Strategies for minimum energy operation for precision machining

Laboratory For Manufacturing and Sustainability, 2010

Strategies to reduce energy demand in manufacturing processes are becoming necessary due to the growing concern of carbon emissions and the expected rise of electricity prices over time. To guide the development of these strategies, the results of a life-cycle energy consumption analysis of milling machine tools are first highlighted to show the effect of several factors such as degree of automation, manufacturing environment, transportation, material inputs, and facility inputs on environmental impact. An overview of design and operation strategies to reduce energy consumption is thereafter presented including the implementation of a Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS), a process parameter selection strategy, and a web-based energy estimation tool.

Since machine tools are used extensively throughout their functional life and consequently consuming valuable natural resources and emitting harmful pollutants during this time, this study reviews strategies for characterizing and reducing the energy consumption of milling machine tools during their use. The power demanded by a micromachining center while cutting low carbon steel under varied material removal rates was measured to model the specific energy of the machine tool. Thereafter the power demanded was studied for cutting aluminum and polycarbonate work pieces for the purpose of comparing the difference in cutting power demand relative to that of steel.

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2015

The imbalance between energy supply and demand is expected to keep increasing, with the manufacturing sector being responsible for about one-third of world energy consumption. Hence, concerns about energyefficient and environmentally benign manufacturing process have become an emerging issue. This paper suggests a novel hierarchy of energy saving technologies for machine tools, mainly for machining. Cutting is a widely used traditional process, and accounts for a large portion of energy consumption in machine tool sectors. A novel hierarchy is suggested, from the perspective of a single device manager, in accordance with the level of application. Technologies and strategies were compiled from research project reports, journal and conference articles, energy policies, etc. They were then rearranged in respective levels in the suggested hierarchy. Theories and technologies in the assessment and modeling of energy characteristics were reviewed, and general strategies on micro process planning were discussed at the software-based optimization level. Then, technologies for control and cutting improvement, such as novel lubrication and assisted machining systems, were introduced, and their effects were presented. Finally, improvement of hardware components and design rules for the environment were reviewed. Future market demands have clearly drawn more attention to energy efficiency, and the energy consumption of machine tools should be more accurately modeled and controlled. Loss and unnecessary operation of partial components should be minimized. From the perspective of energy efficiency, machine tools are expected to become more compact and lightweight. Operators and manufacturers need to understand both the process and hardware for greener machine tools.

IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology, 2013

Energy-efficient machining strategies are required to be implemented in daily practice to advance the competitiveness of the enterprises on global scale. Energy information, which currently not considered as an integral part of production data, is studied. A need is identified to integrate energy information into production program and solidify the knowledge for extensive reference. To effectively represent and share the data, standardized format is regarded as one promising approach, thus STEP-NC is adopted. The proposed data models are grouped into four, i.e. automated energy monitoring and recording, energy estimation and labeling, energy optimization, and machine tool energy performance. The developed schema is compliant and harmonized with other parts in STEP-NC standards. A case study is presented to add energy information to STEP-NC file. It can be concluded that standardized data format enables the integration of energy information into the production process and enhances its sustainable performance.

Journal of Cleaner Production, 2014

Reducing energy demand in manufacture is an urgent challenge. This challenge is driven by higher consumer demand for manufactured products, increasing electricity and energy prices, volatility and uncertainty in energy supply and national policy. These factors, together with a need to reduce energy consumption derived carbon dioxide emissions, strategically call for energy efficient manufacturing. In manufacturing processes, especially mechanical machining, more than 90% of environmental impact arises from direct electrical energy demand in machine tools. At the machine tool level, the biggest share of the electrical energy associated with mechanical machining is required to bring the machine to a ready state and support non-cutting operations such as spindle torque requirements, auxiliary units and movements. These activities are controlled and related to machine commands such as NC codes. In this paper comprehensive information on energy intensity in machining process, including the influence of tool wear, was studied. Key energy states were identified to build up an energy demand for machining components. The paper defines the essential power constants for a database that can assist energy prediction for any available machines and workpiece materials. The assessment of alternative toolpaths identified major opportunities for energy demand reduction.

