A RECONFIGURABLE TOOLING - FLEXIBLE
SHEET FORING SYSTEM: FROM LAB TO FACTORY IN 18 YEARS
by
David E. Hardt, Ph.D.
Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Co-Director, Leaders for Manufacturing Program
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA 02139
Wednesday, April 7, 1999
1:25 - 2:15 p.m.
Room 102 ME
Broadcast on UNITE Channel B
Coffee will be available in 152 ME following the seminar
The idea of creating a sheet forming process
as flexible and accurate as CNC machining was hatched over 18
years ago. Along the way, the concept of a discrete reconfigurable
tool and a shape feedback control system to compensate for material
springback and other process uncertainties was developed. The
former was a reincarnation of many previous attempts at "programmable
tooling" while the latter was novel. The shape control system
employs a non-parametric spatial-frequency domain system identification
technique to create a "deformation transfer function".
Controllers based on this method have been superior to spatial
domain control methods. They have been applied to several different
sheet-forming processes including axisymmetric draw-forming using
rapidly re-machined hard tooling, discrete tool - matched die
forming and most recently, discrete tool stretch forming. The
latter system is now about to undergo full-scale factory trials
manufacturing airframe skin panels. This presentation will end
with a discussion of the full-scale reconfigurable tool, a novel
rapid 3D-shape measurement system and the process control algorithm
necessary to bring this technology to the factory floor.
Professor David Hardt received a B.S. degree
in Mechanical Engineering from Lafayette College, and received
S.M. and Ph.D. degrees, both in Mechanical Engineering Massachusetts
Institute of Technology. He joined the faculty of Mechanical Engineering
at MIT in 1979. He received the Adams Memorial Membership Award,
American Welding Society, 1988-1993. He is a member of the following
societies: American Society of Mechanical Engineers, American
Welding Society, Society of Manufacturing Engineers. Since joining
the MIT faculty in 1979, Prof. Hardt has pursued research in modeling,
measurement and control of manufacturing processes. This work
has concentrated primarily on sheet metal forming and fusion welding
processes, and has lead to novel concepts for greatly improving
the performance of these operations. His current interests include
developing a modeling technique suited to geometry-change processes
typical of manufacturing.
Informal Faculty Luncheon: Wednesday, April 7
1999, 11:45 am, Room 404, Campus Club Prof. Hardt will be able
to attend.
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