US6353769B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method for allocating lot priority by ranking lots as a function of budget queue time in a manufacturing control system
Assignee: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co TSMC Ltd
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Filing: 1999-03-22
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Granted: 2002-03-05
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Expires: 2019-03-22
Abstract
Abstract A system and a method are provided employing the concept of Budget Queue Time to define the priority of lots while distinguishing clearly between the controllable an uncontrollable portions of the remaining production time needed and to make the priority setting further meet the actual status. Two indices X and P are used concurrently to define the priority of a lot. X is the index of the delivery week which indicates the week in which the lot must be out of the fabrication process and P denotes the temporary priority according to the Budget Queue Time, but X is the dominant one of the two indices X and P. Use is made of the concept of remaining Budget Queue Time instead of traditional queue time of current stage for dispatching to reduce the variance of cycle time variance.
Inventors
- 👤 Kuo-Chen Lin
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-05 20:52
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06Q; G06Q10/00; G06Q10/06
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 24
Claim 1
Independent Claim
76 words
A method for assigning priority to lots in the process of manufacturing of a product comprising: calculating budget queue time (Budget_Q) of the lots at each step of a manufacturing plant, comparing the Budget_Q for a lot for the same product at different stages and through the use of the budget queue time to define delivery week X, setting a temporary priority (P) according to Budget_Q only, and determining priority of lots competing for identical capacity.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
76 words
A method for assigning priority to lots in the process of manufacturing of a product comprising: calculating budget queue time (Budget_Q) of the lots at each step of a manufacturing plant, comparing the Budget_Q for a lot for the same product at different stages and through the use of the budget queue time to define delivery week X, setting a temporary priority (P) according to Budget_Q only, and determining priority of lots competing for identical capacity.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
40 words
A method in accordance with claim 1 including: calculating C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q, calculating C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q, and calculating Budget_Q as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD , min (C tqR , C tqD ).
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
73 words
A method in accordance with claim 1 including: a Master Production Schedule (MPS) determine RP (Remaining Theoretical Recipe Processing Time of a lot) determine an integer I = RP 7 days if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by integer I.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
42 words
A method in accordance with claim 1 including, wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
54 words
A method in accordance with claim 1 including: if values of the delivery week X are different, then the lot with a smaller value of X gets a higher priority, if values of the delivery week X are equal, then the lot with a larger value of temporary priority P gets the higher priority.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
101 words
A method in accordance with claim 1 including: C tqR =required 13 date step Budget_Q is calculated, C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q is calculated, and Budget_Q is calculated as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD , min (C tqR , C tqD ), and Remaining Process time RP of a lot is determined, an integer I = RP 7 , if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
133 words
A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), including: C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q is calculated, C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q is calculated, and Budget_Q is calculated as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD , min (C tqR , C tqD ), Remaining Process time RP of a lot is determined, an integer I = RP 7 , if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I, and setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
99 words
A method in accordance with claim 1 , wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), including: Remaining Process time RP of a lot is determined, an integer I = RP 7 , if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I, and setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
71 words
A method in accordance with claim 1 including: C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q is calculated, C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q is calculated, and Budget_Q is calculated as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD , min (C tqR , C tqD ), and setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 11
Independent Claim
197 words
A method for assigning priority to lots in the manufacturing of a product, wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), comprising: calculating budget queue time (Budget_Q) of the lots at each step of a manufacturing plant, comparing the Budget_Q for a lot for a product at different stages and through the use of the budget queue time to define delivery week X, set a temporary priority (P) according to Budget_Q only, determine priority of lots competing for identical capacity, C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q is calculated, C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q is calculated, and Budget_Q is calculated as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD , min (C tqR , C tqD ), Remaining Process time RP of a lot is determined, an integer I = RP 7 , if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I, and setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
197 words
A method for assigning priority to lots in the manufacturing of a product, wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), comprising: calculating budget queue time (Budget_Q) of the lots at each step of a manufacturing plant, comparing the Budget_Q for a lot for a product at different stages and through the use of the budget queue time to define delivery week X, set a temporary priority (P) according to Budget_Q only, determine priority of lots competing for identical capacity, C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q is calculated, C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q is calculated, and Budget_Q is calculated as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD , min (C tqR , C tqD ), Remaining Process time RP of a lot is determined, an integer I = RP 7 , if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I, and setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
83 words
A system for assigning priority to lots in the manufacturing of a product comprising: means for calculating budget queue time (Budget_Q) of the lots at each step of a manufacturing plant, means for comparing the Budget_Q for a lot for a product at different stages and through the use of the budget queue time to define the delivery week X, means for setting a temporary priority (P) according to Budget_Q only, and means for determining the priority of lots competing for identical capacity.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
83 words
A system for assigning priority to lots in the manufacturing of a product comprising: means for calculating budget queue time (Budget_Q) of the lots at each step of a manufacturing plant, means for comparing the Budget_Q for a lot for a product at different stages and through the use of the budget queue time to define the delivery week X, means for setting a temporary priority (P) according to Budget_Q only, and means for determining the priority of lots competing for identical capacity.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
46 words
A system in accordance with claim 11 including: means for calculating C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q, means for calculating C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q, and means for calculating Budget_Q as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD as min (C tqR , C tqD ).
