*1.1. Research Background*

In the past, as a result of underdeveloped technology, production was costly and consumed considerable resources including time; Also, the output was low, which caused failure in meeting customers' product demand on schedule. Moreover, there was no system capable of monitoring the production line to implement quality control in real time. The low quality of goods indirectly caused credit problems with customers. This led to the rise of the so-called industrial revolution, which gradually solved the problems related to resources, time, and output. In the last decade, Germany first proposed the concept of Industry 4.0, which integrates the current Internet of Things (IoT), IT, virtual reality, and other technologies for developing smart factories and smart grids to, in turn, achieve smart cities. For the English abbreviation of this study, please see Appendix A.

Similar to those in Germany and Japan, companies in Taiwan that are confronted with problems in production have gradually implemented intelligent production lines. In this study, the research object is Solen company, which is committed to the manufacture of specialized and automated motor products as well as complex key electromagnetic components. The factories in operation are located in Taoyuan, Kaohsiung, Taiwan and Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. The motor manufacturing plant in Ho Chi Minh City is an original design model manufacturer commissioned by the original factory of Japan's M company to manufacture and deliver motors. In this study, the motor assembly and coil assembly production lines are surveyed. It is found that the production line employs considerable manpower to inspect the motor appearance and test motor performance. A semi-automatic production mode, which uses both humans and machines, is employed in processes operated by personnel; hence, labor cost is substantial.

It has been reported in literature that artificial intelligence [1] can be utilized to collect and analyze the fault mechanism of motor insulation, and image recognition can assist in the inspection of the motor's rotor appearance [2]. Artificial intelligence can also collect vibration signals through machine learning-based techniques [3] to evaluate sound data and implement automatic fault detection functions. If cyber-physical systems (CPSs) used in the aviation, automotive, chemical process, and infrastructure manufacturing industries can be introduced into the production line, then costs may be reduced and production capacity may increase, thereby achieving a fully automated model. Moreover, the growth of the world's population has gradually changed in recent years; hence, if intelligent systems can be employed to reduce manpower in the production line, then the problem of insufficient manpower may also be resolved in the future.

### *1.2. Research Objectives*

The purpose of this study is to explore the application of intelligent systems in motor and coil assembly production lines as well as to determine the available intelligent systems. The research questions are as follows.

(1) What is the current status of "SM" (Solen Vietnam Motor Production Line) motor and coil assembly lines in Vietnam, and are there intelligent systems in place?

At present, there are seven employees in the motor assembly line. Each employee is assigned to a workbench to assemble the motor and test its operation on a machine. After completion, the motor is transferred to the next workbench for final visual inspection before shipment. All of these are manually implemented.

(2) After understanding the current status of the "SM" motor and coil assembly lines in Vietnam, what intelligent system may be implemented in the future to support the motor and coil assembly lines?

In this study, secondary data collection, field survey, and interview are conducted to determine the intelligent system that may be utilized to support the production line.

#### *1.3. Literature Review*

In this study, we collected relevant literature on intelligent systems, Industry 4.0 and motor production lines; In particular, this paper analyzes the motor production process in nine steps.

#### 1.3.1. Intelligent Systems and Industry 4.0

In an information-developed society, the use of intelligent systems is necessary to aid companies in resolving complex problems and facilitating the allocation of manpower. The interpretation of smart systems varies from industry to industry; the perspectives of experts also vary. Many people quote Prof. John McCarthy (recognized as the father of artificial intelligence) who said, "artificial intelligence is to make machines behave like intelligent behaviors shown by humans." It is akin to putting human wisdom on a system so that it can autonomously make reasonable evaluations and implement external changes. Simply put, an intelligent system must be able to aid people to perceive changes, analyze judgments, and perform tasks [4].

Currently, many intelligent systems can directly send and receive information, analyze received information, and perform tasks automatically. Moreover, with the development of 5G technology, these functions can be performed anytime and anywhere to rapidly process tasks and produce outputs for the enterprise or users.


With the advent of globalization, the trade competition among countries has become increasingly intense. In this era, the Internet as well as science and technology have rapidly developed. Industry 4.0 was first proposed in the German Industry Fair in 2011 as a high-tech industrial plan. Thereafter, plans for the U.S. manufacturing partners, i.e., Japanese Industry 4.1J, Korean Manufacturing Innovation 3.0, and Made in China 2025, were made public.

In literature, it has been reported that [8] Industry 4.0 is the result of the fourth industrial revolution that has not been fully completed. Similar to other historical periods, the introduction of structural changes to production processes can lead to significant innovations and changes, which will also considerably impact production as well as influence and ultimately generate new business models. Industry 4.0 is comprised of technologies, equipment, and processes that allow a self-sufficient production model. This model can run the supply chain in an integrated manner at multiple stages and production process levels as well as operate with minimal human effort.

Industry 4.0 also represents the process of automating high-tech integration with manufacturing. Its contents include the integration of sales and products, and production and sales processes are customized. To obtain various data for the production process, an IoT framework that assists production is established. The big data information analysis technology is utilized for enabling operators to understand engineering and product-related data from the machine computer and identify the project and its stage of implementation. The objective is to improve the existing quality of the product and make appropriate decisions. The concept of Industry 4.0 includes the use of paradigms and technologies to support big data, augmented reality, robotics, CPSs, cloud computing, and the industrial Internet to promote the shift from traditional factories to intelligent production [9].
