WO2021237587A1

WO2021237587A1 - Method and apparatus relating to managing service life of machine tool, computer device, and storage medium

Info

Publication number: WO2021237587A1
Application number: PCT/CN2020/092983
Authority: WO
Inventors: 张亮; 孙维; 王洋; 胡黎红
Original assignee: 西门子股份公司; 西门子（中国）有限公司
Priority date: 2020-05-28
Filing date: 2020-05-28
Publication date: 2021-12-02

Abstract

A method and apparatus for managing the service life of a machine tool, a computer device, and a storage medium. The method for managing the service life of a machine tool comprises: determining status information of a machine, the status information comprising at least one among an identifier of the machine, the working status of the machine, an identifier of a tool installed on the machine, and the installation/detachment time of the tool, wherein the status information is obtained by means of at least one of the following means: using an information acquisition device to acquire and receive a user input and obtain same from a third party information system; and calculating the actual usage time of the tool on the basis of the status information. The described method can accurately calculate the remaining service life of a tool, and a user can promptly replace the tool according to the remaining service life of the tool so as to avoid the production of products that are not up to standard, while at the same time also fully using the tool so as to avoid unnecessary waste.

Description

Involving machine tool tool life management methods, devices, computing equipment and storage media

Technical field

The present disclosure generally relates to the technical field of factory digitization, and more specifically, to a method, device, computing device, and storage medium for tool life management of machine tools.

Background technique

Machine tools are very common and important in the manufacturing industry. For a specific machine tool, multiple tools can be used to produce parts together, making it very flexible and efficient. Obviously, the quality of the parts and the quality of the tool are closely related. Worn or unqualified tools can cause obvious defects in the final part. Therefore, tool life management is very important in the manufacturing industry.

Generally speaking, the factory estimates the maximum tool life based on experience. When the tool is cutting, it is necessary to confirm that the tool is still within the service life. Moreover, it would be a great waste to end the use of this expensive tool before the maximum service life of the tool without any solid evidence. A large number of companies solve this problem by collecting data directly from the internal CNC (numerical control system) system of the machine tool. However, it is actually very difficult to collect data from CNC systems, especially tool data. The main reasons are the following:

● For some old CNC machine tools, no communication interface is provided at all.

● For advanced CNC machine tools with communication interfaces, most communication protocols are defined by their manufacturers and are proprietary. Some manufacturers are reluctant to open software interfaces due to technical secrets or to keep the system running stable.

● Some CNC machine manufacturers are willing to provide their commercial solutions to obtain tool data from the machine tool, but the data must be kept in their own software system, allowing other software to access it. However, since a factory always has many machine tools from different manufacturers, it is difficult to integrate all the data in one system.

At present, the tool service time is generally the sum of the time period when the tool is installed on the machine tool. This calculation includes some time periods when the tool is not working at all. For machine tools with multiple tools, it is even more difficult to count the actual use time of each tool.

For very high-end precision tools, some special equipment based on optical technology can be used to regularly calculate the degree of wear. However, this kind of evaluation optical equipment is very expensive, and it is very time-consuming for the entire evaluation process, which is not suitable for all tools.

Summary of the invention

A brief overview of the present invention is given below in order to provide a basic understanding of certain aspects of the present invention. It should be understood that this summary is not an exhaustive summary of the present invention. It is not intended to determine the key or important part of the present invention, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Its purpose is merely to present some concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that will be discussed later.

In view of the above, the present disclosure provides a general method that can accurately calculate the use time of a tool for various types of machine tools.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a tool life management method of a machine tool, including: determining the status information of the machine tool, the status information including the identification of the machine tool, the working status of the machine tool, the identification of the tool installed on the machine tool, and the installation of the tool /At least one of the disassembly time, wherein the state information is obtained by at least one of the following ways: using an information collection device to collect, receive user input, and obtain from a third-party information system; and calculate based on the state information The actual use time of the tool.

