Computer Aided Assembly Planning

The assembly sector is one of the least automated in the manufacturing industry. Automation is essential if industrial companies are to be competitive in the future. In assembly, an integrated and flexible approach is needed because 75% of the applications are produced in small and medium batches. The methodologies developed in this book deal with the integration of the assembly process from the initial design of the product to its production. In such an integrated system, assembly planning is one of the most important features. A well-chosen assembly plan will reduce both the number of tool changes and the fixtures within the assembly cell. It will prevent the handling of unstable subassemblies, simplify the design of the robot grippers and reduce production costs. An automatic generator of assembly sequences can be an efficient aid to the designer. Whenever he or she modifies features of the product, the influence of these modifications can immediately be checked on the sequences. For small batch production, the automatic generation of assembly sequences is faster, more reliable and more cost-effective than manual generation. By using this latter method interesting sequences could be missed because of the combinatorial explosion of solutions. The main subjects treated in this book are as follows. 1. Presentation and classification of existing systems of automatic generation of assembly sequences. Automatic assembly planning is, indeed, a very recent research area and, in my experience, no systematic study has been carried out up to now.

The assembly sector is one of the least automated in the manufacturing industry. Automation is essential if industrial companies are to be competitive in the future. In assembly, an integrated and flexible approach is needed because 75% of the applications are produced in small and medium batches. The methodologies developed in this book deal with the integration of the assembly process from the initial design of the product to its production. In such an integrated system, assembly planning is one of the most important features. A well-chosen assembly plan will reduce both the number of tool changes and the fixtures within the assembly cell. It will prevent the handling of unstable subassemblies, simplify the design of the robot grippers and reduce production costs. An automatic generator of assembly sequences can be an efficient aid to the designer. Whenever he or she modifies features of the product, the influence of these modifications can immediately be checked on the sequences. For small batch production, the automatic generation of assembly sequences is faster, more reliable and more cost-effective than manual generation. By using this latter method interesting sequences could be missed because of the combinatorial explosion of solutions. The main subjects treated in this book are as follows. 1. Presentation and classification of existing systems of automatic generation of assembly sequences. Automatic assembly planning is, indeed, a very recent research area and, in my experience, no systematic study has been carried out up to now.

Some twenty years have elapsed since the first attempts at planning were made by researchers in artificial intelligence. These early programs concentrated on the development of plans for the solution of puzzles or toy problems, like the rearrangement of stacks of blocks. These early programs provided the foundation for the work described in this book, the automatic generation of plans for industrial assembly. As one reads about the complex and sophisticated planners in the current gen eration, it is important to keep in mind that they are addressing real-world problems. Although these systems may become the "toy" systems of tomor row, they are providing a solid foundation for future, more general and more advanced planning tools. As demonstrated by the papers in this book, the field of computer-aided mechanical assembly planning is maturing. It now may include: • geometric descriptions of parts extracted from or compatible with CAD programs; • constraints related to part interference and the use of tools; • fixtures and jigs required for the assembly; • the nature of connectors, matings and other relations between parts; • number of turnovers required during the assembly; • handling and gripping requirements for various parts; • automatic identification of subassemblies. This is not an exhaustive list, but it serves to illustrate the complexity of some of the issues which are discussed in this book. Such issues must be considered in the design of the modern planners, as they produce desirable assembly sequences and precedence relations for assembly.

Please note this is a Short Discount publication. Process planning involves creating detailed plans of the manufacturing steps and equipment necessary to produce a finished part. Using the variant method, CAPP groups families of parts by a structured classification and coding plan. This report summarizes the state–of–the–art and future trends in the area of CAPP. The computer is a vital part of the process planning function, which includes two different approaches. One is called the variant (similar part) method of process planning and the other is generative (expert system–based). Both will produce similar process plans. Most computer applications, however, are of the variant type, because the software is easier to develop and new process plans are based on previous ones.

Broad coverage of digital product creation, from design to manufacture and process optimization This book addresses the need to provide up-to-date coverage of current CAD/CAM usage and implementation. It covers, in one source, the entire design-to-manufacture process, reflecting the industry trend to further integrate CAD and CAM into a single, unified process. It also updates the computer aided design theory and methods in modern manufacturing systems and examines the most advanced computer-aided tools used in digital manufacturing. Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing consists of three parts. The first part on Computer Aided Design (CAD) offers the chapters on Geometric Modelling; Knowledge Based Engineering; Platforming Technology; Reverse Engineering; and Motion Simulation. The second part on Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) covers Group Technology and Cellular Manufacturing; Computer Aided Fixture Design; Computer Aided Manufacturing; Simulation of Manufacturing Processes; and Computer Aided Design of Tools, Dies and Molds (TDM). The final part includes the chapters on Digital Manufacturing; Additive Manufacturing; and Design for Sustainability. The book is also featured for being uniquely structured to classify and align engineering disciplines and computer aided technologies from the perspective of the design needs in whole product life cycles, utilizing a comprehensive Solidworks package (add-ins, toolbox, and library) to showcase the most critical functionalities of modern computer aided tools, and presenting real-world design projects and case studies so that readers can gain CAD and CAM problem-solving skills upon the CAD/CAM theory. Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing is an ideal textbook for undergraduate and graduate students in mechanical engineering, manufacturing engineering, and industrial engineering. It can also be used as a technical reference for researchers and engineers in mechanical and manufacturing engineering or computer-aided technologies.

In the competitive business arena companies must continually strive to create new and better products faster, more efficiently, and more cost effectively than their competitors to gain and keep the competitive advantage. Computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided engineering (CAE), and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) are now the industry standa