An object-oriented analysis and design method for shop floor control systems

An object-oriented analysis and design method is proposed here for the modelling of shop floor control systems. The major idea is to convert the static structure and the dynamic behaviour of a controlled system into the functional specification of a controlling system by using some modelling techniques. Then the shop floor control logic is translated into the language of the G2 expert system. In this way, it is easier to achieve the computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) at the shop floor level. The proposed method is different from the procedure-oriented method, which is based on the functional decomposition of a system, and has the potential to be applied to more complex systems. During the modelling process, its modularity and reusability can dramatically reduce the complexity in system analysis and provides more flexibility for system development. The design of the shop floor control system of a mould-filling shop is used to illustrate the proposed method.