Support device, support method, and computer program

Abstract

This system assists in determining the optimal production sequence to reduce manufacturing time when multiple types of products are manufactured on the same production line. [Solution] When multiple types of products are manufactured on a single production line, a support device that assists in determining the manufacturing order of products, where the occurrence of setup change time differs depending on the order in which the products are manufactured, comprises: an acquisition unit that acquires information on multiple types of products, the number of each product to be manufactured, and whether or not setup change time occurs; a matrix creation unit that takes products to be manufactured first as one row and column, and products to be manufactured later as the other row and column, and creates a matrix in which the components differ depending on whether or not setup change time occurs; a swapping unit that swaps the rows and columns of the matrix so that the components adjacent to the left and right and above and below the diagonal components become information indicating that no setup change time occurs; and an output unit that outputs the matrix after the swap by the swapping unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a support device, a support method, and a computer program.

Background Art

[0002] When manufacturing a plurality of types of products on the same production line, a planning method for planning the production order of the products is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In the method described in Patent Document 1, a plurality of candidates for processing plans are calculated, and each candidate is evaluated using an evaluation index based on constraints and the like. One processing plan as the optimal solution is determined from the evaluation values of each candidate.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the technology described in Patent Document 1, since a plurality of candidates for processing plans are calculated, when the number of types of products to be manufactured increases, it may take a long time to determine the optimal processing plan. In addition, there is a possibility of not converging to the optimal solution.

[0005] The present invention has been made to solve at least a part of the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to support the determination of a production order that shortens the production time when a plurality of types of products are manufactured on the same production line.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve at least a part of the above-described problems, and can be realized in the following forms.

[0007] (1) According to one embodiment of the present invention, when multiple types of products are manufactured on a single production line, a support device is provided that assists in determining the manufacturing order of products, where the presence or absence of setup change time differs depending on the order in which the products are manufactured. This support device comprises: an acquisition unit that acquires the multiple types of products, the number of each product to be manufactured, and information on whether or not setup change time occurs; a matrix creation unit that takes the products to be manufactured first as one row and column, and the products to be manufactured later as the other row and column, and creates a matrix in which the components differ depending on whether or not setup change time occurs; a swapping unit that swaps the rows and columns such that the left and right and top and bottom adjacent components of the diagonal components of the matrix become information indicating that no setup change time occurs; and an output unit that outputs the matrix after the swap by the swapping unit.

[0008] This configuration creates a matrix in which the products manufactured first and those manufactured later are arranged in rows and columns. Each component of the matrix is ​​different information, set according to whether or not setup time occurs. In the matrix after swapping by the swapping unit, information indicating that no setup time occurs is located in the components adjacent to the left and right, and above and below, the diagonal components. The products corresponding to the columns to the left and right of the diagonal components, and the products corresponding to the columns above and below the diagonal components, represent the order in which products are manufactured. Therefore, in the swapped matrix, the order in which products that reduce setup time are manufactured is rearranged. Thus, by recognizing the matrix output by the output unit, it becomes easier to determine a manufacturing order that reduces setup time. In other words, this configuration helps determine a manufacturing order that shortens manufacturing time when multiple types of products are manufactured on the same production line.

[0009] (2) In the support device of the above embodiment, if, with respect to the matrix after replacement by the replacement unit, there is information indicating the occurrence of the setup change time in the component adjacent to the diagonal component of the matrix, the device may further include a determination unit that determines the boundary between the product corresponding to the diagonal component of the matrix and the products corresponding to the left and right components adjacent to the diagonal component as the delimiting position of the product group in which the product is manufactured. In this configuration, the positions where components that cause changeover time occur are located to the left and right of the diagonal component are set as the product group delimiters. In problems where the presence or absence of changeover time remains the same even if the order of operations is reversed, if the component to the right of the diagonal component indicates that changeover time will occur, then the component directly below that diagonal component will also necessarily indicate that changeover time will occur. Similarly, if the component to the left of the diagonal component indicates that changeover time will occur, then the component directly above that diagonal component will also necessarily indicate that changeover time will occur. The relationship between these diagonal components and their adjacent left and right components indicates that changeover time is occurring. Therefore, within product groups divided by delimiters based on the left and right components of the diagonal component, no changeover time occurs. As a result, if a manufacturing sequence is set within product groups divided by delimiters, the occurrence of changeover time is suppressed.

[0010] (3) In the support device according to the above embodiment, the determination unit may determine the delimiter position when there is information indicating that the changeover time occurs in both the component to the right adjacent to the diagonal component of the matrix and the component directly below the diagonal component. In this configuration, when both the component to the right of the diagonal component and the component directly below it are components that require setup time, the delimiter is determined to be between the product corresponding to the diagonal component and the product corresponding to the component to its right. If the presence or absence of setup time does not change even if the order of the two products is reversed, the component to the right of the diagonal component and the component directly below it will inevitably be the same. However, if the presence or absence of setup time changes when the order of the two products is reversed, the component to the right of the diagonal component and the component directly below it may be different. In this configuration, even in such cases, the delimiter where no setup time occurs is appropriately determined.

