A system for splitting an arbitrary stack into specified station tasks

Abstract

The application discloses a system for splitting an arbitrary stack into specified station tasks, and relates to the technical field of industrial automation, comprising a material management module, a station configuration module, a splitting constraint configuration module, a stack creation module, a material splitting module, a PLC address configuration module and a task issuing module. The station configuration module builds a multi-level station structure with parent-child relationship and configures a list of processable materials for each station. After fool-proof check is completed, the material splitting module allocates materials in the order from the last-level child station to the root station, and when a parent station and a child station are matched at the same time, the material is preferentially allocated to the child station, and the allocated material is prevented from participating in the parent station matching, and a task array for each station is generated. The task issuing module converts the material number in the task array into an issuing number and writes it into the corresponding PLC address. The application can avoid repeated allocation of materials and improve the efficiency of stack task splitting and equipment modification.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of industrial automation technology, specifically to a system that can split any stacked structure into designated workstation tasks. Background Technology

[0002] The fully automated stacking table for PCB reflow lines is widely used in the PCB lamination process. It is used to transport and stack multiple layers of materials such as copper foil, core board, and prepreg according to a predetermined stacking sequence. In actual production, the product stacking structure changes frequently. The stacking structure of different products varies in the number of layers, material types and quantities, requiring the equipment to adapt to the production needs of various stacking structures. Currently, the task decomposition of the stacking station mainly adopts the following method: a separate programmable logic controller (PLC) program is written for each stacked structure, and technicians manually decompose the stacked structure into handling tasks for each station based on experience, and configure the corresponding register addresses to write the task parameters one by one. This method has the following shortcomings: First, each new stacked structure requires the control program to be written and debugged from scratch, which is time-consuming and error-prone, resulting in low equipment changeover efficiency and insufficient flexible production capacity; Second, the allocation of materials to the station relies entirely on manual experience and judgment, lacking an automated allocation mechanism, which easily leads to omissions and misallocations, resulting in low decomposition efficiency; Third, different stacked structures may involve mutually exclusive material combinations, and the existing technology lacks a foolproof verification mechanism, which cannot automatically identify and block illegal material combinations from entering the production process, posing a quality risk; Fourth, when the station structure changes, the task decomposition logic and address configuration usually need to be redeveloped, making modular reuse impossible. In summary, existing technologies lack a unified system that can automatically break down any stacked structure into executable tasks for each workstation and distribute them to the programmable logic controller, thereby adapting to the flexible production needs of different stacked structures. Summary of the Invention

[0003] To address the aforementioned technical issues, this invention provides a system for splitting any stacked structure into designated workstation tasks. This solution resolves the problems of existing stacking platforms requiring separate programming for each type of stack, relying on manual material allocation, lacking error-proofing verification, and being unable to reuse materials due to workstation changes. It achieves the automatic splitting and distribution of any stacked structure into workstation tasks.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows: A system for splitting arbitrary stack-up structures into specified workstation tasks includes: The materials management module is used to maintain the material number and issuance number of each material; The workstation configuration module is used to build a multi-level workstation structure with parent-child relationships, with the final material collection workstation as the root workstation, and to configure a list of materials that can be processed for each workstation. The list of materials that can be processed for a child workstation is limited to the list of materials that can be processed for its direct parent workstation. The split constraint configuration module is used to configure split combination rules and mistaken-proof combination rules; The stacked structure creation module is used to encode the number and quantity of materials in each layer into material entries based on the layer structure information of the stacked structure to be produced, and connect them in the order of the layers to form a material string; The material splitting module is used to verify the material string according to the error-proof combination rules, and match the material items in the material string with the processable material list of each workstation in the order from the last-level sub-workstation through each level of parent workstation to the root workstation. When the same material item matches both the parent workstation and the sub-workstation, the material item is first assigned to the sub-workstation and marked as assigned, so that the material item will no longer participate in the subsequent material matching of the parent workstation. Then, the task array of each workstation is generated according to the material items assigned to each workstation and the corresponding splitting combination rules. The PLC address configuration module is used to configure the PLC address corresponding to the task array of each workstation. The task assignment module is used to convert the material numbers in the task array of each workstation into the corresponding assignment numbers, and write the converted task arrays into the corresponding PLC addresses to drive each workstation to perform material handling and stacking operations in the order of the tasks.

[0005] Preferably, the material management module is used to add, modify, and delete materials, and to establish material data for each type of material; The material data includes material number, material name, issuance number, and the display color of the material in the overlay display. The issuance number is used by the task issuance module to enable the programmable logic controller to identify the corresponding material when issuing a task.

[0006] Preferably, the workstation configuration module establishes a multi-level workstation structure in the order from the final material collection workstation to the next-level workstation; The final material collection station is the root station. Each non-root station is associated with a direct parent station, and the station level of each station is determined according to the association between each non-root station and its corresponding direct parent station. When adding a new workstation, the new workstation is associated with its corresponding direct parent workstation; when deleting a workstation, the workstation and all its subordinate workstations are deleted simultaneously; when renaming a workstation, the data referencing the workstation name is updated simultaneously to avoid workstation name reference conflicts.

