Re: [foxboro] Alarm Tracking software

Robert,
        I, too, am looking for an alarm collection and analyst tool that
uses a browser as the HMI and a server that automatically receives alarms
from the Fox IA system and stores them in an SQL database for use in short
or long term analysis.  I am currently working with a company based in
Toronto, Canada called Machine Automation.  I am using their current
offering, (AlarmAnalyst Ver. 2.2.4) which is not Web served or browser HMI
compatible.  They are working with me to develop the web interface but
aren't sure when they will complete it.  Their current application does a
lot of the things I want but I don't want to load client side software on
every machine wanting to look at the data or serve the application to each
client.  In short, I won't buy any product that isn't web served.  The HMI
must be a standard browser window that allows anyone wanting to look at and
query the data, easy access from their desktop, anywhere in our corporation.
If you are interested in previewing their current offering, (which is not
web served/browser based HMI), contact:

Luke McEachern, Sales
Machine Automation Inc.
1005 Skyview Drive, Suite 303
Burlington, Ontario, L7P 5B1
Phone: (905) 331-5168 x102
Fax: (905) 331-5166
Web: http://www.MachineAutomation.Org
Email: LukeM@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

        I have previewed their current application while waiting for them to
develop the web version.  Their current application is pretty good and it
was easy for me to setup their Alarm Server Task Scheduler which
automatically ftp's the Foxboro Alarm historian database files located at:
/usr/hstorian/almhist on each historian hosting AW to their server,
(currently running on my PC).  It can be scheduled to automatically ftp and
import into their database format on a regular basis as fast as every
minute, (I scheduled it once every two hours)  In our case the ftp is using
the 2nd ethernet port of the AW and right now putting it on my PC where I
have their application running.  In the future I want them to pump it right
into an SQL database server and create a browser interface to query and
display the data.  The almhist file is the same one that is used by the
Alarm Manager when you select the Alarm History screen and by default stores
only 5000 of the most recent alarms.  For this reason, you want to ftp the
file often enough so as not to lose any of the alarms.  On the Foxboro side,
alarms must be directed from the Compound Group Device to the appropriate
alarm historian for this to work.  The almhist file does include the alarm
priority whereas the serial files streamed through Comm ports does not, as
Alex Johnson mentioned in his previous note.  Alarm Analyst allows the user
to create and save custom views of the database, which is basically saving
database queries that are important to each user.  Current query parameters
include Compound, Block, .ANM, Priority, and all of the Foxboro alarm types
BADIO, HIABS,LOABS,HIDEV...etc...
        You may also find this information helpful when trying to sort your
alarms by equipment or line.  I wanted to do something similar.  If all of
your blocks for the line or equipment are in a single compound you can
search for that compound and get the information, but our processes are
large enough that they take more than one CP and thus more than one
compound.  I started using the .ANM,  .MEASNM, and .OUTNM parameters to
indicate the process or line that the alarm is associated with.  Each of
those parameter values gets passed with the alarm message and can thus be
searched for in a query.  Notice the alarm messages below which I have
copied directly out of AlarmAnalyst and pasted into this message.  In the
first one, C2004B is the Cmpd, CSH4221 is the Blk, and A02 is whatever I
type in .ANM of that block.(In this case the name of one of our processes)
It could just as easily have been LINE01.  I have also insisted that the
.DESCRP parameter always have the EQ # at the beginning as you can see.
Using this structure makes it possible for me to do a search in Alarm
Analyst and obtain alarm information about specific processes or equipment.
By default, Alarm Analyst shows a graph of the alarms in the order of
highest to lowest frequency over a one day or one week period.  I also want
it by one month or one year but right now you can use a calendar to select
the start day and it will either compile the data for that day or week only.
It does continue to archive data so you can go back in time as long as you
continue to store the archive data files.

03-10-14 17:01:32   C2004B:CSH4221.A02      3576 CONDENSATE CONDUCTIVITY
2STATE
                                             HIGH CONDUCTIVITY (OP SET)
ALM
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------
03-10-14 17:02:23   C1705D:TI6713.A01       1127 OVERHEAD VAPOR TEMPERATURE
4HIABS
                        80.02 DEG C  (    80.00) HIGH TEMPERATURE (OP SET)
ALM

        I hope this is helpful and if you contact Luke McEachern from
Machine Automation tell him that I pointed you in his direction, but tell
him you won't buy his product unless it is web served and browser based and
the data is stored in an SQL database.  That might hurry his developers
along.

Tom VandeWater
Control Systems Developer/Analyst
Dow Corning Corp.
Carrollton, KY USA

-----Original Message-----
From: Balmer, Robert D. [mailto:rbalmer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Wednesday, October 15, 2003 11:07 AM
To: 'Foxboro DCS Mail List'
Subject: [foxboro] Alarm Tracking software


I was wondering what brands of software the Foxboro users have incorporated
into their systems to track, sort and manage alarms.
I have the Erus software at the moment and it does work well for just
collecting the alarms.  However, it has fallen upon my back to find a
software that will do much more.  The powers that be here want to know, by
plant area the alarms that have repeatedly been in the on state the previous
day, week, so on.  They want to be able to sort the alarms by equipment or
line should they choose.
I would like to find a software that would perhaps have a web like
connection so one computer can run the software and anyone in the several
control room could access the information.
Thank You
Robert Balmer
Climax Molybdenum Co.
Applications Analyst/Programmer
Fort Madison Iowa
319 463 2206



 
 
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