[0011] (4) In the support device according to the above embodiment, the swapping unit has a first swapping unit that, when the component to the right adjacent to the diagonal component of the matrix contains information indicating that the setup change time will occur, and there is information further to the right of the component adjacent to the diagonal component that indicates that the setup change time will not occur, swaps the columns so that the column containing the information indicating that the setup change time will not occur becomes the column to the right of the diagonal component, and swaps the rows so that the row directly below the diagonal component becomes the row corresponding to the swapped column, and the determination unit may determine the delimiter position for the matrix after the swap by the second swapping unit. In this configuration, in the matrix after swapping by the first swapping unit, the products corresponding to the column to the right of the diagonal element and the products corresponding to the row directly below the diagonal element are swapped in order of priority with respect to the products corresponding to the rows and columns that make up the diagonal element, so that no setup time is required. With this configuration, since rows and columns are swapped according to certain rules, unnecessary row and column swaps are not performed, and a manufacturing sequence that efficiently shortens manufacturing time is determined.

[0012] (5) In the support device according to the above embodiment, the swapping unit has a second swapping unit that, when the component to the left adjacent to the diagonal component of the matrix after swapping by the first swapping unit is information indicating that the setup change time will occur, and there is information further to the left of the component to the left adjacent to the diagonal component indicating that the setup change time will not occur, swaps the columns so that the column constituting the information indicating that the setup change time will not occur is adjacent to the left of the diagonal component, and swaps the rows so that the row located directly above the diagonal component becomes the row corresponding to the swapped column, and the determination unit may determine the delimiter position for the matrix after swapping by the second swapping unit. In this configuration, the rows and columns that have been swapped by the first swapping unit are further swapped by the second swapping unit. In the swap by the second swapping unit, the product corresponding to the column to the left of the diagonal component and the product corresponding to the row directly below the diagonal component are swapped in order of priority with respect to the products corresponding to the rows and columns that make up the diagonal component, so as not to result in setup time. With this configuration, after the rows and columns are swapped according to the rules of the first swapping unit, they are further swapped according to different rules. Therefore, unnecessary row and column swaps are not performed, and a manufacturing sequence that further reduces manufacturing time is determined more efficiently.

[0013] (6) In the support device according to the above embodiment, if there is a product among the plurality of products with a unit lot size of 2 or more units to be manufactured, the device may further include a division unit that divides the plurality of products into units of 1, and the matrix creation unit may create a matrix in which each of the plurality of products that has been divided by the division unit into one unit lot is placed as one row and one column. In this configuration, for products with a planned production lot size of 2 or more, a matrix is ​​created that is divided according to the number of units produced. For example, if, among three types of products, one product does not require setup time in relation to the other two products, but does require setup time between the other two products, then by manufacturing the first product between the other two products, no setup time is required. If a similar relationship exists between the first product and another product different from the other two products, the manufacturing timing of the first product is divided into multiple parts, thereby reducing the overall setup time on the line.

[0014] (7) In the support device according to the above embodiment, the matrix creation unit may set a value of zero as information indicating that the setup change time occurs, and a value of 1 as information indicating that the setup change time does not occur. According to this configuration, zero is set as the information indicating that setup change time occurs, and a value of 1 different from zero is set as the information indicating that setup change time does not occur. Therefore, since the presence or absence of setup change time is discriminated by zero and 1, the swapping of rows and columns by the swapping unit is easily performed.

[0015] Note that the present invention can be realized in various forms. For example, it can be realized in the form of a support device, a production order determination device, a production plan formulation device, a support method, a production order determination method, a production plan formulation method, and a system including these devices or realizing these methods, a computer program for executing these devices or methods, a server device for distributing this computer program, a non-transitory storage medium storing the computer program, and the like.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016] [Figure 1] It is a schematic block diagram of a support device as an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] It is an explanatory diagram of setup change time. [Figure 3] It is an explanatory diagram of a matrix created by a matrix creation unit. [Figure 4] It is an explanatory diagram of rows and columns to be swapped in FIG. 3. [Figure 5] It is an explanatory diagram of the matrix after swapping rows and columns with respect to FIG. 3. [Figure 6] It is an explanatory diagram of rows and columns to be swapped in FIG. 5. [Figure 7] It is an explanatory diagram of the matrix after completion of swapping rows and columns. [Figure 8] It is a flowchart of the support method of this embodiment.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0017] <Embodiment> FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a support device 100 as an embodiment of the present invention. The support device 100 supports the determination of the manufacturing order of products for which the presence or absence of setup change time varies according to the precedence relationship of the manufactured products when a plurality of types of products are manufactured on one production line (hereinafter, simply referred to as "line"). Note that the setup change time is the time that occurs when removing fixtures or the like when different types of products are manufactured on the same line. The setup change time is determined according to the type of the product produced first and the type of the product produced later. The support device 100 of the present embodiment outputs a matrix for determining the manufacturing order of a plurality of types of products with suppressed setup change time.

[0018] As shown in FIG. 1, the support device 100 of the present embodiment includes a control device 10, a storage device 20, an input unit 30 that receives input of various information, and an output unit 40 that outputs various information. In the present embodiment, the control device 10 is configured by a personal computer (PC). Details of the control device 10 will be described later. The input unit 30 is composed of a keyboard, a mouse, and a microphone. The output unit 40 is composed of a monitor that displays various images and a speaker that outputs sound.

[0019] The storage device 20 is configured by a hard disk drive (HDD) or the like. The storage device 20 has a setup change time database (setup change time DB) 21 that stores information about the setup change time. In the setup change time DB 21, information about the presence or absence of the setup change time is stored according to the precedence relationship of a plurality of types of products manufactured on the line. Note that in the present embodiment, only information about the presence or absence of the setup change time is stored in the setup change time DB 21, and the numerical value of the specific setup change time that occurs is not stored.