[0007] Preferably, the workstation configuration module configures a list of processable materials for each workstation according to the workstation hierarchy; When the material selected for a sub-station is not in the list of processable materials of its direct parent station, the station configuration module outputs a material configuration error message and refuses to save the list of processable materials of the sub-station for this material configuration.

[0008] Preferably, the splitting and combining rules configured by the splitting constraint configuration module include: Allows combination of material numbers and corresponding applicable workstations to be grouped into the same gripping task; The error-proof combination rules include prohibiting material number combinations that coexist in the same stack; when there is a material combination that conforms to the error-proof combination rules in the material string generated by the stack creation module, the material splitting module outputs an illegal stack prompt and stops generating task arrays for each workstation.

[0009] Preferably, the stack creation module is further used to call a pre-established sub-recipe to create a stack to be produced, wherein the sub-recipe is formed by repeating stack fragments; When creating a stack to be produced, the stack creation module generates corresponding layer structure information based on the sub-formula and its repetition count, and converts the generated layer structure information into a material string.

[0010] Preferably, the stacking creation module generates full-length stacking data based on the material settings of each layer, and generates end-of-line stacking data based on the total number of core boards in the current work order and the end-of-line replenishment mode; The full-length stacked data and the end-length stacked data are encoded into full-length material strings and end-length material strings, respectively, so that the material splitting module can generate full-length task arrays and end-length task arrays, respectively.

[0011] Preferably, when the material splitting module assigns material items to each workstation, it first parses the material items in the material string to obtain the material number, quantity and layer order of each material, and sets the parsed material items to an unassigned state. Then, traverse each station in the order from the last substation to the root station, match the unassigned material items with the current station's processable material list, assign the matched material items to the current station, and set the material items to the assigned state. Material items that are already assigned will no longer participate in subsequent material matching at the parent station. The parent station will only match material items that are still unassigned after all its child stations have completed the matching process. Material items assigned to the same workstation are arranged according to their hierarchical order in the material string to form the corresponding workstation's material substring; After completing material matching for all workstations, if there are still unassigned material entries, an error message indicating that the material cannot be assigned will be output, and the generation of task arrays for each workstation will be stopped.

[0012] Preferably, when generating the task array for the corresponding workstation, the material splitting module matches the material substrings of each workstation with the splitting and combining rules, and selects the splitting and combining rules applicable to the current workstation from the splitting and combining rules. When multiple material items meet the splitting and combining rules, the multiple material items are merged into the same task, and the material items merged into the task are marked as combined, so that the combined material items no longer participate in the matching of subsequent splitting and combining rules; If a material item does not meet any splitting and combining rule, the material item will be treated as a separate task. The material splitting module generates a task array for the corresponding workstation according to the order of the material items in the material substring, and counts the number of tasks for the corresponding workstation based on the number of tasks in the task array. Each task includes the material number and quantity picked up by the corresponding workstation in a single operation.

[0013] Preferably, the material splitting module counts the quantity of each material in the full-book material string and the end-book material string respectively, and counts the quantity of full-book tasks and the quantity of end-book tasks for each workstation according to the full-book task array and the end-book task array respectively. When adding a new material, the PLC address configuration module configures the full-book material quantity address and the end-book material quantity address of the material; when adding a new workstation, it configures the full-book task start address, end-book task start address, full-book task quantity address, and end-book task quantity address of the workstation. After receiving the feedback signal that the programmable logic controller allows the task dispatching module to dispatch the material numbers in the full task array and the end task array to the corresponding dispatching number, and write the full quantity of each material, the end quantity of each material, the full task array, the end task array, the full task quantity, and the end task quantity of each workstation into the corresponding PLC address. The system also includes an interface display module and a data storage module. The interface display module is used to display material data, parent-child relationships of workstations, material lists that can be processed at each workstation, full book stacking, end book stacking, material allocation results, task arrays of each workstation, and task issuance status. The data storage module is used to store material data, parent-child relationships of workstations, material lists that can be processed at each workstation, splitting and combining rules, error-proofing combination rules, full-book stacking data, end-book stacking data, PLC address data, full-book task arrays, end-book task arrays, number of full-book tasks, and number of end-book tasks for each workstation.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: This invention automatically encodes layer structure information into material strings through a layer structure creation module, and automatically splits the material into task arrays for each workstation according to constraint rules. This eliminates the need to write separate PLC programs for each layer structure, significantly shortening the changeover cycle. By establishing a parent-child workstation structure with the final material convergence workstation as the root workstation, and restricting the processable material list of each child workstation to its direct parent workstation, material splitting follows a step-by-step matching sequence from the last-level child workstation through each level of parent workstation to the root workstation. When the same material matches both parent and child workstations simultaneously, it is only assigned to the child workstation, thus preventing the same material from being repeatedly assigned to multiple workstations and improving the accuracy of material allocation and task splitting. A foolproof combination rule automatically verifies the legality of material combinations before splitting, blocking invalid combinations from entering the production process and avoiding potential quality issues. Material management, workstation configuration, and constraint rules are independent of each other; when the workstation structure changes, only the configuration needs to be adjusted for reuse, without the need for redevelopment. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 This is a system framework diagram of the present invention; Figure 2 This is a flowchart of the stacked structure splitting and task assignment process of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0016] The following description is intended to disclose the invention and enable those skilled in the art to implement it. The preferred embodiments described below are merely examples, and other obvious variations will occur to those skilled in the art.

