Holon-Oriented B2m Process Modelling Approach for Applications Interoperability in Manufacturing Systems Environment
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HOLON-ORIENTED B2M PROCESS MODELLING APPROACH FOR APPLICATIONS INTEROPERABILITY IN MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS ENVIRONMENT Salah Baïna, Hervé Panetto, Gérard Morel University Henry Poincaré Nancy I, CRAN UMR 7039 CNRS - INPL -UHP F 54506 Vandoeuvre les Nancy, France, {Salah.Baina, Herve.Panetto, Gerard.Morel}@cran.uhp-nancy.fr Abstract: Enterprise-control system integration between business systems, manufacturing execution systems and shop-floor process-control systems remains a key issue for facilitating the deployment of plant-wide information-control systems. This integration leads to strengthen the paradigm of Business to Manufacturing (B2M) interoperability. However, this needs establishing standards and protocols for data exchange between different enterprise and manufacturing applications. Nevertheless, since there is no methodology for collecting data, exchanged information is generally incomplete. Business process modelling aims at specifying objects flows and processes inside an enterprise levels and among networked enterprises. However, the increased complexity of these models does not help at ensuring coherent relationships between its components. In this paper, we discuss a B2M Process Modelling approach for defining and building B2M process models, based on the concept of Holon. This approach aims at increasing the models abstraction in order to simplify its initial comprehensiveness, after while we draft the integration of a proposed Holon meta-model in existing methods for enterprise applications interoperability. Finally, an example is presented using the implementation of the meta-model in an enterprise modelling tool. Copyright © 2005 IFAC Keywords: Enterprise integration, applications interoperability, B2M, HMS 1. INTRODUCTION aims to enable interoperability and cooperation between existing manufacturing systems (Nguyen Enterprise integration has known great progress and Vernadat, 1994), by facilitating information during last decade. This progress is due to the exchange between enterprise platforms and increase of cooperation and collaboration needs in systems. In manufacturing environments, and more enterprise circles. Previous work (Morel, et al., particularly in a B2M context, before information 2003) put forward that information and, beyond, a exchange, data concerning all resources, products, form of technical Intelligence embedded into the goods and services have to be collected at the shop manufacturing systems components and inside the floor level. Hence, each product or resource will products themselves, are playing a prominent role have two representations; a physical representation as the pivotal technologies that make it possible to composed of physical materials and an address agile Business to Manufacturing (B2M) informational one which is composed of all data issues. This is emphasised by current works which related to this product or service. By taking this assumption into account, a product should be The paradigm of “product + information” has been defined as a composition of two parts: studied and defined as Holonic worldview • A physical part containing all the physical (Koestler, 1967). The term "Holon" was applied to resources that constitute the product. the manufacturing world, creating the Holonic • An informational part composed of all data that Manufacturing Systems (HMS) community describe the product, its knowledge and its (Valckenaers 2001; Deen, 2003). For this behaviour. community a Holonic Manufacturing “is an autonomous and co-operative building block of a We postulate that the increasing complexity of system for transforming, transporting, storing process modelling where physical and and/or validating information and physical objects. informational flows are separated could be The Holon consists of an information processing managed in a more understandable way by part and often a physical processing part. A Holon applying the paradigm of Holon as a means for can be part of another holon.” (Seidel and Mey, abstracting manufacturing process models, 1994). embedding information into physical products (Fig. 1) To Business B2M B2M data-driven & event- M2B data-driven & event- B2S driven information driven information B2C To Manufacture material order material shipment receipt HMS product shipment receipt product order material product BOM charateristics Holon Holon Supplier Customer Fig. 1. Holonic Process Model of a B2M context (Morel, et al., 2003) In this paper, we propose an approach used for data enterprise processes and activities. Thanks to this collecting during the manufacturing phase; this implementation, this section presents also an approach is based on this