Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ACOTAAL (Automation COncepts and Technologies for Aircraft Assembly Lines in the Aircraft Factory of the Future)
Berichtszeitraum: 2017-01-01 bis 2018-04-30
Final assembly of aircrafts including structural assembly, system and cabin installation is today largely a craft based activity, which is also true for the supporting activities like logistics. The assembly process is essentially manual and use of automated or robotic means is very limited. Consequently aspects like assembly lead time, manufacturing related costs and production flexibility in the aircraft final assembly lines (FALs) clearly needs improving. Moreover many of the manual activities involve cumbersome tasks for the operators to be performed in non-ergonomic conditions.
In this context the aeronautic sector considers that automation for the assembly activities and the logistic processes in aircraft FAL stations shall be investigated. ACOTAAL project responds to these needs constituting a research effort whose main objective is to obtain an overall automation scenario (OAS) concept for aircraft FAL production activities that provide a leap forward in terms of production lead time, recurring costs and flexibility with respect to currently available manufacturing methods and systems. Therefore the project ACOTAAL will strongly contribute to the Future Aircraft Factory vision pursued by the European aeronautic sector, and will pave the way for the transformation of their production shops by using an appropriate combination of advanced manufacturing means, methods and technologies.
In this context the aeronautic sector considers that automation for the assembly activities and the logistic processes in aircraft FAL stations shall be investigated. ACOTAAL project responds to these needs constituting a research effort whose main objective is to obtain an overall automation scenario (OAS) concept for aircraft FAL production activities that provide a leap forward in terms of production lead time, recurring costs and flexibility with respect to currently available manufacturing methods and systems. Therefore the project ACOTAAL will strongly contribute to the Future Aircraft Factory vision pursued by the European aeronautic sector, and will pave the way for the transformation of their production shops by using an appropriate combination of advanced manufacturing means, methods and technologies.
The innovative automation scenario that has been proposed and developed in ACOTAAL consists of a set of automation concepts (ACs) based on advanced robotic technologies able to perform different operations at the different working areas that exist at the FAL assembly stations (i.e. inside cabin and cargo, outside aircraft), as well as on a set of mobility devices (moveable platforms, mobile robots,…) for transporting the automation equipment or for moving the aircraft components to the installation points (i.e. logistics).
Each of the ACs has been worked out until a basic engineering maturity level meaning that CAD-3D realistic mock-ups have been developed for the robotic devices and for each application area scenario, and production simulations have been carried out for assessing the AC feasibility for performing the production tasks and activities assigned to it (i.e. collision avoidance, reach, manoeuvrability at confined spaces,…). A production process flow (i.e. operating sequence) has been proposed for each AC, including the definition of any required ancillary equipment or tooling, and an analysis has been performed regarding the impact of introducing the AC on the working environment (i.e. at the assembly hangar) and the safety related aspects and means required for the system to be safely and smoothly deployed at an environment shared with humans, as is the case of the FAL’s assembly stations.
A single aisle aircraft FAL design that incorporates a suitable combination of innovative automation technologies, adapted process flows and correct dimensioning and allocation of human resources, has been finally obtained. The overall automation scenario proposed will be capable of fulfilling high rate production requirements with a reduction in the recurring costs, while enabling a positive business case in comparison to a traditional assembly line, providing substantial competitive advantages in the context of aircraft final assembly hangars with regard to the current production reality.
The last outcome of the project has consisted in the obtaining of a set of design and adaptation proposals for the current aircraft FAL scenario in order to enable and facilitate a more efficient implementation in it of the automation system concepts proposed and developed in ACOTAAL.
TECNALIA, as unique developer of ACOTAAL project, is the owner of all the project results developed along the project. With regard to the exploitation path that will be pursued by TECNALIA for the project’s outcomes it is important to remind that TECNALIA is a research and technological development centre whose mission is to identify and develop business opportunities through applied research. However TECNALIA is not a robot manufacturer or a robotic integrator that provides turn-key production solutions, so it is not able to finally deliver them to the market alone. This means that the final implementation phase and commercialization in the market of the automation solutions result of this project should be fulfilled by third parties with such roles. Therefore, for attaining an effective exploitation of the project results, Tecnalia plans to negotiate with European companies which fit in within the above mentioned profiles. The envisaged options to achieve it are through consulting services and technology transfer projects or to reach to exploitation agreements, including license agreements of eventually previously protected or patented results, with the interested companies.
Each of the ACs has been worked out until a basic engineering maturity level meaning that CAD-3D realistic mock-ups have been developed for the robotic devices and for each application area scenario, and production simulations have been carried out for assessing the AC feasibility for performing the production tasks and activities assigned to it (i.e. collision avoidance, reach, manoeuvrability at confined spaces,…). A production process flow (i.e. operating sequence) has been proposed for each AC, including the definition of any required ancillary equipment or tooling, and an analysis has been performed regarding the impact of introducing the AC on the working environment (i.e. at the assembly hangar) and the safety related aspects and means required for the system to be safely and smoothly deployed at an environment shared with humans, as is the case of the FAL’s assembly stations.
