Product life cycle assessment system and carbon emission calculation system during manufacturing

Abstract

To estimate, with higher accuracy, secondary result quantities such as carbon emissions accompanying activities including manufacturing in the product life cycle, by using design data such as CAD data of a product.SOLUTION: For example, in the case of estimating carbon emissions at the time of product manufacturing: (2) feature data such as dimensions and materials that affect the cycle time of a product are obtained from design data 1; (3) a plurality of manufacturing process steps are identified, and feature data associated with each process step are specified; (4) using the feature data of each process step, the working time and waiting time of each process step are calculated; (5) based on the working time and waiting time of each process step, carbon emissions during working and waiting in each process step are calculated; and (6) the calculation results are displayed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a system for product life cycle assessment, for example, a system applicable to estimate the amount of side effects (e.g., carbon emissions, electricity consumption, economic changes, material changes, harmful by-products, or beneficial by-products) associated with certain aspects of a product life cycle (e.g., activities such as raw material procurement, manufacturing, use, consumption, maintenance, disposal, or recycling).

[0002] The present invention relates to a system for calculating, for example, carbon emissions during the manufacture of a product. [Background technology]

[0003] Assessment and management of product life cycles are becoming increasingly important for environmental protection and reducing environmental impact. In this field, a system for assessing the environmental impact of products manufactured by designers is described in Patent Document 1 below. This publication states, "An environmental impact assessment system comprising: an input means for accepting input operations; a display means for displaying information using images; an environmental impact assessment means for assessing a plurality of different environmental impact indicators; an index integration means for integrating the results of the assessments for each of the indicators evaluated by the environmental impact assessment means to calculate a numerical value for a single indicator; a data recording means for recording and storing electronic information and configured to allow the environmental impact assessment means and the index integration means to reference the stored electronic information; and a control means for controlling the system, wherein the environmental impact assessment means comprises a global warming impact calculation means for calculating the degree of impact on global warming, a hazardous substance risk calculation means for calculating the degree of risk related to hazardous substances, and a resource productivity impact calculation means for calculating the degree of impact on resource productivity."

[0004] A system for evaluating the environment of a production process is described in the following Patent Document 2. This publication states, "A production process evaluation system comprising a production process acquisition means for acquiring the production process when producing a product to be designed based on CAD data of the product, a production process evaluation means for calculating and evaluating the environmental impact value of the production process based on the details of the production process acquired by the production process acquisition means, an LCA evaluation means for evaluating the life cycle assessment of the product to be designed including the evaluation results by the production process evaluation means, and an evaluation output means for outputting the evaluation results by the production process evaluation means or the LCA evaluation means, wherein the production process evaluation system encourages changes to the production process based on the evaluation results output by the evaluation output means." [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2007-72708 [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2002-189511 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Evaluating the environmental impact, including carbon emissions during product manufacturing, is not only an element in conducting product life cycle assessments, but also an important initiative in achieving carbon neutrality for factories. Product manufacturing involves multiple processes, from raw materials to assembled products. A product's manufacturing process is largely determined by product specifications, which are determined in the development and design stages, which are upstream in the engineering chain. In order to reduce the environmental impact of the manufacturing process, it is necessary to not only reduce the direct CO2 emissions and power consumption of manufacturing equipment, but also to implement eco-design at the design stage that can reduce power consumption during the manufacturing process. Technology is needed to share information about equipment and processes from downstream manufacturing processes with upstream design processes, allowing for the visualization and prediction of the environmental impact of manufacturing during the design stage.

[0007] The aforementioned Patent Document 1 discloses a life cycle assessment system that can evaluate the environmental impact of a product. The system has the function of calculating the degree of impact on global warming, the degree of risk of hazardous substances, and the degree of impact on resource productivity throughout the product's life cycle.

[0008] However, in actual product development, the environmental impact is determined by the design specifications decided at the design stage. A system that assumes that developers, designers, and other responsible parties will conduct life cycle assessments at the design stage is important. It is necessary to create an eco-design environment in which designers can optimize design specifications while evaluating the environmental impact during manufacturing at the design stage, based on information that is easily accessible to them.

[0009] Patent Document 1 does not mention in detail the environmental impact during manufacturing when conducting a life cycle assessment, nor does it mention in detail the information required to calculate the environmental impact during manufacturing. In order to actually calculate the environmental impact during manufacturing, detailed information on the product's materials, shape, type of manufacturing process, and equipment is required, making it difficult to achieve designer-led eco-design (environmentally conscious design).

