Patent ID: 6430454
Filing Date: 2002-08-06
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
An autonomous control unit forming part of an industrial controller for controlling a process, the autonomous control unit associated with a sub-process of the process and used with other autonomous control units associated with other sub-processes, each subprocess having input variables describing input conditions to the subprocess and output variables describing output conditions of the subprocess, the autonomous control unit comprising;(a) a network connection allowing intercommunication between the autonomous control unit and other autonomous control units and a receipt by the autonomous control unit of a job plan describing the process; (b) an electronic memory holding (1) a subprocess model relating the input variables to the output variables for the sub-process; (2) a constraint table holding a constraining range for the input and output variables having range extremes; (c) an electronic computer communicating with the network connection and the electronic memory and executing a stored program to: (1) receive a proposed value of an output variable from a second autonomous control unit; (2) try selected input variables in the subprocess model to produce a resultant output variable; (3) iteratively change the selected input variables until the resultant output variable matches the proposed value of the output variable; (4) compare an ultimate value of the iteratively changed selected input variable to the constraining range; and (5) when the ultimate value satisfies the constraint range, responding to the second autonomous control unit indicating acceptance of the proposed input variable as part of a response to the job plan.