JP5160773B2 - Information processing apparatus and method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to information processing that supports product design.

  The design process varies depending on the function of the product and the key device (parts important in design) to be used. Therefore, it is necessary to generate different design processes and process flows for each product. We also want to estimate how much design time and design cost will be required at the start of design. However, it is not possible to perform a highly accurate simulation that can accurately estimate the design period and design cost. As a result, the designer manually sets start dates and scheduled completion dates for many design processes at the start of design. Therefore, a great amount of time and load are required for the work for generating different design processes and process flows for each product, and the work for setting the start date and the scheduled completion date of each design process.

  In addition, information such as how long it takes to develop a product and how much cost is required cannot be obtained with high accuracy in the previous stage of product design. As a result, there is also a problem that the product development plan, the planned date of commercialization, the planned start date of sales in the market, and the market price of the product cannot be determined at an early stage.

  On the other hand, a management technique called DSM (Design Structure Matrix) is known. DSM is a process analysis technique that expresses business processes including interdependent tasks in a compact and easy-to-understand manner by focusing on the flow of information. The DSM lists the tasks, investigates the inputs required to execute the tasks and the outputs generated by the tasks, and creates a DSM / Matrix describing the task dependencies from these input / output relationships. Then, the task dependency is reduced by an operation called partitioning or tearing to achieve an efficient business process.

  However, in order to analyze different design processes and process flows for each product using DSM, it is necessary to create a large number of DSM / Matrix. Furthermore, DSM cannot cope with the input data necessary for each design process, the output data of each design process, the work procedure, the design method, and the definition of the major and middle process categories. Even if DSM is introduced into a design process common to each product, a plurality of different DSM / Matrix is created for each product, and a common design process is defined each time.

  Also, it is clear that what design data should be generated based on which data in a certain design process, and what work procedure and design method should be used when generating that design data. Absent. For example, an inexperienced designer enjoys a design method from an experienced designer, but this requires not only an inexperienced designer but also an experienced designer to spend a great deal of time. Even an experienced designer cannot always communicate the design method to an inexperienced designer, and an inexperienced designer will make a design mistake. Of course, even a skilled designer rarely has a design mistake. Therefore, there are product design issues such as improvement of design quality and reduction of design lead time.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-133878 JP2003-316829

An object of the present invention is to facilitate the setting of a product design process flow. Another object is to set a design period for each design process. Another object is to update the standard man-hour and difficulty of each design process.

Information processing according to the present invention manages a process flow database storing process flow data defining a product design process flow stored in a memory, and a design process database storing information of each design process, When the design corresponding to the process flow data stored in the process flow database is completed, based on the actual man-hours of each design process recorded in the process flow data, the standard man-hours of each design process stored in the design process database And the design process that becomes a bottleneck in which the actual man-hour exceeds a predetermined multiple of the predicted man-hour indicated by the process flow data is detected, and the difficulty level recorded in the design process database of the detected design process is detected. update, the difficulty, for the number of steps becomes a bottleneck in the past for all products, and the detected design Extent is characterized Rukoto calculated as the ratio of number of the bottleneck.

Data indicating the type of data stored in the memory, input / output information indicating whether the data is input or output, process information of the design process for inputting or outputting the data, and a function indicating the function of the product Information, an input / output data database storing a plurality of records capable of recording device information indicating key devices, a design process database storing information of each design process, and a designer database in which information of each designer is registered Information processing that simulates the design process flow of a product using the product, and inputs product information indicating product functions and key devices, refers to the input / output data database based on the product information, and The design process flow is set, process flow data indicating the design process flow is generated, and the design process database is created. Set the design period of each design process included in the design process flow based on the standard man-hours of each design process received, include information indicating the design period in the process flow data, and refer to the designer database Selecting a designer to be assigned to each design process included in the design process flow, including in the process flow data, generating a display screen of a simulation result of the design process flow of the product based on the process flow data, and When the design corresponding to the flow data is completed, the standard man-hours of each design process stored in the design process database are updated based on the actual man-hours of each design process recorded in the process flow data. detecting a design step of the process flow data becomes bottleneck that exceeds a predetermined multiple of the prediction steps shown, the detected design process Serial to update has been difficulty recorded in the design process database, based on said standard manhour and difficulty of the design process, the process generates flow data, the difficulty has become a bottleneck in the past for all products against the number of steps, the detected design process is characterized Rukoto calculated as the ratio of number of the bottleneck.

According to the present invention, the setting of the product design process flow can be facilitated. Moreover, the design period of each design process can be set. In addition, the standard man-hour and difficulty of each design process can be updated.

  Hereinafter, information processing in the design support system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[System configuration]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the design support system according to the first embodiment.

  The design support system is configured around a design support server 1 to which a plurality of terminals 4 can be connected via a network 3.

  Although details will be described later, in the storage device 20 connected to the design support server 1, the relationship between the input / output data and the process is registered in advance as a database (DB). When the product function and key device information (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “specification”) is input at the start of product design, the design support server 1 detects input / output data necessary for the design of the product. Then, an optimal design process flow is generated based on the detected input / output data. The design support server 1 also detects work procedures and design methods necessary for each process.

