TWI817707B - Blockchain-based manufacturing execution system and method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a blockchain based manufacturing execution system, comprising: a blockchain network layer comprising a first permitted internal node, a second permitted internal node, a shared classification ledger and a smart contract that are maintained and executed by the first permitted internal node and the second permitted internal node jointly; a producing and manufacturing layer comprising a production management station and a work station; a middleware agent layer providing a production management end blockchain application program and a manufacturing end blockchain application program to link the producing and manufacturing layer to the blockchain network layer, wherein the production management station and the work station initiate an event to trigger an execution of the smart contract and an update of the shared classification ledger, so to drive the producing and manufacturing layer to execute a manufacturing operation, to drive an operation of the blockchain based manufacturing execution system.

Description

Blockchain manufacturing execution system and method

The present invention relates to a blockchain manufacturing execution system and method, particularly a decentralized manufacturing execution system and method that drives manufacturing operations based on events by smart contracts executed on the blockchain.

In recent years, Industry 4.0 has become the transformation and upgrading goal of the manufacturing industry. Many manufacturing industries have standardized the operational technology (OT) on the production line and applied the latest information technology (IT). Various sensors are deployed to measure and collect information and data generated by OT operations, and are ultimately uploaded to the manufacturing execution system (MES) for integrated analysis, thereby controlling the execution of the overall production and manufacturing from the top level.

The conventional MES system is an information-oriented system that has many advantages, including the function of monitoring and tracking the manufacturing process of the production line. By collecting real-time data on the complete life cycle of the product, it can effectively assist managers to ensure the effective execution of manufacturing operations to increase output. Goals, capacity optimization or resource reallocation, etc.

However, the commonly used MES is also a centralized management production management platform. The goal is to coordinate the establishment of a top-level management layer to control all machine data and material flows in the factory. The centralized management model makes each machine in the factory very dependent on MES. Due to the strong dependence between the two, the stability of MES will directly affect the operation of the entire factory, so enterprises need to adopt better safety systems. To stably maintain the stable operation of the MES system, or use two systems to prevent MES collapse.

However, the introduction of standardized MES may not necessarily benefit small and medium-sized manufacturing industries (SMEs). The advantage of traditional small and medium-sized manufacturing industries is that they have the ability to quickly modify processes or even introduce new processes according to customer needs. However, standardized and complex information systems This greatly limits the flexibility of SMEs, and the expensive construction costs of MES also make SMEs concerned about the return on investment. Therefore, the existing MES platform cannot meet the needs of SMEs to develop Industry 4.0. The main needs of SMEs for MES will be: adaptability, low cost and lightweight.

For this reason, there are many areas for improvement in conventional manufacturing execution systems. In view of this, the inventor finally conceived the "Blockchain Manufacturing Execution System and Method" after careful trial and research, and a spirit of perseverance. The above shortcomings can be overcome, and the following is a brief description of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a blockchain manufacturing execution system and method, particularly a decentralized manufacturing execution system and method that drives manufacturing operations based on events by smart contracts executed on the blockchain.

Accordingly, the present invention proposes a blockchain manufacturing execution system, which includes: a blockchain network layer, which includes a node on the first chain, a node on the second chain, and a node on the first chain and a node on the second chain. A common ledger jointly maintained by nodes and a jointly executed smart contract; a production management layer, which includes a production management station and a work station. The production management station includes a first host and the work station includes a second host. machines and production and manufacturing equipment; and an intermediary agent layer, which includes a production-side blockchain application connected to the node on the first chain and a production-side blockchain application connected to the node on the second chain. The production-side blockchain application is connected to the node on the second chain. The blockchain application and the manufacturing-end blockchain application are respectively configured to execute on the first host and the second host to connect the production management and manufacturing layer to the blockchain network layer, wherein the production management station or The work station initiates an event to trigger the execution of the smart contract and the update of the common ledger, thereby driving the production management and manufacturing layer to execute manufacturing operations by the blockchain network layer to drive the blockchain manufacturing execution system. run.

Accordingly, the present invention further proposes a blockchain manufacturing execution method, which includes: establishing a blockchain network layer, which includes a first chain node, a second chain node, the first chain node and the second chain node. A common ledger jointly maintained by nodes on the chain and a jointly executed smart contract; a production management and manufacturing layer is configured, which includes a production management station and a work station. The production management station includes the first host and the work station includes the second host and production Manufacturing equipment; establish an intermediary agent layer, which is between the blockchain network layer and the production management manufacturing layer, and includes a production management end blockchain application connected to the node on the first chain and a connection to the second The production-side blockchain application of the node on the chain; execute the production-side blockchain application and the production-side blockchain application on the first host and the second host respectively to integrate the production management and manufacturing layer Connect to the blockchain network layer; and initiate an event at the production management station or the work station to trigger the execution of the smart contract and the update of the common ledger, thereby driving the production by the blockchain network layer The tube manufacturing layer performs manufacturing operations.

The above summary is intended to provide a simplified summary of the disclosure to provide readers with a basic understanding of the disclosure. This summary is not a complete description of the disclosure, and is not intended to identify important/critical elements of the embodiments of the disclosure. Define the scope of the invention.

