Joint NCSU-Boeing Academic-Industrial Research Project

该项目的目的是建立一个协作结构，涉及波音公司数学和工程分析部门（John Betts和Daniel Pierce）和NCSU应用数学项目（Carl Meyer, Stephen Campbell, Ilse Ipsen， Carl Kelley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感兴趣的问题。现代制造技术试图利用复杂的自动装配机器来可靠地构建产品，同时降低生产成本和时间。机械臂、多轴铣床和自动化装配工具等复杂动力系统的运动建模问题是实现制造业现代化的核心问题。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，从而避免特殊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进行，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值微分方程问题，并使用启发式方法处理代数约束。由于这种特殊过程，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。最终的结果是工业和国家竞争优势的退化。这个联合学术-工业研究项目的重点是一些需要先进和强大的DAE解决方案的紧迫问题。具体应用包括波音公司目前的工具规划项目，该项目旨在优化飞机零件生产中修剪工具的路径，解决使用测量数据确定实际空气压力的逆问题，以及波音公司高速民用运输项目所需的轨迹规划问题。每个应用程序的共同点是DAE模型，在开发更复杂的生产工程计算工具之前，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成员定期短期访问另一个团队的网站来促进，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。波音公司将从他们的研究预算中拨出大量的工资支持，以允许他们的团队成员参与这项合作努力。波音公司将在办公空间、计算软硬件、图书馆资源等方面提供设施支持，而NCSU团队成员将访问贝尔维尤。NCSU将在波音人员访问罗利时给予回报。波音公司将提供资金，帮助支持NCSU的研究生从事与他们参与程度相称的项目。这些基金将为在波音公司工作的学生提供工资和生活费用。在NCSU期间，研究生将通过这项资助获得传统的研究助理奖学金。预计pi对另一个小组的地点的定期访问将是短期的（每次访问大约两到三周），但是存在较长时间访问的灵活性。北卡州立大学的学生将在波音公司呆更长时间，以便充分融入应用和研究。根据项目需要和个人情况，学生可以在波音公司工作几周到几个月不等。波音公司还将向北卡罗莱纳州立大学的主要研究团队授予使用其非线性优化软件的许可。目前估计，开发一个完整的解决方案来优化刀具修剪路径问题，可以大大降低所有波音机床和零件的成本。它还将使波音公司实现其目标制造率，同时稳定就业波动并提高其制造零件的质量。到2000年，预计节省的费用将是可观的，届时波音公司希望有相当大比例的机加工工具将使用这些方法。在接下来的几年里，预计节省的成本将会非常可观。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，计算机机柜的模具到航天飞机上的助推火箭。在机器路径问题上取得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）和数学科学司（DMS）联合支持。

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).