EP0822473A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Remote maintenance system
Assignee: Canon Inc
•
Filing: 1997-07-30
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Granted: —
•
Expires: 2017-07-30
Abstract
Abstract Factories (102 - 104) have host computers (107) for monitoring industrial equipments (106). Each host computer (107) is connected to a management host computer (108) on a vendor (101) side through the internet (105). The host computer (107) on the factory side detects occurrence of a trouble of the industrial equipment (106) and notifies the vendor side of status information representing a trouble state. In response to this, the host computer (108) on the vendor side notifies the factory side of response information representing a countermeasure against the trouble state.
Inventors
- 👤 Nobuaki Ogushi
- 👤 Hirohisa Ohta
- 👤 Yoshito Yoneyama
- 👤 Masaya Ogura
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-31 22:11
CPC Classifications
G; G03; G03F; G03F7/00; G03F7/70; G03F7/70483; G03F7/70491; G03F7/70525; G08; G08B; G08B13/00; G08B13/18; G08B13/189; G08B13/194; G08B13/196; G05; G05B; G05B19/00; G05B19/02; G05B19/418; G05B19/4184; G05B23/00; G05B23/02; G05B23/0205; G05B23/0208; G05B23/0213; G05B23/0259; G05B23/0275; G05B23/0283; G05B2219/00; G05B2219/20; G05B2219/24; G05B2219/24084; G05B2219/30; G05B2219/31; G05B2219/31186; G05B2219/33; G05B2219/33284; G05B2219/33313; G05B2219/33318; G05B2223/00; G05B2223/06; Y; Y02; Y02P; Y02P90/00; Y02P90/02
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 30
Claim 1
Independent Claim
57 words
A remote maintenance system for maintaining an
industrial equipment installed at a remote location,
comprising: monitor means for monitoring an operating state of
one or a plurality of industrial equipments; and management means for managing maintenance of the
industrial equipment while communicating information
associated with maintenance of the industrial equipment
with said monitor means through the internet.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
24 words
The system according to claim 1, wherein said
management means performs centralized maintenance
management of respective industrial equipments installed
in a plurality of factories.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
28 words
The system according to claim 2, wherein said
plurality of factories are factories of at least one
user, and said management means is arranged on a vendor
side.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
37 words
The system according to claim 1, wherein a
plurality of types of industrial equipments are
installed in one factory, and said management means
comprises a plurality of management means respectively
corresponding to the types of industrial equipments.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
27 words
The system according to claim 4, wherein said
plurality of industrial equipments are supplied by
different vendors, and said management means are
arranged in the different vendors.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
37 words
The system according to claim 1, further comprising
means for supplying software of the industrial equipment
or guide information associated with an operation of the
equipment from said management means to the industrial
equipment through the internet.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
68 words
The system according to claim 1, wherein said monitor means detects occurrence of a trouble
of the industrial equipment and notifies said management
means of status information for specifying a state of
the trouble, and said management means determines a countermeasure
against the trouble of the industrial equipment on the
basis of the status information and informs said monitor
means of response information based on the determined
countermeasure.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
30 words
The system according to claim 7, wherein said
monitor means comprises maintenance means for
maintaining the industrial equipment on the basis of the
response information notified from said management means.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
67 words
The system according to claim 7, wherein said
management means has a database for registering the
information associated with maintenance of the
industrial equipment, said database registering
information for identifying an industrial equipment, a
state of a trouble to occur, and a countermeasure
against the trouble in correspondence with each other,
and said management means looks up said database to
determine a countermeasure against a corresponding
trouble.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
45 words
The system according to claim 9, wherein said
management means comprises automatic updating means for
updating said database on the basis of contents of the
information associated with maintenance of the
industrial equipment every time exchanging the
information associated with maintenance with said
monitor means.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
28 words
The system according to claim 10, wherein said
management means further comprises manual updating means
for updating said database on the basis of input
information from an operator.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
27 words
The system according to claim 9, wherein said
management means further comprises access permission
means for permitting a user of the industrial equipment
to access said database.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
31 words
The system according to claim 12, wherein said
management means further comprises communication
security means for inhibiting a third party except the
user of the industrial equipment from accessing said
database.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
21 words
The system according to claim 9, wherein said
monitor means comprises access means for accessing said
database of said management means.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
15 words
The system according to claim 1, wherein the
industrial equipment is a semiconductor manufacturing
apparatus.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
24 words
A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device
using a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus managed on
the basis of said remote maintenance system of claim 1.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
21 words
A semiconductor device manufactured by a
semiconductor manufacturing apparatus managed on the
basis of said remote maintenance system of claim 1.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
101 words
A monitor apparatus arranged on an industrial
equipment side to constitute a remote maintenance system
for maintaining an industrial equipment installed at a
remote location, comprising: obtaining means for detecting occurrence of a
trouble of one or a plurality of industrial equipments
and obtaining status information representing a state of
the trouble; and communication means for notifying, through the
internet, a management apparatus for performing
centralized maintenance management of the industrial
equipment of status information obtained by said
obtaining means, and for receiving response information
sent from said management apparatus through the internet
in response to notification of the status information.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
31 words
The apparatus according to claim 18, further
comprising maintenance means for maintaining the
industrial equipment on the basis of the response
information received by said communication means from
said management apparatus.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
15 words
The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the
industrial equipment is a semiconductor manufacturing
apparatus.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
116 words
A management apparatus arranged on a vendor side to
constitute a remote maintenance system for maintaining
an industrial equipment installed at a remote location,
comprising: communication means for communicating, through the
internet, with each monitor means of at least one
factory in which a monitor apparatus is arranged to
monitor an operating state of at least one industrial
equipment; and corresponding means for determining a
countermeasure against a trouble on the basis of status
information associated with a state of the trouble of
the industrial equipment, which is received by said
communication means from said monitor apparatus, and
causing said communication means to notify said
corresponding monitor apparatus of response information
based on the determined countermeasure.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
68 words
The apparatus according to claim 21, wherein said
management apparatus further comprises a database for
registering the information associated with maintenance
of the industrial equipment, said database registering
information for identifying an industrial equipment, a
state of a trouble to occur, and a countermeasure
against the trouble in correspondence with each other,
and said corresponding means looks up said database to
determine a countermeasure against a corresponding
trouble.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
42 words
The apparatus according to claim 21, further
comprising automatic updating means for updating said
database on the basis of contents of the information
associated with maintenance of the industrial equipment
every time exchanging the information associated with
maintenance with said monitor means.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
24 words
The apparatus according to claim 22, further
comprising manual updating means for updating said
database on the basis of input information from an
operator.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
23 words
The system according to claim 21, further
comprising access permission means for permitting a user
of the industrial equipment to access said database.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
27 words
The apparatus according to claim 25, further
comprising communication security means for inhibiting a
third party except the user of the industrial equipment
from accessing said database.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
15 words
The apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the
industrial equipment is a semiconductor manufacturing
apparatus.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
113 words
A remote maintenance method of maintaining an
industrial equipment installed at a remote location,
comprising the steps of: communicating, through the internet, maintenance
information between a first vendor for supplying a first
industrial equipment, a second vendor for supplying a
second industrial equipment, a first factory in which
the first and second industrial equipments are installed,
and a second factory in which the first and second
industrial equipments are installed; causing the first vendor to perform centralized
maintenance management of the first industrial
equipments installed in the first and second factories;
and causing the second vendor to perform centralized
maintenance management of the second industrial
equipments installed in the first and second factories.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method according to claim 28, wherein the first
and second factories are factories of the same user or
different users.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method according to claim 29, wherein the
industrial equipment is a semiconductor manufacturing
apparatus.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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