10: Blockchain manufacturing execution system

20:Host

30:Host

40:Host

41:Host

50:Host

60-62: Host

100: Blockchain network layer

111-118: Nodes on the chain

121: Production and management node

122-123: Manufacturing node

130:Smart Contract

140: Common ledger

200: Intermediary agent layer

210: Production and management blockchain applications

212:User interface

215:Production and management end blockchain API

220-221: Manufacturing-side blockchain applications

222: Manufacturing equipment client module

223:Blockchain client module

225: Manufacturing Blockchain API

300: Pipe manufacturing layer

310: Production management station host

311: Management end

320-322:Work station host

330-332: Manufacturing equipment

MS: Health Management Station

WS1: Workstation

WS2: Work station

WS3: Workstation

WS4:Workstation

150: Production and management node

151-153: Manufacturing node

250:Production-end blockchain application

251-253: Manufacturing-side blockchain applications

351-353: Manufacturing equipment

160-162: Nodes on the chain

260:Production and management blockchain application

261-262: Manufacturing-side blockchain applications

263: Manufacturing Blockchain Applications

361-362: Manufacturing equipment

363:Production and manufacturing equipment

170: Production and management node

171-173: Manufacturing nodes

270:Production and management-side blockchain applications

271-273: Manufacturing Blockchain Applications

371-373: Manufacturing equipment

410: Management end

420:Production and management blockchain application

430: Manufacturing Blockchain Applications

440:Automatic storage station

450:Assembly Station

460:Vehicle

500: Blockchain Manufacturing Execution Method

501~505: Implementation steps

Figure 1 shows the system architecture diagram of the first embodiment of the blockchain manufacturing execution system included in the present invention;

Figure 2 shows the system architecture diagram of the second embodiment of the blockchain manufacturing execution system included in the present invention;

Figure 3 shows the system architecture diagram of the third embodiment of the blockchain manufacturing execution system included in the present invention;

Figure 4 shows the system architecture diagram of the fourth embodiment of the blockchain manufacturing execution system included in the present invention;

Figure 5 shows a sequence diagram of an embodiment of resource availability verification rules and event-driven mechanism rules included in the smart contract of the present invention;

Figure 6 shows a sequence diagram of an embodiment of the production scheduling control rules included in the smart contract included in the present invention; and

Figure 7 shows a flow chart of implementation steps of the blockchain manufacturing execution method included in the present invention.

The present invention will be fully understood from the following examples, so that those skilled in the art can implement it. However, the implementation of the present invention is not limited to its implementation form by the following examples; the drawings of the present invention are not There are no limitations on the size, dimensions and scale, and the size, dimensions and scale of the actual implementation of the present invention are not limited by the drawings of the present invention.

The word "preferably" used in this article is non-exclusive and should be understood as "preferably but not limited to". Any steps described or recorded in any specification or claim may be performed in any order. rows, and is not limited to the order stated in the claims. The scope of the present invention should be determined only by the appended claims and their equivalents, and should not be determined by the examples of implementation examples; the term "comprising" and its variations are used herein. When appearing in the description and claims, it is an open-ended term that does not have a restrictive meaning and does not exclude other features or steps.

Figure 1 shows the system architecture diagram of the first embodiment of the blockchain manufacturing execution system included in the present invention; the present invention proposes a blockchain-based manufacturing execution system (BMES) 10, preferably based on The blockchain network expands from the core outward to a virtual and abstract multi-layer structure, including at least the blockchain network layer 100, the intermediary agent layer 200, the production management layer 300, etc., but the implementation of the present invention does not Limited by multi-layer structure.

The blockchain network layer 100 is composed of multiple virtual internal nodes distributed on the blockchain network. The number of internal nodes is not limited. However, in this embodiment, the on-chain nodes 111-118 are used as an example. These on-chain nodes 111-118 are preferably public nodes and form a public chain. Anyone can join anonymously without any permission. However, nodes 111-118 on the chain may also be nodes that require permission to join and form a private chain or on-chain autonomy. system, but in some embodiments, part of the on-chain nodes 111-118 may be public nodes and another part of the on-chain nodes 111-118 may be permissioned nodes.

Relative to the blockchain network layer 100, the production management layer 300 belongs to an external participant located on the client side. The production management layer 300 includes at least a production management station MS and at least one work station WS1-WS3, etc. The production management station MS includes The production management station host 310 (the first host) and the management terminal 311, and the work stations WS1-WS3 include the work station hosts 320-322 (the second host) and at least one set of production and manufacturing equipment 330-332, the production and manufacturing equipment 330-332 They are machines that actually perform production and manufacturing operations, such as but not limited to: robotic arms, CNC processing machines, handling robots or infrared automatic equipment, etc. Workstations WS1-WS3 Preferably, it is for example but not limited to: automatic assembly station, assembly station, inspection station or automatic storage station, etc. The management terminal 311 is a backend with production and manufacturing management functions, preferably an enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform, an advanced planning system ( APS), life manager or manager.

The task of the management end 311 is to convert the purchase order (PO) into a manufacturing order (MO), develop a work plan (WP) for the product, and then deliver the MO and WP to the system. The content of the MO includes the items and quantities of the products in the PO. WP describes all transformations from starting raw materials to final products, including required resources and process parameters. After the system receives MO and WP, it will generate a work order (WO) and provide it to the work station.

In the entire blockchain manufacturing execution system 10, WO is a digital guide and is relatively important information. WO will guide how to produce the actual work in process (WIP), control the production process, and record the production process of the product. and actual production status, so both WO and WIP must be synchronized at all times during the manufacturing process to ensure that the information is consistent with the actual situation.

The intermediary agent layer 200 is between the production management layer 300 and the blockchain network layer 100, and serves as an intermediary agent for data format and data exchange between the two layers to connect the production management layer 300 Connecting to the blockchain network layer 100 allows external participants in the production management layer 300 to connect to any on-chain node 111-118 in the blockchain network layer 100. The intermediary agent layer 200 specifically uses It is implemented by decentralized application program (DApp) compiled by blockchain API. DApp includes two types: production-end blockchain application 210 and manufacturing-end blockchain application 220-221.

In the initial state, each on-chain node 111-118 is an equal and identical blockchain node, but each on-chain node 111-118 responds to requests from one or more clients accessed through the intermediary proxy layer 200. The different authorized content obtained will be corresponding to each node 111-118 on the chain. Execute one or more limited tasks that are the same or different, making each node 111-118 on the chain functionally different.

