Toyota and Hitachi are to collaborate on the creation of a high-efficiency production model using an IoT platform, starting in October.
In partnership, Toyota and Hitachi aim to improve the productivity and quality of processes at manufacturing sites using Hitachi’s Internet of Things (IoT) platform, Lumada.
Hitachi’s IoT platform utilises digital technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and big data analysis, which will help the pair resolve many issues at manufacturing sites by allowing the PDCA cycle to be accelerated.
Both companies will carry out verification at Toyota’s model plants next month and through that a plant IoT platform will be established in each of the model plants for vehicles and units.
The platform consists of a data acquisition and integration layer predominately, but also includes a data accumulation and data utilisation layer. Facilities, devices and systems across manufacturing sites will be connected to the platform so data can be consumed and analysed.
By connecting all these elements together allows the two companies to use IoT across different manufacturing processes for improvements resulting in an accelerated PDCA cycle.
In a statement from Toyota, the company said: “Toyota and Hitachi intend to make further use of the data, new technologies and know-how that will be obtained in this verification and strive to cultivate human resources in the IoT field, creating new value to offer business solutions for manufacturing sites and business operations.”
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Using big data analysis, Toyota and Hitachi aim to form a system that will prevent unexpected failures happening across facilities and extend the system across other various processes, to improve the efficiency of maintenance work.
Another target for the pair is to maintain quality of manufacturing processes and products. Toyota and Hitachi aim to do this by obtaining and analysing data from the various processes, and carry out verifications of those to ensure quality is kept intact.
The operation is expected to be carried out later this month.