double representation of example of model (called a Holonic Process goods and services. This approach aims at Model) built by instantiation of the proposed meta- increasing models abstraction in order to simplify model. its initial comprehensiveness and ensure coherence between different views (physical or informational) Section 6 defines advantages of such an approach of manipulated objects. In this paper, we also and presents some perspectives of the work that has discuss the possibility for integrating this approach been done. with existing enterprises integration methodologies and models to ensure the interoperability of the holonic models with other enterprise systems and 2. HOLONIC DESIGN PATTERN models. In the area of Product-driven controlled systems, one of the most important assumptions is that the In section 2 of this paper, we present a model for product itself contains all knowledge and representing both parts of a product, physical and intelligence that enable it to be an active actor in its informational. This model will be called a Holon. own manufacturing process. The informational part is very helpful when trying to resolve In section 3, a meta-model that can be used for manufacturing systems problems such as respecting and maintaining coherence between both traceability, product quality control and assessment representations of a Holon is proposed. or physical laws respect during the manufacturing process. A product can be classified in two classes, Section 4 concerns the interconnection and the (i) composite products and (ii) elementary integration of the holonic meta-model, previously products: defined, in existing methods for ensuring the interoperability between business and i. A composite product is an aggregation of manufacturing enterprise models and applications. other products; ii. Elementary products are not composed of Section 5 presents an implementation of the any other product. holonic meta-model in a tool for modelling In this section, the design of a reusable pattern 3.2. Extension of the meta-model representing a holonic structure is explained. Gamma, et al., (1994) defines a design pattern as a In this paragraph, we consider that a Holon is scheme for refining the subsystems or components described by a set of properties (Morel, et al., of a software system, or the relationships between 2003). Some of these properties could be modified them. It describes a commonly-recurring structure during the life cycle of the Holon by actors of communicating components that solves a general involved in the Holon manufacturing, and others design problem within a particular context. A cannot be modified. These last are named design pattern is a recurring solution to a standard “attributes”. The notion of "property" can be problem. Patterns help developers communicate extended to flows, thus features of flows can be architectural knowledge, help people learn a new expressed. Properties of a flow are inducted by design paradigm or architectural style, and help common properties and attributes to all objects new developers ignore traps and pitfalls that have inside in the flow and by the actors that are source traditionally been learned only by costly or consumer of this flow. These extensions will experience. Fig. 2 represents the UML class make it possible to manage and express physical or diagram that describes a holonic product as defined energy laws concerning flows in manufacturing previously. In this diagram, note that the Holon is systems (Panetto, et al., 2003). the association of the physical part and the The proposed extended meta-model could be used informational one as defined before. Note also that in two ways; a priori, during the product design and a Holon can be composed of an ordered set of other manufacturing process and, a posteriori during the exploitation phase of the product. Holons. <<Stereotype>> * Flow Has properties of * Holon {Abstract Composed } #Id * #I +Flowd Name +Holon Name { Ordered} <<Stereotype>> 0..1 +Status Flow Property +Description { Disjoint, Complete} <<Stereotype>> <<Stereotype>> Informational part Physical part 0..1 Associated 0..1 #Id #Id +Name +Name +Description +Description <<Stereotype>> <<Stereotype>> <<Stereotype>> Data Flow Holonic Physical Fow Flow Fig. 2. The model of a Holon (Gouyon, et al., Property #Id Contains 2004) +Name Holons +Value Contains Contains +Unit of measure * +Description <<Stereotype>> * Holon Composed #Id { Ordered} +Holon Name 3. A META-MODEL FOR HOLONIC PROCESS 0..1 MODELLING (ii) (i) { Associated= NULL { Associated= NULL XOR XOR Pass Though = NULL} Pass Though = NULL} Pass Trough Pass Through The model of a Holon for representing holonic 1..* 1..* <<Stereotype>> <<Stereotype>> products can be used as a base to formalise Informational part Physical part 1 0..1 Associated 0..1 #Id #I constructs for modelling manufacturing