Collaborative Research: IRES Track II: Short Courses on Manufacturing Frontiers Leveraging Unique Facilities in Italy

高级研究学院（ASI）将在北方意大利举行，包括米兰，都灵，博洛尼亚和摩德纳等城市，那里有强大而有弹性的制造业。正如近年来所证明的那样，一个有弹性的制造业部门对于应对国际供应链中断至关重要。此外，强大的制造业对经济繁荣和国家安全至关重要，因为它创造就业和财富，同时鼓励研究和技术创新。ASI将帮助美国准备先进的制造业劳动力，以便在竞争日益激烈的全球市场中取得成功。ASI将促进合作和全球思维，并为参与的学生做好准备，使他们对国际合作更加适应。ASI还将让参与的学生接触新兴的制造技术，以及基础研究和工业应用之间的强大桥梁。劳动力发展和国际合作研究产生的新技术和制造工艺或系统将为美国和意大利带来长期的经济利益。ASI将帮助培养下一代美国制造业领袖，他们可以利用全球资源为更具弹性的美国经济做出贡献。高级研究学院（ASI）利用意大利独特的设施来培训美国制造工程专业的学生，并培养创新的研究理念。意大利强大的制造业拥抱新兴技术，这些技术是工业4.0或第四次工业革命的基石。工业4.0将制造业的物理模型转变为数字模型，创建“智能工厂”并引入数字商业模式。ASI由八门短期课程组成，每门课程涵盖工业4.0的一项新兴技术：（1）先进工艺和机器人技术，（2）横向和纵向集成，（3）物联网，（4）仿真，（5）先进加工，（6）增强和虚拟现实，（7）增材制造，以及（8）大数据和云计算。短期课程还辅以工厂图尔斯参观、研究讨论和短期项目。每年将有15名美国研究生参加ASI，该项目为期两年，共计30名学生。每个意大利国际学院的学生将在意大利停留15天。意大利的主要合作伙伴是8名世界级的研究人员。他们将教授短期课程，适度的讨论会，招募和选择意大利学生加入美国学生，以及指导所有ASI学生。其他意大利合作伙伴包括三个研究实验室，将接待意大利航天局学生的参观，意大利制造技术协会将与其成员公司合作安排工厂图尔斯参观，以及十家公司将提供工厂图尔斯参观。总体而言，学生将有机会获得意大利独特的研究环境，大学和行业都促进研究项目的成熟，使其商业化。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The Advanced Studies Institute (ASI) will take place in northern Italy, including the cities of Milan, Turin, Bologna, and Modena, where a strong and resilient manufacturing sector resides. As evidenced in recent years, a resilient manufacturing sector is critical for coping with an international supply chain disruption. In addition, a strong manufacturing sector is essential to economic prosperity and national security as it generates employment and wealth while encouraging research and technological innovation. The ASI will help prepare an advanced manufacturing workforce for the United States to succeed in an increasingly competitive global market. The ASI will promote collaborative and global thinking and prepare the participating students to become more comfortable with international collaborations. The ASI will also expose participating students to emerging manufacturing technologies, as well as strong bridges between fundamental research and industrial applications. Novel technologies and manufacturing processes or systems resulting from the workforce development and international collaborative research will lead to long-term economic benefits for both the U.S. and Italy. The ASI will help train the next generation of American manufacturing leaders who can leverage the global resources to contribute to a more resilient U.S. economy. The Advanced Studies Institute (ASI) leverages the unique facilities in Italy to train U.S. manufacturing engineering students and foster innovative research ideas. Italy’s strong manufacturing sector embraces emerging technologies that are the building blocks of Industry 4.0, or the Fourth Industrial revolution. Industry 4.0 transforms a physical model of manufacturing to a digital one, creating “smart factories” and introducing digital business models. The ASI is comprised of eight short courses with each course covering one emerging technology of Industry 4.0: (1) advanced processes and robotics, (2) horizontal and vertical integration, (3) Internet of Things, (4) simulation, (5) advanced machining, (6) augmented and virtual reality, (7) additive manufacturing, and (8) big data and cloud computing. Short courses are complemented by factory tours, research discussions, and short-term projects. There will be 15 U.S. graduate students participating in the ASI each year, totaling 30 students for the two-year duration of the project. Each ASI student will be in Italy for 15 days. The key Italian partners are eight world-class researchers. They will teach short courses, moderate discussion sessions, recruit and select the Italian students to join the U.S. students, as well as mentor all ASI students. Other Italian partners include three research labs that will host visits from the ASI students, the Italian Association of Manufacturing Technologies that will work with its member companies to arrange factory tours, and ten companies that will offer factory tours. Overall, students will have access to a unique research environment in Italy where both universities and industries facilitate the maturity of research projects into commercialization.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.