WO2025177169A1

WO2025177169A1 - Method for the integration of manufacturing processes

Info

Publication number: WO2025177169A1
Application number: PCT/IB2025/051781
Authority: WO
Inventors: Gennaro COZZOLINO; Emanuele Antonini; Gianni Romani; Carmine Carlo Ammirati
Original assignee: Alcantara SpA
Current assignee: Alcantara SpA
Priority date: 2024-02-23
Filing date: 2025-02-19
Publication date: 2025-08-28
Anticipated expiration: 2026-08-23

Abstract

A method for the integration of manufacturing processes is performed by acquiring a project file indicating a plurality of distinct manufacturing steps of a product Such manufacturing steps can each be executed by a respective manufacturing machine. An order of execution of the manufacturing steps is then determined according to the project file (in the initial product design steps) and for each manufacturing machine a reference system for positioning the product is determined. Such a reference system is shared between at least two manufacturing machines configured to perform subsequent manufacturing steps. Finally, the respective reference system is transmitted to each manufacturing machine, which acquires it, determining and monitoring the positioning of the product therein.

Description

"Method for the integration of manufacturing processes"

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DESCRIPTION

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the technical field of control procedures to be implemented in manufacturing processes for making products.

In particular, the present invention relates to a method for the integration of manufacturing processes capable of optimising interoperability between different machines and production steps in order to optimise the overall precision and repeatability of the production processes.

STATE OF THE ART

To date, the creation of many products in the industrial field requires manufacturing raw and semi-finished materials through a multiplicity of operational steps which cannot always be carried out by a single manufacturing machine.

That is, the creation of finished products ready to be placed on the market usually requires the use of several separate and distinct machines which must receive the product from upstream manufacturing processes, performs their own specific manufacturing step thereon and supply it to a further process located downstream.

It is therefore of fundamental importance to implement a precise and accurate control with respect to the transfer methods of the product along the production chain, in particular to be able to ensure that each machine performs its manufacturing in a correct, compatible and consistent manner with the manufacturing steps already carried out and such as not to hinder/prevent those which will be carried out subsequently.

In this context, when a manufacturing machine receives a product on which it must operate, it is known to perform a centring operation (for example by an operator or automatically) with which an indication is provided to a machine relative to the positioning/orientation of the product, so as to allow it to recognise the spatial location thereof and be able to control the execution of its manufacturing process accordingly.

However, this operating mode has disadvantages which make the use thereof unsatisfactory, especially from the point of view of the quality of the final product which is created.

In fact, each individual manufacturing machine performs a respective centring operation, without being able to take into account the result obtained in the previous manufacturing steps and the specific characteristics of the operations carried out by the other manufacturing machines.

That is, each manufacturing machine operates autonomously and independently, using its own specific reference system for identifying the position of the product, which is separate and does not take into account the specificities of the individual product it is processing, i.e. , how it was actually modified/manufactured in previous steps of its production by other machines.

As a result, the centring operation could have sub-optimal results, or in any case with even significant errors, which increase in a worsening manner with each subsequent manufacturing step.

In this context, the technical task underlying the present invention is to propose a method for the integration of manufacturing processes which obviates at least some of the drawbacks in the prior art as described above.

In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for the integration of manufacturing processes capable of optimising the interoperability of the various manufacturing steps, thereby allowing to obtain consistently high quality results.

Examples of processes and devices operating in the same technical field can be found within US2008/177417A1 and EP 3445525B1. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The stated technical task and the specified objects are substantially achieved by a method for the integration of manufacturing processes, performed as described below.

In particular, according to the present invention, a method for the integration of manufacturing processes is shown.

Such a method is executable by a computer.

Operatively, the method is performed by acquiring a project file indicating a plurality of distinct manufacturing steps of a product.

Each manufacturing step is/can be executed by a respective manufacturing machine.

An order of execution of the manufacturing steps is then determined according to the project file.

For each manufacturing machine, a reference system for positioning the product is identified.

The reference system is shared with at least one further manufacturing machine configured to perform an immediately previous or subsequent manufacturing step according to the order of execution.

Optionally, a single common reference system is identified/defined for all the manufacturing machines.

The respective reference system to be used is then transmitted to each manufacturing machine or process.

The reference system thus determined is then acquired by the individual manufacturing machines and used to determine the positioning of the product during the manufacturing steps thereof.

