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Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems

Chapter  in  Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing · July 2006

DOI: 10.1023/B:JIMS.0000018037.63935.a1 · Source: InTech

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 3
Development of Holonic Manufacturing
Execution Systems

Fan-Tien Cheng, Chih-Feng Chang and Shang-Lun Wu

1. Introduction

Today, most semiconductor manufacturing companies utilize Manufacturing

Execution Systems (MES) (MacDonald, 1993; Samanish, 1993; Nguyen, 1996;
Scatt, 1996; MESA, 1997) to deliver information to optimize production activi-
ties from order booking through design, production, and marketing to realize
the agile manufacturing enterprise. The MES market is composed of several
vendors providing an integrated suite of application products (called an inte-
grated MES), and 200, or so, vendors offering individual point solutions (Scott,
1996). An integrated MES may have many advantages, such as a single-logic
database, rich functionality, well-integrated applications, and a single model of
factories, products, and manufacturing processes. However, integrated MES’s
are sometimes regarded as monolithic, insufficiently configurable, and difficult
to modify. Point solutions can offer best-in-class capabilities for a particular
function (such as cell controller, work-in-process (WIP) tracking, statistical
process control, scheduling, etc.); the end result is multiple databases, multiple
models, and integration nightmares plus maintenance costs (McGehee, et al.
1994; Kadar et al., 1998).
Open Access Database www.i-techonline.com

In order to solve the problem of the dichotomy between the integrated MES
and point solutions, the concept of the integratable MES has been proposed
(Scott, 1996). With the integratable MES, each application can be both a self-
sufficient point solution, and can be integrated into a larger suite of products.
Therefore, the integratable MES offers an open, modularized, configurable,
distributed, and collaborative environment such that rapid implementation,
complexity reducing, agility, cost-effective integration, easiness of use, and
ownership cost reducing may be achieved (McGehee et al., 1994; Kadar et al.,
1998).
McGehee et al. (1994) presented the Texas Instruments Microelectronics Manu-
facturing Science and Technology (MMST) CIM System Framework, which
was based on open-distributed system and object technologies. This re-

Source: Manufacturing the Future, Concepts - Technologies - Visions , ISBN 3-86611-198-3, pp. 908, ARS/plV, Germany, July 2006, Edited by: Kordic, V.; Lazinica, A. & Merdan, M.

77
78 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

engineering effort used the OMT methodology models (Rumbaugh et al., 1991)
to express the MMST Framework. Following the MMST CIM System Frame-
work, SEMATECH developed the CIM Framework Specification version 2.0
(SEMATECH, 1998), which is an abstract model for typical semiconductor
manufacturing systems.
Several approaches to distributed manufacturing architectures were surveyed
by Kadar et al. (1998), and their fundamental features were highlighted. More-
over, an object-oriented simulation framework for development and evalua-
tion of multi-agent manufacturing architectures was introduced by Kadar et al.
(1998). Further, Cheng, et al. (1999) applied the distributed object-oriented
technologies to develop the MES Framework. This framework has the charac-
teristics of openness, modularization, distribution, reconfigurability, interop-
erability, and easy maintenance.
Common automatic manufacturing systems have fragility and security prob-
lems that also need to be seriously taken into consideration, however these two
issues are not considered in the MES frameworks mentioned above. This paper
applies the concepts of holon and holarchy to redesign a Holonic Manufactur-
ing Execution System (HMES) Holarchy that not only possesses the character-
istics of the MES Framework (Cheng et al., 1999) but also has the properties of
failure recovery and security certification.
The concepts of holon and holarchy are originated from mechanisms of social
organizations and biological organisms (Valckenaers et al., 1994; Tonshoff et
al., 1994; HMS; Van Leeuwen & Norrie, 1997). They have the characteristics of
intelligence, autonomy, coordination, reconfigurability and extensibility. Based
on these characteristics, the major weakness in the automatic manufacturing
systems, fragility, is removed so that the failure recovery feature is attained.
Security certification also can be considered.
A typical deployment diagram for HMES in the semiconductor packaging
plant is displayed in Fig. 1. HMES includes Shop-Floor Holon, Scheduling
Holon, WIP Holon, Data Warehouse, Material Handling, Equipment Holon,
Equipment, AGV, AS/RS and so on. The HMES Holarchy will be developed by
a systematic approach in this paper. For demonstration purpose, one of the
functional holons - WIP Holon - will be designed and implemented. Most of
the studies concerning holonic manufacturing systems (Markus et al., 1996;
Ramos, 1996; Hino & Moriwaki, 1999) focus on factory architecture and/or
how to assign a production task to each manufacturing holon. The purpose of
this paper is to propose a systematic approach for developing a workable
Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 79