  The design support server 1 includes a login processing unit 11, a design process definition unit 12, a design support unit 13, a design evaluation unit 14, and a simulation unit 15 as processing units 10 that execute the above-described design support processing. The design support server 1 may execute the processing of the processing unit 10 by a single processor or may execute the processing of the processing unit 10 by a plurality of processors in parallel.

  A user (designer or developer) operates the terminal 4 connected to the design support server 1 via the network 3 and logs in to the design support server 1 to provide functions described later provided by the design support server 1. Can be used.

Storage Unit FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of information stored in the storage device 20 as a DB.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the storage device 20 includes at least seven of an input / output data DB 21, a product information DB 22, a design process DB 23, a work procedure DB 24, a design method DB 25, a designer DB 26, and a parts information DB 27. Remember two DBs. In addition, the input / output data DB 21, work procedure DB 24, and design technique DB 25 are associated with one or more design processes. With this association, the design support server 1 can define input data, output data, work procedures, and design methods for each design process.

[Login processing section]
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a processing example of the login processing unit 11.

  When the designer operates the terminal 4 and logs in to the design support server 1 (S11), the login processing unit 11 refers to the designer DB 26, identifies the designer corresponding to the login ID (S12), and product information The design work data of the designer is acquired from the DB 22 (S13), and the design work list screen is transmitted to the terminal 4 (S13).

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a design work list screen displayed on the terminal 4 immediately after login, and is a screen displayed immediately after Mr. A logs in.

  The designer presses an “edit” button arranged at the right end of each record when performing an existing assigned job. If product information is registered in order to start a new design work, the product information registration tab is selected. In other words, when the login processing unit 11 receives an instruction from the designer from the terminal 4 (S14), the login processing unit 11 calls a process according to the instruction (S15). Then, steps S14 and S15 are repeated until the designer logs out (S16).

  FIG. 4 shows processing corresponding to one user (designer), but it goes without saying that the login processing unit 11 accepts logins of a plurality of users and processes tasks for each user. In the following description, it is assumed that the product information registration tab has been selected.

[Design process definition section]
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of processing of the design process definition unit 12. The design process definition unit 12 is called by the login processing unit 11 when the product information registration tab is selected.

Registration of Product Information First, the design process definition unit 12 transmits a product registration screen to the terminal 4 (S101).

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a product registration screen displayed on the screen of the terminal 4.

  The designer inputs the name and product code of the product whose design is to be started on the product registration screen. Furthermore, the function of the product and the key device to be used are set. At this time, when the “add” button 32 or 35 is pressed, a list of functions or key devices registered in the product information DB 22 is displayed in another window. The designer adds a function or key device by dragging and dropping the function or key device displayed in the list to the function column 31 or the key device column 34. Of course, a plurality of functions and key devices can be set. Further, by selecting an unnecessary function or key device listed in the function column 31 or the key device column 34 and pressing a “delete” button 33 or 36, the unnecessary function or key device can be deleted.

  The designer presses the “Register” button 37 when the product information has been input. If the function or key device of the registered product is already corrected, the product registration screen is called based on the product name or product code, the function or key device is corrected, and the “change” button 38 is pressed. When the “Register” button 37 or the “Change” button 38 is pressed, the terminal 4 transmits the product information input on the product registration screen to the design support server 1.

Generation of Design Process Flow When receiving the new product information (S102), the design process definition unit 12 generates a new record in the product information DB 22. Then, product information associated with the user ID of the designer who registered the product with reference to the designer DB 26 is registered (S103). Further, based on the specifications (functions and key devices) of the received product information, the input / output data DB 21 is searched to detect input / output data and design process necessary for the design.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the input / output data DB 21. The input / output data DB 21 includes at least a data name, a data type (indicating whether it is input data or output data), a related process name, each field indicating a function and a key device that require the data, and whether it is a final process. Has a flag to indicate

  That is, the design process definition unit 12 searches the function and key device field of the input / output data DB 21 and detects a record corresponding to the received specification (S104). Then, the input / output data is extracted from the data name and data type field of the detected record, and the process name is extracted from the related process field (S105). For example, when “XX function” is entered as a function and “XX part” is entered as a key device, “Data A” and “Process A” and “Data C” are entered as search terms. “Process A” to be output, “Data E” and “Process A” to output it are detected.

  Further, the design process definition unit 12 searches the input / output data DB 21 using the data name of the extraction result of step S105 as a search term (S106). In the above example, the data C and E output from the process A are used as search terms, and the “process C” that inputs the data C, the output “data F”, and the “process F” that inputs the data E are detected. . Further, “process F” is detected using the data F as a search term.

  The design process definition unit 12 generates a design process flow shown as an example in FIG. 8 based on the search results of steps S105 and S106 (S107). In FIG. 8, a circle indicates the end of the process flow, an arrow indicates the data flow, and a box indicates the process. According to the above search example, first, the data A is input to the process A. Then, the design process flow in which data C, which is one output of process A, is input to process C, data F, which is output of process C, and data E, which is the other output of process A, is input to process F. Generate.

