Importance

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Abstract

A protocol converter is provided for interfacing a host computer to manufacturing process equipment. Via a parallel input/output interface (PIO), a data acquisition system is coupled to the process equipment to check and activate various process equipment events. A user terminal provides a graphical user interface for controlling and monitoring the protocol converter. A protocol converter (PC) controller that enables the host computer, the data acquisition system and the user interface to exchange messages with the process equipment comprises a protocol conversion server (PCS) for interfacing the PC controller to the host computer, and the process equipment, a user interface server (UIS) for providing interface to the user terminal, and a data acquisition server (DAS) for supporting the PIO. A separate external mailbox is assigned to each of the servers to receive incoming messages from other servers in the PC controller. In addition, the PCS contains a distributed internal bus having internal mailboxes for providing communications between software processes run by various modules within the PCS. A separate internal mailbox is assigned to each module that receives messages from the internal bus. Messages supplied to the internal bus are distributed among mailboxes of receiving modules in accordance with transaction IDs of the messages.

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First Claim