Holonic Manufacturing Execution System (HMES) by applying up-to-date

software and information technologies. The systematic approach is started
with system analysis by collecting domain requirements and analyzing do-
main knowledge.

Data Shop-Floor WIP Scheduling

Warehouse Holon Holon Holon

Material Equipment Equipment

Handling Holon Holon

Robot

AS/RS
AGV

Figure 1. Deployment Diagram for Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems

The HMES Holarchy is designed by the procedure of constructing an abstract

object model based on domain knowledge, partitioning the application do-
main into components, identifying generic parts among components to form
the Generic Holon, developing the Generic Holon, defining holarchy messages
and the holarchy framework of HMES, and finally designing functional holons
based on the Generic Holon. The technologies (Chen & Chen, 1994; Gamma et
al., 1995; Mowbray, 1995; Orfali et al., 1996; Sparks et al., 1996) of distributed
object-oriented approach, design pattern, framework, N-tier client/server ar-
chitecture, and component software are applied to develop the entire HMES
and its functional holons.
This paper is organized as follows: Section 2 introduces the characteristics of
holon and holarchy. Section 3 describes the development procedure of HMES.
This development procedure includes four stages: system analysis, holarchy
design, application construction, and system integration and testing. Among
those stages, holarchy design needs most elaboration and it is explained in de-
80 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

tail in Section 4. Section 5 demonstrates WIP holon design. Section 6 describes

application construction and system integration. Section 7 makes comparisons
among Legacy MES, Framework MES, and Holonic MES. Finally, this paper
ends with summary and conclusions.

2. Characteristics of Holon and Holarchy

Twenty-six years ago, the Hungarian author and philosopher Arthur oestler
proposed the word holon to describe a basic unit of organization in biological
and social systems. A holon, as Koestler devised the term, is an identifiable
part of a system that has a unique identity, yet is made up of sub-ordinate
parts and in turn is a part of a larger whole.
The strength of holonic organization, or holarchy, is that it enables the con-
struction of very complex systems that are nonetheless efficient in the use of
resources, highly resilient to disturbances (both internal and external), and
adaptable to changes in the environment in which they exist. All these charac-
teristics can be observed in biological and social systems.
The stability of holons and holarchies stems from holons being self-reliant
units, which have a degree of independence and handle circumstances and
problems on their particular level of existence without asking higher level
holons for assistance. Holons can also receive instruction from and, to a certain
extent, be controlled by higher-level holons. The self-reliant characteristic en-
sures that holons are stable and able to survive disturbances. The subordina-
tion to higher-level holons ensures the effective operation of the larger whole.
The task of the Holonic Manufacturing System (HMS) consortium is to trans-
late the concepts that Koestler developed for social organizations and living
organisms into a set of appropriate concepts for manufacturing industries. The
goal of this work is to attain in manufacturing the benefits that holonic organi-
zation provides to living organisms and societies, e.g., stability in the face of
disturbances, adaptability, and flexibility in the face of change, and efficient
use of available resources.
As an initial step, the HMS consortium developed the following list of defini-
tions (among others) to help understand and guide the translation of holonic
concepts into a manufacturing setting (Van Leeuwen & Norrie, 1997; Ulieru,
1997):
a) Holon: An autonomous and cooperative building block of a manufactu-
ring system for transforming, transporting, storing and/or validating in-
Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 81

formation and physical objects. The holon consists of an information pro-

cessing part and often a physical processing part. A holon can be part of
another holon.
b) Autonomy: The capability of an entity to create and control the execution
of its own plans and/or strategies.
c) Cooperation: A process whereby a set of entities develops mutually ac-
ceptable plans and executes these plans.
d) Holarchy: A system of holons that can cooperate to achieve a goal or ob-
jective. The holarchy defines the basic rules for cooperation of the holons
and thereby limits their autonomy.
e) Holonic Manufacturing System (HMS): A holarchy that integrates the
entire range of manufacturing activities from order booking through de-
sign, production, and marketing to realize the agile manufacturing en-
terprise.
f) Holonic Attributes: The attributes of an entity that make it a holon. The
minimum set is autonomy and cooperatives.

