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Distributed design is now the norm: Why CAD must evolve to support it

By Jon Hirschtick The wide-bodied Boeing 787 Dreamliner is a long-range passenger plane designed for comfort. The celebrated aircraft’s unique features include: more headroom (higher ceilings and overhead luggage bins), more legroom, a “comfier recline,” 21% more fuel efficiency, bigger windows and “infinity mood lighting.” When the first Dreamliner came off the production line on July 8, 2007 (not coincidentally “07-08-07”), there was much industry fanfare. Boeing hired former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw to host a red carpet affair for 15,000 employees and even commissioned a Dreamliner theme song. Chief rival Airbus graciously sent a congratulatory letter to Boeing, declaring it “a great day in aviation history.” But beyond the funky mood lighting and more comfortable coach experience, the Dreamliner represented a landmark moment in distributed design. Instead of building a complete aircraft under one roof, the 787 would have its major components designed and built in many different factories spread across the globe. The cargo doors, for example, would come from Saab in Sweden; engine parts from Rolls-Royce in England; and wing sections from Mitsubishi in Japan. In total, 17 design teams in 10 countries would play a major role. On a varying scale, Boeing’s distributed design and manufacturing chain shift has become the norm rather than the exception. As the lead founder of SolidWorks and now as the lead founder of Onshape, I’ve spent a tremendous amount of time visiting CAD customers and have witnessed some dramatic changes in the way product ideas become a reality. Three profound things have happened to design teams, most noticeably over the past decade: Teams have become highly fragmented. There used to be a team in one location for design and another location for manufacturing. That same product might now be built by 20 different fragments of teams. Teams have become […]

Versatile barcode reader for harsh industrial use

With the new Industrial Handheld Reader BVS HS-P Balluff expands their offering of optical identification: the portable reader with intuitive operation reliably reads high-resolution barcodes as well as codes over a wide range at a read distance of up to 110 centimetres. Direct Part Marking (DPM) codes can also be read. The ruggedly constructed device offers IP 65 protection and withstands drops from up to two meters without any damage. The wireless version features Bluetooth to give the user the greatest possible freedom of movement within a range of up to 100 meters around the base station. This flexible portable reader is ideal for a variety of applications including traceability, automated replenishment and logistics. The ergonomically designed Industrial Handheld Reader BVS HS-P decodes all common 1D, 2D and stacked barcodes on objects moving at up to 0.8 meters per second. Even tilts of up to 40° and rotation angles of up to 180° do not affect the read reliability. The optical aiming system with a highly visible laser marking border makes handling and target acquisition simple. Acoustic and optical LED signals including a projected LED spot on the code ensure reliable read confirmation in loud or bright surroundings. The wireless version with its high-capacity rechargeable battery increases the flexibility and enables a variety of portable situations. The Industrial Handheld Reader BVS HS-P is simple to integrate via USB, Bluetooth or RS 232 interface. The ergonomic design and low weight ensure comfortable and fatigue-free work.

Screw compressor energy efficient

The new oil-injection cooled screw compressor C 16 F (D) from sets new standards in the 11 kW performance class. Its excellent specific characteristics predestine the Boge C 16 F (D) compressors for achieving high energy savings. With its broad control range, it caters for widely fluctuating compressed air demand. A silenced intake filter and sturdy grey cast iron housing afford extremely quiet operation even when working at full capacity – enabling it to operate right at the workstation. The optionally available focus control 2.0 intelligent compressor control can be used with up to four compressors and lends itself to Industry 4.0 applications. It provides the highest free air delivery in the 11 kW compressor segment – despite its extremely low speed level. This is the result of using the Boge compact compressor aired from the effilence family which trumps with outstandingly low specific power consumption due to its high-efficiency IE3 motor. With this minimal power consumption rating and the extremely low flow losses, these belt-driven BOGE C 16 F (D) compressors achieve record energy efficiency. Their sound pressure levels also get top ratings – the C 16 F (D) is one of the quietest compressors in its class. The advantages of integrated frequency control are particularly apparent when compressed air demand fluctuates: The frequency converter provides continuous free air delivery in the roughly 25 – 100% control range. The free air delivery is constantly matched to the operating conditions. If the demand for compressed air drops off, compressor energy use also falls. Idling times are virtually eliminated in this way. Customers who use C 16 F (D) screw compressors achieve energy savings of up to 30 percent as a result. The design of the C series is both intelligent and simple. All maintenance-relevant parts are arranged for easy reach to minimise waiting times. Equipping these compressors with additional options […]

