Job remaining cycle time estimation with a post-classifying fuzzy-neural approach in a wafer fabrication plant: A simulation study

2009 ◽  
Vol 223 (8) ◽  
pp. 1021-1031 ◽  
Author(s):  
T Chen
Keyword(s):  
Test Data ◽  
Simulation Study ◽  
Cycle Time ◽  
Estimation Error ◽  
Back Propagation ◽  
Time Estimation ◽  
Wafer Fabrication ◽  
Fuzzy Neural ◽  
Fuzzy Back Propagation Network ◽  
Propagation Network

A post-classifying fuzzy-neural approach is proposed in this study for estimating the remaining cycle time of each job in a wafer fabrication plant, which has seldom been investigated in past studies but is a critical task for the wafer fabrication plant. In the methodology proposed, the fuzzy back-propagation network (FBPN) approach for job cycle time estimation is modified with the proportional adjustment approach to estimate the remaining cycle time instead. Besides, unlike existing cycle time estimation approaches, in the methodology proposed a job is not preclassified but rather post-classified after the estimation error has been generated. For this purpose, a back-propagation network is used as the post-classification algorithm. To evaluate the effectiveness of the methodology proposed, production simulation is used in this study to generate some test data. According to experimental results, the accuracy of estimating the remaining cycle time could be improved by up to 64 per cent with the proposed methodology.

A PCA-FBPN Approach for Job Cycle Time Estimation in a Wafer Fabrication Factory

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 50-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toly Chen
Keyword(s):  
Cycle Time ◽  
Back Propagation ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Time Estimation ◽  
Cycle Times ◽  
Forecasting Performance ◽  
Semiconductor Manufacturer ◽  
Fuzzy Back Propagation Network ◽  
Propagation Network

Variable replacement is a well-known technique to improve the forecasting performance, but has not been applied to the job cycle time forecasting, which is a critical task to a semiconductor manufacturer. To this end, in this study, principal component analysis (PCA) is applied to enhance the forecasting performance of the fuzzy back propagation network (FBPN) approach. First, to replace the original variables, PCA is applied to form variables that are independent of each other, and become new inputs to the FBPN. Subsequently, a FBPN is constructed to estimate the cycle times of jobs. According to the results of a case study, the hybrid PCA-FBPN approach was more efficient, while achieving a satisfactory estimation performance.

scholarly journals An Iterative Procedure for Optimizing the Performance of the Fuzzy-Neural Job Cycle Time Estimation Approach in a Wafer Fabrication Factory

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toly Chen ◽  
Yi-Chi Wang
Keyword(s):  
Cycle Time ◽  
Empirical Relationship ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Time Estimation ◽  
Wafer Fabrication ◽  
Estimation Accuracy ◽  
Estimation Performance ◽  
Job Classification ◽  
Fuzzy Neural ◽  
Propagation Network

Estimating the cycle time of each job in a wafer fabrication factory is a critical task to every wafer manufacturer. In recent years, a number of hybrid approaches based on job classification (either preclassification or postclassification) for cycle time estimation have been proposed. However, the problem with these methods is that the input variables are not independent. In order to solve this problem, principal component analysis (PCA) is considered useful. In this study, a classifying fuzzy-neural approach, based on the combination of PCA, fuzzy c-means (FCM), and back propagation network (BPN), is proposed to estimate the cycle time of a job in a wafer fabrication factory. Since job classification is an important part of the proposed methodology, a new index is proposed to assess the validity of the classification of jobs. The empirical relationship between theSvalue and the estimation performance is also found. Finally, an iterative process is employed to deal with the outliers and to optimize the overall estimation performance. A real case is used to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. Based on the experimental results, the estimation accuracy of the proposed methodology was significantly better than those of the existing approaches.

scholarly journals A Fuzzy Rule for Improving the Performance of Multiobjective Job Dispatching in a Wafer Fabrication Factory