Based on the above definitions, it is clear that holonic manufacturing systems

can be regarded as a unified way to approach the hierarchical control of any
manufacturing unit from the production process to the whole enterprise level.
In this work, the concepts of holon and holarchy are adopted to develop the
HMES Holarchy so that the functional holons of the HMES can possess the
properties of intelligence, autonomy, cooperation, reconfigurability, and ex-
tensibility. In addition, the functional holons of the HMES Holarchy can have
the capabilities of failure recovery and security certification.

3. Development Procedure of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems

As depicted in Fig. 2, the development procedure of HMES includes four

stages: (a) system analysis, (b) holarchy design, (c) application construction
and (d) system integration and testing. Note that the final step of holarchy de-
sign stage is functional holon design and implementation.
The first stage, system analysis, concentrates on collecting domain require-
ments and analyzing domain knowledge. The second stage, the most impor-
tant stage, is holarchy design, which is further divided into seven steps as
shown in Fig. 2.
82 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

Collect Domain Requirements

System Analysis
Analyze Domain Knowledge

Modify

Construct Abstract Object Model

Partition Application Domain into

Components

Identify Generic Functions among

Components

Develop Generic Holon Holarchy Design

Define Holarchy Messages

Modify
Define Holarchy Framework of
HMES

Design Functional Holons Based on

Generic Holon Functional Holons' Design and Implementation

Construct Applications Application Construction

Integrate System and Test It System Integration and Testing

Figure 2. Development Procedure of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems

The system’s object model is constructed according to the domain knowledge

and requirements. The application domain is partitioned into components that
will eventually become various functional holons. Within these components,
their generic functions are further identified and extracted. Based on these ge-
neric functions, the so-called Generic Holon is developed. Holarchy messages
among functional holons are defined and holarchy framework of HMES (also
denoted HMES Holarchy) is developed. Finally, various functional holons can
be designed by inheriting the Generic Holon and implementing the holarchy
messages. The third stage of HMES development is application construction.
Finally, the development procedure ends with system integration and testing.

4. Holarchy Design

Seven steps are included in the holarchy design stage. They are explained be-
low.
Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 83

4.1 Constructing an Abstract Object Model

A typical deployment diagram for HMES is shown in Fig. 1. It is well known

that MES is composed of several functional modules that handle specifics, e.g.
material, equipment, labor, and planning (MacDonald, 1993). The abstract ob-
ject model is constructed as in Fig. 3(a) (Cheng et al., 1999).
The four key elements of a factory are labor, material, equipment, and work-
in-process (WIP). Each element is managed by its specific managing holon. All
four of these managing holons are controlled by the Shop-Floor Holon. The
Shop-Floor Holon also dispatches orders to the Scheduling Holon. The Sched-
uling Holon dispatches jobs to the Labor Holon, Material Holon, Equipment
Holon, and WIP Holon.

4.2 Partitioning Application Domain into Components

To design a distributed and integratable MES, its application domain is parti-

tioned systematically as depicted in Fig. 3(b). In addition to the data ware-
house, the system is divided into six components.

Factory Data
Area Warehouse

Support all objects to

access data
*
0…
*
0… *
0… *
0…

Labor Material Equipment WIP

*
0… *
0… *
0… *
0…
Manages

Manages

Manages

Manages

Controls Shop-Floor
Holon
*
0… *
0… *
0… 0…
*
Labor Material Equipment WIP Dispatches
Holon Holon Holon Holon orders

