Object subject to processing, which judges need for predetermined processing thereof based on usage and specification thereof

• US 7,584,121 B1
• Filed: 08/23/2000
• Issued: 09/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Kawano, Katsumi, Sameshima, Shigetoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Havan; Thu Thao
• Application Number:
  US09/644,059
• Time in Patent Office: 3,296 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/8, 705/26, 705/35, 700/113, 707/10, 714/6, 455/466
• US Class Current: 705/26.1
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4183 characterised by data acquisition, e.g. workpiece identification
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31296 Identification, pallet object data and program code for station
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/04 Manufacturing
• 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

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to enable simplifying the information management with respect to the product including the production, distribution, operation and recycle to allow effective production, operation and recycle in accordance with the situation. In order to achieve the object, the present invention provides an apparatus for each of products or parts constituting the products, the apparatus has a memory for storing the information with respect to the attribute and situation of the product and parts. The situation is updated based on thus obtained information from a sensor or communication process by a process for recognizing an object'"'"'s situation. This situation is shared with other products address parts as well as other equipment through the communication process, and allowing recognition by a process for recognizing an object'"'"'s situation, warning to outside, or performing processing by cooperating with suitable other equipment or apparatuses.

Claims

1. An object subject system including a plurality of objects subject to be processed, wherein:

each of the objects subject to be processed is provided with an object body to be processed and a device including a processing unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit;

said storage unit for each of said objects subject to be processed is arranged to store an identifier of said object with which the storage unit is provided, a product specification including a service condition of said object, and a usage situation of said object;

said processing unit for each of said objects subject to be processed renews said usage situation of said object in said storage unit provided therewith on the basis of the identifier of said object and a usage situation of said object received from other objects subject to be processed, determines whether or not said renewed usage situation is within a predetermined service condition of said product specification stored in said storage unit, and outputs a request for predetermined processing for another object subject to be processed when said processing unit judges that the predetermined processing is required for said object, wherein;

said other objects subject to be processed include an accelerometer and a decoder for recording a number of rotations of said object;

said product specification stored in said storage unit includes a relation between usage conditions of said object including either acceleration or deceleration and an endurance distance of said object;

said usage situation stored in said storage unit includes a traveling distance of said object converted on the basis of the usage conditions of said object;

said usage situation received from said other objects subject to be processed includes a traveling distance of said object received from said decoder and usage conditions of said object received from said accelerometer; and

said processing unit renews a using distance of said object stored in said storage unit on the basis of a traveling distance of said object received from said decoder and a usage condition of said object received from said accelerometer, determines whether or not the renewed using distance of said object is within a range of an endurance distance converted on the basis of a relation between the usage condition of said object stored in said storage unit and the endurance distance of said object, and outputs a warning for conversion of said object to said other objects subject to be processed when the using distance of said object is not within the range of said endurance distance.

2. The object system according to claim 1, wherein:

said object is a tire provided with a sensor;

said processing unit converts information from said sensor into a surface thickness of said tire; and

said processing unit applies the surface thickness of said tire in place of a traveling distance of said tire received from said decoder.

3. The object system according to claim 2, wherein:

said processing unit applies information from said sensor in place of the usage situation of said object subject to be processed received from said other objects subject to be processed.

4. The object system, according to claim 1, wherein,

said processing unit applies a traveling distance of said object received from a measuring unit installed outside a vehicle where said object is fixed in place of a traveling distance of said object received from said decoder.

5. The object system, according to claim 1, wherein:

said object subject to be processed and said other objects subject to be processed are vehicle component parts.

6. The object system according to claim 1, wherein

said object subject to be processed and said other objects subject to be processed are hardware.

7. The object system according to claim 1, wherein:

said other objects subject to be processed are provided with a device including a processing unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit; and

said device of each of said other objects subject to be processed is arranged to transmit and receive a usage situation between itself and each other of said devices of said other objects subject to be processed.

8. The object system according to claim 1, wherein:

said updated usage situation of said object to be processed is used for discriminating an available or unavailable state of recycling of said object subject to be processed.

9. The object system according to claim 1, wherein:

said predetermined processing of each of said devices is to maintain or replace the object to be processed.

10. The object system according to claim 1, wherein:

said device is a data carrier device mounted on each of said objects.

11. A processing method for objects subject to be processed, said objects each being provided with an object body to be processed and a device including a processing unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit, comprising the steps of:

storing in said storage unit, an identifier of said object subject to be processed with which the storage unit is provided, the product specification of said object, and a usage situation of said object;

renewing, by said processing unit, said usage situation of said object in said storage unit provided therewith on the basis of the identifier of said object and a usage situation of said object received from other objects subject to be processed;

determining, by said processing unit, whether or not said renewed usage situation is within a predetermined service condition of said product specification stored in said storage, unit, and

outputting, by said processing unit, a request for predetermined processing for another object to be processed when said processing unit judges that the predetermined processing is required for said object, wherein;

said other objects subject to be processed include a decoder for recording the number of rotation of said object and an accelerometer;

said product specification stored in said storage unit includes a relation between usage conditions of said object including either acceleration or deceleration and an endurance distance of said object;

said usage situation stored in said storage unit includes a traveling distance of said object converted on the basis of the usage condition of said object;

said usage situation received from said other objects subject to be processed includes a traveling distance of said object received from said decoder and usage conditions of said object received from said accelerometer;

said processing unit renews a using distance of said object in said storage unit on the basis of a traveling distance of said object received from said decoder and usage conditions of said object received from said accelerometer;

said processing unit determines whether or not the updated using distance of said object is within a range of endurance distance converted on the basis of a relation between the usage conditions of said object stored in said storage unit and the endurance distance of said object; and

said processing unit outputs a warning for conversion of said object to said other objects subject to be processed when the using distance of said object is not within the range of said endurance distance.

12. The processing method according to claim 11, wherein:

each of said objects broadcasts said usage situation of its own object to a plurality of other objects.

13. The processing method according to claim 11, wherein:

each of said devices is a data carrier device mounted on a corresponding one of said objects.