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toly Chen ◽  
Yi-Chi Wang
Keyword(s):  
Cycle Time ◽  
Back Propagation ◽  
Fuzzy Rule ◽  
Wafer Fabrication ◽  
Job Dispatching ◽  
Fuzzy Back Propagation Network ◽  
Fluctuation Smoothing ◽  
Propagation Network ◽  
Time Standard ◽  
Tardy Jobs

This paper proposes a fuzzy slack-diversifying fluctuation-smoothing rule to enhance the scheduling performance in a wafer fabrication factory. The proposed rule considers the uncertainty in the remaining cycle time and is aimed at simultaneous improvement of the average cycle time, cycle time standard deviation, the maximum lateness, and number of tardy jobs. Existing publications rarely discusse ways to optimize all of these at the same time. An important input to the proposed rule is the job remaining cycle time. To this end, this paper proposes a self-adjusted fuzzy back propagation network (SA-FBPN) approach to estimate the remaining cycle time of a job. In addition, a systematic procedure is also established, which can solve the problem of slack overlapping in a nonsubjective way and optimize the overall scheduling performance. The simulation study provides evidence that the proposed rule can improve the four performance measures simultaneously.

scholarly journals Internal Due Date Assignment in a Wafer Fabrication Factory by an Effective Fuzzy-Neural Approach

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Toly Chen
Keyword(s):  
Back Propagation ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Wafer Fabrication ◽  
Estimation Accuracy ◽  
Due Date ◽  
Planning And Scheduling ◽  
Simultaneous Application ◽  
Due Date Assignment ◽  
Fuzzy Neural ◽  
Propagation Network

Owing to the complexity of the wafer fabrication, the due date assignment of each job presents a challenging problem to the production planning and scheduling people. To tackle this problem, an effective fuzzy-neural approach is proposed in this study to improve the performance of internal due date assignment in a wafer fabrication factory. Some innovative treatments are taken in the proposed methodology. First, principal component analysis (PCA) is applied to construct a series of linear combinations of the original variables to form a new variable, so that these new variables are unrelated to each other as much as possible, and the relationship among them can be reflected in a better way. In addition, the simultaneous application of PCA, fuzzy c-means (FCM), and back propagation network (BPN) further improved the estimation accuracy. Subsequently, the iterative upper bound reduction (IUBR) approach is proposed to determine the allowance that will be added to the estimated job cycle time. An applied case that uses data collected from a wafer fabrication factory illustrates this effective fuzzy-neural approach.

Fuzzy-neural-network-based fluctuation smoothing rule for reducing the cycle times of jobs with various priorities in a wafer fabrication plant: A simulation study

2009 ◽  
Vol 223 (8) ◽  
pp. 1033-1043 ◽  
Author(s):  
T Chen
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Cycle Time ◽  
Fuzzy Neural Network ◽  
Optimal Solution ◽  
Wafer Fabrication ◽  
Estimation Accuracy ◽  
Cycle Times ◽  
Fuzzy Neural ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Fluctuation Smoothing

This paper presents a fuzzy-neural-network-based fluctuation smoothing rule to further improve the performance of scheduling jobs with various priorities in a wafer fabrication plant. The fuzzy system is modified from the well-known fluctuation smoothing policy for a mean cycle time (FSMCT) rule with three innovative treatments. First, the remaining cycle time of a job is estimated by applying an existing fuzzy-neural-network-based approach to improve the estimation accuracy. Second, the components of the FSMCT rule are normalized to balance their importance. Finally, the division operator is applied instead of the traditional subtraction operator in order to magnify the difference in the slack and to enhance the responsiveness of the FSMCT rule. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology, production simulation is applied to generate some test data. According to the experimental results, the proposed methodology outperforms six existing approaches in the reduction of the average cycle times. In addition, the new rule is shown to be a Pareto optimal solution for scheduling jobs in a semiconductor manufacturing plant.

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