US 11,960,270 B2
Automatic load balancing and performance leveling of virtual nodes running real-time control in process control systems
Mark J. Nixon, Thorndale, TX (US); Anthony Amaro, Jr., Round Rock, TX (US); Noel Howard Bell, Austin, TX (US); John M. Caldwell, Austin, TX (US); and Gary K. Law, Georgetown, TX (US)
Assigned to FISHER-ROSEMOUNT SYSTEMS, INC., Round Rock, TX (US)
Filed by FISHER-ROSEMOUNT SYSTEMS, INC., Round Rock, TX (US)
Filed on Dec. 21, 2022, as Appl. No. 18/085,805.
Application 18/085,805 is a continuation of application No. 16/874,216, filed on May 14, 2020, granted, now 11,537,112.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/859,508, filed on Jun. 10, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2023/0124264 A1, Apr. 20, 2023
Int. Cl. G05B 19/418 (2006.01); G06F 9/30 (2018.01); G06F 13/40 (2006.01); H04L 67/12 (2022.01); G05B 17/00 (2006.01)
CPC G05B 19/41885 (2013.01) [G05B 19/4183 (2013.01); G05B 19/41835 (2013.01); G05B 19/41845 (2013.01); G05B 19/4185 (2013.01); G05B 19/41865 (2013.01); G06F 9/3017 (2013.01); G06F 13/4022 (2013.01); H04L 67/12 (2013.01); G05B 17/00 (2013.01); G05B 2219/13125 (2013.01); G05B 2219/13185 (2013.01); G05B 2219/2214 (2013.01); G05B 2219/31231 (2013.01); G05B 2219/32301 (2013.01); G05B 2219/32343 (2013.01); G05B 2219/32355 (2013.01); G05B 2219/32359 (2013.01); G05B 2219/32407 (2013.01); G05B 2219/40311 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method in an industrial process plant, the method comprising:
during run-time operations of the industrial process plant:
balancing a load of a virtualization platform across a plurality of virtual nodes implemented on the virtualization platform based on one or more configured boundary conditions,
each virtual node of the plurality of virtual nodes including a respective at least one component behavior module that operates on content of respective first data via a respective one or more subscriptions to generate respective second data and that publishes the respective second data for delivery to a respective other process control component to thereby control a respective at least a portion of an industrial process,
a physical field device operating in a field environment of the industrial process plant at least one of: generates at least a portion of the respective first data subscribed to by a particular virtual node of the plurality of virtual nodes, or is the respective other process control component corresponding to the particular virtual node, and
the balancing of the load of the virtualization platform includes re-assigning an input/output (I/O) assignment from a first virtual node to a second virtual node, the I/O assignment indicating an association between a respective virtual node and a respective logical identifier that is indicative of data, a set or grouping of data, and/or a data type that is utilized within the industrial process plant and that is subscribed to and/or published by the respective virtual node; and
re-balancing the load of the virtualization platform responsive to a change to the one or more configured boundary conditions.