Method of supporting maintenance of facility and system

• US 6,665,581 B2
• Filed: 03/25/2002
• Issued: 12/16/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sintokogio Limited
• Original Assignee: Sintokogio Limited
• Inventors: Nishida, Tadashi, Kondo, Minoru
• Primary Examiner(s): PALADINI, ALBERT WILLIAM
• Application Number:
  US09/980,899
• Publication Number:
  US 20020107602A1
• Time in Patent Office: 631 Days
• Field of Search: 700/204, 700/28, 700/51, 700/99, 700/108, 700/174, 702/176, 702/185
• US Class Current: 700/204
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4063 Monitoring general control system G05B19/4062 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32227 On error detected by zone supervisor, maintenance of particular zone
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32234 Maintenance planning
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/37252 Life of tool, service life, decay, wear estimation
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/45244 Injection molding

Abstract

A method and system is provided to determine or predict those components that may have to be maintained before the operation of a molding system that has those components is caused to be stopped. Cycle times that correspond to the respective times of the cycles of the operations of the molding system and operation times of the processes performed by the components, which operation times affect the cycle times, are measured and stored. Based on the sum of the operation times that exceed a predetermined time or the sum of the number of operation times that exceed the predetermined time during the specified period, any step that may cause a problem among the steps of the components that affect the cycle times is determined.

Claims

1. A method for supporting maintenance for equipment for determining and anticipating where maintenance should be needed before a system is caused to be interrupted, including the steps of

measuring, at short intervals over a long time, data on cycle times, each of which is the time of one cycle of an operation of the equipment, and data on the operation times of the processes performed by components or apparatuses that affect the cycle times and storing them,

retrieving data in a database in which the cycle times and the operation times of the processes are stored and specifying any cycle time that is longer than a reference cycle time,

summing the operation times or a number of operation times that exceed a predetermined time during a specified period,

determining which process may cause a problem among the processes of the apparatuses that affect the cycle times, based on the sum of the operation times that exceed a predetermined time during the specified period or the sum of the number of operation times that exceed the predetermined time during the specified period, and

displaying data on the processes that may cause a problem.

2. A method for supporting maintenance for equipment for determining where maintenance should be needed before the operation of a system is caused to be interrupted, including the steps of

measuring, at short intervals over a long time, data on cycle times, each of which is the time of one cycle of an operation of the equipment, and data on the operation times of the processes performed by components or apparatuses that affect the cycle times, and storing them,

retrieving data in a database in which the cycle times and the operation times of the processes are stored and specifying any period that includes cycle times that are longer than a reference cycle time,

summing the operation times or a number of operation times that exceed a predetermined time during a specified period,

determining which process may cause a problem among the processes of the apparatuses that affect the cycle times, based on the sum of the operation times that exceed a predetermined time during the specified period or the sum of the number of operation times that exceed the predetermined time during the specified period,

monitoring the changes in the operation times in regards to the processes that are determined in the cycle times, and

displaying data on the processes that may cause a problem.

3. A method for supporting maintenance for equipment for anticipating where maintenance should be needed before the operation of a system is caused to be interrupted, including the steps of

measuring, at short intervals over a long time, data on cycle times, each of which is the time of one cycle of an operation of the equipment, and data on the operation times of the processes performed by components or apparatuses that affect the cycle times and storing them,

retrieving data in a database in which the cycle times and the operation times of the processes are stored and specifying any period that includes cycle times that are longer than a reference cycle time,

summing the operation times or a number of operation times that exceed a predetermined time during a specified period,

determining which process may cause a problem among the processes of the apparatuses that affect the cycle times, based on the sum of the operation times that exceed a predetermined time during the specified period or the sum of the number of operation times that exceed the predetermined time during the specified period,

monitoring the changes over time in the operation times in regards to the processes that are determined, and

displaying data on the processes that may cause a problem.