U.S. patent application number 16/813174 was filed with the patent office on 2020-07-02 for predicting harmful chemical exposures and implementing corrective actions prior to overexposure.
The applicant listed for this patent is INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION. Invention is credited to Adam H.E. Eberbach, James R. Kozloski, Timothy M. Lynar, John M. Wagner.
Application Number | 20200211355 16/813174 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 59086431 |
Filed Date | 2020-07-02 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20200211355 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Eberbach; Adam H.E. ; et
al. |
July 2, 2020 |
PREDICTING HARMFUL CHEMICAL EXPOSURES AND IMPLEMENTING CORRECTIVE
ACTIONS PRIOR TO OVEREXPOSURE
Abstract
A method of avoiding harmful chemical emission concentration
levels, the method comprising implementing a cognitive suite of
workplace hygiene and injury predictors (WHIP) that has learned to
identify chemical emission sources and indicators of harmful
chemical emission concentration levels, detecting an indicator, and
implementing a corrective action by at least one of altering the
operation of a chemical emissions source, modifying a time of a
scheduled task, or changing prescribed personal protective
equipment.
Inventors: |
Eberbach; Adam H.E.; (Surrey
Hills, AU) ; Kozloski; James R.; (New Fairfield,
CT) ; Lynar; Timothy M.; (Kew, AU) ; Wagner;
John M.; (Carlton, AU) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION |
Armonk |
NY |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
59086431 |
Appl. No.: |
16/813174 |
Filed: |
March 9, 2020 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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14983325 |
Dec 29, 2015 |
10643447 |
|
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16813174 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G08B 21/12 20130101;
G06N 5/04 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G08B 21/12 20060101
G08B021/12 |
Claims
1. A method of avoiding harmful chemical emission concentration
levels, comprising: monitoring one or more sensors in a workplace;
receiving a signal from at least one of the one or more sensors
that is correlated with a scheduled task; determine the likelihood
of a harmful chemical emission level from the received signal; and
implementing a corrective action that alters the operation of a
chemical emission source in the workplace.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors is
selected from the group consisting of a machine activation sensor,
a chemical detector, and a location detector.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the scheduled task is stored by a
chemical emissions protection system of a cognitive WHIP
system.
4. The method of claim 3, further comprising predicting a chemical
emission exposure level of a person by determining the location of
the person for the scheduled task, identifying a path used by the
person to transit to the location, analyzing a chemical emissions
map for the path, and calculating a predicted amount of cumulative
chemical emissions exposure for the person.
5. The method of claim 4, further comprising monitoring the actual
chemical emission exposure levels experienced by the person in a
chemical emissions zone using the chemical detector.
6. The method of claim 5, further comprising identifying the
location of a person in the chemical emissions zone, and
transmitting a control signal to the chemical emissions source to
slow down or turn off for a predetermined period of time to reduce
the actual chemical emission exposure levels in the chemical
emission zone.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the operation of the chemical
emissions source is identified by the machine activation
sensor.
8. A chemical emissions protection system, comprising: one or more
sensors in a workplace; a receiver configured to receive a signal
from at least one of the one or more sensors that is correlated
with a scheduled task; a cognitive WHIP system configured to
determine the likelihood of a harmful chemical emission level from
the received signal; and a warning system configured to implement a
corrective action that alters the operation of a chemical emission
source in the workplace.
9. The system of claim 8, wherein the cognitive WHIP system is
trained by receiving signals from the one or more sensors,
correlating the signals with the scheduled tasks, and identifying
indicators corresponding to one or more chemical emission sources
operating at the time of a harmful chemical emission concentration
levels based on the scheduled task.
10. The system of claim 8, which further comprises a scheduler
configured to predict chemical emission exposure levels of a
person, track cumulative actual chemical emission exposure levels
for the person, and pre-emptively adjust the time of a scheduled
task in anticipation of predicted chemical emission exposure
levels.
11. The system of claim 10, wherein the monitoring interface is
configured to determine the location of the person for one or more
assigned tasks, identify a path used by the person to transit to
the location(s), analyze a chemical emissions map for the
location(s), and calculate a predicted amount of cumulative
chemical emissions exposure for the person.
12. The system of claim 10, wherein the monitoring interface is
configured to monitor the actual chemical emission exposure levels
experienced by the person in a chemical emissions zone.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein the monitoring interface is
configured to identify the location of a person in the chemical
emissions zone, and transmit a control signal to the chemical
emissions source to slow down or turn off for a predetermined
period of time to reduce the actual chemical emission exposure
levels in the chemical emissions zone.
14. The system of claim 8, wherein the indicator is identification
by facial recognition, activation of an interlock, detection of an
RFID at a portal, or combinations thereof.
15. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising a
computer readable program for predicting exposure to harmful
chemical emission concentration levels, wherein the computer
readable program when executed on a computer causes the computer to
perform the steps of: monitoring one or more sensors in a
workplace; receiving a signal from at least one of the one or more
sensors that is correlated with a scheduled task; determine the
likelihood of a harmful chemical emission level from the received
signal; and implementing a corrective action that alters the
operation of a chemical emission source in the workplace.
16. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim
15, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a
computer causes the computer to: learn to identify chemical
emission sources and indicators of harmful chemical emission
concentration levels by receiving signals from the one or more
sensors, correlating the signals with the scheduled task, and
identifying indicators corresponding to one or more chemical
emission sources operating at the time of the harmful chemical
emission concentration levels based on the scheduled task.
17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim
15, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a
computer causes the computer to: predict chemical emission exposure
levels of a person, track cumulative actual chemical emission
exposure levels for the person, and pre-emptively adjust the time
of another scheduled task in anticipation of predicted chemical
emission exposure levels.
18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim
17, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a
computer causes the computer to: predict chemical emission exposure
levels by determining the location of the person for one or more
assigned tasks, identifying a path used by the person to transit to
the location(s), analyzing a chemical emissions map for the
location(s), and calculating a predicted amount of cumulative
chemical emissions exposure for the person.
19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim
17, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a
computer causes the computer to: monitor the actual chemical
emission exposure levels experienced by the person in a chemical
emissions zone using a chemical detector.
20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim
19, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a
computer causes the computer to: identify the location of a person
in the chemical emissions zone, and transmit a control signal to
the chemical emissions source to slow down or turn off for a
predetermined period of time to reduce the actual chemical emission
exposure levels in the chemical emissions zone.
Description
BACKGROUND
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to a system and method of
environmental monitoring capable of detecting and more importantly
predicting and preventing exposure to dangerous levels of
chemicals, and more particularly to a cognitive system that learns
and recognizes patterns and outcomes to predict a chemical
exposure, and implements ameliorative actions chosen to reduce,
remove, or eliminate exposure risks.
Description of the Related Art
[0002] Chemical exposures can induce many forms of damage to a
person's health due to acute toxicity, including cancer,
respiratory damage, heart damage, liver damage, kidney damage,
mutagenic damage, and teratogenic harm. This level of exposure may
be reached in typical industrial settings. Dangerous levels of
chemical exposure may be generated by production methods, machinery
and equipment, cleaning solvents, and chemical reactants in a
variety of industries. In various environments, gaseous emissions
may be particularly dangerous because they are typically unseen,
may be undetectable by smell even at toxic levels, and may fill a
large area rapidly. Gaseous emissions may include chemical
compounds and hazardous air pollutants (HAP), which may include
organic materials and heavy metals. In some cases the chemical
compounds and hazardous air pollutants include materials that can
build up to toxic levels in a person over time.
[0003] Workers may routinely be instructed to wear personal
protective equipment that includes breathing apparatus, such as
filters, masks, and respirators, but such routine instructions are
typically not predictive and do not usually customize the level of
protection for the actual worker and the actual environment.
