ON THE APPLICATION OF ELECTRONIC DIGITAL COMPUTERS TO THE DESIGN OF AUTOMATED MONITORING SYSTEMS

N. P. BAIDA, V. M. RAZIN

(Presented by the scientific seminar of the Department of Computer Engineering)

In modern complex systems of control and information processing, even at the design stage provision is made for the introduction of automated systems for monitoring the quality, serviceability, and readiness of equipment [1]. In developing automated monitoring systems (AMS), one has to solve rather difficult scientific and technical problems. It is obvious that the basic principles for the application of electronic digital computers to the design, for example, of digital devices [2], should also be extended to the design of automated monitoring systems.

The main task in developing an AMS is the synthesis of equipment that ensures the performance of all specified functions with a minimum amount of hardware, high reliability, and ease of operation. The design of an AMS is carried out, as a rule, by the method of successive approximations. On the basis of an analysis of the operations performed by the AMS, the choice of methods for implementing these operations, and algorithmic synthesis, the composition of the main units and devices, and the scheme of their connections and interactions, are determined in the first approximation; these are then refined during preliminary and technical design. Using the development of monitoring equipment for electronic computing machines [3, 4] as an example, it can be shown that already at the beginning of the design process, after receiving the assignment with an indication of the basic qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the AMS being developed, i.e., at the stage of preparing the preliminary design, it is advisable to make comprehensive use of computer facilities in order to facilitate, accelerate, and improve the quality of the solution of the corresponding tasks. Thus, in order to automate the verification of the quality of the developed circuits of monitoring equipment, it is necessary to apply methods of modeling on electronic digital computers that use a special language for describing a broad class of digital devices (for example, LYAPAS, MODIS, PROEKT, etc.) or a machine language (when memory is insufficient); moreover, to increase the speed of modeling one should use various techniques of directed and probabilistic enumeration with analysis of the results output to print. In this case it is advisable to evaluate the quality of monitoring circuits according to the criteria of monitoring efficiency and reliability [5], taking into account cost constraints.

The stages of preliminary and technical design of an AMS lend themselves to varying degrees of formalization, with individual types of work

are unformalized and can be carried out only by the designer. In [1] the following substages of preliminary design are listed:

1) selection of the optimal principle of operation of the equipment;
2) development of the block diagram of the automated monitoring system (AMS) and of its main devices;
3) development of functional-logical diagrams of the AMS devices;
4) selection of the system of component elements;
5) development of the principles for the structural implementation of all AMS equipment.

The selection of the optimal principle of operation of the equipment includes solving such important questions as analysis of the object of monitoring [6], drawing up its logical diagram, selection and minimization of the number of monitoring points, determination of the depth of monitoring, and selection and optimization of the method of monitoring. The initial data in this case are information about the object being monitored, requirements imposed on the AMS, and the selection and specification of the values of various kinds of quantitative criteria (such as efficiency, reliability of monitoring, etc.). The result of the designer’s actions at this substage is the development of the optimal algorithm for the functioning of the AMS. It should be noted that if such kinds of actions as, for example, the selection and specification of the values of various quantitative criteria of the AMS and the selection of criteria for optimizing methods and means of monitoring are performed only by the designer, then other actions—for example, comparison of various AMS variants according to the selected criteria, optimization of monitoring methods, etc.—should expediently be carried out with substantial assistance from an electronic digital computer.

The development of an AMS may be regarded as the solution of the problem of synthesizing a microprogrammed automaton [7] for implementing the selected algorithm. The design of such a microprogrammed automaton should be carried out in accordance with the recommendations developed in [8], using an electronic digital computer for modeling and improving the developed algorithms [9].

The development of the block diagram of the AMS and of its main devices is performed mainly by designers, but comparison of the various variants should be carried out with the use of an electronic digital computer in order to obtain objective quantitative estimates according to the selected indicators.

It is advisable to carry out the development of functional-logical diagrams of AMS devices on the basis of the mathematical apparatus of the theory of digital automata, which is amenable to programming on an electronic digital computer [2]. When selecting the component base and developing the principles for the structural implementation of the AMS, it is also necessary to use a computer in order to select the best variant from the set of possible ones.

As for the stage of technical design of the AMS, the results obtained in the design of computing machines [2] may be fully extended to the solution of the corresponding questions as applied to the creation of an AMS.

When automating the main stages in the design of such a complex system as an AMS with microprogram control, the requirements whose fulfillment makes it possible to increase the efficiency of automatic design [10] should be taken into account.

1. Algorithms must be written in one of the formal languages.

2. The program must be prepared for a widely used computing machine possessing a high computation speed.

3. The method of representing the initial information in the machine language must be clear and must make economical use of the computer memory.

1. The translation of the initial information into the machine language and the deciphering of the calculation results must be sufficiently simple that they can be performed by specialists of low qualification.

In conclusion, we note that the creation of automated monitoring systems for complex objects is also possible on the basis of mass-produced control digital computers for industrial purposes and universal electronic digital computers, provided that there is an appropriate techno-economic justification. Moreover, the techno-economic justification for using expensive computing equipment for constructing automated monitoring systems should also expediently be carried out with the aid of electronic digital computers. This proposition is valid, for example, with respect to the use of the automated monitoring system for creating automated monitoring systems of one or another degree of complexity.

References

1. Fundamentals of Constructing Automated Monitoring Systems for Complex Objects. Ed. by P. I. Kuznetsov. Moscow, “Energiya,” 1969.

2. Application of Computing Machines for the Design of Digital Devices. Collection of articles edited by N. Ya. Matyukhina. Moscow, “Sovetskoe radio,” 1968.

3. N. D. Putintsev. Hardware Monitoring of Control Digital Computers. Moscow, “Sovetskoe radio,” 1966.

4. G. N. Ushakova. Hardware Monitoring and Reliability of Specialized Electronic Computers. Moscow, “Sovetskoe radio,” 1969.

5. N. P. Baida. Efficiency and Reliability of Hardware Monitoring of Digital Devices. Proceedings of TPI. The present collection.

6. V. V. Karibskii, P. P. Parkhomenko, E. S. Sogomonyan. Technical Diagnostics of Objects of Monitoring. Moscow, “Energiya,” 1967.

7. V. G. Lazarev, E. I. Piil. Synthesis of Control Automata. Moscow, “Energiya,” 1970.

8. K. K. Kolin, V. V. Lipaev. Design of Algorithms for Control Digital Computers. Moscow, “Sovetskoe radio,” 1970.

9. N. A. Krinitskii. Equivalence Transformations of Algorithms and Programming. Moscow, “Sovetskoe radio,” 1970.

10. Fundamentals of Designing Control Machines for Industrial Purposes. Ed. by B. N. Malinovskii. Moscow, “Mashinostroenie,” 1969.