[0020] Figure 2 is an explanatory diagram of setup time. Figure 2 shows a list of 11 product numbers that do not require setup time, according to the product number representing the product type. The "Manufacturing Quantity (Lot Size)" shown in Figure 2 represents the number of products to be manufactured, which is entered by the user via the input unit 30.

[0021] In Figure 2, for example, in the order of production of product 1, which has product number "1", the products for which no setup time is required are product 1 and product 3. When the same product 1 is manufactured after product 1, no setup time is required. As shown in Figure 2, no setup time occurs when product 3 is manufactured after product 1. On the other hand, when products 2, 4-11 other than product 3 are manufactured after product 1, setup time occurs. In this embodiment, we address the problem that the occurrence of setup time may differ when the order of production is reversed. Therefore, as shown in Figure 2, product 1 is not included as a product for which no setup time occurs in the order of production of product 3. On the other hand, as mentioned above, since product 1 and product 3 are included as products for which no setup time occurs in the order of production of product 1, product 3 is manufactured after product 1 without setup, but setup time occurs when product 1 is manufactured after product 3. However, in the order of production for product 5, product 6 is included as a product that does not require setup time, and in the order of production for product 6, product 5 is also included as a product that does not require setup time. Therefore, regardless of which product 5 or product 6 is manufactured first, no setup time will be required.

[0022] The control device 10 shown in Figure 1 functions as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and executes computer programs stored in ROM (Read Only Memory), which is not shown, by loading them into RAM (Random Access Memory). As a result, the control device 10 controls various parts of itself and also functions as an acquisition unit 11, a division unit 12, a matrix creation unit 13, a swapping unit (first swapping unit, second swapping unit) 14, and a determination unit 15.

[0023] The acquisition unit 11 acquires information from the setup time DB 21 of the storage device 20 regarding whether or not setup time has occurred, and the number of units (Figure 2) of each product scheduled to be manufactured on the line, which is input via the input unit 30. In this embodiment, the "lot (unit lot)", which is the smallest unit of products manufactured under the same conditions, is used as the number of units to be manufactured.

[0024] The splitting unit 12 divides the multiple types of products into units of 1 if there are products among the multiple types of products for which the planned production unit lot size is 2 or more. In the example shown in Figure 2, since the planned production lot size of product 8 is 2, the splitting unit 12 divides product 8 into units of 1. Specifically, the splitting unit 12 divides product 8, which has a lot size of 2, into two types of product 8, each with a lot size of 1.

[0025] The matrix creation unit 13 creates a matrix in which, of two types of products manufactured consecutively on the line, the product manufactured first is taken as the row and the product manufactured later is taken as the column, and each component is arranged as an information component that differs depending on whether or not there is a setup changeover time. In this embodiment, the matrix creation unit 13 creates a matrix in which each of the multiple types of products divided by the division unit 12 is taken as a row and a column. The matrix creation unit 13 creates a matrix in which, as each component of the matrix, "0" is set for components in which a setup changeover time occurs and "1" is set for components in which no setup changeover time occurs.

[0026] Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram of the created matrix. Figure 3 shows a matrix created by the matrix creation unit 13, in which numerical values ​​representing information based on whether or not a changeover time occurs, as shown in Figure 2, are set in the matrix components. In Figure 3, to clearly indicate whether or not a changeover time occurs, the "1" component, which does not occur, is hatched. Also, to clearly distinguish the diagonal components from the other components, a dashed line is drawn across the diagonal components. As shown in Figure 3, product 8, which has a planned production lot size of 2, is divided into two products 8, each with a lot size of 1. Since the diagonal components correspond to the order of products of the same type, the numerical value of the diagonal components is "1".

[0027] The swapping unit 14 shown in Figure 1 swaps rows and columns of a matrix so that the diagonal elements adjacent to the left, right, top, and bottom of the matrix contain information that does not require setup time. In this embodiment, the swapping unit 14 swaps rows and columns when the value of the element to the right of the diagonal element of the matrix (hereinafter also referred to as the "adjacent right-side element") is "0", which indicates that setup time will occur, and there is an element to the right of the adjacent right-side element that is "1", which indicates that no setup time will occur. In this case, the swapping unit 14 moves the column representing "1", which indicates that no setup time will occur, to insert it into the column adjacent to the right of the diagonal element. If there are multiple columns to the right of the adjacent right-side element that indicate no setup time will occur, the leftmost column, i.e., the column closest to the adjacent right-side element, is moved. The swapping unit 14 also moves the row corresponding to the moved column to insert it into the row below the diagonal element. The swapping unit 14 performs the determination of the adjacent right-hand component and the movement of rows and columns, starting from the diagonal component located in the upper left.

[0028] Figure 4 is an explanatory diagram for swapping rows and columns. In Figure 4, for the matrix shown in Figure 3, the elements in the 1st row, 2nd column, 6th row, 7th column, and 9th row, 10th column, which are adjacent to the right of the adjacent right-side element where the adjacent right-side element is "0" and where there is a "1" to the right of the adjacent right-side element where the adjacent right-side element is "0", are shown in bold and italicized "0". In Figure 4, the rows and columns to be moved are indicated by arrows Dc1~Dc3 and Dr1~Dr3.