  The design process definition unit 12 recursively repeats such search (S106) and design process flow generation (S107), and if a record with a final process flag of `` Yes '' is detected (S108), the design process flow generation Exit. In the example shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, when the output data Y record whose final process flag is “Yes” is detected, the generation of the design process flow is terminated. Then, the standard man-hours of each process are acquired with reference to the design process DB 23 (S109), and the design period of each process and the expected design completion date are set with the design process flow generation date as the design start date (S110). Then, the generated process flow data of the design process flow is registered in the record of the product information DB 22 (S111).

  The standard man-hours registered in the design process DB 23 are initially designed by the designer. However, the design support server 1 updates the standard man-hour although details will be described later. The default value for the design start date is the design process flow generation date. However, although details will be described later, the designer can correct the design start date and the like.

  As described above, the design process definition unit 12 starts generating the design process flow based on the specification received from the terminal 4. Then, a process necessary for the design is detected from the relationship of input / output data of each process. Then, the process detected from the relationship of the input / output data of each process is linked to generate a design process flow, and the design period is defined based on the input / output data of each design process and a standard process described later. Although details will be described later, the designer of each process can also be defined. This definition result is stored in the product information DB 22 as process flow data corresponding to the product name and product code.

[Design Support Department]
The login processing unit 11 calls the design support unit 13 when the design process definition unit 12 finishes generating the design process flow or when the “edit” button shown in FIG. 4 is pressed.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of processing of the design support unit 13.

  The design support unit 13 receives the designer's user ID and product code from the login processing unit 11 (S201), acquires process flow data corresponding to the user ID and product code from the product information DB 22 (S202), and designs A process flow screen is generated and transmitted to the terminal 4 (S203). The terminal 4 that has received this data displays a design process flow screen.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the design process flow screen. In the vicinity of the box icon of each process, the design period and status (finished, working, startable, unstartable, etc.) are displayed. In addition, the progress rate is displayed in the process in progress.

  When the designer clicks a box icon indicating a process of the design process flow, the information is transmitted from the terminal 4 to the design support server 1. When the design support unit 13 receives that the process icon has been clicked (S204), it refers to the work procedure DB 24 and the design method DB 25, and extracts the work procedure name and the design method name necessary for the process ( S205), the work procedure data is obtained by referring to the work procedure DB 24 (S206). Also, refer to the product information DB 22 to obtain the design period data, input / output data name and creation status of the process (S207), including the design period, work procedure data, design method name, and input / output data name. A process operation screen is generated and transmitted to the terminal 4 (S208).

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the work procedure DB 24, and FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the design technique DB 25. The work procedure DB 24 (design method DB 25) includes functions and keys in consideration of the procedure name (method name), each field indicating the related design process, and the case where the work procedure (design method) changes depending on the specifications. Has device fields. In other words, even in the same process, work procedures and design methods may differ depending on specifications.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a process operation screen.

  When the “change” button 41 arranged adjacent to the start date or scheduled end date field on the process operation screen is pressed (S209), the design support unit 13 determines that the product information DB is based on the date data input in the date field. The design period data of 22 is changed (S210). In the example of FIG. 13, since the design of the process C has already started, the button for changing the start date is not displayed. Further, the change of the start date or the scheduled end date naturally affects other processes. Therefore, the design support unit 13 changes not only the process instructed to be changed but also the design period of other processes. In addition, if the design support period 13 exceeds a specific deadline such as the design completion date when the design period of the process is changed, the design support unit 13 may send a dialog to that effect to the terminal 4 and may not allow the design period to be changed. is there.

  In the case of already created data, the data file name is displayed in the data path column arranged adjacent to the input / output data name, and can be displayed on the screen of the terminal 4 by pressing the “reference” button 42. Further, when the process D is not completed, that is, when the output data is not created, the data path column arranged adjacent to the output data name is blank. When creating the output data, the designer inputs the data file name in the data path field and presses the “Register” button 43. When the “Register” button 43 is pressed, the terminal 4 reads the data file stored in the hard disk or the like of the terminal 4 according to the data path name and transmits it to the design support server 1. If there are a plurality of input data and output data, they are listed. When the output data name data path field is completely filled, the design of the process is completed.

  When the design support unit 13 receives the data file via the process operation screen (S211), the design support unit 13 registers the output data of the process corresponding to the process operation screen in the product information DB 22 (S212).

  In the work procedure column of the process operation screen, work names (or work contents) are listed in order of work. If the work includes execution of a program, an “execute” button 44 is arranged adjacent to the work name. When the “execute” button 44 is pressed (S213), the design support unit 13 refers to the work procedure DB 24, extracts the work program (for example, Java (registered trademark) format), and transmits it to the terminal device 4. (S214). Accordingly, the terminal 4 executes the received program.

  The program is stored in the storage device 20 shown in FIG. 1 or a server device (not shown) on the network 3. In the work procedure DB 24, a path name indicating the location of the program is recorded.

