Browsing by Author "Pagani, Arnaldo"
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- Adaptation of functional inspection test plan in a production line using a multi-agent systemPublication . Rodrigues, Nelson; Leitão, Paulo; Foehr, Matthias; Turrin, Claudio; Pagani, Arnaldo; Decesari, RobertoThe multi-agent systems technology is a proper approach to implement distributed manufacturing systems exhibiting adaptation and flexibility. This paper proposes a multi-agent based solution for the adaptation of the functional test plan in a production line producing washing machines, aiming to increase the process productivity and product quality. The global adaptation mechanism is embedded on the multiagent system infrastructure, allowing the optimized selection of tests based on the correlation of the quality data gathered along the production line. The proposed approach was developed and installed on a real production line producing washing machines under the European Seventh Framework Programme GRACE project.
- Dynamic monitoring of key-performance indicators in industrial environmentsPublication . Pereira, Arnaldo; Petrali, Pierluigi; Pagani, Arnaldo; Barbosa, José; Leitão, PauloManufacturing companies generate huge amounts of relevant data that, potentially, can help the decision makers to monitor and supervise the health status of the shop-floor. Many problems are present that prevent this monitoring, namely the identification of which data should be collected, how to execute this collection or how this data should be analysed and displayed to the user. This paper deals with the last issue, where a dynamic and responsive User Interface is developed enabling the decision maker, having an in-the-mesh intervention, to constantly monitor relevant Key-Performance Indicators (KPI). The paper describes the development of such tool, considering a web-based approach under a platform agnostic perspective. The user interface presents an dynamic view over the aggregated KPI, where data is annotated with relevant warning information.
- GRACE ontology integrating process and quality controlPublication . Leitão, Paulo; Rodrigues, Nelson; Turrin, Claudio; Pagani, Arnaldo; Petrali, PierluigiMulti-agent systems paradigm is a suitable approach to implement distributed manufacturing systems addressing the emergent requirements of flexibility, robustness and responsiveness. In such systems, an ontology is a crucial piece to provide a common understanding on the vocabulary used by the intelligent, distributed agents during the exchange of shared knowledge. This paper describes the design of an ontology to define the structure of the knowledge that is used within a multi-agent system integrating process and quality control in production lines for home appliances, which is being developed within the EU FP7 GRACE (inteGration of pRocess and quAlity Control using multi-agEnt technology) project. The ontology schema is validated by instantiating for a case study derived from a washing machines production line.
- Implementation of a methodology for consideration of product quality within discrete manufacturingPublication . Foehr, Matthias; Jäger, Tobias; Turrin, Claudio; Petrali, Pierluigi; Pagani, Arnaldo; Leitão, PauloThe present paper deals with the questions how product quality can be influenced within product manufacturing and how production control can be optimized for increasing product quality. It focuses on discrete manufacturing processes and presents a methodology to gather and analyze relevant influences on product quality and a multi-agent architecture for flexible and quality focused production control. It will be shown how both approaches can be implemented to achieve a flexible, adaptable and quality focused production process control.
- Intelligent products: the grace experiencePublication . Leitão, Paulo; Rodrigues, Nelson; Barbosa, José; Turrin, Claudio; Pagani, ArnaldoProduct intelligence is a new industrial manufacturing control paradigm aligned with the context of cyber-physical systems and addressing the current requirements of flexibility, reconfigurability and responsiveness. This paradigm introduces benefits in terms of improvement of the entire product׳s life-cycle, and particularly the product quality and customization, aiming the customer satisfaction. This paper presents an implementation of a system of intelligent products, developed under the scope of the GRACE project, where an agent-based solution was deployed in a factory plant producing laundry washing machines. The achieved results show an increase of the production and energy efficiency, an increase of the product quality and customization, as well as a reduction of the scrap costs.