The Digital Twin

Is a digital representation of the design and operational performance of a physical equipment in its real state. The physical design of components and their designed-in interactions inside an equipment, its operating life history, maintenance records, unique operating conditions are all “model metadata” that go into creating this unique representation of a digital twin. Additionally, the model updates itself with every change in operational parameters of its underlying physical twin. In other words, the digital twin lives its life as an accurate proxy of the physical self, and lends itself to interrogation for purposes of analysis of its physical state, for performance simulations and for prediction of possible failures. A base infrastructure required to make the Digital Twin a reality involves a wide array of sensors to capture performance data from each component and transmit them to the data-management platform for transformation and storage. Sensors collect data relating to process cycles, temperature & pressure, flow-rates, wear and tear, oil-pressure variations from one part of a machine to another, the torque of connected tools during tightening operations, or the status of the individual parts in a hydraulic valve. This flood of data is a new raw material for connected industry. The other important piece is the availability of machine learning algorithms customised for ingestion of large volumes of equipment data and finding patterns across millions and billions of time-value pairs to infer a “black-box” model that codifies complex statistical relationships among hundreds (or thousands) of operating parameters. With good algorithms and the right software, it can shed light on new correlations. Such models allows for projection of future performance and signal probabilities of potential catastrophic equipment failure down the line. The signal becomes a critical decision input for minor unscheduled repair or major scheduled shutdowns.

Supply Chain Excellence: Sales and Operations Planning

-Vishnu Rayapeddi Do the following represent a typical day in your work life? • Nothing goes right • Everything seems to be a mess • Materials are late • Customers are unhappy • Too much inventory • Too many shortages • Too many dumps • Crisis Management is the order of the day! If you answered YES to any of the above, then you need a robust Sales & Operations Planning. A number of businesses do a very good job of having business plan and also day to day production scheduling. But not many realise that, there is a missing link, which is Sales & Operations Planning. S&OP integrates all the different plans for a business and also ensures that every functional department is on the same page. Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) is a powerful decision making tool for business executives as well as line managers. S&OP enables the company’s managers to view the business holistically and gives them “one set of numbers to work with” and a window into the future. The value to any company of balancing supply and demand has long been understood. When we add volume and mix to this equation, we get the four fundamentals needed for effective business balance. For those companies grappling with these 4 fundamentals, S&OP can provide excellent benefits. The role of S&OP process is to balance supply and demand at the volume level. S&OP process engages all business functions, finance, human resources, marketing, materials, operations, product management and sales. Ensure people recognize that S&OP is an integral part of their responsibilities. Management should view the process as an avenue to effectively running the business and determining what levers should be pulled in order to better meet customer expectations. S&OP runs in monthly cycles. Each month the person (usually an […]

Supply chain transparency is not going away

Consumers want to know where the products they buy come from. Companies will have to disclose more supply chain information than ever before as consumer pressure and regulations increase. While the demand for transparency in the supply chain increases, most companies are unaware of labor practices, product material contents and/or potential risks past their direct suppliers. Supply chains, in reality, are ten times the number of direct suppliers and require sophisticated data management to be properly maintained. Among many pieces of potential supply chain data, regulations in particular require detailed supply chain information to be collected and maintained. The most prevalent regulations affecting the supply chain are Dodd-Frank 1502 (Conflict Minerals Rule), Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS), Registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals (REACH), Supply Chain Transparency Act (SB657), United Kingdom Modern Slavery Act and CA Prop 65. Supply chain regulations do not appear to be decreasing either. Right now, talks about managing and regulating “conflict minerals” in the European Union (EU) as well as monitoring trafficking and slavery in the United States are underway. With so many regulations and supply chain data to manage, companies experience a number of challenges including international supply chains, multiple languages, many suppliers that exist in multiple tiers of their supply chain and a constantly changing profile of products and suppliers.

Deep learning technology to analyse data with high precision

Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. has developed deep learning technology that can analyse time-series data with a high degree of accuracy. Demonstrating promise for Internet-of-Things applications, time-series data can also be subject to severe volatility, making it difficult for people to discern patterns in the data. Deep learning technology, which is attracting attention as a breakthrough in the advance of artificial intelligence, has achieved extremely high recognition accuracy with images and speech, but the types of data to which it can be applied is still limited. In particular, it has been difficult to accurately and automatically classify volatile time-series data – such as that taken from IoT devices – of which people have difficulty discerning patterns. Now Fujitsu Laboratories has developed an approach to deep learning that uses advanced mathematical techniques to extract geometric features from time-series data, enabling highly accurate classification of volatile time-series. In benchmark tests held at UC Irvine Machine Learning Repository that classified time-series data captured from gyroscopes in wearable devices, the new technology was found to achieve roughly 85% accuracy, about a 25% improvement over existing technology. This technology will be used in Fujitsu’s Human Centric AI Zinrai artificial intelligence technology. Background In recent years, in the field of machine learning, which is a central technology in artificial intelligence, deep learning technology has been attracting attention as a way to automatically extract feature values needed to interpret and assess phenomena without rules being taught manually. Especially in the IoT era, massive volumes of time-series data are being accumulated from devices. By applying deep learning to this data and classifying it with a high degree of accuracy, further analyses can be performed, holding the prospect that it will lead to the creation of new value and the opening of new business areas. Issues Deep learning is a potent […]