Workers may simply ignore such routine instructions, and even if
followed may provide under or over protection. It would, therefore,
be beneficial to provide a way of ameliorating such exposure
risks.
SUMMARY
[0004] An aspect of the disclosure relates to a method of avoiding
harmful chemical emission exposures, the method comprising
implementing a cognitive suite of workplace hygiene and injury
predictors (WHIP) that has learned to identify chemical emission
sources and indicators of harmful chemical emission concentration
levels, detecting an indicator, and implementing a corrective
action by at least one of altering the operation of a chemical
emissions source, modifying a time of a scheduled task, or changing
prescribed personal protective equipment.
[0005] An aspect of the disclosure relates to a chemical emission
protection system comprising cognitive suite of workplace hygiene
and injury predictors (WHIP) that has learned to identify chemical
emission sources and indicators of harmful chemical emission
levels, a monitoring interface coupled to one or more sensor(s) for
detecting an indicator, and a warning system configured to
implement a corrective action by at least one of altering the
operation of a chemical emission source, modifying a time of a
scheduled task, and/or changing prescribed personal protective
equipment.
[0006] An aspect of the disclosure relates to a non-transitory
computer readable storage medium comprising a computer readable
program for predicting exposure to harmful chemical emission
levels, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a
computer causes the computer to perform the steps of implementing a
cognitive suite of workplace hygiene and injury predictors (WHIP)
that has learned to identify chemical emission sources and
indicators of harmful chemical emission levels, detecting an
indicator, and implementing a corrective action by at least one of
altering the operation of a chemical emission source, modifying a
time of a scheduled task, or changing the prescribed personal
protective equipment.
[0007] These and other features and advantages will become apparent
from the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments
thereof, which is to be read in connection with the accompanying
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] The disclosure will provide details in the following
description of preferred embodiments with reference to the
following figures wherein:
[0009] FIG. 1 is a plan view of a production facility having a
chemical emission protection system in accordance with the present
principles;
[0010] FIG. 2 is a block/flow diagram of a method of predicting
chemical emission exposures according to an exemplary
embodiment;
[0011] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a chemical emission protection
system according to an exemplary embodiment;
[0012] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a calendar generator and
scheduler according to an exemplary embodiment;
[0013] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a monitoring interface and
warning system according to an exemplary embodiment;
[0014] FIG. 6 is a block/flow diagram of a method of training a
cognitive WHIP according to an exemplary embodiment; and
[0015] FIG. 7 is an exemplary processing system to which the
present principles may be applied in accordance with an embodiment
of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0016] Often, people are exposed to chemical emission because they
have not been forewarned that such exposures are likely to occur,
for example, from equipment in a factory, a chemical production
run, or a vehicle in an enclosed area. While the general
environment may suggest chemical emission can occur, the actual
occurrences may be intermittent and/or without sufficient warning,
such that individuals are not outfitted with their personal
protective equipment (PPE) or do not have sufficient notice to put
on their PPE. A system that predicts the occurrence of chemical
emission can address the hazards by providing sufficient time or
changes to the environment to avoid such chemical emission
events.
[0017] A worker may also travel between different workplace
environments that pose different levels of chemical emission
danger, for example, an office area may be relatively emission free
compared to a production floor or warehouse where heavy equipment
may be running and chemical are being used. A forklift idling in a
warehouse may emit dangerous levels of carbon monoxide and/or
carbon dioxide, which the forklift operator may be exposed to. A
system that recognizes a worker's location and/or intended travel
path in relation to chemical emission sources, and provides a
reminder to don the PPE or shuts down equipment when the worker
approaches a minimum safe distance, can provide sufficient time or
changes to the environment for the worker to avoid such chemical
emission events.
[0018] A reactive warning system can be inadequate in many
instances because the harmful chemical emission event must have
already occurred for it to be detected, and even if a warning is
provided before an imminent actual event there may be insufficient
time for people to protect themselves. Conversely, having people
wear personal protective equipment constantly can introduce its own
adverse effects including muffling sounds, obscuring vision, and
carrying heavy breathing apparatus that can thereby create other
dangerous situations.
[0019] In addition, there may be a constant level of chemical
emissions generated by machinery and equipment used routinely for
manufacturing, production, construction, and maintenance that
contribute to the ambient chemical emission levels.
[0020] Principles and embodiments of the present disclosure relate
to a system and method of identifying a state of an environment,
and determining the likelihood of a chemical emission event based
on one or more indicators representing the state of the
environment.
[0021] Principles and embodiments also relate to a system and
method including a cognitive suite of workplace hygiene and injury
predictors (WHIP), also referred to as a "Cognitive WHIP," that
measures accumulated industrial hygiene risks to individuals based
on a measure of exposure to chemical emissions.
[0022] Principles and embodiments also relate to an approach to
protecting persons from chemical emission exposures utilizing a
cognitive WHIP system by learning one or more indicators of a
detrimental chemical emission event and predicting an upcoming
chemical emission event by detecting at least some of the one or
more indicators.
[0023] Principles and embodiments also relate to anticipating the
exposure of a person to a detrimental chemical emission event by
recognizing existing indicators representing the state of an
environment, and preemptively altering the person's exposure to the
anticipated detrimental chemical emission level by changing the
environment or changing the person's proximity to the chemical
emission source.
[0024] Principles and embodiments also relate to predicting
estimated chemical emission exposure levels of a person and
tracking cumulative actual chemical emission exposure levels to
pre-emptively adjusting the person's task schedule in anticipation
of predicted chemical emission exposure.
[0025] A sequences of states or indicators that are predictive of
industrial hygiene or injury events, where the injury may be acute
toxicity or chemically induced damage, may be compiled as a
cognitive suite of workplace hygiene and injury predictors (WHIP).
The indicators may represent the state of an environment, for
example safe verse unsafe, high risk verse low risk, active verse
inactive, and/or avoidable verse unavoidable. The Cognitive WHIP
system may learn, over one or more training sessions, which
indicators predict safe verse unsafe, high risk verse low risk,
active verse inactive, and/or avoidable verse unavoidable
environments. The Cognitive WHIP system may then recognize an
increased likelihood that a future change in environment may place
a worker at risk for injury, where the injury can be acute toxicity
or chemically induced damage. The Cognitive WHIP system may alert
the worker of such increased risk, or take preventive steps to
reduce or eliminate the potential risk.
[0026] In one or more embodiments, a cognitive WHIP system may
learn a plurality of indicators that correlate with the probability
that a detrimental chemical emission event or dangerous chemical
emission level may occur in the immediate future, for example the
electronic logging of a withdrawal of chemical reactants from
storage can indicate a high probability that chemical emissions
from a production run may occur. A chemical emission event may be a
short term event (e.g., sudden opening of a reaction vessel) that
can cause toxic chemical exposure within the short time period of
exposure, whereas a chemical emission level may be a longer term
chemical exposure that can cause toxicity if the exposure continues
for an established period of time (e.g., carbon monoxide buildup
from a running engine).
[0027] In various embodiments, the cognitive WHIP system may
correlate a schedule of activities stored by the cognitive WHIP
system with a plurality of indicators to associate the occurrence
of a chemical emission event with a particular activity scheduled
at the time of the occurrence in reference to a particular
indicator. By recognizing that a particular indicator foretells the
occurrence of a chemical emission event when a particular activity
is scheduled, the cognitive WHIP system can learn to recognize
which indicators, chemical emission events, and scheduled
activities are inter-related, and predict what chemical emission
levels are expected to occur in a chemical emission zone based on
scheduled activities. The cognitive WHIP system may adjust
scheduled activities to avoid or compensate for the chemical
emission levels. The cognitive WHIP system may reduce a worker's
exposure to chemical emission levels by changing the worker's
schedule to minimize chemical emission exposures over a time period
(e.g., work shift), which may include scheduling the worker to
tasks in lower chemical emission zones and/or altering the time of
assigned tasks to periods of lower chemical emission (e.g., night
shift) when fewer machines or processes may be operating.
