Machine Tool Life Monitoring With Visual Replacement Indicators
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems struggle to intuitively indicate which machine tools require component replacement among multiple machines, making it difficult for users to determine maintenance needs.
Innovation Solution
A monitoring device and system that generates display information on a terminal or device, using figures to represent the remaining lifespan of machine tool components, distinguishing between those needing replacement and those that do not, through color, size, or motion changes, and providing detailed replacement information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If multiple machine tools are monitored with component lifespan data, then maintenance information is available, but it becomes difficult to intuitively identify which machines need replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies color changes to visual indicators representing machine tools, where different colors indicate different remaining lifespan statuses. This allows operators to instantly identify which machines require component replacement without examining detailed data, resolving the contradiction between providing comprehensive maintenance information and enabling easy identification of replacement needs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms one-dimensional text-based lifespan data into two-dimensional visual representations with spatial arrangement and color coding. This dimensional transformation enables operators to grasp maintenance priorities at a glance, solving the problem of information visibility versus ease of identification.
2Reliability
If detailed component lifespan data is provided for all machine tools, then complete maintenance information is available, but operators cannot quickly determine which machines require attention
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the display into multiple visual indicators, each representing a specific machine tool's component lifespan status. By dividing comprehensive data into discrete, color-coded segments, the system maintains complete maintenance information while enabling rapid identification of machines requiring replacement, thus reducing the time operators need to spend analyzing data.
Solution Approach 2:
The system preliminarily processes and visually encodes lifespan data before presentation to operators, pre-organizing information by urgency and status. This preliminary visual encoding eliminates the need for operators to manually analyze raw data, maintaining data accuracy while significantly reducing the time required to identify replacement needs.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
This monitoring device for monitoring a plurality of machine tools comprises a display information generation unit that generates display information for displaying a plurality of shapes corresponding to the plurality of machine tools on a display unit, and an information acquisition unit that acquires information on the remaining life of a component provided in each of the plurality of machine tools. The display information generation unit generates the display information the basis of the information on the remaining life acquired by the information acquisition unit such that the shape is displayed on the display unit in a manner corresponding to the remaining life.