Routing of enterprise resource planning messages

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10101734-B2
Application number	US-201715430373-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 10, 2017
Priority date	Nov 15, 2011
Publication date	Oct 16, 2018
Grant date	Oct 16, 2018

Abstract

An Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) gateway is provided for routing of ERP messages to Manufacturing Execution System (MES) applications. The gateway can receive a message from an ERP system via a manufacturing services bus specifying a business objective requiring action at a control level of an enterprise. The received message can be routed to a selected MES application capable of carrying out the business objective based on attributes within the message. Message routing can be based on location tags contained in the message. The message can also be routed to a selected subset of MES applications based on an analysis of respective capabilities and control contexts of the MES applications. Messages can be routed between the ERP system and the MES applications via the manufacturing services bus, which can manage protocol transformations for a heterogeneous set of applications.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system, comprising:
one or more memories that store executable components; and
one or more processors, operatively coupled to the one or more memories, that execute the executable components, the executable components comprising
one or more manufacturing and execution system (MES) applications; and
a gateway component configured to receive, from a remote device connected to a plant network, a message specifying a business objective, and to route the message to an MES application selected from the one or more MES applications, wherein the gateway component is configured to select the MES application based on the business objective, a constraint on performance of the business objective defined by the message, and a time range during which the constraint is in effect defined by the message,
wherein the MES application is configured to match the business objective to an activity set that defines a workflow for one or more control-level devices or business-level device and execute the workflow.

2. The system of claim 1 , further comprising an optimization component configured to execute an algorithm that correlates the business objective with current control context information generated by the one or more MES applications, wherein the current control context information relates to current control contexts of one or more industrial systems associated with the one or more MES applications.

3. The system of claim 1 , further comprising an optimization system configured to generate, based one at least one of a neural network or a process model, a predicted value of a business-level variable or a control-level variable that is predicted to result from execution of the business objective, and to generate recommendation data specifying a recommendation for optimizing the business-level variable or the control-level variable based on the predicted value.

4. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a data historian component configured to store the message in an archive of messages received by the gateway component.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more MES applications are configured to monitor control data from respective industrial control systems and to update, based on the control data, a system model used by at least one of the one or more MES applications to match business objectives to activity sets.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the activity set defines the workflow as a series of functions to be executed by one or more devices, and wherein the one or more devices comprise one or more industrial devices or one or more business systems.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the MES application is configured to translate the workflow defined by the activity set into at least one control instruction and to deploy the at least one control instruction to one or more industrial devices.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the business objective comprises at least one of a customer order for a specified quantity of a specified product, a directive to minimize energy consumption by one or more industrial systems, a directive to maximize production of a specified product, or a resource allocation instruction.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the MES application is configured to select the activity set matching the business objective based on a current control context of one or more industrial systems associated with the MES application, the control context comprising at least one of a machine status, a machine availability, a work schedule for a production line, a resource inventory status, an energy constraint at an industrial facility, or a process capability of a production line.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the constraint comprises at least one of a constraint on energy consumption or another time range during which the business objective is to be carried out.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the gateway component is configured to select the MES application further based on a location tag identifying at least one of a control system, a plant facility, a production line, or a machine to be used to implement the business objective.

12. A method, comprising:
receiving, by a system comprising one or more processors, a message from a remote device connected to a plant network, the message specifying a business objective, a constraint on performance of the business objective, and a time range during which the constraint is valid;
selecting, by the system, a manufacturing and execution system (MES) application, from a set of MES applications, based on the business objective, the constraint, and the time range;
matching, by the system, the business objective to an activity set of a set of activity sets, supported by the MES application, the activity set defining a workflow for one or more control-level devices or business-level devices; and
executing, by the system, the workflow.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
generating, by the system, a predicted value of a business-level variable or a control-level variable that is expected to result from execution of the business objective; and
generating, by the system, recommendation data specifying a recommendation for optimizing the business-level variable or the control-level variable based on the predicted value.

14. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
monitoring, by the system, control data generated by industrial control systems respectively associated with the MES applications; and
updating, by the system based on the control data, a model used by at least one of the set of MES applications to perform the matching.

15. The method of claim 12 , wherein the executing comprises:
translating, by the system, the workflow defined by the activity set into at least one control instruction executable by one or more industrial devices; and
sending, by the system, the at least one control instruction to the one or more industrial devices.

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein the receiving comprises receiving the message specifying, as the business objective, at least one of a customer order for a specified quantity of a specified product, a directive to minimize energy consumption by one or more industrial systems, a directive to maximize production of a specified product, or a resource allocation instruction.

17. The method of claim 12 , wherein the matching comprises selecting the activity set based on a current control context of one or more industrial systems associated with the MES application, the control context comprising at least one of a machine status, a machine availability, a work schedule for a production line, a resource inventory status, an energy constraint at an industrial facility, or a process capability of a production line.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon executable instructions that, in response to execution, cause a system comprising a processor to perform operations, the operations comprising:
receiving, from a remote device connected to a plant network, a message defining a business goal, at least one constraint on achievement of the business goal, and a time range during which the at least one constraint is active;
selecting a manufacturing and execution system (MES) application, from a set of MES applications, based on the business goal, the at least one constraint, and the time range;
matching the business goal to an activity set, of a set of activity sets, supported by the MES application, the activity set defining a workflow for one or more control-level devices or business-level dev

Assignees

• Rockwell Automation Tech Inc

Inventors

• Cooper David
• Chao Kevin
• Chambers Keith
• Sze Richard
• Moor Crisler
• Henning Brandon E
• Bobba Suryanarayana Murthy

Classifications

• G05B19/41865 Primary

  characterised by job scheduling, process planning, material flow · CPC title

• G06F3/0635

  by changing the path, e.g. traffic rerouting, path reconfiguration · CPC title

• G06Q10/0633

  Workflow analysis · CPC title

• G05B2219/32365

  For resource planning · CPC title

• G06F3/067

  Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS] · CPC title