Advantageously, the method presented here allows to put the various manufacturing machines in communication, setting up a common reference system which allows to ensure a correct and optimal positioning of the product at each step of its manufacturing, thus improving the final quality of the product and guaranteeing the consistency of the results obtained. DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In Figure 1 an image is schematically shown related to a project file of an article to be made in accordance with a first application example of the method claimed herein.

In Figure 2 an image is schematically shown related to a project file of an article to be made in accordance with a second application example of the method claimed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Further features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment of a method for the integration of manufacturing processes.

Such a method is performed by acquiring a project file containing all the necessary and relevant indications for making a product, or more generally for the execution of a plurality of manufacturing steps necessary for the production of such a product.

In particular, the project file indicates and describes a plurality of distinct manufacturing steps which must be performed by respective and corresponding manufacturing machines through the creation of specific process tools; for example frames, prints,...

The term "manufacturing step" is therefore intended to indicate the set of one or more operations which a single machine is able to perform on the product to contribute to its creation.

By way of example, such manufacturing can comprise at least two of the following: a pre-cutting step, an electro-welding step, a stitching/embroidery step, a printing, a perforation, a laser engraving, an embossing or any other surface diversification, of one or more motifs on the product, a cutting step.

With particular reference to the field of manufacturing textile products, the pre-cutting step can preferably be a pre-cutting step, which can be carried out for example by cutting (not necessarily) with a jig.

Always in the same context, the electro-welding can be carried out by means of a dry or material-refill high-frequency electro-welding process.

Depending on the information content of such a project file, an order of execution of the manufacturing steps is thus determined, thereby identifying a process flow which represents the order according to which the product must be processed by the individual manufacturing machines. Such a step can be performed by acquiring the project file and identifying the individual manufacturing steps which must be performed to transform a raw material or a semi-finished product into a finished product.

Operationally, in this step an order of execution of the manufacturing steps is determined which can be defined or identified according to specific production needs (for example, the manufacturing of a certain machine can only be performed if the product has already been previously processed by a further machine) or by criteria aimed at optimising performance according to specific characteristics of a given production plant (for example, the sequence of manufacturing can be selected so as to minimise the movement distances of the product between one machine and the next).

Next at least one (physical or virtual) reference system for positioning the product is therefore determined for each manufacturing machine.

That is, for each manufacturing machine one or more fixed references are determined according to which the machine can determine the exact position of the product, so as to ensure the correct execution of its production process.

Advantageously, the reference system is shared with a further manufacturing machine configured to perform an immediately previous or subsequent manufacturing step according to the order of execution.

Therefore, each manufacturing machine is associated with a specific reference system which allows it to identify the exact position of the product. Such a reference system is shared with another manufacturing machine responsible for performing a previous or subsequent manufacturing according to the order of execution determined in the previous steps.

Operationally, a manufacturing machine can therefore have a first reference system shared with a manufacturing machine located upstream (therefore responsible for processing the product at an earlier time) and a second reference system instead shared with a manufacturing machine located downstream (therefore responsible for processing the product at a later time).

As will be explained below, such reference systems can be determined and based on specific structural characteristics of the product which are made by the manufacturing machines themselves.

That is, a first machine can perform a specific manufacturing, for example apply a graphic element, and such manufacturing identifies the first reference system as it is set as a positional reference of the product for the first machine and for a second machine located immediately downstream.

Such a second machine receives the product from the first and determines the position thereof according to the first reference system by identifying, for example, the position of the aforementioned graphic element.

At this point, the second machine performs its own manufacturing process, for example a cut of a portion of the product, and a position of the cut performed is used as a reference for the determination of the second reference system as it is set as a positional reference of the product for the second machine and for a third machine located immediately downstream. Alternatively or additionally, the third machine can also use the position of the graphic element (i.e., therefore the first reference system) to identify and determine the correct positioning of the product.

Operationally, the manufacturing machines therefore do not operate autonomously and independently, but through the tools themselves used for the execution of the production processes they define the position of the product they must process according to a reference system which they share with at least another machine immediately upstream or downstream according to the process flow determined according to the project file.

It is thereby guaranteed that at least between two subsequent manufacturing steps the references for determining the position of the product are the same and therefore the correct identification of the position of the product is optimised, allowing more precise and consistent manufacturing to be carried out.

In accordance with an advantageous aspect of the present invention, the same machine could therefore have more than one reference system, that is, it could determine the position of the product both according to the first reference system which it shares with the machine arranged immediately upstream along the production process and the second reference system which it instead shares with the machine positioned immediately downstream.

Similarly, the same reference system could also be used for more than two subsequent machines and, in particular, a specific marker (which could be the aforementioned graphic element) could be used by at least three consecutive manufacturing machines as a reference to identify the positioning of the product.