*
0…
*
0… *
0… *
0…
Scheduling
Dispatches jobs Holon

(a) Abstract Object Model

They are labor management, material management, equipment management,

WIP management, scheduling, and shop-floor management components. The
84 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

labor, material, equipment, and WIP management components handle labor,

movements of materials, process equipment, and WIP tracking, respectively.
The scheduling component takes care of scheduling and dispatching tasks of
the system. The shop-floor management component is in charge of system-
level services and management, i.e., order management, life-cycle services, col-
lection services, and query services. Each management component has a spe-
cific functional holon, which serves as the manager of that specific manage-
ment component

Factory Data
Area Warehouse

Support all objects

0... * 0... * 0... * 0... *
to
access data
Labor Material Equipment WIP Shop-Floor
Management
Labor 0... * Material 0... * Equipment 0... * WIP 0... * Component
Management Management Management Management
Component Component Component Component
Controls Shop-Floor
Holon
Manages

Manages

Manages
Manages

0... * 0... * 0... * 0... *

Dispatches
Labor Material Equipment WIP orders
Holon Holon Holon Holon
0... * 0... * 0... * 0...*

Scheduling
Dispatches jobs Holon
Scheduling Component

(b) Partitioning Application Domain into Components

Figure 3. Object Model of an HMES

As mentioned previously, each management component needs a specific func-

tional holon to serve as the manager of that component.

4.3 Identifying Generic Functions among Components

The purpose of this paper is to apply the concepts of holon and holarchy to de-
sign the HMES Holarchy and functional holons that not only possesses the
properties of the MES Framework (Cheng et al., 1999) but also has the proper-
ties of failure recovery and security certification. Therefore, based on the prin-
Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 85

ciple of software reuse (Chen and Chen, 1994; Cheng et al., 1999), the Generic
Holon which handles the generic functions of functional holons shall first be
devised. After judicious consideration, the authors conclude that in addition to
the communication infrastructure, the Generic Holon shall possess security
mechanisms, search mechanisms, and intelligence mechanisms to deal with
the generic functions that emphasize failure recovery and security certification.

4.4 Developing Generic Holon

The requirements for developing the Generic Holon are:

a) It can construct the communication infrastructure for communication,

collaboration, and extensibility purposes.
b) It provides the intelligence mechanism for exception diagnosis.
c) It provides the search mechanism for collaboration and reconfigurabili-
ty.
d) It provides the security mechanism for security check and encryption /
decryption.
e) It provides the ability to establish database services for information sto-
rage / retrieval.

According to these requirements and following the development procedure

for object-oriented systems (Eriksson and Penker, 1998; Huang et al., 1999;
Cheng et al., 2002), the Generic Holon’s class diagram and internal architecture
is obtained as shown in Fig. 4. For further illustration, please refer to (Lin,
2000; Chang, 2000) for the detailed designs of the Generic Holon.
Observing Fig. 4(a), the basic structure of the class diagram is HolonKernel
manages/uses HolonConfiguration that consists of CORBAInterface, Securi-
tyMechanism, LocalDatabase, and KnowledgeBase. By inheriting HolonKer-
nel, a functional holon can possess all the characteristics of the Generic Holon.
CORBAInterface is designed for constructing a communication infrastructure
and achieves the collaboration platform. In order to establish secure communi-
cation, the SecurityMechanism is created for handling all the operations of se-
curity. KnowledgeBase constructs a search engine for searching desired ser-
vices and a reasoning mechanism for exception diagnosis. The LocalDatabase
sets the connection of database for SecurityMechanism and KnowledgeBase to
access the database. On the other hand, the internal architecture of the Generic
Holon is depicted in Fig. 4(b).
86 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

Holon Configuration
CORBAInterface SecurityMechanism LocalDatabase

InitialORB() Validate() retrive Connection()

CreatObject() Encrypt() RetrieveData()
CloseObject() Decrypt() UpdateData()

use
use manage/
use
HolonKernel
KnowledgeBase
construct
SetInitialService()
CORBA SearchEngine()
SetDBConnection() use
ORB SetRegistration() Diagnose()
SetEncrypt() AddRule()
SetDecrypt() Match()
SetExceptionTest() RuleFilter()
SetSearchData()

(a) Class Diagram

Security Local Knowledge

Mechanism Database Base

HolonKernel

CORBAInterface

(b) Internal Architecture

Figure 4. Class Diagram and Internal Architecture of Generic Holon

Observing Fig. 4(b), the Generic Holon owns HolonKernel to communicate

with other holons by CORBAInterface. Using LocalDatabase, the Generic
Holon can maintain autonomous properties and necessary information. Securi-
tyMechanism can retrieve the related information through LocalDatabase and
then check user’s authorization for security certification. The intelligence
Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 87

mechanism for exception diagnosis purposes of the Generic Holon is mainly

considered in knowledgeBase that also needs the support of LocalDatabase.
After completing the design of the Generic Holon, any functional holon can be
designed by inheriting Generic Holon to obtain generic properties of holon
and then adding the specific functions of that functional holon.

