Hollow Embossing Rolling Instead of Pressing—Much Cheaper And More Compact for Sheet Metal Parts

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A press requires a lot of space and the operating and acquisition costs for the system and tools are enormous. A research project aims to prove that there is a simpler way.

The idea is as simple as it is captivating, researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Technology IWU in Chemnitz begin this report! Because if the line contact of a roller is used for forming instead of the large contact surface of a press tool, significantly lower forming forces are sufficient to achieve the goal, they continue. The rolling tools also only cost between 40 and 50 percent of a forming tool for pressing. They can also be implemented in a much more compact (and therefore cheaper) system. These alone are unbeatable arguments for the sheet metal production industry—as long as the forming result meets the quality requirements. The idea is being developed as part of the "smartROLL" project, in which, as is emphasized, hollow embossing rolling is being pursued at the highest level.

Knowing Important Data During Production

More specifically, the aim is to first develop a system for plant and process monitoring that provides an effective and inline-capable recording, evaluation and assessment of all condition and process-relevant parameters during the rolling of precision parts. In future, quality and process information will already be available during production. This is the basis for adaptive process control, which sustainably improves product quality, overall system effectiveness and operational safety. According to the researchers, the aspects of mechanics, process and control are considered together and the overall behavior of the system is completely recorded. This integrated approach allows a holistic analysis and evaluation of all factors influencing component quality.

The Data Must Be Merged in A Meaningful Way

The basis for inline monitoring is a correlated evaluation of various data sources. These are retrofitted sensors in the machine (such as strain sensors on roller bearings), sensors in the rolling tools (such as angle of rotation, acceleration or force sensors) and inventory sensors (torque or angle of rotation detection). According to the IWU researchers, it is crucial to use suitable data fusion methods in order to systematically combine and evaluate this heterogeneous data in an integrated manner. This is because a comprehensive, data-based view of the condition and performance of the machine and hollow embossing roller process can only be achieved by correctly combining all sensor data. In order to be able to clearly assign anomalies in the sensor data to an event, such as a quality fluctuation, the mechanisms of hollow roll embossing and the machine and tool technology used are transferred into mathematical models that are incorporated into a diagnostic system based on machine learning methods (such as support vector machines).

Bipolar Plates for Hydrogen Technology in Large-Scale Production at Low Cost

The evaluation logic and the models are then integrated into the machine control system of the test facility together with an optimized system architecture and executed in real time. This creates a virtual twin that provides information at various levels of detail and also sets up an adaptive control system that adjusts the process control variables based on detected fluctuations in process, machine and quality parameters and implements these adjustments in a closed control loop. The researchers put it to the test! This involved bipolar plates for electrolysers that produce hydrogen and fuel cells that convert the hydrogen produced into electricity. As is well known, the efficiency of both depends to a large extent on the production quality of the bipolar plates, which are therefore regarded as core elements. In the "Reference Factory.H2", the Fraunhofer IWU and its partners have already made the hollow embossing rolling of bipolar plates suitable for large-scale production! The current project is now focusing on further improving process quality and thus product quality. This should then create a basis for the application of hollow embossing rolling for many other components and products.

(The project is co-financed by tax funds on the basis of the budget approved by the Saxon state parliament. The Fraunhofer IWU's project partners are Profiroll Technologies GmbH, Autez GmbH and TIQ Solutions GmbH).

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