A report describing the failure of a piece of equipment or item, its cause, and the corrective action taken to prevent the recurrence of the failure. [SAMA].
Feedback
The determination of the degree or manner of accomplishment of the control action and the use of the information to assure that the control action is accomplished. Degree and type of feedback needed by the equipment about a variety of different factors, such as tolerance, temperature, density , and so on.
Feedback Control
A type of system control obtained when a portion of the output signal is operated upon and fed back to the input in order to obtain a desired effect.
Feedforward Control
A control strategy that anticipates any control systems upset or disturbance and takes corrective action so that deviations to the controlled variable(s) can be minimized.
Fiber Optics
A medium that uses light conducted through glass or plastic fibers for data transmission.
Field Bus
A standard developed by ISA (designated S50) for a bus to interconnect process control sensors, actuators, and control devices.
Finish Specification
The finish specification establishes the method and requirements for protective treatments and finishes for materials, parts, etc. [SAMA].
Finished Goods
A product sold as a completed item or repair part or any item subject to a customer order or sales forecast. All manufacturing operations, including final test, have been completed. These may be finished parts, renewal parts or finished products [APIC]. Synonym: Finished Product, End-Item.
Finite Loading
Conceptually, the term means putting no more work into a factory than the factory can be expected to execute. The specific term usually refers to a computer technique that involves automatic shop priority revision to level load operation by operation.
FIPS
Federal Information Processing Standards (see NBS).
Fixed Costs
An expenditure that does not vary with production volume, such as rent, property tax, administrative salaries, etc. [APIC].
Flow Rate
(1) Running rate: The inverse of cycle time, for example, 360 units per shift [APIC]. (2) Continuous/Liquid/Fluid/Gaseous flow in terms of Units/Second-Minute-Hour.
FMS
Flexible Manufacturing Systems.
Forecast
An estimate of the future demand. A forecast can be determined by mathematical means using historical data and it can be created from informal techniques or both. [APIC]. A forecast is an extrapolation of the past into the future. It is an objective computation involving data as opposed to an informal predication of changes and new factors influencing demand. [CMSG].
Forward Chaining
A type of system activity that applies operators to a current state in order to produce a new state until the solution is reached. In an expert system, a forward-chaining rule detects certain facts in the database and takes action because of them. [DEC].
Frame
A knowledge representation technique based on the idea of a frame of reference. A frame carries with it a set of slots which can represent objects that are normally associated with the frame's subject, allowing frame-based systems to support inferences.
Framework System
A type of artificial intelligence systems-building tool designed to reduce the amount of time required to develop an expert system. A knowledge engineer customizes a framework system for a specific application by building a knowledge base for the problem domain of interest.
FTAM
File Transfer Access and Management Protocol (ISO DP 8571). FTAM is one of the application protocols specified by MAP and TOP. (Obsolete-included for historical purposes)
Function
A group of tasks that can be classified as having a common objective within a company.
Function Analysis
The task of developing and studying each of the tasks to be carried out by an enterprise in performing its established mission.
Function Design
The task of making a preliminary design of the systemnecessary to carry out the established mission of an enterprise.
Functional Requirement
A specification constraining the way in which a given task is to be performed, the results to be obtained (speed, accuracy, etc.) as well as the elements of the functional entities involved (initiator, source, receptor, etc.).
Functional Entity
A cohesive collection of elements (humans, machines, computers, control devices, computer programs [any or all]) required to carry out one or more closely related tasks or transformations which comprise a recognized function of the manufacturing plant in fulfilling the established manufacturing policy of the company, e.g., production units or staff departments, etc.
A functional entity may contain other functional entities.
An application functional entity is involved in carrying out the primary mission of the manufacturing plant in question as outlined by the established manufacturing policy of the company. It is directly concerned with the handling and control of raw materials, intermediates and products of the company. The principles of autonomy and locality apply to these entities.
Application functional entities serve as sources and/or sinks of process operational data in the problem domain. They are made up of manufacturing specific functional entities and the physical means of production or plant production media.
A foundation functional entity is a cohesive collection of elements (possibly shared) that carry out a generic supporting function. It does not necessarily obey the principles of autonomy and locality in its operations. Examples of foundation functional entities are:
Communications
Man-Machine Interfaces
Control Library
Operating Systems
Databases
Sensor Management
Graphics Packages
Statistical Quality Control Systems
Hardware Etc.
Manufacturing-specific functional entities
are commonly elements of larger applications functional entities but may be listed as separate entities in their own right. They form the parts of the application functional entities that are included in the plant's integrated information and automation system in contrast to the plant production media that carry out the physical production steps and material handling functions of the plant. Manufacturing specific functional entities will commonly include foundation functional entities within their make-up. Examples of manufacturing-specific functional entities are:
Computer System Configurations
Product Shipping
Administration
Cost Accounting
Product and Process Planning
Inventory Management
Purchasing (Raw Material and Spares)
Maintenance Planning
Quality Control
Order Entry
Resource Management Scheduling
Plant production media functional entities
comprise those physical production machines, equipment and devices including material handling, which move, position, and transform raw materials into the desired products of the manufacturing enterprise.