Browse Topic: Materials handling
ABSTRACT Situations exist that require the ability to preposition a basic level of energy infrastructure. Exploring and developing the arctic’s oil potential, providing power to areas damaged by natural or man-made disasters, and deploying forward operating bases are some examples. This project will develop and create a proof-of-concept electric power prepositioning system using small autonomous swarm robots each containing a power electronic building block. Given a high-level power delivery requirement, the robots will self-organize and physically link with each other to connect power sources to storage and end loads. Each robot mobile agent will need to determine both its positioning and energy conversion strategy that will deliver energy generated at one voltage and frequency to an end load requiring a different voltage and frequency. Although small-scale robots will be used to develop the negotiation strategies, scalability to existing, large-scale robotic vehicles will be
ABSTRACT Automatic guided vehicles (AGV) have made big inroads in the automation of assembly plants and warehouse operations. There are thousands of AGV units in operation at OEM supplier and service facilities worldwide in virtually every major manufacturing and distribution sector. Although today’s AGV systems can be reconfigured and adapted to meet changes in operation and need, their adaptability is often limited because of inadequacies in current systems. This paper describes a wireless navigated (WN) omni-directional (OD) autonomous guided vehicle (AGV) that incorporates three technical innovations that address the shortfalls. The AGV features consist of: 1) A newly developed integrated wireless navigation technology to allow rapid rerouting of navigation pathways; 2) Omnidirectional wheels to move independently in different directions; 3) Modular space frame construction to conveniently resize and reshape the AGV platform. It includes an overview of the AGVs technical features
ABSTRACT The SAIC Battery Thermal Solver is a tool that allows for the evaluation of the thermal response under a variety of cell types, loading conditions and packaging alternatives for the battery designer, manufacturer, or system integrator. Developed with a user-friendly interface, the Battery Thermal Solver allows for a number of simulations to be performed. This paper discusses the capabilities of the Battery Thermal Solver Tool through a thorough discussion of the battery thermal problem—from cell heat generation, heat transfer mechanisms, to the effects of alternative packaging strategies
ABSTRACT The effective and safe use of Rough Terrain Cargo Handlers is severely hampered by the operator’s view being obstructed. This results in the inability to see a) in front of the vehicle while driving, b) where to set a carried container, and c) where to maneuver the vehicles top handler in order to engage with cargo containers. We present an analysis of these difficulties along with specific solutions to address these challenges that go beyond the non-technical solution currently used, including the placement of sensors and the use of image analysis. These solutions address the use of perception to support autonomy, drive assist, active safety, and logistics
Mi Rancho has been delighting customers with authentic and fresh tortillas, chips, and salsas since its establishment in 1939. Originally founded as a grocery store in Oakland, CA, the business has evolved and grown into a food provider for large nation-wide retail partners. To enable their continued growth, Mi Rancho recently partnered with Formic to introduce robotic automation to their food processing and packaging production operations
This specification covers a low-alloy steel in the form of welding wire
This specification covers a low-alloy steel in the form of welding wire
Moisture adsorption and compression deformation behaviors of Semimet and Non-Asbestos Organic brake pads were studied and compared for the pads cured at 120, 180 and 240 0C. The 2 types of pads were very similar in moisture adsorption behavior despite significant differences in composition. After being subjected to humidity and repeated compression to 160 bars, they all deform via the poroviscoelastoplastic mechanism, become harder to compress, and do not fully recover the original thickness after the pressure is released for 24 hours. In the case of the Semimet pads, the highest deformation occurs with the 240 °C-cure pads. In the case of the NAO pads, the highest deformation occurs with the 120 0C-cure pads. In addition, the effect of pad cure temperatures and moisture adsorption on low-speed friction was investigated. As pad properties change all the time in storage and in service because of continuously changing humidity, brake temperature and pressure, one must question any
Getting 800 robots in a warehouse to and from their destinations efficiently while keeping them from crashing into each other is no easy task. In a sense, these robots are like cars trying to navigate a crowded city center
In the medical device production environment, device packaging and sterilization is vital. The same level of rigorous quality controls and regulations that affect the devices themselves are also extended to their packaging. The mechanical and container closure integrity [CCI] evaluations of medical device packaging requires significant testing performed at multiple points throughout the commercialization and production processes