4.5 Defining Holarchy Messages

After partitioning the application domain into components, we need to define

holarchy messages among all the functional holons so that interoperability and
collaboration among all the functional holons are enabled. According to Fig. 1
and Fig. 3(b), the holarchy messages of HMES are defined as in Fig. 5.

Move lot to AGV

Order done Move lot to AS/RS

External User Material Handling

Dispatch job

AS/RS AGV
Dispatch job
Report order done

Place an order

Notify robot to pick up the lot

• Return track-out result

• Return track-in result
• Track out
• Track in
Dispatch job

Order done
Dispatch job
Dispatch order
• Track out
• Track in

Scheduling Holon
• Send storing information
• Return track-out result
Get WIP status

Finish job
Shop-Floor Holon Equipment Holon
• Update equipment status
• Get BOM and recipe

Robot
Get item master , BOM

Get item master ,

equipment status, and
WIP Holon order status

Update lot status

Save order information

Data Warehouse

Figure 5. Defining Holarchy Messages

88 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

The Shop-Floor Holon receives a place an order message from an external user
and the Shop-Floor Holon will reply report order done when the order is done.
Based on the received order, the Shop-Floor Holon will send dispatch order to
the Scheduling Holon and the Scheduling Holon will reply order done if the
order is finished. The Shop-Floor Holon sends save order information to the
Data Warehouse to save all the order information. Similarly, the interfacing
holarchy messages of Scheduling Holon, WIP Holon, Equipment Holon, Data
Warehouse, and Material Handling (which includes AS/RS, AGV, and robot)
can be defined as shown in Fig. 5.

4.6 Defining Holarchy Framework of Holonic Manufacturing Execution

Systems

After the development of the Generic Holon and holarchy messages, we are
ready to define the holarchy framework of HMES (or HMES Holarchy in
short).

Application 1
Applications

other Scheduling Shop-Floor Equipment WIP Material

Holon Holon Holon Holon Holon Holon

Functional
Holons

Holarchy

G H G H G H G H G H G H

Object Request Broker

CORBA
Infrastructure

Object Common
Services Facilities

Figure 6. Holarchy Framework of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems

Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 89

The HMES Holarchy is illustrated in Fig. 6 which utilizes CORBA infrastruc-

ture (Orfali et al., 1996; OMG, 1998) as the system’s communication backbone.
Every functional holon shall inherit the Generic Holon so as to possess the
properties of a holon as well as the capabilities of failure recovery and security
certification. Then, specific functions of each functional holon can be added
individually to become a specific functional holon. The holarchy messages of
each functional holon can be specified by CORBA IDL (Interface Definition
Language) (Orfali et al., 1996; OMG, 1998). Therefore, each functional holon
can be integrated into the HMES Holarchy in a plug-and-play fashion.
This HMES Holarchy is expandable. As illustrated on the left side of Fig. 6,
other functional holon may also be integrated into the HMES Holarchy if this
functional holon inherits the Generic Holon and defines the functional holon’s
CORBA IDL by the expanded holarchy messages. Finally, applications of the
HMES can be easily constructed by invoking the related functional holons as
depicted on top of Fig. 6.

4.7 Designing Functional Holons

The final step of holarchy design is to design various functional holons based
on the Generic Holon. As mentioned in the previous sub-section, with the
HMES Holarchy architecture, it becomes straightforward to design a func-
tional holon by simply inheriting the Generic Holon, adding the functional
holon’s specific function, and defining its IDL based on the system’s holarchy
messages. In the following section, the WIP holon is selected as the example to
elaborate the design procedure of a functional holon.