In this way, the actual use time of the machine tool can be accurately calculated.

Optionally, in an example of the foregoing aspect, the information collection device includes at least one of the following: a sensor, a camera, a radio frequency identifier, a proximity switch, and a scanning gun.

In this way, different information collection devices can be set up for different machine tools to collect different status information of the machine tools, so that the actual use time of the machine tools can be calculated more accurately.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the status information of the machine tool further includes at least one of the following: the mapping relationship between the tool identifier and the installation slot, the tool replacement time during the machining process, and the pre-replacement The identification of the tool and the identification of the replaced tool.

In this way, the problem that it is difficult to count the actual use time of each tool in a machine tool with multiple tools installed can be solved.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the state information of the machine tool further includes at least one of the following: the material type, size, and density of the processed material.

In this way, the actual use time of the tool can be calculated by considering the information related to the material to be processed.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the method further includes: calculating the remaining life of the tool according to the calculated actual usage time of the tool and the maximum usage time of the tool stored in a pre-configured database.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the database is configured to include at least one of the following information: a list of machine tools, a list of tools, the maximum service life of each tool, and the wear factor of each material.

In this way, some information related to the machine tool can be stored in the database in advance, and the relevant information can be queried in the database when calculating the actual use time and remaining life of the tool.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the method further includes: issuing a notification when the calculated remaining life of the tool is less than a predetermined threshold.

In this way, the user can change the tool in time according to the remaining life of the tool to avoid generating unqualified products.

Using the method according to the present disclosure, the remaining life of the tool can be accurately calculated, and the user can replace the tool in time according to the remaining life of the tool to avoid generating unqualified products; at the same time, the tool can be fully utilized to avoid unnecessary waste.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a tool life management device for a machine tool, including: a status information determining unit configured to determine status information of the machine tool, the status information including at least the identification of the machine tool, the working status of the machine tool, and the status information on the machine tool. The identification of the installed tool and the installation/disassembly time of the tool, wherein the status information is obtained in at least one of the following ways: collecting with an information collecting device, receiving user input, and obtaining from a third-party information system; and The use time calculation unit is configured to calculate the actual use time of the tool based on the status information.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the information collection device includes at least one of the following: a sensor, a camera, a radio frequency identifier, a proximity switch, and a scanning gun.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the status information of the machine tool further includes at least one of the following: the mapping relationship between the tool identifier and the installation slot, the tool replacement time during the machining process, and the tool before replacement The identification of the tool and the identification of the replaced tool.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the device further includes: a remaining life calculation unit configured to calculate the actual use time of the tool and the maximum use time of the tool stored in a pre-configured database To calculate the remaining life of the tool.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the database is configured to include at least one of the following information: a list of uniquely identified machine tools, a list of uniquely identified tools, and the maximum service life of each tool And the wear factor of different materials.

Optionally, in an example of the above aspect, the device further includes: a notification unit configured to issue a notification when the calculated remaining life of the tool is less than a predetermined threshold.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a computing device is provided, including: at least one processor; and a memory coupled with the at least one processor, the memory is used to store instructions, when the instructions are When the processor executes, the processor is caused to execute the method as described above.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium, which stores executable instructions that, when executed, cause the machine to perform the method as described above.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer program including computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause at least one processor to perform the method as described above.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer program product that is tangibly stored on a computer-readable medium and includes computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause at least A processor executes the method described above.

