Representation of Process State, Structure and Control

Supervisory control is essentially a decision-making activity where, among other things, the dm has to maneuver within a complex problem space which reflects key dimensions at attributes of the object system (Power plant ...). Of considerable importance therefore is the representation for the dm of this problem space comprising at the one end the target demands, goals, constraints and, at the other, the resources available for meeting the assigned goals - and of all this in pace with the dynamic event-driven environment which characterizes the types of systems of interest. Previous work has identified the advantages of utilizing the two-dimensional means-ends/part-whole space as a basic ingredient in a system representation. This paper associates more detailed representational requirements at the various levels of the means-end axis with the activities of state identification and diagnosis. In addition, some examples of display formats which attempt to incorporate the outlined representational principles within the context of a PWR plant are discussed.