Work Content Variation Control System

• US 20100249969A1
• Filed: 03/26/2009
• Published: 09/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Martinez, Jose L., Durst, Jason T., Gruwell, James K.
• Application Number:
  US12/412,089
• Publication Number:
  US 20100249969A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/100
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41865 characterised by job scheduling, process planning, material flow
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32285 Multi manipulator assembly cell
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32306 Rules to make scheduling decisions
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

A work content variation control system includes an apparatus having a computer-readable medium encoded with a computer program. The computer program, when executed, receives order data for a family grouping of a plurality of ordered products, converts the order data to work content, groups the order data with like order data with respect to the work content, creates parsing rules with respect to the work content and defines setup rules for use to schedule assembly of the ordered products.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising a computer-readable medium encoded with a computer program that, when executed:

receives order data for a family grouping of a plurality of ordered products;

converts the order data to work content;

groups the order data with like order data with respect to the work content;

creates parsing rules with respect to the work content; and

defines setup rules for use to schedule assembly of the ordered products.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the ordered products are IHSs.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the parsing rules consider a number of processors, a number of memory modules, a number of hard disk drives and/or a number of expansion cards ordered for the ordered IHSs.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer program validates the rules using historical assembly time data.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer program combines historical assembly cycle times for a given commodity with unique configurations to mathematically predict work content variation within the family grouping.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer program compares an individual commodity versus a total work content to determine contributing factors for work content variation and creates the parsing rules based on commodities that contribute to factors for work content variation.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer program schedules assembly of the ordered products based on the setup rules.

8. A scheduling information handling system (IHS) comprising:

a processor;

memory coupled with the processor; and

a computer-readable medium encoded with a computer program that, when executed;

receives order data for a family grouping of a plurality of build-to-order products;

converts the order data to work content;

groups the order data with like order data with respect to the work content;

creates parsing rules with respect to the work content; and

defines setup rules for use to schedule assembly of the build-to-order products.

9. The IHS of claim 8, wherein the build-to-order products are build-to-order IHSs.

10. The IHS of claim 9, wherein the parsing rules consider a number of processors, a number of memory modules, a number of hard disk drives and/or a number of expansion cards ordered for the build-to-order IHSs.

11. The IHS of claim 8, wherein the computer program validates the rules using historical assembly time data.

12. The IHS of claim 8, wherein the computer program combines historical assembly cycle times for a given commodity with unique configurations to mathematically predict work content variation within the family grouping.

13. The IHS of claim 8, wherein the computer program compares an individual commodity versus a total work content to determine contributing factors for work content variation and creates the parsing rules based on commodities that contribute to factors for work content variation.

14. The IHS of claim 8, wherein the computer program schedules assembly of the build-to-order products based on the setup rules.

15. A method of scheduling assembly of build-to-order information handling systems (IHSs), the method comprising:

receiving order data for a family grouping of a plurality of the build-to-order IHSs;

converting the order data to work content;

grouping the order data with like order data with respect to the work content;

creating parsing rules with respect to the work content; and

defining setup rules for use to schedule assembly of the build-to-order IHSs.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the parsing rules consider a number of processors, a number of memory modules, a number of hard disk drives and/or a number of expansion cards ordered for the build-to-order IHSs.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the method validates the rules using historical assembly time data.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the method combines historical assembly cycle times for a given commodity with unique configurations to mathematically predict work content variation within the family grouping.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the method compares an individual commodity versus a total work content to determine contributing factors for work content variation and creates the parsing rules based on commodities that contribute to factors for work content variation.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

scheduling assembly of the build-to order IHSs based on the setup rules.