Flexible and reconfigurable manufacturing

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This research program aims at generating advanced knowledge and fundamental principles and developing methodologies needed to effectively link the products design characteristics to the manufacturing processes and systems structure and design in order to achieve maximum flexibility, reconfigurability, productivity and responsiveness to changing demands. It targets three primary areas and research issues that lie at the product/system interface domain: 1. The design and development of a new classification code for manufacturing systems. It captures the salient features of their components, structure as well as compares their layout and interaction. This innovative code is the first of its kind for manufacturing systems. It can be used for, among other applications, assessing their complexity and design efficiency. 2. Process planning with two main thrusts: a) Innovative dynamic process planning techniques for changeable manufacturing, and b) Intelligent hybrid laser and tactile scanning with emphasis on the automatic features identification in un-organized laser scanning data. 3. Designing a new breed of controllers with unique features that allow automatic re-configuration in response to varying tasks or topologies. They will first be applied to robotic systems. This research will contribute to the training of many graduate and under-graduate students as well as technical personnel. It is expected to make significant contributions for enhancing the ability of manufacturers to compete globally. Its results are applicable to a wide range of manufacturing enterprises, including the automotive sector, and would have a positive socio-economic impact.