  The design technique name is listed in the design technique column of the process operation screen. When the “reference” button 45 arranged adjacent to the design method name is pressed (S215), the design support unit 13 searches the design method DB 25 and stores document data (for example, the design method is described) (pdf format) is extracted and transmitted to the terminal device 4 (S216). Accordingly, the terminal 4 displays the received document data.

  The document data is stored in the storage device 20 shown in FIG. 1 or a server device (not shown) on the network 3. In the design technique DB 25, a path name indicating the location of the document data is recorded.

  The processing of steps S204 to S216 is repeated until, for example, the “end” button 46 on the design process flow screen is pressed. Then, when the “end” button 46 is pressed (S217), the design support unit 13 ends the process.

  In this way, the design support unit 13 presents the work procedure and design method of the design process, and assists the designer to execute the correct design procedure and refer to the correct design method in a short time.

  The information processing according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described below. Note that the same reference numerals in the second embodiment denote the same parts as in the first embodiment, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

  As Example 2, an example will be described in which the design period set by the design process definition unit 12 is compared with the actual design period, and the standard man-hour of each design process used to generate the design period is updated. In addition, since the standard man-hour is the man-hour when the designer with standard ability performs the design, it is necessary to perform processing for updating the ability of the designer based on the time (actual man-hour) required for the process. Furthermore, the difficulty level of each design process is also calculated.

[Design Evaluation Department]
FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the evaluation process of the design evaluation unit 14. This process is called by the design support unit 13 when the last process of the design process flow is completed.

First, the design evaluation unit 14 calculates the time (actual man-hours) required for each process of the product (S301) and stores it in the design process DB 23 together with the product code and the user ID indicating the designer (S302). That is, information on the actual man-hours associated with the process name is accumulated in the design process DB 23. Next, referring to the design process DB 23, the standard man-hour Smh of each design process is calculated by the equation (1) (S303), and the corresponding data in the design process DB 23 is updated (S304).
Smh = (ΣPmh + Tmh) / Np… (1)
Here, Pmh is the actual man-hours of the process in all past products
Tmh is the actual number of man-hours for the process in the product designed this time
Np is the number of all products including the process

Next, the design evaluation unit 14 determines whether or not there is a process that has become a bottleneck in the current design process (S305). The design process that has become a bottleneck is a process that is largely delayed compared to the planned design period due to a design change or the like, and that causes a subsequent process or a design end date to be delayed. That is, it is a process in which the actual design period is long (the actual man-hour is large) with respect to the design period (predicted man-hour) defined in the process flow data. Note that, for example, with 1.5 times the estimated man-hours as a threshold, it may be determined that there is a process that has become a bottleneck when there is a process in which the actual man-hour exceeds the threshold. If there is a process that has become a bottleneck, refer to the design process DB 23, calculate the difficulty level Dh of the process using the formula (2) (S306), and update the corresponding data in the design process DB 23 (S307).
Dh = Nb × 100 / Ndb (2)
Where Nb is the number of times the process has become a bottleneck
Ndb is the number of processes that have become bottlenecks in all past products

Next, the design evaluation unit 14 refers to the designer DB 26, calculates the ability index Ia of each designer using the formula (3) (S308), and sets the ability of each designer according to the following table ( S309), the corresponding data in the designer DB 26 is updated (S310).
Ia = Σmh / ΣSmh + Cmh × 0.1 (3)
Where Σmh is the sum of the actual man-hours of all processes handled by the designer
ΣSmh is the total standard man-hours for all processes handled by the designer
Cmh is the number of processes that caused the design change in the process handled by the designer

The capability rank is assigned according to the capability index Ia based on the rank table 261 having the following contents, for example. For example, rank C is the rank of a designer who has standard ability. The rank table 261 is stored in the designer DB 26, for example.
───┬───────
Rank│Capability Index ───┼───────
A │ Ia ≦ 0.75
B │0.75 <Ia ≦ 0.85
C │0.85 <Ia ≦ 1.00
D │1.00 <Ia ≦ 1.15
E │1.15 <Ia
───┴───────

  FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of the capability table 262 updated by the above processing, and FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of the capability index table 263 updated by the above processing. These tables are stored in the designer DB 26. Note that even designers (experts) whose abilities are close to A may not be able to gain depending on the design process. Therefore, it is a table that expresses the advantages and disadvantages of each process.

Designer Assignment The design process definition unit 12 uses the capability table 262 and the capability index table 263 when defining the designer of the design process flow.

  FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a process of assigning a process having the design process definition unit 12 to a designer. The design process definition unit 12 assigns designers in order from the upstream process in the design process flow. The design process definition unit 12 refers to the designer DB 26 and first selects a designer having the highest ability rank and ability index for a certain process (S401). The design period of the process is already set based on the standard man-hours. Therefore, the schedule of the selected designer is extracted from the product information DB 22 (S402), and it is determined whether or not the process can be assigned to the selected designer (S403). If the assignment is possible, the process is assigned to the selected designer (S404).

  If assignment is not possible, a designer with the next highest capability rank and / or capability index is selected for the process (S405), and it is determined whether the rank of the selected designer is D or E (S406). If the designer's rank is D or E, the design period set with the standard man-hour Smh is corrected based on the designer's ability index (S407), and the process returns to step S402.