For example, when a certain on-chain node 112 is a single client that is connected to obtain authorization for production and management tasks, a certain on-chain node 112 will be used to perform production and management tasks and is regarded as a production and management node. When a certain on-chain node 112 is When connecting to a single client that has obtained manufacturing task authorization, a certain on-chain node 112 will be used to perform a single manufacturing task and is regarded as a manufacturing node. When a certain on-chain node 112 is simultaneously connected to multiple clients that have obtained different manufacturing task authorizations. , a certain chain node 112 will be used to perform multiple manufacturing tasks at the same time and is regarded as a composite manufacturing node. When a certain chain node 112 is simultaneously connected to different clients that have obtained production management task authorization and manufacturing task authorization respectively, a certain chain The upper node 112 will be used to simultaneously perform pipe production tasks and manufacturing tasks and is regarded as a composite pipe production node.

In the first embodiment, when the client initiates a transaction, the production-side blockchain application 210 randomly connects any on-chain node 111-118 as a production-management node, and the production-side blockchain application 220-221 will also randomly connect Any number of on-chain nodes 111-118 are connected as manufacturing nodes. In this embodiment, for the convenience of explanation, when the client initiates a transaction, the on-chain node 111 is the node connected by the production-end blockchain application 210 and serves as the corresponding node. The production management node 121 of Manufacturing node 123.

For example, in the first embodiment, each on-chain node 111-118 is only connected to one client, so each on-chain node 111-118 will serve as a production management node or a manufacturing node. When the client connected to on-chain node 113 When the authorization obtained by the client is a production management authorization, the node 113 on the chain will be the node connected to the production management end blockchain application 210 and serve as the corresponding production management node. However, when the client connected to the node 113 on the chain obtains When the authorization is a manufacturing authorization, the link in the chain Point 113 will be the node connected to the manufacturing-side blockchain application 220 and serve as the corresponding manufacturing node. Each node 111-118 on the chain performs different tasks due to different authorizations from the client, resulting in functional differences.

In summary, the function that the production and management end blockchain application 210 can give to the nodes 111-118 on the chain is to assist the administrator of the production and management station to master the operation of the overall system, including managing digital assets, establishing work plans, and initialization To manufacture orders, generate work orders, and obtain production progress, the manufacturing-side blockchain application 220-221 can give the nodes 111-118 on the chain the function of commanding the corresponding work station to perform operation tasks and collect production progress.

In this embodiment, the production and management end blockchain application 210 is configured between the management end 311 and the production and management node 121, and serves as the production and management end blockchain application interface 215 for the management end 311 to connect to the production and management node 121. Its functions include at least importing MO into the blockchain system and reporting progress to the management end 311 and management of the overall production process. The manufacturing end blockchain application 220-221 is configured at the work station WS1-WS3 and the manufacturing node 122- 123 is used to exchange information between work stations WS1-WS3 and manufacturing nodes 122-123, and serves as the manufacturing-end blockchain application interface 225 for work stations WS1-WS3 to connect to manufacturing nodes 122-123. Its functions include At least track production progress and operate equipment and control machine operations according to work orders.

The production management side blockchain application 210 also optionally includes a user interface 212, preferably a web based UI provided through a web browser (browser). When the management side 311 is a management When there are live personnel such as personnel or production management managers, the operation can be performed through the user interface 212. Each manufacturing-side blockchain application 220-221 also includes at least one manufacturing equipment client module 222 and one blockchain client module 223. The manufacturing equipment client module 222 is used to access the manufacturing equipment. The adapter of 330-332 information can connect to the corresponding manufacturing equipment 330-332 and obtain necessary data or control the operation of the equipment. The blockchain client module 223 is the connection between the manufacturing equipment 330-332 and the intelligent system. The agents between the contracts 130, the manufacturing nodes 122-123 can interact with the manufacturing equipment 330-332 through the production equipment client module 222, and read or operate the smart contract 130 through the blockchain client 223.

In this embodiment, all workstation hosts 320-322 have a common communication interface to accelerate the data exchange and communication speed between the blockchain network layer 100 and the workstations WS1-WS3, thereby improving the blockchain manufacturing execution system. 10. For overall efficiency, it is better that all workstation hosts 320-322 use the same information model such as but not limited to the Open Program Unified Architecture server (OPC UA server). When all workstation hosts 320-322 When using the same server, the manufacturing-side blockchain applications 220-221 will also have common parts, which is beneficial to the integration of connections and communications between work stations. The workstation host 320-322 can also be built into the production equipment 330-332.

In this embodiment, the production management end blockchain application 210 is preferably installed and executed on the production management station host 310, and provides the user interface 212 for the administrator to operate. The manufacturing-side blockchain application 220 is installed and executed on the workstation host 320, and controls the production and manufacturing equipment 330 such as a CNC processing machine. In this embodiment, the production and manufacturing equipment 331-332 are preferably all robotic arms, which can be The same manufacturing-side blockchain application 221 is controlled, and the same manufacturing-side blockchain application 221 is installed and executed on the workstation hosts 321-332 respectively.

Figure 2 reveals the system architecture diagram of the second embodiment of the blockchain manufacturing execution system included in the present invention; Figure 3 reveals the system architecture diagram of the third embodiment of the blockchain manufacturing execution system included in the present invention; Figure 4 reveals System architecture diagram of the fourth embodiment of the blockchain manufacturing execution system included in the present invention; in practical application scenarios, the decentralized application included in the blockchain manufacturing execution system 10 The program includes production and management end blockchain applications and manufacturing end blockchain applications. Internal nodes include production and management nodes and manufacturing nodes, workstations, production and manufacturing equipment and hosts, including multiple possible configuration types.

In the second embodiment as shown in Figure 2, which is a cost-considered configuration, all decentralized applications include a production management-side blockchain application 250 and a manufacturing-side blockchain application 251-253. As well as the production management node 150 and the manufacturing nodes 151-153, they are all centrally configured and executed on the same host 20. Each manufacturing-side blockchain application 251-253 correspondingly controls a production and manufacturing equipment 351-353.

