Patent ID: 8229584

Claim:
An abnormality detection system comprising: a measurement unit that measures different control characteristic values of a plurality of products manufactured on a same production line, said measurement unit being a non-image sensor; a host computer that detects an abnormality in the measured control characteristic values arising from a malfunction in a connection between said measurement unit and said host computer, wherein said host computer executes centralized control of the production line, the host computer comprising: a storage unit that stores said control characteristic values measured with respect to said products and communicated on-line from said measurement unit; and a decision unit that a) acquires said control characteristic values from said storage unit, b) decides whether a specific condition (i) is satisfied, the specific condition being, with respect to m pieces (m is a natural number) of said products that are consecutively manufactured, whether an absolute value of a difference in a respective one of said control characteristic values between each of said products and said product manufactured immediately before each of said products is equal to or less than a predetermined constant, and c) decides that the respective one of said control characteristic values is abnormal due to a malfunction of the measurement unit or of a communication system that communicates said control characteristic values when said specific condition (i) is satisfied.