  The design period may be corrected to, for example, Smh × 1.1 for rank D and Smh × 1.2 for rank E. In addition, when a designer of rank A or B is assigned, the design period can be shortened, but usually the design period is not shortened as a margin when the design is delayed.

  Thus, the design evaluation unit 14 calculates the standard man-hour based on the actual man-hours of each design process and updates the design process DB 23. In addition, in order to associate the standard man-hour with the designer's ability, the designer's ability is quantified based on the actual man-hour and the designer DB 26 is updated. Based on these data, the design process definition unit 12 can assign a designer and set the design period more accurately.

  Hereinafter, information processing according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described. Note that the same reference numerals in the third embodiment denote the same parts as in the first and second embodiments, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

  The design support server 1 has a function of simulating the design period of each process and the designer of each process before starting the product design. At that time, an optimum designer is selected in consideration of the difficulty Dh of each process calculated by the design evaluation unit 14, and a design start date, a design period of each process, and a design end scheduled date are predicted. In addition, it is possible to perform re-simulation by fixing the design period and designer of a part of the process, or the design start date and the scheduled end date.

[Simulation section]
Condition Input FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing an example of processing of the simulation unit 15. The simulation unit 15 is called by the login processing unit 11 when the simulation tab is selected in the window shown in FIG.

  First, the simulation unit 15 transmits a design process simulation screen to the terminal 4 (S501). The terminal 4 displays a design process simulation screen shown in FIG. At the start of the simulation, the condition input tab 1901 is selected, and the condition input screen is displayed.

  The user (designer) inputs the same items (product name, product function, key device, etc.) as the product information registration described above as simulation conditions, and inputs the design start date. Also, check boxes 1904 and 1905 are used to set whether to consider the design schedule of other products of the designer in the simulation and whether to consider the ability of the designer. Note that when the check box is checked, the item is taken into consideration. When the user presses a “start” button 1906, the terminal 4 transmits the input condition to the design support server 1.

● Simulation When the simulation unit 15 is instructed to start the simulation (S502), the design unit 15 generates a design process flow with reference to the input / output data DB 21, the design process DB 23, and the designer DB 26 based on the input conditions. (S503). Unlike the process of the design process definition unit 12, registration of product information and storage of process flow data in the product information DB 22 are not performed at this point.

  When the check box 1904 is checked, the simulation unit 15 refers to the process flow data that has not been designed and is stored in the product information DB 22 to select a designer. What kind of consideration can be separately set can be arbitrarily set. For example, a designer who is in charge of a process of another product can set the design period and not to be selected.

  When the check box 1905 is checked, the simulation unit 15 refers to the capability table 262 stored in the designer DB 26 and selects a designer. It is possible to arbitrarily set what kind of consideration is taken into account.For example, based on the difficulty level information stored in the design process DB 23, a designer with high ability is selected for a process with a high difficulty level, or Do not select designers with low ability.

Result Display Next, the simulation unit 15 transmits a screen (result screen) indicating the design process flow generation result to the terminal 4 (S504). The terminal 4 displays a design process simulation screen shown in FIG. At this point, the result tab 1902 is selected and a result screen is displayed.

  In addition to the product name, the result screen displays the number of designers, the design period, the design start date, the design end date, and the responsible designer list. The user modifies the number of designers, the design period, the design start date or the design end date, and then presses the “Resume” button 1911 to instruct the simulation with the number of designers, the design period, the design start date, or the design end date corrected. can do.

  In addition, the user can change the designer of the corresponding row in the assigned designer list by pressing an “edit” button 1908 arranged adjacent to the assigned designer list. In addition, a “Delete” button 1909 can be pressed to delete the designer of the corresponding row in the assigned designer list. Alternatively, one designer can be added to the assigned designer list by pressing an “add” button 1910. Needless to say, when a designer is added, a window for selecting a designer based on information stored in the designer DB 26 is opened. After these operations, a “resume” button 1911 is pressed to instruct the designer in charge of the modified simulation.

  That is, the user can modify the number of designers, the design period, the design start date, the design end date, and the assigned designer list individually or collectively. Then, by pressing a “resume” button 1911, a simulation based on these modifications can be instructed. When the user presses a “resume” button 1911, the terminal 4 transmits the conditions input on the result screen to the design support server 1. When the simulation unit 15 is instructed to restart the simulation (S505), the simulation unit 15 regenerates the design process flow based on the input (corrected) conditions (S503), and displays a screen showing the generation result of the design process flow on the terminal 4 (S504).

  When the user presses the “Register” button 1912, the product information to be simulated and the process flow data of the simulation result are registered in the product information DB 22. That is, the result is the same as the generation of the design process flow by the design process definition unit 12. When the simulation unit 15 is instructed to register the simulation result (S506), the simulation unit 15 registers the product information to be simulated and the process flow data of the simulation result in the product information DB 22 (S507).

Process Display When the user selects a tab different from the current display screen (S508), the simulation unit 15 transmits a corresponding screen to the terminal 4 (S509). For example, when the user selects the process table tab 1903, the terminal 4 displays a design process simulation screen (process table screen) shown in FIG.