[0028] In various embodiments, one or more sensors may be suitably
located to detect transitory signals (e.g., sounds, images,
presence of equipment, presence of chemicals/compounds, presence of
particular workers, etc.) in a prescribed environment, and to
identify a sequences of states or indicators from the transitory
signals. Sensors may include, but not be limited to, visual sensors
(e.g., cameras), audio sensors (e.g., dosimeters, microphones),
machine activation sensors (e.g., interlocks, control panels),
vibration/motion sensors (e.g., accelerometers), chemical detectors
(e.g., chemical sniffers or puffers), and/or location detectors
(e.g., RFID, GPS, MLAT, etc.). The signals from the sensors may be
received by the cognitive WHIP system and correlated with schedules
tasks and activities by the cognitive WHIP system.
[0029] In an illustrative, non-limiting example, signals from a
combination of cameras, interlocks, vibration sensors, motion
sensors, chemical detectors, and location detectors, may be
utilized in combination with a learned or predetermined sequences
of states and a schedule to identify, for example, that a forklift
is turned on, moving, and traveling along a prescribed path within
a factory, or a pump has been activated to charge a reaction vessel
with a combination of chemicals. Furthermore, the Cognitive WHIP
system may know the intended path of the forklift through the
facility, and pre-emptively shut down the forklift or equipment
along the expected path of the forklift before the forklift
operator comes within a minimum safe distance from the equipment at
which he may be at risk. The range from the equipment may be
predetermined based on the chemical emission generated by the
equipment, ventilation in a chemical emission zone, a chemical
detector measuring current chemical emission concentrations, and/or
other environmental factors for example intervening walls. A person
may be alerted to the expected occurrence of a harmful chemical
emission level or chemical emission event through, for example, a
mobile device (e.g., cell phone, pager) or PPE (e.g.,
walkie-talkie, headset, warning light) with sufficient time to
implement the proper protective equipment, for example, putting on
a face mask with a proper filter, or delay the assigned task until
the harmful chemical emission level or chemical emission event has
passed.
[0030] In various embodiments, a warning may be sent to the person
to don suitable PPE before proceeding into a given work
area/chemical emission zone, and/or a control signal may be
transmitted to equipment to shut down before the person comes
within a safe distance from the equipment. A control signal may be
transmitted to a forklift to shut down before it comes within a
distance from the equipment.
[0031] In one or more embodiments, the Cognitive WHIP system may
maintain a cumulative record of the chemical emission exposure for
one or more workers, and assess the likelihood that a worker will
incur additional chemical emission exposures during an upcoming
shift that exceeds a threshold that may place the worker at risk
for toxicity or damage to their health.
[0032] The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a
computer program product. The computer program product may include
a computer readable storage medium (or media) having computer
readable program instructions thereon for causing a processor to
carry out aspects of the present invention.
[0033] The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible
device that can retain and store instructions for use by an
instruction execution device. The computer readable storage medium
may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storage
device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an
electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or
any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of
more specific examples of the computer readable storage medium
includes the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk,
a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable
programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static
random access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only
memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a
floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards or
raised structures in a groove having instructions recorded thereon,
and any suitable combination of the foregoing. A computer readable
storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construed as being
transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freely
propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves
propagating through a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g.,
light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical
signals transmitted through a wire.
[0034] Computer readable program instructions described herein can
be downloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a
computer readable storage medium or to an external computer or
external storage device via a network, for example, the Internet, a
local area network, a wide area network and/or a wireless network.
The network may comprise copper transmission cables, optical
transmission fibers, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls,
switches, gateway computers and/or edge servers. A network adapter
card or network interface in each computing/processing device
receives computer readable program instructions from the network
and forwards the computer readable program instructions for storage
in a computer readable storage medium within the respective
computing/processing device.
[0035] Computer readable program instructions for carrying out
operations of the present invention may be assembler instructions,
instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine
instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware
instructions, state-setting data, or either source code or object
code written in any combination of one or more programming
languages, including an object oriented programming language such
as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, and conventional procedural
programming languages, such as the "C" programming language or
similar programming languages. The computer readable program
instructions may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on
the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on
the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on
the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote
computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type
of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area
network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external
computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet
Service Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry
including, for example, programmable logic circuitry,
field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays
(PLA) may execute the computer readable program instructions by
utilizing state information of the computer readable program
instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry, in order to
perform aspects of the present invention.
[0036] Aspects of the present invention are described herein with
reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of
methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products
according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood
that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block
diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations
and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer readable
program instructions.
[0037] These computer readable program instructions may be provided
to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose
computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to
produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via
the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing
apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts
specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
These computer readable program instructions may also be stored in
a computer readable storage medium that can direct a computer, a
programmable data processing apparatus, and/or other devices to
function in a particular manner, such that the computer readable
storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises an
article of manufacture including instructions which implement
aspects of the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block
diagram block or blocks.
[0038] The computer readable program instructions may also be
loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing
apparatus, or other device to cause a series of operational steps
to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or
other device to produce a computer implemented process, such that
the instructions which execute on the computer, other programmable
apparatus, or other device implement the functions/acts specified
in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
[0039] The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate
the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible
implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products
according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this
regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent
a module, segment, or portion of instructions, which comprises one
or more executable instructions for implementing the specified
logical function(s). In some alternative implementations, the
functions noted in the blocks may occur out of the order noted in
the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in
fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may
sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the
functionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of
the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations
of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can
be implemented by special purpose hardware-based systems that
perform the specified functions or acts or carry out combinations
of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.
[0040] It will also be understood that when an element is referred
to as being "connected" or "coupled" to another element, it can be
directly connected or coupled to the other element or intervening
elements may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred
to as being "directly connected" or "directly coupled" to another
element, there are no intervening elements present.
[0041] Reference in the specification to "one embodiment" or "an
embodiment" of the present principles, as well as other variations
thereof, means that a particular feature, structure,
characteristic, and so forth described in connection with the
embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present
principles. Thus, the appearances of the phrase "in one embodiment"
or "in an embodiment", as well any other variations, appearing in
various places throughout the specification are not necessarily all
referring to the same embodiment.
[0042] It is to be appreciated that the use of any of the following
"/", "and/or", and "at least one of", for example, in the cases of
"A/B", "A and/or B" and "at least one of A and B", is intended to
encompass the selection of the first listed option (A) only, or the
selection of the second listed option (B) only, or the selection of
both options (A and B). As a further example, in the cases of "A,
B, and/or C" and "at least one of A, B, and C", such phrasing is
intended to encompass the selection of the first listed option (A)
only, or the selection of the second listed option (B) only, or the
selection of the third listed option (C) only, or the selection of
the first and the second listed options (A and B) only, or the
selection of the first and third listed options (A and C) only, or
the selection of the second and third listed options (B and C)
only, or the selection of all three options (A and B and C). This
may be extended, as readily apparent by one of ordinary skill in
this and related arts, for as many items listed.
[0043] Referring now to the drawings in which like numerals
represent the same or similar elements and initially to FIG. 1, an
exemplary embodiment of a manufacturing environment 100
implementing an exemplary cognitive WHIP system is shown in
accordance with an exemplary embodiment.