Sustainability remains a dominant trend in packaging and processing, continuing to attract the attention of the life sciences industry and inspire its new initiatives. Although pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers must prioritize patient safety and product protection, concerns about climate change, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, plastic waste, and pressure to move toward a circular economy are prompting a greater focus on improving the sustainability of their products and packaging
Contract design and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs) play an increasingly crucial role in the pharmaceutical supply chain, providing the necessary capabilities and capacity to meet growing patient demand. The recent emergence of GLP-1 class drugs only emphasizes the importance of CDMOs, which con- tribute significant expertise related to fill-finish operations, secondary packaging, and distribution
Manufacturing and servicing facilities in space are (finally) moving from the pages of science fiction to reality. For decades, we've seen movies with scenes of spacecraft being created and serviced in beautifully rendered factories with Earth in the background. And many more ideas have come from authors imagining bold futures where humanity does everything from creating giant nets of satellites to massive, spinning space stations. Some might lament that, back in reality, we’ve come so far with our achievements in space yet fallen short of the brightest visions. How can we have landed on the Moon 50 years ago and still be scrapping billion-dollar satellites when they run out of fuel? However, there’s good reason to believe that the space industry is almost done laying the foundations that will let us move from science fiction to engineering reality
In response to global climate change, there is a widespread push to reduce carbon emissions in the transportation sector. For the difficult to decarbonize heavy-duty (HD) vehicle sector, hybridization and lower carbon-intensity fuels can offer a low-cost, near-term solution for CO2 reduction. The use of natural gas can provide such an alternative for HD vehicles while the increasing availability of renewable natural gas affords the opportunity for much deeper reductions in net-CO2 emissions. With this in consideration, the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory launched the Natural Gas Vehicle Research and Development Project to stimulate advancements in technology and availability of natural gas vehicles. As part of this program, Southwest Research Institute developed a hybrid-electric medium-HD vehicle (class 6) to demonstrate a substantial CO2 reduction over the baseline diesel vehicle and ultra-low NOx emissions. The development included the conversion of a 5.2 L diesel engine to
Aitiip is a leading Spanish research and development institute and serves companies in the aeronautics, automation, industrial, and packaging sectors. The institute possesses strong platforms for the characterization of materials and processes and is known as a powerful integrator of technologies, which is constantly on the lookout for the next transformative technology. A year ago, Aitiip implemented an NXE 400 industrial resin 3D printer platform from Nexa3D to explore integrations of additive manufacturing and injection molding. Nexa3D is the Ventura, California-based provider of high-speed industrial printing technologies whose portfolio continues to grow, reflected in its acquisition of Essentium, one of the world's most well-known providers of extrusion 3D printing, earlier this year. Liebherr is one of the world's largest providers of a variety of industrial goods, services and products. Aerospace and transportation systems is one of 13 different product segments supplied by the
Rooftop solar panels will soon power about 90% of PFG's Gilroy, California, operations, the starting point for cold food deliveries. The vehicles getting the various edibles and food-related products from the warehouse to restaurants, schools, hotels and other customers include new battery-electric Class 8 trucks that mate to trailers fitted with zero-emission transport refrigeration units (TRUs). “Our Gilroy, California, location is the pilot for how we intend to develop sustainable distribution centers,” said Jeff Williamson, senior vice president of operations for Richmond, Virginia-headquartered Performance Food Group (PFG). Williamson and others were recently interviewed by Truck & Off-Highway Engineering following an Earth Day open house at the Gilroy site
Most heavy trucks should be fully electric, using a combination of batteries and catenary electrification, but heavy trucks requiring very long unsupported range will need chemical fuels. Hydrogen is the key to storing renewably generated electricity chemically. At the scale of heavy trucks, compressed hydrogen can match the specific energy of diesel, but its energy density is five times lower, limiting the range to around 2,000 km. Scaling green hydrogen production and addressing leakage must be priorities. Hydrogen-derived electrofuels—or “e-fuels”—have the potential to scale, and while the economic comparison currently has unknowns, clean air considerations have gained new importance. The limited supply of bioenergy should be reserved for critical applications, such as bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), aviation, shipping, and road freight in the most remote locations. Additionally, there are some reasons to prefer ethanol or methanol to diesel-type fuels as they are
