Periodic Reporting for period 1 - SMARTHANDLE (Resilient manufacturing lines based on smart handling systems)
Berichtszeitraum: 2023-01-01 bis 2024-06-30
Manual and automated production lines do not always run smoothly. There are several challenges, such as high product variants requiring tool-level dexterity and resource-level reconfigurability. The EU-funded SMARTHANDLE project will search for solutions. Specifically, it will implement intelligent, reconfigurable agents to provide dexterity in a range of handling applications, AI-based reasoning enablers to optimise the agents’ flexibility potential, and higher-level planning and coordination mechanisms for successful and scalable deployment of such solutions in real-life use cases. SMARTHANDLE will use three use cases from the consumer goods, metal industries and automotive sectors. The aim is to demonstrate benefits for workers by reducing their involvement in unsafe and unhealthy tasks and improving their working conditions.
• Objective 1: Implement intelligent handling agents with enhanced perception, cognition and manipulation capabilities for multivariant workpiece handling - Enhancing flexibility of production lines and resources.
• Objective 2: Development of smart tools for scheduling, planning, orchestration and monitoring, based on workpiece features, handling agents’ capabilities and real time data - Decreasing reconfiguration times costs.
• Objective 3: Introduce Artificial Intelligence based: a) self-improving robotics, and b) multi-level process planning towards enhanced productivity and resilience of production lines against recurrent changes.
• Objective 4: Enhancing working conditions and advancing operator inclusion in teaching and operating of intelligent reconfigurable systems through human centric design of lines and interfaces.
• Objective 1: Implement intelligent handling agents with enhanced perception, cognition and manipulation capabilities for multivariant workpiece handling - Enhancing flexibility of production lines and resources.
• Objective 2: Development of smart tools for scheduling, planning, orchestration and monitoring, based on workpiece features, handling agents’ capabilities and real time data - Decreasing reconfiguration times costs.
• Objective 3: Introduce Artificial Intelligence based: a) self-improving robotics, and b) multi-level process planning towards enhanced productivity and resilience of production lines against recurrent changes.
• Objective 4: Enhancing working conditions and advancing operator inclusion in teaching and operating of intelligent reconfigurable systems through human centric design of lines and interfaces.
By mid-2023, the project achieved the scheduled results for Phase 1 (M18), in the work carried out in WP1, WP2 and WP7. They are mainly related to the setting up of communication and dissemination tools (public web and internal data repository), the definition of technical and user requirements, pilot scenarios and management of data.
These achievements allowed for the starting of technical work in WP3, WP4 and WP5 in the second half of 2023. The developments and results obtained in those WPs, as of M18 (June 2024), cover an updated data management plan, a first version of the design of the human centred system to be developed, and the first prototypes of the enablers for the dexterity, reconfigurability and reasoning, to be integrated in the final developments. This carried-out work completes the Phase 2 of the methodology proposed for the project.
Main achievements, regarding objectives, are:
- Regarding objective 1: The first prototypes and tests, developing intelligent handling agents and mechatronics tools, have been carried out for the workpiece handling. These activities implied to work on mechatronics and sensorial systems, on grasp and manipulation strategies, on robot motion planning and teaching methods, and finally on humans’ perception (environment) system.
- Regarding objective 2: Activities in this first half of the project have been focused on designing and developing tools for offline planning and real-time orchestration of handling operations. They cover a comprehensive suite of solutions including part handling sequence generators using data driven techniques from CAD models, AI-driven process planning, a digital twin for simulation, a real-time digital scene reconstruction, and a robust production line controller for process orchestration and reconfiguration. These developments intend on enhancing the flexibility and efficiency of manufacturing operations, providing scalable solutions for complex industrial environments with application paradigms within the project’s three use cases.
- Regarding objective 3: The first version of reasoning enablers has been issued by M18, allowing for a better adaptation to the varying conditions inherent to current industrial and processing lines (at both at product and line levels). In particular, these first advances can be grouped into four main groups, namely (1) the common architecture to implement and integrate all the developed modules to prepare them for their integration into the three SMARTHANDLE use-cases, (2) the smart and adaptive planning and execution of the manipulation or handling actions, (3) the smart grasping and manipulation of both known and unknown workpieces, and (4) the runtime parameter adaptation and system reconfiguration for optimal workpiece processing.