[0044] A manufacturing environment 100 may include a plurality of
sub environments, which can be identified as work areas and/or
chemical emission zones. For example, a manufacturing environment
may have work areas including a chemical processing or production
floor 102 including heavy equipment and machinery for producing
chemical compounds or parts for products, an assembly or
compounding floor 104 where chemicals or parts from the
manufacturing floor 102 are put together into a product, a
packaging department 106 where the products are placed into
suitable packaging and sealed, and a warehouse 108 where package
products are stored for shipping and/or raw materials are received
for the production floor. The manufacturing floor 102 may be
separated from the assembly floor 104, packaging department 106,
and warehouse 108, by various physical barriers including walls,
doors, and air curtains. The manufacturing floor 102 may,
therefore, constitute a separate chemical emission zone from the
assembly floor 104, packaging department 106, and warehouse 108.
The assembly floor 104 and packaging department 106, however, may
constitute the same chemical emission zone, since there are no
intervening barriers even though different types of work are being
performed in the two areas. People in a chemical emission zone,
therefore, may be exposed to chemical emission levels generated in
more than one work area. Some facilities may have multiple work
areas, but comprise only a single chemical emission zone.
[0045] Various machinery 110 and equipment 120 may be located
throughout a manufacturing environment, where machinery and
equipment may produce varying chemical emission levels. A large
forklift, for example, may generate a higher chemical emission
level during operation than a small generator or forklift even when
idling. In addition, some equipment, for example a forklift 150,
may be mobile and therefore generate transitory chemical emission
as it passes other work stations. Furthermore, the chemical
emission level (i.e., chemical concentrations) actually experienced
or measured can depend on the distance from the source of the
chemical emission. Diffusion and dispersal can reduce
concentrations while stagnant or confined areas may allow quicker
increases in concentration.
[0046] In one or more embodiments, sensors may be located at fixed
positions within a work area, and/or associated with mobile
equipment and workers, where the sensors are in communication with
a chemical emissions protection system 190 over one or more
communication path(s) 189. Communication path(s) 189 may be wired
or wireless and implement hardware configured to provide wired
and/or wireless communication path(s) 189, as would be known in the
art.
[0047] In one or more embodiments, the sensors may include chemical
detectors 145 that detect and measure chemical emission levels
(i.e., chemical concentrations in parts-per-million (ppm), -billion
(ppb), -trillion (ppt), etc.), which may include dosimeters that
measure cumulative chemical emission exposures for a given period
of time at different locations throughout a facility. The sensors
may include microphones 142 that detect and measure noise levels
(i.e., sound pressure levels), which may include dosimeters that
measure cumulative noise-exposures for a given period of time at
different locations throughout a facility. Sensors may include
microphones of mobile devices worn (e.g., helmet mike, headset) or
carried (e.g., cell phones) by workers that are wirelessly
integrated with a chemical emissions protection system 190
implementing a cognitive WHIP system through wireless nodes
positioned in a facility. Sensors may also include motion/vibration
sensors 115 that can detect the movement of machinery 110 or
equipment 120 during operation. Sensors may include interlock
devices and controls 125 that are configured to detect when a
machine is placed in an active state (i.e., turned on) and/or when
the operator has logged into the machine or equipment, for example
with a pass card, personal ID code, or personal key. Sensors may
also include a portal 148 that determines when a worker or piece of
equipment passes a specified point in the facility (e.g., an RFID
Reader, image recognition, etc.).
[0048] In one or more embodiments, a chemical emissions protection
system 190 implementing a cognitive WHIP system may include one or
more servers, where the server(s) may be local to the manufacturing
environment 100. In another embodiment, the chemical emissions
protection system 190 may be in the cloud. In yet another
embodiment, the chemical emissions protection system 190 may be
both local and remote, such that the local components perform some
of the functions implicated by the present principles, while the
remote components perform other ones of the functions implicated by
the present principles.
[0049] In one or more embodiments, the measured chemical emissions
may be utilized to create a chemical emission map of chemical
emissions zones by relating all of the chemical emissions measured
at different locations at a given time. In various embodiments, a
chemical emission map includes correlated chemical emissions data,
spatial data, and time data, and may be stored as a
multi-dimensional chemical emissions vector by the cognitive WHIP
system. Historic chemical emissions data may, thereby, be stored as
chemical emissions vectors and/or chemical emissions maps.
[0050] Maximum and minimum chemical emissions may be identified for
a time period that may be predetermined (e.g., 10 min., 30 min., 1
hour, 4 hours, 8 hour shift, 1 day, 1 week, etc.), for example
local minima may occur daily at 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm corresponding
to a shut-down for lunch, 5:00 pm to 5:30 pm for a shift change,
and a daily minima may occur from 1:00 am to 8:00 am when no shifts
are running. Similarly, weekends may be identified as repeating
weekly minima, and holidays may be identified as yearly minima.
Conversely, daily maxima may be identified for 9:00 am to 11:00 am
and 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm when all equipment is running. These times
would depend on the work routine of the facility and the scheduled
times for operations.
[0051] In various embodiments, a cognitive WHIP system may measure
chemical emissions levels within one or more work areas using fixed
chemical detectors 145 positioned around the work areas to measure
chemical emissions over a period of time and store the chemical
emission concentration values with the associated time that the
measurement was taken. The period of time that measurements are
taken and stored may be sufficiently long to identify all common
chemical emissions generated in each work area. For example, a
facility that runs only one daytime shift with a regular production
schedule may require only a single day for the cognitive WHIP
system to measure a full spectrum of chemical emissions produced in
the work areas; whereas a job shop that has short production runs
and operates different machinery and processes only intermittently
may require a week or a month to measure a full spectrum of
chemical emissions produced in the work areas. The cognitive WHIP
system may measure and store time of day chemical emissions
variations, time of week chemical emissions variations, time of
month chemical emissions variations, etc., and correlate the
chemical emission concentration variations with the scheduled
activities occurring at the same time. The chemical emission
concentration data and schedule data may be stored in the system's
non-transitory memory and made available and accessible through the
cognitive WHIP system.
[0052] In one or more embodiments, the cognitive WHIP system may be
trained by purposely producing a full spectrum of chemical
emissions produced in the work areas in a predefined period, and
correlating the chemical emissions with known indicators and
operations. By associating the measured chemical emission
concentrations at known locations in work areas and determining
which locations detect and measure chemical emissions generated by
machines and equipment in different work areas, the cognitive WHIP
system can learn and create a chemical emissions map and identify
chemical emissions zones. A series of chemical emission maps may be
generated for multiple sub-time periods (e.g., 5 min., 15 minute
intervals) in a predetermined time period (e.g., 1 hour, 8 hour
production shift, 24 hour day, etc.) to identify variations in
chemical emissions levels at the different locations.
[0053] In one or more embodiments, the cognitive WHIP system may
identify and designate appropriate respiratory protection for
workers assigned to specific work areas at specific times in
response to predicted chemical emissions based on the chemical
emission maps. The cognitive WHIP system may calculate expected
chemical emission exposures for a worker and recommend respiratory
protection that is not over-protective or under-protective (i.e.,
having the proper filtering functionality, NIOSH rating, full
facemask, SCBA, etc.) for the predicted chemical emissions
exposures. The breathing protection may, thereby, be customized for
a time period, sub-time period, or assigned task based on the
chemical emission maps and expected length of exposure to the
chemical emission concentrations, which may be based on a worker's
schedule, assigned tasks, and/or transit path.
[0054] In various embodiments, the cognitive WHIP system may use
the chemical detectors to detect and measure actual chemical
emission concentrations occurring in one or more chemical emission
zones to confirm that actual chemical emission levels correspond
with predicted chemical emission levels. If actual chemical
emission levels are different from the predicted chemical emission
levels based on the chemical emission maps, the cognitive WHIP
system may provide warnings and/or dynamically update the chemical
emission maps through a monitoring and/or learning function. In
various embodiments, warnings may be visual, audible, tactile
(e.g., vibrations), or a combination thereof, to alert one or more
workers of changes in instantaneous chemical emission
concentrations values and/or a cumulative chemical emission
concentration-time values in a chemical emission zone.
