Closed-Loop Manufacturing, AI & IIoT

The first use of computers in manufacturing happened when a robotic head dipping soldering iron in a pan of molten metal was guided by computer software to solder the components on a printed circuit board. So far, no computers have been able to think for themselves. However without being able to think they can collaborate in the decision-making process and absolutely operate the plant autonomously. The early adopters are already enjoying the significant benefits of Closed-Loop Manufacturing and it is expected that more companies will start to catch up very soon.

Closed-loop manufacturing is a system of production and comprehension that seeks to minimise the risks involved in industrial processes in less time, with improved performance and fewer costs. Closed-loop manufacturing creates smarter, more efficient plants and enables a higher level of operational optimization.

The convergence of advanced artificial intelligence technologies, edge computing and closed-loop manufacturing is evolving into an intelligent plant that will be able to learn, sense, adapt and even predict. The advancement of artificial intelligence (AI), edge computing, and closed-loop manufacturing integration systems are eliminating the need for plant operators to address common industrial problems. For example, AI technology can sense the state of an intelligent system and control it according to its own analysis. This reduces the need for conventional manual operation, resulting in more precise and efficient production lines that are less prone to errors than a human operator. Closed-loop manufacturing merges the natural world with advanced automation and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to fundamentally change how industrial processes respond to events in real-time. By leveraging these insights, manufacturers are able to generate wealth from existing infrastructure, utilizing existing assets more efficiently and achieving a quantum leap in plant productivity.

As with edge IoT, the role of IT will change from a centralized asset and service provider to more of an enabler that sets standards and bridges globally distributed facilities; processes and infrastructures.

AI and IoT are currently being used largely for applications involving data analytics and insights for improved business outcomes. One area receiving less attention is industrial IoT (IIoT). IIoT refers to the machinery connected to cloud-based software networks. IIoT already has a wide presence in manufacturing, transportation, and logistics.

With IIoT, machines and trackers report data in real-time, giving management insights on valuable output statistics. IIoT is a colossal opportunity as more and more devices become wirelessly connected to one another. The IIoT will add significant value as all these assets within a facility can be managed from one location. IIoT technologies collect and share machine data, also known as industrial data, in real-time. Machine data is any information that helps track or define the performance and health of a machine, such as vibration and temperature. IIoT tools bring together various devices scattered throughout an entire facility, allowing management insights into valuable output statistics that help streamline production processes.

Information about the IIoT is moving fast and becoming increasingly complicated. Making sense of it all, let alone figuring out where to start, is a major challenge for manufacturers. And there’s no time to waste—every manufacturing company needs a long-term vision that leverages digital technology to enhance value chains and drive growth, which can only be accomplished with the help of an experienced and trusted partner.

DEUTSCHE

Die vierte industrielle Revolution, oder Industrie 4.0, ist gekennzeichnet durch das intelligente Vernetzen von Maschinen, Produkten und Mitarbeitern mit cyber-physikalischen Systemen in intelligenten Fabriken. Die Produktion in intelligenten Fabriken wird hochflexibel. Die Optimierung der Wertschöpfungskette erfolgt darin basierend auf Echtzeit-Anforderungen, Mitarbeiter werden von intelligenten Kontrollsystemen profitieren. In der intelligenten Fabrik wird die Kombination aus Material, Lieferanten, Ausrüstung und qualifizierten Mitarbeitern so organisiert, dass sie Einheiten produzieren, die den Kundenanforderungen in Echtzeit genügen. Die Personalisierung auf Kunden- und Marktsegmente wird durch integrierten Bedarfssignale gewährleistet, um skalierbare Geschäfte zu erzielen. Die intelligente Fabrik erfordert eine flexible und agile vernetzte Produktion.

Flexibilität bedeutet, dass die Betriebsmittel in der Lage sein müssen, eine Vielzahl unterschiedlicher Produktionsprozesse durchzuführen. Die Mitarbeiter müssen über ein sehr breites Spektrum an Qualifikationen und Erfahrungen im Umgang mit verschiedenen Systemen und Methoden verfügen.

