Disclosed is an interior tracking system for manufacturing control. The interior tracking system has multiple, fixedly installed transceivers for determining the position of multiple mobile units, the position being determined in particular by evaluating the propagation time of electromagnetic (radio) signals. The interior tracking system is used to assign one of the mobile units to one or more workpieces in an industrial manufacturing plant that processes steel and/or sheet metal, to determine the position of the assigned workpieces by localizing the assigned mobile unit using the interior tracking system and to integrate the interior tracking system into a manufacturing control system of the industrial manufacturing plant.

Manufacturing systems that employ intelligent sensing and methods for processing workpieces using such manufacturing systems, including methods of batch processing workpieces. The manufacturing systems may include a holding device to receive work order documents, where each work order document includes an identification tag, and each work order document corresponds with a specific manufacturing step. A scanner may be proximate to the holding device and associated with a workstation, where the scanner is configured to detect the identification tag of the work order documents held by the holding device. A control system may interpret the detected identification tag, identify the work order document associated with the interpreted identification tag, identify the specific manufacturing step corresponding with the identified work order document, and generate an output that includes an instruction for carrying out the manufacturing step at the workstation.

A transportation carrier is provided for automated lens manufacturing in a lens manufacturing facility, including: at least one block piece or one block piece receiving section; and an electronic paper display configured to display at least an up-to-date status information of the manufacturing process of the optical elements carried by the transportation carrier that is intelligible for a human operator without use of a reading device, the electronic paper display including a wireless communication module and a memory configured to exchange and to memorize job information and to process information for lenses to be manufactured, in which the electronic paper display is further configured to function as a passive RFID tag with the wireless communication module.

Embodiments provided herein provide for methods and apparatus for detecting, authenticating, and tracking processing components, including consumable components or non-consumable components used on substrate processing systems for electronic device manufacturing, such as semiconductor chip manufacturing. The semiconductor processing systems and/or its processing components herein include a remote communication device, such as a wireless communication apparatus, for example, radio frequency identification (RFID) devices or other devices embedded in, disposed in, disposed on, located on, or otherwise coupled to one or more processing components or processing component assemblies and/or integrated within the semiconductor processing system itself. The processing component may include a single component (part) or an assembly of components (parts) that are used within the semiconductor processing tool.

Embodiments provided herein provide for methods and apparatus for detecting, authenticating, and tracking processing components, including consumable components or non-consumable components used on substrate processing systems for electronic device manufacturing, such as semiconductor chip manufacturing. The semiconductor processing systems and/or its processing components herein include a remote communication device, such as a wireless communication apparatus, for example, radio frequency identification (RFID) devices or other devices embedded in, disposed in, disposed on, located on, or otherwise coupled to one or more processing components or processing component assemblies and/or integrated within the semiconductor processing system itself. The processing component may include a single component (part) or an assembly of components (parts) that are used within the semiconductor processing tool.

Embodiments provided herein provide for methods and apparatus for detecting, authenticating, and tracking processing components including consumable components or non-consumable components used on substrate processing systems for electronic device manufacturing, such as semiconductor chip manufacturing. The semiconductor processing systems and/or its processing components herein include a remote communication device, such as a wireless communication apparatus, for example radio frequency identification (RFID) devices or other devices embedded in, disposed in, disposed on, located on, or otherwise coupled to one or more processing components or processing component assemblies and/or integrated within the semiconductor processing system itself. The processing component may include a single component (part) or an assembly of components (parts) that are used within the semiconductor processing tool.

According to one embodiment, a production support system for supporting a production method for a product to which a model number is allocated in a course of production. The system includes a predicted model number calculation unit which to calculate a predicted model number for a work-in-process to which the model number is not allocated, on the basis of information about the work-in-process to which the model number is not allocated in the course of production, a requirement of the model number that is found in advance, and model number allocation condition information.

Disclosed is an interior tracking system for manufacturing control. The interior tracking system has multiple, fixedly installed transceivers for determining the position of multiple mobile units, the position being determined in particular by evaluating the propagation time of electromagnetic (radio) signals. The interior tracking system is used to assign one of the mobile units to one or more workpieces in an industrial manufacturing plant that processes steel and/or sheet metal, to determine the position of the assigned workpieces by localizing the assigned mobile unit using the interior tracking system and to integrate the interior tracking system into a manufacturing control system of the industrial manufacturing plant.

Manufacturing systems that employ intelligent sensing and methods for processing workpieces using such manufacturing systems, including methods of batch processing workpieces. The manufacturing systems may include a holding device to receive work order documents, where each work order document includes an identification tag, and each work order document corresponds with a specific manufacturing step. A scanner may be proximate to the holding device and associated with a workstation, where the scanner is configured to detect the identification tag of the work order documents held by the holding device. A control system may interpret the detected identification tag, identify the work order document associated with the interpreted identification tag, identify the specific manufacturing step corresponding with the identified work order document, and generate an output that includes an instruction for carrying out the manufacturing step at the workstation.

Embodiments provided herein provide for methods and apparatus for detecting, authenticating, and tracking processing components including consumable components or non-consumable components used on substrate processing systems for electronic device manufacturing, such as semiconductor chip manufacturing. The semiconductor processing systems and/or its processing components herein include a remote communication device, such as a wireless communication apparatus, for example radio frequency identification (RFID) devices or other devices embedded in, disposed in, disposed on, located on, or otherwise coupled to one or more processing components or processing component assemblies and/or integrated within the semiconductor processing system itself. The processing component may include a single component (part) or an assembly of components (parts) that are used within the semiconductor processing tool.