Boots – shoes – and leggings
Patent
1994-10-24
1997-11-11
Ruggiero, Joseph
Boots, shoes, and leggings
364146, G06F 1900, G05B 19048
Patent
active
056870744
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a system for debugging a sequence program which is to be executed by a programmable controller (PC), and more particularly, to a system for debugging a sequence program which is generated by flowcharting.
BACKGROUND ART
Sequence programs to be executed by a PC may be expressed by logic descriptions, ladder diagrams, etc. Flowcharting is advantageous as it makes an overall flow of work easy to understand. A flowchart represents a sequential process step by step. One typical example of a flowchart is a sequential function chart (SFC). However, a program representative of specific operations in each step is expressed by logic descriptions, ladder diagrams, etc.
FIG. 3 of the accompanying drawings shows a specific example of a sequence program which is generated according to flowcharting. The sequence program shown in FIG. 3 includes a total of 14 steps ST01.about.ST14 following an initial step ST00. In a selective branch section 51 following the execution of the step ST01, either one of the steps ST02, ST03, ST04 is selected depending on the executed result of the step ST01. For example, if the step ST04 is selected and executed, then the step ST07 is executed, after which control is transferred to the step ST08.
In a parallel branch section 52 following the execution of the step ST08, the steps ST09, ST10, ST11 are executed at the same time the execution of the step ST08 ends. Since these steps ST09, ST10, ST11 and the next steps ST12, ST13, ST14 have different execution times, the respective routes end at different times. When this happens, one of the steps ST12, ST13, ST14 which ends at first waits for the other steps to end, and then control proceeds to a next step (end step 53 in FIG. 3) at the time the last one of the steps ST12, ST13, ST14 ends.
One major process of debugging a generated sequence program is to reproduce varying states of signals which are traced during the execution of the program, at a low speed on a screen.
Sequence programs generated by flowcharting have many program execution routes if the number of steps and branch instructions are increased. As the many program execution routes are difficult to confirm visually, the sequence programs cannot easily be debugged. If the programmer wishes to know which one of the steps is selected and executed in the selective branch section 51 in FIG. 3 or which one of the steps ST12, ST13, ST14 is the slowest and how long the waiting step has been waiting in a waiting process involving the steps ST12, ST13, ST14, then it has been necessary to determine the execution times of the respective steps and employ a complex technique in a process of displaying tracing and debugging events.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a system for debugging a sequence program generated by flowcharting while allowing a chronological flow of the steps of the sequence program to be easily confirmed.
To achieve the above object, there is provided in accordance with the present invention a system for debugging a sequence program generated by flowcharting, comprising program executing means for executing the sequence program, sampling means for sampling steps being executed at predetermined time intervals while the sequence program is being executed, step storage means for storing the sampled steps, and display means for displaying data of the stored steps in a time series.
While the sequence program is being executed by the program executing means, steps of the sequence program which are being executed are sampled at predetermined time intervals by the sampling means, and the sampled steps are stored in the step storage means. The stored data are displayed in a time series by the display means.
Since the execution states of the steps are displayed at the predetermined time intervals, the operator can confirm at a glance a chronological flow of executed steps, and hence can simply confirm the execution speeds of certain steps and the simultaneous execution of a plura
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Monitor Device for Programmable Controller, Omron Corp "Patent Abstracts of Japan", vol. 15, No. 270, p. 1225, Jul. 9, 1991.
Onishi Yasushi
Sato Kazuo
Tanaka Kunio
Fanuc Ltd.
Ruggiero Joseph
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