[0010] The aforementioned Patent Document 2 provides a production process evaluation system that calculates production processes based on CAD data and performs life cycle assessments. By extracting process information from CAD and CAM information and using BOM information, it is possible to determine the environmental impact of the entire product, including all parts.

[0011] When calculating the environmental impact of a manufacturing process, it is necessary to obtain detailed information about the time that the equipment operates. The amount of electricity consumed differs between when the equipment is actually processing and when it is idle and not processing. It also varies depending on the equipment's operating rate.

[0012] However, Patent Document 2 does not mention the operating hours of the equipment for each process, and instead uses a method for calculating energy consumption from the mechanical energy of the manufacturing process. As a result, it is not possible to accurately track changes in operating hours and standby times that occur when manufacturing equipment is changed due to changes in design specifications, making it difficult to more accurately predict the environmental impact during manufacturing in order to achieve eco-design.

[0013] One objective is to make it easier for product designers to participate in product life cycle assessments and achieve eco-design.

[0014] Another objective is to improve the accuracy of product life cycle assessments.

[0015] Another objective is to make it easier for various stakeholders in the supply chain, including product designers, to participate in product life cycle assessments, share information about them, and contribute to product life cycle management. [Means for solving the problem]

[0016] A product life cycle assessment system according to one embodiment is directed to estimating the amount of a secondary consequence occurring in an activity in a product life cycle. The system includes: a feature data extraction unit that receives design data of the product and extracts, from the design data, one or more feature data of the product that affect the secondary consequence; a process setting unit that identifies one or more processes included in the activity and identifies feature data associated with each process based on the extracted feature data; a time processing unit that calculates the working time of a worker in each process using the feature data associated with each process; a calculation unit that calculates the amount of the secondary consequence occurring in the one or more processes based on the working time in those processes; and a visualization unit that displays the calculation results of the calculation unit.

[0017] A manufacturing carbon emissions calculation system according to one embodiment is designed to calculate carbon emissions generated during the manufacture of a product. The system includes: a design data storage unit that stores design data for the product; a feature data extraction unit that extracts, from the design data, one or more feature data items of the product that affect the product's cycle time; a manufacturing process setting unit that identifies one or more steps included in the product's manufacturing process, identifies feature data associated with each step based on the extracted feature data, and stores the identified one or more steps and their associated feature data; a cycle time processing unit that calculates the operating time of the manufacturing equipment for each step based on the feature data associated with each step using a calculation method for each step; a calculation unit that calculates the carbon emissions for each step based on the operating time for each step; and a visualization unit that displays the calculation results.

[0018] The above-mentioned manufacturing carbon emissions calculation system may be configured to calculate not only the working time of the manufacturing equipment in each process but also the standby time of the manufacturing equipment, and calculate the carbon emissions of each process using the working time and standby time of each process. The calculation of the standby time of each process can be performed based on the product production plan and the working time of each process.

[0019] According to one embodiment of the system, product life cycle assessment can be performed more accurately, which makes it easier for product designers to participate in product life cycle assessment and realize eco-design.

[0020] Problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of a product life cycle assessment system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 shows the configuration and operation flow of a product life cycle assessment system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] An example of a table in which multiple processes for a target product and sets of characteristic data for each process are registered is shown below. [Figure 4] 10 shows details of the control flow of the cycle time processing unit. [Figure 5] 10 shows details of the control flow of the carbon emission calculation unit. [Figure 6] 1 shows an example of a GUI (Graphical User Interface) of a manufacturing carbon emissions calculation system. [Figure 7] 1 shows a functional configuration of a product life cycle assessment system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 shows a functional configuration of a product life cycle assessment system according to a third embodiment. [Figure 9] 10 shows an example of information sharing through a network in a product life cycle assessment system according to a third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] Below, product life cycle assessment systems according to several embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. Although the systems according to all of the embodiments described below are intended to estimate and calculate carbon emissions associated with the manufacture of products, their purpose, configuration, and function are merely examples for the purpose of explanation.

