Detta examensarbete utförs som en del av examinationen i utbildningen högskoleingenjörsprogrammet inom innovationsteknik och design, vårterminen 2019 vid Karlstads Universitet. Examensarbetet är utfört enligt produktutvecklingsprocessen i ett uppdrag som tillhandahålls av VICTRIX AB, Stockholm. Uppdraget handlade om att skapa fram en elektronisk doseringsask som skulle vara portabel. Det formulerades två problemformuleringar: Hur ska en elektronisk doseringsask utformas så att den är användarvänlig, portabel och samtidigt vara enkelt att återladda den med nya tabletter? Hur ska en lucka konstrueras så att en person med högt kognitivt handikapp klarar av att öppna och stänga den? Syftet med examensarbetet var att genomföra en produktionsutvecklingsprocess och självständigt utveckla ett koncept med hjälp av att implementera kunskaper som erhållits under högskoleingenjörsprogrammet i innovationsteknik och design. Syftet med uppdraget var att nå en större målgrupp med en ny och förbättrad konstruktion. Produkten ska erbjuda träffsäkerhet när det gäller medicinering och minska sjukdomskänsla. Målet var att leverera ett konceptunderlag i form av CAD modell med tillhörande ritningar på en elektronisk doseringsask som är kognitiv smart. Metoder som användes i projektet var projektplanering, förstudie, kravspecifikation, konceptgenerering, konceptutvärdering, konceptval och slutligen konstruktion. Detta resulterade i ett slutkoncept som illustrerar en elektronisk pillerdosa som påminner patienten att ta sin medicin vid rätt tid. Produkten visar från vilket fack medicinen ska tas genom flera larmsignaler. Slutkonceptet består av klockenhet med ett membran som inkluderar display och knappar. Två stycken pillerfack som går att koppla på klockenhetens långa sidor. Varje pillerfack erbjuder upp till fyra doseringstillfällen. Detta koncept levereras som grund för en fortsatt utveckling och optimering för att kunna vara en fullt fungerande produkt i framtiden. / This project has been carried out as an examination in the education bachelor’s degree in innovation technology and design, the course is conducted in the spring 2019 at Karlstad University. The project has been carried out in accordance with product development process, in an assignment provided by VICTRIX AB, Stockholm. The mission was to create a portable pillbox. Two problem definition were formulated: How should an electronic pillbox be designed to be user-friendly, portable and easy to recharge with new medication? How should a hatch be designed so that a person with a high cognitive disability is able to open and close it? The purpose of the thesis is to carry out a product development process and independently develop a concept with the help of implementing knowledge acquired by the education bachelor’s degree in innovation technology and design. The purpose of the assignment is to reach a larger target group with a new and improved design. The product should offer precision when it comes to medication. The goal was to provide a concept basis in the form of CAD model with associated drawings of an electronic pillbox which is cognitive smart.  Methods covered in the project include project planning, pilot study, requirement specification, concept generation, concept evaluation, concept selection and construction. This resulted in a final concept that illustrates an electronic pillbox that reminds the patient to take their medication at the right time. The product shows from which compartment the medication is to be taken through several alarm signals. The end concept consists of a clock unit with a membrane that includes display and buttons. Two pillboxes that can be connected to the long sides of the clock unit. Each pillbox offer up to four dosing time. This concept is delivered as a basis for continued development and optimization in order to be a fully functional product in the future.