Description of the drawings

The above and other objectives, features and advantages of the present invention will be more easily understood with reference to the following description of the embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The components in the drawings are only to illustrate the principle of the present invention. In the drawings, the same or similar technical features or components will be represented by the same or similar reference signs.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing an exemplary process of a tool life management method of a machine tool according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an exemplary configuration of a tool life management device of a machine tool according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of a computing device for tool life management of a machine tool according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Reference number

100: Machine tool tool life management method S102, S104, S106, S108: steps

200: Machine tool tool life management device 202: Status information determination unit

204: Use time calculation unit 206: Remaining life calculation unit

208: Notification unit 300: Computing equipment

302: Processor 304: Memory

Detailed ways

The subject matter described herein will now be discussed with reference to example embodiments. It should be understood that the discussion of these embodiments is only to enable those skilled in the art to better understand and realize the subject described herein, and is not to limit the scope of protection, applicability, or examples set forth in the claims. The function and arrangement of the discussed elements can be changed without departing from the scope of protection of the present disclosure. Various examples can omit, substitute, or add various procedures or components as needed. For example, the described method may be performed in a different order from the described order, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. In addition, features described with respect to some examples can also be combined in other examples.

As used herein, the term "including" and its variations mean open terms, meaning "including but not limited to". The term "based on" means "based at least in part on." The terms "one embodiment" and "an embodiment" mean "at least one embodiment." The term "another embodiment" means "at least one other embodiment." The terms "first", "second", etc. may refer to different or the same objects. Other definitions can be included below, whether explicit or implicit. Unless clearly indicated in the context, the definition of a term is consistent throughout the specification.

The present disclosure proposes a general method for accurately calculating the use time of tools for different types of machine tools. For example, some sensors, cameras, scanning guns, or RFID and other information collection equipment can be installed to collect status information related to the machine tool. In this way, when calculating the use time of each tool, it can be considered to include, for example, the working status of the machine tool and the tool. Factors such as the actual working time and the materials to be processed.

Hereinafter, the tool life management method and device of a machine tool according to the embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing an exemplary process of a tool life management method 100 of a machine tool according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

In FIG. 1, first, in step S102, the status information of the machine tool is determined, the status information includes at least the identification of the machine tool, the working state of the machine tool, the identification of the tool installed on the machine tool, and the time of the installation/disassembly of the tool. One item. Specifically, the status information of the machine tool may be determined by at least one of the following methods: collecting information using an information collecting device, receiving information input by a user, and obtaining information from a third-party information system.

Next, in step S104, the actual use time of the tool is calculated based on the status information.

By determining the identification of the machine tool and the working status of the machine tool, the actual working time of a certain machine tool can be determined. Sometimes, the state of the machine tool changes frequently, which makes it impossible to record manually. In the method according to the present disclosure, the status information of the machine tool can be obtained, for example, from the machine tool control system (such as CNC (Numerical Control System) or PLC (Programmable Logic Controller), etc.), and in the case that the machine tool control system does not allow access, It can also be obtained by sensors installed on the machine tool (for example, current sensors, vibration sensors, sound sensors, etc.).

By determining the identification of the tool and when the tool is installed on the machine tool, when it is removed from the machine tool, when it is in the working state of cutting, punching, etc., it can be determined whether the tool is actually used for processing. Specifically, for example, the identification of the tool can be scanned by a scanning gun, or if the tool is provided with an RFID tag, its identification can be automatically detected by an RFID reader.

By combining the state information of the above-mentioned machine tool, the actual use time of the tool can be calculated more accurately. For example, when the tool is installed on the machine tool, but the machine tool is idle or malfunctioning, the time used as the tool will not be calculated.

Among them, different information collection equipment can be installed for different types of machine tools. For example, the information collection equipment can be sensors, cameras, radio frequency identifiers, proximity switches, and scanning guns.

In an example, the collected state information of the machine tool may also include the mapping relationship between the tool identification and the installation slot, the replacement time of the tool during the machining process, the identification of the tool before the replacement, and the identification of the tool after the replacement.

When the machine tool allows more than one tool to be installed at the same time, most of the time the tool may be waiting on the machine tool. Therefore, by identifying the slot position of a specific tool on the machine tool, you can determine which tool is actually processing; and according to the tool replacement (here refers to changing from using one of the multiple tools to using another) information, you can Record the actual working time for different tools respectively.