In the third embodiment as shown in Figure 3, the production and management end blockchain application 260 and the on-chain node 160 are configured to execute on a single host 30, and the on-chain node 160 is connected to a single client that has obtained the production and management authorization. The end-to-end blockchain application 260 is generated and managed, and the node 160 on the chain therefore becomes a generated and managed node.

Another host 40 is configured with a single on-chain node 161, but in this embodiment, the on-chain node 161 connects two clients that have obtained different manufacturing authorizations, that is, two manufacturing-side blockchain applications 261-262 , although both clients have obtained manufacturing authorization but need to perform different manufacturing tasks, so the node 161 on the chain will simultaneously serve as a composite manufacturing node that performs different manufacturing tasks. However, it is worth noting that the two nodes connected by the node 161 on the chain The client can also be two clients that have obtained production management authorization and manufacturing authorization respectively. Then the node 161 on the chain will become a composite production management manufacturing node that simultaneously performs production management tasks and manufacturing tasks.

Another host 41 is configured with a single on-chain node 162. The single on-chain node 162 is connected to the manufacturing-side blockchain application 263 that has obtained manufacturing authorization. In this embodiment, the manufacturing-side blockchain applications 261-262 Control a production and manufacturing equipment 361-362 respectively, and the manufacturing end block The chain application 263 controls one manufacturing equipment 363, and the workstation WS4 is composed of two manufacturing equipments 361-362.

In the fourth embodiment as disclosed in Section 4, a host and a node are configured on each device, and a single host 50 is configured with a single production management node 170 and a single production management end blockchain application. 270, each host 60-62 is configured with a single manufacturing node 171-173 and a single manufacturing-end blockchain application 271-273, and each manufacturing-end blockchain application 271-273 is responsible for controlling a single The configuration of the fourth embodiment of the internal production and manufacturing equipment 371-373 can bring out the best performance of the blockchain, but the construction cost is relatively expensive.

The smart contract 130 and the common ledger 140 exist in the blockchain network layer 100. All internal nodes included in the blockchain network layer 100, including the production management node 121 and the manufacturing nodes 122-123, will jointly execute the smart contract 130. and jointly maintain a common ledger book 140.

The smart contract 130 is an autonomous digital program deployed on the permissioned chain. The content covers all digital protocols and rules on the permissioned chain. Preferably, the digital protocols and rules related to production management are used to regulate the block. The protocol contains at least one checklist for the behavior of all external participants outside the chain network layer 100. All inquiries or transactions from the production management node 121 and the manufacturing nodes 122-123 must meet the contents of the checklist before they can Allows the content in the common ledger 140 to be obtained or updated.

The smart contract 130 is preferably written and compiled by programming languages such as but not limited to: Solidity, Serpent, LLL, EtherScript, Sidechain, Python, JavaScript, etc., and consists of different functions, events, parameter states, etc. composition.

In this embodiment, the smart contract is preferably established using the chaincode of Hyperledger Fabric (HLF), and serves as the system execution core of the blockchain manufacturing execution system 10 of the present invention. HLF It is an open source project of the Linux Foundation and is very suitable for SMEs-related applications. It has the characteristics of an open architecture, good efficiency, and does not require miners or validators for mining.

The event-driven mechanism is the key to enabling the blockchain manufacturing execution system 10 to operate autonomously. When the contract addresses corresponding to the production management node 121 and the manufacturing nodes 122-123 are registered in the smart contract 130, the host of each node executes the smart contract 130 according to the contract address, and any production management station in the production management layer 300 or Any event initiated by any station will be uploaded to the corresponding node in the blockchain network layer 100 through the decentralized application, and trigger the execution of the smart contract 130 or the update of the common ledger 140, thus starting from the block The chain network layer 100 drives the operation of the entire blockchain manufacturing execution system 10.

Any data update in the common ledger 140 will trigger the blockchain consensus mechanism and update the results to the ledgers kept by all nodes including the production management node 121 and the manufacturing nodes 122-123. The smart contract 130 can also publish events. The message is sent to all nodes including the production management node 121 and the manufacturing nodes 122-123.

Figure 5 shows a sequence diagram of an embodiment of the resource availability verification rules and event-driven mechanism rules included in the smart contract of the present invention; the rules set in the smart contract 130 can be used to control the blockchain manufacturing execution system 10 The entire production process, and achieve the event-driven mechanism set by the smart contract 130 to run the entire manufacturing system.

In this embodiment, the acceptance of a work order is used as the driving event as an example. First, the management end 410 transmits a manufacturing order (MO) to the production and management end blockchain application 420. After the production and management end blockchain application 420 receives the MO, Convert the MO data into work order (WO) data, and promise the WO to the smart contract 130. After receiving the WO, the smart contract 130 will verify whether the system resource availability is sufficient to complete the WO.

The following is an optional procedure (alt). When the smart contract 130 confirms that the system resource availability is insufficient to complete the WO after verification, the smart contract 130 sends a rejection code to the production-end blockchain application 420 to refuse the execution of the WO. The pipe-side blockchain application 420 then sends a rejection message to the management side 410 to notify the management side 410 of the rejection of the WO.

When the smart contract 130 confirms that the system resource availability is sufficient to complete the WO after verification, the smart contract 130 executes the consensus mechanism on the permission chain to publish and update the common ledger 140, and publishes acceptance of this WO to all internal nodes included in the permission chain, During the publishing process, the smart contract 130 will automatically check whether there are corresponding resources in the ledger. If the product does not have a corresponding work plan (WP), machine information or sufficient materials, the smart contract 130 will notify the corresponding manager. Deliver the corresponding resources.

