Marek B. Zaremba

Manufacturing Enterprise Control and Management System Engineering: paradigms and open issues

Abstract Over several decades, control theory has developed its own set of more or less formal modelling techniques designed to automatically control the dynamic behaviour of complicated manufacturing systems and processes. The emerging Internet society is addressing new enterprise control and management integration (ECMI) challenges for agile business to manufacturing (B2M) purposes which enlarge the traditional setting of Automation Engineering to the systems engineering (SE) approach. In order to cope with the increasing complexity of integrating intelligence/information-intensive manufacturing automation within the networked manufacturing enterprise, Automation Engineering should be integrated into the systems engineering approach to achieve a holistic approach that treats in fine the technical operational manufacturing system emerging from the deployment of an ad hoc combination of formal and informal partial models. This paper emphasises that a Holonic Manufacturing Execution System Engineering ( HMESE ) approach should be a relevant B2M SE approach along with other relevant scientific, industrial and educational areas dealing with information and intelligence control and management issues in agile automation.

Automatic Extraction of Control Points for the Registration of Optical Satellite and LiDAR Images

A novel method for automatic extraction of control points for the registration of optical images with Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) data is proposed. It is based on transformation-invariant detection of salient image disks (SIDs), which determine the location of control points as the centers of the corresponding image fragments. The SID is described by a feature vector, which, in addition to the coordinates and diameter, includes intensity descriptors and region shape characteristics of the image fragment. SIDs are effectively extracted using multiscale isotropic matched filtering-a visual attention operator that indicates image locations with high-intensity contrast, homogeneity, and local shape saliency. This paper discusses the extraction of control points from both natural landscapes and structured scenes with man-made objects. Registration experiments conducted on QuickBird imagery with corresponding LiDAR data validated the proposed approach.

Multiscale Isotropic Matched Filtering for Individual Tree Detection in LiDAR Images

This paper addresses the issue of automated tree detection in remote-sensing imagery, particularly in the case of light detection and ranging (LiDAR) height data. The proposed method consists of multiscale isotropic matched filtering using a nonlinear image operator optimized for object detection and recognition. The method provides a robust scale- and orientation-invariant localization of the objects of interest. The local maxima of the matched-filtering operator are located at the potential centers of the objects of interest such as the trees. The tree verification stage consists of feature extraction at the candidate tree locations and comparison with the feature reference values. Experimental examples of the application of this matched-filtering method to LiDAR images of dense forest stands and sparsely distributed trees in residential areas are provided.

Integration and control of intelligence in distributed manufacturing

The area of intelligent systems has generated a considerable amount of interest—occasionally verging on controversy—within both the research community and the industrial sector. This paper aims to present a unified framework for integrating the methods and techniques related to intelligent systems in the context of design and control of modern manufacturing systems. Particular emphasis is placed on the methodologies relevant to distributed processing over the Internet. Following presentation of a spectrum of intelligent techniques, a framework for integrated analysis of these techniques at different levels in the context of intelligent manufacturing systems is discussed. Integration of methods of artificial intelligence is investigated primarily along two dimensions: the manufacturing product life-cycle dimension, and the organizational complexity dimension. It is shown that at different stages of the product life-cycle, different intelligent and knowledge-oriented techniques are used, mainly because of the varied levels of complexity associated with those stages. Distribution of the system architecture or system control is the most important factor in terms of demanding the use of the most up-to-date distributed intelligence technologies. A tool set for web-enabled design of distributed intelligent systems is presented. Finally, the issue of intelligence control is addressed. It is argued that the dominant criterion according to which the level of intelligence is selected in technological tasks is the required precision of the resulting operation, related to the degree of generalization required by the particular task. The control of knowledge in higher-level tasks has to be executed with a strong involvement of the human component in the feedback loop. In order to facilitate the human intervention, there is a need for readily available, user-transparent computing and telecommunications infrastructure. In its final part, the paper discusses currently emerging ubiquitous systems, which combine this type of infrastructure with new intelligent control systems based on a multi-sensory perception of the state of the controlled process and its environment to give us tools to manage information in a way that would be most natural and easy for the human operator.

Logistics models in flexible manufacturing

Abstract An integrated modeling approach that considers the overall production schedule is needed in order to effectively manage different material flows in a flexible manufacturing system (FMS), where large amounts of data intervene in the dynamic control and decision making process. This study focuses on the development of an integrated FMS control model that includes essential features, such as routing of simultaneously processed work orders and batch dispatching, as well as dynamic vehicle path determination and conflict-free routing. A logistics-oriented modeling methodology for FMS distributed control design is proposed that provides the capability for rapid development and evaluation of the control policy.

Electronically scanned white-light interferometric strain sensor employing highly birefringent fibers

Abstract An electronically scanned strain sensor employing highly birefringent fiber as a sensing element and using a low-coherent light source is described. The sensor is composed of two sections of exactly equal length of HB fiber spliced at 90°. This structure compensates the spatial coherence mismatch which enables application of a Wollaston prism alone without expensive bulk delay line as a receiving interferometer, and assures good temperature stability of the sensor. Absolute measurements of strain within the range up to 4000 μstrain with apparent temperature cross-sensitivity less than 1.3 μstrain/°C are possible with this sensor.

Design of steady-state behavior of concurrent repetitive processes: an algebraic approach

This paper addresses the problem of designing the steady-state behavior of a set of repetitive processes competing for access to common resources. Its objective is to develop algebraic formulae that express system behavior as a function of the characteristics of the component processes and synchronization protocols involved. Based on a matrix representation proposed, conditions are developed that guarantee that the system will achieve a steady state. A composition operator-a tool for synthesizing a chain of repetitive processes-is defined, and its application to the design of repetitive systems with required parameters is considered. It is also shown that the composition operator supplemented with an appropriate synchronization protocol makes it possible to prevent starvation occurrence. Finally, extension of the results to other selected topologies is discussed.

Project-driven planning and scheduling support for virtual manufacturing

The paper addresses the issue of decision-making support for small and medium-size enterprises operating within a virtual project-driven enterprise environment. The problem considered here can be defined in terms of finding a feasible schedule that satisfies the constraints imposed by the work-order duration, the price, and the time-constrained resource availability. The problem belongs to the class of multi-mode case problems of project scheduling, where finding a feasible solution is NP-hard. A heuristic method for process planning and scheduling is proposed. The method is based on a critical path approach and the branch and bound search scheme. It has been implemented in a web-enabled interactive software package, and is illustrated using the example of a virtual construction enterprise.

Computer-aided prototyping of production flows for a virtual enterprise

This paper presents a logistics framework to cope with the problem of planning and control of production flows processed on a set of work cells distributed among component firms of a virtual enterprise (VE). The constraints theory framework is employed to study constraint-based production flow coordination rules. The article discusses relationships linking structural parameters (e.g. buffer capacity, machine tool efficiency, and automated storage/retrieval systems) of VE components with material flow control guaranteeing efficient completion of work orders, and specified by such parameters as batch delivery periods, work-in-process (WIP) and make-span. The results are summarized in the form of a performance evaluation scheme. Examples using a software package that implements the proposed flow coordination methodology are provided.

Distributed flow control design for repetitive manufacturing processes

Abstract This paper addresses resource allocation issues that are at the heart of a methodology proposed for the design of distributed control of a class of repetitive manufacturing systems. In particular, conditions sufficient for deadlock-free and starvation-free execution of a system of closed, sequential, repetitive manufacturing processes are considered. The relationship between system resource capacities and a set of admissible realizations of the component processes is discussed. Finally, a rapid prototyping procedure for designing systems with given performance parameters is presented.