Energy optimisation in manufacturing systems using virtual engineering-driven discrete event simulation

Abstract

Increasing the cost of electricity and the global obligations for efficient use of energy have added additional pressure to industrial companies in an already challenging market. Manufacturing companies are adopting methods to have a greater agility to respond quicker to the market dynamics and varying demands by changing production configurations. In recent years, deploying virtual engineering design approaches and extensive simulation methods have facilitated an early insight into how a system may perform, in advance of the physical build. However, the impact of system reconfiguration on the cost of energy consumption is typically unknown. Much research has been carried out on the development of new energy-efficient drives (e.g. motors and actuators) and also the possibility of turning off the drives when idle to save energy. However, in this article, the authors propose a new method of energy saving for engineering production lines by fine tuning the low level device motions to optimise energy consumption. An integration method between virtual engineering design and simulation modelling is proposed, and as a result a simulation method for energy optimisation is developed. In this article the method of interpreting virtual design data for use in simulation modelling of a production assembly line in an automotive industry is discussed. Furthermore, a developed algorithm for optimising energy usage based on adjusting dynamic properties of the system components (e.g. accelerations, torque and mass) is discussed and the result of implementing the concept in an experimental application in the powertrain industry is reported.