- A lightweight dynamic monitoring of operational indicators for a rapid strategical awarenessPublication . Leitao, Paulo; Rodrigues, Nelson; Ferreira, Adriano; Pagani, Arnaldo; Petrali, Pierluigi; Barbosa, JoséIn the era of the 4th industrial revolution, manufacturing companies are digitally transforming their businesses, processes and factories to address the current market demands. Among several opportunities, the dynamic monitoring of strategical indicators assume a crucial importance for the rapid awareness of the adaptation and optimization of a manufacturing process. In particular, the analysis of the effect that the variation of business factors will provoke in the associated performance indicators will allow to take strategical decisions to mitigate the occurrenceof conditionchanges, aswell as tooptimize thesystem operation to face business opportunities. This paper describes the deployment of a KPI (Key Performance Indicators) monitoring tool in an industrial factory producing micro-waves, allowing the fast production reconfiguration facing the continuously and rapidly changing market conditions.
- Methodology for consideration of system quality within manufacturingPublication . Foehr, Matthias; Jäger, Tobias; Turrin, Claudio; Petrali, Pierluigi; Pagani, Arnaldo; Leitão, PauloThe present paper deals with the question how system quality can be influenced within its engineering and manufacturing. It focuses on discrete manufacturing by system of systems and presents a methodology to gather and analyze relevant influences on system quality within a MPFQ-model. The model is based on four main elements: Materials, Processes, Functions and Quality. The paper brings together functional design/thinking in system of systems engineering with system engineering and manufacturing design. It will show the basic architecture behind the MPFQ model and how quality influences can be methodically detected. Afterwards the application of the MPFQ-model will be shown and benefits will be evaluated.
- Multi-agent system for integrating quality and process control in a home appliance production linePublication . Leitão, Paulo; Rodrigues, Nelson; Turrin, Claudio; Pagani, ArnaldoA current trend in manufacturing is the deployment of modular, distributed and intelligent control systems that introduce adaptation facing unexpected deviations and failures, namely in terms of production conditions and product demand fluctuation. The integration of quality and process control allows the implementation of dynamic self-adaptation procedures and feedback control loops to address a large variety of disturbances and changes in process parameters and variables, aiming to improve the production efficiency and the product quality. Multi-agent systems (MAS) technology (Wooldridge 2002)(Leitão et al. 2013) is suitable to face this challenge, offering an alternative way to design these adaptive systems, based on the decentralization of functions over distributed autonomous and cooperative agents, providing modularity, flexibility, adaptation and robustness. In spite of the potential benefits of the MAS technology, the number of deployed agent-based solutions in industrial environments, reported in the literature, are few, as illustrated in (Leitão et al. 2013) [colocar aqui referencia ao Pechoucek & Marik]. This chapter describes the development, installation and operation of a multi-agent system, designated as GRACE, integrating quality and process control to operate in a real home appliance production line, producing laundry washing machines, owned by Whirlpool and located in Naples, Italy. The use of the MAS technology acts as the intelligent and distributed infra-structure to support the implementation of real-time monitoring and feedback control loops that apply dynamic self-adaptation and optimization mechanisms to adjust the process and product variables. The agent-based solution was developed using the JADE (Java Agent DEvelopment Framework) framework and successfully installed in the industrial factory plant, contributing for demonstrating the effective applicability and benefits of the MAS technology, namely in terms of production efficiency and product quality.
- Multiagent system integrating process and quality control in a factory producing laundry washing machinesPublication . Leitão, Paulo; Rodrigues, Nelson; Turrin, Claudio; Pagani, ArnaldoManufacturing companies are currently forced to reconsider their production processes by adopting more flexible, robust, and adaptive systems, aiming to improve their competitiveness. Multiagent systems (MASs) technology is suitable to address this challenge by providing an alternative way to design these complex systems based on the decentralization of the control functions over distributed entities. This paper describes the installation of a MAS solution in an industrial factory plant producing laundry washing machines. The installed solution focuses on the integration of quality and process control, and contributes to the maximization of the factory profitability facing changing conditions by applying self-adaptation procedures at the local and global levels. The preliminary results show improvements in the production efficiency and product quality, as well as a reduction of the scrap costs.