Spatio-temporal data model enabled real-time monitoring system for the discrete manufacturing workshop

Real-time monitoring of the workshop is essential in improving the performance of shop floor planning, scheduling and decision making in the discrete manufacturing workshop. In this paper, a new data model is proposed with reference to the idea of spatio-temporal data. And the data structure as well as the query strategy is discussed in details. On this basis, a prototype system of holographic workshop map (HWM) is developed. Within HWM, the whole production process is visualized and transparent. The WIPs (work in process) can be dynamically traced and tracked and disturbances can be identified and controlled. At last, an experiment is carried out in an experimental workshop environment to evaluate the performance of the proposed system. The results indicate that the system outperforms conventional approaches with improved visibility and instantaneity.