Esprit Project 22897
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Work Package 1: Framework Development
The goal of this work package is to develop and demonstrate the reusability
of the proper framework. In a first step the partners will focus on the
various sections of hot rolling mills (roughing mill section, finnishing
mill section, cooling section and others). In the future it is planned to
extend the framework to cover also other types of rolling mills (e.g., cold
rolling mills).
The framework will consist of several subframeworks which are developed
by different persons in the project. These subframeworks and their expected
reuse potential include the following:
A subframework for the mathematical modeling of the physical deformation
process (expected reuse factor: 70%)
A subframework for measured value processing (expected reuse factor:
40%)
A subframework for material tracking (expected reuse factor: 40%)
A subframework for planning and coordination in a mill automation
line (expected reuse factor: 40%)
A subframework for machine learning in quality assurance (expected
reuse factor: 50%)
Within these subframeworks various aspects have to be kept flexible so that
they can be adapted for different rolling mills. These aspects include:
Different configurations of the mill (e.g., number of stands, number
and location of measuring devices)
Different protocols used between computers and measuring devices
Different automation paradigms (e.g., kinds of material tracking)
Varying, project dependent hardware platforms and operating systems
on which the framework software will have to run
A new process automation system according to a client specification can
then be derived by
developing new classes with custom functionality and plugging them
into the designated slots of the framework;
refining and improving the framework if necessary.
At least one process automation system will be derived from the framework
before the end of the project. This activity will be part of Work Package
4. It exploits the results of the previous work packages (the framework,
the guidelines and the tools) and demonstrates that the expected benefits
(cost reduction, faster development, etc) are really achievable. As a trial
site the project consortium selected Voest Alpine Stahl GmbH, a major European
steel producer. For the hot rolling mill of this company the project will
develop a prototype process automation system making use of the developed
framework. This prototype system will run in parallel with the existing
process automation software. When it is fully tested, it is intended to
replace the current software. <webmaster>
