Real-time manufacturing process control monitoring method
First Claim
1. A computerized method capable of identifying unacceptable levels of defects in work centers of a manufacturing process on a real time basis and initiating corrective action utilizing a plurality of interconnected, computerized work centers, comprising:
- storing thresholds for each of a plurality of defects in a database;
receiving data indicating the occurrence at a monitored area of at least one of the defects;
maintaining a count of the occurrences of said at least one of the defects;
comparing the count of the occurrences of the defects with the stored defect thresholds; and
generating an indication when the count of the occurrences of the defects exceeds a stored defect threshold.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method of identifying unacceptable levels of defects in specific sections or work centers of a manufacturing process on a real time basis and initiating corrective action is disclosed. The system allows a user to define defect tolerances or thresholds for manufacturing work centers, tracks defects at the work centers, compares the level of faults with the tolerances, reports out of tolerance work centers, automatically initiates contact with the appropriate personnel to affect a correction to the out of tolerance work center, and maintains records of corrective actions taken.
67 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A computerized method capable of identifying unacceptable levels of defects in work centers of a manufacturing process on a real time basis and initiating corrective action utilizing a plurality of interconnected, computerized work centers, comprising:
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storing thresholds for each of a plurality of defects in a database; receiving data indicating the occurrence at a monitored area of at least one of the defects; maintaining a count of the occurrences of said at least one of the defects; comparing the count of the occurrences of the defects with the stored defect thresholds; and generating an indication when the count of the occurrences of the defects exceeds a stored defect threshold. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. A computerized method capable of identifying unacceptable levels of defects in work centers of a manufacturing process on a real time basis and initiating corrective action utilizing a plurality of interconnected, computerized work centers, comprising:
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storing thresholds for each of a plurality of defects in a database; receiving data indicating the occurrence at a monitored area of at least one of the defects; maintaining a count of the occurrences of said at least one of the defects; comparing the count of the occurrences of the defects with the stored defect thresholds; and generating an indication when the count of the occurrences of the defects exceeds a stored defect threshold, wherein generating an indication includes automatically notifying predetermined personnel that a predetermined tolerance has been exceeded. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5)
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6. A method of monitoring defects levels during a manufacturing process, comprising:
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tracking manufacturing defects at selected locations; comparing the level of defects occurring at the locations with predetermined tolerances; and generating an indication when the level of defects at a location exceeds the predetermined tolerance, wherein the act of generating an indication includes automatically notifying predetermined personnel that a predetermined tolerance has been exceeded. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method of monitoring and responding to defects detected during a manufacturing process that includes a plurality of interconnected, computerized work centers, comprising:
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storing a threshold for a defect in a database; receiving data indicating the occurrence of the defect at a work center; maintaining a count of the occurrences of the defect at the work center; comparing the count of the occurrences of the defect with the stored defect threshold; and automatically notifying predetermined personnel that the stored defect threshold has been exceeded when the count of the occurrences of the defect exceeds the stored defect threshold. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14)
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15. A method of monitoring and responding to defects detected during a manufacturing process that includes a plurality of interconnected, computerized work centers, comprising:
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storing a threshold for a defect in a database; receiving data indicating the occurrence of the defect at a work center; maintaining a count of the occurrences of the defect at the work center; comparing the count of the occurrences of the defect with the stored defect thresholds; and automatically notifying predetermined personnel that the stored defect threshold has been exceeded when the count of the occurrences of the defect exceeds the stored defect threshold, wherein automatically notifying includes sending an e-mail message to at least one predetermined recipient.
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16. A method of monitoring and responding to defects detected during a manufacturing process that includes a plurality of interconnected, computerized work centers, comprising:
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storing a threshold for a defect in a database; receiving data indicating the occurrence of the defect at a work center; maintaining a count of the occurrences of the defect at the work center; comparing the count of the occurrences of the defect with the stored defect thresholds; and automatically notifying predetermined personnel that the stored defect threshold has been exceeded when the count of the occurrences of the defect exceeds the stored defect threshold, wherein automatically notifying includes paging at least one predetermined recipient.
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Specification