[0029] As shown in Figure 4, the component in the 1st row, 2nd column, which is the adjacent right-hand component of the diagonal component in the 1st row, 1st column, is "0", and the component in the 1st row, 3rd column, which is to the right of the adjacent right-hand component, is "1". Therefore, the swapping unit 14 moves the column of product 3 in the 3rd column to the 2nd column as indicated by arrow Dc1. The swapping unit 14 also moves the row of product 3 in the 3rd row, which corresponds to the 3rd column, to the 2nd row as indicated by arrow Dr1. Similarly, the swapping unit 14 moves product 8 in the 8th column and product 8 in the 8th row, where the adjacent right-hand component is "0", and there is a component of "1" to the right of the adjacent right-hand component which is "0", as indicated by arrows Dc2 and Dr2. The swapping unit 14 also moves product 10 in the 11th column and product 10 in the 11th row as indicated by arrows Dc3 and Dr3.

[0030] Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram of the matrix after row and column shifts along arrows Dc1-Dc3 and Dr1-Dr3. In the matrix shown in Figure 5, from the matrix shown in Figure 4, row 2 and column 2 correspond to product 3, row 7 and column 7 correspond to product 8, and row 10 and column 10 correspond to product 10. The swapping unit 14 further swaps rows and columns of the swapped matrix shown in Figure 5 if the value of the component to the left of the diagonal component (hereinafter also referred to as the "adjacent left component") is "0", and there is a component with a value of "1" to the left of the adjacent left component. In this case, the swapping unit 14 moves the column with a value of "1" so that it is inserted into the column adjacent to the left of the diagonal component. If there are multiple columns with a value of "1" to the left of the adjacent left component, the rightmost column, i.e., the column closest to the adjacent left component, is moved. Furthermore, the swapping unit 14 moves to insert a row corresponding to the moved column into the row above the diagonal component that is adjacent to it. The swapping unit 14 performs the determination of the adjacent left component and the movement of rows and columns in order, starting from the diagonal component located in the lower right.

[0031] Figure 6 is an explanatory diagram for swapping rows and columns. In Figure 6, for the matrix shown in Figure 5, the elements at row 12, column 11 and row 3, column 2, which are adjacent to the left of the adjacent left element where the adjacent left element is "0" and where there is a "1" to the left of the adjacent left element where the adjacent left element is "0", are shown in bold and italicized "0". In Figure 6, the rows and columns to be moved are indicated by arrows Dc4~Dc5 and Dr4~Dr5.

[0032] As shown in Figure 6, the component in the 12th row, 11th column, which is the adjacent left component of the diagonal component of the 12th row, 12th column, is "0", and the component in the 12th row, 5th column, which is to the left of the adjacent left component, is "1". Therefore, the swapping unit 14 moves the column of product 5 in column 5 to the 11th column as indicated by arrow Dc4. The swapping unit 14 also moves the row of product 5 in row 5, which corresponds to column 5, to the 11th row as indicated by arrow Dr4. Similarly, the swapping unit 14 moves product 1 in column 1 and product 1 in row 1, where the adjacent left component is "0" and there is a component of "1" to the left of the adjacent left component is "0", as indicated by arrows Dc5 and Dr5.

[0033] Figure 7 is an explanatory diagram of the matrix after the row and column shifts along arrows Dc4-Dc5 and Dr4-Dr5. In the matrix shown in Figure 7, row 1 and column 1 correspond to product 3, and row 11 and column 11 correspond to product 5, compared to the matrix shown in Figure 6.

[0034] The determination unit 15 shown in Figure 1 determines the boundary between the product corresponding to the diagonal element and the product corresponding to the column to the right as the product group delimiter when there are "0" elements in both the two elements adjacent to the right and directly below the diagonal element of the rearranged matrix shown in Figure 7, which would result in a setup changeover time. In this embodiment, the determination unit 15 determines the boundary between product 4 in row 4 and column 4 and product 6 in row 5 and column 5 as the product group delimiter, as shown by the thick line in Figure 7. As a result, the 11 types of products from 1 to 11 are divided into product group A (products 3, 1, 2, 4) and product group B (products 6, 8, 7, 8, 10, 9, 5, 11). The matrix divided into product groups A and B by the thick line is output as an image by the monitor of the output unit 40.

[0035] The determination unit 15 determines the manufacturing order of the products within the divided product groups A and B. When the diagonal components of the four types of products are all "1", as in product group A, the determination unit 15 determines the manufacturing order from right to left in the matrix shown in Figure 7. In product group A, products 4, 2, 1, and 3 are manufactured in that order. With this manufacturing order, no setup time is required for manufacturing the four types of products within product group A.

[0036] The determination unit 15 determines the manufacturing order from left to right in the matrix shown in Figure 7 when all adjacent right-hand diagonal elements of the eight types of products (divided product 8 is counted as two types), such as in product group B, are "1". In product group B, products 6, 8, 7, 8, 10, 9, 5, and 11 are manufactured in that order. With this manufacturing order, no setup time is required for manufacturing the eight types of products within product group B. In this embodiment, by dividing the products into two groups, A and B, setup time is only required when switching between products in product group A and products in product group B, thus suppressing the occurrence of setup time.

[0037] Figure 8 is a flowchart of the support method of this embodiment. In the support flow shown in Figure 8, first, the acquisition unit 11 performs an acquisition process (step S1) in which it acquires information on multiple types of products, the lot size of each product to be manufactured, and whether or not setup time will occur. The acquisition unit 11 acquires information on whether or not setup time will occur from the setup time DB 21 of the storage device 20, and the lot size of each product to be manufactured on the line via the input unit 30.

