Patent Publication Number: US-2007106410-A1

Title: Systems and methods for production planning by visualizing products and resources in a manufacturing process

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      This invention relates generally to information technology, and more particularly, to systems and methods for production planning in manufacturing processes.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      Complex manufacturing projects such as the design and manufacture of aircraft generally require that engineering information, component parts and processes be successfully integrated. With regard in particular to the production of aircraft, typically hundreds of thousands of parts and associated processes must be successfully integrated according to a comprehensive plan to produce an aircraft in accordance with the engineering information.  
      Engineering information typically includes engineering drawings and parts lists that cooperatively form an engineering product plan that describes how materials, components assemblies and sub-assemblies must be combined to form the desired product. A manufacturing process plan is subsequently compiled so that the identified parts in the desired product may be properly scheduled for assembly on the factory floor. Suitable scheduling and coordination is particularly important in complex projects since factors such as the overall cost of the project, the time required for completion of the project, and the risk of failure must be accurately estimated. In addition, other variables of importance such as the overall efficiency of the project need to be accurately estimated. Accordingly, the manufacturing process plan typically includes factory floor planning, tool planning and scheduling, compilation of work plans for assembly personnel, assembly plans, and other similar activities.  
      Although existing process planning and analysis methods are useful, they nevertheless exhibit several drawbacks, and thus may not accurately represent a selected process. For example, the planned configuration, as expressed in the manufacturing process plan may require assembly of the product in a sequence not contemplated by the designed configuration, as expressed in the engineering process plan. Since existing methods generally do not permit variability in tasks or resources in the process to be effectively resolved, conflicts that arise during the product assembly must often be resolved informally on the factory floor, which in turn, often requires expensive and time-consuming rework.  
      What is needed in the art is a process planning system and method that permits realistic evaluation of a production process, so that production planning and engineering design may be more accurately performed.  
     SUMMARY  
      The present invention comprises systems and methods for production planning by visualizing products and resources in a manufacturing environment. In one aspect, a system for production planning includes a first database configured to retain engineering information for a selected article of manufacture, and a second database configured to retain process information for the selected article. A processor is provided that receives a selected portion of the engineering information from the first database and a selected portion of the process information from the second database and combines the selected portions to generate a temporal graphical view of a selected portion of the article. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the following drawings.  
       FIG. 1  is a block diagrammatic view of a system for production planning in a manufacturing process, according to an embodiment of the invention;  
       FIG. 2  is a partial schematic view of a system of managing product and process information in a manufacturing process, according to another embodiment of the invention;  
       FIG. 3  is a flowchart that describes a method of managing product and process information in a manufacturing process, according to still another embodiment of the invention;  
       FIG. 4  is a system for performing a manufacturing process in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and  
       FIG. 5  is a side elevational view of an aircraft having one or more components fabricated using methods and systems for manufacturing in accordance with embodiments of the invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
      The present invention relates to systems and methods for production planning in a manufacturing process. Many specific details of certain embodiments of the invention are set forth in the following description and in  FIGS. 1 through 5  to provide a thorough understanding of such embodiments. One skilled in the art, however, will understand that the present invention may have additional embodiments, or that the present invention may be practiced without several of the details described in the following description.  
       FIG. 1  is a block diagrammatic view of an apparatus  10  for production planning in a manufacturing process, according to an embodiment of the invention. The apparatus  10  includes a processing unit  12  that generally includes any programmable electronic device that is operable to receive programming instructions and input data, and to process the data according to the programming instructions. Although a single processing unit is shown in  FIG. 1 , the processing unit  12  may be comprised of a plurality of processing units that are coupled serially or in parallel so that each processing unit performs a selected portion of a total computational task performed by the processing unit  12 . The apparatus  10  also includes a product information database  14  that is operable to store engineering information of various types. For example, the engineering information database  14  may include digital representations of selected component parts that collectively comprise the product generated in the manufacturing process. Accordingly, the digital representations may include two-dimensional and/or three-dimensional digital models that are compatible with known computer-aided design (CAD) systems, such as the CATIA digital modeling system, available from Daussault Systemes Corporation of Suresnes, France, although other suitable digital modeling systems exist. Other engineering information may be included in the database  14 . For example, the database  14  may include drawing trees that permit engineering drawings to be accessed in an ordered manner, as well as parts lists that define the configuration of the product. Other information stored in the database  14  may include part tolerances and process specifications such as torque requirements, and any other desired information. In a particular embodiment of the invention, the engineering information database  14  may be compiled as disclosed in a co-pending and commonly owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/013,311 filed on Dec. 15, 2004, entitled “Systems and Methods for Process-Driven Bill of Material”, which application is incorporated by reference herein.  
