Abstract
The reconfigurable manufacturing system (RMS) paradigm encapsulates methodologies that enable manufacturing systems to cope effectively with market and product changes. This research presents the design and evaluation of modular reconfigurable machine (MRM) tools as a novel machining solution within the scope of RMS. Mechanical and control designs are presented, outlining the development of this novel machining system. The property of hardware modularity displayed by MRMs enables an adjustment of system functionality and the synergistic redistribution of system resources between production streams, thus facilitating inter-process capacity scaling. Scalable production capacity and adjustable system functionality are the key objectives of reconfigurable manufacturing.
Highlights
The rapid introduction of new products, regular updates in technology, and the need for customised products requires regular changes in the content and diversity of an enterprise product portfolio
The paradigm of RMS had begun to emerge in the late 1990s, necessitated by the nonresponsiveness of dedicated manufacturing systems (DMS) and flexible manufacturing systems (FMS) with regard to market and product changes
CNCs do not provide an effective solution to capacity scaling and often possess excessive functionality, resulting in FMS being an expensive system with significantly longer payback periods than DMS [3, 8]
Summary
The rapid introduction of new products, regular updates in technology, and the need for customised products requires regular changes in the content and diversity of an enterprise product portfolio. Computer numerically controlled machines (CNC machines) are characteristic of FMS [6, 7] These machines are designed to provide generic processing capabilities, thereby making FMS highly flexible. CNCs do not provide an effective solution to capacity scaling and often possess excessive functionality, resulting in FMS being an expensive system with significantly longer payback periods than DMS [3, 8]. Mehrabi et al [9] identify the fixed mechanical architectures and proprietary control systems found in CNC and DMT equipment as the specific drawback in effectively implementing these classes of equipment in RMS. This paper presents the formulation of modular reconfigurable machine (MRM) tools for RMS, a new class of production machines, which by virtue of their modular characteristics offer the reconfigurability required by RMS to provide a rapid response to market or product changes. The paper concludes with discussions on MRM performance and a description of future work
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