Supply Chain Control and Inventory Tracking System using Industrial Automation Tools and IIoT
R. Raffik, Deepak Kumar Rakesh, M Venkatesh, P. Samvasan
Abstract
Inventory Tracking and Supply Chain Control is one of most important process in every industry. Likewise in industries, sorting the finished component or part is a dreary process, which was previously done by the human work force. Uninterrupted manual sorting results in quality consistency problems. Sorting based on various physical parameters like mass, color, and type requires special sensing equipment followed by the separating process. To overcome all those problems from sorting to inventory tracking, we have developed an inexpensive and effective method which comprises of integrated system of Inventory Tracking System and Supply Chain control in which important data can be visualized using SCADA (Supervisory control and data acquisition) Panel and Industrial Internet of Things integrated website. The sorting system uses photoelectric proximity sensors for identifying and segregating based on size of an object. Allen Bradley Series PLC is used in this project to sort two different finished components. A prototype was designed and developed in real time. In this project, SCADA is used to control the sorting operation and to show the available storage space in the inventory. This integrated IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) enabled intelligent system decreases the downtime in industry and further based on the valuable data visualized in the IIoT Website helps in automating raw materials ordering process and production rate control based on demand and supply.