With the advent of this new era of electric-driven automobiles, the simulation and virtual digital twin modeling world is now embarking on new sets of challenges. Getting key insights into electric motor behavior has a significant impact on the net output and range of electric vehicles. In this paper, a complete 3D CFD model of an Electric Motor is developed to understand its churning losses at different operating speeds. The simulation study details how the flow field develops inside this electric motor at different operating speeds and oil temperatures. The contributions of the crown and weld endrings, crown and weld end-windings, and airgap to the net churning loss are also analyzed. The oil distribution patterns on the end-windings show the effect of the centrifugal effect in scrapping oil from the inner structures at higher speeds. Also, the effect of the sump height with higher operating speeds are also analyzed. The net churning losses obtained from the simulations are compared
Testing of ducted fuel injection (DFI) in a single-cylinder engine with production-like hardware previously showed that adding a duct structure increased soot emissions at the full load, rated speed operating point [1]. The authors hypothesized that the DFI flame, which travels faster than a conventional diesel combustion (CDC) flame, and has a shorter distance to travel, was being re-entrained into the on-going fuel injection around the lift-off length (LOL), thus reducing air entrainment into the on-going injection. The engine operating condition and the engine combustion chamber geometry were duplicated in a constant pressure vessel. The experimental setup used a 3D piston section combined with a glass fire deck allowing for a comparison between a CDC flame and a DFI flame via high-speed imaging. CH* imaging of the 3D piston profile view clearly confirmed the re-entrainment hypothesis presented in the previous engine work. This finding suggests that a DFI retrofit for this
Plastic design is one of the upcoming fields of interest when it comes to weight optimization, sustainability, strength, and overall aesthetics of an automobile. What is often ignored is the amount of flexibility a plastic designer has, of integrating and packaging various components of an automobile into a single part and still make it an integral part of its complex aesthetics. This paper highlights upon one such part that is being developed: An integrated bracket which packages ADAS camera, Rain Light Sensor, and an Auto-dimming IRVM. Apart from packaging the mentioned components, this bracket also has mounting provisions for an aesthetic cover (also referred to as beauty cover). The objective of this paper is to highlight the importance of integration of several parts into a single part for packaging multiple components that need to be placed in a close proximity with each other. This paper includes the demonstration of old design which consisted of multiple parts along with how we
Getting warehouse robots to and from their destinations efficiently while keeping them from crashing into each other is no easy task. It is such a complex problem that even the best path-finding algorithms struggle to keep up with the breakneck pace of e-commerce or manufacturing. In a sense, these robots are like cars trying to navigate a crowded city center. So, a group of MIT researchers who use AI to mitigate traffic congestion applied ideas from that domain to tackle this problem
As manufacturers push for increased productivity, low-value tasks such as material transport have become clear targets for improvement. In efforts to reduce material transport in large facilities, companies have explored the use of intermediate warehouse areas throughout the production floor. However, this takes up valuable space, requires additional material processing and handling, and creates opportunities for errors and lost or misplaced materials
Much has been written about the extraordinary vehicle production and market environment of the past four years in North America and beyond. The plethora of negative impacts from COVID, chip availability, scarcity of labor, inflation, shipping disruptions and union/OEM disputes can all be boiled down to what's best described as an “operational hell.” Everyone is happy to put this all behind us. The dawn of 2024, at least for North America, has enabled some stability from a volume perspective as the industry slowly rebuilds inventory and adjustments are made to the pace of BEV volume buildout over the next couple of years. This should offer some familiarity and a welcome breather from the highly unpredictable environments we've seen since late 2019. That being noted, there's a question in the air about the new, inexperienced challenges that might lurk around the corner
This specification covers a corrosion- and heat-resistant steel in the form of welding wire
This specification provides requirements for the identification and packaging of sheet, strip, extrusions, and molded parts made of natural rubber, synthetic rubber, reclaimed rubber, and combinations of the above with other materials such as asbestos, cork, and fabrics. AMS2817 covers preferred requirements for identification and packaging of preformed packings
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