5. WIP Holon Design

The functional requirements for WIP holons are:

a) It manages the life cycle of WIP objects.

b) It performs track-in and track-out operations and updates the cor-
responding WIP information in real-time.
c) It provides WIP information to users and other holons.
d) Its interfaces are in compliance with the HMES Holarchy.
e) It possesses the capabilities of exception recovery and security certifica-
tion.
90 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

Requirements (a) to (c) are the specific functions of WIP holons while Re-
quirements (d) and (e) are the common requirements for the components of
HMES Holarchy. It is natural to develop the WIP Holon by inheriting the Ge-
neric Holon first to take care of Requirements (d) and (e) and then considering
the specific requirements (a) to (c). Based on the above design principle and
following the development procedure for object-oriented systems (Eriksson
and Penker, 1998; Huang et al., 1999), the class diagram of the WIP Holon is
designed and shown in Fig. 7.

The upper portion of Fig. 7 is the Generic Holon that has been designed and il-
lustrated in Fig. 4(a). WIPManager, which is the primary role of the entire WIP
Holon, inherits the Generic Holon to accomplish Requirements (d) and (e).
WIPManager uses RecoveryManager to perform specific recovery operations.
WIPManager also manages the life cycle of WIP objects and is in charge of
track-in and track-out operations of all the WIP. A new WIP object is created
when a new lot arrives. The WIP object contains its own specific attributes
such as LotID, BOM, and ItemMaster, etc. A WIP object also performs its own
Trackin() Trackout() operations and invokes NewVariables() methods of BOM
and ItemMaster to obtain the associated production information. UserInterface
provides the necessary operations for external users to interface with the WIP
Holon.

Observing Fig. 7, the + sign before an operation means the operation is public,
and the – sign stands for private. In the WIPManager, public operations stand
for the IDL of the system; while in the UserInterface, public operations indicate
the available functions for external users.
State diagrams show all possible states and transactions of a system. A change
of state caused by an event is called a transition. Figure 8(a) illustrates the
states and transitions of the WIP Holon. Please refer to Fig. 7 and Fig. 8 when
reading the following explanation.

A user initiates the WIP Holon by invoking the Login() operation of UserInte-
face. If he passes the security certification, the WIP Holon will activate CORBA
services by calling SetInitialService()of HolonKernel. Then, the system is ready
to receive WIP object’s creating commands.
In fact, the major functions of the WIP holon are how to trace and manage
WIP. We define WIP to be temporal objects, as such they have life cycles. Fig-
ure 8(b) is the state diagram of WIP life cycle.
Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 91

CORBAInterface Holon Configuration LocalDatabase

SecurityMechanism
InitialORB() Connection()
CreatObject() RetrieveData()
Validate()
CloseObject() retrieve UpdateData()
Encrypt()
Decrypt()

use
e
us
use

e/
ag
HolonKernel

an
M
KnowledgeBase
construct SetInitialService()
CORBA SetDBConnection() SearchEngine()
ORB SetRegistration() Diagnose()
use
SetEncrypt() AddRule()
SetDecrypt() Match()
SetExceptionTest() RuleFilter()
SetSearchData()

Generic Holon
UserInterface WIPManager
RecoveryManager
+ Login() + CreateNewWIP()
+ Trackin() + DoTrackin() - ReConnectLDB()
+ Trackout() + DoTrackout() - TryConnection()
+ Query() use
+ Query() - AlarmAGV()
+ SendException() - AlarmASRS()
- EnableTrackout()
- KillRepository() - AlarmRobot()
- EnableQuery()
- ValidateID()
- EnableTrackin()
- Recover()
- ShowCheckResult()
- SaveLog()
- ShowTrackoutResult()
- ShowQueryResult()
.. manage
0...*
. WIP
LotID : String = initval
Barcode : String = initval
StorageX : Integer = initval
BOM StorageY : Integer = initval ItemMaster
use Quality : Integer = initval use
- NewVariables() Type : String = initval - NewVariables()
Station : String = initval
BOM : Object = initval
ItemMaster : Object = initval
OrderID : type = initval

- Trackin()
- Trackout()
- DestroyMe()
- GetStructure()
- CheckBOM&PS()

