Autonomous Supply Units for Continuous Mobile Manufacturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Autonomous manufacturing devices face challenges with slow battery loading, human intervention for battery replacement, and continuous supply of manufacturing items like screws and bolts, which limits their availability and productivity, especially when they require multiple energy sources like electrical energy and compressed air.
Innovation Solution
A mobile autonomous manufacturing system comprising a main device with onboard energy storage and auxiliary devices that autonomously store energy and manufacturing items, allowing synchronous energy and item supply without umbilical cords, enabling continuous operation with minimal human intervention and high productivity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If onboard electro-chemical batteries are used for energy storage, then the autonomous device can operate without umbilical cords, but the battery loading is slow and requires human intervention for replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The energy storage system is segmented into multiple separate battery units instead of a single large battery. This allows one battery to be replaced while another is in use, eliminating the need to stop operations for battery replacement and reducing human intervention requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
Battery units are pre-charged and prepared in advance at charging stations. When a battery unit's charge is depleted, a pre-charged unit is already available for immediate replacement, ensuring continuous operation without downtime.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple energy sources and manufacturing items are required simultaneously, then complex manufacturing tasks can be performed, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous device is designed with universal interfaces and standardized mounting mechanisms that can accommodate different types of auxiliary devices (energy storage units, manufacturing item storage units, compressed air tanks). This modular approach allows the same base platform to perform multiple manufacturing tasks by simply changing the attached auxiliary devices, rather than designing complex integrated systems for each specific task.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a mobile autonomous manufacturing system comprising an autonomously mobile main device (10) performing a manufacturing task, a first auxiliary device (11) adapted to autonomously supply energy to the main device (10), a second auxiliary device (12), adapted to autonomously supply manufacturing items to the main device (10). The invention also relates to a method for operating such a mobile autonomous manufacturing system, in which the auxiliary devices (11,12) move autonomously to and from the main device (10) and synchronously with the main device (10) when supplying the main device (10).