Process Timing Optimization via Environmental Condition Forecasting

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Solution Overview

Problem

Traditional methods for controlling environmental conditions in large spaces or facilities are costly and resource-intensive, making it economically infeasible to maintain consistent ambient conditions across entire facilities, which affects the reproducibility and repeatability of processes.

Innovation Solution

A method that determines whether a future time period is suitable for a process run by establishing a relationship between interior and exterior environmental conditions, allowing for adjustments to accommodate environmental changes, thereby optimizing the timing of process execution without active environmental control.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If traditional active environmental control systems are implemented to maintain consistent ambient conditions, then process reproducibility and reliability are improved, but implementation cost and resource consumption increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprocess reproducibilityVSAvoidenvironmental control system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of controlling the environment to match process requirements, the patent inverts the approach by adjusting process parameters to match predicted environmental conditions. The system forecasts environmental variations and modifies process timing and parameters accordingly, eliminating the need for expensive active environmental control infrastructure while maintaining process reliability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes process parameters (timing, duration, sequence) based on predicted environmental conditions. By dynamically adjusting process parameters to accommodate environmental variations rather than resisting them, the system achieves reliable process outcomes without requiring complex environmental control systems

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Manufacturing precision

If traditional active environmental control is used to maintain desired ambient conditions, then process precision is improved, but cost and resource consumption worsen

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprocess precisionVSAvoidenergy consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The patent converts environmental variations from harmful factors into useful information for process optimization. By forecasting environmental conditions and adapting process parameters accordingly, the system achieves precise process outcomes without energy-intensive environmental control, effectively using environmental variations to its advantage

Inventive Principle:

Principle #22Blessing in disguise (Convert harm into benefit)

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary environmental forecasting and uses these predictions to pre-adjust process parameters and timing. This advance planning allows processes to be executed with high precision by accounting for future environmental conditions before they occur, eliminating the need for reactive environmental control energy consumption

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Reliability

If environmental control systems are deployed throughout entire facilities, then process reliability is improved, but implementation cost becomes prohibitive

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprocess reliabilityVSAvoidimplementation feasibility

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the core function of environmental control from expensive physical infrastructure and replaces it with environmental forecasting and computational process adjustment. By taking out the need for physical environmental control systems and substituting it with predictive analytics and process parameter modification, the system achieves reliable processes at a fraction of the implementation cost

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS20240271815A1Method and apparatus for process optimization via ambient condition forecasting

Publication Date: 2024.08.15 ELEMENTAL MACHINES INC

AI summary

A method is provided for determining whether a future time period for performing a future process run is satisfactory. The process run employs process equipment disposed within an interior space. In a first step a relationship is obtained between an environmental condition within the interior space and an environmental condition exterior to the interior space. In a second step a future value representative of the environmental condition exterior to the interior space during the future time period is obtained. In a third step a predicted value representative of the environmental condition within the interior space during the future time period is determined by comparing the future value obtained in step (b) to the relationship obtained in step (a). Next the predicted value determined in step (c) is compared to a reference. It is then determined from the comparison whether the future time period for performing the future process run is satisfactory.