[0055] In one or more embodiments, the sensors may include cameras
135 located at fixed positions that detect and record images (i.e.,
still images and video) at different locations throughout a
facility. The cameras may be located at a fixed position within a
work area, or may be a mobile device (or part of a mobile device)
located on a worker or equipment (e.g., forklift). The images may
be analyzed to identify workers, equipment, and various visual
indicators picked up by a camera 135, for example by image
recognition. The camera may also provide visual indications of the
activities occurring within a work area. The camera(s) 135 may be
utilized to identify the presence of workers in a particular area,
additional equipment (e.g., forklift) in a particular area,
operation of particular machinery, type of product/parts being
produced, and/or identify activities occurring in a particular
location (e.g., retooling machine, maintenance, stocking raw
materials for production run, charging tanks/bins/hoppers/in-feeds,
installing/removing/transporting equipment to different location in
plant/factory, etc.). In various embodiments, microphones 142 may
or may not be associated with a particular camera 135.
[0056] In one or more embodiments, the sensors may be microphones
142 located at fixed positions or as a mobile device with a person
or on equipment (e.g., forklift 150). The microphone(s) may be
utilized to identify the presence of workers in a particular area,
additional equipment (e.g., forklift) in a particular area,
operation of particular machinery, type of product/parts being
produced, and/or identify activities occurring in a particular
location (e.g., retooling machine, maintenance, stocking raw
materials for production run, charging tanks/bins/hoppers/in-feeds,
installing/removing/transporting equipment to different location in
plant/factory, etc.) by sound recognition.
[0057] In one or more embodiments, the sensors may include
interlocks 125 located on machinery, equipment, and at access
points. The interlocks 125 may require a worker to enter a personal
passcode, use a magnetic or optical pass card, or a biometric
sensor to activate the machine, equipment, or for entry. The
cognitive system may identify the specific worker at the location
of the interlock 125, and correlate the presence of the worker with
a scheduled task to recognize the correlated occurrences as an
indicator that a particular operation is imminent. In contrast, the
cognitive system may identify the absence of the specific worker at
a location for a scheduled task, and recognize the correlated
occurrences as an indicator that a particular operation is not
imminent.
[0058] In one or more embodiments, the sensors may also be a
switch, and/or current meter or volt meter, which may be part of an
interlock, that detects when a particular piece of machinery or
equipment is turned on, and therefore generating emissions. In
various embodiments, an interlock or switch (e.g., a PLC, relay,
etc.) may be configured to receive signals and/or instructions from
a monitoring interface, warning system, calendar generator, and/or
scheduler to slow down or turn off the particular piece of
machinery or equipment.
[0059] In one or more embodiments, the sensors may include
vibration and/or motion sensors 115 that can detect the operation
of equipment or machinery left in an active state independent of
the presence of a worker or other indicators.
[0060] In one or more embodiments, the sensors may also be a
logging device or access interface 149 that requires a worker to
provide his or her identify before entering a work area or
accessing a piece of equipment or machinery. In various
embodiments, ingress and egress by workers to a work area may be
controlled by access points (i.e., doors, gates, elevators) that
require a worker to enter an identification code, swipe a magnetic
pass key or badge, or use a biometric to identify the worker
entering an area and prevent access to others. In various
embodiments, the presence of a worker scheduled to operate a piece
of equipment or machine at a particular time may be used as an
indication that the piece of equipment or machine will be operating
at the scheduled time. The presence of a worker as indicated by the
sensor may be utilized to confirm that the worker will be
experiencing a level of chemical emission exposure. The actual
chemical emission exposure for the worker may then be monitored by
a monitoring interface 340, where the monitoring interface may be
coupled to and receive signals from one or more sensor(s).
[0061] In one or more embodiments, the sensors may include location
detectors 128 (e.g., RFID, GPS, MLAT, etc.) that may be worn by
workers and/or attached to mobile equipment, for example a forklift
150, which can identify the location of the workers and equipment.
A sensor may be a RFID chip or GPS device that identifies and/or
tracks the location of a worker in a work area/chemical emission
zone. The RFID chip and/or GPS device may be utilized to identify
the location of a worker during a scheduled work period, and/or the
path that a worker takes between different locations, for example,
from an ingress point where a portal 148 reads the worker's RFID or
the worker logged in to an operator station for an assigned task.
The path may be learned by the system and used to estimate chemical
emission exposures for future work periods.
[0062] FIG. 2 is a block/flow diagram of a method 200 of predicting
chemical emission exposures according to an exemplary
embodiment.
[0063] In block 210, a chemical emission protection system may
receive signals relating to chemical emissions generated in a work
area and identify the chemical emissions as associated with a
specific machine or piece of equipment operating in the work area.
The chemical emissions protection system may include a cognitive
WHIP function that has learned to identify a specific type of
chemical emissions corresponding to a specific type of machine or
operation, or has been configured to learn that a specific type of
chemical emissions is associated with a specific type of machine or
operation. A forklift or generator, for example, may generate
carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, whereas use of a cryogenic
Dewar (i.e., vacuum bottle) filled with liquid nitrogen can
generate nitrogen gas, and dry ice used for industrial or process
cooling generates gaseous carbon dioxide. Similarly, an
incinerator, for example, may generate heavy metal pollutants
(e.g., mercury, chromium, lead, arsenic, etc.) when processing
particular materials, and hydrogen sulfide (H.sub.2S) or nitrogen
dioxide (NO.sub.2) when operating under other conditions.
[0064] In one or more embodiments, a list of machinery and/or
equipment may be stored in a non-transitory memory of a chemical
emission protection system as one or more objects (e.g., files)
relating to types of chemical emissions generated by the machinery
and/or equipment, and may be associated with the particular
machinery and/or equipment, for example, in a suitable data
structure. A chemical detector 145 may detect the chemical
emissions generated by the machinery and/or equipment, and the
chemical emission protection system may receive and store the
chemical emission concentrations as an object in the non-transitory
memory.
[0065] In block 220, a chemical emissions protection system may
identify a worker as present in a work area.
[0066] In one or more embodiments, a list of workers may be stored
in a non-transitory memory of a chemical emissions protection
system 190 and data relating to the total chemical emissions
exposure may be associated with each worker, for example, in a
suitable data structure. The chemical emissions protection system
190 may be configured to access the list of workers and produce an
assignment schedule for each worker.
[0067] In one or more embodiments, a worker may be identified by
logging in a personal identification code (PID) and/or a pass card
used to access a work area, a RFID that is detected by a portal
(e.g., RFID reader) at ingresses to/egresses from a work area, a
GPS associated with the worker, and/or cameras and facial
recognition software focused on the work area, where identification
of a worker may be by facial recognition.
[0068] In block 230, a chemical emissions protection system may
determine the potential exposure of an identified worker by
analyzing the identified worker's assignment schedule, identifying
one or more assigned tasks for the worker, determining the work
location(s) and/or operator station(s) at which the worker will be
positioned in a work area for the assigned tasks, identifying the
path used by the work to transit to the work location(s) and/or
operator station(s), analyzing a chemical emissions map for the
work area, and calculating a predicted amount of cumulative
chemical emissions exposure for the worker.