  In addition to the product name, the process chart screen displays, for example, a Gantt chart indicating the process, the designer in charge, and the design period for each process. In addition, a process with a high degree of difficulty is indicated by coloring the background.

  The user operates the arrow indicating the design period for each process displayed on the Gantt chart with a mouse or the like to shorten or extend the design period for each process. Then, by pressing a “resume” button 1911, a simulation based on the modification of the design period can be instructed. When the user presses a “resume” button 1911, the terminal 4 transmits the conditions input on the result screen to the design support server 1. When the simulation unit 15 is instructed to restart the simulation (S505), the simulation unit 15 regenerates the design process flow based on the input (corrected) conditions (S503), and displays a screen showing the generation result of the design process flow on the terminal 4 (S504).

  The “Register” button 1912 has the same function as the “Register” button 1912 of the result screen described above.

  In addition, when the user presses the “END” button 1907 on any screen (S510), the simulation unit 15 ends the process. Therefore, if the “Register” button 1912 is not pressed before the “End” button 1907 is pressed, the product information to be simulated and the process flow data of the simulation result are discarded.

  The information processing according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described below. Note that the same reference numerals in the fourth embodiment denote the same parts as in the first to third embodiments, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

  The design support server 1 can simulate the cost of parts required for the product and the labor cost required for the design before starting the product design.

[Simulation section]
Condition Input FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing an example of processing of the simulation unit 15. The simulation unit 15 is called by the login processing unit 11 when the simulation tab is selected in the window shown in FIG.

  First, the simulation unit 15 transmits a cost simulation screen to the terminal 4 (S601). The terminal 4 displays the cost simulation screen shown in FIG. At the start of the simulation, the condition input tab 2301 is selected, and the condition input screen is displayed.

  The user (designer) inputs the same items (product name, product function, key device, etc.) as the product information registration described above as simulation conditions. Also, if you want to fix the number of designers, design period, design start date, and design end date, enter them. In addition, using the check boxes 2304 to 2306, whether to consider the design schedule of other products of the designer in the simulation, whether to consider the ability of the designer, whether to consider the unit price per designer Set Note that when the check box is checked, the item is taken into consideration. When the user presses a “start” button 2307, the terminal 4 transmits the input condition to the design support server 1.

● Simulation When the simulation unit 15 is instructed to start the simulation (S602), the design unit 15 generates a design process flow with reference to the input / output data DB 21, the design process DB 23, and the designer DB 26 based on the input conditions. (S603). The processing when the check boxes 2304 and 2305 are checked is the same as that when the check boxes 1904 and 1905 are checked in the third embodiment.

  Next, the simulation unit 15 determines whether or not the check box 2306 is checked (S604). If the check box 2306 is not checked, a uniform unit price (default value) recorded in the unit price table 264 of the designer DB 26 is determined. Is acquired (S605). If the check box 2306 is checked, the unit price table 264 of the designer DB 26 is referred to, and the hourly unit price of each designer selected when generating the design process flow is acquired (S606). Based on the design process flow of the simulation result and the acquired hourly unit price, the labor cost related to the design is calculated (S607).

  Next, the simulation unit 15 refers to the product information of the process flow data stored in the product information DB 22, and searches for product information that matches or is similar to the function and key device of the product under the input conditions (S608). ). Then, part information is acquired from the CAD data linked to the process flow data of the detected product information (S609). Then, the component cost is calculated based on the acquired component information and the component unit price stored in the component information DB 27 (S610).

  The CAD data is stored in the storage device 20 shown in FIG. 1 or a server device (not shown) on the network 3. In the process flow data, a path name indicating the location of the CAD data is recorded. Also, the CAD data describes function and key device information as its internal information.

Result Display Next, the simulation unit 15 transmits a screen (result screen) indicating the cost simulation result to the terminal 4 (S611). The terminal 4 displays the cost simulation screen shown in FIG. At this point, the result tab 2302 is selected and a result screen is displayed.

  In addition to the product name and similar product name, the result screen displays the number of designers, design period, labor cost, parts cost, designer list in charge, and used parts list. When the design start date or the design end date is fixed, the design start date or the design end date is also displayed. The user modifies the number of designers, the design period, the design start date or the design end date, and then presses the “Resume” button 2315 to indicate the simulation with the modified number of designers, design period, design start date or design end date. can do.

  The “Edit” button 2309, “Delete” button 2310, and “Add” button 2311 arranged adjacent to the designer list in charge are the “Edit” button 1908, “Delete” button 1909, and “Add” button in the third embodiment. Works the same as 1910. In addition, the user can press the “edit” button 2312 arranged adjacent to the used component list to change the component in the corresponding row of the used component list. In addition, a “Delete” button 2313 can be pressed to delete the part in the corresponding row of the used part list. Also, one part can be added to the used parts list by pressing an “add” button 2314. Needless to say, when adding a part, a window for selecting a part is opened based on the information stored in the part information DB 27. After these operations, a “resume” button 2315 is pressed to instruct the designer in charge and the simulation in which the used parts are corrected.

