Modeling for the sensor based gripping and separation of textile semi-finished products with vacuum grippers

• Applicant: Professor Dr.-Ing. Jürgen Fleischer
• Subject Area: Production Automation and Assembly Technology
• Term: from 2018 to 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 397485737

The reduction of traffic emission could be achieved by the use of lightweight materials. As well combustion engines as electrical drive concepts benefits from this technology. Especially fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) is a promising material for this kind of application. However, this also requires that such components can be produced in large numbers. A promising production process is the so called resin transfer molding process (RTM).Within the RTM process chain, a large number of handling activities are necessary, especially at the beginning. Individual layers of a semi-finished product have to be assembled to produce a stack of layers for the further RTM process. For this purpose, the individual layers have to be taken out from a storage stack, which requires a series of separation processes. For an automated process, it is important that this separation process is carried out with a high degree of process reliability. Although there are plenty of systems witch separate the different layers with a mechanical principle, but then again they do not have a one hundred percent reliability and could not detect a fault and thereby would interfere with an automated process. Thus, a sensor system is required which not only permits a separation process but also can control the result. Such a measuring principle is the resulting negative pressure in a vacuum gripper itself which is well suited for the handling of textile materials. However the vacuum in the gripper depends not only from the number of layers but also from many other factors. In order to be able to use a vacuum gripper for the separation process a model is required which simulates the expected values so that they can be compared with the measured ones. For this model the components in the gripping process are modeled separately and then coupled. With this model separation processes will be tested witch validate the model itself. In addition, the results are used to formulate rules for how the suction surface of a gripper has to be designed depending on the textile.In summary, the planned investigations will help to get a better understanding of the interrelationships in the handling of textile materials with vacuum grippers

• DFG Programme: Research Grants