Activity Amount Calculation for GHG Emissions
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Solution Overview
Problem
In manufacturing lines, calculating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is challenging due to the absence of information-providing interfaces on all equipment, making it difficult to acquire necessary data for equipment activity amounts, which are crucial for carbon neutral management.
Innovation Solution
An activity amount calculation apparatus and method that includes a processor and storage unit to manage standard operation times and acquire information from equipment, allowing for the calculation of activity amounts even without direct interface access, by using observed equipment data to estimate activity levels across the manufacturing line.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If information is acquired from all pieces of equipment to calculate GHG emissions, then calculation accuracy is improved, but device complexity and difficulty of implementation increase due to requiring information-providing interfaces on all equipment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an activity amount calculation apparatus as an intermediary system that receives data from only selected equipment with information-providing interfaces, processes this data along with standard operation times, and calculates activity amounts for all equipment including those without interfaces. This mediator approach enables accurate GHG emission calculation without requiring direct interface access to all equipment, thus resolving the contradiction between measurement precision and device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements partial action by acquiring information from only certain pieces of equipment that have information-providing interfaces, rather than requiring all equipment to provide data. The calculation apparatus uses this partial data combined with standard operation times to derive activity amounts for the entire manufacturing line, achieving satisfactory calculation accuracy without the excessive complexity of universal equipment instrumentation
2Loss of information
If information-providing interfaces are installed on all equipment, then data acquisition capability is improved, but manufacturing cost and ease of manufacture worsen due to retrofiting requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the equipment population into two categories: equipment with information-providing interfaces and equipment without such interfaces. The calculation apparatus is designed to handle this segmentation by processing data from the first group and using standard operation times for the second group, eliminating the need to retrofit all equipment with interfaces and thereby improving ease of manufacture while maintaining data availability
Solution Approach 2:
The activity amount calculation apparatus serves multiple functions: it processes data from equipment with interfaces, manages standard operation times for equipment without interfaces, and produces comprehensive GHG emission calculations for the entire manufacturing line. This multi-functional design achieves universal data coverage without requiring universal interface installation, thus improving ease of manufacture
3Measurement precision
If actual work time data is collected from all equipment, then activity amount accuracy is improved, but loss of time and operational burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-establishing standard operation times for equipment without information-providing interfaces. These standard times are determined in advance and stored in the calculation apparatus, eliminating the need for real-time data collection from such equipment while maintaining sufficient accuracy for GHG emission calculations, thus reducing time loss and operational burden
Data Source
AI summary
The invention presents an activity amount calculation apparatus, which includes a processor; a storage unit; and an interface configured to acquire information from a piece of equipment used for an operation of a process in a manufacturing line. The storage unit manages a standard operation time related to an operation time in the process. The processor acquires, using the interface from a piece of equipment that is an observation target in the manufacturing line, an actual value of a work time of the piece of equipment, and calculates, using the acquired actual value and the standard operation time of a process performed by a piece of equipment that is not the observation target in the manufacturing line, an activity amount of each piece of equipment in the manufacturing line.