Joint NCSU-Boeing Academic-Industrial Research Project

北卡罗来纳州立大学-波音联合学术-工业研究项目

• 批准号: 9714811
• 负责人: Carl Meyer
• 金额: $ 29.4万
• 依托单位: North Carolina State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 1998
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1998-06-01 至 2003-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9714811&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Joint; NCSU; Boeing; Academic; Industrial

The purpose of this project is to build a collaborative structure involving personnel from Boeing's Mathematical and Engineering Analysis Division (John Betts and Daniel Pierce) and NCSU's Applied Mathematics program (Carl Meyer, Stephen Campbell, Ilse Ipsen, Carl Kelley and four graduate students) to investigate problems of mutual interest which arise in the design and development of modern aircraft. Modern manufacturing techniques attempt to utilize sophisticated automatic assembly machines to reliably construct a product while reducing production cost and time. The problem of modeling the motion of complex dynamical systems such as robot arms, multi-axis milling machines and automated assembly tools is a central issue in the effort toward manufacturing modernization. Complex differential-algebraic equations (DAE's) are often at the heart of these problems, and the goal is to use these DAE's to simulate system performance, thereby avoiding ad hoc process design approaches and circumventing the need to build physical mockups. Notwithstanding recent advances, computer simulations in these areas are not always performed using the DAE's because state-of-the-art solution technology for DAE's is not robust and reliable enough for everyday use. Instead, engineers convert the problems to initial value differential equation problems and treat algebraic constraints using heuristics. As a result of this ad hoc process, each problem requires special treatment which not only translates into increased costs, but extends product-to-market times. The net result is a degradation in both industrial and national competitive advantages. This joint academic-industrial research project focuses on some immediate problems requiring advanced and robust DAE solvers. Specific applications include Boeing's current tool planning project which is aimed at optimizing the path of a trim tool in the production of airplane parts, the solution of an inverse problem that uses measured d ata to determine actual air pressures, and the trajectory planning problem required for Boeing's high speed civil transport project. Common to each application are DAE models which require advances in DAE solution technology before more sophisticated production engineering computing tools can be developed. The joint research effort will be facilitated through regular short visits by members of each team to the other team's site, and it will be further strengthened by installing NCSU graduate students in Boeing's Mathematics and Engineering Analysis division. Boeing will allocate a substantial amount of salary support from their research budget to allow members of their team to engage in this collaborative effort. Boeing will provide facility support in the way of office space, computing hardware and software, library resources, etc., while NCSU team members visit Bellevue. NCSU will reciprocate when Boeing personnel visit Raleigh. Boeing will provide funds to help support NCSU graduate students working on the project commensurate with their level of involvement. These funds will provide salary and living expenses for students while at Boeing. While at NCSU, the graduate students would be supported by traditional research assistantships through this grant. It is anticipated that the regular visits the PIs make to the other team's site would be short (on the order of two to three weeks per visit), but flexibility for longer visits exists. The NCSU students would stay at Boeing for longer periods so as to become fully integrated in the applications and research. Students could be at Boeing from anywhere between a few weeks to several months, depending on project needs and individual circumstances. Boeing will also grant a license for use of their nonlinear optimization software for the use of the team of principal investigators at North Carolina State University. It is currently estimated that developing a complete solution to the optimization of the path of tool trim problem could result in a substantial cost reduction of all Boeing machined tools and parts. It would also allow Boeing to achieve its targeted manufacturing rates while stabilizing employment oscillations and improve the quality of its manufactured parts. the savings are expected to be substantial by the year 2000 when it is hoped that a sizable percentage of the machining tools at Boeing will be using these methods. In the years to follow, the cost savings are expected to be truly dramatic. Moreover, this is a fundamental industrial need, used in manufacturing everything from components of your car's continuous velocity joint, the mold for your computer's cabinet, to the booster rockets on the Space Shuttle. The advances made on the machine path problem would have a very wide ranging impact. This GOALI project is jointly supported by the MPS Office of Multidisciplinary Activities (OMA) and the Division of Mathematical Sciences (DMS).

该项目的目的是建立一个合作结构，涉及波音公司的数学和工程分析部门（约翰贝茨和丹尼尔皮尔斯）和NCSU的应用数学程序（卡尔迈耶，斯蒂芬坎贝尔，伊尔莎Ipsen，卡尔凯利和四名研究生）的人员，以调查在现代飞机的设计和开发中出现的共同利益的问题。 现代制造技术试图利用复杂的自动装配机器来可靠地构造产品，同时降低生产成本和时间。 复杂动力系统的运动建模问题，如机器人手臂，多轴铣床和自动装配工具是一个中心问题，在努力实现制造业现代化。 复杂的微分代数方程（DAE）通常是这些问题的核心，目标是使用这些DAE来模拟系统性能，从而避免特定的过程设计方法并避免构建物理模型的需要。 尽管最近取得了进展，但这些领域的计算机模拟并不总是使用DAE执行，因为DAE的最新解决方案技术对于日常使用来说不够强大和可靠。 相反，工程师将问题转换为初始值微分方程问题，并使用代数学处理代数约束。 由于这一特殊过程，每个问题都需要特殊处理，这不仅会增加成本，而且会延长产品上市时间。 最终结果是工业和国家竞争优势的退化。 这一学术-工业联合研究项目的重点是一些迫切需要先进和强大的DAE解决方案的问题。 具体的应用包括波音公司目前的工具规划项目，其目的是在优化的路径的修剪工具在飞机零件的生产中，使用测量数据来确定实际的空气压力的逆问题的解决方案，和轨迹规划问题所需的波音公司的高速民用运输项目。每个应用程序都有DAE模型，在开发更复杂的生产工程计算工具之前，这些模型需要DAE解决方案技术的进步。 联合研究工作将通过每个团队的成员定期到另一个团队的网站进行短期访问来促进，并将通过在波音公司的数学和工程分析部门安装NCSU研究生来进一步加强。 波音公司将从其研究预算中拨出大量工资支持，以使其团队成员能够参与这项合作努力。 波音公司将以办公空间、计算硬件和软件、图书馆资源等方式提供设施支持，而NCSU的队员们正在参观贝尔维尤 当波音公司的人员访问罗利时，NCSU也将给予回报。 波音公司将提供资金，以帮助支持NCSU研究生在该项目上的工作与他们的参与程度相称。 这些资金将为学生在波音公司工作期间提供工资和生活费。 而在NCSU，研究生将通过传统的研究助学金通过这笔赠款的支持。 预计主要调查员对另一个调查队场地的定期访问时间很短（每次访问约两至三周），但可以灵活安排较长时间的访问。 NCSU的学生将在波音公司呆更长的时间，以便完全融入应用和研究。 根据项目需求和个人情况，学生可以在波音公司工作几周到几个月。 波音公司还将授予使用其非线性优化软件的许可证，供北卡罗来纳州州立大学的主要研究人员团队使用。 目前估计，开发一个完整的解决方案，优化的路径的工具修剪问题可能会导致大量的成本降低所有波音机加工工具和零件。 它还将使波音公司能够实现其目标制造率，同时稳定就业波动并提高其制造零件的质量。 预计到2000年，波音公司相当大比例的加工工具将使用这些方法，节省的费用将相当可观。 在接下来的几年里，预计成本节省将是真正戏剧性的。 此外，这是一个基本的工业需求，用于制造从汽车连续速度接头的组件，计算机机箱的模具，到航天飞机上的助推火箭的一切。 机器路径问题的进展将产生非常广泛的影响。 该GOALI项目由MPS多学科活动办公室（OMA）和数学科学部（DMS）联合支持。