INNOFACTURE - innovative manufacturing development

Flexible assembly systems have emerged in response to changing markets and increased variety in form of demands of new products and manufacturer’s need for differentiation. Assembly systems play a critical role in handling great variety and adapting to dynamic changes at the same time as securing product quality and productivity. Therefore, assembly systems should be designed to be able to handle changes. However, the design of flexible assembly systems is a challenge because it involves several subjects such as the configuration of the flow, the material handling and the flexibility to handle future changes and adjustment. In addition, time-to-market and time-to-volume are important which means that faster assembly systems designs are required. The design process of assembly systems concerns the procedures that guide the design work to achieve an assembly system proposal. The design process is divided into a number of stages/phases describing the activities that should be done and when they should be performed as well as the expected result after each phase supporting the decision-making process. Research argues that working in a systematic and structured way is important in order to achieve better assembly systems in shorter time. However, even though there is extensive research work in regard to flexibility, knowledge is limited concerning the design process of assembly systems. Therefore, the objective of this thesis has been to increase the knowledge about the design of flexible assembly systems by investigating the relation between the assembly system design process and flexibility. The characteristics of flexible assembly systems and how flexibility is considered during the design process have also been studied in this thesis. Literature reviews were conducted as well as three case studies and one exploratory survey in the manufacturing industry of heavy vehicles. Study I concerns the results of having studied an industrial international project of the design process of a flexible assembly system during two years. In study II, flexibility needs, enablers and challenges in assembly systems were identified. In study III, the mechanism used to achieve flexibility in the assembly systems of two companies were investigated. The exploratory survey study IV, was a pilot study to investigate the relationship between the design process of assembly systems and flexibility based on the association of different variables involved in the design process of flexible assembly systems. From the holistic perspective adopted in this thesis, the results showed that flexibility should be considered in a comprehensive way during all the design process. The design process of flexible assembly systems is iterative, circumscribed by different conditions, and requires support as well as the participation of different roles and functions to achieve a solution. The increased knowledge generated in the research is expected to lead to future development of working procedures that better can support the design process of flexible assembly systems. / INNOFACTURE - innovative manufacturing development

Manufacturing companies are increasingly required to deal with and introduce significant changes in their production systems to gain a competitive advantage. The production system design process is widely considered a means of introducing such changes, and decisions made during design are viewed as critical to its characterization and performance. However, this presents a problem because committing to decisions that involve significant changes implies not only dealing with requirements, products, challenges, or expectations that are different from what currently exists, but also addressing uncertainties regarding both the information necessary for committing to a production system design decision and the actual benefits that can be achieved as a result of these changes. One way to support the production system design decisions in this context is through the use of Discrete Event Simulation (DES). However, understanding of DES use when supporting production system design decisions in this domain remains limited.     Therefore, the objective of this thesis is to explore the use of DES in support of production system design decisions when significant changes are introduced. Data are collected through a multiple case study method and DES from three real-time production system design projects at one manufacturing company. All production system design projects studied involved the introduction of significant production system changes for which limited experience existed. The cases and results are presented in three appended publications. The findings establish the purpose of DES use when supporting production system design decisions in this context. To this end three groups of DES model objectives are identified: communicating decisions and visualizing results, evaluating a production system design concept focused on operational performance, and experimenting with what-if scenarios while predicting production system outputs. The points of DES use when supporting production system design decisions are specified in relation to current theoretical understanding of a production system design process. Then, challenges and contributions of DES use supporting production system design decisions are identified. A framework is presented to facilitate the use of DES supporting production system design decisions when significant changes are introduced. The framework is based on the identification of high-level strategic objectives and relates these to production system design decisions. It defines DES use in support of these decisions and establishes milestones for DES use during production system design. Based on an analysis of the challenges and contributions of DES use, the framework helps formulate the purpose of DES use to achieve production system design decision support. / INNOFACTURE - innovative manufacturing development

