15-03-2017, 03:08 PM
The term Virtual Manufacturing is already widespread in the literature, but several definitions are attached to these words. First we have to define the objects that are studied. The virtual manufacturing concepts come from machining operations and evolve in this manufacturing area. However, a large number of applications can now be found in different fields such as casting, forging, metalworking and robotics (mechanisms). The general idea that can be found behind most definitions is that "virtual manufacturing is nothing other than manufacturing on the computer". This brief definition comprises two important notions: the process (manufacturing) and the environment (computer science).
VM is defined as "manufacturing of virtual products defined as an aggregation of computer-based information that provides a representation of the properties and behaviors of an upgraded product." Some researchers present VM with respect to virtual reality (VR). On the one hand, in VM is represented as a virtual world for manufacturing, on the other hand, virtual reality can be considered as a tool that offers visualization for VM. The most comprehensive definition has been proposed by the University of Maryland Systems Research Institute, and discussed "an integrated synthetic manufacturing environment exercised to improve all levels of decision and control"
A similar definition has been proposed: "Virtual Manufacturing is a system in which the abstract prototypes of manufacturing of objects, processes, activities and principles evolve in a computer environment to improve one or more attributes of the manufacturing process."
You can also define VM by focusing on the methods and tools available that allow continuous and experimental representation of production processes and equipment using digital models. The areas in question are
(I) design of products and processes,
(Ii) process and production planning,
(Iii) machine tools, robots and manufacturing systems and virtual reality applications in manufacturing.
Scope of virtual manufacturing:
The scope of the VM can be to define the product, processes and resources within the constraints of cost, weight, investment, time and quality in the context of the plant in a collaborative environment. Three paradigms are proposed :
A) Design-centric VM: Provides manufacturing information to the designer during the design phase. In this case VM is the use of manufacturing-based simulations to optimize the design of products and processes for a specific manufacturing goal (DFA, quality, flexibility) or the use of process simulations to evaluate many production scenarios at many levels Of fidelity and reach to inform the decisions of design and production.
B) Production-centric VM: it uses the simulation capability to model manufacturing processes in order to allow a quick and economical evaluation of many processing alternatives. From this point of view VM is the inverter based on the production of Integrated Product Process Development (IPPD), which optimizes manufacturing processes and adds simulation of analytical production to other integration and analysis technologies to enable the validation of high confidence of new Processes and paradigms.
C) Control-centered VM: it is the addition of simulations to control actual models and processes that allow seamless simulation for optimization during the actual production cycle.