Digitally controlled power supply apparatus and production management system

A production management system, comprising:

• a cell controller mutually communicably connected with a manufacturing cell including a plurality of manufacturing machines for controlling the manufacturing machines,
• each of the plurality of manufacturing machines being equipped with a digitally controlled power supply apparatus comprising:
• a switching device for converting a given input voltage to output a converted voltage by being on/off driven in accordance with gate signals that the switching device receives;
• a smoothing circuit for smoothing the converted voltage outputted by the switching device to output a power supply voltage;
• an analog-digital converter for analog-digital converting the power supply voltage outputted by the smoothing circuit to output a power supply voltage digital data;
• a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller for performing PID control operation to an error between a setpoint and the power supply voltage digital data outputted by the analog-digital converter;
• a switching drive circuit for generating gate signals for on/off driving the switching device, based on an operation outcome of the PID controller;
• a control parameter adjuster for dynamically performing automatic adjustment of control parameters used for the PID control operation by the PID controller, based on a history of fluctuations indicated in samplings of the power supply voltage digital data;
• and
• a control parameter output unit for outputting the control parameters adjusted by the control parameter adjuster and used for the PID control operation by the PID controller;
• and
• a production management apparatus mutually communicably connected with the cell controller, for giving an instruction of a production plan to the cell controller;
• wherein at least one of the manufacturing machines, the cell controller and the production management apparatus comprises:
• a control parameter determination unit for determining whether or not the control parameters outputted by the control parameter output unit satisfy an abnormality determination condition;
• and
• an alarm output unit for outputting a maintenance alarm when the control parameter determination unit has determined that the predetermined abnormality determination condition is satisfied, and
• wherein the abnormality determination condition is based on a rate of change of at least one of the control parameters.

A production management system, comprising:

• a cell controller equipped with a digitally controlled power supply apparatus and mutually communicably connected with a plurality of manufacturing machines constituting a manufacturing cell, for controlling the manufacturing machines,
• the digitally controlled power supply apparatus comprising:
• a switching device for converting a given input voltage to output a converted voltage by being on/off driven in accordance with gate signals that the switching device receives;
• a smoothing circuit for smoothing the converted voltage outputted by the switching device to output a power supply voltage;
• an analog-digital converter for analog-digital converting the power supply voltage outputted by the smoothing circuit to output a power supply voltage digital data;
• a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller for performing PID control operation to an error between a setpoint and the power supply voltage digital data outputted by the analog-digital converter;
• a switching drive circuit for generating gate signals for on/off driving the switching device, based on an operation outcome of the PID controller;
• a control parameter adjuster for dynamically performing automatic adjustment of control parameters used for the PID control operation by the PID controller, based on a history of fluctuations indicated in samplings of the power supply voltage digital data;
• and
• a control parameter output unit for outputting the control parameters adjusted by the control parameter adjuster and used for the PID control operation by the PID controller;
• and
• a production management apparatus mutually communicably connected with the cell controller, for giving an instruction of a production plan to the cell controller;
• wherein the production management apparatus comprises:
• a control parameter determination unit for determining whether or not the control parameters outputted by the control parameter output unit satisfy a predetermined abnormality determination condition;
• and
• an alarm output unit for outputting a maintenance alarm when the control parameter determination unit has determined that the abnormality determination condition is satisfied, and
• wherein the abnormality determination condition is based on a rate of change of at least one of the control parameters.

A production management system, comprising:

• a cell controller mutually communicably connected with a plurality of manufacturing machines constituting a manufacturing cell, for controlling the manufacturing machines;
• and
• a production management apparatus mutually communicably connected with the cell controller, for giving an instruction of a production plan to the cell controller;
• wherein at least one of the cell controller and the production management apparatus is equipped with a digitally controlled power supply apparatus comprising:
• a switching device for converting a given input voltage to output a converted voltage by being on/off driven in accordance with gate signals that the switching device receives;
• a smoothing circuit for smoothing the converted voltage outputted by the switching device to output a power supply voltage;
• an analog-digital converter for analog-digital converting the power supply voltage outputted by the smoothing circuit to output a power supply voltage digital data;
• a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller for performing PID control operation to an error between a setpoint and the power supply voltage digital data outputted by the analog-digital converter;
• a switching drive circuit for generating gate signals for on/off driving the switching device, based on an operation outcome of the PID controller;
• a control parameter adjuster for dynamically performing automatic adjustment of control parameters used for the PID control operation by the PID controller, based on a history of fluctuations indicated in samplings of the power supply voltage digital data;
• a control parameter output unit for outputting the control parameters adjusted by the control parameter adjuster and used for the PID control operation by the PID controller;
• a control parameter determination unit for determining whether or not the control parameters outputted by the control parameter output unit satisfy a predetermined abnormality determination condition;
• and
• an alarm output unit for outputting a maintenance alarm when the control parameter determination unit has determined that the abnormality determination condition is satisfied,
• wherein the abnormality determination condition is based on a rate of change of at least one of the control parameters.