[0023] The present invention may be implemented as a system for other purposes without departing from the spirit of the present invention, i.e., as a system for estimating the amount of by-products (e.g., carbon emissions, power consumption, economic changes, material changes, harmful by-products, or beneficial by-products) that occur in other activities in a product life cycle (e.g., raw material procurement, use, consumption, maintenance, disposal, or recycling). For examples of the configuration and functions of embodiments for such other purposes, those skilled in the art should be able to understand the configuration and functions of the embodiments by replacing "manufacturing" in the following description of the embodiments with the name of the activity for that purpose (e.g., raw material procurement, use, consumption, maintenance, disposal, or recycling, etc.), replacing "carbon emissions" in the following description with the name of a secondary result for that other purpose (e.g., carbon emissions, electricity consumption, economic change, material change, harmful by-product, or beneficial by-product, etc.), replacing "manufacturing equipment" or "equipment" in the following description with the name of a worker, organization, tool, or equipment engaged in an activity for that other purpose, and replacing "processing" in the following description with the name of a task performed by that worker in an activity for that other purpose.

[0024] Furthermore, the present invention may be implemented as a system having a configuration and functions that are partially or entirely different from those understood from the description of this specification without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0025] As a first embodiment, an example of a product life cycle assessment system for predictively calculating carbon emissions during product manufacturing will be described below. Fig. 1 shows an example of the hardware configuration of the system according to the first embodiment. Fig. 2 shows the functional configuration and operation flow of the system according to the first embodiment.

[0026] 1, a system 100 according to the first embodiment is configured by a computer system 110 including an arithmetic processing unit 101, a storage device 102, a communication device 103, and a communication bus 104 that interconnects them so that they can communicate with each other. The system 100 realizes the functional configuration and operations described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6, for example, by the arithmetic processing unit 101 of the computer system 110 executing a computer program (not shown) stored in the storage device 102.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 2, the system 100 has, as functional components, a design database 1, a feature data extraction unit 2, a manufacturing process setting unit 3, a cycle time processing unit 4, a carbon emission calculation unit 5, and a carbon emission visualization unit 6.

[0028] Design data for one or more products (finished products, intermediate products, or individual components that make them up, etc.) is stored in the design database 1. The design data is typically CAD data created using CAD (Computer Aided Design), but design data created by means other than CAD can also be used as long as it is created in a data format that can be read and processed by a machine such as a computer. The design data, such as CAD data, defines the shape and dimensions of each processing point of the product that will be processed in each step of the manufacturing process.

[0029] The feature data extraction unit 2 reads design data (typically a model file defining the shape and dimensions of each part of the product) of a target product selected by a user from the design database 1 and extracts one or more feature data related to the product from the read design data. Here, feature data refers to data related to the product's specifications and indicates one or more feature items of the product that affect the product's manufacturing time (cycle time). For example, data indicating the shape or size of the product can be used as feature data. For example, in the case of a product with a hole drilled by a drill, the diameter, length, machining accuracy, and / or hardness of the hole can be used as feature data. For example, in the case of a round bar made by cutting, the diameter, length, machining accuracy, and / or hardness of the round bar can be used as feature data.

[0030] The feature data may include quantified (digitized) data such as size, weight, difficulty of processing (e.g., hardness), or processing accuracy. Furthermore, the feature data may also include non-quantified (i.e., qualitative) data such as the product's material, processing process type (processing method), or processing machine type. The feature data may be data included in the product's design data or readable from the design data. Furthermore, the feature data may be data provided from an information source other than the design data, such as manual input by a user or data provided from an external support tool such as CAM (Computer Aided Manufacturing).

[0031] The system 100 according to the embodiment may acquire feature data in various ways, including: first, a user manually inputting feature data into the system 100; second, acquiring feature data from design data using an external automated tool, such as CAM, that interacts with the system; and third, having the system decode the design data to identify the feature data. Depending on the type of feature data, any of these methods may be selected or combined. The third method may be realized by using an algorithm preprogrammed in the system to decode the design data, using a machine learning model that has previously learned how to decode the design data and identify the feature data, or a combination of these methods.

[0032] 2 uses the first, second, or third method to extract (identify) one or more pieces of feature data from the design data of the target product (e.g., the model file described above) automatically or with the assistance of a user. As described above, the feature data is data required to calculate the cycle time of each process for manufacturing the product.

[0033] For example, in the case of a drilling process that drills holes in metal material, the cycle time is calculated by dividing the hole depth by the tool feed rate. The calculation formula is, for example, the following formula (1). Tc = 60 × Lh / Fd (1)

[0034] Here, Tc is the cycle time (s), Lh is the hole depth (mm), and Fd is the drill feed rate (mm / min). Therefore, one of the feature data extracted from the design data is the hole depth Lh. The drill feed rate Fd can be determined, for example, from the material quality and machining accuracy of the workpiece. Therefore, if the design data includes data on the drill feed rate Fd or data on the material quality and machining accuracy, that data is also extracted as feature data.