[0069] In one or more embodiments, the chemical emissions
protection system 190 may calculate a cumulative chemical emissions
exposure for a worker for a scheduled time period before the worker
arrives in the work area. The scheduler may adjust the assigned
tasks for the worker to work location(s) and/or operator station(s)
having lower chemical emissions to reduce the predicted amount of
cumulative chemical emissions exposure for the worker if the stored
total chemical emissions exposure associated with the worker is
above a predetermined amount. The worker may be alerted to a
schedule change before the worker arrives in the work area.
[0070] In block 240, the chemical emissions protection system may
monitor the chemical emissions and chemical concentrations present
in a chemical emissions zone, the location of one or more workers
in the chemical emissions zone, a path taken by the workers through
the chemical emissions zone, changes in the state of machinery and
equipment (i.e., chemical emission sources) in the chemical
emissions zone, identify chemical emission sources contributing to
the expected chemical emissions level in a chemical emissions zone,
and calculate a cumulative predicted chemical emissions exposure
for the workers.
[0071] Historic chemical emissions data may be used to calculate a
predicted chemical emissions exposure for one or more workers, or
actual chemical emission concentrations detected and measured at
one or more sensors may be used with a worker's actual location,
task assignment, and expect path to calculate a predicted chemical
emissions exposure for the one or more workers.
[0072] In block 250, the chemical emissions protection system may
compare the predicted chemical emissions exposure of the worker to
a safety threshold value, where the threshold value may be an
instantaneous chemical concentration value and/or a cumulative
chemical concentration-time value. An instantaneous chemical
concentration threshold value may be based on the known or
predetermined toxicity of the chemical compound. A cumulative
chemical concentration-time threshold value may be based on known
or predetermined accumulation rates in a person at known
concentration levels, where the cumulative chemical
concentration-time threshold values may be permissible exposure
times for continuous time weighted average chemical concentration
levels. The cognitive WHIP system may be configured to monitor the
amount of time that a worker is exposed to a measured chemical
concentration to calculate a cumulative chemical concentration-time
value, and record the amount of exposure time, chemical emissions
exposure levels, and cumulative chemical concentration-time value,
which may be associated with each worker and stored in a
non-transitory memory.
[0073] In block 260, the chemical emissions protection system may
determine whether the chemical emissions exposure is above a
predetermined safety threshold value. If the worker's predicted or
actual exposure is determined to be over the safety threshold
value, the chemical emissions protection system may signal that
adjustments may be required to the chemical emissions zone and/or
worker schedule.
[0074] In block 270, the chemical emissions protection system 190
may implement corrective actions to reduce risk, which may include
reducing the chemical emission levels or modifying the worker's
task schedule. The chemical emissions protection system 190 may
transmit a control signal to machinery and/or equipment to slow
down or turn off for a predetermined period of time to reduce the
chemical emission levels in the particular chemical emissions zone,
signal the worker to take an alternate transit path to a location
in the facility, alter the workers scheduled tasks to avoid the
chemical emissions in the particular emission zone, or a
combination thereof. The chemical emissions protection system 190
may also change the prescribed PPE for the worker to alter the type
of respiratory protection, or allocate additional respiratory
protection to the worker.
[0075] In block 280, warnings may be transmitted to the worker in
real time to alert the worker of the danger, a change in schedule,
a change in transit path, or a change in protective equipment,
which may be received by the worker on a mobile device or PPE. A
worker may be informed of actual dangerous concentration levels in
particular chemical emissions zone(s) before the worker enters the
particular zone(s).
[0076] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a hearing protection system
according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0077] In one or more embodiments, a chemical emissions protection
system 190 includes hardware configured to implement one or more
systems for scheduling and monitoring worker chemical emissions
exposure. The chemical emissions protection system 190 may include
a processor 390 for executing computer code configured to identify
worker assignment patterns, identify chemical emissions sources
contributing to total worker chemical emissions exposure, calculate
cumulative chemical emissions exposure for one or more workers
based on scheduled interactions with identified chemical emissions
sources, and adjust worker and production scheduling to maintain
cumulative chemical emissions exposure for a worker below a
threshold amount. The chemical emissions protection system 190 may
include non-transitory memory 380 for storing code and data, a
network interface card 370 for communicating with external systems,
and a user interface 360 that may include a display, a graphical
user interface (GUI), and various I/O devices. An embodiment of a
chemical emissions protection system 190 may include a calendar
generator 310, a scheduler 320, a warning system 330, a monitoring
interface 340, and a cognitive WHIP 350 for learning and prediction
utilizing data and functions of the calendar generator 310,
scheduler 320, warning system 330, and monitoring interface 340,
which may be implemented as software or implemented in part in
software, where such software may be stored in a non-transitory
memory. A chemical emissions protection system 190, which may
include a calendar generator 310, a scheduler 320, a warning system
330, a monitoring interface 340, and a cognitive WHIP 350 may also
be implemented as least in part in hardware, including standalone
devices, boards, integrated circuits, where at least one may be
implemented as application specific integrated circuits (ASICS).
While particular components and functions may be attributed to a
particular system or module, this is for descriptive purposes only.
Various components and functions may be swapped between the systems
and modules or distributed and rearranged amongst different systems
and modules, where such arrangements are contemplated to be within
the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.
[0078] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a calendar generator and
scheduler according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0079] In one or more embodiments, a calendar generator 310 may be
configured to keep track of the date and time 410 of worker
assignments 412, and track worker patterns to determine an
estimated chemical emissions exposure for each of one or more
workers. The calendar generator 310 may record date, time, and
position data 410 of worker assignments 412, the worker transit
paths 415, and a value for the total predicted/estimated chemical
emissions exposure 417. It should be noted that the term "worker"
is intended to broadly encompass all persons in a work environment
including, but not limited to, hourly and salaried employees of a
business, daily contract worker, outside contractors, visiting
members of other businesses, and other persons that may be located
in the vicinity of a potential chemical emissions source at a known
time. A worker may not be someone outside the knowledge and/or
control of a business.
[0080] In one or more embodiments, a scheduler 320 may be
configured to keep track of intended production output, production
deadlines, man-hours required to complete the intended production
output by the production deadline(s), a list of workers available
to staff the production jobs to meet the required man-hours for
production, a value for the cumulative actual chemical emissions
exposure associated with each worker, a list of machinery and
equipment available for production, and chemical emission output
levels associated with each of the production operations, machines,
and equipment. The scheduler 320 may also be configured to assign
work tasks to one or more workers, where an estimated chemical
emissions exposure is calculated for each task assigned during a
work period. The tasks assigned to a plurality of workers may be
adjusted to balance the cumulative chemical emissions exposure for
each worker of a predetermined time period, for example, workers
may be rotated between shifts in high and low chemical emissions
zones on a daily (i.e., morning-afternoon-night shifts) basis, a
weekly basis, a monthly basis, etc., where the worker is assigned
to a different chemical emissions zone each day. The scheduler 320
may also access available data on the transit path that each worker
takes between work locations.
[0081] In one or more embodiments, the scheduler 320 may create and
record a production schedule 420, a worker list 430, which includes
the value for the cumulative actual chemical emissions exposure 435
associated with each worker, a machinery and equipment list 440,
which includes value(s) for the actual chemical emissions output
(i.e., chemical concentrations, output rate) 445 associated with
each production operation, machine, or piece of equipment, and a
facility map 450, which includes the locations 452 of each
production operation, machine, and piece of equipment, the location
of the operator station 455 associated with each machine and/or
piece of equipment, and the location of each sensor 457.
[0082] A scheduler 320 may be configured to iteratively prepare a
tentative assignment schedule for a worker, calculate a predicted
chemical emissions exposure for the worker for the scheduled time
period, add the calculated predicted chemical emissions exposure to
the cumulative actual chemical emissions exposure associated with
worker to obtain a total predicted worker chemical emissions
exposure, compare the total predicted chemical emissions exposure
to a threshold chemical emissions exposure, and prepare a different
tentative assignment schedule and calculate a new predicted
chemical emissions exposure for the worker if the total predicted
worker chemical emissions exposure is above the threshold chemical
emissions exposure. The iterative calculations and schedule
preparation may be performed by a processor. The value for the
total predicted/estimated chemical emissions exposure may be
provided to and stored 417 by a calendar generator 310 in
non-transitory memory.
