FEATURE Smart factories and AI
Feature sponsored by
Functional safety with added intelligence for the factory fl oor
By Mohammed Dogar, Vice President, Renesas Electronics F injury. Functional safety standards exist to
provide the necessary regulations and compliance testing requirements for a wide variety of diff erent equipment, and the IEC 61508 is one such standard. It provides insight into the functional safety standard for electrical, electronic and electro-mechanical equipment, with specifi c principles for the application of similar equipment in sector-specifi c uses.
Key concepts
Functional safety incorporates two fundamental concepts: safety functions and safety integrity levels. Within the safety function, all parts – sensors, control systems, actuators, etc. – are collectively examined to determine the probability and frequency of failure. On the other hand, safety integrity levels defi ne the reductions required to keep risks at an acceptable level. A safety function involves any action or operation required to ensure the safe running of equipment. This typically involves sensors/actuators, a control circuit, some electromechanical devices, such as motors, etc., and a mechanism to maintain safety integrity. The unwanted events involved with these devices and systems can pose a serious threat. The actions performed at that instance defi ne the primary safety function. However, the timing between these inter-related actions is crucial, particularly if separate controllers are used for the sensing and the control actions. Renesas Electronics is an active member of several functional safety working groups. It also off ers a one-stop functional safety solution with its MCUs and related software frameworks. The Renesas TUV- certifi ed software kit has reduced the time for constructing functional safety systems and the certifi cation process of MCUs,
24 November 2023 | Automation
irrespective of their domain-specifi c application.
Renesas MCUs, together with various sensors – from MEMS accelerometers, environmental sensors, to several visualisation devices – make up the primary components of a control system. The internal hardware features of its MCUs with the necessary software simplify the development process to functional safety compliance. The certifi ed software and reference solution for most of Renesas MCUs (RA and RX family of devices) have been designed to comply with IEC 61508 and include a certifi cate and safety manual. These software modules are certifi ed under IEC61508 parts 1-7, as well as part 3 of the IEC 61508, which stipulates the use of formal software design architectures, validation and testing as a core part of implementing functional safety.
Intelligence and functional safety The current evolution of machine learning/AI and higher-performance computing hardware is driving highly effi cient safety solutions – whether for preventing systematic failures or anticipating and mitigating future risk, integration of various artifi cial intelligence models is also a key consideration for engineers when
designing functional safety systems. During operation, identifi cation of the fault at the right time with the right location and providing the right cause for the same plays a signifi cant role. The artifi cial intelligence/machine-thought system delivers a good set-up for coping with these issues. Artifi cial intelligence enables and increases machine capabilities and makes the process sustainable for unfavourable circumstances. Here, a fi eld system associated with Renesas MCUs has state-of-the-art solutions for data collection and computational space for AI/ML algorithms framework to foreseeing and detecting abnormal states and anomalies. The complete set of solutions starting from embedded to dedicated software architecture can provide alerts for asset/ operation status and recommend the corrective actions for the same. This will ultimately improve safety and reduce the respective downtime and related costs involved.
Industries are keen to make the process automated to avoid any possible system failure and related mishaps that can lead to plant shutdown or injury to operators. Therefore, using machine learning models at the device level will enable the system/ operator to take corrective measures in real time. In turn, the functional-safety design processes off er a path to higher reliability,
automationmagazine.co.uk
unctional safety has been always the basic requirement in machines and equipment, with the task of protecting users from harm or
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46
