Automated Weighing Initialization for Concrete Plant Truck Sequencing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for initializing the weighing process at concrete or asphalt plants are inefficient and prone to human errors, leading to potential overweights or underweights, idle time, and incomplete utilization of zero-gap loading, resulting in production and monetary losses.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing a staging area and non-transitory storage media and hardware to automatically initialize the weighing process by reading a truck's unique output device ID, verifying load information, and controlling batch plant functionality, ensuring accurate and continuous weighing of subsequent loads.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual load selection and weighing initiation is used, then operator control is maintained, but idle time between loads increases and zero-gap loading is not achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-queues multiple loads in advance before the current load is complete. The load queue stores load matrices for subsequent loads, so when one load finishes weighing, the next load is already prepared and ready to be weighed immediately, eliminating idle time between loads.
Solution Approach 2:
The automated weighing system maintains continuous operation by seamlessly transitioning from one load to the next without interruption. The system continuously processes loads through the weighing process without stopping, achieving zero-gap loading where the weighing scale is constantly in use.
2Reliability
If manual weighing initialization is used, then human oversight is maintained, but errors such as overweights or underweights may occur
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically selects loads from the queue, retrieves their matrices, and initiates weighing processes without human intervention. The automated system serves itself by managing the entire weighing workflow, reducing human error while maintaining operational simplicity through automation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the weighing process and compares actual weights against target weights from load matrices. Real-time feedback mechanisms detect deviations and automatically adjust or alert operators, ensuring weighing accuracy without requiring constant manual oversight.
3Manufacturing precision
If truck sequencing is not automatically managed, then dispatch flexibility is maintained, but overweights or underweights risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides truck management into discrete, manageable units by assigning unique output device IDs to each truck and creating individual load matrices for each. This segmentation allows precise tracking and control of each truck's weighing process while maintaining overall system coordination through the centralized queue management.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for automatically initializing a weighing process of one or more loads at a concrete plant or an asphalt plant. The system includes a plant, a staging area, a truck and a fleet of trucks. Each truck contains one output device which contains a unique output device ID identifier, an output device reader or readers, a batch non-transitory storage media, a dispatch non-transitory storage media, a reader non-transitory storage media and a material load verification non-transitory storage media, a third party or cloud non-transitory storage media and a master truck file containing a truck file for each truck and a database.