This approach ensures an even greater soundness of the process of identifying the position of the product, as multiple independent references are used to ensure that the position of the product within a specific manufacturing machine is actually correct.

In detail, the identification of the reference system can be performed by identifying physical or virtual elements of a work area and/or of a support body of the product.

For example, the product can be supported by an appropriate support base, a mould or a mask along two or more subsequent manufacturing steps and the reference system can be defined by their appropriate distinctive portions (edges, corners,...) or specific markers applied therein (QR codes, notches, inserts, pins, prints, markers, containing frames,...). Alternatively or additionally, the step of identifying a reference system for positioning the product is performed by identifying at least one marker on the product itself.

Such a marker can be a distinctive element of the product which identifies an unchanged characteristic throughout the production process, or a characteristic that is made/applied in a specific manufacturing step.

In particular, the marker can be identified as a function of the project file, identifying a distinctive portion of a raw material at the same time as the definition of the product and/or a distinctive portion of the product itself, generated for example during the execution of a manufacturing step.

By way of non-limiting example, the marker can comprise at least one of: a seam, a notch, a discontinuity of material, a discontinuity of colour, a cutting perimeter.

It therefore follows that the result of a manufacturing step performed by a specific machine can be used as a reference point to determine the correct positioning of the product in the machines responsible for performing subsequent manufacturing steps.

For example, a specific (ornamental or functional) motif can be made on the product during a stitching step and such a motif can be used in the subsequent manufacturing steps as a reference point for identifying the position of the product.

Operationally, a subsequent cutting step could be performed by controlling the corresponding manufacturing machine so as to perform a given cut at a certain distance and with a certain inclination relative to the position of the motif or a specific portion thereof.

Advantageously, this approach allows to take into account in each manufacturing step the specific result obtained and achieved in the previous steps, generating a greater integration of the various production steps.

In general, therefore, the reference system can be a single reference system selected and set so as to be common to all the manufacturing machines (therefore based on non-variable characteristics of the product and/or the elements which support it), or be defined dynamically according to the specific manufacturing steps which must be performed in accordance with the project file (therefore the result of a manufacturing step is used as a reference system for at least a subsequent step).

Preferably, the determ ination/identification of the reference system for positioning the product can be performed by acquiring one or more images of a work area and/or of the product and/or of the manufacturing machines and/or of a marker projected on the work area (such marker can be or comprise for example a light signal/profile).

Such an acquisition can be performed by one or more optical sensors which can be connected to the computer, which is in turn configured to control the activation and operation thereof.

Once the reference system has been determined, a single reference system for the entire production process or a plurality of reference systems shared between groups of subsequent machines, the respective reference system is transmitted, communicated (defined by means of a process tool), sent to each manufacturing machine.

Thereby, each machine receives the necessary information or is configured so as to be able to coherently and consistently determine the positioning of the product, maintaining common references with at least one further manufacturing machine.

Each manufacturing machine can then be configured to perform a step of acquiring the respective reference system, in particular by starting a communication with the computer which can be of wired or wireless type.

On the basis of the reference system acquired, the manufacturing machine can therefore precisely and accurately determine the positioning of the product when it receives it.

In particular, all the machines involved in the execution of the desired production processes can be physically connected to the computer by means of appropriate cables, or exploit wireless communication protocols (Wi-Fi®, Bluetooth®,...) to exchange information with such a computer.

The method described herein can therefore advantageously envisage, for each manufacturing machine, determining and monitoring the position of the product according to the respective reference system.

In particular, such an operation is performed during the manufacturing of the product by acquiring such a product to be manufactured (from a warehouse or from a further manufacturing machine located upstream), as well as by performing the specific manufacturing step thereof which each machine is designed to complete.

In this context, before performing the respective manufacturing, each manufacturing machine identifies the position of the product according to the respective reference system communicated thereto by the computer or defined by the special process tool.

Such a reference system will also be the same used by at least one further manufacturing machine positioned immediately upstream and/or downstream according to the process flow determined according to the project file.

In accordance with a particular implementation aspect, the method described herein can be performed so as to allow a progressive generation of the various reference systems to be used.

In particular, in this context, it is possible to generate by means of at least one manufacturing machine one or more markers which define, or contribute to defining, a reference system shared with a manufacturing machine configured to perform a subsequent, or immediately subsequent, manufacturing step according to the order of execution of the various processes for the production of the final product to be made.