[0035] In the case of a welding process, the cycle time can be calculated by dividing the length of the weld line by the welding speed, as shown in the following formula (2). Tc = Lw / Fw (2)

[0036] Here, Lw is the weld line length (mm) and Fw is the welding speed (mm / min). Therefore, one of the feature data extracted from the design data is the hole depth Lw. If the design data includes data on the welding speed Fw or element data for calculating it, that data is also extracted as feature data.

[0037] The feature data indicating dimensions such as Lh and Lw can be selected by automatic recognition processing or user assistance from the corresponding locations on the design data. On the other hand, the feature data such as the speed parameters Fd and Fw can be referenced if they are included in the design data as described above, or calculated from the element data included in the design data. Alternatively, the speed data for each process can be separately prepared in advance (for example, registered in the speed parameter base 16 shown in FIG. 4) and referenced.

[0038] The manufacturing process setting unit 3 sets (specifies) one or more processes included in the manufacturing process of the target product, sets (specifies) one or more feature data related to each process, and registers the one or more processes thus set and the feature data for each process in the process database 7 in the system 100 (see FIG. 4). FIG. 3 shows an example of the process database 7 in which multiple processes of the target product and sets of feature data for each process are registered.

[0039] In the example shown in FIG. 3, the database contains multiple "process names" and feature data for each process, such as the "material" of the part to be machined and multiple types of "feature quantities" (e.g., quantified feature data values such as various dimensions and machining accuracy) that affect the machining time. The feature quantities correspond to the edge length, surface area, etc. of each part in the design data, as set by the feature data extraction unit 2. For example, if the process is drilling, the feature quantities would be the hole depth extracted from the edge length, and if the process is welding, the feature quantities would be the weld line length extracted from the edge length. Since the feature quantity is not limited to one, the process database 7 may be a database that can be expanded to multiple (N) quantities.

[0040] The manufacturing process setting unit 3 can identify processes by, first, manually inputting the process name by the user, second, automatically identifying the process name based on the design data by the system (or by an external support tool linked to the system), or third, combining these methods. To realize the second method, first, a configuration in which the process is identified by a pre-programmed algorithm, or second, a configuration in which a machine learning model that has previously learned the method of identifying the process is used, or a combination of these configurations. The manufacturing process setting unit 3 classifies the feature data automatically extracted by the feature data extraction unit 2 and / or the feature data manually input by the user for each identified process, and creates a manufacturing process table such as the one shown in FIG. 3.

[0041] The cycle time processing unit 4 calculates the cycle time for each process set by the manufacturing process setting unit 3. Here, two types of time are calculated: the working time during which the manufacturing equipment actually performs processing, and the waiting time during which the manufacturing equipment is not performing processing but is powered on due to setup, standby, air cutting, etc.

[0042] FIG. 4 shows the control flow of the cycle time processing unit in detail.

[0043] The cycle time processing unit 4 reads the manufacturing processes and feature values from the feature value database 7 created by the manufacturing process setting unit 3 in step 10. With reference to the list of the read manufacturing processes, the cycle time processing unit 4 reads a calculation model for calculating the cycle time of each process in step 11. Here, the calculation model for each process is held in a cycle time calculation model base 15.

[0044] The cycle time calculation model base 15 stores cycle time calculation models for each of a plurality of types of processes. The cycle time calculation model for each process calculates the working time of the manufacturing equipment in each process when producing a predetermined number of target products (for example, one unit) using feature quantities related to that process. By inputting the feature quantities for each process into the cycle time calculation model for each process, the amount of processing required in the calculation formula for the working time of each process is calculated. The cycle time calculation model for each process calculates the amount of processing from feature quantities such as various dimensions of the product, for example.

[0045] Next, in step 12, the cycle time calculation model for each process reads parameter values other than the feature quantities (e.g., machining speed values) required for calculating the operation time. For example, in drilling and welding, the values of speed parameters such as the drill feed rate and welding speed are read from the speed parameter base 16. The speed parameter values for each process are, for example, registered in advance in the speed parameter base 16 and read from there. Alternatively, the speed parameters for each process may be calculated by the cycle time calculation model for each process based on feature data that affect the speed parameters, such as the material and machining accuracy, which are registered in the process database 7.

[0046] In step 13, the cycle time calculation model for each process calculates the working time, which is the time required for actual processing in each process, using the calculated processing amount and speed parameter value (processing speed value).

