IDEF method-based simulation model design and development

The purpose of this study is to provide an IDEF method-based integrated framework for a business process simulation model to reduce the model development time by increasing the communication and knowledge reusability during a simulation project. In this framework, simulation requirements are collected by a function modeling method (IDEF0) and a process modeling method (IDEF3). Based on these requirements, a common data model is constructed using the IDEF1X method. From this reusable data model, multiple simulation models are automatically generated using a database-driven simulation model development approach. The framework is claimed to help both requirement collection and experimentation phases during a simulation project by improving system knowledge, model reusability, and maintainability through the systematic use of three descriptive IDEF methods and the features of the relational database technologies. A complex semiconductor fabrication case study was used as a testbed to evaluate and illustrate the concepts and the framework. Two different simulation software products were used to develop and control the semiconductor model from the same knowledge base. The case study empirically showed that this framework could help improve the simulation project processes by using IDEF-based descriptive models and the relational database technology. Authors also concluded that this framework could be easily applied to other analytical model generation by separating the logic from the dataPeer Reviewe

Maintenance behaviour-based prediction system using data mining

In the last years we have assisted to several and deep changes in industrial manufacturing. Induced by the need of increasing efficiency, bigger flexibility, better quality and lower costs, it became more complex. The complexity of this new scenario has caused big pressure under enterprises production systems and consequently in its maintenance systems. Manufacturing systems recognize high level costs due equipment breakdown, motivated by the time spent to repair, which corresponds to no production time and scrapyard, and also money spent in repair actions. Usually, enterprises do not share data produced from their maintenance interventions. This investigation intends to create an organizational architecture that integrates data produced in factories on their activities of reactive, predictive and preventive maintenance. The main idea is to develop a decentralized predictive maintenance system based on data mining concepts. Predicting the possibility of breakdowns with bigger accuracy will increase systems reliability

Coloured Petri Nets - a Pragmatic Formal Method for Designing and Analysing Distributed Systems

The thesis consists of six individual papers, where the present paper contains the mandatory overview, while the remaining five papers are found separately from the overview. The five papers can roughly be divided into three areas of research, namely case studies, education, and extensions to the CPN method.The primary purpose of the PhD thesis is to study the pragmatics, practical aspects, and intuition of CP-nets viewed as a formal method for describing and reasoning about concurrent systems. The perspective of pragmatics is our leitmotif, but at the same time in the context of CP-nets it is a kind of hypothesis of this thesis. This overview paper summarises the research conducted as an investigation of the hypothesis in the three areas of case studies, education, and extensions.The provoking claim of pragmatics should not be underestimated. In the present overview of the thesis, the CPN method is compared with a representative selection of formal methods. The graphics and simplicity of semantics, yet generality and expressiveness of the language constructs, essentially makes CP-nets a viable and attractive alternative to other formal methods. Similar graphical formal methods, such as SDL and Statecharts, typically have significantly more complicated semantics, or are domain-specific languages.research conducted in this thesis, opens a new complex of problems. Firstly, to get wider acceptance of CP-nets in industry, it is important to identify fruitful areas for the effective introduction of the CPN method. Secondly, it would be useful to identify a few extensions to the CPN method inspired by specific domains for easier adaption in industry. Thirdly, which analysis methods do future systems make use of

A decentralized predictive maintenance system based on data mining concepts

In the last years we have assisted to several and deep changes in industrial manufacturing. Induced by the need of increasing efficiency, bigger flexibility, better quality and lower costs, it became more complex [1]. Enterprises had had the need to cope with market expectations, incorporating in their production philosophies new paradigms such as JIT- Just in time, MTOMake to order, Mass Customization, agile manufacturing or Lean Manufacturing, that allow them to satisfy markets with a big diversity of products and also big quantities, becoming therefore more competitive. All this complexity has caused big pressure under enterprises maintenance systems. Maintenance mission is to make equipment and facilities available when requested. Maintenance function, seen as a non value aggregator one, became more and more requested to contribute to cost reduction, based on bigger and consistent equipment reliability. This perspective is stressed when enterprises existing equipment has an advanced service life. It is expected a profusion of breakdowns at those scenarios and consequently a smaller usability of equipment driving to less productivity. From an economic perspective, maintenance function is seen to the enterprise as a cost [2]. In fact, experience shows that a major percentage of the overall costs of the business concerns with maintenance [3]. Considering this perspective, decreasing costs with equipment operationalization will increase maintenance productivity and consequently overall productivity [4]

Analysis of methods

Information is one of an organization's most important assets. For this reason the development and maintenance of an integrated information system environment is one of the most important functions within a large organization. The Integrated Information Systems Evolution Environment (IISEE) project has as one of its primary goals a computerized solution to the difficulties involved in the development of integrated information systems. To develop such an environment a thorough understanding of the enterprise's information needs and requirements is of paramount importance. This document is the current release of the research performed by the Integrated Development Support Environment (IDSE) Research Team in support of the IISEE project. Research indicates that an integral part of any information system environment would be multiple modeling methods to support the management of the organization's information. Automated tool support for these methods is necessary to facilitate their use in an integrated environment. An integrated environment makes it necessary to maintain an integrated database which contains the different kinds of models developed under the various methodologies. In addition, to speed the process of development of models, a procedure or technique is needed to allow automatic translation from one methodology's representation to another while maintaining the integrity of both. The purpose for the analysis of the modeling methods included in this document is to examine these methods with the goal being to include them in an integrated development support environment. To accomplish this and to develop a method for allowing intra-methodology and inter-methodology model element reuse, a thorough understanding of multiple modeling methodologies is necessary. Currently the IDSE Research Team is investigating the family of Integrated Computer Aided Manufacturing (ICAM) DEFinition (IDEF) languages IDEF(0), IDEF(1), and IDEF(1x), as well as ENALIM, Entity Relationship, Data Flow Diagrams, and Structure Charts, for inclusion in an integrated development support environment

Research accomplished at the Knowledge Based Systems Lab: IDEF3, version 1.0

An overview is presented of the foundations and content of the evolving IDEF3 process flow and object state description capture method. This method is currently in beta test. Ongoing efforts in the formulation of formal semantics models for descriptions captured in the outlined form and in the actual application of this method can be expected to cause an evolution in the method language. A language is described for the representation of process and object state centered system description. IDEF3 is a scenario driven process flow modeling methodology created specifically for these types of descriptive activities