SAE Update - September 2021 - 9

Advanced manufacturing in
the context of aerospace
FOCUS: ADVANCED
MANUFACTURING
In the most ambitious case, engineers are designing
systems that include collaborative robots, or cobots.
These entities interact with each other and/or shopfloor
personnel to accomplish a given task. In the
context of aerospace manufacturing, automation is
most visible in the tape placement of carbon-fiber
composites for the aerostructure. Both Boeing and
Airbus have implemented this technology for their
latest products, the 787 and A350, respectively.
The connected factory is a concept of sharing
manufacturing-related information real-time between
machines and with factory management. One of the
fundamental challenges is communication protocol.
Commercial business interests have incented
companies to develop proprietary technologies that
(intentionally) lack sufficient interoperability with
other companies' devices. For this reason, industrial
machine tools cannot easily communicate and are
effectively siloed.
One solution is to develop a common data format
and language, such as MTConnect, that harmonizes
these constructs., This helps reduce barriers and
facilitate information flow. Some companies, such as
Siemens and Hexagon, envisage offering an entire
suite of hardware and software solutions that are
seamlessly integrated. To some, the topic of data
management raises concerns about intellectual
property (IP) and data ownership. To others, the
greatest challenge is simply to make sense of the
inundation of the data that often measures in the
gigabytes.
Of the four technologies delineated, artificial
intelligence is perhaps the most intriguing. In the
simplest sense, it is pattern recognition and
prediction. There are various renderings for industrial
application. The most common instantiation is
UPDATE
machine learning, where
devices use algorithms that
" learn " (or more accurately,
train) using large datasets to
either extrapolate or interpolate
data trends.
This optimization can be
applied on 1) a small scale-for
example, to control machine
parameters to maximize a part's
mechanical properties; or, 2) on
a much grander scale to
regulate material flow through a
factory to minimize turn-time or
cost. In either case, feedback is
essential. Artificial intelligence
becomes a particularly powerful
tool in the context of an
extensive machine network
and/or a highly automated
environment. One emerging
technology that will be greatly
enabled by artificial intelligence
is additive manufacturing.
" Additive manufacturing " is
synonymous with " 3D printing. "
This technology originated in
the 1980s in the United States
for rapid prototyping, using a
laser to cure a resin to form a
three-dimensional part-a
process known as
stereolithography. There are
seven basic ontologies, or
" modalities, " each involving
metal or polymer feedstock.
September 2021
9
SAE Update - September 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of SAE Update - September 2021