Figure 7. Class Diagram of WIP Holon

92 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

When WIPManager gets the message CreateNewWIP() from the Scheduling

Holon, a new WIP object is generated based on the data transferred from the
Scheduling Holon. WIP object uses NewVariables() operation in BOM to get
the contents of BOM. WIP object uses the same approach to obtain ItemMaster
information. Then, WIP object gets order status and saves it. Up to this point,
initialization of WIP object is completed and it enters Wait for request state.
At Wait for request state, the WIP object can take commands, such as track-in,
track-out, and query. The query request will bring the WIP object to the Pro-
vide WIP status state and the WIP status is then sent to the requester. Track-
out and track-in commands will update the WIP status and store it to data-
base. During track-in operation, the WIP object will check if this current proc-
ess sequence is the last one or not. If it is not, just jumps back to Wait for re-
quest state. If it is the last process, this WIP object will be deleted and the
memory will be released. It thus completes the life cycle of a WIP object.
Note that, the initial Generic Holon architecture shown in Fig. 4 only specifies
the generic skeleton of the intelligence mechanism that consists of Know-
ledgeBase and LocalDatabase. After inheriting the Generic Holon to become a
part of the WIP Holon, its KnowledgeBase and LocalDatabase shall be trained
to contain the specific knowledge, information, and rules for WIP holon’s ex-
ception-diagnosis usage only.

Now, observing Fig. 8(a), if an exception is occurred and detected during the
WIP management process, the system will enter the Diagnosing state that in-
vokes SetExceptionTest() of HolonKernel to diagnose the exception.

If the cause is identified by the intelligence mechanism of the Generic Holon,

the system will enter the Recovery state that invokes the associated recovery
operation implemented in RecoveryManager. If the recovery operation is suc-
cessful, the system will jump back to the last operational state where the ex-
ception was occurred, otherwise the system will raise an alarm and then stop.

After demonstrating how to design functional holons, the holarchy design

stage is completed. The following section will explain the application construc-
tion and system integration stages.
Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 93

Start

End
[if not granted] User Login the System
do: Login
[if granted]

Initiate CORBA Service

do: SetInitialService
Receives creating command

WIP Object Life Cycle

[An Exception is occurred]

Diagnosing
do: SetExceptionTest

Recovery
do: Recovery
[Recovery failed] [Recovery successful]

Raise an alarm Back to the last operation

where the exception is
occurred

End

(a) Entire WIP Holon State Diagram

94 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

Start

Create WIP
do: WIP

Create BOM
do: BOM:NewVariables

Create Item Master

do: ItemMaster:NewVariables

Getting order status

All WIP initial information is collected Do track-out

do: Trackout
track -out request
query
request
Provide WIP status
Wait for request
do: GetStructure
Store WIP status
track-in request to database

Do track -in
do: Trackin
[not last process]

Store WIP status to

Database
[last process]
Delete the WIP repository

do:WIP:DeleteRepository

Delete WIP
do:DeleteMe

End

(b) WIP Object Life Cycle State Diagram

Figure 8. State Diagrams of WIP Holon

Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 95

6. Application Construction and System Integration

As depicted in Fig. 2, the last two stages are application construction and sys-
tem integration. Observing the top of Fig. 6, with the advantage of HMES
Holarchy, it is obvious that applications can be constructed by invoking opera-
tions of associated holons. These holons will cooperate with one another by
following the holarchy messages defined in Fig. 5. This meets the characteris-
tics of holon and holarchy. In fact, the deployment diagram, holarchy mes-
sages, and a holarchy framework as shown in Figs. 1, 5, and 6, respectively,
have been successfully implemented and running at the Factory Automation
Laboratory of the Institute of Manufacturing Engineering, National Cheng
Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, Republic of China.

7. Comparisons among Legacy MES, Framework MES, and Holonic MES

The concepts and/or technologies of OOAD, component software, framework,

holon, holarchy, security certification, and failure recovery have been taken
into account for developing HMES. In this section, characteristic comparisons
between Legacy MES, Framework MES, and Holonic MES are presented.

