Remote maintenance system

• US 6,892,109 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2001
• Issued: 05/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Ogura, Masaya, Ogushi, Nobuaki, Ohta, Hirohisa, Yoneyama, Yoshito
• Primary Examiner(s): Picard, Leo
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rapp, Chad
• Application Number:
  US09/988,572
• Publication Number:
  US 20020029086A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• Field of Search: 700/65, 700/108, 700/109, 700/110, 702182-185, 702/188, 702/180
• US Class Current: 700/110
• 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. A manufacturing system, comprising:

a computer which provides a database;

a first manufacturing factory having a first exposure apparatus and a first LAN system capable of accessing the database; and

a second manufacturing factory, located at a remote location from said first manufacturing factory, having a second exposure apparatus and a second LAN system capable of accessing the database,

wherein the database stores maintenance information concerning the first and second exposure apparatuses, the maintenance information including status information, of the first and second exposure apparatuses, which was received from said first and second LAN systems and response information which was used for handling a problem indicated by the received status information.

2. A device manufacturing method, comprising:

exposing a wafer by the first exposure apparatus of the manufacturing system defined in claim 1; and

developing the exposed wafer.

3. A product being manufactured by the manufacturing system defined in claim 1.

4. A manufacturing system, comprising:

a computer which provides a database storing maintenance information;

a first manufacturing factory having a first exposure apparatus and a first LAN system capable of accessing the database; and

a second manufacturing factory, located at a remote location from said first manufacturing factory, having a second exposure apparatus and a second LAN system capable of accessing the database,

wherein the maintenance information includes information concerning the first and second exposure apparatuses, and wherein the computer comprises a communication security system which inhibits unauthorized entities from accessing the database.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the maintenance information includes status information, of the first and second exposure apparatuses, which was received from said host computer and response information which was used for handling a problem indicated by the received status information.

6. A device manufacturing method, comprising:

exposing a wafer by the first exposure apparatus of the manufacturing system defined in claim 4; and

developing the exposed wafer.

7. A product being manufactured by the manufacturing system defined in claim 4.

8. A manufacturing system, comprising:

a computer which provides a database;

a first manufacturing factory having a first exposure apparatus and being able to access the database; and

a second manufacturing factory, located at a remote location from said first manufacturing factory, having a second exposure apparatus and being able to access the database,

wherein the database stores maintenance information including status information of the first and second exposure apparatuses.

9. A device manufacturing method, comprising:

exposing a wafer by the first exposure apparatus of the manufacturing system defined in claim 8; and

developing the exposed wafer.

10. A product being manufactured by the manufacturing system defined in claim 8.