[0017] Reference Figure 1 As shown, a system for splitting arbitrary stacked structures into tasks for designated workstations is applicable to fully automated PCB reflow lines. It automatically converts the stacked structures to be produced into executable tasks for each workstation and distributes them to a programmable logic controller (PLC) for execution. The system includes: The materials management module is used to maintain the material number and issuance number of each material; The workstation configuration module is used to build a multi-level workstation structure with parent-child relationships, with the final material collection workstation as the root workstation, and to configure a list of materials that can be processed for each workstation. The list of materials that can be processed for a child workstation is limited to the list of materials that can be processed for its direct parent workstation. The split constraint configuration module is used to configure split combination rules and mistaken-proof combination rules; The stacked structure creation module is used to encode the number and quantity of materials in each layer into material entries based on the layer structure information of the stacked structure to be produced, and connect them in the order of the layers to form a material string; The material splitting module is used to verify the material string according to the error-proof combination rules, and match the material items in the material string with the processable material list of each workstation in the order from the last-level sub-workstation through each level of parent workstation to the root workstation. When the same material item matches both the parent workstation and the sub-workstation, the material item is first assigned to the sub-workstation and marked as assigned, so that the material item will no longer participate in the subsequent material matching of the parent workstation. Then, the task array of each workstation is generated according to the material items assigned to each workstation and the corresponding splitting combination rules. The PLC address configuration module is used to configure the PLC address corresponding to the task array of each workstation. The task assignment module is used to convert the material numbers in the task array of each workstation into the corresponding assignment numbers, and write the converted task arrays into the corresponding PLC addresses to drive each workstation to perform material handling and stacking operations in the order of the tasks.

[0018] In a preferred embodiment, the system further includes a user interface display module and a data storage module. The user interface display module includes page display components, and the data storage module includes a database.

[0019] The page display component interacts with the material management module, workstation configuration module, split constraint configuration module, stack creation module, material splitting module, PLC address configuration module, and task assignment module. The page display component receives operation data from material configuration, workstation configuration, split constraint configuration, sub-recipe configuration, stack creation, and PLC address configuration, and displays material data, workstation parent-child relationships, the list of materials that each workstation can process, splitting and combination rules, error-proofing combination rules, full-book stacks, end-book stacks, material allocation results, full-book task arrays and end-book task arrays for each workstation, and task assignment status.

[0020] The database is used to store material data, parent-child relationships of workstations, material lists that can be processed by each workstation, splitting and combining rules, error-proofing combination rules, sub-formula data, full-book stacking data, end-book stacking data, material allocation results, PLC address data, full-book quantity and end-book quantity of each material, full-book task array and end-book task array of each workstation, and the number of full-book tasks and the number of end-book tasks.

[0021] The material management module, workstation configuration module, split constraint configuration module, stacked structure creation module, and PLC address configuration module write the corresponding configuration data into the database. The material splitting module reads material data, workstation configuration data, split constraint data, and stacked structure data from the database, and writes the material allocation results, the full and final quantities of each material, the full and final task arrays of each workstation, the full task quantity, and the final task quantity into the database. The task issuance module reads the data to be issued from the database, converts the material numbers in the task array into the corresponding issuance numbers, and writes the converted task arrays and quantity data into the programmable logic controller according to the corresponding PLC address.

[0022] The workstation configuration module in this embodiment is also used to configure the workstation allocation of materials. Specifically, based on the number of workstations, the hierarchical relationship of workstations, and the material handling capacity of each workstation in the actual project, a list of materials that can be handled is configured for each workstation to specify that different materials in the stack are provided or processed by the corresponding workstation.

[0023] Reference Figure 2 As shown, the stacked structure splitting and task assignment process includes: the stacked structure creation module receives the layer structure information of the stacked structure to be produced, encodes the number and quantity of each layer's materials into material entries, and connects them in layer order to form a material string; the material splitting module first performs a validity check on the material string according to the error-proof combination rules; after the check passes, the parsed material entries are set to an unassigned state, and each workstation is traversed in the order from the last-level sub-workstation through each level of parent workstation to the root workstation, matching the unassigned material entries with the current workstation's processable material list; the successfully matched material entries are assigned to the current workstation and set to an assigned state, and the assigned material entries no longer participate in the matching of subsequent parent workstations; after the workstation allocation is completed, the material splitting module generates a corresponding task array according to the splitting and combination rules applicable to each workstation; the task assignment module converts the material numbers in the task array into assignment numbers and writes them into task data according to the address configured by the PLC address configuration module.