      The apparatus  10  also includes a process information database  16  that is operable to store process-related information for the product generated in the manufacturing process. Briefly and in general terms, the process information database  16  may include part resource and planning relationships for a selected component part or assembly. In particular, the planning relationships may include precedence networks that describe a predetermined assembly sequence for a component part or assembly. In the present discussion, a precedence network is a multi-dependency representation of a project that includes the various activities in the project depicted as nodes, and further includes sequence elements that express at least a temporal relationship between the various nodes. In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the process structures may include data structures that are created as disclosed in a co-pending and commonly owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/012,901 filed on Dec. 15, 2004, entitled “System and Method for Production Planning Analysis Using Discrete Event Simulation”, which application is incorporated by reference herein. Although  FIG. 1  shows the databases  14  and  16  as discrete operational units, it is understood that the informational content of the databases  14  and  16  may be incorporated into a single unit.  
      With continued reference to  FIG. 1 , the apparatus  10  includes a communications system  18  that is configured to communicate with the processor  12 . Accordingly, the communications system  18  may be used to provide engineering and/or planning data to the processor  12 , which may suitably format the engineering and/or planning data for storage in the database  14  and the database  16 . The communication system  18  may include a wide area network (WAN) or a local area network (LAN), but in a particular embodiment, the communications system  18  includes an internet-based system. In any case, the communications system  18  is coupled to one or more requesters  20  that communicate with the processor  12  through the communications system  18 . The one or more requestors  20  thus provide engineering and/or planning data to the processor  12 , and receive suitably processed data from the processor  12  through the communications system  18 .  
      The apparatus  10  includes a storage device  22  that receives processed information from the processing unit  12 , which will be described in greater detail below. Alternately, the storage device  22  may also serve as an intermediate storage location for information generated by the processor  12  before the information is transferred to one or more information requesters  20 .  
      The operation of the apparatus  10  of  FIG. 1  will now be described in detail. As discussed above, the requesters  20  may transfer engineering and/or planning data to the apparatus  10  through the communications system  18  so that the data is available to the processor  12 . The engineering data generally describes the configuration of a desired product, such as a commercial aircraft, while the planning data generally comprises a scheduling definition, which is generally expressed as a precedence network. Briefly, and in general terms, the planning data describes the sequence definition that may be used to define the schedule. The processing unit  12  accordingly processes the data to generate “context” information that reflects a selected assembly or sub-assembly at a desired stage of assembly.  
      For example, in one particular embodiment, and with reference to aircraft production, hydraulics, fuel and electrical systems, and structural design may generally be executed and planned by different organizations that may develop respective designs and planning information with minimal mutual interaction. Accordingly, one or more conflicts may result during integration of the foregoing systems and structures designs. For example, at a selected integration step, it may be determined that the assembly must be partially disassembled in order to permit the installation of other systems and/or structural components because the prior integration steps were not properly ordered. Further, at the selected integration step, it may become apparent that sufficient access is not present to admit a tool and/or a hand to effect the integration step, due to an error in the design of a system and/or a structural component. Accordingly, the context information generated within the processor  12  includes two and/or three-dimensional digital models (e.g., models created using the CATIA digital modeling system, or other similar modeling systems) that may be retrieved from the product information database  14  that are selectively combined with information in the process information database  16  to provide a graphical view of an assembly at a selected integration step. Thus, if conflicts are observed in the context information, the product information (stored in database  14 ) and/or the process information (stored in database  16 ) the information may be readily altered to specify a different design and/or assembly sequence to avoid the observed conflicts. Accordingly, conflicts between the product, process and resource definitions may be advantageously resolved prior to the release of the foregoing definitions.  
       FIG. 2  is a partial schematic view of a method  30  of creating and managing a manufacturing plan in a manufacturing process, according to another embodiment of the invention. The method  30  includes compiling a product information source  32  and a process information source  34  that are generally separately compiled and provide design configuration information for components, assemblies and/or sub-assemblies, and assembly sequencing and planning information, respectively. The product information source  32  and the process information source  34  thus include information for a variety of interrelated systems that are generally prepared by various engineering and planning groups.  
      As further shown in  FIG. 2 , selected portions of the product information source  32  and the product information source  34  may be extracted and processed (as described in detail with reference to  FIG. 1 ) to generate a plurality of contexts  36 . The contexts  36  are graphical representations of selected assemblies and/or sub-assemblies that may be reviewed by affected engineering and/or planning groups so that conflicts resulting from planning and/or engineering errors may be detected. For example, the design of components that comprise the selected assembly may introduce conflicts that preclude assembly efficiency by requiring partial disassembly of a previously assembled object so that access for a hand, a tool, or other required access, may be obtained. Similarly, planning information conflicts may introduce the foregoing access difficulties, and may also introduce difficulties of different kinds. For example, the planning information may require the use of selected installation tools, which are not subsequently removed. Consequently, the installation tools may undesirably be incorporated into the assembly.  