When everything is confirmed to be ready, the smart contract 130 will approve the WO transaction. Since the smart contract 130 has pre-defined the acceptance of WO as a driving event, the WO acceptance is a driving event for the smart contract 130 and publishes this driver to all nodes. event, and sends an acceptance code to the production management end blockchain application 420 to notify the acceptance of this WO. The production management end blockchain application 420 then sends an acceptance message to the management end 410 to notify the management end 410 of the acceptance of this WO. , WO's acceptance of this driving event will trigger the operation of the blockchain manufacturing execution system 10.

Figure 6 shows a sequence diagram of an embodiment of the production scheduling control rules included in the smart contract of the present invention; when the WO transaction is submitted, the smart contract 130 enters the WO acceptance state and is notified through the manufacturing-side blockchain application 430 Multiple workstations including the automatic storage station 440 and the assembly station 450 enter the WO acceptance state.

Then, the production and management end blockchain application 420 starts the execution of WO and changes the status of WO. The smart contract 130 enters the WO status update. During the entire production process, the WO status will be Continuously changing with the manufacturing progress, the smart contract 130 will continue to update the corresponding common ledger 140 and WO status through the consensus mechanism.

Then the smart contract 130 will prompt the responsible work station to run autonomously. For example, the automatic storage station 440 is usually the first work station. The automatic storage station 440 will allocate the specified materials to the specific vehicle 460 according to the WO content, and transfer the WO The binding relationship with the material is written into the corresponding ledger, and then the material is released onto the vehicle 460 to transport the material to the next work station. Then the assembly station 450 starts to perform the manufacturing production of the WIP until the WIP becomes the final product and the manufacturing is completed.

During the manufacturing process, the assembly station 450 will execute each production operation (OP) according to the definition in WO. The start or completion of each production operation (OP) will also update the information contained in the common ledger 140 through the smart contract 130 WO, during the manufacturing process, WIP and WO must be synchronized at all times. The content of WO is consistent with the actual situation of WIP on the production line to ensure that the information recorded by WO is accurate.

Finally, the smart contract 130 publishes the updated content to all nodes, including the production and management end blockchain application 420 and the manufacturing end blockchain application 430, so the production and management end can collect, grasp and review the entire production progress in real time. When the material arrives at the work station, the notified work station will automatically perform the corresponding operation. This loop will continue until all operations on WO are completed.

The protocols and rules in smart contracts 130 include at least the following characteristics:

(1) Identification uniqueness: In the BMES of the present invention, all objects in the account book have unique identification codes. The newly added manufacturing order number, product work plan code, work station code or operation code must not conflict with existing objects in the ledger.

(2) Resource availability: When ERP delivers a manufacturing order, the smart contract will The content of the manufacturing order is compared with the information in the ledger to ensure the resource requirements for order execution, including the work plan corresponding to the product, the work station required for the work plan, and the executability of the operating parameters on the work station.

(3) Correctness of work reporting: When MO is executed, BMES will notify the work station according to the sequence on WO. Only the notified stations can enable permission to update the progress of WO. When reporting work, the work station should provide evidence of relevant resources, which may include designated operators, materials, process parameters, etc. When a work station reports the completion progress, BMES will notify the next work station and enable its permissions.

The common ledger 140 includes at least four ledgers based on data collections of different topics:

(1) Equipment ledger (machine ledger): Work station data collection is used to manage work station data under the control of BMES. The main data includes name, address, executable operations and parameter specifications. In addition, administrators can add or delete station information.

(2) Work plan ledger: Work plan data collection is used to save work plan data for production products. Work plan information includes its name, operations and sequence of operations. Each operation must list the required workstations and operating parameters.

(3) Order ledger: The collection of manufacturing order data is used to manage the acquisition of MO from ERP. Manufacturing order data contains required products, required quantities, and their work schedule.

(4) Work order ledger: Work order data collection is used to manage work in process (WIP), recording WIP status, cycle start and end timestamps, machine and operating parameters.

The present invention uses JSON format to establish a dynamic structure account of the common ledger book 140 This allows the data content to be adjusted according to on-site operation requirements or management methods, so that the blockchain manufacturing execution system 10 has the ability to quickly respond to various production types and define its data structure, including production management methods such as assembly lines, odd-job or project-based, dynamic The structured ledger can be upgraded through smart contracts to meet the latest needs of enterprises.

Figure 7 shows a flow chart of the implementation steps of the blockchain manufacturing execution method included in the present invention; in summary, the blockchain manufacturing execution method 500 of the present invention preferably includes but is not limited to the following steps: Establishing a blockchain network layer , which includes a node on the first chain, a node on the second chain, a common ledger jointly maintained by the node on the first chain and the node on the second chain, and a jointly executed smart contract (step 501); configuration production management The manufacturing layer includes a production and management station and a work station. The production and management station includes a first host and the work station includes a second host and production and manufacturing equipment (step 502); an intermediary agent layer is established, which is between the blockchain network Between the road layer and the production management and manufacturing layer, it includes a production-side blockchain application connected to the node on the first chain and a manufacturing-side blockchain application connected to the node on the second chain (step 503); Execute the production management-side blockchain application and the production-side blockchain application on the first host and the second host respectively to connect the production management and manufacturing layer to the blockchain network layer (step 504 ); and initiating an event at the production and management station or the work station triggers the execution of the smart contract and the update of the common ledger, thereby driving the production and management manufacturing layer to perform manufacturing operations by the blockchain network layer (step 505).

The blockchain manufacturing execution system (BMES) proposed by this invention also has the following features:

(1) System architecture: In traditional commercial manufacturing execution systems (MES), a central server will be established to control and monitor the status of each machine in the factory, and all machines must report their current status to the center. The central server is mainly used to receive data, analyze data and report actions. Centralized system. In order to avoid the impact of MES failure on the factory, dual-system local backup is often set up or a hybrid cloud architecture is further adopted to reduce and shorten the impact of MES failure on the factory, but this will increase business costs. The BMES system in the present invention is built based on the blockchain. The ledger in the blockchain is built for each node. All data is scattered in each node, and there is no central server to manage the ledger. , but all nodes are jointly maintained, making it a decentralized system. At the same time, the cost under the decentralized architecture will be much cheaper than that of centralization.