[0024] In one specific implementation, each layer of material in the stack to be produced forms a material entry in the form of "material number: quantity". The material number is used to identify the material type, and the material quantity is used to indicate the quantity of the corresponding material used in the current layer. The material number and the material quantity are separated by a colon ":", and adjacent material entries are separated by a vertical bar "|". The material entries are connected sequentially according to the layer order in the stack to be produced to form a material string.

[0025] For example, a material string like "A1:2|B1:1|C1:2" indicates that there are three materials in sequence: material A1 (2 quantities), material B1 (1 quantity), and material C1 (2 quantities). When parsing the material string, the material splitting module first divides the string into multiple material entries using the vertical bar "|". Then, it uses the colon ":" to obtain the material number and quantity of each item. Finally, it determines the corresponding layer order based on the order of the material entries in the material string, thus forming an ordered list of material entries including material number, quantity, and layer order, for subsequent workstation allocation and task array generation.

[0026] The material management module is used to add, modify, and delete materials, and to create material data for each type of material; The material data includes material number, material name, issuance number, and display color of the material in the stacked display. For example, material number A1 corresponds to the material name copper foil, the PLC issuance number is 101, and the display color is yellow; material number B1 corresponds to the material name core board, the PLC issuance number is 102, and the display color is blue. The issuance number is used by the task issuance module to enable the programmable logic controller to identify the corresponding material when issuing tasks.

[0027] Specifically, the final convergence station L3 can be established first, followed by intermediate stations L2-1 and L2-2 under L3, and then lower-level stations L1-1 and L1-2 under the intermediate stations. When a new station is added, it is associated with its corresponding direct parent station; when a station is deleted, the station and its subordinate sub-stations are deleted simultaneously; when a station is renamed, the data referencing the station name is updated simultaneously to avoid inconsistencies in the names of the same station in the bill of materials, task array, or address table.

[0028] The workstation configuration module configures a list of processable materials for each workstation according to the workstation hierarchy. The list of processable materials for the direct parent workstation serves as a limit on the range of selectable materials for its child workstations. When configuring processable materials, child workstations can only select from materials already included in their parent workstations. For example, if the final merging workstation L3 can process materials A1, B1, and C1, the intermediate workstation L2-1 can select A1 and B1 from A1, B1, and C1 as processable materials, and the bottom-level workstation L1-1 can then select A1 from A1 and B1 included in L2-1. If a child workstation selects a material not included in its parent workstation, the system will output a configuration error message and refuse to save the current material configuration.

[0029] The splitting and combining rules configured by the splitting constraint configuration module include: Allow combinations of material numbers to be combined into the same gripping task and the corresponding applicable workstations; for example, rule R1 indicates that materials A1 and B1 can be combined into the same gripping task at workstation L2-1; rule R2 indicates that materials C1 and D1 can be combined into the same gripping task at workstation L2-2.

[0030] Specifically, each splitting and combining rule is used to establish a correspondence between the applicable workstation and the material number combinations that are allowed to be combined into the same gripping task. When the material splitting module generates a task array for the current workstation, it first determines the splitting and combining rule applicable to the current workstation, and then matches the material entries in the material substring corresponding to the current workstation with the material number combinations limited by the splitting and combining rule.

[0031] When the material substring of the current workstation contains each material number defined by the splitting and combining rules, and the corresponding material items are all in an uncombined state, it is determined that the splitting and combining rules are satisfied, and the corresponding material items are merged to form a single pick-up task for the current workstation; when any material number defined by the splitting and combining rules is missing, or the corresponding material item is already in a combined state, the current material item is not combined according to the splitting and combining rules.

[0032] For example, the split-combination rule R1 restricts materials A1 and B1 to be combined at workstation L2-1 to form the same gripping task. When both materials A1 and B1 are in an uncombined state in the material substring corresponding to workstation L2-1, it is determined that the split-combination rule R1 is satisfied, and the corresponding material entries A1 and B1 are combined to form a task; when only A1 or only B1 exists in the material substring, the split-combination rule R1 is not satisfied, and the corresponding material entries continue to participate in other split-combination rule matching applicable to workstation L2-1.

[0033] The error-proofing combination rules are used to restrict material number combinations that are prohibited from coexisting in the same stack. Each error-proofing combination rule corresponds to a prohibited material number combination. Before generating the task array for each workstation, the material splitting module performs error-proofing verification on the material string. Specifically, the material splitting module extracts the material number of each material item from the ordered list of material items obtained by parsing the material string, and compares the extracted material number with the prohibited material number combinations corresponding to each error-proofing combination rule in sequence.

