Additive manufacturing - also known as 3D printing - includes manufacturing processes in which a component is usually built up layer by layer. This article describes the opportunities, hurdles and the current state of development of additive manufacturing.
additive manufacturing, 3D printing
Tool wear is of great economic relevance for forging companies. In addition to the maintenance costs, wear-related rejects are also produced. In the course of the research project “Processes for lot sizing planning in consideration of abrasion”, a method was developed for the determination of component-specific cost functions depending on the tool wear. The method allows the determination of a lot size, that leads to a most cost saving production.
lot sizing planning, tool wear, method, software demonstrator, forging tools
By using digital tools in the factory planning process, the planning quality can be improved and the duration of the project can be shortened. In order to exploit these potentials, data consistency must be guaranteed throughout the planning process. In this article, digital factory planning tools, used at the Institut für Integrierte Produktion Hannover (IPH), will be presented and their applications and requirements will be discussed.
digital factory planning, factory planning process, data consistency, digital tools
Multi-stage process chains are often used for the efficient production of complex geometries. These consist of a homogeneous heating, one or more preform stages and the final forging step. Via inhomogeneously heated blanks, the process chains are to be simplified or shortened. This is to be achieved by setting several, clearly defined temperature fields in which different yield stresses are present. These can influence the material flow, leading to an easier production of complex parts.
inhomogeneous heating, bulk forming, preforming processes
By automating process steps, additive manufacturing can be integrated into industrial value chains. The Institut für Integrierte Produktion Hannover (IPH) gGmbH has been designing a process chain linking 3d printers and mounting stations automatically.
additive manufacturing, 3D printing
The selection of a storage commissioning and transport system in times of industry 4.0 often takes place based on the automation that these systems bring with them. It is difficult to assert the actual level of automation from these systems. This paper presents general approaches for the determination of automation. After it will give a presentation of the developed method to identify the level of automation from systems.
level of automation, storage, commissioning and transport systems, storage planning, logistics
Bulk-formed components are used in many applications in automotive and plant engineering. The conditions under which the components are manufactured, often at more than 800°C and thousands of tons of forming force, lead to high die wear. One way to reduce wear is to use suitable protective coatings. Initial basic investigations showed that the use of hard Diamond-like Carbon (DLC) wear-resistant coatings can significantly reduce the tribological effects on the die surface. With new methods such as the use of multilayer layer coatings and temperature measurement on the die surface by use of thin layer sensors, the potential of wear protection for semi-hot massive forming is to be investigated and expanded.
DLC, hot forging, wear
Drones are often used in outdoor areas. Though drone are able to do more, e.g. to measure and digitalize the indoor layout structure of production environments. Further more it is possible to plan the production structure directly in the digital model with image processing algorithms. The combination of both step allows a faster and more efficient production planning process.
drone, layoutscan, production planning, digitalization
The melt level and oxide layer quantity in an aluminum melting furnace cannot be monitored by contact sensors, since the melting bath is not accessible due to the high holding temperature (above 600°C). Therefore, the method of monitoring the melting bath by means of optical sensors is investigated for the first time. For this purpose, suitable optical measuring systems can be applied which will be able to record the melting bath. The height change of the melt is to be elaborated by means of image analysis and any oxide layer on the bath surface is to be detected.
aluminum melting furnace, metling bath monitoring, oxide layer
Abstract: For factory planning projects the layout capturing and layout processing process need a huge amount of effort, because they are typically done by hand. These processes could be accelerated and optimized by using a drone and automated analysis algorithms. Furthermore, this article shows a way to raise the digitization level for industrial processes. The key aspect lies on the usage of a drone in indoor environment and the processing of three-dimensional point cloud models for factory planning processes.
drone, factory planning, 3D-factory layout, object recognition
For the establishment of innovative manufacturing processes, consistent results and increased tool life is very important. When using slider tools in multidirectional forging processes, tool life identification has not been occurred yet. For the industrial implementation of slider tools, the influence of different process parameters on the resulting tool life is to be determined and a construction guideline for tool life increasement is created.