[0047] Electricity consumption that causes carbon emissions occurs even during standby time when manufacturing equipment is powered on and not processing. The cycle time calculation model for each process calculates the standby time for each process in step 14. To calculate the standby time, for example, information obtained from production plan data stored in production plan database 17 can be used. The production plan data stores information such as the actual operating time during which the manufacturing equipment is actually powered on for a certain period (e.g., each day) and the number of products produced. For example, if the manufacturing equipment for a certain process is powered on 24 hours a day, the standby time for that process (that manufacturing equipment) per product is calculated by dividing 24 hours a day by the number of products produced per day specified in production plan data 17, minus the above-mentioned working time per product for that process. For example, the standby time per product can be calculated using the following equation (3): Tidle = Ton / N - Tc (3)

[0048] Here, Tidle is the standby time, Ton is the actual operating time (the time the manufacturing equipment is turned on), and N is the number of units produced. Tc is the processing time per unit, which is the same value as the work time calculated in step 13 above.

[0049] The carbon emission calculation unit 5 calculates the carbon emission amount for each process when a predetermined number (for example, one) of target products are produced. FIG. 5 shows a detailed flow of the carbon emission calculation unit 5.

[0050] 5, a manufacturing equipment database 24 is prepared in advance in the system 100. In the manufacturing equipment database 24, the power consumption value (W) during operation (processing) and the power consumption value (W) during standby are registered for the manufacturing equipment of each process.

[0051] The carbon emission calculation unit 5 calculates the amount of power consumption (Wh) for each process when a predetermined number (for example, one) of target products are produced, using the power consumption values during operation and standby for each process, and the operation time and standby time calculated by the cycle time processing unit 4, as shown in Figure 5.

[0052] That is, in step 20, the carbon emission calculation unit 5 selects the i-th process and inputs the working time and standby time of the i-th process from the cycle time processing unit 4. In step 21, the power consumption value of the manufacturing equipment during operation for the i-th process is extracted. In step 22, the power consumption value of the manufacturing equipment during standby for the i-th process is extracted. Next, in step 23, the carbon emission amount for the i-th process is calculated. The carbon emission amount is calculated by multiplying the power consumption value during operation by the working time to obtain the power consumption during operation, multiplying the power consumption value during standby by the standby time to obtain the power consumption during standby, adding both power consumption amounts to obtain the total power consumption during actual operation time (time when the power is on), and then multiplying this total power consumption by a carbon emission conversion coefficient (i.e., a value indicating the amount of carbon emitted when producing a unit amount of electricity). For example, the carbon emission amount can be calculated using the following equation (4): Ce = B ×(Tidle×Pidle+Tc×Pc)···(4)

[0053] Here, Ce is the carbon emission amount, B is the carbon emission conversion coefficient, Tidle is the standby time, Pidle is the power consumption of the equipment while it is on standby, Tc is the processing time, and Pc is the power consumption of the equipment while it is processing. The carbon emission conversion coefficient B is a coefficient for converting the amount of power consumption into carbon emission amounts such as CO2. Carbon emission conversion coefficients by region (by power company) are registered in advance in the conversion coefficient database 25 of the system 100, and the carbon emission conversion coefficient for the region (power company) where each process is performed may be read from this database 25 and used in the above calculations.

[0054] Next, in step 26, the processed process number is confirmed, and if the above calculations have been completed for all processes necessary for manufacturing the target product, control proceeds to step 6, which visualizes carbon emissions. If the calculations are still in progress, control returns to step 20, and a similar calculation is started for the next process.

[0055] The carbon emission visualization unit 6 receives the calculation results from the carbon emission calculation unit 5, analyzes them, and displays the analysis results on the GUI of the system 100.

[0056] Fig. 6 shows an example of analysis results displayed on the GUI of system 100. As shown in Fig. 6, an operation procedure 30 showing the flow of the operation process by which the user operates system 100 to obtain the carbon emissions associated with the manufacture of the target product shown in Figs. 2 to 5, analysis results 31 comparing carbon emissions between processes and comparing carbon emissions between working time and waiting time in each process, etc. are displayed.

[0057] In the example of Figure 6, for example, the operation procedure 30 is shown on the left and the analysis result 31 is shown on the right. In Figure 6, the results of following the operation procedure 30 on the left step by step from the first step "Project name setting" to the fifth step "Carbon emission calculation" are output as the analysis result 31 on the right.

[0058] When operating the system 100, the user first selects the first step of the operating procedure 30 in this GUI and enters a project name on the screen (not shown) that appears. Next, the user selects the second step and loads the product design data. Next, the manufacturing process is set in the third step, and then the cycle time (e.g., work time and waiting time for each process) is calculated in the fourth step. Once these times are determined, the carbon emissions are calculated in the fifth step, and the analysis results 31 are displayed on the right. Finally, the user saves the project.

