Visual analysis of blow molding machine multivariate time series data

Abstract

The recent development in the data analytics field provides a boost in production for modern industries. Small-sized factories intend to take full advantage of the data collected by sensors used in their machinery. The ultimate goal is to minimize cost and maximize quality, resulting in an increase in profit. In collaboration with domain experts, we implemented a data visualization tool to enable decision-makers in a plastic factory to improve their production process. The tool is an interactive dashboard with multiple coordinated views supporting the exploration from both local and global perspectives. In summary, we investigate three different aspects: methods for preprocessing multivariate time series data, clustering approaches for the already refined data, and visualization techniques that aid domain experts in gaining insights into the different stages of the production process. Here we present our ongoing results grounded in a human-centered development process. We adopt a formative evaluation approach to continuously upgrade our dashboard design that eventually meets partners’ requirements and follows the best practices within the field. We also conducted a case study with a domain expert to validate the potential application of the tool in the real-life context. Finally, we assessed the usability and usefulness of the tool with a two-layer summative evaluation that showed encouraging results. Graphical Abstract

Visualizing and monitoring the process of injection molding

“…However, there is no public information available describing the tool in more detail. Very closely related to our work is the approach by Musleh et al [19] who create a visualization for blow molding machines. In contrast to injection molding where solid parts like plates or discs are formed, blow molding is similar to glass blowing and used to create singular hollow objects such as bottles.…”

Design of an Ecological Visual Analytics Interface for Operators of Time-Constant Processes

“…In the field of visualization, design of VA interfaces for industrial processes is challenging mainly due to the need for expertise in the field. Interactive dashboards have been designed for various industrial applications such as improving equipment condition monitoring [39], supporting identification of opportunities to improve production processes [36] and supporting plastic factory technicians' understanding of time-series data [26]. With respect to the paper pulp production industry, previously designed decision-support systems have mainly focused on optimizing planning and scheduling tasks [10], predictive control [7,18,30] and analytics modelling [28].…”