Smart factory technology, a core component of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, demonstrates significant disparities in technological development across countries. To quantitatively assess these international technology gaps, this study proposes an integrated analytical framework that combines text mining-based topic modeling and social network analysis (SNA), using global smart factory-related patent data from 2017 to 2023. Approximately 4,300 patent documents (titles and abstracts) were collected through the GPASS system and preprocessed. Through Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) modeling with optimized hyperparameters, major technology topics were identified. Semantic interpretation using ChatGPT and expert review enabled the assignment of precise topic labels, which were further mapped to CPC (Cooperative Patent Classification) codes to construct a standardized technology taxonomy. Subsequently, the network structures of topic and classification nodes were analyzed by country (China, the United States, and South Korea), and the relative importance of key technology areas was evaluated using centrality metrics such as degree, closeness, betweenness, and eigenvector centrality. The analysis revealed that, globally, the most central technology areas include manufacturing process management and control, IoT and data-driven decision making, and facility-based process optimization. At the national level, China showed a strategic focus on technologies related to product quality improvement and cost reduction, South Korea emphasized IoT-enabled technologies and equipment-level optimization, while the United States prioritized control systems and data-driven project management. By utilizing patent-based textual data, this study offers a novel methodology for quantitatively diagnosing structural differences in national technological capabilities. The proposed framework provides valuable insights for country-specific R&D planning and strategic decision-making in the field of smart manufacturing.

Small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises(SMEs) have traditionally relied on skilled labor to support multi-variety, small-batch production. However, demographic changes such as low birth rates and aging populations have led to severe labor shortages, prompting increased interest in collaborative robots(cobots) as a viable alternative. Despite this necessity, many SMEs continue to face significant challenges in implementing such technologies due to technical, organizational, and environmental(TOE) constraints. While prior research has mainly focused on technology adoption from the perspective of user organizations, this study adopts a differentiated approach by analyzing adoption factors from the perspective of smart factory experts—specifically, evaluators/mentors and solution providers—who play a critical role in Korea’s policy-driven smart manufacturing environment. Using the Analytic Hierarchy Process(AHP), the study evaluates the relative importance and prioritization of adoption factors across three dimensions: technology, organization, and environment. Survey data collected from 20 smart factory experts indicate that top management support, relative advantage, and safety are key determinants in cobot adoption. Furthermore, the findings reveal that organizational readiness and technical effectiveness have greater influence on implementation decisions than external pressures such as partner pressure. This study provides new insights by incorporating expert perspectives into the adoption framework and offers practical policy and managerial implications to support cobots implementation in the SMEs.

As the Fourth Industrial Revolution advances, smart factories have become a new manufacturing paradigm, integrating technologies such as Information and Communication Technology (ICT), the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and big data analytics to overcome traditional manufacturing limitations and enhance global competitiveness. This study offers a comprehensive approach by evaluating both technological and economic performance of smart factory Research and Development (R&D) projects, addressing gaps in previous studies that focused narrowly on either aspect. The research combines Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) topic modeling and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to quantitatively compare the efficiency of various topics. This integrated approach not only identifies key research themes but also evaluates how effectively resources are utilized within each theme, supporting strategic decision-making for optimal resource allocation. Additionally, non-parametric statistical tests are applied to detect performance differences between topics, providing insights into areas of comparative advantage. Unlike traditional DEA methods, which face limitations in generalizing results, this study offers a more nuanced analysis by benchmarking efficiency across thematic areas. The findings highlight the superior performance of projects incorporating AI, IoT, and big data, as well as those led by the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE) and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The regional analysis reveals significant contributions from non-metropolitan areas, emphasizing the need for balanced development. This research provides policymakers and industry leaders with strategic insights, guiding the efficient allocation of R&D resources and fostering the development of smart factories aligned with global trends and national goals.

In this study, we propose a novel approach to analyze big data related to patents in the field of smart factories, utilizing the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) topic modeling method and the generative artificial intelligence technology, ChatGPT. Our method includes extracting valuable insights from a large data-set of associated patents using LDA to identify latent topics and their corresponding patent documents. Additionally, we validate the suitability of the topics generated using generative AI technology and review the results with domain experts. We also employ the powerful big data analysis tool, KNIME, to preprocess and visualize the patent data, facilitating a better understanding of the global patent landscape and enabling a comparative analysis with the domestic patent environment. In order to explore quantitative and qualitative comparative advantages at this juncture, we have selected six indicators for conducting a quantitative analysis. Consequently, our approach allows us to explore the distinctive characteristics and investment directions of individual countries in the context of research and development and commercialization, based on a global-scale patent analysis in the field of smart factories. We anticipate that our findings, based on the analysis of global patent data in the field of smart factories, will serve as vital guidance for determining individual countries' directions in research and development investment. Furthermore, we propose a novel utilization of GhatGPT as a tool for validating the suitability of selected topics for policy makers who must choose topics across various scientific and technological domains.

Manufacturing process mining performs various data analyzes of performance on event logs that record production. That is, it analyzes the event log data accumulated in the information system and extracts useful information necessary for business execution. Process data analysis by process mining analyzes actual data extracted from manufacturing execution systems (MES) to enable accurate manufacturing process analysis. In order to continuously manage and improve manufacturing and manufacturing processes, there is a need to structure, monitor and analyze the processes, but there is a lack of suitable technology to use. The purpose of this research is to propose a manufacturing process analysis method using process mining and to establish a manufacturing process mining system by analyzing empirical data. In this research, the manufacturing process was analyzed by process mining technology using transaction data extracted from MES. A relationship model of the manufacturing process and equipment was derived, and various performance analyzes were performed on the derived process model from the viewpoint of work, equipment, and time. The results of this analysis are highly effective in shortening process lead times (bottleneck analysis, time analysis), improving productivity (throughput analysis), and reducing costs (equipment analysis).

The purpose of this study is to suggest a plan to improve the level of acceptance of related technologies and the transition to smart factories of small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises by using ‘technology readiness’ and ‘integrated technology acceptance model’. To this end, the research hypothesis was verified by collecting questionnaire data from 130 small and medium- sized manufacturing companies in Korea and conducting path analysis. First, optimism affects performance expectations, social influence, and facilitation conditions, innovation affects performance expectations, effort expectations, and social influence, discomfort affects performance expectations, social influence, and facilitation conditions, and anxiety affects effort expectations, social influence and facilitation conditions. has been proven to affect Finally, performance expectations, effort expectations, social influence, and facilitation conditions were verified to have a significant positive effect on the intention to accept technology.