Manufacturing information and troubleshooting system and method
First Claim
1. An automatic troubleshooting system, suitable for use in connection with a high speed web converting manufacturing process having at least one machine operating at a set point and producing a composite article from a sequential addition of component parts during a production run of composite articles, said system comprising:
- a communication network;
a first inspection system automatically inspecting a first aspect of a composite article being produced during the production run, said first inspection system providing via the communication network a first inspection parameter indicative of a characteristic of the first aspect;
a second inspection system automatically inspecting a second aspect of said composite article, said second inspection system providing a second inspection parameter via the communication network indicative of a characteristic of the second aspect; and
a logic system obtaining via the communication network a plurality of the first inspection parameters, each corresponding to one of a plurality of composite articles produced during the production run, and obtaining a plurality of the second inspection parameters, each corresponding to one of said plurality of composite articles, said logic system determining a first mathematical characteristic associated with the obtained plurality of first inspection parameters and a second mathematical characteristic associated the obtained plurality of second inspection parameters, said logic system determining a corrective action in response to the first and second mathematical characteristics.
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Abstract
Systems and methods for providing alarming indications and troubleshooting indications and actions in connection with a web converting manufacturing process such as that used for manufacturing disposable absorbent garments. Some of the disclosed embodiments include relating inspection data, such as product (or process) attribute data, to data from other manufacturing-related systems. Also disclosed are systems and methods for linking product (or process) attribute data obtained during the manufacturing process with one or more data sources including raw material data, process setting data, product quality data, and/or productivity data. Also disclosed are systems and methods for identifying manufacturing set point changes and automatically implementing such changes and automated web steering changes based on data from one or more inspection systems.
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Citations
29 Claims
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1. An automatic troubleshooting system, suitable for use in connection with a high speed web converting manufacturing process having at least one machine operating at a set point and producing a composite article from a sequential addition of component parts during a production run of composite articles, said system comprising:
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a communication network;
a first inspection system automatically inspecting a first aspect of a composite article being produced during the production run, said first inspection system providing via the communication network a first inspection parameter indicative of a characteristic of the first aspect;
a second inspection system automatically inspecting a second aspect of said composite article, said second inspection system providing a second inspection parameter via the communication network indicative of a characteristic of the second aspect; and
a logic system obtaining via the communication network a plurality of the first inspection parameters, each corresponding to one of a plurality of composite articles produced during the production run, and obtaining a plurality of the second inspection parameters, each corresponding to one of said plurality of composite articles, said logic system determining a first mathematical characteristic associated with the obtained plurality of first inspection parameters and a second mathematical characteristic associated the obtained plurality of second inspection parameters, said logic system determining a corrective action in response to the first and second mathematical characteristics. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method of automatically troubleshooting a machine, suitable for use in connection with a high speed web converting manufacturing process having at least one machine operating at a set point and producing a composite product from a sequential addition of component parts during a production run of composite products, said method comprising:
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inspecting a first aspect of a composite product constructed using the high speed web converting process and being produced during the production run;
providing a first inspection parameter being indicative of a characteristic of said first aspect of said composite product;
inspecting a second aspect of the composite product being produced during the production run;
providing a second inspection parameter being indicative of said second aspect of said composite product;
obtaining a plurality of the first inspection parameters, each one of the obtained plurality of first inspection parameters corresponding to one of a plurality of composite products produced during the production run;
determining a first mathematical characteristic associated with said obtained plurality of the first inspection parameters;
obtaining a plurality of the second inspection parameters, each one of the obtained plurality of second inspection parameters corresponding to one of a plurality of composite products produced during the production run;
determining a second mathematical characteristic associated with said obtained plurality of the second inspection parameters; and
determining a corrective action associated with the at least one machine in response to the determined first and second mathematical characteristics. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A method for providing a troubleshooting response for a manufacturing process, said method being suitable for use in connection with a web converting manufacturing process producing a composite product from a sequential addition of component parts during a production run of composite products, said method comprising:
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automatically inspecting at a first aspect of a composite product being produced during the production run to determine a component attribute of said first aspect;
automatically determining a machine setting of a machine associated with the web converting process at the first time;
identifying a relationship between the component attribute of the first aspect and the machine setting; and
identifying a troubleshooting action based on the identified relationship between the component attribute of the first aspect and the machine setting. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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Specification