Method for providing real-time production information using in-situ web services embedded in electronic production equipment

• US 7,171,454 B2
• Filed: 07/27/2004
• Issued: 01/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens Electronics Assembly Systems LLC (ASM International NV)
• Original Assignee: Siemens Energy & Automation Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Nguyen, Tuan Minh
• Primary Examiner(s): BARNES-BULLOCK, CRYSTAL JOY
• Application Number:
  US10/899,950
• Publication Number:
  US 20050038916A1
• Time in Patent Office: 917 Days
• Field of Search: 700/95, 700/96, 700/121, 700/180, 700/182, 700/83, 709217-219, 709223-225, 709/250, 709/230, 709/238, 709/203, 707/10
• US Class Current: 709/218
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41805 characterised by assembly
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31196 SOAP, describes available services and how to call them remotely
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32142 Define device, module description using xml format file
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/04 Manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/30 Computing systems specially adapted for manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/80 Management or planning

Abstract

Electronics assembly equipment 12 includes a controller 13 including computer readable medium having stored thereon, executable instructions defining at least one web service 10. The web service includes information relating to the equipment. The equipment also includes a web service interface 16 associated with the controller 13 so that the web service 10 is accessible via Internet Protocol by a subscriber.

Claims

1. A method of communicating with electronics assembly equipment of a manufacturing process including the steps of:

providing web services as self-describing programmable application logic, on computer readable medium, in the electronics assembly equipment, the web services including information relating to the equipment, and

ensuring the web services are accessible via Internet Protocol by a subscriber regardless of operating platform and programming language of the subscriber, and without requiring the subscriber to use a web browser.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the ensuring step includes providing an interface to access the web services.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the interface is provided as one of an extensible markup language (XML), hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) and Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) interface.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the web services are executable instructions on the computer readable medium, and the providing step includes providing the computer readable medium in a controller of the equipment.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein information of the web services is represented by extensible markup language (XML).

6. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the web services includes information relating to an occurrence of an event at the equipment.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the web services includes information relating to a document change regarding documentation of the equipment.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the web services includes information relating to a maintenance parameter of the equipment.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the web services includes information regarding recipes relating to items processed by the equipment.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the web services includes information regarding present operational performance at a production line level.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the equipment is an electronic component placement machine.

12. The method of claim 1, further providing a plurality of databases in the equipment accessible via an interface.

13. Electronics assembly equipment comprising:

a controller including computer readable medium having stored thereon

executable instructions defining at least one web service as self-describing programmable application logic, the web service including information relating to the equipment, and

a web service interface associated with the controller so that the web

service is accessible via Internet Protocol by a subscriber regardless of operating platform and programming language employed by the subscriber, and without requiring the subscriber to use a web browser.

14. The equipment of claim 13, wherein the computer readable medium has stored thereon, a plurality of web services.

15. The equipment of claim 14, wherein at least one of the web services includes information regarding present operational performance at a production line level.

16. The equipment of claim 14, wherein at least one of the web services includes information relating to an occurrence of an event at the equipment.

17. The equipment of claim 14, wherein at least one of the web services includes information relating to a document change regarding documentation of the equipment.

18. The equipment of claim 14, wherein at least one of the web services includes information relating to a maintenance parameter of the equipment.

19. The equipment of claim 14, wherein at least one of the web services includes information regarding recipes relating to items processed by the equipment.

20. The equipment of claim 13, wherein the web service interface is one of an extensible markup language (XML), hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) and Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) interface.

21. The equipment of claim 13, wherein the equipment is an electronic component placement machine.

22. The equipment of claim 13, wherein the equipment further includes a plurality of databases accessible via the interface.