Making electronics safe with pervoskites

In the picture:Blue ceramic capacitor A team of scientists from Hokkaido University and the multinational electronics company TDK Corporation in Japan has developed a method to improve the insulating properties of the oxynitride perovskite SrTaO2N for potential use as a ceramic capacitor. Ceramic capacitors are used in a wide variety of electronics, ranging from computers and mobile phones to telecommunications transmitter stations and high voltage laser power supplies. Capacitors act, in a way, like batteries. They are “dielectric” – they act as an electronic insulator in which an electric field can be sustained with minimum loss of power. Their dielectric properties allow them to store electricity and then release it. One of the most widely used ceramics in capacitors is lead zirconate titanate, but it is hazardous to the health and the environment once it’s disposed. Scientists are trying to find other less hazardous ceramic materials for use in capacitors. Perovskite oxynitrides – cheap and easily fabricated materials with a distinctive crystalline structure – are particularly promising. But ceramics manufactured from these materials need to be made denser to improve their insulating properties. This is usually done by applying intense heat; a process called “sintering”. However, sintering the material can lead to a change in its chemical composition, turning it from an insulator to an electrical conductor. The researchers sintered the perovskite powder SrTaO2N at a temperature of 1723 Kelvin (1450° Celsius) for three hours. They then “annealed” the material by heating it with flowing ammonia at 1223 Kelvin (950° Celsius) for 12 hours and then allowing it to slowly cool. They found that the surface of the material after this process (but not its interior) displayed an important dielectric property called “ferroelectricity”. This was the first time that a ferroelectric response has been observed on oxynitride perovskite ceramics, they […]

Development of a wall-climbing drone

In the picture: CAROS, a drone-type wall-climbing robot system. The integrity of large structures like bridges, high-rise buildings, wind turbines, and large aircrafts is deeply related with security. Nowadays, due to the aging of large structures and the potential concerns about their collapse, interest in structural health monitoring has risen all over the world. Though there has been a great deal of research on the inspection of inaccessible large structures using mobile robots, since most existing robots require the installation of additional infrastructure or use magnetic-based technology or vacuum adhesion, it is difficult to apply those technologies to structures with diverse surface shapes and materials. Professor Hyun Myung in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) has developed CAROS (Climbing Aerial RObot System), which does not require installation of any additional infrastructure and which features maximised mobility and safety as a wall-climbing robot. This robot has higher mobility than existing wall-climbing robots because it can fly. It also has an advantage in that it can restore its pose after an accidental fall due to an unexpected disturbance. Since the robot can stick to the surface, it can perform close inspection and maintenance of the structure. Firstly, the CAROS team designed and analysed the structure/mechanism of the drone to maximise the flight stability and grip force on walls. Secondly, they developed the algorithms of flying/climbing mode transformation and wall-climbing control, respectively. These algorithms enable the CAROS to change its mode when it meets a wall while flying. To make these algorithms, the forward and backward kinematics are derived and applied to the system. Lastly, the team developed an autonomous navigation algorithm using sensory information to recognize 3D environments. This technology also can be used to assess the situation in a fire […]

Motion Analyzer web tool helps design control systems

Rockwell Automation has rebuilt Motion Analyzer software as a Web tool. The tool offers new user-friendly features and a vastly expanded product catalog to help engineers more easily specify, design and validate complete motion control systems. The Motion Analyzer Web tool is cloud-based, allowing users to access, update and collaborate on projects stored in a single location, reducing version control issues and the need to share project files back and forth. A cloud-based platform also means users are no longer limited by the processing speed of their computers when designing systems for more complex applications. The tool’s new browser-style format allows users to filter, review and compare products and general pricing, similar to search capabilities on popular e-commerce sites. “Incorrectly sizing a motion system not only generates unnecessary costs in wasted engineering time and re-stocking fees, but it can greatly slow a machine’s time-to-market,” said Gavin Black, product manager CompactLogix, SLC, Kinetix Motion, Rockwell Automation. “The latest Motion Analyzer release is an evolution of the platform that is more collaborative, expansive and easy to use. When engineers can quickly create and examine complete motion control systems within a single platform, they can spend more time innovating and improving their machines.” The Motion Analyzer Web tool provides machine builders access to a wider range of motion control products than ever before. It now incorporates products from nine Rockwell Automation PartnerNetwork Encompass product partners, including STOBER Drives, NIDEC-SHIMPO, item North America, Tolomatic, Nook Industries, WITTENSTEIN, Exlar Corporation, Bonitron and Elwood Corporation. “Collaboration between various disciplines among machine builders and automation solution providers is critical to lower the Total Cost to Design, Develop and Deliver equipment,” said Clayton Webber, STOBER Drives. “Having mechatronic solutions up-to-date in the cloud establishes Motion Analyzer as a differentiator in machine design. STOBER and Rockwell Automation are striving […]

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