That is, the peculiarities of each manufacturing machine can be used to generate/apply a distinctive element, the marker, which can be identified by subsequent manufacturing machines so as to allow a manufacturing machine located downstream of the overall manufacturing process to identify the correct positioning of the product to be processed based on the identification of the marker.

For example, a machine responsible for performing a laser printing can generate one or more markers on the product, or on a support thereof, which are then subsequently identified and used as a positional reference by at least one of the machines responsible for performing subsequent manufacturing steps.

Operationally, such subsequent machines determine the positioning of the product by searching for and identifying the markers generated by the previous machine.

Advantageously, the present invention therefore achieves the proposed objects, obviating the drawbacks lamented in the prior art, making available to the user a method for the integration of manufacturing processes.

Such a method is able to optimise the interoperability of industrial processes, providing a mode of communication between the various manufacturing machines which ensures the correct and optimal positioning of the product in each of its manufacturing steps.

The present invention further relates to a device for the integration of manufacturing processes comprising a computer connectable to a plurality of manufacturing machines.

Such a computer is advantageously configured to perform a method in accordance with what has been presented above.

Overall, the present invention also relates to a production plant comprising a plurality of manufacturing machines configured to perform respective manufacturing steps of a product and a device for the integration of manufacturing processes, wherein the computer is connected to each manufacturing machine.

In greater detail, the computer can be any electronic terminal provided with computing capacity and capable of performing the operations constituting the method described above.

Such a computer can be a remote and distinct device with respect to the production machines and connected independently to each of them, or be integrated into one of such machines which is then in turn connected with each further machine of the plant.

The connection between the computer and the machines can be wired, or wireless, implementing appropriate communication protocols (for example Wi-Fi®, Bluetooth®,...).

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 1

In accordance with a first application example, the method presented above can be advantageously applied in a variety of manufacturing, including for example those for the production of the interiors of a car, of which the product P shown in Figure 1 can be part.

In this context, the production flow involves a succession of applied manufacturing steps (high-frequency electro-welding with carry-over and dry, aesthetic embroidery and functional stitching, laser perforation and laser engraving, printing and screen printing,...) carried out on a single component, with the need to ensure high reproducibility and a high quality standard in terms of geometric tolerances.

In accordance with the present example, on the same component it may be necessary to perform a pre-cutting step, during which an optical acquisition system of the cutting tables by means of high contrast filters and image processing, acquires the position of a material supplied in tape and derives therefrom a work portion 1 , for example a substantially rectangular portion, of sufficient size to enclose the entire profile of the product P to be made.

During the pre-cutting it is possible to determine a reference system for positioning the product, for example by further making a plurality of holes F which can be positioned at an edge of the work portion 1 so as to be outside the profile of the final product P to be made.

Such holes F can therefore be used by subsequent manufacturing machines as a reference both optically (by identifying the holes themselves) and/or physically, for example allowing the insertion of reference pins located in known positions in the work area of another manufacturing machine which also allow the work portion 1 to be locked in position.

Once the pre-cutting has been carried out, thanks to which a unique reference system for the correct positioning of the work portion 1 has also been identified/generated/determined, it is possible to carry out a further manufacturing step, such as a screen printing transfer.

The machine responsible for such processing identifies and determines the position of the product thanks to the reference system determined in the previous step and by means of heat sealing applies a certain graphic pattern 2 within the profile of the product.

Such a graphic pattern 2 can therefore be identified as a positional reference of the product, thus making it possible to determine a further reference system which can be used in the subsequent manufacturing steps of the product P.

Alternatively or additionally, the machine responsible for the heat sealing process can further generate a reference pattern 3 on the work portion 1 outside the profile of the product P.

Alternatively or additionally, the subsequent manufacturing machines can still exploit the holes F made in the pre-cutting step to determine the positioning of the work portion.

In general, each manufacturing machine shares at least one reference system with a further manufacturing machine upstream or downstream along the production chain of the product P.

Therefore, several distinct machines could also share a plurality of reference systems, so as to allow a greater robustness of the method and an even more accurate positioning of the product since each machine can control more than one reference to verify and identify the positioning of the work portion 1 .

After the screen printing transfer, the work portion 1 is subjected to a high- frequency electro-welding process. Alternatively, a coating material could be superimposed on the work section 1 .

The correct positioning of the work portion 1 and the coating material (screen printing transfer and/or filler material) is carried out for example by aligning on the holes F produced in the pre-cutting step, for example by fitting them on appropriate anchoring pins positioned in the work area of the machine responsible for performing the electro-welding.