  That is, the user can individually or collectively correct the number of designers, the design period, the responsible designer list, and the used parts list. Then, by pressing a “resume” button 2315, a simulation based on these modifications can be instructed. When the user presses a “resume” button 2315, the terminal 4 transmits the condition input on the result screen to the design support server 1.

  When the simulation unit 15 is instructed to resume the simulation (S612), the simulation unit 15 regenerates the design process flow based on the input (corrected) conditions (S603). Then, the unit price is obtained (S605 or S606), the labor cost is recalculated (S607), and the part cost is calculated based on the part information listed in the used parts list and the part price stored in the parts information DB 27. Recalculate (S610). Then, a screen showing the cost simulation result (result screen) is transmitted to the terminal 4 (S611). Although not shown in FIG. 22, the re-simulation does not require searching for product information (S608) and acquiring component information (S609). However, when the user inputs (corrects) a similar product name (or its product code) on the result screen, search for product information (S608) and acquisition of part information (S609) are executed.

  When the user presses a “save” button 2316, the simulation conditions and results can be saved. When the simulation unit 15 is instructed to store simulation conditions and results (S613), the simulation unit 15 stores the simulation conditions and result data in the product information DB 22 (S614).

Process Display When the user selects a tab different from the current display screen (S615), the simulation unit 15 transmits a corresponding screen to the terminal 4 (S616). For example, when the user selects the process table tab 2303, the terminal 4 displays a cost simulation screen (process table screen) shown in FIG.

  In addition to the product name, the process table screen displays personnel costs, parts costs, processes, designers in charge, and, for example, a Gantt chart indicating the design period for each process. The display of the Gantt chart and the operation in the design period using the Gantt chart as the user interface are the same as in the third embodiment.

  The “save” button 2316 has the same function as the “save” button 2316 of the result screen described above.

  In addition, when the user presses the “END” button 2308 on any screen (S617), the simulation unit 15 ends the process. Accordingly, if the “save” button 2316 is not pressed before the “end” button 2308 is pressed, the cost simulation condition and result data are discarded.

[Modification]
In each of the above embodiments, the relationship between the data and the database name that is the storage location thereof has been described. However, these are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Any database configuration or memory configuration may be used as long as the design support server 1 can search, extract, acquire, and store necessary data.

  In the above, for easy explanation, names that can be recognized by humans such as product names, data names, process names, design procedure names, design method names, designer names, and part names are recorded in a database or memory. It has been said. However, such information may be recorded in a database or memory as a code that can be easily handled by a computer. In this case, screen information may be generated by replacing a code extracted from the database with a name that can be recognized by a human using a table indicating the correspondence between the code and the name. Information such as the part name input by the user is replaced with a code using this table and stored in a database or memory.

A block diagram showing a configuration example of a design support system, A block diagram showing a configuration example of information stored as a DB in a storage device, A flowchart showing a processing example of the login processing unit; Figure showing an example of the design work list screen displayed on the terminal immediately after login, A flowchart showing an example of processing of the design process definition unit, The figure which shows an example of the product registration screen displayed on the screen of the terminal, The figure which shows the constitution example of input / output data DB, Diagram showing an example of the design process flow, A flowchart showing an example of processing of the design support unit; Figure showing an example of the design process flow screen, Figure showing configuration example of work procedure DB, A diagram showing a configuration example of the design method DB, The figure which shows an example of a process operation screen, A flowchart showing the evaluation process of the design evaluation unit, The figure which shows an example of a capability table, The figure which shows an example of a capability index table, A flowchart showing a process of assigning a process having a design process definition unit to a designer, A flowchart showing an example of processing of the simulation unit, Figure showing an example of the design process simulation screen, Figure showing an example of the design process simulation screen, Figure showing an example of the design process simulation screen, A flowchart showing an example of processing of the simulation unit, The figure which shows an example of the cost simulation screen, The figure which shows an example of the cost simulation screen, It is a figure which shows an example of a cost simulation screen.

Claims (11)