(2) System security: In a commercial MES system, important data will be placed on the same host as the MES in the entire factory. However, putting everything on the same host will easily lead to excessive risks. In BMES, all data is placed in the blockchain, and the ledger in the blockchain can protect the data from being easily changed through its own hash value.

(3) Active work-in-progress tracking: In commercial MES, the tracking of work-in-progress is mainly through the machine. When the machine actively reports to the MES main system, the MES main system will passively obtain relevant data and take action based on the product situation. In BMES, events are sent through nodes in the blockchain to proactively notify the next machine to prepare relevant data and act according to the contents of the ledger in the network.

(4) Adaptability to support process improvement: The traditional MES core control process is designed based on the database, and then the MES core and on-site systems are integrated according to the on-site production management situation. This can be regarded as a top-down integration method. . The BMES of the present invention is based on smart contracts and can convert the process of factory operation management into logical core and ledger, which is a bottom-up integration method. Because smart contracts have the ability to be flexibly modified, factory process adjustments can be made more convenient. Especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, the bottom-up integration method can provide a more flexible system.

(5) Decentralized distribution: In commercial MES, all machines receive The MES will be asked for information and will act accordingly. Throughout the entire production line process, all relatively complex logical judgments are handed over to the MES system. In BMES, the more complex logic is in the smart contract of the blockchain, and each node can also judge its own actions through changes in the ledger or the acquisition of events, rather than relying mainly on a single node.

(6) Self-recovery: In BMES, even if it is temporarily offline or failed, as long as it is restored and rejoined the blockchain, the failed or offline node can resume normal working capabilities after the ledger synchronization is completed.

(7) Blockchain as a Service (BaaS): When the work station has a complete information model and edge computing function, the deployment of BMES can give the device the BaaS capability, allowing it to automatically join the smart contract in the factory and quickly establish communication within the group. and the ability to serve oneself.

The above embodiments of the present invention can be arbitrarily combined or replaced with each other, thereby deriving more embodiments, without departing from the scope of protection of the present invention. More embodiments of the present invention are further provided as follows:

Embodiment 1: A blockchain manufacturing execution system, which includes: a blockchain network layer, which includes a first chain node, a second chain node, the first chain node and the second chain node. A common ledger that is jointly maintained and a smart contract that is jointly executed; a production management and manufacturing layer, which includes a production management station and a workstation, where the production management station includes a first host and the workstation includes a second host and production and manufacturing equipment; and The intermediary agent layer includes a production-side blockchain application connected to the node on the first chain and a production-side blockchain application connected to the node on the second chain. The production-side blockchain application is connected to the node on the second chain. The manufacturing-side blockchain application is configured to execute on the first host and the second host respectively to connect the production management and manufacturing layer to the blockchain network layer, wherein the production management station or the work station initiates an event to trigger The execution of the smart contract and the update of the common ledger, from The blockchain network layer drives the production management and manufacturing layer to execute manufacturing operations to drive the operation of the blockchain manufacturing execution system.

Embodiment 2: The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in Embodiment 1 further includes one of the following: wherein the first on-chain node and the second on-chain node are included in the blockchain network layer. Contains a plurality of permission nodes, which are included in a plurality of on-chain nodes included in the blockchain network layer; wherein the first on-chain node and the second on-chain node are selected from a management node, a One of a manufacturing node, a composite manufacturing node, and a composite production management node; and wherein the production management node is used to assist the management end in mastering multiple operational details of the manufacturing operation, which operational details include at least managing digital assets, Convert the purchase order (PO) to the manufacturing order (MO), establish the work plan (WP), initialize the MO, execute the MO and WP, generate a work order (WO) based on the MO and WP, and obtain the work order (WO). Product (WIP) production progress.

Embodiment 3: The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in Embodiment 2, wherein: the content of the MO includes the items and quantities of the products in the PO; the WO is used to control production and record the actual status of each product instance and Contains the required product, required quantity and corresponding WP, and is synchronized with the WIP status at any time during the manufacturing process; the WP describes all transformations from starting raw materials to final products, including its name, operation content and sequence of operations , each operation content must list the required workstations and operating parameters, required resources and process parameters, and collect the work plan data used to save the production products; and the WO collection is used to manage WIP, record WIP status, Loop start and end timestamps, machine and operating parameters.

Embodiment 4: The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in Embodiment 1 also includes one of the following: wherein the production management station also includes a management end, and the management end is selected from an enterprise resource planning platform, an advanced planning system, One of the life management manager and the life management personnel; among which the The production management side blockchain application also includes a user interface to provide the production management manager or the production management personnel with operations; wherein the production side blockchain application also includes a production manufacturing equipment client module and a block Chain client module; wherein the production management side blockchain application and the production side blockchain application are executed on the first host and the second host through a decentralized application; wherein the production side blockchain application is executed on the first host and the second host through a decentralized application; The pipe-end blockchain application is used as the management end to connect to the production pipe-end blockchain application interface of the node on the first chain; wherein the manufacturing end blockchain application is used as the work station to connect to the second chain. The manufacturing end blockchain application programming interface of the node; wherein the first host and the second host are the same host or different hosts; wherein the work station is an automatic assembly station, assembly station, inspection station or automatic storage station; and wherein The production and manufacturing equipment is selected from one of robotic arms, CNC processing machines, handling robots and infrared automatic equipment.