In this way, it can be solved that it is difficult to count the actual use time of each tool in a machine tool equipped with multiple tools.

Take a stamping machine tool as an example. There are multiple tools installed on it at the same time. During the work of the machine tool, different tools can be automatically replaced according to the needs of the processed materials.

A punching machine tool is to set up 10 tools side by side on the frame of the machine tool. When the machine tool is punching, if a specific tool needs to be used, the machine tool can automatically take the tool from the frame. In response to this situation, devices such as RFID tags or metal proximity switches can be set at the appropriate positions for each tool to detect which tool is changed to the punching head for work.

Another type of cutting machine tool is that all tools are installed on the machine at the same time. In this case, a camera can be installed to determine whether the tool is working and which tool is working.

Those skilled in the art can understand that the information collection equipment used is not limited to the above-mentioned types of equipment, and the present invention does not limit the specific types of information collection equipment. Those skilled in the art can select appropriate information collection equipment for different types of machine tools and tools to detect the status information of the machine tools, which will not be described in detail here.

In another example according to the present disclosure, since the material type, size, density, etc. of the material processed by the machine tool are an important factor that affects the health of the tool and the actual use time, the relevant information of the material can be further combined. To more accurately calculate the usage time of the tool.

For example, different materials have different wear on the tool, and the wear level of the tool punched on the steel plate with high density and low density is definitely different, and the wear level of the tool on the material of different thickness is also different.

Therefore, different wear factors can be set for different materials. For example, for ordinary steel plates, the wear factor can be set to "1", for steel plates with higher density it can be set to "1.1", and steel plates with lower density can be set to "0.9".

Those skilled in the art can understand that information about the material type, size, density, etc. of the material can be input by the user or obtained from the software system of the factory; for materials of different materials, densities, and thicknesses, it can be based on the experience of the technicians, Or set different wear factors through precise measurement or according to the information provided by the tool manufacturer, which will not be described in detail here.

In the method of the present disclosure, a database can be pre-configured, and the database can include a list of machine tools (where each machine has a unique identification), a list of tools (where each tool has a unique identification), and the information of each tool. Information such as the maximum service life and the wear factor of different materials.

When performing step S104 to calculate the actual use time of the tool based on the status information, the wear factor for the tool can be queried in the database according to the material type, size and density of the processed material, and the wear factor can be combined in the calculation. Calculate the actual usage time of the tool.

In the method of the present invention, when calculating the actual use time of the tool, the identification of the machine tool, the working state of the machine tool, the identification of the tool installed on the machine tool, the installation/disassembly time of the tool, the tool identification and the installation slot are taken into consideration. One or more of many factors, such as the mapping relationship of the tool, the replacement time of the tool, the identification of the tool before the replacement and the identification of the tool after the replacement, the material type, size and density of the processing material, etc., make the calculated tool The actual use time is more accurate, but the present invention does not limit the specific algorithm how to calculate the actual use time.

In an example according to the present disclosure, the method may further include step S106: calculating the remaining life of the tool according to the calculated actual use time of the tool and the maximum use time of the tool stored in a pre-configured database.

In an example according to the present disclosure, the method may further include step S108: issuing a notification when the calculated remaining life of the tool is less than a predetermined threshold. For example, the notification can be sent by displaying a message on the screen of the management system, or sending a message or email to the user's mobile phone, or issuing a prompt sound. The predetermined threshold can be preset by a technician based on experience.

Using the method according to the present disclosure, the remaining life of the tool can be accurately calculated, and the user can replace the tool in time according to the remaining life of the tool to avoid generating unqualified products; at the same time, the tool can be fully utilized to avoid unnecessary waste. In addition, users can plan tool purchases and inventory accordingly to avoid stopping production due to lack of machine tools.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an exemplary configuration of a machine tool tool life management device 200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 2, the tool life management device 200 of a machine tool includes: a status information determination unit 202 and a usage time calculation unit 204.

