Proximity-Triggered Tool Identification for Mold and Die Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
In manufacturing settings, tools like molds and dies often lack critical information, leading to misidentification and inefficient use, as this information is not consistently provided or is lost during transfer between plants, causing time-consuming investigative work and potential safety hazards.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing machine-readable labels, such as barcodes, integrated with tools to store and update critical information, allowing operators to access and update tool details, track usage, and generate maintenance alerts, using a combination of barcode readers, processors, and user interfaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If machine-readable labels are integrated with tools, then tool information accessibility is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces machine-readable labels (barcodes, QR codes) as intermediaries between the tool and the information management system. These labels serve as a simple interface that stores tool information and enables automatic data capture without requiring complex integrated systems on the tools themselves. The labels act as a mediator that bridges the physical tool and the digital information database, resolving the contradiction by providing information accessibility through a low-complexity addition.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a digital copy of tool information stored in machine-readable format on labels attached to physical tools. This copying approach allows the tool information to be accessible digitally without modifying the physical tool structure. The digital twin or copy of tool data enables information retrieval while keeping the actual tool simple, thus improving information accessibility without significantly increasing device complexity.
2Loss of time
If manual investigative work is performed to identify tools, then system complexity is reduced, but loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-attaching machine-readable labels to tools before they are put into service. This ensures that tool information is immediately available for scanning and identification from the moment the tool is deployed, eliminating the need for manual investigative work. The information is prepared in advance and made accessible through the label, reducing identification time without requiring complex real-time systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/manual process of tool identification (visual inspection, manual record-keeping) with an automated optical/electronic system. Barcode scanners or mobile devices can quickly read the machine-readable labels and retrieve tool information digitally, substituting manual investigative work with automated technology. This reduces time loss while the complexity is managed through standardized scanning procedures rather than complex system integration.
3Loss of information
If tools are transferred between plants without integrated labeling, then ease of manufacture is improved, but loss of information increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing machine-readable labels that can be attached to any tool regardless of its origin or destination plant. The standardised label format and attachment method work across different facilities and tool types, ensuring tool information is retained during transfers. This universal approach maintains information integrity while keeping the transfer process simple, as the same labeling system is used throughout the organization without requiring plant-specific modifications.
Data Source
AI summary
A tooling system may comprise a device configured to communicate with an identifier of a machine tool and a tool database having tool information including a predefined proximity associated with the identifier. The device may be configured to automatically activate, without a user-initiated scan, communication with at least one of the machine tool and the tool database in response to the identifier being within the predefined proximity. The device may also be configured to transfer tool information of the machine tool with respect to the tool database.