Equipment operation management system

Abstract

To properly understand the status of the equipment. [Solution] The equipment operation management system 100 includes a signal tower illumination detection unit 10 that detects the illumination status of a signal tower that outputs a signal indicating at least whether the equipment is operational or inoperable; a door opening / closing detection unit 12 that detects the opening and closing of the equipment's doors; a PC power supply detection unit 14 that detects the ON-OFF status of multiple PCs used in the equipment; a base signal aggregation unit 16 that aggregates signals from the signal tower illumination detection unit, the door opening / closing detection unit, and the PC power supply detection unit; a monitoring status determination means 26 that determines the operational status of the equipment, whether it is operational or inoperable, and whether the equipment is normal, based on the signals from the base signal aggregation unit; a monitoring status history storage means 28 that stores the determination result of the monitoring status determination means as a monitoring status history; and a notification means 30 that notifies when it is determined that there has been a change in a predetermined monitoring status of the equipment based on the monitoring status history.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a facility operation management system that monitors and manages the operating status of facilities and the like.

Background Art

[0002] Efficient operation is required for various facilities, and various proposals have been made for systems that grasp the operating status.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a system that acquires the operation information of a plurality of test facilities and detects the operating rate of the test facilities. In this system, a more appropriate operating rate is obtained by setting conditions for the operating state of a specific machine in the facility, such as the rotation speed of the motor.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Here, in the operation status of the facility, in addition to the situation where simply monitoring the signal is sufficient, there are also situations where workers have to go to the site for confirmation. In such cases, a system that can appropriately notify the workers is desired.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The equipment operation management relating to this disclosure includes: a signal tower illumination detection unit that detects the illumination status of a signal tower that outputs a signal indicating at least whether the equipment is operational or inoperable; a door opening / closing detection unit that detects the opening and closing of the equipment's doors; a PC power supply detection unit that detects the ON-OFF status of multiple PCs used in the equipment; a base signal aggregation unit that aggregates signals from the signal tower illumination detection unit, the door opening / closing detection unit, and the PC power supply detection unit; a monitoring status determination means that determines the operational status of the equipment, whether it is operational or inoperable, and determines whether the equipment is normal or not, based on the signals from the base signal aggregation unit; a monitoring status history storage means that stores the determination result of the monitoring status determination means as a monitoring status history; and a notification means that notifies when it is determined that there has been a change in a predetermined monitoring state of the equipment based on the monitoring status history.

[0007] The notification system can provide notifications when the equipment operation has ended or when an equipment malfunction is detected.

[0008] The signal tower's illumination detection signal has three states: stopped, running, and idle. The stopped state can be further divided into abnormal stop and operation preparation stop. An abnormal stop can be determined when the state changes from running to stopped, and an operation preparation stop can be determined when the state changes from idle to stopped. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the equipment operation management system described in this disclosure, the status can be determined by changes in the monitoring status, thus enabling appropriate assessment of the equipment's condition. Furthermore, in predetermined situations, notifications can be sent to workers and other personnel via notification devices. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the equipment operation management system 100 related to this disclosure. [Figure 2] This diagram shows an example of a base signal aggregation unit consisting of a child base signal transmission unit and a parent base signal aggregation unit. [Figure 3] This is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the equipment operation management system according to this embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] The embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. The embodiments described below are not limiting to this disclosure, and configurations formed by selectively combining multiple examples are also included in this disclosure.

[0012] "System Configuration" Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the equipment operation management system 100 related to this disclosure. In this example, the equipment is an automobile development facility.

[0013] The facility is equipped with a signal tower. This signal tower displays the operating status of the facility (operating or not operating) by the illumination of its lamps. When the power is off and the facility is in a dormant state, the lamp is "off". When there is a malfunction or preparation (preparation state for starting operation) or changeover (preparation state such as changing the target model), the lamp is "red". During normal operation, the lamp is "orange".

