One embedded system that we have installed here is a Honeywell Scan3000 communications and control package running via a pair of Compaq deskpro pentium PCs and connectected to a Honeywell PLC (I'm not sure of exactly which PLC). It is used to remotely control a set of water discharge gates at a site about 60 miles away, and is only used 3 or 4 times each week.

Anyway we carried out a Y2K upgrade on this system about 3 months ago, and since then it has failed quite regularly. The previous version ran without any real problem. It is not a critical system, but it is a nuisance having to send someone on a 60 mile journey to reboot the server every time that it fails. To their credit Honeywell are sending someone in to check it out for us, but we would have expected that an upgrade would have been completely checked out at by the manufacturer before it was installed.

The effect of this unit failing is that the water control gates just remain at whatever setting they were on untill they are either changed manually, or the unit is re-booted. There is no immediate effect on our generation. And I suspect that most embedded systems will behave in a similar manner on failing. ie. they would not cause any immediate change to the generation status.

Malcolm

-- Anonymous, July 15, 1999

Answers

... but we would have expected that an upgrade would have been completely checked out at by the manufacturer before it was installed.

Do all you NZ'ers have such a good sense of humor? :-)

-- Anonymous, July 15, 1999

Malcolm,

I really appreciate the information that you post here. I wish we had a hundred like you from our own industry. This is the sort of thing we need to hear about, and how you are dealing with it. We know there are problems going on here in the US too, but it's a hush-hush attitude from those who *could* be telling us about it. That problem you are dealing with is classic upgrade stuff, I think. Your facility has become the test bed for it, and Honeywell now gets to troubleshoot it right in the field. That's fine for now but not so fine in any period of multiple failures. I wish we had a lot more of those hydro plants, same as you have.

-- Anonymous, July 15, 1999

Malcolm

Your water discharge gates are in the "Ready" category then.

net o!

spiff

-- Anonymous, July 16, 1999