multi-directional forging, tool life optimization, design guidelines, toolmaking
The CO2 emissions of the logistics sector and the resulting environmental impact are continuously increasing. Rising costs for energy and resources, increased sensitivity of customers, changed legal bases and the impending climatic change force producing enterprises to ecologically-oriented rethink. The lack of knowledge about interdependencies, quantitative effects of actions and parameter characteristics prevents SMEs from the implementation. A holistic ecological-logistical impact model with software implementation can support SMEs reaching their potential. Requirements for the model and fundamental relationships between logistic parameters and ecological target values are presented in this publication.
SME, logistic, ecology
Since 2015 the Mittelstand 4.0 Centre of Excellence "Mit uns digital!" informs SMEs in Lower Saxony and Bremen about the opportunities and challenges of digitalisation. Now the funding from the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs was renewed.
digitalization, industry 4.0, SMEs
Material efficiency and the development time of a forging sequence are decisive criteria for increasing the economic efficiency in the production of complex forgings. SMEs can often only interpret forging sequences in a shortened form due to insufficient capacities and high competitive pressure. Therefore, a generally valid method is to be developed that automatically generates multi-stage, efficient forging sequences based on the mass distribution of any forged part.
automated process design, die forging, resource efficiency
Driverless transport systems (AGV-Systems) are an established and effective instrument for increasing the profitability of modern production plants and making intralogistical processes more efficient. In addition to a master control system and a communication system, driverless transport vehicles (AGVs) are among the main components of an AGV-System. In relation to manually controlled industrial trucks, automated AGVs are characterised by higher efficiency. The disadvantage of AGV-Systems is that they are not able to solve critical operating situations independently. In this case, extensive intervention by specialist personnel is required.
With the aim of overcoming these obstacles, the project "Mobile Human-Machine Interaction for commissioning and control of AGV-Systems (MobiMMI)" was developed. In this project, the human-machine interaction between an operator and an AGV is to be extended by the use of a speech and gesture-based system in order to make the intervention by the operator easier and more intuitive and thus significantly reduce the acquisition and operating costs of AGV-Systems.
Against the background of safety, ergonomics, user-friendliness and integrability, a mobile system will be developed for this purpose and equipped with various sensors for 3D detection of the environment, indoor positioning and multimodal communication. The recorded data is evaluated by means of computer vision and machine learning, enabling the operator to react quickly and easily to critical operating situations.
automated guided vehicle, human-machine-interface
More and more players in the German wind energy sector are concerned with the question of how to deal with the aging German wind fleet, as around 5,200 turbines will simultaneously reach the end of the feed-in tariff funding period of the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) for the first time at the end of 2020. Around 8,000 wind turbines will follow by the end of 2025, as shown in Figure 1. Operators of affected wind turbines will then have the choice between (I) continuing to operate the old turbine within the framework of direct marketing on the European Power Exchange, (II) repowering the old turbine by a new and more efficient wind turbine at plant-specific feed-in premium levels tendered in the German renewable energy auctions or (III) decommissioning the respective plant finally.
However, the question of choosing the right option arises not only for the operators themselves, but also for various other players in the wind energy sector:
Project developers, turbine manufacturers, and investors are interested in evaluations of plant-specific repowering potentials in the existing wind turbine fleet in order to provide operators with targeted support in implementing new projects; dismantling contractors and disposal companies particularly search for derivatives of plant-specific dismantling potentials and the associated disposal and recycling flows in order to enable optimal handling of the comprehensive dismantling processes; and regional as well as supra-regional public and political institutions are interested in estimates of changes to the installed wind energy capacity in order to enable optimal control of future capacity expansion under consideration of societal, economic and political aspects.