INNOFACTURE - innovative manufacturing development

The need for housing in Sweden has been showing a constant increase over the past couple of years. However, this situation might change in 2018 since there are indications that the increase in demand will reach its peak. On the other hand, the use of timber as a load bearing structure has become more popular in the multi-family house building sector. It is competing with concrete and steel frames, and its market share might even reach 50% by the year of 2025. Adding the involvement of customers in house design decisions and a high level of customization, the conclusion is that timber house building must continue the development towards mass customization. There is a lack of knowledge on how mass customization is developed and implemented regarding off-site manufacturing systems. In this thesis, a contribution is made to manufacturing system development in timber house building by proposing a novel approach to aligning off-site manufacturing systems to the requirements of production strategy, market needs, product design, and manufacturing processes. The proposed conceptual framework is a synthesis of the knowledge gained from three empirical studies and different methods found in theories of changeable manufacturing systems, mass customization, and manufacturing system development. The research purpose addressed by the presented work, is to increase the knowledge on how the development potential of off-site manufacturing systems can be identified in mass customization-oriented timber house building. Case study research was applied to gather the empirical data. The data collection and analysis methods used in the empirical studies can be useful when discussing the potential improvements. However, these data are not comprehensive enough in terms of presenting a holistic view of off-site manufacturing and consideration of the market as well as variation in product and processes. Therefore, a comprehensive set of requirements is proposed in the conceptual framework together with a step by step description of how the development potential of off-site manufacturing systems can be identified. / Behovet av bostäder i Sverige har ständigt ökat under de senaste åren. Denna situation kan dock förändras 2018, eftersom det finns tecken på att ökningen av efterfrågan kommer att nå sin topp. Å andra sidan har användningen av trä som lastbärande konstruktion blivit mer populär i flerfamiljshusbyggnaden. Det konkurrerar med betong- och stålstomme och dess marknadsandel kan till och med nå 50% år 2025. Att lägga kundernas medverkan i husdesignbeslut och en hög anpassningsnivå är slutsatsen att trähusbyggnaden måste fortsätta utveckling mot mass customization (MC). Det finns brist på kunskap om hur MC utvecklas och implementeras när det gäller off-site tillverkningssystem. I denna avhandling görs ett bidrag till tillverkningssystemutveckling i trähusbyggnad genom att föreslå ett nytt tillvägagångssätt för att anpassa tillverkningssystem till de olika kraven av produktionsstrategier, marknaden, produktdesign och tillverkningsprocesser. Den föreslagna konceptuella ramen är en sammansättning av kunskapen från tre empiriska studier och olika metoder som finns i teorier om förändringsbara tillverkningssystem, MC och tillverkningssystemutveckling. Forskningssyftet med det presenterade arbetet är att öka kunskapen om hur utvecklingspotentialen av off-site tillverkningssystem utanför anläggningen kan identifieras i MC-orienterad trähusbyggnad. Fallstudier användes för att samla empiriska data. Datainsamlings- och analysmetoderna som används i de empiriska studierna kan vara användbara när man diskuterar potentiella förbättringar. Men denna information är inte tillräckligt komplett när det gäller att presentera enhelhetsbild av off-site tillverkning, utan en bedömning av marknaden samt kunskap om variationer i produkt- och processer behövs även. Därför presenteras det konceptuella ramverket, inklusive en kravlista samt en stegvis beskrivning av hur utvecklingspotentialen för off-site tillverkningssystem kan identifieras.

When developing an electric vehicle, it is essential to evaluate the deformation in and around the battery box for different crash scenarios, and it is necessary to develop a more advanced model that would take into account all the stress modes. Thanks to the excellent properties of Advanced High Strength Steel (AHSS) combine with high strength for more safety and weight reduction for less exhaust emission, AHSS is more and more commonly used in automobile industry. The material employed in this project is DOCOL 900M and it is a martensitic steel with yield strength higher than 700MPa.  The focus of the current work is to describe the experimental setup for the GISSMO model used in LS-DYNA. A number of experimental methods and theories have been reviewed. Different geometries of the test specimens under different stress triaxialities have been discussed. The study also compares the accuracy and robustness of each of the testing methods and setups. The effect of anisotropy of materials on the mechanical properties was studied. Some summaries about how to reduce errors in the experiment under the conditions of low costing and high efficiency have been discussed. According to the stress-strain response of ductile materials, the parameters of plasticity model can be calibrated. The material can be implemented in finite element software to calibrate the parameters of damage and the prediction of material failure can be achieved. The experiment and simulation are always good to be used together in the research.

This report describes the conceptual design and development of a virtual prototype of a sustainable delivery vehicle for cities in the European Union. The project was carried out as a multidisciplinary project where one product design engineering student and one mechanical engineering student participated. The project’s design process was based on “The Mechanical Design Process” methodology by Ullman and secondary it was influenced by the product process of Ulrich & Eppinger. The initial phase of the project aimed to define the problem area and to set the requirements for the vehicle. This phase included: study of the problem, study of stakeholders, market research and an ergonomics study. When the requirements were set and clarified, the concept generation phase followed. The generated design concepts were then assessed according to the fulfilment of set requirements. One final concept was chosen for further development in the following product generation phase. In this phase, the vehicle was designed using virtual tools, and the design was developed and evaluated in further detail. The final concept is considered to fulfil most requirements, although there are some requirements that require further investigation and development.