[0059] The analysis results 31 shown in Figure 6 are an example of a pie chart of carbon emission ratios and a bar graph showing the carbon emission amounts for each process. The pie chart makes it possible to identify which processes are bottlenecks with relatively large carbon emissions from the carbon emission ratios. The bar graph visualizes the carbon emissions during operation and standby for each process. As can be seen from the calculation process described with reference to Figures 2 to 5, the figures shown in the analysis results 31 are highly accurate. From this highly accurate information, users can accurately grasp the carbon emission amounts for each process.

[0060] The information displayed by this GUI is expected to help designers determine whether their designs are appropriate and consider design changes, and to help production managers determine whether their production plans are appropriate and consider plan changes, which will be useful in effectively reducing carbon emissions associated with product manufacturing.

[0061] FIG. 7 shows the functional configuration of a product life cycle assessment system according to the second embodiment.

[0062] The system 200 according to the second embodiment has the same configuration as the system 100 according to the first embodiment already described, and further includes an associated manufacturing process adding unit 40. The associated manufacturing process adding unit 40 can register one or more associated manufacturing processes that perform ancillary tasks such as assisting, correcting, supporting, or improving the processes (hereinafter referred to as basic manufacturing processes) that are directly related to the manufacture of the target product described in the first embodiment, and characteristic data related to those processes, in a database (for example, the process database 7 shown in FIG. 4) within the system 200 in the same manner as the basic manufacturing processes described above.

[0063] Examples of ancillary manufacturing processes include heat treatment (preheating or cooling) of a product or forging equipment performed before or after a forging process, which is one of the basic manufacturing processes, or a measurement process or defect inspection process performed between or after a basic manufacturing process. Another example of an ancillary manufacturing process is a process of polishing the surface of a weld bead with a sander or the like after welding, which is one of the basic manufacturing processes.

[0064] In product life cycle assessment, if a designer needs to understand and configure the detailed ancillary manufacturing processes described above in the system, the designer's workload increases and there is a risk that the designer may overlook important ancillary manufacturing processes. To address this issue, the ancillary manufacturing process adding unit 40 may be configured to automatically add ancillary manufacturing processes. For example, the ancillary manufacturing process adding unit 40 has an ancillary manufacturing process database 41 in which the ancillary manufacturing processes related to each basic manufacturing process are registered. The ancillary manufacturing process adding unit 40 then, for example, references the ancillary manufacturing process database 41 to identify ancillary manufacturing processes for each basic manufacturing process, identifies characteristic data related to each ancillary process, and registers the identified ancillary manufacturing processes and their associated characteristic data as additional processes in the process database 7. As a result, the working time and standby time for the ancillary manufacturing processes are calculated in the same way as for the basic manufacturing processes, and the carbon emissions during working and standby periods are calculated based on the results.

[0065] For at least some of the ancillary manufacturing processes, the carbon emissions may be calculated using a simpler method than for the basic manufacturing processes. For example, based on the carbon emissions calculated for a certain basic manufacturing process, the carbon emissions of the ancillary manufacturing processes associated with the basic manufacturing process may be calculated using a predetermined function for the ancillary manufacturing process. In this case, extraction of characteristic data and / or calculation of working time and waiting time for the ancillary manufacturing process may be omitted.

[0066] According to the system 200 of the second embodiment, by registering not only the basic manufacturing process but also the auxiliary manufacturing process in addition to the manufacturing process, it is possible to calculate carbon emissions with higher accuracy.

[0067] Fig. 8 shows the functional configuration of a product life cycle assessment system according to a third embodiment. In addition to the configuration of the first embodiment, the system 300 according to the third embodiment includes a network communication unit 50. Fig. 9 shows an example of a communication network 51 that provides resources of the system 300 according to the third embodiment to various users.

[0068] The network communication unit 50 enables various stakeholders (users) to access various resources of the system 300 (such as the various function processing units 2 to 6 shown in FIG. 8 and / or the data, parameters, models, and analysis results in the various databases shown in FIG. 9) from their respective terminals via a communication network 51. A cloud computing mechanism may be used as the network communication unit 50. The stakeholders described here may include, for example, a product designer, a process control person 61 who controls the manufacturing process, an equipment operator 62 who operates the equipment, a sales person 63, and a procurement person 64.