[0038] The splitting unit 12 performs a splitting process (step S2) in which, if there are products among the multiple types of products for which the planned production lot size is 2 or more, the multiple types of products are divided into unit lot sizes so that the lot size becomes 1. When there are products with a lot size of 2 or more, such as product 8 shown in Figure 2, the splitting unit 12 divides product 8 into 2 or more products by the lot size so that they become lot units.

[0039] The matrix creation unit 13 performs a matrix creation process (step S3) in which the rows represent products manufactured first and the columns represent products manufactured later, and each component of the matrix contains different information depending on whether or not there is a setup changeover time. The matrix creation unit 13 creates a matrix in which each of the multiple types of products divided by the division unit 12 is represented as a row and a column, and each component of the matrix is ​​set to "0" for components where a setup changeover time occurs and to "1" for components where a setup changeover time does not occur.

[0040] The swapping unit 14 performs a first swapping step (step S4) to swap rows and columns if the value of the adjacent right-hand component of the diagonal element of the matrix is ​​"0", which indicates that setup time will occur, and there is a component to the right of the adjacent right-hand component that is "1", which indicates that no setup time will occur. The swapping unit 14 moves the column representing "1", which indicates that no setup time will occur, to insert it into the column adjacent to the right of the diagonal element, as shown by arrows Dc1 to Dc3 in Figure 4. The swapping unit 14 also moves the row corresponding to the moved column to insert it into the row below the diagonal element, as shown by arrows Dr1 to Dr3 in Figure 4. As a result, the matrix shown in Figure 5 is created from the matrix shown in Figure 3.

[0041] The swapping unit 14 further performs a second swapping step (step S5) in which it swaps rows and columns if the value of the component to the left of the diagonal component is "0", and there is a component with a value of "1" to the left of the adjacent component to the left. In this case, the swapping unit 14 moves the column representing the component "1" so as to insert it into the column adjacent to the left of the diagonal component, as shown by arrows Dc4 to Dc5 in Figure 6. The swapping unit 14 then moves the row corresponding to the moved column so as to insert it into the row above the diagonal component adjacent to it, as shown by arrows Dr4 to Dr5 in Figure 6. As a result, the matrix shown in Figure 7 is created from the matrix shown in Figure 5.

[0042] The determination unit 15 performs a determination process (step S6) in which, if there are "0" components adjacent to the right and immediately below the diagonal component of the rearranged matrix, the boundary between the product corresponding to the diagonal component and the product corresponding to the column to the right is determined as the product group delimiter. For example, in the matrix shown in Figure 7, the determination unit 15 determines the boundary between product 4 in row 4 and column 4 and product 6 in row 5 and column 5 as the product group delimiter.

[0043] The output unit 40 performs an output process (step S7) in which it outputs an image of the matrix shown in Figure 7, whose delimiter positions have been determined by the determination unit 15, to the monitor. The user, after viewing the matrix image, can determine the delimiter between product groups A and B, and the manufacturing order of the products within product group A and product group B. Once the output process is complete, the support flow ends.

[0044] As described above, in this embodiment, the matrix creation unit 13 creates a matrix in which the product manufactured first out of two types of products manufactured continuously on the line is taken as the row and the product manufactured later is taken as the column, and each component is arranged as an information component that differs depending on whether or not there is a changeover time. The swapping unit 14 swaps the rows and columns so that the components adjacent to the left and right and above and below the diagonal components of the matrix become information indicating that no changeover time occurs. The output unit 40 outputs the swapped matrix shown in Figure 7 as an image on the monitor. With this configuration, a matrix is ​​created in which the product manufactured first and the product manufactured later of multiple types of products are taken as the rows and columns. Each component of the matrix is ​​different information set depending on whether or not a changeover time occurs. In the matrix after swapping by the swapping unit 14, the components adjacent to the left and right and above and below the diagonal components are located with information indicating that no changeover time occurs. The products corresponding to the left and right columns of the diagonal components and the products corresponding to the above and below columns of the diagonal components represent the precedence relationship. Therefore, in the rearranged matrix, the order of products is changed to one that suppresses setup time. Thus, by recognizing the matrix output by the output unit 40, it is easier to determine a manufacturing order that suppresses setup time. In other words, in this configuration, when multiple types of products are manufactured on the same production line, the determination of a manufacturing order that shortens manufacturing time is supported.

[0045] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the determination unit 15 determines the boundary between the product corresponding to the diagonal element and the product corresponding to the column to its right as the delimiter position for the product group when at least one of the two adjacent elements to the left and right of the diagonal element of the rearranged matrix shown in Figure 7 is a "0" element that causes a changeover time. Unlike the problem addressed in this embodiment, if the occurrence of a changeover time does not change even if the order of the two products is reversed, the element to the right of the diagonal element and the element directly below the diagonal element will inevitably be the same. However, if the occurrence of a changeover time changes when the order of the two products is reversed, the element to the right of the diagonal element and the element directly below the diagonal element may be different. In this embodiment, even in such cases, the delimiter position where no changeover time occurs is appropriately determined.

[0046] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the swapping unit 14 swaps rows and columns when the value of the adjacent right-hand component of the diagonal component is "0," which indicates that a changeover time will occur, and there is a component to the right of the adjacent right-hand component that is "1," which indicates that no changeover time will occur. In this case, the swapping unit 14 moves the column representing "1," which indicates that no changeover time will occur, to insert it into the column adjacent to the right of the diagonal component. The swapping unit 14 then moves the row corresponding to the moved column to insert it into the row below the diagonal component. In this embodiment, in the matrix after swapping by the swapping unit 14 (Figure 5), the product corresponding to the column to the right of the diagonal component and the product corresponding to the row directly below the diagonal component are swapped in such a way that no changeover time occurs in the order of the products corresponding to the rows and columns that constitute the diagonal component. Because rows and columns are swapped based on certain rules, unnecessary row and column swaps are not performed, and a manufacturing order that efficiently shortens manufacturing time is determined.