Embodiment 5: The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in Embodiment 1, wherein the production management station further includes one of the following: the management end converts the manufacturing end blockchain application to the area. The first on-chain node included in the blockchain network layer imports the production management plan for the manufacturing operation; the management end transmits the production management plan to the blockchain network layer through the conversion of the manufacturing end blockchain application. The included node on the first chain imports the production management plan for the manufacturing operation; the management end receives the information from the node on the first chain through the manufacturing end blockchain application according to the smart contract and the A common ledger report on the execution progress of the manufacturing operation; and

Embodiment 6: The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in Embodiment 1, wherein the workstation further includes one of the following: the production and manufacturing equipment receives information from the second on-chain node according to the smart contract and the common classification The control instructions generated by the ledger and sent through the manufacturing-side blockchain application are executed to execute the manufacturing operation; and the production and manufacturing equipment is directed to the manufacturing-side blockchain application and the second on-chain node. The smart contract and the common ledger Update status information.

Embodiment 7: The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in Embodiment 1, wherein the common ledger also includes at least the following four ledgers: Equipment ledger, which is used to record relevant information about the workstation. , including the name, address, executable operations and their parameter specifications; the work plan account is used to record relevant information about the work plan, including its name, operation and sequence of operations; the order account is used to record Relevant information about manufacturing orders, including required products, required quantities, and work plans; and a work-in-progress ledger, which is used to record relevant information about work-in-progress, including work-in-progress status, cycle start and end timestamps, Machine and operating parameters.

Embodiment 8: A blockchain manufacturing execution method, which includes: establishing a blockchain network layer, which includes a first chain node, a second chain node, the first chain node and the second chain node. A common ledger jointly maintained by the nodes and a jointly executed smart contract; a production management and manufacturing layer is configured, which includes a production management station and a work station. The production management station includes a first host and the work station includes a second host and production and manufacturing equipment. ; Establish an intermediary agent layer, which is between the blockchain network layer and the production management layer, and includes the production management blockchain application connecting the nodes on the first chain and connecting the second chain The production-side blockchain application of the node; execute the production-side blockchain application and the production-side blockchain application on the first host and the second host respectively to connect the production management layer to The blockchain network layer; and initiating an event at the production management station or the work station to trigger the execution of the smart contract and the update of the common ledger, thereby driving the production management manufacturing by the blockchain network layer layer performs manufacturing operations.

Embodiment 9: The blockchain manufacturing execution method described in Embodiment 8 also includes one of the following: at the production management station: the management end converts the manufacturing end blockchain application, The production management plan for the manufacturing operation is imported to the first on-chain node included in the blockchain network layer; the management end transfers the production management plan to the block chain through the conversion of the manufacturing end blockchain application. The first on-chain node included in the chain network layer imports the production management manufacturing plan for the manufacturing operation; and the management end receives data from the first on-chain node through the manufacturing end blockchain application. The smart contract and the common ledger report on the execution progress of the manufacturing operation.

Embodiment 10: The blockchain manufacturing execution method as described in Embodiment 8 also includes one of the following: at the work station: the production and manufacturing equipment receives information from the node on the second chain according to the smart contract and the common classification The control instructions generated by the ledger and sent through the manufacturing-side blockchain application are executed to execute the manufacturing operation; and the production and manufacturing equipment is directed to the manufacturing-side blockchain application and the second on-chain node. The smart contract and the common ledger update status information.

The various embodiments of the present invention can be arbitrarily combined or replaced with each other to derive more embodiments, but all do not deviate from the scope of protection of the present invention. The scope of protection of the present invention is defined by the patent scope of the present invention. The recorder shall prevail.

10: Blockchain manufacturing execution system

100: Blockchain network layer

111-118: Nodes on the chain

121: Production and management node

122-123: Manufacturing node

130:Smart Contract

140: Common ledger

200: Intermediary agent layer

210: Production and management blockchain applications

212:User interface

215:Production and management end blockchain API

220-221: Manufacturing-side blockchain applications

222: Manufacturing equipment client module

223:Blockchain client module

225: Manufacturing Blockchain API

300: Pipe manufacturing layer

310: Production management station host

311: Management end

320-322:Work station host

330-332: Manufacturing equipment

MS: Health Management Station

WS1: Work station

WS2: Work station

WS3: Workstation

Claims (10)

