Housing Manufacturing System with Segmented Planar Sections
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing automation methods are inefficient for constructing conventionally site-built homes due to their uniqueness and varying sizes, making it difficult to manage stock and transport components from manufacturing facilities to construction sites, which limits the production capacity and justifies the high capital investment required for facilities.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a sub-assembly plant that produces planar sections of homes, such as walls and floors, which are then transported to a final assembly facility located near the construction site using a truck with overhead rails and skates, allowing for customization and efficient assembly of each home according to a production schedule.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If automation techniques are applied to conventionally site-built homes, then productivity is improved, but device complexity increases due to the need to accommodate unique designs and varying sizes
Solution Approach 1:
The home construction process is divided into two distinct facilities: a sub-assembly plant that produces standardized planar sections (walls, floors, roofs) and a final assembly facility that customizes and assembles complete homes. This segmentation allows the sub-assembly plant to operate with high automation and standardized processes, while the final assembly facility handles customization with lower complexity equipment.
2Loss of time
If facilities are located close to the site for each house, then transportation time is reduced, but productivity decreases due to insufficient production volume to justify capital investment
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates the production process into a centralized sub-assembly plant that produces standardized components in high volume, and a distributed final assembly facility located near the subdivision that assembles complete homes. This allows the sub-assembly plant to achieve economies of scale while the final assembly facility remains close to the construction site.
Solution Approach 2:
Planar sections are pre-assembled and prepared at the sub-assembly plant before transportation to the final assembly facility. This preliminary action allows the majority of construction work to be completed at the centralized plant, reducing the time and complexity required at the remote final assembly facility.
3Manufacturing precision
If standardized components are used for automation, then manufacturing precision is improved, but adaptability decreases due to the inability to accommodate unique home designs
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the home into standardized planar sections (walls, floors, roofs) that can be manufactured with high precision using automated equipment at the sub-assembly plant. The final assembly facility then combines these standardized sections into custom home designs, achieving both manufacturing precision and design adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system allows for dynamic configuration of standardized planar sections to create unique home designs. The final assembly facility can adapt the arrangement and combination of pre-manufactured sections to meet custom design requirements while maintaining the precision benefits of standardized manufacturing.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for manufacturing homes is provided. An embodiment includes a final assembly facility located proximal to a subdivision where a plurality of the custom homes is to be situated. The final assembly facility is for receiving the planar sections from the sub-assembly plant and for constructing the homes from planar portions according to the production schedule.