[0047] Furthermore, the swapping unit 14 in this embodiment swaps rows and columns in the rearranged matrix shown in Figure 5 if the value of the element to the left of the diagonal element is "0", and there is an element with a value of "1" to the left of the element to the left of the diagonal element. In this case, the swapping unit 14 moves the column whose element is "1" to insert it into the column adjacent to the left of the diagonal element. The swapping unit 14 moves the row corresponding to the moved column to insert it into the row above the diagonal element. In this embodiment, further swapping is performed on the rearranged matrix (Figure 5). In the swapping by the swapping unit 14, the row and column are swapped so that no setup time occurs in the order of the product corresponding to the column to the left of the diagonal element and the product corresponding to the row directly below the diagonal element with respect to the products corresponding to the rows and columns that constitute the diagonal element. In this embodiment, after the row and column are swapped based on the rules of the first swapping unit, the row and column are swapped further based on different rules. Therefore, unnecessary row and column swapping is avoided, and a manufacturing sequence is determined that is even more efficient and shortens manufacturing time.

[0048] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the division unit 12 divides the multiple types of products into units of 1 if there are products among the multiple types of products for which the planned production unit lot size is 2 or more, so that the lot size becomes 1. The matrix creation unit 13 creates a matrix by expanding each of the multiple types of products divided by the division unit 12 into rows and columns. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 2, setup time occurs when the three types of products 6, 7, and 10 are in a sequence with respect to each other. On the other hand, no setup time occurs when product 8 is in a sequence with products 6, 7, and 10. In this case, product 8 is divided into units of 1, and as shown in Figure 7, one lot of product 8 is manufactured between product 6 and product 7, and one lot of product 8 is manufactured between product 7 and product 10, thereby suppressing the setup time that occurs throughout the entire line.

[0049] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the matrix creation unit 13 sets "0" for components that require setup changeover time and "1" for components that do not require setup changeover time. In this embodiment, the presence or absence of setup changeover time is determined by "0" and "1", so the swapping unit 14 can easily swap rows and columns.

[0050] <Modified examples of embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and can be implemented in various forms without departing from its spirit. For example, the following modifications are possible. Furthermore, in the above embodiments, some of the configurations implemented by hardware may be replaced with software, and conversely, some of the configurations implemented by software may be replaced with hardware.

[0051] In the above embodiment, an example of a support device 100 that assists in determining the manufacturing order in which changeover time is suppressed when multiple types of products are manufactured on a single line has been described. However, the support device 100 can be modified to the extent that it assists in determining the manufacturing order by setting each component of a matrix, in which products to be manufactured first and products to be manufactured later are arranged as rows and columns, to different information depending on whether or not there is changeover time, and swapping the rows and columns. The support device 100 does not necessarily have an input unit 30, an output unit 40, and a storage device 20. The support device 100 may acquire various information necessary to output the matrix shown in Figure 7 from other devices or storage devices by wireless communication or the like. The output of the swapped matrix by the output unit 40 includes not only output to a monitor, but also data transmission to other devices. Alternatively, instead of output from the output unit 40, the product group delimitation position may be performed by the determination unit 15, and output to a monitor, etc., may not be performed. By recognizing the delimitation position, the determination of the manufacturing order to be manufactured on the line is supported. In the above embodiment, an example was given of a problem where the occurrence or absence of setup time changes when the order of operations is reversed. However, even in a problem where the occurrence or absence of setup time remains the same even when the order of operations is reversed, the support device 100 can assist in determining a manufacturing sequence that shortens manufacturing time, similar to the above embodiment. In this case, within the product group separated by the delimiter, manufacturing is possible without setup time in either the left-to-right or right-to-left order.

[0052] For the problem where the occurrence of setup time remains the same even if the order of operations is reversed, the determination unit 15 may determine the boundary between the diagonal element and the adjacent elements as the product group delimiter if at least one of the two adjacent elements to the left and right of the diagonal element of the rearranged matrix shown in Figure 7 is a "0" which indicates the occurrence of setup time. In this problem, if the element to the right of the diagonal element is "0", then the element directly below that diagonal element is also necessarily "0". Similarly, if the element to the left of the diagonal element is "0", then the element directly above that diagonal element is also necessarily "0". Therefore, by focusing on the elements to the left and right of the diagonal element, if the adjacent elements of the diagonal element are elements that indicate the occurrence of setup time, the space between the product corresponding to the diagonal element and the product corresponding to the column adjacent to the diagonal element is set as the product group delimiter. As a result, no setup time occurs within the product groups separated by the delimiter, and if the manufacturing order is set within the product groups separated by the delimiter, the occurrence of setup time is suppressed.