[0034] When all material numbers defined by a certain error-proofing combination rule exist in the current material string, it is determined that the current material string matches the error-proofing combination rule; when at least one error-proofing combination rule is matched, it is determined that the current stack to be produced has failed the error-proofing check, an illegal stack prompt including the corresponding conflicting material numbers is output, and the generation of task arrays for each workstation is stopped; when none of the error-proofing combination rules are matched, it is determined that the current stack to be produced has passed the error-proofing check, and the subsequent workstation material allocation continues.

[0035] For example, the mistake-proofing combination rule F1 restricts the coexistence of materials D1 and E1. When both materials D1 and E1 exist in the ordered material entry list obtained from parsing the material string, it is determined that the mistake-proofing combination rule F1 has been hit. The material splitting module outputs a prompt that the combination of materials D1 and E1 is illegal and stops generating task arrays for each workstation. When only materials D1 or only materials E1 exist in the ordered material entry list, it is determined that the mistake-proofing combination rule F1 has not been hit.

[0036] When the current material string matches two or more error-proofing combination rules at the same time, the material splitting module determines the conflicting material number corresponding to each matched error-proofing combination rule, and uniformly determines that the current stack to be produced has not passed the error-proofing verification, and stops the subsequent workstation material allocation and task array generation.

[0037] The stack creation module is also used to call a pre-established sub-recipe to create a stack to be produced, wherein the sub-recipe is formed by repeated stack fragments; For example, if “A1:2|B1:1” is saved as sub-formulation SF1, and SF1 is entered three times when creating a stack, the stack creation module will expand it into “A1:2|B1:1|A1:2|B1:1|A1:2|B1:1”, and the expanded result will be converted into a material string as part of the layer structure information.

[0038] The stacking creation module generates full-size stacking data based on the material settings for each layer, and generates end-size stacking data based on the total number of core boards in the current work order and the end-size replenishment mode. The number of full-size core boards is determined based on the number of core board layers in the full-size stacking data. The number of full-size stacks and the number of end-size core boards are determined based on the total number of core boards in the current work order and the number of full-size core boards. Specifically, the integer quotient obtained by dividing the total number of core boards in the current work order by the number of full-size core boards is determined as the number of full-size stacks, and the corresponding remainder is determined as the number of end-size core boards.

[0039] For example, when the full-length stack data contains 8 core boards, the number of full-length core boards is 8. When the total number of core boards in the current work order is 25, the integer quotient of 25 divided by 8 is 3 and the remainder is 1. Therefore, the number of full-length core boards is determined to be 3, and the number of core boards in the end-of-line core board is 1. The end-of-line core board replenishment mode includes extracting the remaining layers according to the full-length stack order. For example, if the full-length stack is an 8-layer structure and the number of core boards in the end-of-line core board is 1, the end-of-line core board takes the first layer of the full-length stack. The full-length stack data and the end-of-line stack data are respectively encoded into full-length material strings and end-of-line material strings, so that the material splitting module can generate full-length task arrays and end-of-line task arrays respectively.

[0040] When the material splitting module assigns material items to each workstation, it first parses the material items in the material string to obtain the material number, quantity and layer order of each material item, and sets the assignment status for each material item. The initial assignment status is unassigned.

[0041] The material splitting module traverses each workstation in the order of the last-level sub-workstation, through each parent workstation, to the root workstation. When traversing the current workstation, it matches unassigned material items with the current workstation's processable material list. If a match is successful, the corresponding material item is assigned to the current workstation, and its assignment status is updated to assigned. Material items in the assigned state no longer participate in subsequent parent workstation material matching.

[0042] When the same material item is matched with both the parent station and the child station, the material item is first assigned and updated to the assigned status during the matching process of the child station, and the parent station will no longer acquire the material item thereafter. After each child station completes the material matching, the parent station will match the material items that are still in the unassigned state with its list of materials that it can process.

[0043] After completing the traversal of all workstations, the material items assigned to the same workstation are arranged according to their hierarchical order in the material string to form the material substring of the corresponding workstation; if there are still material items in the unassigned state, a prompt indicating that the material cannot be assigned, including the corresponding material number, is output, and the generation of task arrays for each workstation is stopped.

[0044] For example, if the material string is "A1:2|B1:1|C1:2", workstation L2-1 can process A1 and B1, and workstation L2-2 can process C1, then the material splitting module will assign materials A1 and B1 to workstation L2-1, forming the material substring "A1:2|B1:1" corresponding to L2-1; and assign material C1 to workstation L2-2, forming the material substring "C1:2" corresponding to L2-2.