dismantling, wind turbine
Belt conveyor systems are an excellent way to handle bulk material. As loads and distances increase, those systems become bigger and energy efficiency becomes an important factor. The energy consumption of belt conveyor systems is primary determined by the drive power. The drive power is the sum of the main drive power and the power of all intermediate drives, if present. The implementation of driven support rollers allows to reduce the load on the conventional drive based at the head of a conveyor system, by splitting it to multiple driven rollers. The main drive can be build smaller, which leads to a lower energy consumption and therewith to cost savings during the production. Furthermore, driven rollers enable the concept of modular belt conveyor systems, what would be impossible with the conventional head drives. This gives planners more flexibility for engineering new or modifying existing conveyor systems.
Despite the great opportunities and promising characteristics of driven rollers, they yet have not been used in daily operation. Without having sufficient knowledge about the behavior of driven rollers under certain conditions, as heat or cold, and the economic efficiency of them, the benefit is questioned. To bridge the lack of knowledge, investigations and research need to be done. A test rig for driven rollers is indispensable to develop this technology into a marketable commodity. At the same time a test process needs to be implemented.
This paper gives an overview about driven rollers and an accurate insight in the development of a test rig for investigating driven rollers. With this test rig, the use of driven rollers can be simulated under certain climatic conditions. Moreover, different loads and speeds can also be simulated by using state-of-the-art technology.
Driven roller, belt conveyor system, energy efficiency, test rig, cost savings
In this paper, the validation of an inductive sensor for an energy self-sufficient sensor for condition monitoring of wet-running steel disc clutches in marine gearboxes is presented. For a reliable operation of these a permanent monitoring of their state is advisable. As part of condition-based maintenance, more and more sensors are being installed in machines. Reliability becomes even more important when people are endangered by possible failure of the machines. In shipping, it is essential that, for example, the powertrain and thus the transmission are in perfect condition. In case of long distance traveling, wear or even damage of important components has to be known so that maintenance can be carried out proactively. To address this need an energy self-sufficient and wireless sensor network is developed. Miniaturized sensor nodes monitor torque, rotational speeds, temperatures as well as the wear condition of the torque transmitting components. The energy needed to operate these sensors is obtained from the surrounding environment. Thus, the system operates wirelessly and without an external energy supply, whereby the installation and maintenance costs decrease significantly. In addition to the concept of sensor integration in the transmission, the energy harvesting concept is also described in more detail. Finally, measurements are taken in a gear-like environment and the behavior of a magnetoinductive sensor in a not constantly supplied situation has been examined.
ship, gearbox, wear, sensor, torque
At the end of 2020, around 6,000 wind turbines will simultaneously fall out of the 20-year subsidy under the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) for the first time. Around 8,000 further wind turbines will follow by the end of 2025. Operators of affected wind turbines will then have the choice between continuing to operate the old turbine at the significantly lower spot market prices of the European Power Exchange (EPEX), operating a new and more efficient wind turbine at the site of the old turbine (repowering) at auctioned conditions or finally decommissioning it. Quo vadis 20 years old Wind trubines? Scientists from the Institut für Integrierte Produktion Hannover (IPH) have therefore been working on the "DemoNetXXL" project, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), in cooperation with the Institute for Information Systems at Leibniz University Hanover on the selection and design of optimal post-utilisation strategies for wind power plants.
wind turbines, plants repowering, post-use strategies, dismantling
In lightweight automotive construction, hybrid structures made of various materials as well as solid and sheet metal elements are used. By hybrid compound forging, a sheet steel and a solid aluminium part can already be joined in a material-locking manner during the forming process. The Institut für Integrierte Produktion Hannover (IPH) gGmbH and the Institut für Schweißtechnik und Trennende Fertigungsverfahren (ISAF) of TU Clausthal are investigating how solid aluminium bolts and steel sheets can be joined in a material-locking manner. This article explains the decisive forming parameters. Furthermore, the tool design for the joining tests is presented.
lightweight construction, aluminum, compound forging
