1 Introduction
We often hear the term "configuration software," but we don't really understand what configuration software is, what its characteristics are, or in which fields it is used. This article provides relevant explanations and discussions to address these questions.
2. What is Configuration Software ? The term "configuration" in English simply means using tools and methods provided by application software to complete a specific task in a project. Similar to hardware assembly, when assembling a computer, we prepare various components such as the motherboard, case, power supply, hard drive, and monitor. These components have standard interfaces and are assembled in a fixed way. If you think about it carefully, this "assembly method" is relatively fixed, and we generally don't arbitrarily change any hardware when using a computer.
"Configuration," translated from "Configuration," means "configuration" or "construction." In other words, "configuration" is geared towards configurable entities, unlike "assembly," which is dynamic and allows us to change its state during operation. We all know that hardware is the body of a computer, and software is its soul. The body is visible and largely fixed, while the soul is invisible and we don't know what it's doing. Just like when you sit there, we don't know what you're thinking—maybe you're thinking about what to eat after get off work, or what to do tomorrow. But we can observe your expression; a happy face when thinking good things, a worried face when thinking bad things. Configuration software uses computer software to represent the operation or internal state of things we care about, giving us a direct understanding of them.
3. Origin and Current Status of Configuration Software
Before the advent of configuration software, industrial control generally relied on pure programming, using languages such as ASIC, C, and FORTRAN to implement control logic and algorithms. This approach was extremely labor-intensive, had a long development cycle, and required rewriting programs for almost every project. It also demanded a high level of programming skill from technical personnel. However, a contradiction existed: those familiar with industrial control theory were not necessarily proficient in programming, while programming experts were not familiar with control theory. To resolve this contradiction, people envisioned software that could be used even by those not very familiar with computers to develop control systems, and that would be simple and easy for industrial control technicians to use. This idea led to the creation of configuration software.
Configuration software first appeared in the early 1980s. Early configuration software was developed based on the DOS system, with major products including Onspec, Paragon, and IFix. Before the mid-1990s, the application of configuration software in my country was not widespread. Several reasons contributed to this: First, domestic users lacked understanding of configuration software. Projects often lacked budgets for it, or users preferred to invest resources in lengthy and tedious upper-level computer programming for specific projects rather than adopting configuration software. Second, for a long time, domestic users' software awareness was weak. Faced with expensive imported software (early configuration software was mostly developed by foreign manufacturers), few users were willing to purchase genuine copies. Third, the level of industrial automation and information technology application in China was still relatively low at the time. The demand for configuration software—which provides large-scale application and large-scale data acquisition, monitoring, and processing, and can generate management data from the processed results—had not yet fully materialized.
With the development of my country's industry and the advancement of computer technology, numerous configuration software products have emerged domestically. Currently, configuration software products in the Chinese market can be broadly categorized into three types based on vendor: products from foreign professional software vendors, products from foreign hardware or system vendors, and domestically developed, domestically produced products. Recent surveys show that the majority of the domestic configuration software market share is still held by a few foreign vendors, such as FIX and InTouch. These foreign software products have certain advantages in terms of functionality, product packaging, and marketing, but they are not perfect in all aspects. In contrast, domestic configuration software is cheaper, more versatile, and more customizable. Some vendors can modify parts of the software according to customer needs; for example, CenturyStar provides free drivers, requiring only that the customer provide the communication protocol of the device. In short, both domestic and foreign configuration software vendors have their own advantages.
4. Characteristics and Development Trends of Configuration Software <br />Configuration software can be divided into general-purpose and special-purpose types. For example, WinCC is mainly used in conjunction with Siemens products, while Century Star configuration software is a general-purpose configuration software because it can configure different drivers for different devices without modifying the main program. The main characteristics of general-purpose configuration software are summarized as follows:
1) Continuity and scalability. Applications developed using general-purpose configuration software can be easily updated and upgraded without much modification when changes occur in the field (including hardware equipment or system architecture) or user requirements;
2) Encapsulation (Easy to learn and use). The functions that general-purpose configuration software can perform are all packaged in a user-friendly way. For users, they do not need to master too many programming language skills (or even any programming skills), and can complete all the functions required by a complex project very well;
3) Versatility. Each user can complete a project with animation effects, real-time data processing, historical data and curves, multimedia functions and network functions by using the I/O drivers of the underlying devices (PLC, smart meters, smart modules, boards, frequency converters, etc.) provided by the general configuration software, based on the actual situation of the project, and utilizing the open database and screen creation tools. It is not limited by industry.
As industrial control systems are increasingly used and industrial scale continues to expand, control systems become more complex, placing higher demands on configuration software. This is the driving force behind the development of configuration software. By analyzing the characteristics and current status of industrial control systems, configuration software exhibits the following development trends:
1) More stable operation, higher execution efficiency, and easier use are the original intentions of configuration software and its inevitable development direction.
2) Better human-computer interaction. Human-computer interaction is one of the most important and basic functions of configuration software. Good human-computer interaction not only benefits developers in developing control systems, but also benefits users in monitoring the process site.
3) It can meet the personalized needs of customers. As the configuration software market expands, configuration software will be applied to various industries, and each industry has its own characteristics. Developing corresponding configuration software based on the characteristics of an industry will bring great convenience to the relevant personnel in that industry.
4) It has excellent openness. No configuration software is perfect. Users will always have different ideas and needs. The best solution is to enable users to develop custom functions (such as custom controls) on the basis of existing functions. This is also the openness of configuration software.
5) Easier access to information. We live in an information age. With the development of communication and network technologies, various control systems will no longer be isolated information silos. For a single enterprise, workshops, factories, and everything from the industrial site to senior management will tend towards a unified whole. For the market as a whole, enterprises are also interconnected, and timely access to current market information is more conducive to improving enterprise efficiency and competitiveness.
6) Interaction with other systems. Configuration software cannot solve all problems. Often, a large system requires multiple software programs to work together. This requires the configuration software to reserve interfaces for interaction with other systems to facilitate communication between different systems.
5. Summary
Through this article, we can gain a clearer understanding of configuration software, and learn about its origins, current status, and development trends.