[0045] For example, workstation L3 is the root workstation and can process materials A1, B1, and C1. Workstation L2-1 is a sub-workstation of workstation L3 and can process materials A1 and B1. When material A1 is matched with both workstation L3 and workstation L2-1, the material splitting module first assigns material A1 to workstation L2-1 during the matching process and sets material A1 to the assigned state. When traversing workstation L3 subsequently, material A1 is no longer assigned to workstation L3, thereby avoiding the same material item being repeatedly assigned to both the parent and child workstations.

[0046] When generating the task array for the corresponding workstation, the material splitting module first obtains the material substring corresponding to the current workstation and determines the splitting and combination rules applicable to the current workstation from the splitting and combination rules. The material splitting module sets the combination status for each material item in the material substring, and the initial combination status of each material item is uncombined.

[0047] The material splitting module sequentially matches uncombined material items using splitting and combining rules applicable to the current workstation. For the currently matched splitting and combining rule, it obtains the material number combination defined by the rule and determines whether the material items currently in the uncombined state also contain material items corresponding to the aforementioned material number combination.

[0048] When all material items corresponding to the material number combination exist simultaneously, the corresponding multiple material items are combined into the same task, and the combination status of each material item participating in the current task combination is updated from uncombined to combined; after completing the matching of the current splitting and combining rule, other splitting and combining rules applicable to the current workstation are used to match the remaining uncombined material items.

[0049] Material items that have been updated to a combined status will no longer participate in the matching of subsequent splitting and combining rules, ensuring that the same material item is assigned to only one task. When the same material item can satisfy more than two splitting and combining rules simultaneously, after the material item completes task combination through one of the splitting and combining rules and is updated to a combined status, the material item will no longer participate in the matching of the remaining splitting and combining rules.

[0050] After completing the matching of all splitting and combining rules applicable to the current workstation, the material splitting module will generate separate tasks for each material item that is still in an uncombined state. For combined tasks formed by splitting and combining rules, a task includes two or more material items that can be picked up in the same grab at the current workstation; for material items that have not been combined according to the splitting and combining rules, a single material item will form a separate task.

[0051] The material splitting module generates a task array for the corresponding workstation according to the order of each material item in the material substring, and counts the number of tasks for the corresponding workstation based on the number of tasks in the task array. Each task includes at least the material number and quantity corresponding to a single grab at the current workstation. A task formed by combining multiple material items includes the material numbers and corresponding quantities of each material participating in the combination.

[0052] Taking the material substring "A1:2|B1:1" of workstation L2-1 as an example, if the splitting and combining rule R1 allows material A1 and material B1 to be combined in workstation L2-1, then the material splitting module will merge material A1 and material B1 into task 1 and set material A1 and material B1 to the combined state, resulting in task 1 as {A1:2, B1:1}, with a corresponding workstation task quantity of 1.

[0053] Furthermore, taking the material substring "A1:1|B1:1|C1:1" corresponding to the current workstation L2-1 as an example, there are two splitting and combining rules for the current workstation that can involve material A1. One splitting and combining rule restricts material A1 and material B1 to be combined to form the same gripping task, and the other splitting and combining rule restricts material A1 and material C1 to be combined to form the same gripping task. When material A1 and material B1 are combined to form task 1 according to one of the splitting and combining rules, the material splitting module updates the A1 material item and the B1 material item participating in task 1 to the combined state.

[0054] When continuing to match the splitting and combining rules, since material item A1 is already in a combined state, it will no longer participate in the matching of the splitting and combining rules corresponding to A1 and C1. Material C1 remains in an uncombined state. After completing the matching of all splitting and combining rules, material C1 will be grouped into Task 2 separately. Thus, Task 1 is {A1:1, B1:1}, and Task 2 is {C1:1}, avoiding the same material item A1 being combined into two tasks simultaneously.

[0055] If the material substring of workstation L2-2 is “C1:2|A1:1”, and there is no corresponding splitting and combining rule applicable to workstation L2-2, then material C1 and material A1 remain uncombined. The material splitting module will take material C1 as task 1 and material A1 as task 2, resulting in task 1 being {C1:2} and task 2 being {A1:1}, with a corresponding workstation task quantity of 2.

[0056] After generating the full-book task array and the end-book task array, the material splitting module calculates the full-book quantity and end-book quantity of each material. Specifically, the module iterates through all material entries in the full-book material string, summing the number of occurrences of the same material number across all layers to obtain the quantity of that material in a single full-book; it also iterates through all material entries in the end-book material string, summing the number of occurrences of the same material number in the end-book to obtain the quantity of that material in the end-book. For example, if the full-book material string is "A1:2|B1:1|C1:2", then the full-book quantity of material A1 is 2, the full-book quantity of material B1 is 1, and the full-book quantity of material C1 is 2; if the end-book material string is "A1:2", then the end-book quantity of material A1 is 2. The full-book quantity of each material is written to the corresponding full-book material quantity address configured by the PLC address configuration module, and the end-book quantity of each material is written to the corresponding end-book material quantity address, allowing the programmable logic controller to calculate the usage of each material separately for full-book and end-book calculations.

