Presidential Young Investigator Award: Flexible Fixturing

将采用成组技术(GT)方法设计加工中心的柔性夹具。研究包括六个主要步骤：确定应包含哪些公差和夹具信息；确定能够描述这些信息并附加到标准代码的成组技术分类和编码方案；给定标准成组信息和公差/夹具信息，确定自动创建零件族的适当算法；确定零件族的柔性夹具设计策略；实现基于REUL的柔性夹具设计软件系统；并验证通过设计、制造和测试夹具开发的程序。

A cohesive methodology for the design of flexible fixtures for machining centers utilizing a group technology (GT) approach will be undertaken. The research will entail six major steps: determine what tolerance and fixturings information should be included; determine an appropriate GT classification and coding scheme which can depict this information and be appended to standard codes; given standard GT information and the tolerance/fixturing information, etermine appropriate algorithms to automatically create part families; determine strategies to design flexible fixtures for a part family; implement a reul-based software system to design flexible fixtures; and validate procedures developed by designing, building and testing fixtures.