[0069] The network communication unit 50 allows stakeholders 60-64 in each supply chain to share various information related to carbon emissions in manufacturing over a communication network (e.g., cloud) 51, and use it to reduce carbon emissions in their respective operations.

[0070] Examples of the types of data handled by stakeholders in the supply chain include design data 1, carbon emission analysis results 31, manufacturing equipment data 24, speed parameters 16, cycle time calculation models 15, and production plan data 17. If there is any other data that can be used, they may share it through the network 51.

[0071] The following is an example of how data transmitted through the network 51 can be used. For example, design data and analysis result data are uploaded to the system 300 via a terminal held by a designer 60. The analysis result data can be checked by, for example, a process manager 61, who can identify processes with relatively high carbon emissions and implement measures to improve those processes and reduce carbon emissions.

[0072] Furthermore, regarding the registration of the actual operation time (the time when the power is on) of the manufacturing equipment in the production plan database 17, the process control person 61 or the equipment operator 62 can actually measure the actual operation time of each piece of equipment and upload it to the system 300. Furthermore, the equipment operator 62 can update the power consumption values of each piece of equipment during operation and standby, which are stored in the manufacturing equipment database 24, as needed. This allows the design person 60 to always use the latest data for analysis.

[0073] Furthermore, by checking the design database 1, the shape of the object to be machined can be understood. Furthermore, the equipment operator 62 may update the speed parameter base 16 as appropriate. This is because the equipment operator 62 often sets the processing conditions for the manufacturing equipment. Furthermore, by using the analysis results related to each product in the analysis result base 31, the sales person 63 can use it to visualize the carbon emissions and promote the reduction effects for each product. By referring to the production plan database 17, the procurement person 64 can estimate the future procurement quantities of materials and parts.

[0074] In this way, using this system will enable seamless information exchange between stakeholders in the supply chain, further reducing the overall environmental impact and leading to effective eco-design of products.

[0075] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but includes various modifications. For example, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail to clearly explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those including all of the described configurations. Furthermore, it is possible to replace part of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another embodiment, or to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. Furthermore, it is possible to add, delete, or replace part of the configuration of each embodiment with other configurations. [Explanation of symbols]

[0076] 100, 200, 300...Product life cycle assessment system, 1...Design database, 2...Feature extraction unit, 3...Manufacturing process setting unit, 4...Cycle time processing unit, 5...Carbon emission calculation unit, 6...Carbon emission visualization, 7...Process database, 10...Manufacturing process and feature value reading, 11...Model reading, 12...Speed parameter reading, 13...Work time calculation, 14...Waiting time calculation, 15...Cycle time calculation model base, 16...Speed parameter base, 17...Production plan database, 23...Carbon emission calculation, 24...Manufacturing equipment database, 25...Carbon emission conversion coefficient base, 30...Operation procedure, 31...Analysis result, 40...Associated manufacturing process addition unit, 41...Associated manufacturing process base, 50...Network communication unit, 60...Designer, 61...Process management person, 62...Equipment operator, 63...Sales person, 64...Procurement person

Claims

1. A product life cycle assessment system for estimating the amount of side effects that occur with an activity in a product life cycle, comprising: a feature data extraction unit that receives design data of the product and extracts, from the design data, one or more feature data of the product that affect the secondary result; a process setting unit that identifies one or more processes included in the activity and identifies the feature data related to each process based on the extracted feature data; a time processing unit that calculates a work time of a worker in each of the processes by using the feature data related to each of the processes; a calculation unit that calculates the amount of the secondary result generated in the one or more processes based on the operation time in the one or more processes; a visualization unit that displays the calculation results of the calculation unit; system.

2. 2. The product life cycle assessment system according to claim 1, the process setting unit identifies basic processes, which are one or more basic processes included in the activity, and feature data related to each basic process; The system further comprises an additional process adding unit; the associated process adding unit identifies one or more associated processes associated with the one or more basic processes; the time processing unit calculates the operation time for each of the one or more basic processes and the one or more auxiliary processes; A system configured as follows.

3. 2. The product life cycle assessment system according to claim 1, It also has a network communication unit, the network communication unit makes at least some of the function resources and information resources of the feature data extraction unit, the process setting unit, the time processing unit, the calculation unit, and the visualization unit accessible to various stakeholders through a communication network; A system configured as follows.

4. The product life cycle assessment system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the time processing unit calculates a waiting time for the worker in each of the steps based on the work in each of the steps, the calculation unit calculates, based on the working time of each of the processes, an amount of working time that is an amount of the secondary result that occurs during the working time by a first method, and calculates, based on the waiting time of each of the processes, an amount of waiting time that is an amount of the secondary result that occurs during the waiting time by a second method; the visualization unit displays the amount of work time and the amount of standby time for each of the one or more processes. A system configured as follows.