A single aisle aircraft FAL design that incorporates a suitable combination of innovative automation technologies, adapted process flows and correct dimensioning and allocation of human resources, has been finally obtained. The overall automation scenario proposed will be capable of fulfilling high rate production requirements with a reduction in the recurring costs, while enabling a positive business case in comparison to a traditional assembly line, providing substantial competitive advantages in the context of aircraft final assembly hangars with regard to the current production reality.
The last outcome of the project has consisted in the obtaining of a set of design and adaptation proposals for the current aircraft FAL scenario in order to enable and facilitate a more efficient implementation in it of the automation system concepts proposed and developed in ACOTAAL.
TECNALIA, as unique developer of ACOTAAL project, is the owner of all the project results developed along the project. With regard to the exploitation path that will be pursued by TECNALIA for the project’s outcomes it is important to remind that TECNALIA is a research and technological development centre whose mission is to identify and develop business opportunities through applied research. However TECNALIA is not a robot manufacturer or a robotic integrator that provides turn-key production solutions, so it is not able to finally deliver them to the market alone. This means that the final implementation phase and commercialization in the market of the automation solutions result of this project should be fulfilled by third parties with such roles. Therefore, for attaining an effective exploitation of the project results, Tecnalia plans to negotiate with European companies which fit in within the above mentioned profiles. The envisaged options to achieve it are through consulting services and technology transfer projects or to reach to exploitation agreements, including license agreements of eventually previously protected or patented results, with the interested companies.
The automation technologies currently in use in aircraft FALs present some remarkable limitations for addressing the vision of the Aircraft Factory of the Future (complex and huge bespoke solutions, long cycle time, capital intensive and process specific systems with low utilization). As a consequence of this situation, in practice automation systems are applied only to a limited number of sub-assemblies with simple geometry and easy access. The automation concepts developed under ACOTAAL project mean a leap forward in terms of lead time, recurring and non-recurring costs, production efficiency and flexibility and also more ergonomic working conditions with respect to currently available manufacturing methods and systems used in the aircraft assembly hangars. These automation concepts will open the door to radically increase the use of automation systems in aircraft assembly factories.
Underpinning the concept of product viability are the cost of production and the cost of acquisition. Without considering the engines, more than 50% of the recurring cost of manufacturing an aircraft is determined by the fuselage, the cabin and cargo equipment and the integration effort performed in the assembly of these components. This way advanced manufacturing means and methods such as those developed in ACOTAAL, which are able to achieve high production rates with reduced recurring costs at aircraft FALs, should be considered high-level enablers for achieving the objective of reducing the production costs of an aircraft. Consequently ACOTAAL project will contribute to strengthen the competitiveness of the European aeronautic sector, while meeting society’s needs. Indeed the adoption of the new automation system concepts for aircraft FALs addressed in this project and the inherent change that they will provoke in the approach to manufacturing and assembly of aeronautic structures, will strongly contribute to provide a competitive industrial, technologically advanced and economically viable base for the aeronautic sector, and therefore is also expected to provide a positive impact in the creation and preservation of quality employment in the aeronautic sector.
Moreover the project results have also the potential to impact directly on the working conditions and ergonomics of the aeronautic manufacturing industry shop floor operators, as the new automation systems fostered by ACOTAAL will fulfil the most arduous and unhealthy manual processes involved in the assembly stages.
Underpinning the concept of product viability are the cost of production and the cost of acquisition. Without considering the engines, more than 50% of the recurring cost of manufacturing an aircraft is determined by the fuselage, the cabin and cargo equipment and the integration effort performed in the assembly of these components. This way advanced manufacturing means and methods such as those developed in ACOTAAL, which are able to achieve high production rates with reduced recurring costs at aircraft FALs, should be considered high-level enablers for achieving the objective of reducing the production costs of an aircraft. Consequently ACOTAAL project will contribute to strengthen the competitiveness of the European aeronautic sector, while meeting society’s needs. Indeed the adoption of the new automation system concepts for aircraft FALs addressed in this project and the inherent change that they will provoke in the approach to manufacturing and assembly of aeronautic structures, will strongly contribute to provide a competitive industrial, technologically advanced and economically viable base for the aeronautic sector, and therefore is also expected to provide a positive impact in the creation and preservation of quality employment in the aeronautic sector.
Moreover the project results have also the potential to impact directly on the working conditions and ergonomics of the aeronautic manufacturing industry shop floor operators, as the new automation systems fostered by ACOTAAL will fulfil the most arduous and unhealthy manual processes involved in the assembly stages.