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
68 words
A system in accordance with claim 11 wherein: means for determining Remaining Process time RP of a lot, an integer I = RP 7 , means for determining that if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
39 words
A system in accordance with claim 11 wherein: means is provided for setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
63 words
A system in accordance with claim 11 wherein: means for determining that if the values of delivery week X are different, then the lot with a smaller value of X gets a higher priority, and means for determining that if the values of delivery week X are equal, then the lot with a larger value of temporary priority P gets the higher priority.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
105 words
A system in accordance with claim 11 wherein: means for calculating C tqR =required date step Budget_Q, means for calculating C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q, and means for calculating Budget_Q as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD as min (C tqR , C tqD ), means for determining Remaining Process time RP of a lot, means for determining integer I equals RP/7, means for determining that a) if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and b) if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
139 words
A system in accordance with claim 11 , wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), comprising: C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q is calculated, C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q is calculated, and Budget_Q is calculated as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD , min (C tqR , C tqD ) the Remaining Process time RP of a lot is determined, an integer I = RP 7 , if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I, and means is provided for setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
104 words
A system in accordance with claim 11 , wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), comprising: the Remaining Process time RP of a lot is determined, an integer I = RP 7 , if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I, and means is provided for setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
75 words
A system in accordance with claim 11 wherein: C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q is calculated, C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q is calculated, and Budget_Q is calculated as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD , min (C tqR , C tqD ), and means is provided for setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5.
Claim 23
Independent Claim
269 words
A system for assigning priority to lots in the manufacturing of a product, wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), comprising: means for calculating budget queue time (Budget_Q) of the lots at each step of a manufacturing plant, means for comparing the Budget_Q for a lot for a product at different stages and through the use of the budget queue time to define delivery week X, means for setting a temporary priority (P) according to Budget_Q only, and means for determining the priority of lots competing for an identical capacity, means for calculating C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q, means for calculating C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q, and means for calculating Budget_Q as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD as min (C tqR , C tqD ), means for determining the Remaining Process time RP of a lot, means for determining an integer I as RP/7, means for determining that if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I, setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5, and means for determining that if the values of delivery week X are different, then the lot with a smaller value of X gets the higher priority, and means for determining that if the values of delivery week X are equal, then the lot with a larger value of temporary priority P gets the higher priority.
Claim 24
Independent Claim
269 words
A system for assigning priority to lots in the manufacturing of a product, wherein there is a Base Rate (BR), comprising: means for calculating budget queue time (Budget_Q) of the lots at each step of a manufacturing plant, means for comparing the Budget_Q for a lot for a product at different stages and through the use of the budget queue time to define delivery week X, means for setting a temporary priority (P) according to Budget_Q only, and means for determining the priority of lots competing for an identical capacity, means for calculating C tqR =required_date step Budget_Q, means for calculating C tqD =due_date step Budget_Q, and means for calculating Budget_Q as the minimum of C tqR , C tqD as min (C tqR , C tqD ), means for determining the Remaining Process time RP of a lot, means for determining an integer I as RP/7, means for determining that if, for a lot, Budget_Q>1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by a Master Production Schedule (MPS), and if, for a lot, Budget_Q<1.1*RP, then the delivery week X is determined by the integer I, setting temporary priority P as follows: if Budget_Q<1.5*BR, then P=1, if Budget_Q<2*BR, then P=2, if Budget_Q<3*BR, then P=3, if Budget_Q<4*BR, then P=4, and if Budget_Q>4*BR, then P=5, and means for determining that if the values of delivery week X are different, then the lot with a smaller value of X gets the higher priority, and means for determining that if the values of delivery week X are equal, then the lot with a larger value of temporary priority P gets the higher priority.
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