A blockchain manufacturing execution system, which includes: a blockchain network layer, which includes a first chain node and a second chain node, which are jointly operated by the first chain node and the second chain node. Maintaining a common ledger and jointly executing a smart contract configured to include manufacturing digitalization protocols and rules, the manufacturing digitalization protocols and rules including a work-in-progress tracking protocol, the common classification The ledger is configured to include a work order ledger, and the work order ledger includes a work order; a production management and manufacturing layer, which includes a production management station and a work station, the production management station includes a first host and the work order The station includes a second host and a production and manufacturing equipment, the production and manufacturing equipment is used to manufacture a work-in-progress into a product; and an intermediary agent layer, which includes a production-end blockchain application connected to the node on the first chain program and a manufacturing-side blockchain application connected to the node on the second chain. The production-side blockchain application and the manufacturing-side blockchain application are respectively configured on the first host and the second host. Execution is to connect the production management manufacturing layer to the blockchain network layer, wherein the production management station or the work station initiates an event to trigger the execution of the smart contract and the update of the common ledger, so that the block The chain network layer drives the production management and manufacturing layer to execute a manufacturing operation to drive the operation of the blockchain manufacturing execution system. The event will simultaneously trigger the execution of the smart contract and the production management and manufacturing digital protocols and rules. The smart contract will automatically control and execute the manufacturing operation based on the digital production management and manufacturing protocols and rules and use the work order as a digital guide to independently produce the product and enable the blockchain manufacturing execution system to have autonomous operation capabilities , wherein during the execution of the manufacturing operation, the smart contract is configured to execute the work-in-progress tracking protocol to proactively determine the real-time synchronization between the content of the work order and the status of the work-in-progress. step. The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in claim 1 further includes one of the following: wherein the first node on the chain and the second node on the chain are included in a plurality of permissions included in the blockchain network layer. Nodes, these permission nodes are included in a plurality of on-chain nodes included in the blockchain network layer; wherein the first on-chain node and the second on-chain node are selected from a production management node, a manufacturing node, a One of a composite manufacturing node and a composite production management node; and wherein the production management node is used to assist a management end in mastering multiple operational details of the manufacturing operation, which operational details include at least managing digital assets, converting a purchase order ( PO) is converted into a manufacturing order (MO), creates a work plan (WP), initializes the MO, executes the MO and the WP, generates a work order (WO) based on the MO and the WP, and obtains a work order (WO). Product (WIP) production progress. The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in request item 2, wherein: the content of the MO contains the items and quantities of the products in the PO; the WO is used to control production and record the actual status of each product instance and contains the required products , the required quantity and the corresponding WP, and are synchronized with the status of the WIP at any time during the manufacturing process; the WP describes all transformations from the starting raw materials to the final product, including its name, operation content and sequence of operations, Each operation content must list the required workstations and operating parameters, required resources and process parameters, and collect the work plan data used to save the production products; and the WO collection is used to manage the WIP and record the WIP. Status, loop start and end timestamps, machine and operating parameters. The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in claim 1 also includes one of the following: wherein the production management station also includes a management end, and the management end is selected from an enterprise resource planning platform, an advanced planning system, and an One of a life management manager and a life management personnel; wherein the production management blockchain application also includes a user interface to provide operation by the life management manager or the life management personnel; wherein the manufacturing The terminal blockchain application also includes a production and manufacturing equipment client module and a blockchain client module; wherein the production management terminal blockchain application and the manufacturing terminal blockchain application are connected through a decentralized The application is executed on the first host and the second host; wherein the pipeline-side blockchain application serves as a pipeline-side blockchain application interface for the management terminal to connect to the node on the first chain. ; wherein the manufacturing-side blockchain application is a manufacturing-side blockchain application program interface that connects the work station to the second node on the chain; wherein the first host and the second host are the same host or different hosts; wherein The work station is an automatic assembly station, an assembly station, an inspection station or an automatic storage station; and the production and manufacturing equipment is selected from a robotic arm, a CNC processing machine, a handling robot and an infrared automatic equipment. one. The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in claim 1, wherein the production management station further includes one of the following: the management terminal converts the manufacturing terminal blockchain application to the blockchain network The first on-chain node included in the layer imports the production management manufacturing plan for the manufacturing operation; and the management end receives data from the first on-chain node according to the smart contract through the manufacturing-end blockchain application. The common ledger reports on execution progress of one of the manufacturing operations. The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in claim 1, wherein the workstation further includes one of the following: the production and manufacturing equipment receives data generated from the node on the second chain according to the smart contract and the common ledger. and operates through the control instructions sent by the manufacturing-side blockchain application to execute the manufacturing operation; and the production and manufacturing equipment sends signals to the smart contract and the node through the manufacturing-side blockchain application and the second chain The common ledger is updated with status information. The blockchain manufacturing execution system as described in claim 1, wherein the common ledger also includes at least the following four ledgers: an equipment ledger, which is used to record relevant information about the work station, including the name , address, executable operations and their parameter specifications; a work plan account, which is used to record relevant information about a work plan, including its name, operation and sequence of operations; an order account, which is used to record Relevant information about a manufacturing order, including required products, required quantities, and work plans; and a work-in-progress ledger, used to record relevant information about a work-in-progress, including work-in-progress status, cycle start and end Timestamp, machine and operating parameters. A blockchain manufacturing and execution method, which includes: establishing a blockchain network layer, which includes a first chain node, a second chain node, the first chain node and the second chain node. A common ledger is jointly maintained and a smart contract is jointly executed, the smart contract being configured to include a manufacturing digitization protocol and rules, the manufacturing digitization protocol and rules including a work-in-progress tracking protocol, the common The ledger is configured to include a work order ledger and the work order ledger includes a work order; a production management manufacturing layer is configured, which includes a production management station and a work station, the production management station includes a first host and The workstation includes a second host and a production and manufacturing equipment. The production and manufacturing equipment is used to manufacture a work-in-progress into a product; an intermediary agent layer is established between the blockchain network layer and the production management and manufacturing between the layers, and includes a production-side blockchain application connected to the node on the first chain and a manufacturing-side blockchain application connected to the node on the second chain; respectively on the first host and the second Execute the production management side blockchain application and the production side blockchain application on the host to connect the production management manufacturing layer to the blockchain network layer; and initiate a process at the production management station or the work station. The event triggers the execution of the smart contract and the update of the common ledger, so that the blockchain network layer drives the production management layer to execute a manufacturing operation, where the event will simultaneously trigger the smart contract and the production management layer. Execution of manufacturing digitalization protocols and rules. The smart contract will automatically control and execute the manufacturing operation based on the manufacturing digitalization protocols and rules and use the work order as a digital guide to independently produce the product and enable the The blockchain manufacturing execution system has the ability to operate autonomously. During the execution of the manufacturing operation, the smart contract is configured to execute the work-in-process tracking. Tracking protocol to proactively ensure real-time synchronization between the content of the work order and the status of the work in progress. The blockchain manufacturing execution method described in claim 8 also includes one of the following: at the production management station: the management end converts the production end blockchain application to the blockchain network The node on the first chain included in the layer imports the production management manufacturing plan for the manufacturing operation; the management end transmits the production management plan to the node included in the blockchain network layer through the conversion of the manufacturing end blockchain application. The first on-chain node imports the production management manufacturing plan for the manufacturing operation; and the management end receives data from the first on-chain node according to the smart contract and the common ledger through the manufacturing end blockchain application. This report is about the execution progress of one of the manufacturing operations. The blockchain manufacturing execution method described in request item 8 also includes one of the following: at the work station: the production and manufacturing equipment receives data generated from the node on the second chain according to the smart contract and the common ledger. and operates through the control instructions sent by the manufacturing-side blockchain application to execute the manufacturing operation; and the production and manufacturing equipment sends signals to the smart contract and the node through the manufacturing-side blockchain application and the second chain The common ledger is updated with status information.

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