Legacy MES Framework MES Holonic MES

Architecture Centralization Distributed OO Holarchy
Open Interfaces No Yes Yes
Modularization Low High High
Interoperability Low High High
Configurability Low High High
Maintainability Difficult Easy Easy
Security Certification No No Yes
Failure Recovery No No Yes

Table 1. Comparisons between Traditional MES, Framework MES, and Holonic MES

As indicated in Table 1, Legacy MES refers to the commercial products such as

Promis, WorkStream, and Poseidon. Framework MES stands for Encore,
SiView, and FACTORYWorks. Detailed comparisons are presented below.
96 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

7.1. Architecture

Concerning architecture, Legacy MES is a centralized system. All the computa-

tions and operations are executed in one large-scale mainframe computer.
Framework MES belongs to distributed object-oriented systems that divide all
the functions into individual various models. The computations and opera-
tions are also distributed into each model. In this way, Framework MES lowers
the loading of each mainframe and increases the reliability of the system. Also,
Framework MES avoids the malfunction of the entire system due to the break-
down of a single module. Holonic MES is designed with the concepts of holon
and holarchy. It has the advantages of distributed object-oriented systems, and
also the characteristics of intelligence, autonomy, coordination, and collabora-
tion. Thus, Holonic MES’s adaptability can meet the requirements and trends
of future manufacturing systems.

7.2. Open Interfaces

When considering interfaces, Legacy MES is a closed system while Framework

MES and Holonic MES are open systems. Systems with open interfaces have
the advantage of being easy to cooperate and link with other related modules
or systems.

7.3. Modularization

Modular design is very important to system software development. With

component software, users can apply proper modules based on needs. This is
beneficial both for design and maintenance. Both Framework MES and Holo-
nic MES utilize modular design but Legacy MES does not.

7.4. Interoperability

A distributed object-oriented system usually has many functional modules

that they need to interoperate with one another. Framework MES and Holonic
MES are distributed object-oriented systems, therefore their interoperability
with distributed modules is both essential and profuse.
Development of Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems 97

7.5. Configurability

Configurability is important for a manufacturing system to deal with a dy-

namic, varying and rapidly changing environment. Framework MES and
Holonic MES are easier to reconfigure than Legacy MES.

7.6. Maintainability

For Legacy MES, it is not easy to repair and maintain since it is a large-scale
and centralized system. For Framework MES and Holonic MES, their mainte-
nance is easier because they are distributed systems and each component of
the systems can operate alone and be maintained separately.
7.7. Security Certification
The problem of security is becoming more and more serious. In Holonic MES,
the ability of security certification is embedded in the design of the Generic
Holon so that it is natural for all the functional holons to possess the capability
of security certification.

7.8. Failure Recovery

Reliability is always the most important issue for automatic manufacturing

systems. Once there is an exceptional condition that causes the entire produc-
tion line to shutdown, the loss is beyond evaluation. As a result, a good set of
MES needs a failure recovery mechanism so as to minimize the loss caused by
occurrences of exceptional conditions. Among those three MES types, only
Holonic MES incorporates the capability of failure recovery into the design.

8. Summary and Conclusions

Based on the characteristics of holon and holarchy and by applying distributed

object-oriented techniques, this paper proposes a systematic approach for de-
veloping Holonic Manufacturing Execution Systems (HMES) with security-
certification and failure-recovery considerations. The basic foundations re-
quired for developing HMES possessing characteristics of holon and holarchy
are summarized. The HMES development procedure that consists of system
analysis, holarchy design, application construction, and system integration
98 Manufacturing the Future: Concepts, Technologies & Visions

and testing stages are proposed. Among these stages, holarchy design is the
most important and consists of seven steps: (a) constructing an abstract object
model, (b) partitioning the application domain into components, (c) identify-
ing generic functions among the components, (d) developing the Generic
Holon, (e) defining holarchy messages, (f) defining the holarchy framework,
and (g) designing functional holons. WIP Holon, as an example of a functional
holon, is developed for demonstration purposes. Comparisons between Leg-
acy MES, Framework MES, and Holonic MES are made. It reveals that this sys-
tematic approach provides a new concept for developing next generation
manufacturing execution systems.

Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the National Science Council of the Republic
of China for financially supporting this research under contracts No. NSC-89-
2212-E006-094, NSC-90-2212-E006-026, and NSC-91-2212-E006-062.

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