[0014] The signal tower illumination detection unit detects the illumination status of the signal tower. The door opening / closing detection unit 12 detects the opening / closing status of doors such as entrances and exits to the facility. The opening and closing of doors can be used to detect the loading of goods, the entry and exit of workers, etc. The PC power supply detection unit 14 detects whether the power of multiple PCs used in the facility is ON or OFF.

[0015] The detection signals from the signal tower illumination detection unit 10, the door opening / closing detection unit 12, and the PC power supply detection unit 14 are supplied to the board signal aggregation unit 16. The board signal aggregation unit 16 is connected to the LAN 18 and can be connected to other PCs, etc., and can also be connected to external communication networks, for example, it can connect to external PCs via the internet. Therefore, the various detection signals that are input can be temporarily stored and transmitted at predetermined time intervals in an appropriate format.

[0016] The signal aggregation unit 16 is connected to the aggregation PC 20. The signal aggregation unit 16 may be connected to the aggregation PC 20 via the LAN 18, or via a communication line such as the Internet.

[0017] The aggregation PC 20 is equipped with an operating status determination table 22 and an operating status history table 24. The operating status determination table 22 determines and stores whether the equipment is operating or not based on signals input from the signal tower illumination detection unit 10, door opening / closing detection unit 12, and PC power supply detection unit 14 in this example. Therefore, the operating status determination table 22 is a table that shows the operating status of the equipment in real time. The operating status history table 24 is connected to the operating status determination table 22. The operating status history table 24 is a table that stores the data supplied from the operating status determination table 22 in chronological order. In particular, it stores multiple histories with different time intervals as tables. For example, multiple history tables are prepared, such as data every minute for one hour, data every day for one month, and data every month for five years. It may also be possible to output various history tables based on the input of requests. Alternatively, detection units may be provided in individual devices within the equipment, and the operating status and operating status history of these devices may be stored in the operating status determination table 22 and the operating status history table 24.

[0018] The real-time monitoring status determination table 26 sequentially stores signals from the signal tower illumination detection unit 10, the door opening / closing detection unit 12, and the PC power supply detection unit 14 in real time, and determines the status of the equipment by monitoring the temporal transition of the signals. This determination result is then sequentially stored in the monitoring status history table 28. Furthermore, based on the equipment determination result and its history, the notification unit 30 notifies workers when the test is completed or when an equipment abnormality is detected. The aggregation PC 20 is usually installed in the monitoring equipment, and workers are notified of the test completion or equipment abnormality by outputting from its display or speaker. Alternatively, the notification unit 30 may be installed in the equipment, and notifications can be made from the equipment itself. In addition, the contents of each table in the aggregation PC 20 can be displayed as needed so that workers can be aware of them.

[0019] In such a system, during normal operation, the monitoring equipment monitors the operating status, and when necessary, the operator can go to the site, thereby improving the work efficiency.

[0020] In FIG. 2, the base signal aggregation unit 16 is composed of a child base signal transmission unit 16-1 and a parent base signal aggregation unit 16-2. The child base signal transmission units 16-1 are provided corresponding to the equipment respectively, and they aggregate and output the signals from the corresponding equipment. The parent base signal aggregation unit 16-2 aggregates the signals transmitted from the plurality of child base signal transmission units 16-1 and supplies them to the aggregation PC 20. The aggregation PC 20 can process the operating status and monitoring status of the plurality of equipment together.

[0021] FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the equipment operation management system according to the present embodiment.

[0022] The equipment transmits the individual number which is the ID of the equipment and the operation signal (in the illustrated example, the signals from the signal tower lighting detection unit 10, the door opening / closing detection unit 12, and the PC power supply detection unit 14) (S11). The transmitted signal is supplied to the aggregation PC 20 via the base signal aggregation unit 16.

[0023] In the aggregation PC 20, first, the target equipment is acquired based on the individual number to identify the equipment (S12). The latest operation signal is acquired (S13), and furthermore, the previous operation signal is acquired (S14). A transition signal is generated using the latest and the previous differential signals (S15).