      On the basis of the foregoing review of the contexts  36 , revised information may be introduced into at least one of the product information source  32  and the process information source  34 , so that a revised plurality of the contexts  36  may be generated and evaluated. The evaluation of the contexts  36  may proceed by visually examining each of the contexts  36  under various selected viewing conditions. For example, and in one selected embodiment, selected portions of the assembly may be highlighted using a desired color while other portions of the assembly are uniformly presented in a contrasting color, so that the selected portion may be clearly viewed. In another specific embodiment, the selected portions of the assembly may be desirably highlighted, while other portions are viewed as “grayed” with lower contrast than the highlighted portions.  
      Still other specific embodiments of processes for visual examination are possible. For example, the selected portion of the assembly may be viewed using a minimum viewing option that shows all of the structure and processes that have occurred in a preceding path (as expressed, for example, in a precedence network corresponding to the assembly). Conversely, a maximum viewing option would be operable to provide a comprehensive view that includes not only a preceding path, but contributions from parallel paths in the precedence network also. Contexts may also be selectively viewed by applying a filter to the context that is based upon certain selected attributes of the assembly so that selected portions of the context may be viewed. Filtering the context advantageously permits a viewer to remove extraneous detail and view only the data that is relevant to the viewer. The context may also be viewed dynamically, so that selected portions of the context may be viewed in a desired position. For example, the context may be viewed in a position that is oriented in approximately about the same position that would obtain in the actual assembly. Accordingly, a viewer of the context may conveniently review ergonomic positions of an individual effecting the assembly, tool clearances available to the individual, and other similar details.  
      Still referring to  FIG. 2 , based upon successive generation and review of the contexts  36 , a final context  38  is generated that reflects a relatively matured informational content in the product information source  32  and/or the process information source  34 . The final context  38  may advantageously be used as a baseline context for future design and planning efforts, and may also be used as a training aid for instructing personnel in the proper assembly of a selected assembly. Still other uses for the final context  38  are possible. For example, it may be advantageously used to develop repair and/or maintenance operations. It is understood, however, that the final context may be continuously evolving, so that no entirely definitive context may exist.  
       FIG. 3  is a flowchart that will be used to describe a method  40  of managing product and process information in a manufacturing process, according to still another embodiment of the invention. At block  42 , a process definition is developed that includes a plurality of production tasks that reference part and/or component locations, required tooling and a temporal representation of the production tasks, as expressed for example, in a precedence network. At block  44 , a product definition is formulated that includes digital representations of various components, assemblies and sub-assemblies. In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the digital models are created and viewable using the CATIA digital modeling system. At block  46 , contexts are generated using the product definition and the process definition and an identification value may be assigned to each of the contexts. The identification value may be used to identify an affected group (e.g., the identification value may be an address that corresponds to the affected group), or it may refer to a particular version of the context. At block  48 , the contexts are communicated to the one or more affected groups for review. The affected groups may include planning personnel and/or design personnel that may engage in a colloquy regarding planning and/or the design of the desired product. At block  50 , if a conflict is detected that is related to planning or design, or both, then the digital model of a selected component and/or a production sequence may be selectively altered to remove the conflict, as shown in block  52 . If no conflicts are detected, the method terminates, as also shown at block  50 . Otherwise, the method  40  recursively returns to block  46 , and revised contexts are generated.  
      Embodiments of methods and systems in accordance with the present invention may be implemented on a variety of computing hardware platforms. For example,  FIG. 4  is a system  400  for performing a manufacturing process in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Unless otherwise specified below, the components of the system  400  are of generally-known construction, and will not be described in detail. For the sake of brevity, only significant details and aspects of the system  400  will be described. As shown in  FIG. 4 , in this embodiment, the system  400  includes a computer  402  having a central processing unit (CPU)  404  and a memory component  406 . The memory component  406  may include one or more memory modules, such as Random Access Memory (RAM) modules, Read Only Memory (ROM) modules, Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) modules, and any other suitable memory modules. The computer  402  also includes an input/output (I/O) component  408  that may include a variety of known I/O devices, including network connections, video and graphics cards, disk drives or other computer-readable media drives, displays, or any other suitable I/O modules. A data bus  410  operatively couples the CPU  404 , memory component  406 , and the I/O component  408 .  
      The system  400  embodiment shown in  FIG. 4  further includes a data base  412  operatively coupled to the computer  402 . The database  412  is operatively coupled to the computer  402  via a first communication link  416 . In this embodiment, the database  412  includes a first portion  413  adapted to store product information, a second portion  414  adapted to store process information, and a third portion  415  adapted to store processed information from the computer  402 .  
