Development of simulation based assistant systems for automatic process monitoring and derivation of recommendations to optimize a profile extrusion line.

In polymer extrusion, assistant systems visualize process conditions and parameters and subsequently provide decision support to optimize the extrusion process. Nevertheless, these assistant systems are primary based on experimental or simulated data and they are not able to give recommendations based on both data sources at the same time. Furthermore, simulated results are not based on live experimental data and do not represent the current process conditions. This paper aims to develop an assistant system to provide decision support for optimizing a profile extrusion line based on both live experimental data and simulations carried out in real-time using this experimental data. First, live environments for three existing simulation systems are developed to describe the whole process behavior of the extrusion line in terms of extruder, die and cooling section. Second, interfaces between these systems are created to use both experimental data and output values of the simulation results as input data for the following systems along the extrusion line. Finally, all information is transferred and processed in the assistant system to visualize current process conditions and to give recommendations to optimize the extrusion process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]