5. The product life cycle assessment system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the activity includes at least one of sourcing, manufacturing, using, consuming, maintaining, disposing of, and recycling a product; The system, wherein the by-products include at least one of carbon emissions, power consumption, economic changes, material changes, harmful by-products, and beneficial by-products.

6. A manufacturing carbon emissions calculation system that calculates carbon emissions generated in the manufacture of a product, a design data storage unit that stores design data of the product; a feature data extraction unit that extracts, from the design data of the product, one or more feature data of the product that affect a cycle time of the product; a manufacturing process setting unit that identifies one or more processes included in a manufacturing process of the product, identifies the feature data associated with each process based on the extracted feature data, and stores the identified one or more processes and the feature data associated with each of the one or more processes; a cycle time processing unit that calculates a working time of the manufacturing equipment in each of the processes based on the characteristic data related to each of the processes using a calculation method for each of the processes; a calculation unit that calculates the carbon emissions in the one or more processes based on the work time in the one or more processes; a visualization unit that displays the calculation results of the calculation unit; system.

7. 7. The manufacturing carbon emission calculation system according to claim 6, the manufacturing process setting unit identifies basic manufacturing processes, which are one or more basic processes included in the activity, and characteristic data related to each basic manufacturing process; The system further comprises an additional manufacturing process; the auxiliary manufacturing process adding unit identifies auxiliary manufacturing processes, which are one or more processes auxiliary to the one or more basic manufacturing processes; the cycle time processing unit calculates the operation time for each of the one or more basic manufacturing processes and the one or more auxiliary manufacturing processes; A system configured as follows.

8. 7. The product life cycle assessment system according to claim 6, It also has a network communication unit, the network communication unit makes at least some of the functional resources and information resources of the design data storage unit, the feature data extraction unit, the manufacturing process setting unit, the cycle time processing unit, the calculation unit, and the visualization unit accessible to various stakeholders through a communication network; A system configured as follows.

9. The manufacturing carbon emission calculation system according to any one of claims 6 to 8, the characteristic data includes dimensional data relating to the dimensions of the product or material data relating to the material of the product, the cycle time processing unit determines a processing amount in each of the processes based on the dimension data, or determines a processing speed in each of the processes based on the material data, and calculates the working time in each of the processes based on the determined processing amount or processing speed. A system configured as follows.

10. The manufacturing carbon emission calculation system according to any one of claims 6 to 8, the design data includes CAD data of the product, and the CAD data defines the shape and dimensions of the processed parts of the product in each of the processes; the feature data extraction unit identifies, based on the CAD data, dimensional data relating to the dimensions of the processed portion in each of the processes as at least a part of the feature data; A system configured as follows.

11. The manufacturing carbon emission calculation system according to any one of claims 6 to 8, the cycle time processing unit determines a machining amount and a machining speed in each of the processes based on the characteristic data, and calculates the operation time in each of the processes based on the machining amount and the machining speed. A system configured as follows.

12. The manufacturing carbon emission calculation system according to any one of claims 6 to 8, the cycle time processing unit determines a machining amount in each of the processes based on the characteristic data, determines a machining speed in each of the processes based on speed data prepared in advance, and calculates the operation time in each of the processes based on the machining amount and the machining speed. A system configured as follows.

13. The manufacturing carbon emission calculation system according to any one of claims 6 to 8, the cycle time processing unit calculates a standby time of the manufacturing equipment in each of the processes based on the operation time of each of the processes; the calculation unit calculates, based on the working time of each of the processes, a working emission amount that is the carbon emission amount during the working time using a first method, and calculates, based on the waiting time of each of the processes, a waiting emission amount that is the carbon emission amount during the waiting time using a second method; the visualization unit displays the working discharge amount and the standby discharge amount in each of the one or more processes. A system configured as follows.

14. 14. The manufacturing carbon emission calculation system according to claim 13, the cycle time processing unit receives production plan data indicating the number of products to be produced in a predetermined period, and calculates the waiting time in each process based on the production plan data and the working time in each process; A system configured as follows.

15. 14. The manufacturing carbon emission calculation system according to claim 13, the visualization unit displays a diagram that shows a comparison between the working carbon emissions and the standby carbon emissions between the plurality of steps included in the manufacturing process. A system configured as follows.

Images