      As further shown in  FIG. 4 , the system  400  further includes a control component  420  having a monitor  422  and a command input device  424  (e.g. a keyboard, an audio-visual input device, etc.). A second communication link  418  operatively couples the control component  420  to the computer  402 . The system  400  also includes an auxiliary output device  426  coupled to the computer  402  by a third communication link  428 . The auxiliary output device  426  may include a printer, a compact disk (CD) burner, a storage device, a communication port, or any other desired output device.  
      In one aspect, a machine-readable medium may be used to store a set of machine-readable instructions (e.g. a computer program) into the computer  402 , wherein the machine-readable instructions embody a method of performing manufacturing operations in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. The machine-readable medium may be any type of medium which can store data that is readable by the computer  402 , including, for example, a floppy disk, CD ROM, optical storage disk, magnetic tape, flash memory card, digital video disk, RAM, ROM, or any other suitable storage medium. The machine-readable medium, or the instructions stored thereon, may be temporarily or permanently installed in any desired component of the system  400 , including, for example, the I/O component  408 , the memory component  406 , and the auxiliary output device  426 . Alternately, the machine-readable instructions may be implemented directly into one or more components of the computer  402 , without the assistance of the machine-readable medium.  
      In operation, the computer  402  may be configured to perform one or more of the aspects of the methods of manufacturing described above. For example, an operator  430  may input a command through the command input device  424  to cause the computer to retrieve product information from the first portion  413  of the data base  412  and process information from the second portion  414  of the data base  412 . The computer  402  may then use a set of software instructions stored in the computer  402  (e.g. in the memory component  406 ) that performs one or more aspects of the methods of manufacturing described above on the product and process information, and may then transmit processed information to the third portion  415  of the data base  412 . Alternately, one or more aspects of the various processes described above may be implemented in the computer  402  using any suitable programmable or semi-programmable hardware components (e.g. EPROM components).  
      Results of the processes performed by the computer  402  in accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention may be transmitted via the data bus  410  to the I/O component  408 . The results may also be transmitted to the control component  420  and to the auxiliary output device  426  via the second and third communications links  418  and  428 . The operator  430  may view the results of the one or more methods on the control monitor  422 , and may take appropriate action, including revising analysis parameters and inputs, and continuing or repeating the one or more embodiments of analysis methods using different product and process information as desired.  
      It will be appreciated that embodiments of the present invention may be used to manufacture a wide variety of products, and the invention is not limited to the particular embodiments and products described above. For example,  FIG. 5  is a side elevational view of an aircraft  900  having one or more components  902  fabricated using methods and systems for manufacturing in accordance with embodiments of the invention. In this embodiment, the aircraft  900  generally includes a fuselage  905  including wing assemblies  906 , a tail assembly  908 , and a landing assembly  910 . The aircraft  900  further includes one or more propulsion units  904 , a control system  912  (not visible), and a host of other systems and subsystems that enable proper operation of the aircraft  900 .  
      It will be appreciated that systems and methods in accordance with the present invention may be utilized in the fabrication of any number of components  902  of the aircraft  900 , including, for example, the various components and sub-components of the tail assembly  908 , the wing assemblies  906 , the fuselage  905 , the propulsion units  904 , and any other suitable portion of the aircraft  900 . Of course, embodiments of the present invention may also be used to manufacture the aircraft  900  in its entirety.  
      Although the aircraft  900  shown in  FIG. 5  is generally representative of a commercial passenger aircraft, including, for example, the 737, 747, 757, 767, 777, and 7E7 models commercially-available from The Boeing Company of Chicago, Ill., the inventive systems and methods disclosed herein may also be employed in the assembly of virtually any other types of aircraft. More specifically, embodiments of the present invention may be applied to the manufacture and assembly of other passenger aircraft, fighter aircraft, cargo aircraft, rotary aircraft, and any other types of manned or unmanned aircraft, including those described, for example, in The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft by Enzo Angelucci, published by Book Sales Publishers, September 2001, and in Jane&#39;s All the World&#39;s Aircraft published by Jane&#39;s Information Group of Coulsdon, Surrey, United Kingdom, which texts are incorporated herein by reference.  
      It may also be appreciated that alternate embodiments of apparatus and methods in accordance with the present invention may be utilized in the manufacture of a wide variety of other products, including, for example, boats, ships, missiles, automobiles and other vehicles, buildings, or any other suitable products or assemblies. Embodiments of systems and methods in accordance with the present invention may improve the efficiencies and accuracies of manufacturing processes, and may reduce costs associated with product design and manufacture in comparison with prior art systems and methods.  
      While various embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, as noted above, many changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is not limited by the disclosure of the various embodiments. Instead, the invention should be determined entirely by reference to the claims that follow.