- Regarding objective 4: The principles of human centric design have been set in the deliverable D2.3 Design of human centric and usable intelligent systems (1st period), where a framework serves as a monitoring tool for the development of the technical solutions foreseen in SMARTHANDLE. The approach is based on work and organizational psychology and human-technology interaction. An analysis of the workplaces for the three use cases has been carried out, providing inputs about the task requirements and worker´s profiles and needs of education and training.
These achievements allowed for the starting of technical work in WP3, WP4 and WP5 in the second half of 2023. The developments and results obtained in those WPs, as of M18 (June 2024), cover an updated data management plan, a first version of the design of the human centred system to be developed, and the first prototypes of the enablers for the dexterity, reconfigurability and reasoning, to be integrated in the final developments. This carried-out work completes the Phase 2 of the methodology proposed for the project.
Main achievements, regarding objectives, are:
- Regarding objective 1: The first prototypes and tests, developing intelligent handling agents and mechatronics tools, have been carried out for the workpiece handling. These activities implied to work on mechatronics and sensorial systems, on grasp and manipulation strategies, on robot motion planning and teaching methods, and finally on humans’ perception (environment) system.
- Regarding objective 2: Activities in this first half of the project have been focused on designing and developing tools for offline planning and real-time orchestration of handling operations. They cover a comprehensive suite of solutions including part handling sequence generators using data driven techniques from CAD models, AI-driven process planning, a digital twin for simulation, a real-time digital scene reconstruction, and a robust production line controller for process orchestration and reconfiguration. These developments intend on enhancing the flexibility and efficiency of manufacturing operations, providing scalable solutions for complex industrial environments with application paradigms within the project’s three use cases.
- Regarding objective 3: The first version of reasoning enablers has been issued by M18, allowing for a better adaptation to the varying conditions inherent to current industrial and processing lines (at both at product and line levels). In particular, these first advances can be grouped into four main groups, namely (1) the common architecture to implement and integrate all the developed modules to prepare them for their integration into the three SMARTHANDLE use-cases, (2) the smart and adaptive planning and execution of the manipulation or handling actions, (3) the smart grasping and manipulation of both known and unknown workpieces, and (4) the runtime parameter adaptation and system reconfiguration for optimal workpiece processing.
- Regarding objective 4: The principles of human centric design have been set in the deliverable D2.3 Design of human centric and usable intelligent systems (1st period), where a framework serves as a monitoring tool for the development of the technical solutions foreseen in SMARTHANDLE. The approach is based on work and organizational psychology and human-technology interaction. An analysis of the workplaces for the three use cases has been carried out, providing inputs about the task requirements and worker´s profiles and needs of education and training.
Main results, regarding objectives, are:
- Regarding O1: The most significant results so far, related to this objective, are summarized in 19 points with developments, trials and specific actions.
- Regarding O2: The key results in this first half of the project, related to this objective, are summarized in 6 innovative solutions and 8 already identified future activities for second half: integration, interoperability testing, refinements, scalability, data collection.
- Regarding O3: The key achievements in this first half of the project, related to this objective, are summarized in 5 outcomes and 11 already identified future activities.
- Regarding O4: The result are 20 design guidelines which are being implemented in the technical developments. They cover human, robot and task characteristics, organisational issues, user-system fit, etc. During the second half of the project this framework will serve to carry out, by means of qualitative (interviews) and quantitative (experiments), the validation studies with prospective users.
- Regarding O1: The most significant results so far, related to this objective, are summarized in 19 points with developments, trials and specific actions.
- Regarding O2: The key results in this first half of the project, related to this objective, are summarized in 6 innovative solutions and 8 already identified future activities for second half: integration, interoperability testing, refinements, scalability, data collection.
- Regarding O3: The key achievements in this first half of the project, related to this objective, are summarized in 5 outcomes and 11 already identified future activities.
- Regarding O4: The result are 20 design guidelines which are being implemented in the technical developments. They cover human, robot and task characteristics, organisational issues, user-system fit, etc. During the second half of the project this framework will serve to carry out, by means of qualitative (interviews) and quantitative (experiments), the validation studies with prospective users.