Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ReCaM (Rapid Reconfiguration of Flexible Production Systems through Capability-based Adaptation, Auto-configuration and Integrated tools for Production Planning)
Période du rapport: 2017-05-01 au 2018-10-31
The requirements on production systems are continuously being shifted towards higher flexibility and adaptability. The ReCaM-project will demonstrate at TRL 7 a set of integrated tools for the rapid and autonomous reconfiguration of agile production systems, both at operational as well as managerial levels, integrated with the existing production planning and scheduling tools (MES). This approach is based on intelligent plug-and-produce capable self-describing mechatronic objects, which are able to auto-program and self-adjust to the required task by utilizing parametric capabilities. These next generation flexible production systems and the proposed set of enabling ICT tools will allow a rapid and cost-efficient reaction to dynamic market changes, also in small-lot production contexts, reducing the efforts needed to switch between product types and production quantities. ReCaM-solutions are expected to allow increasing the amount of variants and decreasing the lot sizes by 50% in an economically feasible way. Also, at least 30% reduction in set-up and changeover times and costs are expected. The integrated planning tool will take into consideration the energy consumption of the specific resources and try to minimize it by smart production scheduling, utilization of integrated operating-point switching of mechatronic objects, and reconfiguration. Thus, at least 5% reduction in energy consumption is anticipated. The project will ground on existing de-facto standards and specifications regarding reconfigurable system architectures, resource data models, control architectures and interfaces, and will provide and supplement new specifications for the missing aspects. The ReCaM consortium sees strong involvement of SME’s to RTD and demonstration activities and two end-users from major EU sectors, thus enabling proper exploitation of the demonstrated results worldwide.
The aim of the project was the development of a versatile production system. The project has completed both reporting periods now.
The first half of the project was mainly focused on setting the base for the conceptual and architectural works that are to be fulfilled within the main tasks of the project. Based on that the communication technologies were selected and evaluated as well as the implemented (e.g. for the Flexible Systems Engineering Platform). Therefore the main task within the first half of the project were:
- Analysis of Use Cases for versatile and easy reconfigurable production systems.
- Identification and documentation of requirements for this kind of versatile production systems. These requirements cover both, the objects within such a federative system as well as the federation itself.
- Analysis of applicable standards for the systems that are to be developed within ReCaM in order to serve as a guideline.
- Definition of the systems architecture as well as selection and evaluation of communication/control technologies.
- Implementation of the first tools like the Flexible Systems Engineering Platform or the Capability Editor.
- Definition of the product requirements description.
The work of within the second half of the project was mainly focused on the production and reconfiguration planing as well as the developing the systems runtime.
- Development of tool for production planning and reconfiguration
- Maturing the systems architecture and implemented tools
- Evaluation of the communication and reconfiguration technologies
- Set up of multiple demonstrators for evaluation and dissemination
The dissemination and exploitation efforts were increased within the second half of the project. This includes scientific as well as industrial dissemination as well as events for internal and external exploitation. Please refer to Part B for more details.
The first half of the project was mainly focused on setting the base for the conceptual and architectural works that are to be fulfilled within the main tasks of the project. Based on that the communication technologies were selected and evaluated as well as the implemented (e.g. for the Flexible Systems Engineering Platform). Therefore the main task within the first half of the project were:
- Analysis of Use Cases for versatile and easy reconfigurable production systems.
- Identification and documentation of requirements for this kind of versatile production systems. These requirements cover both, the objects within such a federative system as well as the federation itself.
- Analysis of applicable standards for the systems that are to be developed within ReCaM in order to serve as a guideline.
- Definition of the systems architecture as well as selection and evaluation of communication/control technologies.
- Implementation of the first tools like the Flexible Systems Engineering Platform or the Capability Editor.
- Definition of the product requirements description.
The work of within the second half of the project was mainly focused on the production and reconfiguration planing as well as the developing the systems runtime.
- Development of tool for production planning and reconfiguration
- Maturing the systems architecture and implemented tools
- Evaluation of the communication and reconfiguration technologies
- Set up of multiple demonstrators for evaluation and dissemination
The dissemination and exploitation efforts were increased within the second half of the project. This includes scientific as well as industrial dissemination as well as events for internal and external exploitation. Please refer to Part B for more details.
The main progress to be achieved is to develop an open and flexible platform that allows the planning, installation and operation of a versatile production systems. These systems consists of a set of different Mechatronic Objects, each of them serving a certain set of capabilities. The integration and removal of these objects to/from the federation is possible without causing engineering re-work or even a stop of the operation. The federation is able to detect this kind of changes, as they change the federation's capabilities and therefore the ability of producing certain kinds of products, each of them requiring a different set of capabilities in order to be produced.