[0053] In the above embodiment, the division unit 12 divided products with a lot size of 2 or more, such as product 8 shown in Figure 2, into lot units, and then the matrix shown in Figure 3 was created. However, the matrix may be created without dividing into lot units. When divided into lot units, it is preferable that the same number of rows and columns as the lot size of the product divided into the most lot units are swapped. In the above embodiment, product 8 was divided into two parts according to the lot size. However, for example, if product 8 has a lot size of 3, it is preferable that in the support flow of Figure 8, after the first swapping process (step S5) and the second swapping process (step S6) are performed, the first swapping process (step S5) is performed again before the decision process (step S7) is performed. If product 1 of another product has a lot size of 6, it is preferable that the first swapping process (step S5) and the second swapping process (step S6) are repeated a total of 3 times (a total of 6 swapping processes) before the decision process (step S7) is performed. Furthermore, regardless of the maximum lot size of the product, the first replacement process (step S5) may be performed only once, and the second replacement process (step S6) may not be performed. The divided section 12 may also be divided based on the number of units manufactured, in addition to the lot size.

[0054] In the above embodiment, the numerical values ​​"0" and "1" were used as information to be placed as components depending on whether or not setup time occurs, but other information may be set as components. For example, numerical values ​​other than "1" and "2" may be used, or symbols other than numerical values ​​may be placed as components. If setup changeover time occurs, the amount of setup changeover time that occurs (for example, "30" for a setup changeover of 30 seconds) may be set.

[0055] The embodiments of this specification have been described above based on the embodiments and modifications described above. The embodiments described above are for the purpose of facilitating understanding of this specification and do not limit it. This specification may be modified and improved without departing from its spirit and the scope of the claims, and equivalents thereof are included in this specification. Furthermore, any technical features that are not described as essential in this specification may be deleted as appropriate.

[0056] The present invention can also be realized in the following forms. [Application Example 1] A support device that assists in determining the manufacturing order of products in which the occurrence of setup changeover time differs depending on the order in which the products are manufactured, when multiple types of products are manufactured on a single production line, An acquisition unit that acquires information on the multiple types of products, the number of each product manufactured, and whether or not the changeover time occurs. A matrix creation unit creates a matrix in which products manufactured earlier are placed in one row and column, and products manufactured later are placed in the other row and column, and the matrix has different information as components depending on whether or not there is a setup changeover time. A swapping unit that swaps rows and columns such that the diagonal elements of a matrix are adjacent to each other horizontally and vertically, and the adjacent elements are such that the swapping unit provides information indicating that no setup time will occur. An output unit that outputs the matrix after the swapping by the aforementioned swapping unit, A support device equipped with the following features. [Application Example 2] The support device described in Application Example 1, further, A support device comprising a determination unit that, with respect to the matrix after the replacement by the replacement unit, if there is information indicating the occurrence of the changeover time in an element adjacent to the diagonal element of the matrix, determines the boundary between the product corresponding to the diagonal element of the matrix and the products corresponding to the left and right elements adjacent to the diagonal element as the delimiting position of the product group in which the product is manufactured. [Application Example 3] A support device as described in Application Example 1 or Application Example 2, The determination unit is a support device that determines the delimiter position when there is information indicating that the changeover time occurs in both the component to the right adjacent to the diagonal component of the matrix and the component directly below the diagonal component. [Application Example 4] A support device described in any one of the application examples 1 to 3, The swapping unit has a first swapping unit that, when the component to the right of a diagonal element of a matrix contains information indicating the occurrence of the setup change time, and there is information further to the right of the component to the right of the diagonal element containing information indicating that the setup change time will not occur, swaps the columns so that the column containing the information indicating that the setup change time will not occur becomes the column to the right of the diagonal element, and swaps the rows so that the row directly below the diagonal element becomes the row corresponding to the swapped column. The determination unit is a support device that determines the delimiter position for the matrix after the swapping by the first swapping unit. [Application Example 5] A support device described in any one of the application examples 1 to 4, The swapping unit has a second swapping unit that, when the component to the left of the diagonal component of the matrix after swapping by the first swapping unit contains information indicating the occurrence of the setup change time, and there is information further to the left of the component to the left of the component adjacent to the diagonal component indicating that the setup change time will not occur, swaps the columns so that the column constituting the information indicating that the setup change time will not occur is adjacent to the left of the diagonal component, and swaps the rows so that the row directly above the diagonal component becomes the row corresponding to the swapped column. The determination unit is a support device that determines the delimiter position for the matrix after the swapping by the second swapping unit. [Application Example 6] A support device described in any one of the application examples 1 to 5, further, If, among the aforementioned multiple types of products, there is a product with a unit lot size of 2 or more, the division unit is provided to divide the aforementioned multiple types of products into units of 1. The matrix creation unit is a support device that creates a matrix in which each of the multiple types of products, which have been divided by the division unit into a single unit lot, is placed in one row and one column. [Application Example 7] A support device described in any one of the application examples 1 to 6, The matrix creation unit is a support device that sets a value of zero as information indicating the occurrence of the setup changeover time, and sets a value of 1 as information indicating that the setup changeover time does not occur. [Application Example 8] A support method for determining the manufacturing order of products where the occurrence of setup changeover time differs depending on the order in which the products are manufactured, when multiple types of products are manufactured on a single production line, wherein a computer... An acquisition process for acquiring information on the aforementioned multiple types of products, the number of each product manufactured, and whether or not changeover time occurs. A matrix creation step involves taking products manufactured earlier as one row and column, and products manufactured later as the other row and column, and creating a matrix whose components differ depending on whether or not there is a setup changeover time. A swapping step in which adjacent elements to the left, right, top, and bottom of the diagonal elements of a matrix are swapped rows and columns so that they become information indicating that no setup time will occur. The output process outputs the matrix after the swap, A method to support the execution of this task. [Application Example 9] A computer program that assists in determining the manufacturing order of products, where the occurrence of changeover time differs depending on the order in which the products are manufactured, when multiple types of products are manufactured on a single production line, An acquisition function that acquires information on the aforementioned multiple types of products, the number of each product manufactured, and whether or not the aforementioned changeover time occurs. A matrix creation function that takes products manufactured earlier as one row and column, products manufactured later as the other row and column, and creates a matrix whose components differ depending on whether or not there is a setup changeover time. A swapping function that swaps rows and columns such that adjacent elements to the left, right, top, and bottom of the diagonal elements of a matrix become information indicating that no setup time occurs, An output function that outputs the matrix after the swapping function described above, A computer program that causes a computer to execute something. [Explanation of symbols]