[0024] It is determined whether the operating status can be determined from the latest operation signal (S16). If the determination in S16 is Yes, the operating rate in the operating status determination table 22 is updated (S17). If the determination in S16 is No, the operating status is indeterminate and the operating rate is updated (S18).

[0025] When the operating status determination table 22 is updated in this manner, it is determined whether the previous and latest operating signals are different (S19). If the determination in S19 is No, there is no change in the situation, so the process is terminated. On the other hand, if the determination in S19 is Yes, it is determined whether the real-time monitoring status can be identified from the transition signal (S20).

[0026] If the result of S20 is Yes, the monitoring status in the Real-time Monitoring Status Determination Table 26 is updated (S21). If the result of S20 is No, the monitoring status is updated to "Undetermined" (S22).

[0027] Then, if the monitoring status obtained in S21 is a predetermined state, such as the end of equipment operation or equipment malfunction, the notification unit 30 notifies the worker of the monitoring status. This notification allows the worker to take necessary countermeasures, such as going to the site.

[0028] In this way, processing is performed when signals are obtained from the signal tower lighting detection unit 10, the door opening / closing detection unit 12, and the PC power supply detection unit 14, and this processing is performed each time a signal is obtained.

[0029] This example focuses on automotive development equipment, but it can be applied to many other types of equipment. In particular, it can store and process not only actual operating rates but also real-time equipment monitoring status, allowing workers to quickly check the site based on this information. This eliminates the need for on-site inspections to check progress, thus reducing man-hours.

[0030] Furthermore, various data such as operating status can be automatically compiled, eliminating inconsistencies due to individual workers, reducing the need for manual work, and lowering labor costs.

[0031] By using the temporal transitions of equipment signals and in accordance with how the equipment is used, the operating status and monitoring status can be determined, and the operating status of the equipment can be accurately detected. For example, if two states are defined for a signal tower when it lights up "red"—equipment malfunction (abnormal stop) or preparation / changeover (operation preparation stop: emergency stop button pressed)—and "orange" is defined as operating, then the situation cannot be accurately determined when the red light is on. In this embodiment, by defining the temporal transitions of the signals as follows: orange (operating) → red = equipment malfunction (abnormal stop), and off (receiving power) → red = preparation / changeover (operation preparation stop), the correct equipment status can be determined. [Explanation of symbols]

[0032] 10 Signal tower illumination detection unit, 12 Door opening / closing detection unit, 14 PC power supply detection unit, 16 Board signal aggregation unit, 16-1 Sub-board signal transmission unit, 16-2 Master board signal aggregation unit, 22 Operating status determination table, 24 Operating status history table, 26 Real-time monitoring status determination table, 28 Monitoring status history table, 30 Notification unit, 100 Equipment operation management system, 20 Aggregation PC.

Claims

1. A facility operation management system for controlling the operation of equipment, A signal tower illumination detection unit detects the illumination status of a signal tower that outputs a signal indicating at least whether the equipment is operational or not, A door opening / closing detection unit that detects the opening and closing of the equipment door, A PC power detection unit that detects the ON / OFF status of multiple PCs used in the equipment, A base signal aggregation unit that aggregates signals from the signal tower illumination detection unit, the door opening / closing detection unit, and the PC power supply detection unit, A monitoring status determination means determines the operating status of the equipment, whether it is operational or not, based on signals from the base signal aggregation unit, and also determines whether the equipment is functioning normally. A monitoring status history storage means that stores the determination result of the monitoring status determination means as a monitoring status history, A notification means that notifies when it is determined that there has been a change in a predetermined monitoring state of the equipment based on the monitoring state history, including, Equipment operation management system.

2. The equipment operation management system according to claim 1, The notification system will notify when the equipment operation has ended or when an equipment malfunction is detected. Equipment operation management system.

3. A facility operation management system according to claim 1 or 2, The signal tower's illumination detection signal has three states: stopped, running, and idle. The stopped state is further divided into abnormal stop and ready-to-run stop. An abnormal stop is determined when the state changes from running to stopped, and a ready-to-run stop is determined when the state changes from idle to stopped. Equipment operation management system.

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