Manufacturing control in the metal processing industry

A manufacturing control system to control manufacturing processes in a manufacturing hall, the system comprising an interior localization system to control process procedures in industrial manufacturing of steel or sheet metal workpieces within the manufacturing hall, the interior localization system comprising:

• a plurality of transceiver units permanently installed in the manufacturing hall;
• at least one mobile unit;
• and
• an analysis unit,
• wherein the transceiver units and the at least one mobile unit are configured to transmit and receive electromagnetic signals,
• wherein the analysis unit is configured to
• determine runtimes of the electromagnetic signals between the transceiver units and the at least one mobile unit, and
• determine a position of the at least one mobile unit in the manufacturing hall from the runtimes of the electromagnetic signals,
• wherein the interior localization system is configured to provide data on the position of at least one mobile unit within the manufacturing hall as part of the manufacturing control system, and
• wherein the manufacturing control system is configured to associate the obtained position of the at least one mobile unit with at least one person and control a manufacturing process of the workpieces based on respective associations between the at least one person and respective mobile units.

A method of industrially manufacturing an end product using a manufacturing control system, the method comprising:

• receiving a manufacturing order for manufacturing the end product from a workpiece by a manufacturing execution system (MES) of the manufacturing control system implemented in a data processing device;
• selecting individual processing steps with the MES;
• determining a sequence of the processing steps with the MES, the processing steps being selected from the group consisting of:
• cutting, in particular laser cutting, punching, bending, drilling, thread cutting, grinding, assembling, welding, riveting, screwing, pressing, treating the edges and surfaces, or a combination thereof;
• associating the processing steps with a first machine or a first workstation unit;
• associating the manufacturing order with a mobile unit data set and a person, who at least partially processes the manufacturing order, to a mobile unit data set in the MES;
• manufacturing the workpiece to form at least part of the end product according to a first step of the processing steps at the first machine or the first work-station unit associated with the processing step;
• spatially associating of the mobile units, which is associated with the manufacturing order, with the manufactured workpiece and the person;
• storing a status change of the manufacturing order in the MES, the change of status indicating that the first step is performed on the workpiece;
• transporting the manufactured workpiece together with the mobile unit in accordance with the manufacturing order to a second machine or a second workstation unit in a pre-determined sequence;
• performing a second step of the processing step on at the second machine or the second workstation unit;
• and
• storing a status change of the manufacturing order in the MES,
• wherein a position of the mobile units is determinable with a localization system at any time by the MES on the basis of electro-magnetic signals transmitted from and to the mobile unit, and the MES has data on a current status and a current position of the workpiece as well as data on the movement of the person at any time.