Advances in Science and Technology Research Journal

The article discusses the importance of energy consumption for the modern machine tool. The research was carried out to show the influence of various cutting factors and parameters on the power consumption values of the machine tool. A special algorithm was developed to determine the actual energy consumption of the machine tool during the cutting process. The results of the study were compared with the algorithms of tool companies to determine the machine's power demand. The possibilities of using research conclusions to develop a more accurate method for assessing the energy demand of a machine tool in the cutting process were indicated.

Journal of The Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering, 2019

To deal with a constant energy rising prices and significant demands for minimizing environmental impacts related to the electricity generation using fossil fuels, the theme "energy consumption" has brought a plenty of discussion onto the agenda of manufacturing industries nowadays. Therefore, the reduction in energy consumption in manufacturing processes is a fundamental issue for the industrial segment at the present time. Such subject requires knowledge about the energy requirements from machines and all involved peripheral equipment. Although the machining processes have always been the subject of several researches and studies, energy analysis has become a relatively new topic, as well as "energy efficiency". To improve energy efficiency in machining processes particularly in machine tools (MTs), energy consumption data must be obtained to help in process planning and also contribute to improve the efficiency of machines, as a whole. Moreover, to meet growing market demand for more efficient machines and global competitiveness in the manufacturing sector, MT manufacturers are facing major challenges to improve productivity and reduce energy consumption. Considering the increasing energy demands and industrial sustainability, the present research presents a detailed study of energy consumption in a two-spindle turning center and suggests strategies to reduce energy consumption in MTs as a whole. The results obtained, so far, indicates that optimizing the operational behavior of MTs through smart operation modes, by adapting the power demand to the current production requirements, seems to be a good procedure to reduce the amount of energy consumed. It also makes the processes and machines more efficient and improves environmental performance of machining processes, in general.

Procedia Manufacturing, 2017

Energy-labels draw users' attention to energy efficiency and thus they force the manufacturers to reduce the energy consumption of their products. This paper focuses on the large variety of metal-cutting machine tools, representing a challenge to find an evaluation basis for a unique energy-label. For this reason, the process-independent energy consumption has been compared to machine tool features and properties. The database contains measured values and has been extended by values from literature. Concerning a large number of various machining centers for milling operations, the statistical analysis shows the influence of the different machine tool features and properties on energy consumption. Finally, an evaluation basis is presented and the applicability on energy-labels is discussed.

Procedia CIRP, 2015

Since eco-efficiency of manufacturing resource has been emphasized, various sensors to measure energy consumption have been developed and machine tool builders also provide data of energy consumption of their own products. Due to the variety and complexity of machine tools, however, an enormous amount of data is generated and can lead to uncertainties in further interpretation. The data relating to energy consumption can be classified into process parameters and machine specifications. In order to estimate the energy use that a new machine tool utilizes, the relationship with various performance indicators of the machine tool and a process plan should be examined. The challenge is how to link the machine specifications and process plan in order to obtain actual energy consumption. This paper proposes an approach for deriving an energy estimation model from general key performance indicators of the sustainability of machine tools. For the detailed application, the proposed methodology is applied to the laser welding process of an automotive assembly line and the milling process of an aircraft part manufacturer. The paper describes the methodology for finding the parameters necessary for calculating energy use and to develop the energy estimation model by utilizing experimental data.

International Journal on Intelligent Electronic Systems, 2015

We cannot say that present day machining processes are clean. Current trends in the manufacturing sector will not be acceptable in the future. This will an arise need for extensive research and development work necessary to meet the environmental concern. Although research on promising green energy technologies manage to supply partially for current machining systems; the high energy-efficient machining systems that demand less energy remain important and highly desirable. The energy-efficient machining system requires a comprehensive understanding as well as optimization of energy consumption. This paper focuses upon the energy requirement during actual metal machining. The first part explains about the basics of energy in machining and the flow of energy in a production line. In the later part, two energy models are described that shows dependence of energy consumption in machining process upon the operating parameters and setup parameters. Effects of these different parameters on specific energy consumption are also summarized. Finally, a brief introduction to few energy optimization techniques is given.