Finally, a jig cutting process is carried out, in which the profile of the product P is cut away from the remaining edge of the work portion 1 .

The centring of the jig cutting process can be carried out using the graphic pattern 2 and/or the reference pattern 3 made during the screen printing transfer step as a reference.

The intercommunicability of the various production steps and the progressive generation of reference systems communicate between several manufacturing machines (in particular in which a machine generates the reference system for a subsequent machine) allows to obtain extremely precise and accurate results, as can be seen from the experimental data presented in the table below, in which the data of twenty products made by means of the succession of steps presented above (pre-cutting, screen printing transfer, electro-welding and template cutting)

In the first four rows of the table for each dimensional value A, B, C, D and E, crosses are used to indicate which among the various manufacturing carried out (pre-cutting, screen printing transfer, electro-welding and jig cutting) influences it.

For example, the measurement A identified in Figure 1 is determ ined/influenced by the pre-cutting and jig cutting operations, while it is not influenced by the electro-welding process, for example. As can be seen, the execution of the method claimed herein allows to obtain real values which are extremely consistent with the project specifications, thus allowing to have extremely limited expected percentages of products to be rejected.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 2

The product P illustrated in Figure 2 also represents an internal furnishing element for a vehicle, which can be obtained by a succession of processes which envisage in order performing a pre-cut, similar to that described for the previous example, after which the profile 4 is electro-welded and a functional embroidery 5 is performed and possibly an logo L is applied/made.

Finally, the profile of the product P is cut once again by performing a jig cutting.

In this context, the final jig cutting can be guided using one or more of the elements made in the previous manufacturing steps, such as the profile 4, the functional embroidery 5 or the logo L.

That is, in this context, the reference system determination step is performed by identifying on the product P in the manufacturing step one or more elements made by a previous specific machine and selecting them as markers to be used in subsequent machines to identify the positioning of the product P.

As can be seen from the following table, also in this case it is possible to obtain optimal results, with substantially zero percentages of products to be rejected.

Claims

1. Computer-executable method for the integration of manufacturing processes comprising the steps of:

- acquiring a project file indicating a plurality of distinct manufacturing steps of a product to be executed with respective manufacturing machines;

- determining an order of execution of manufacturing steps according to the project file;

- for each manufacturing machine, determining at least one reference system for positioning the product, said reference system being shared with a further manufacturing machine configured to perform an immediately previous or subsequent manufacturing step according to said order of execution;

- transmitting the respective reference system to each manufacturing machine;

- determining and monitoring the position of the product in each manufacturing machine according to the respective reference system.

2. Method according to claim 1 , wherein the step of determining and monitoring the position of the product in each manufacturing machine comprises the steps of:

- acquiring the respective reference system;

- receiving a product;

- identifying a position of the product according to said reference system;

- performing the respective step of product manufacturing.

3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the manufacturing steps comprise at least one of:

- a pre-cutting step, preferably a jig pre-cutting step;

- an electro-welding step; preferably a high-frequency dry or carry-over electro-welding step;

- a step of stitching one or more motifs onto the product;

- a cutting or engraving step;

- a printing step.

4. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the step of determining a reference system for positioning the product is performed by identifying physical elements of a work area and/or a support body of said product.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein said physical elements comprise one or more of: an outline, one or more corners, QR codes, inserts, notches, pins, prints, markers, containing frames.

6. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the step of determining a reference system for positioning the product is performed by locating a marker on the product.

7. Method according to claim 6, wherein said marker comprises at least one of: a seam, a notch, a discontinuity of material, a discontinuity of colour, a cutting perimeter.

8. Method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the marker is identified according to said project file, preferably by identifying a distinctive portion of the product, said distinctive portion being resulting from the execution of a manufacturing step.

9. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the reference system is one common reference system for all manufacturing machines.

10. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said step of determining a reference system for positioning the product is performed by acquiring, by means of at least one optical sensor, one or more images of a work area and/or the product and/or the manufacturing machines and/or a marker projected into the work area.

11 . Method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said step of determining the reference system is performed by generating by means of at least one manufacturing machine one or more markers detectable by manufacturing machines configured to perform subsequent manufacturing steps, according to said order of execution.

12. A manufacturing process integration device comprising a computer connectable to a plurality of manufacturing machines, said computer being configured to perform a method according to any one of the preceding claims.

13. Production plant comprising:

- a plurality of manufacturing machines configured and programmed to perform respective manufacturing steps of a product;

- a device according to claim 12, in which said computer is connected to each manufacturing machine.