[0083] A scheduler 320 may be configured to identify predicted low
chemical emissions periods, and schedule particular tasks during
the low chemical emissions periods. Tasks scheduled during
predicted low chemical emissions periods may include machine
maintenance, training sessions, cleaning and janitorial work, and
other tasks more susceptible to gaseous chemical emissions (e.g.,
heavy exertion). The scheduler may be configured to examine daily,
weekly, and/or monthly variations in actual chemical emissions
levels correlated with scheduled operations to identify low
chemical emissions periods, and predict time variations based on
changes in scheduled operations to identify variations in the
timing of low chemical emissions periods.
[0084] While a time period may be predicted to be a low chemical
emissions period based on historic data and examined variations,
actual chemical emissions levels may be markedly higher than the
predicted chemical emissions levels due to unexpected emergencies
(e.g., delayed material deliveries, fire, weather or natural
disasters), changes in production output (e.g., machine breakdown)
and shortened production deadlines (e.g., running faster, a third
shift). A monitoring system may detect actual chemical emission
levels through sensors, and update the system to adjust the
calculated chemical emissions exposure of the workers, and/or
update the chemical emission maps to reflect that the predicted low
chemical emissions period is not actually a low chemical emissions
period.
[0085] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a monitoring interface and
warning system according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0086] A monitoring interface 340 may be configured to perform
chemical emissions level monitoring utilizing a processor by
receiving signals from one or more sensors, where the signals
represent chemical concentrations, audio and video indications of
activity and/or production levels within one or more chemical
emissions zone(s), as well as electronic signal(s) indicating the
state of machinery and equipment, and the presence of workers. A
monitoring interface 340 may be configured to identify when a piece
of machinery or equipment is in an operating state, and therefore,
generating chemical emissions at an expected concentration. A
monitoring interface 340 may also be configured to store and update
a chemical emissions map to identify chemical emissions zones and
chemical emission concentration levels, where the chemical
emissions map may be time dependent and based on equipment and
machinery operations.
[0087] The monitoring interface 340 may receive and store date and
time data 510 associated with PPE sensor signal data 512 (i.e.,
chemical concentrations) received from mobile chemical sensors
(e.g., sensor badges, portable sniffer) associated one or more
workers, and facility sensor signal data 514 (i.e., chemical
concentrations) received from fixed sensors, for example chemical
detector(s) 145, at specific locations within a facility. The
monitoring interface 340 may include an exposure calculator 516
that integrates the received chemical emission concentration data
over the time period that the data is received to determine a
cumulative actual chemical emissions exposure for each worker, and
stores the received data and calculated cumulative actual chemical
emissions exposure 518 in a non-transitory memory.
[0088] In one or more embodiments, a monitoring interface 340 of
the chemical emissions protection system 190 may monitor the actual
chemical emission concentrations experienced by the one or more
workers in a chemical emissions zone, and compare the actual
chemical emissions concentrations experienced to the predicted
chemical emissions exposure, which may have been calculated by a
scheduler 320. A worker's location and transit path may be
monitored to determine the chemical emissions zone occupied by the
worker when exposed to a detected chemical emission, and compare
the actual chemical emission exposure to the predicted chemical
emissions exposure.
[0089] In one or more embodiments, the monitoring interface 340 may
communicate a difference in the actual and predicted chemical
emissions to the scheduler 320, and corrections to the worker's
schedule may be made to compensate for actual chemical emissions
exposures over or under predicted chemical emissions exposure. The
schedule changes may be communicated to the worker through a mobile
device (e.g., cell phone, pager, laptop, tablet, etc.) or PPE
(e.g., walkie-talkie, headset, etc.). A control signal may be
communicated over a communication path to machinery and/or
equipment in the chemical emissions zone occupied by the worker,
where the control signal causes the machinery and/or equipment to
temporarily slow or shut down to protect the worker.
[0090] The monitoring interface 340 may also be configured to
create and store facility chemical emissions maps 519, and update
chemical emissions maps based on the actual chemical emissions data
received from the sensors. The chemical emissions maps 519 may be
used by the scheduler 320 to calculate a predicted chemical
emissions exposure for the worker for the scheduled time period
when preparing a tentative assignment schedule for a worker.
[0091] A sensor may be a chemical detector 145 that measures
chemical concentrations at a location in the chemical emissions
zone. The chemical detector may be located at a fixed position
within a work area, or may be a mobile device (or part of a mobile
device) located on a worker, which may be part of the worker's
personal protective equipment (PPE).
[0092] In one or more embodiments, the warning system 330 may store
a worker list 520, which includes the value for the cumulative
actual chemical emissions exposure 525 associated with each worker,
a machinery controller 530, which may be coupled to one or more
pieces of machinery or equipment, and may be configured to send
and/or receive control signals to each machine or piece of
equipment through a machine interface 535, and includes hardware
for communicating with the machinery and equipment over a
communication path 189. The warning system 330 may be configured to
receive an indication from a monitoring interface 340 that chemical
emission levels in a chemical emission zone are higher than
predicted. The a machinery controller 530 may be configured to send
a shut-down signal to a machine or piece of equipment in a chemical
emission zone determined to have chemical emission levels higher
than predicted to thereby reduce chemical emissions in the
zone.
[0093] In various embodiments, the warning system 330 may include a
warning system control 540 that is connected to and in
communication with one or more warning indicators, which may be
visual, audible, and/or tactile, and a map 545 of the locations of
the warning indicators for a facility. The warning indicator map
545 may store the location of each warning indicator and or
communication addresses for mobile devices and PPE for workers,
such that warning may be sent to a specific worker or an indicator
in a chemical emission zone may be activated. The warning system
330 may be configured to receive an indication from a monitoring
interface 340 that a worker has a cumulative actual chemical
emissions exposure 525 approaching or above a threshold limit,
which may be determined by an exposure calculator 516, and transmit
a warning to that worker utilizing communication hardware (e.g.,
network interface card, wireless nodes, etc.). A warning may
include instructions to put on particular PPE, to leave a chemical
emission zone, or to take an alternate path to a work location or
operator's station.
[0094] In various embodiments, a calendar generator 310, scheduler
320, warning system 330, and monitoring interface 340 may be part
of a learning module 350 (i.e., cognitive WHIP) that develops
recognition of behavioral patterns and adjusts worker scheduling
based on previously recognized patterns and outcomes to
pre-emptively adjust production and/or worker scheduling, worker
task assignment, worker personal protective equipment allocation,
and/or worker transit paths. The cognitive WHIP 350 may analyze
inputs and/or stored data and information for one or more systems
or modules to develop models that predict chemical emission
exposure levels for a period of time, for example, a worker's
shift, and apply the model to calculate the probability of toxicity
or health damage to a worker for the predicted chemical emission
exposure levels. A chemical emission exposure level may include the
chemical concentrations at a distance from all contributing
chemical emission sources for all expected positions of a worker
during the specified time period, including transitory positions as
a worker moves from one location to another within a chemical
emissions zone.
[0095] A plurality of equipment and machines may contribute to
increased chemical emissions concentrations within a bounded area,
which is referred to as the chemical emissions zone. The chemical
emissions zone may be bounded by physical barriers, such as walls,
doors, ceilings, floors, and other intervening objects (e.g.,
pallets, racks, tanks, hoppers, silos, bins, bags, rolls, etc., of
raw or finished materials) that reduce ventilation and dispersal of
chemical emissions from equipment and machines inside the
identified chemical emissions zone. A monitoring threshold may be
predetermined from prior experience, determined by governmental or
industry standards (e.g., OSHA), known toxicity or danger levels,
or a combination thereof.