[0057] 10...Control device 11…Acquisition part 12...Divided part 13…Matrix Creation Section 14… Replacement Section (First Replacement Section, Second Replacement Section) 15…Decision Section 20…Storage device 21…Setup Time Database 30...Input section 40…Output section 100...Support device

Claims

1. A support device that assists in determining the manufacturing order of products in which the occurrence of changeover time differs depending on the order in which the products are manufactured, when multiple types of products are manufactured on a single production line, An acquisition unit that acquires information on the multiple types of products, the number of each product manufactured, and whether or not the changeover time occurs. A matrix creation unit creates a matrix in which products manufactured earlier are placed in one row and column, and products manufactured later are placed in the other row and column, and the matrix has different information as components depending on whether or not there is a setup changeover time. A swapping unit that swaps rows and columns such that the diagonal elements of a matrix are adjacent to each other horizontally and vertically, and the adjacent elements are such that the swapping unit provides information indicating that no setup time will occur. An output unit that outputs the matrix after the swapping by the aforementioned swapping unit, A support device equipped with the following features.

2. The support device according to claim 1, further, A support device comprising a determination unit that, with respect to the matrix after the replacement by the replacement unit, if there is information indicating the occurrence of the changeover time in an element adjacent to the diagonal element of the matrix, determines the boundary between the product corresponding to the diagonal element of the matrix and the products corresponding to the left and right elements adjacent to the diagonal element as the delimiting position of the product group in which the product is manufactured.

3. The support device according to claim 2, The determination unit is a support device that determines the delimiter position when there is information indicating that the changeover time occurs in both the component to the right adjacent to the diagonal component of the matrix and the component directly below the diagonal component.

4. The support device according to claim 3, The swapping unit has a first swapping unit that, when the component to the right of a diagonal element of a matrix contains information indicating the occurrence of the setup change time, and there is information further to the right of the component to the right of the diagonal element containing information indicating that the setup change time will not occur, swaps the columns so that the column containing the information indicating that the setup change time will not occur becomes the column to the right of the diagonal element, and swaps the rows so that the row directly below the diagonal element becomes the row corresponding to the swapped column. The determination unit is a support device that determines the delimiter position for the matrix after the swapping by the first swapping unit.

5. The support device according to claim 4, The swapping unit has a second swapping unit that, when the element to the left of the diagonal element of the matrix after swapping by the first swapping unit contains information indicating the occurrence of the setup change time, and there is information further to the left of the element to the left of the diagonal element containing information indicating that the setup change time will not occur, swaps the columns so that the column containing the information indicating that the setup change time will not occur is adjacent to the left of the diagonal element, and swaps the rows so that the row directly above the diagonal element becomes the row corresponding to the swapped column. The determination unit is a support device that determines the delimiter position for the matrix after the swapping by the second swapping unit.

6. The support device according to claim 1, further, If, among the aforementioned multiple types of products, there are products with a unit lot size of 2 or more, the division unit is provided to divide the aforementioned multiple types of products according to their unit lot size so that each product has a unit lot size of 1. The matrix creation unit is a support device that creates a matrix in which each of the multiple types of products, which have been divided by the division unit into a single unit lot, is placed in one row and one column.

7. A support device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The matrix creation unit is a support device that sets a value of zero as information indicating the occurrence of the setup changeover time, and sets a value of 1 as information indicating that the setup changeover time does not occur.

8. A support method for determining the manufacturing order of products where the occurrence of setup changeover time differs depending on the order in which the products are manufactured, when multiple types of products are manufactured on a single production line, wherein a computer... An acquisition process for acquiring information on the aforementioned multiple types of products, the number of each product manufactured, and whether or not changeover time occurs. A matrix creation step involves taking products manufactured earlier as one row and column, and products manufactured later as the other row and column, and creating a matrix whose components differ depending on whether or not there is a setup changeover time. A swapping step in which adjacent elements to the left, right, top, and bottom of the diagonal elements of a matrix are swapped rows and columns so that they become information indicating that no setup time will occur. The output process outputs the matrix after the swap, A method to support the execution of this task.

9. A computer program that assists in determining the manufacturing order of products, where the occurrence of changeover time differs depending on the order in which the products are manufactured, when multiple types of products are manufactured on a single production line, An acquisition function that acquires information on the aforementioned multiple types of products, the number of each product manufactured, and whether or not the aforementioned changeover time occurs. A matrix creation function that takes products manufactured earlier as one row and column, products manufactured later as the other row and column, and creates a matrix whose components differ depending on whether or not there is a setup changeover time. A swapping function that swaps rows and columns such that adjacent elements to the left, right, top, and bottom of the diagonal elements of a matrix become information indicating that no setup time occurs, An output function that outputs the matrix after the swapping function described above, A computer program that causes a computer to execute something.

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