Overview

This book describes design patterns for flexible manufacturing control. There has been control in manufacturing since its beginning. Originally, there was manual control as we measured and poured material, and manually controlled temperatures by adjusting air and fuel valves. While this is still done in many industries, we now have advanced automated control using state-of-the-art electronics and computer systems producing everything from aspirin to zippers. Yet all manufacturing control systems, manual and automated, have similar goals the transformation of raw materials and energy into products using personnel and equipment. Manufacturing controls are the systems and procedures we use to run the physical production process. This includes automated control provided by devices such as programmable logic controllers (PLCs), distributed control systems (DCSs), and open control systems (OCSs). It also includes manual systems that may use paper or computer screens to guide operators through the production process.

As global competition in manufacturing has increased, there is increasing demand for flexible manufacturing systems. Flexible manufacturing is generally defined as a method of production where the same equipment can be used to make multiple products. For example, an automotive factory may be able to produce different car models based on customer demand. Another example is a processed food factory that is able to make many different types of soup, all using the same basic preparing, cooking, and canning equipment.

One problem that occurred as automated control was added to manufacturing is that control system programming became a critical path in both initial startup and...