The invention relates to a production machine with a control program for visualizing stations and/or machine components, highlighting the speed-determining station and/or the speed-determining machine component in order to optimize the process time. The invention also relates to a method of optimizing the process time for a production machine with such a control program and to a data carrier with such a control program.

A production utilization planner (PUP) core for a manufacturing cell has a simulation manager configured to simulate the processing of workpieces arranged in a workpiece order, by performing the steps of: creating an instance of a simulation controller and an instance of a software model of the manufacturing cell, determining a next timed action to be performed by state machines, incrementing the simulation to the next timed action, updating the software model and the simulation controller each time a state machine performs a timed action, and repeating the steps of determining the next timed action, incrementing the simulation, and updating the software model and the simulation controller, until all of the workpieces have been processed. The simulation manager is configured to output a simulated completion time for processing the workpiece order.

Method for manufacturing a workpiece with a predefined sequence of machine tools by a computer-controlled manufacturing machine with an optimal tool configuration, wherein the initial locations of the tools are allocated, first and second time transfer time functions are calculated for all tools, possible tool location sequences are generated, for possible tool location sequences a respective first cost factor is calculated, obtained tool location sequences are ranked in accordance with the respective first cost factor, the tools are transferred from their initial locations to the optimal locations in accordance with an optimal tool configuration, and the workpiece is manufactured with the optimal tool configuration by the manufacturing machine.

A method for an industrial system. The method includes: ascertaining a representation of the industrial system, the ascertainment of the representation including: selecting a first state of the representation, selecting, based on the first state, at least one machining order from a plurality of machining orders as a function of the first state of the representation and as a function of at least one previously ascertained recommendation, and ascertaining a second state as a subsequent state of the first state via a simulation of the second state as a function of the at least one selected machining order and as a function of the first state; and ascertaining a manufacturing schedule for the industrial system as a function of the ascertained representation.

A process decision support device includes: a machining performance data storage unit that stores machining performance data indicating machining performance of each of a plurality of machining devices including a machining device that adds material and a machining device that removes material; a process pattern generation unit that refers to the machining performance data and sequences and allocates machining steps performed by a combination of any of the plurality of machining devices to generate a process pattern as a combination of the machining steps with which a product is manufacturable; and an output unit that outputs content of the process pattern generated by the process pattern generation unit.

This flow control system is obtained by connecting a plurality of work units WUα and a plurality of work units WUβ to one another, wherein: each WUα has an α-control purpose which is a WU-based independent control purpose, and has an α-control rule for the α-control purpose; each WUβ has a β-control purpose to cause as many WUα as possible to achieve the own α-control purposes, and has a β-control rule for the β-control purpose; the β-control rule is dynamically changed on the basis of partial information about the flow control system; and the WUβ is disposed in a part of the flow control system.

An embodiment method for operating by a controller a cell based mobility production system which produces various kinds of mobilities with a plurality of cells connected in series or in parallel includes arranging a necessary task for each cell in consideration of a mobility production target and a deviation of utilization rate between the cells, setting a sequence of the cells through which a vehicle body matched for a type of mobility passes in consideration of the task arranged for each cell, and determining a feeding sequence of each type of vehicle body in consideration of the sequence of the cells through which each type of vehicle body passes.

Embodiments described herein provide a system for facilitating a process plan for manufacturing an object. During operation, the system can determine a target search space based on a set of constraints. The target search space can include a set of manufacturing actions associated with a manufacturing process of the object. A respective manufacturing action can include an additive or subtractive manufacturing operation corresponding to the addition or removal of a predefined region of the object, respectively. The system can then traverse a set of sequence of actions in the target search space based on a search operation and select a sequence of actions satisfying a target objective as the process plan. A respective sequence of actions can include one or more manufacturing operations capable of producing the object. Subsequently, the system can provide the process plan to a controller configured to manage the manufacturing process of the object.

A process decision support device includes: a machining performance data storage unit that stores machining performance data indicating machining performance of each of a plurality of machining devices including a machining device that adds material and a machining device that removes material; a process pattern generation unit that refers to the machining performance data and sequences and allocates machining steps performed by a combination of any of the plurality of machining devices to generate a process pattern as a combination of the machining steps with which a product is manufacturable; and an output unit that outputs content of the process pattern generated by the process pattern generation unit.

This flow control system is obtained by connecting a plurality of work units WU and a plurality of work units WU to one another, wherein: each WU has an -control purpose which is a WU-based independent control purpose, and has an -control rule for the -control purpose; each WU has a -control purpose to cause as many WU as possible to achieve the own -control purposes, and has a -control rule for the -control purpose; the -control rule is dynamically changed on the basis of partial information about the flow control system; and the WU is disposed in a part of the flow control system.