The status information determining unit 202 is configured to determine the status information of the machine tool, the status information including at least the identification of the machine tool, the working status of the machine tool, the identification of the tool installed on the machine tool, and the installation/disassembly time of the tool, wherein the The status information is obtained by at least one of the following methods: collecting with an information collecting device, receiving user input, and obtaining from a third-party information system.

The usage time calculation unit 204 is configured to calculate the actual usage time of the tool based on the status information.

Wherein, the information collection device includes at least one of the following: a sensor, a camera, a radio frequency identifier, a proximity switch, and a scanning gun.

Wherein, the status information of the machine tool further includes at least one of the following: the mapping relationship between the tool identification and the installation slot, the replacement time of the tool in the machining process, the identification of the tool before replacement, and the identification of the tool after replacement.

Wherein, the state information of the machine tool further includes at least one of the following: the material type, size, and density of the processed material.

In an example, the machine tool tool life management device 200 further includes: a remaining life calculation unit 206, which is configured to calculate the remaining life based on the calculated actual use time of the tool and the maximum use time of the tool stored in a pre-configured database. State the remaining life of the tool.

Wherein, the database is configured to include at least one of the following information: a list of machine tools with a unique identification, a list of tools with a unique identification, the maximum service life of each tool, and the wear factor of different materials.

In an example, the machine tool tool life management device 200 further includes: a notification unit 208 configured to issue a notification when the calculated remaining life of the tool is less than a predetermined threshold.

It should be noted that the structure of the machine tool tool life management device 200 and its constituent units shown in FIG. 2 is only exemplary, and those skilled in the art can modify the structure block diagram shown in FIG. 2 as needed.

The operation and function details of each part of the machine tool tool life management device 200 may be the same or similar to the relevant parts of the embodiment of the machine tool tool life management method 100 of the present disclosure described with reference to FIG. 1, and will not be described in detail here.

As above, referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the embodiments of the tool life management method and device of the machine tool according to the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described. The above-mentioned machine tool tool life management device can be implemented by hardware, or by software or a combination of hardware and software.

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of a computing device 300 for tool life management of a machine tool according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. According to an embodiment, the computing device 300 may include at least one processor 302 that executes at least one computer-readable instruction stored or encoded in a computer-readable storage medium (ie, the memory 304) (ie, the above-mentioned in the form of software) Implemented elements).

In one embodiment, computer-executable instructions are stored in the memory 304, which when executed cause at least one processor 302 to complete the following actions: determine the status information of the machine tool, the status information includes the identification of the machine tool, the working status of the machine tool, At least one of the identification of the tool installed on the machine tool and the installation/disassembly time of the tool, wherein the status information is obtained in at least one of the following ways: using an information collection device to collect, receive user input, and from Obtaining by a third-party information system; and calculating the actual use time of the tool based on the status information.

It should be understood that the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 304, when executed, cause the at least one processor 302 to perform various operations and functions described above in conjunction with FIGS. 1-2 in the various embodiments of the present disclosure.

According to one embodiment, a non-transitory machine-readable medium is provided. The non-transitory machine-readable medium may have machine-executable instructions (that is, the above-mentioned elements implemented in the form of software), which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to execute the various embodiments of the present disclosure in conjunction with FIGS. 1-2. Various operations and functions described.

According to one embodiment, there is provided a computer program, including computer-executable instructions, which when executed, cause at least one processor to execute each of the above described in conjunction with FIGS. 1-2 in the various embodiments of the present disclosure. Kinds of operations and functions.

According to one embodiment, there is provided a computer program product, including computer-executable instructions, which when executed, cause at least one processor to execute the above described in conjunction with FIGS. 1-2 in the various embodiments of the present disclosure. Various operations and functions.