Darüber hinaus erfordert die Flexibilität eine sehr hohe Verfügbarkeit der Einsatzmittel. Vernetzt bedeutet, dass alle relevanten Informationen für die Herstellung eines Produkts in Echtzeit zwischen allen Systemen und den am Prozess beteiligten Personen ausgetauscht werden. Tritt beispielsweise bei kritischen Anlagen ein Fehler auf, müssen neue Wege durch die Produktion gefunden werden, um Aufträge termingerecht zu erfüllen. Um das zu erzielen müssen alternative Arbeitspläne und die daraus resultierenden Produktionskosten und -zeiten analysiert werden. Neue Produktionseinheiten entstehen durch die neue Kombination von Ressourcen, Ausrüstung und Personal pro Auftrag. Dies erfordert eine enge Interaktion zwischen Ausrüstung, Ressourcen und Mitarbeitern mit einem intelligenten Produktionssystem, das sowohl die alternativen Routen als auch die Produktionskapazitäten verwaltet. Daher ist die Integration von Daten aus verschiedenen Systemen intern und extern unerlässlich.

Ziel dieses Forschungsprojekts ist es, Techniken zur Realisierung schlanker intelligenter Fabriken zu entwickeln, umzusetzen und zu validieren:

Das erste Projektziel ist die Entwicklung von neuen Algorithmen die den aktuellen Zustand der Fabrik bei der Erstellung des Produktionsplans berücksichtigen.

Das zweite Projektziel ist die Entwicklung einer Methodik für das Lösen von Systemen mit multiplen und teilweise probabilistischen Randbedingungen basierend auf reinforcement learning techniques.

Das dritte Projektziel ist es, eine mathematische Darstellung des genauen Zustands und Verhaltens der Produktionsanlagen zu generieren, die QiO den PARCS score nennt.

In diesem Arbeitspaket werden hochdimensionale teilweise diskrete Optimierungsprobleme mit einer Vielzahl von Nebenbedingungen mit modernen mathematischen Verfahren bearbeitet.

ENGLISH

The fourth industrial revolution, or Industry 4.0, is marked by the intelligent networking of machines, products and employees with cyber-physical systems in Smart Factories. Production in Smart Factories will be highly flexible, highly productive and resource efficient. The optimization of the value chain is based on real-time requirements. At the Smart Factory, the combination of materials, suppliers, equipment and skilled employees is organized to produce units that meet customer demands in real time. Personalization to customer and market segments is ensured by integrated demand signals to achieve scalable business.

The Smart Factory requires flexible and agile networked production. Flexibility means that the operating resources must be able to carry out a variety of different production processes. Employees are required to have a very broad range of qualifications and experience in using different systems and methods. Furthermore, flexibility requires a very high availability of operating resources.

Networked means that all the relevant information for the manufacture of a product is shared in real-time between all of the systems and people involved in the process. This requires information about potential machine breakdown, delays to a supplier order, missing parts, personnel availability or available skills.

If a fault occurs to critical piece of equipment, for instance, new routes through production must be found in order to fulfil orders on time. In order to do this, alternative work schedules and the resulting production costs and times must be analysed. New production units arise through the new combination of resources, equipment and personnel per order. This requires close interaction between equipment, resources and the workforce with a master intelligent production system, which manages the alternative routes as well as production capacity.

As such integration of data from diverse systems internal and external is therefore essential. The aim of this research project is to develop, implement and validate techniques for the realization of Smart Factories:

The first project objective is the development of new algorithms that take into account the current state of the factory when creating the production plan.

The second project objective is the development of a methodology for solving systems with multiple and partially probabilistic constraints based on reinforcement learning techniques.

The third goal of the project is to generate a mathematical representation of the exact condition and behaviour of the production facilities, which QiO calls the PARCS™ score. It is designed to enable engineers within software tools such as the QiO Foresight Engine™.

This work package deals with high-dimensional, partially discrete optimization problems with a variety of constraints using modern mathematical methods. The results of the project proposed here go well beyond the general state of the art, especially in the fields:

Artificial intelligence for the dynamic learning and modeling of production processes

Artificial intelligence for production planning and supply chain management

Traditional approaches to modeling and describing production processes assume a well-known problem and seek a solution to a specific problem. This approach is not suitable for solving such problems in the context of an intelligent factory. The boundary conditions that describe the processes change regularly here and they are mostly of a probabilistic nature. We plan to learn the processes dynamically based on the data produced by a production hall. We call such dat, the voice of the production hall.

Such automated learning is important because constructing a graphical model by a human expert can be cumbersome and time-consuming. If, as is often the case, there is a database of examples, learning techniques can do at least part of the work. This approach should lead to an always current and dynamic view on the production processes. It should also form a mathematical basis for dynamic production planning as it will be described in the next.