Digital technologies for design and performance optimization of manufacturing lines in industry 4.0

Theparadigmof Industry4.0(I4.0) is propelling the development of smart factories,where in physical and digital systems are seamlessly integrated to achieve fast production and flexible mass personalization.Thecoreofsuchanindustrialrevolutionisthepromiseofextraordinarilyhigh operationalproductivityandefficiencythroughtheestablishmentofahighdegreeofconnectivity betweentherealandvirtualworlds. Inthisregard, industrial taskshave longbeenastrong suit fordigital technologiessuchasVirtualReality (VR)andDigitalTwin(DT).Numerous benefitsandmajorobstaclestotheadoptionofdigitaltoolshavebeenidentifiedbyathorough reviewof the literature; these issuesarecurrentlybeingaddressedthroughresearchprojects andusersurveys. For instance,VRisdemonstratingsignificantpotentialasarobusttool for costreductioninbothproductionanddesignbyidentifyingandanticipatingeventualassembly issues intheengineeringstage. Simultaneously,DTtoolsarechangingindustrialprocedures bybuildingdigital representationsofactual systemsthatprovidereal-time information, and opportunitiesforpredictivemaintenance,andoptimization. Industrialbusinessesareredefining traditionaldesignandthe integrationofparts, equipment, andservices, leveragingbothVR andDTtofacilitatecommunicationbetweenoperatorsandmachinerytostaycompetitivein themarket.Thepossibilitiesfor individualandgroupcollaboration,machine-to-machineand evenmachine-to-industrialobject interactionsarebeingopenedupbydigital technologies.The ultimategoal istoincorporateVRapplicationsandDTfunctionalitiesintodetailedsimulation modelsaspartoftheendeavourtoincorporatetheseresearchobjectivesandvariousdigitalization toolsintotheanalysis. Thefirst focusof this thesis’s researchis toexaminethecurrent stateofVRtechnology andhowitcanbeusedinthemanufacturingindustry. VRtechnologieshavegenerallybeen employedinthetrainingof industrialoperatorsfortasksrelatedtomaintenanceandassembly, aswellas intheVR-assisteddesignreviews forergonomicassessments.Asafirstphase, this studyinvestigatestheintegrationofVRintomanufacturingprocesses,specificallyfocusingonthe intricatedesignsystemsofanelectricaxleproductionline,andhowVRcouldimprovebusiness andproductdevelopment.Duringthisphase,adetailedprocessformovingfromcomputer-aided design(CAD)toVRisalsooutlined. Subsequently, theresearchexaminestwodistinctcase studieswithintheorganizationMasmecSpA,anautomotivecompanyleaderoftheItalianand Europeanmarket.Toimprovetheergonomicsofcomplicatedproductionlines,first, theresearch definesthe"VirtualGoldenZoneMethodology"andproposesVRtoolstoimplementsucha methodologyinareal-worldsetting. Second,withanemphasisondecision-makingandcontrol strategiesformaximizingmaterialflow,operatorflow,andlogisticsacrossmultiplestations, the focusisshiftedtomodellingproductionandlogisticsprocesses. Similarly,digitalmodelslikeDTgreatlyaidtheplanningprocessbyenablingexperiments and"whatif"scenariotestingwithoutinterferingwithproductionsystems’continuousoperations. These toolsplayedakeyrole inthe case studysimulation, digital productionmodels, and operationaloptimizationofproductionlines,plants,andindividual logisticsprocesses—witha focusonautomatedguidedvehiclepaths—allofwhichwereoptimized.Theresearchthenmoved forwardtoclarifyhowdifferentdigitaltechnologiesinteractwithoneanotherandtodesignate specificfunctionsforeachtoolthroughouttheproject.Toassessvariousproductionscenarios andfacilitateinformeddecision-makingfromtheoutsettoongoingproductionmonitoring,this phase involved theuseof sophisticated analytical tools likestatistics, charts, and bottleneck analysis. Interestingly, thedefinitionofahierarchicalDT,whichoutlinedtheimportantroles thateachdigitaltoolplaysacrossvariousprocesslevelsinmanufacturingsystems,wasthestage’s culmination. Inconclusion,encouragingtheintegrationbetweenVRtoolsandDTsimulationtechniques hasthepotential toofferusersaproductiveandenjoyableexperiencethatpromotes inspiration, cooperation,andcreativity.Topromotecreativity,productivity,andefficiencyinmanufacturing processes, thisresearchprojectcontributestotheadvancementofknowledgeacrossthecomplex intersectionsofdigital technologies.