[0096] In one or more embodiments, the combination of adjusting a
worker's schedule and assignments, controlling machine and
equipment operation times, altering worker's PPE, and allocating
suitable respiratory protection can reduce exposure to industrial
chemical emissions by the worker.
[0097] In a non-limiting example, a specific worker may be assigned
to operate a piece of equipment that has been determined to
generate a known chemical emission at the operator's station, in
addition, prior analysis of operator behavior has determined that
an operator moves closer to the equipment an average number of
times per time period to perform other intermittent operations
resulting in an increased chemical emissions exposure for short
durations, other machines and equipment within the identified
chemical emissions zone have been identified as contributing to the
chemical emissions at the worker' location, as measured using fixed
and/or mobile sensors. The worker is known to move from an entrance
to the identified chemical emissions zone to the operator's station
along a known and recognized path (e.g., the worker's habitual or
predefined path though the work area), which includes exposure to
varying chemical emissions generated by other machines and
equipment within the identified chemical emissions zone along the
worker's path.
[0098] In one or more embodiments, a warning system 330 may be
configured to present information to one or more workers that an
unacceptable chemical emission concentration level exists in a
chemical emissions zone, where the worker may be informed about the
zones via augmented reality.
[0099] In various embodiments, the chemical emissions protection
system 190 accepts all of the data and inputs, and calculates the
worker's total predicted exposure for an entire time period (e.g.,
shift). The worker's schedule and/or assignments may be altered to
avoid and/or reduce particular identified exposures, and the
equipment and machinery production may be interrupted to lower the
chemical emissions along the worker's path or at the operator
station to reduce the total actual chemical emissions exposure in
response to the estimated chemical emissions exposure. The total
accumulated chemical emissions exposure may thereby be kept within
a predetermined limit.
[0100] FIG. 6 is a block/flow diagram of a method 600 of training a
cognitive WHIP according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0101] The cognitive WHIP may correlate a schedule of activities
stored by the cognitive WHIP system with a plurality of indicators
to associate the occurrence of an chemical emission event with a
particular activity scheduled at the time of the occurrence in
reference to a particular indicator.
[0102] In block 610, the cognitive WHIP may learn which chemical
emissions sources exist in a facility and contribute to the
chemical emissions concentration levels, so chemical emissions
events may be identified.
[0103] In block 620, the cognitive WHIP may learn which workers may
be present in the facility and may be exposed to the chemical
emission concentration levels.
[0104] In block 630, the cognitive WHIP may learn which indicators
occur prior to a chemical emissions event or contribute to the
chemical emission concentration level.
[0105] In block 640, the cognitive WHIP detects actual chemical
emissions events and/or chemical emission concentration levels.
[0106] In block 650, the cognitive WHIP correlates the chemical
emissions event or chemical emission concentration level with the
learned indicator, so that the detection of an indicator by the
cognitive WHIP can be utilized to predict the occurrence of the
chemical emissions event or chemical emission concentration
level.
[0107] In block 660, the cognitive WHIP identifies the time and
date of the indicator and the chemical emissions event or chemical
emission concentration level, and identifies operations schedule at
the time of the chemical emissions event or chemical emission
concentration level in the chemical emissions zone. The indicator
may be used as a trigger to learn the inter-relationship between
the scheduled operation and the chemical emissions event or
chemical emission concentration level.
[0108] In block 670, the cognitive WHIP learns which machinery or
equipment operating at the time of the chemical emissions event or
chemical emission concentration level is the chemical emission
source based on the scheduled operation.
[0109] In block 680, the cognitive WHIP is trained to identify
which indicators correlate with the machinery or equipment
operating at the time of the chemical emissions event or chemical
emission concentration level is the chemical emission source based
on the scheduled operation. By recognizing that a particular
indicator foretells the occurrence of a chemical emissions event or
chemical emission concentration level when a particular operation
is scheduled, the cognitive WHIP system can learn to recognize
which indicators, chemical emission events, and scheduled
activities are inter-related, and predict what chemical emission
concentration levels are expected to occur in a chemical emission
zone based on scheduled activities. The information can be compiled
in a database as the cognitive WHIP learns new correlations.
[0110] The cognitive WHIP may implement ameliorative actions based
on the scheduled operations and corresponding chemical emission
events or chemical emission concentration levels.
[0111] FIG. 7 is an exemplary processing system 700 to which the
present principles may be applied in accordance with an embodiment
of the present disclosure. The processing system 700 includes at
least one processor (CPU) 704 operatively coupled to other
components via a system bus 702. A cache 706, a Read Only Memory
(ROM) 708, a Random Access Memory (RAM) 710, an input/output (I/O)
adapter 720, a sound adapter 730, a network adapter 740, a user
interface adapter 750, and a display adapter 760, are operatively
coupled to the system bus 702.
[0112] A first storage device 722 and a second storage device 724
are operatively coupled to system bus 702 by the I/O adapter 720.
The storage devices 722 and 724 can be any of a disk storage device
(e.g., a magnetic or optical disk storage device), a solid state
magnetic device, and so forth. The storage devices 722 and 724 can
be the same type of storage device or different types of storage
devices.
[0113] A speaker 732 is operatively coupled to system bus 702 by
the sound adapter 230. A transceiver 742 is operatively coupled to
system bus 702 by network adapter 740. A display device 762 is
operatively coupled to system bus 702 by display adapter 760.
[0114] A first user input device 752, a second user input device
754, and a third user input device 756 are operatively coupled to
system bus 702 by user interface adapter 750. The user input
devices 752, 754, and 756 can be any of a keyboard, a mouse, a
keypad, an image capture device, a motion sensing device, a
microphone, a device incorporating the functionality of at least
two of the preceding devices, and so forth. Of course, other types
of input devices can also be used, while maintaining the spirit of
the present principles. The user input devices 752, 754, and 756
can be the same type of user input device or different types of
user input devices. The user input devices 752, 754, and 756 are
used to input and output information to and from system 700.
[0115] Of course, the processing system 700 may also include other
elements (not shown), as readily contemplated by one of skill in
the art, as well as omit certain elements. For example, various
other input devices and/or output devices can be included in
processing system 700, depending upon the particular implementation
of the same, as readily understood by one of ordinary skill in the
art. For example, various types of wireless and/or wired input
and/or output devices can be used. Moreover, additional processors,
controllers, memories, and so forth, in various configurations can
also be utilized as readily appreciated by one of ordinary skill in
the art. These and other variations of the processing system 700
are readily contemplated by one of ordinary skill in the art given
the teachings of the present principles provided herein.
[0116] Moreover, it is to be appreciated that system 700 is a
system for implementing respective embodiments of the present
principles. Part or all of processing system 700 may be implemented
in one or more of the elements of FIG. 3.
[0117] Further, it is to be appreciated that processing system 700
may perform at least part of the method described herein including,
for example, at least part of method 200 of FIG. 2, and method 600
of FIG. 6.
[0118] Having described preferred embodiments of a system and
method for predicting exposure to harmful chemical emission levels
by detecting at least some of the one or more indicators (which are
intended to be illustrative and not limiting), it is noted that
modifications and variations can be made by persons skilled in the
art in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be
understood that changes may be made in the particular embodiments
disclosed which are within the scope of the invention as outlined
by the appended claims. Having thus described aspects of the
invention, with the details and particularity required by the
patent laws, what is claimed and desired protected by Letters
Patent is set forth in the appended claims.
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