeHoneywell International Inc.
InventorsPaul Francis McLaughlin, Christopher Paul Ladas, Angela Lee Lordi, James Michael Schreder, Stanley Robert Gorzelic
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An industrial automation system employing a mesh topology of input/output allows flexibility in pairing field devices and controllers though the I/O mesh. Field devices can be connected to the geographically closest I/O module channel without regard to the location of the necessary controller. Modular prefabrication and deployment of the I/O modules becomes less complex and less time consuming thereby reducing costs.
Claims19
An industrial automation system comprising:
- a plurality of input/output (I/O) interfaces, each I/O interface connected to a plurality of I/O modules, each I/O module comprising a plurality of channels, each channel connected to a field device and configured to receive signals from and transmit signals to the field device, wherein the plurality of channels are connected in a mesh configuration;
- and
- a plurality of controllers, wherein each controller is configured to connect to and receive signals from and transmit signals to any one of the channels of each I/O modules of the mesh configuration,
- wherein at least one controller receives control information from and transmits control instructions along any one of the connected channels to an associated field device.
An industrial automation system comprising:
- a plurality of input/output (I/O) interfaces connected in a mesh configuration, each I/O interface wirelessly connected to plurality of field devices and configured to receive inputs from and transmit outputs to the field devices;
- and
- a plurality of controllers, wherein each controller is configured to connect to and receive inputs from and transmit outputs to any one of the field devices through the mesh configuration of I/O interfaces,
- wherein at least one controller receives control information from and transmits control instructions along any one of the connected channels to an associated field device.
A method in an industrial automation system comprising:
- configuring a plurality of channels of a plurality of I/O modules in a mesh configuration to form an I/O mesh;
- communicating inputs from field devices of a plurality of field devices to corresponding channels of the plurality of input/output (I/O) modules;
- providing the inputs though the I/O mesh to a plurality of controllers, wherein the inputs are communicated to any of the controllers in the plurality of controllers;
- providing outputs from the plurality of controllers though the I/O mesh to the plurality of channels;
- wherein the outputs are communicated to any of the channels in the plurality of channels;
- and
- communicating the outputs from the channels to the field devices,
- wherein at least one controller receives control information from and transmits control instructions along any one of the connected channels to an associated field device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.