A process flow database storing process flow data defining a product design process flow, and a memory storing a design process database storing information of each design process;
When the design corresponding to the process flow data stored in the process flow database is completed, based on the actual man-hours of each design process recorded in the process flow data, the standard man-hours of each design process stored in the design process database Man-hour update means for updating
The difficulty level for detecting a design process that has become a bottleneck in which the actual man-hour exceeds a predetermined multiple of the predicted man-hour indicated by the process flow data and updating the difficulty level recorded in the design process database of the detected design process possess and update means,
The difficulty is past to the number of steps becomes a bottleneck in the entire product, the information processing apparatus according to claim Rukoto calculated as the ratio of the number of times the test out the design process becomes a bottleneck.   2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising generation means for generating the process flow data based on a standard man-hour and difficulty of each design process. Data information indicating the type of data stored in the memory, input / output information indicating whether the data is input or output, process information of a design process for inputting or outputting the data, and function information indicating the function of the product, Uses an input / output data database that stores multiple records that can record device information indicating key devices, a design process database that stores information on each design process, and a designer database that stores information on each designer An information processing device that simulates the product design process flow,
An input means for entering product information indicating product functions and key devices;
Referring to the input / output data database based on the product information, setting a design process flow of the product, and data generation means for generating process flow data indicating the design process flow;
Setting a design period of each design process included in the design process flow based on a standard man-hour of each design process stored in the design process database, and a period setting means for including information indicating the design period in the process flow data;
Selecting means to be assigned to each design process included in the design process flow with reference to the designer database, and selecting means included in the process flow data;
Based on the process flow data, a screen generating means for generating a display screen of a simulation result of the product design process flow;
When the design corresponding to the process flow data is finished, man-hour updating means for updating the standard man-hours of each design process stored in the design process database based on the actual man-hours of each design process recorded in the process flow data; ,
The difficulty level for detecting a design process that has become a bottleneck in which the actual man-hour exceeds a predetermined multiple of the predicted man-hour indicated by the process flow data and updating the difficulty level recorded in the design process database of the detected design process Updating means,
Said data generating means, based on said standard manhour and difficulty of the design process to generate the process flow data, the difficulty, against the number of steps becomes a bottleneck in the past for all products, the detection the information processing apparatus the design process is characterized Rukoto calculated as the ratio of number of the bottleneck. Further, when the design corresponding to the process flow data is finished, the process is performed based on the ratio of the actual man-hours of each design process recorded in the process flow data and the standard man-hours of each design process recorded in the design process database. Index updating means for updating the capability index for each design process registered in the designer database of the designer of each design process indicated by the flow data;
The data generation means generates the process flow data based on a standard man-hour and difficulty of each design process, and a capability index for each design process of a designer of each design process. 3. The information processing apparatus described in 3 . Furthermore, based on the ability index of each designer, having rank update means for updating rank information indicating the ability for each design process of each designer registered in the designer database,
The data generation means generates the process flow data based on a standard man-hour and difficulty of each design process, and a capability index and rank information for each design process of the designer of each design process, 5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4 . Further, based on the design period of each design process and the designer and the design period indicated by other process flow data other than the process flow data, it is determined whether the designer selected by the selection means can be assigned. Determination means to perform,
The design process corresponding to the designer determined to be unassignable by the determination means causes the selection means to re-select the designer, and the information of the designer determined to be assignable to the process flow data. Designer setting means to include,
4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the data generation unit generates the process flow data based on a setting result of the designer setting unit. Furthermore, when the capability information registered in the designer database of the designer determined to be assignable indicates less than the standard, the design period included in the process flow data corresponding to the design process to which the designer is assigned Correction means for correcting the information on the basis of the ability information,
7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the data generation unit is a generation unit that generates the process flow data based on a correction result of the correction unit. The management means manages a process flow database storing process flow data defining a product design process flow stored in a memory, and a design process database storing information of each design process,
When the man-hour updating unit finishes the design corresponding to the process flow data stored in the process flow database, each man-hour stored in the design process database is based on the actual man-hours of each design process recorded in the process flow data. Update the standard man-hours for the design process,
The difficulty level update means detects the design process that has become a bottleneck in which the actual man-hour exceeds a predetermined multiple of the predicted man-hour indicated by the process flow data, and the difficulty recorded in the design process database of the detected design process Update the degree ,
The difficulty is, an information processing method to the number of steps becomes a bottleneck in the past for all products, the test out the design process is characterized Rukoto calculated as the ratio of number of the bottleneck. Data information indicating the type of data stored in the memory, input / output information indicating whether the data is input or output, process information of a design process for inputting or outputting the data, and function information indicating the function of the product, Uses an input / output data database that stores multiple records that can record device information indicating key devices, a design process database that stores information on each design process, and a designer database that stores information on each designer An information processing method for simulating the product design process flow,
The input means inputs product information indicating the function and key device of the product,
A data generation means refers to the input / output data database based on the product information, sets a design process flow of the product, generates process flow data indicating the design process flow,
The period setting means sets a design period of each design process included in the design process flow based on a standard man-hour of each design process stored in the design process database, and information indicating the design period is stored in the process flow data. Including
The selecting means refers to the designer database, selects a designer to be assigned to each design process included in the design process flow, and includes it in the process flow data.
The screen generation means generates a display screen of the simulation result of the design process flow of the product based on the process flow data,
When the design corresponding to the process flow data is completed, the man-hour updating means updates the standard man-hours of each design process stored in the design process database based on the actual man-hours of each design process recorded in the process flow data. And
The difficulty level update means detects the design process that has become a bottleneck in which the actual man-hour exceeds a predetermined multiple of the predicted man-hour indicated by the process flow data, and the difficulty recorded in the design process database of the detected design process Update the degree,
Said data generating means, based on said standard manhour and difficulty of the design process to generate the process flow data, the difficulty, against the number of steps becomes a bottleneck in the past for all products, the detection the information processing method the design process is characterized Rukoto calculated as the ratio of number of the bottleneck. A program for causing a computer to function as each unit of the information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7 . 11. A computer-readable recording medium on which the program according to claim 10 is recorded.

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