As a multifunctional production system, the FoF should be able to deal efficiently with short production cycles, constantly changing production contents and strong customization. It should also be able to respond flexibly and adequately to deviations and disturbances.
The FoF is by nature flexible and system association constantly adapting to changed boundary conditions and goals. This means as well that deviations from normal or desired behavior and hazards are much more difficult to detect than in traditional manufacturing systems.
In the FoF human and machine work in close collaboration. Increased automation in the FoF leads to a strong increase in the direct cooperation of humans with robots and other automated facilities without explicit spatial separation.
In the FoF, very large amounts of data are collected cumulatively. The challenge is to analyze this huge amount of data in real time, recognize patterns and draw conclusions.
The FoF will use AI-based methods for monitoring and anomaly detection, decision support or decision automation, and behavioral optimization in a variety of areas.