Manufacturing Systems

The structure, the most important results and the perspectives for future work of the Collaborative Research Center 499 „Development Production and Quality Assurance of Molded Microcomponents made of Metallic and Ceramic Materials” are briefly described. Numerous literature with a more detailed description of the scientific work and its results are given.

Microstructured devices and their potential for novel, more efficient chemical processes have received a great attention among experts over the past years. By using these devices with structural details in the submillimeter range inside, chemists and engineers expect a number of advantages compared to conventional production of chemicals: higher safety, lower environmental risk and pollution as well as better use of raw materials. Beyond these sustainability issues, microstructured devices will contribute to a better economic efficiency. A step towards better chemical processes was done recently: A high-performance microreactor developed at Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe was successfully used in a chemical production process at DSM Fine Chemicals GmbH.

Since more than one decade, building electronic or optical devices on a nanometer scale has been pushed for a variety of applications. Complementary to the build-up of devices on a micro- and nanometer scale by use of suited process technologies (top-down) is the use of nano-scale materials (bottom-up). With both approaches, a higher integration density combined with less spatial extension and a higher level of optical and electrical functionality can be realized reducing simultaneously the costs . Beside of the realization of miniaturized components, the use of low-cost process technologies also reduces manufacturing costs. For the realization of miniaturized components as well as for the use of low-cost process technologies, there is a demand for new materials which can be adapted to the processes and technologies in a wide range and/or which have functionalities decreasing the necessary processing steps. The material class of nano-scaled inorganic-organic hybrid polymers ...

Complex production systems in micro production, concerning the manufacturing of miniaturised systems, assemblies and components, are very special. For example Hesselbach [1] stated, that micro production technology (sometimes to be found as (ultra) precision engineering) spans basically all, partly highly specialised production techniques. Kiesewetter [2] points out, that micro production is not just a kind of “shrinked machine building or mechanical engineering”. Mostly the whole manufacturing process chain or at least larger, interrelated section or subsystems and -processes, for example mainly for the manufacturing of miniaturised mechanical modules or assemblies respectively, are basically not examined. The paper discusses and presents topics concerning the planning and operations of micro production manufacturing process chains, against the background of the manufacturing of miniaturised mechanical modules and components.

For micro assembly processes, assembly accuracy in the range of one micron is required. In the following some strategies for enhancement of accuracy in micro assembly are shown by means of two different assembly systems. First, a self-developed assembly system consisting out of a parallel robot for micro assembly, a 3D vision sensor, grippers, magazines and fixtures is presented. Second, a cartesian robot that endues over a 2D vision sensor, a force sensor and a confocal laser scanning microscope is described. On the basis of examples for micro assembly processes the application limitations of both systems are depicted.

The continuous attempt to miniaturize components and structures demands increasing improvements in the field of micromachining technologies. A big challenge for the production technology is to manufacture microsystems and micro parts made of different materials. Processes well suited for three-dimensional machining of many materials are mechanical production technologies. A practicable production technology that is able to structure hard and brittle materials with high surface qualities is micro-grinding. The following article should give an overview about the current state of the technology of micro grinding of hardened steels.

In many applications Virtual Prototyping allows for an analysis based on computer models reducing time and cost. The Augmented Reality technology offers new potentials for virtual prototyping by augmenting a user’s view on real objects with additional computer generated information. In analogy to hardware in the loop techniques it is possible, e.g., to jointly analyse already existing and virtual components of a system currently under development. In this paper we describe the application and potential benefits of AR-technologies. As an example we present a mobile test platform for the analysis and evaluation of automotive ergonomics under real driving condi-tions in the field of automobile advance development.

The ideas of lean production for rationalization of the value-added processes, which were intensely discussed during the nineties of the last century, presently undergo a revival. In the course of this development the concept of Holistic Production Systems is praised by industry and science as an effective instrument for realizing a production focussing on added value and eliminating wastefulness. Because of this fact this article deals in-depth with the basics of setup and introduction of Holistic Production Systems. Furthermore the benefit of this concept for learning enterprises will be assessed.

Growing requirements concerning comfort, safety, functionality and design are leading to fundamental changes in car body manufacturing, where as the demands for lightweight construction are clearly playing a central role. The expanding use of lightweight materials, including innovative semi-finished products, continually increases the level of difficulty required in forming operations and this, in turn, is leading to the inevitable development of new technologies. Based on this, some of the most significant trends in car body manufacturing will be covered.

Lightweight construction is inevitable in transportation engineering for economical and ecological reasons. The lightweight construction potential of CFRP surpasses that of metallic materials for the specific strength, stiffness, possible energy absorption, damping, and swinging strength. Production procedures on the basis of injection molding procedure, textile techniques, and stitching techniques are presented and are combined to a fabrication technology. The target set by aeronautical industry is a weight reduction of 30 % and a cost reduction of 40 % compared to metallic lightweight structures. Composites will only be able to achieve general acceptance in the fields of railway, automotive, and mechanical engineering, if the implemented lightweight construction is made profitable by new production concepts.