COMbination of non-contact, high speed monitoring and non-destructive techniques applicable to LASER Based Manufacturing through a self-learning system (COMBILASER) an European research project coordinated by HIDRIA AET that has been chosen for co-financing from the European Commission by the Horizon 2020 Factories of the Future call.
The vision of COMBILASER presents a great development leap forward in terms of a pioneering approach that combines all aspects of defect avoidance in welding and cladding processes into an integral or holistic concept.
The vision of the partners of the COMBILASER project is to create a solution that will with its use-cases serve as a model for different branches of European industry (automotive, aeronautic /aerospace, railway, electronics, capital goods etc.) on how to address the ever more demanding standards in the industry when manufacturing products using laser welding / laser melting or cladding processes.
By integrating the industrial laser process with a seamless set up and a Self-Learning module, the COMBILASER project aims to minimize human expert interveNtion and in doing so reduce process optimization loop for new applications. When taking into account the ever changing market rules and increased manufacturing flexibility demands from customers, the COMBILASER project aims to create a solutions that can act as an industrial driver from many European industries in the future.
In its three industrial use-cases ranging from automotive (welding of a pressure-sensor glow plug for diesel motors), capital goods (laser welding of flame sensor device) and oil&gas industry (valve cladding process) divide the main objective of COMBILASER into following sub-objectives:
• Productivity increase of about 35 % in gas valves repairing process due to required re-works reduction (cladding layer and base material cracking avoidance).
• Allow to take to the market new generation of pressure sensor glow plug 45 % faster thanks to the avoidance of cracking appearance using the developed SLS.
• Reduce time-to-market of new flame device sensors by at least 45 % thanks to acquired knowledge in previous products manufacturing thanks to SLS.
• Reduction of scrap parts and wastes in new pressure sensors (for glow plugs) manufacturing processes of up to a 50 % through laser welding monitoring and process parameters control.
• Decrease the number of flame sensor defective parts up to 75 % thanks to the continuous increase in LBW process knowledge.
• Zero failure parts delivered to the customers in all of the use cases making use of in-line advanced NDTs to 100% of manufactured parts.
COMBILASER consortium brings together a consortium of 12 partners from 7 different European states. It is comprised of LEs, SMEs, R&D institutes and a university.