[0057] When adding a new material, the PLC address configuration module configures the full-volume material quantity address and the end-volume material quantity address for that material. When adding a new workstation, it configures the full-volume task start address, end-volume task start address, full-volume task quantity address, and end-volume task quantity address for that workstation.

[0058] For example, the address of the full book quantity of material A1 is D100, and the address of the end book quantity is D101; the address of the full book task start for workstation L2-1 is D200, the address of the end book task start is D300, the address of the full book task quantity is D210, and the address of the end book task quantity is D310.

[0059] Before writing the full task array and the last task array, the task assignment module converts the material number in each task into an assignment number that can be recognized by the programmable logic controller (PLC) based on the correspondence between the material number and the assignment number maintained by the material management module, and writes the converted assignment number and the corresponding material quantity into the corresponding PLC address.

[0060] In this embodiment, each task is written into a contiguous address space according to a preset format. Specifically, each task first writes the quantity of material items within the task, and subsequent addresses are written in pairs according to "material issuance number, material quantity". For example, if task 1 is {A1:2, B1:1}, the issuance number of A1 is 101, and the issuance number of B1 is 102, then the task starting address D200 of workstation L2-1 stores the quantity of material items 2, D201 stores the issuance number 101 of A1, D202 stores the quantity 2, D203 stores the issuance number 102 of B1, and D204 stores the quantity 1. If the quantity of material items within a task changes, the number of contiguous addresses occupied by that task changes accordingly, and the next task continues writing from the address occupied by the previous task.

[0061] Specifically, the task distribution module first distributes the full-capacity task data, which means writing the full-capacity quantity of each material to the corresponding full-capacity material quantity address, writing the full-capacity task array of each workstation to the corresponding full-capacity task start address, and writing the full-capacity task quantity of each workstation to the corresponding full-capacity task quantity address; after the full-capacity task data is distributed, the final-capacity task data is then distributed, which means writing the final-capacity quantity of each material to the corresponding final-capacity material quantity address, writing the final-capacity task array of each workstation to the corresponding final-capacity task start address, and writing the final-capacity task quantity of each workstation to the corresponding final-capacity task quantity address.

[0062] Specifically, after the programmable logic controller (PLC) completes the execution of the current batch of tasks, it will set the allow-to-issue signal. After the task issuance module detects the allow-to-issue signal, it will write the full or final quantity of each material to be issued, the full or final task array of each workstation, and the corresponding task quantity into the corresponding PLC address. After the PLC completes the reading, it will reset the allow-to-issue signal to avoid the task data being repeatedly written or overwritten before the reading is completed.

[0063] Through the above implementation methods, the production stack does not require the development of a new PLC program for each stack. Instead, the system automatically generates a workstation task array based on material data, workstation hierarchy, splitting and combining rules, and mistaken-proofing combination rules. This array is then written into the programmable logic controller (PLC) via the PLC address configuration module. This allows the equipment to adapt to the production needs of different stacks, reducing the workload of repetitive PLC program development and debugging. The above description illustrates and describes the basic principles, main features, and advantages of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should understand that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. The embodiments and descriptions in the specification are merely principles of the invention. Various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such changes and modifications fall within the scope of the claimed invention. The scope of protection of this invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks, characterized in that, include: The materials management module is used to maintain the material number and issuance number of each material; The workstation configuration module is used to build a multi-level workstation structure with parent-child relationships, with the final material collection workstation as the root workstation, and to configure a list of materials that can be processed for each workstation. The list of materials that can be processed for a child workstation is limited to the list of materials that can be processed for its direct parent workstation. The split constraint configuration module is used to configure split combination rules and mistaken-proof combination rules; The stacked structure creation module is used to encode the number and quantity of materials in each layer into material entries based on the layer structure information of the stacked structure to be produced, and connect them in the order of the layers to form a material string; The material splitting module is used to verify the material string according to the error-proof combination rules, and match the material items in the material string with the processable material list of each workstation in the order from the last-level sub-workstation through each level of parent workstation to the root workstation. When the same material item matches both the parent workstation and the sub-workstation, the material item is first assigned to the sub-workstation and marked as assigned, so that the material item will no longer participate in the subsequent material matching of the parent workstation. Then, the task array of each workstation is generated according to the material items assigned to each workstation and the corresponding splitting combination rules. The PLC address configuration module is used to configure the PLC address corresponding to the task array of each workstation. The task assignment module is used to convert the material numbers in the task array of each workstation into the corresponding assignment numbers, and write the converted task arrays into the corresponding PLC addresses to drive each workstation to perform material handling and stacking operations in the order of the tasks.

2. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 1, characterized in that, The material management module is used to add, modify, and delete materials, and to create material data for each type of material; The material data includes material number, material name, issuance number, and the display color of the material in the overlay display. The issuance number is used by the programmable logic controller to identify the corresponding material when the task issuance module issues a task.

3. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 1, characterized in that, The workstation configuration module establishes a multi-level workstation structure in the order from the final material collection workstation to the next-level workstation; The final material collection station is the root station. Each non-root station is associated with a direct parent station, and the station level of each station is determined according to the association between each non-root station and its corresponding direct parent station. When a new workstation is added, it is associated with its corresponding direct parent workstation; when a workstation is deleted, the workstation and all its subordinate workstations are deleted simultaneously; when a workstation is renamed, the data referencing the workstation name is updated simultaneously to avoid workstation name reference conflicts.

4. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 1, characterized in that, The workstation configuration module configures a list of processable materials for each workstation according to the workstation hierarchy. When the material selected for a sub-station is not in the list of processable materials of its direct parent station, the station configuration module outputs a material configuration error message and refuses to save the list of processable materials of the sub-station for this material configuration.

5. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 1, characterized in that, The splitting and combining rules configured by the splitting constraint configuration module include: Allows combination of material numbers and corresponding applicable workstations to be grouped into the same gripping task; The error-proof combination rules include prohibiting material number combinations from coexisting in the same stack; when there is a material combination that conforms to the error-proof combination rules in the material string generated by the stack creation module, the material splitting module outputs an illegal stack prompt and stops generating task arrays for each workstation.

6. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 1, characterized in that, The stack creation module is also used to call a pre-established sub-recipe to create a stack to be produced, wherein the sub-recipe is formed by repeated stack fragments; When creating a stack to be produced, the stack creation module generates corresponding layer structure information based on the sub-formula and its repetition count, and converts the generated layer structure information into a material string.

7. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 1, characterized in that, The stacking creation module generates full-length stacking data based on the material settings of each layer, and generates end-length stacking data based on the total number of core boards in the current work order and the end-length replenishment mode. The full-length stacked data and the end-length stacked data are encoded into full-length material strings and end-length material strings, respectively, so that the material splitting module can generate full-length task arrays and end-length task arrays, respectively.

8. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 1, characterized in that, When the material splitting module assigns material items to each workstation, it first parses the material items in the material string to obtain the material number, quantity and layer order of each material, and sets the parsed material items to an unassigned state. Then, traverse each station in the order from the last substation to the root station, match the unassigned material items with the current station's processable material list, assign the matched material items to the current station, and set the material items to the assigned state. Material items that are already assigned will no longer participate in subsequent material matching at the parent station. The parent station will only match material items that are still unassigned after all its child stations have completed the matching process. Material items assigned to the same workstation are arranged according to their hierarchical order in the material string to form the corresponding workstation's material substring; After completing material matching for all workstations, if there are still unassigned material entries, an error message indicating that the material cannot be assigned will be output, and the generation of task arrays for each workstation will be stopped.

9. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 8, characterized in that, When generating the task array for the corresponding workstation, the material splitting module matches the material substrings of each workstation with the splitting and combination rules, and selects the splitting and combination rules applicable to the current workstation from the splitting and combination rules. When multiple material items meet the splitting and combining rules, the multiple material items are merged into the same task, and the material items merged into the task are marked as combined, so that the combined material items will no longer participate in the matching of subsequent splitting and combining rules; If a material item does not meet any splitting and combining rule, the material item will be treated as a separate task. The material splitting module generates a task array for the corresponding workstation according to the order of the material items in the material substring, and counts the number of tasks for the corresponding workstation based on the number of tasks in the task array. Each task includes the material number and quantity picked up by the corresponding workstation in a single operation.

10. A system for splitting an arbitrary stacked structure into designated workstation tasks according to claim 7, characterized in that, The material splitting module counts the quantity of each material in the full-book material string and the end-book material string respectively, and counts the quantity of full-book tasks and the quantity of end-book tasks for each workstation according to the full-book task array and the end-book task array respectively. When adding a new material, the PLC address configuration module configures the full-book material quantity address and the end-book material quantity address of the material; when adding a new workstation, it configures the full-book task start address, end-book task start address, full-book task quantity address, and end-book task quantity address of the workstation. After receiving the feedback signal that the programmable logic controller allows the task dispatching module to dispatch the material numbers in the full task array and the end task array to the corresponding dispatching number, and write the full quantity of each material, the end quantity of each material, the full task array, the end task array, the full task quantity, and the end task quantity of each workstation into the corresponding PLC address. The system also includes an interface display module and a data storage module. The interface display module is used to display material data, parent-child relationships of workstations, material lists that can be processed at each workstation, full book stacking, end book stacking, material allocation results, task arrays of each workstation, and task issuance status. The data storage module is used to store material data, parent-child relationships of workstations, material lists that can be processed at each workstation, splitting and combining rules, error-proofing combination rules, full-book stacking data, end-book stacking data, PLC address data, full-book task arrays, end-book task arrays, number of full-book tasks, and number of end-book tasks for each workstation.

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