The specific implementations set forth above in conjunction with the drawings describe exemplary embodiments, but do not represent all embodiments that can be implemented or fall within the protection scope of the claims. The term "exemplary" used throughout this specification means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration", and does not mean "preferred" or "advantageous" over other embodiments. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing an understanding of the described technology. However, these techniques can be implemented without these specific details. In some instances, in order to avoid incomprehensibility to the concepts of the described embodiments, well-known structures and devices are shown in the form of block diagrams.

The foregoing description of the present disclosure is provided to enable any person of ordinary skill in the art to implement or use the present disclosure. For those of ordinary skill in the art, various modifications to the present disclosure are obvious, and the general principles defined herein can also be applied to other modifications without departing from the scope of protection of the present disclosure. . Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is consistent with the widest scope that conforms to the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

Tool life management methods for machine tools, including:

Determine the status information of the machine tool, the status information includes at least one of the identification of the machine tool, the working status of the machine tool, the identification of the tool installed on the machine tool, and the installation/disassembly time of the tool, wherein the status information is as follows Obtained in at least one of the ways: using an information collection device to collect, receive user input, and obtain from a third-party information system; and

The actual use time of the tool is calculated based on the status information.
The method of claim 1, wherein the information collection device includes at least one of the following:

Sensors, cameras, radio frequency identifiers, proximity switches and scanning guns.
The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the state information of the machine tool further includes at least one of the following:

The mapping relationship between the tool identification and the installation slot, the replacement time of the tool during the machining process, the identification of the tool before the replacement and the identification of the tool after the replacement.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the state information of the machine tool further includes at least one of the following: the material type, size, and density of the processed material.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: calculating the remaining life of the tool according to the calculated actual usage time of the tool and the maximum usage time of the tool stored in a pre-configured database.
The method of claim 5, wherein the database is configured to include at least one of the following information: a list of machine tools, a list of tools, the maximum service life of each tool, and the wear factor of each material.
The method of claim 5, wherein the method further comprises: issuing a notification when the calculated remaining life of the tool is less than a predetermined threshold.
Tool life management devices for machine tools, including:

The status information determining unit is configured to determine the status information of the machine tool, the status information includes at least the identification of the machine tool, the working status of the machine tool, the identification of the tool installed on the machine tool, and the installation/disassembly time of the tool, wherein The state information is obtained by at least one of the following ways: collecting with information collecting equipment, receiving user input, and obtaining from a third-party information system; and

The use time calculation unit is configured to calculate the actual use time of the tool based on the status information.
8. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the information collection equipment comprises at least one of the following:

Sensors, cameras, radio frequency identifiers, proximity switches and scanning guns.
The device according to any one of claims 8-9, wherein the state information of the machine tool further comprises at least one of the following:

The mapping relationship between the tool identification and the installation slot, the replacement time of the tool during the machining process, the identification of the tool before the replacement and the identification of the tool after the replacement.
The device according to any one of claims 8-10, wherein the status information of the machine tool further includes at least one of the following: the material type, size and density of the processed material.
The device according to any one of claims 8-11, further comprising: a remaining life calculation unit configured to calculate the actual use time of the tool and the maximum use time of the tool stored in a pre-configured database To calculate the remaining life of the tool.
The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the database is configured to include at least one of the following information: a list of uniquely identified machine tools, a list of uniquely identified tools, the maximum service life of each tool, and The wear factor of different materials.
The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising: a notification unit configured to issue a notification when the calculated remaining life of the tool is less than a predetermined threshold.
Computing equipment (400), including:

At least one processor (402); and

A memory (404) coupled with the at least one processor (402), the memory is used to store instructions, when the instructions are executed by the at least one processor (402), the processor (402) ) Perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium that stores executable instructions that, when executed, cause the machine to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
A computer program comprising computer-executable instructions, which when executed, cause at least one processor to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
A computer program product that is tangibly stored on a computer-readable medium and includes computer-executable instructions, which when executed, cause at least one processor to execute according to claims 1 to 7 The method described in any one of.