Rototilt Group AB is a company located in Vindeln that produces and sells tiltrotators, machine couplers and other different excavator accessories. Since Rototilt recently launched a new series of products, and is expanding their factory, they have not been able to assign any workforce on the quality assurance of their new products. Therefore, this project aims at ensuring that quality is maintained, and that the verifications process is streamlined. The work is based on measuring the time spent on each segment in the verifying process, and to identify the segments that have the largest influence on quality. Thereafter, every type of deviation Rototilt has experienced since launching the Quick Change™ product series was analysed. It was found that the verification process takes 17 minutes on average, which is a process time Rototilt is aiming to reduce. A compilation of the deviations since the launching of Quick Change™, indicates that the main problems are product quality and lack of documentation. Based on the analysis of process time and type of deviation, a chart with conceptual solutions forms a solid foundation for implementation, which will result in a winwin situation for the operator as well as the company. One solution that stands out is to invest in quick hydraulic couplers. Another solution is to implement In-Process Verification to ensure the quality instead of the current End of Line Testing method. The analysis indicated which parts were crucial for maintaining the quality, and which were crucial for the efficiency. Recommended concepts are based on minimizing investment costs and efforts for implementation and maximizing improvement of the work environment for the operator. / Rototilt Group AB i Vindeln tillverkar tiltrotatorer, maskinfästen, skoptak och andra grävmaskinstillbehör. I och med att Rototilt nyligen har lanserat en ny produktserie och byggt ut sin fabrik, har inte kvalitetssäkringen av produkterna legat i fokus. Därför har arbete påbörjats med att säkerställa kvalitén och att effektivisera processen. Föreliggande arbete kartlägger vilka viktiga delmoment som tar tid i verifieringsprocessen samt undersöka vilka moment som har betydelse för kvalitén. Arbetet utfördes genom att mäta tidsåtgången för varje delmoment i operatörens arbete där de kvalitetstestar QuickChange™ produkter. Därefter utfördes en analys av alla kvalitetsavvikelser som Rototilt har haft sedan säljstarten av produktserien Quick Change™. Tidsstudien visar att den nuvarande verifieringsprocessen har en genomsnittlig takttid på 17minuter, och det är en takttid som Rototilt vill reducera. Sammanställningen av avvikelserna visar på att det sedan säljstarten har varit problem med dels produkternas kvalité och dels bristande dokumentation. En tabell med konceptuella lösningar baserade på analys av både tidsperspektiv och avvikelse-perspektiv lägger en bra grund för val av implementering av lösningar, som bör resultera i att både operatören och företaget vinner. De lösningar som beskrivs är bland annat att en investering i snabbkopplingar, vilket skulle göra processen mer tidseffektiv. En annan lösning är att implementera In-Process Verification i stället för End ofLine Testing, vilket skulle helt eliminera det nuvarande kvalitetstestet. Analysen indikerar vilka komponenter som är kritiska för att säkerställa kvalitén. De rekommenderade koncepten är valda utifrån minimerade investeringskostnader, minimera timplementeringsarbete och maximal förbättring av arbetsmiljön för operatören.

Date:    4th June 2023 Level:    Master Thesis in Product- and Process Development, 30 ECTS Authors:   William Reimer   Noah Paillon Title:    Redesigning automated production cell for increased efficiency - Discrete-Event Simulation as a tool to evaluate system designs Keywords:   Discrete Event Simulation (DES), Redesign, Production process, Automated Manufacturing System (AMS), Automated production cell, Robotics in production, Simulation, Key Performance indicators (KPIs), Decision-making, Redesigning production systems, Bottlenecks, Deadlocks, Production system development (PSD). Aim:    The aim of this study is to evaluate and redesign an automated production cell at a Swedish manufacturing plant using DES with KPIs, with the goal of increasing the efficiency. Research question:  “When redesigning, what factors influence production efficiency within an automated production cell?”, “What are the challenges when redesigning and increasing efficiency within an automated production cell?” and “How can such challenges be surpassed through the usage of DES with KPIs?” Methodology:   This study is a quantitative research with an inductive approach, including simulation as an experimental tool. In order to identify reliable knowledge, the literature review compared books and scientific publications. The empirical results were obtained by observation and data collection at the production site of the case company, which also involved frequent meetings with company supervisors and production engineers. In order to assess the situation and make conclusions, the empirical results were evaluated and experimented using DES.  Conclusion:   The need of identifying a problem's underlying causes in order to improve efficiency was one of the conclusions made. This was additionally mentioned as one of PSD's primary challenges in redesigning an automated production cell. This implies that in order to increase production efficiency, bottlenecks and deadlocks must be appropriately addressed and adjusted to meet the demands of a production. In order to improve the production efficiency of an automated production cell, DES with KPIs is considered to be a useful approach.