Remote maintenance system

• US 20050197727A1
• Filed: 04/29/2005
• Published: 09/08/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/1996
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Ogura, Masaya, Ogushi, Nobuaki, Ohta, Hirohisa, Yoneyama, Yoshito
• Granted Patent: US 7,062,343 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/108
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70525 Controlling normal operating mode, e.g. matching different apparatus, remote control or prediction of failure
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4184 characterised by fault tolerance, reliability of production system
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24084 Remote and local monitoring, local result to remote, remote takes action
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31186 TCP-IP internet protocol
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33284 Remote diagnostic
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33313 Frames, database with environment and action, relate error to correction action
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33318 Knowledge acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2223/06 Remote monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0213 Modular or universal configuration of the monitoring system, e.g. monitoring system having modules that may be combined to build monitoring program; monitoring system that can be applied to legacy systems; adaptable monitoring system; using different communication protocols
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0283 Predictive maintenance, e.g. involving the monitoring of a system and, based on the monitoring results, taking decisions on the maintenance schedule of the monitored system; Estimating remaining useful life [RUL] preventive maintenance, i.e. planning maintenance according to the available resources without monitoring the system G06Q10/06
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

Factories (102-104) have host computers (107) for monitoring industrial equipments (106). Each host computer (107) is connected to a management host computer (108) on a vendor (101) side through the internet (105). The host computer (107) on the factory side detects occurrence of a trouble of the industrial equipment (106) and notifies the vendor side of status information representing a trouble state. In response to this, the host computer (108) on the vendor side notifies the factory side of response information representing a countermeasure against the trouble state.

Claims

1-30. -30. (canceled)

31. A remote maintenance system for industrial equipment connected to an intranet, said system comprising:

a first computer for receiving, through an internet, information on an abnormal state of the industrial equipment from a monitor apparatus, which monitors the industrial equipment;

a database for storing information received by said first computer and for storing information on a countermeasure against the abnormal state; and

a second computer which is connected to the intranet, for accessing said database, for referring to information stored in said database, and for inputting information on the countermeasure into said database.

32. A system according to claim 31, wherein said first computer determines a countermeasure against the abnormal state based on the received information and information stored in said database.

33. A system according to claim 31, wherein the countermeasure comprises a countermeasure in accordance with an on-line process and a countermeasure in accordance with an off-line process.

34. A system according to claim 31, wherein said first computer performs an on-line process as a countermeasure against the abnormal state based on information stored in said database.

35. A system according to claim 34, wherein the on-line process supplies one of data and software concerning the countermeasure.

36. A system according to claim 31, wherein remote maintenance is performed for a plurality of industrial equipment based on information from a plurality of monitor apparatuses.

37. A system according to claim 36, further comprising communication security systems, which are different from each other, for the plurality of the monitor apparatuses.

38. A system according to claim 31, wherein the industrial apparatus comprises a semiconductor device manufacturing apparatus.

39. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, said method comprising the steps of:

maintaining a semiconductor device manufacturing apparatus using a remote maintenance system as defined in claim 38;

and

using the maintained semiconductor device manufacturing apparatus to manufacture the semiconductor device.

40. A monitor apparatus for monitoring a plurality of industrial equipment, said apparatus comprising:

receiving means for receiving, through an intranet, information on an abnormal state from each of the plurality of industrial equipment; and

transmission means for transmitting, through an internet, information on the abnormal state of each of the plurality of industrial equipment to a plurality of remote maintenance systems corresponding to the plurality of industrial equipment.

41. A system according to claim 40, further comprising communication security systems, which are different from each other, for the plurality of remote maintenance systems.

42. A remote maintenance method for industrial equipment performed by a system connected to an intranet, said method comprising:

a reception step of receiving, through an internet, information on an abnormal state of the industrial equipment from a monitor apparatus, which monitors the industrial equipment;

a first storing step of storing information received in said reception step in a database;

a second storing step of storing information, which is input to a computer connected to the intranet, on a countermeasure against the abnormal state in the database; and

a provision step of providing information stored in the database to a computer connected to the intranet.

43. A monitoring method performed by a monitor apparatus for monitoring a plurality of industrial equipment, said method comprising steps of:

receiving, through an intranet, information on an abnormal state from each of the plurality of industrial equipment; and

transmitting, through an internet, information on the abnormal state of each of the plurality of industrial equipment to a plurality of remote maintenance systems corresponding to the plurality of industrial equipment.