Metal Sheet Component Layout to Cut Waste and Weld Seams
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing production plans for three-dimensional components from metal sheets often result in inefficient and costly manufacturing due to variations in cutting, bending, and welding processes, lacking an optimized approach to minimize material consumption and production time.
Innovation Solution
A method that divides and rearranges the original two-dimensional construction plan along bending edges and weld seams to create a second plan, assessing and modifying connections to reduce costs and production time, utilizing graphs to represent and modify connections between surfaces, and ensuring stability through designated paths.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If the original two-dimensional construction plan is used for cutting and bending, then the component can be produced, but material waste increases and production cost rises
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the original two-dimensional construction plan into multiple surfaces along bending edges and weld seams. This segmentation allows each surface to be independently optimized and rearranged to minimize material waste while maintaining the structural integrity of the final component.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms the two-dimensional construction plan into a three-dimensional arrangement by considering the spatial relationships between surfaces. By optimizing the arrangement in three-dimensional space and then projecting it back to two dimensions for cutting, the method achieves better material utilization without compromising production efficiency.
2Loss of time
If the original construction plan with extensive weld seams is used, then the component structure is complete, but production time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and identifies all weld seams from the original construction plan. By separating the welding operations from the overall construction plan, the method can selectively optimize which weld seams are necessary and which can be eliminated or reduced, thereby decreasing production time while maintaining essential structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameters of the construction plan by assessing and modifying the length of weld seams and number of bends. Through systematic parameter optimization, the method reduces unnecessary welding operations while preserving the structural requirements of the component.
3Ease of manufacture
If more bending edges are introduced to create surfaces, then material utilization improves, but the complexity of the construction plan increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism by assessing the construction plan based on multiple criteria including outer contour length, weld seam length, and number of bends. This assessment provides feedback that guides the optimization process, allowing the system to automatically adjust the construction plan to balance manufacturing ease with plan complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a dynamic optimization process where the construction plan can be iteratively improved. By using assessment criteria to evaluate different arrangements and automatically generating improved plans, the method adapts the construction plan to achieve optimal manufacturing ease without excessive complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An improved production plan is created for producing a three-dimensional component from a metal sheet by cutting, bending, and/or welding. A method creates the improved production plan by: dividing a first two-dimensional construction plan of the original production plan along bending edges, or the bending edges and weld seams, into surfaces; rearranging the surfaces to form a second two-dimensional construction plan, assessing the construction plans according to a length of an outer contour for cutting the component out of the metal sheet, a length of the weld seams, or a number of bends; and producing the improved production plan from the second construction plan based upon the assessment of the second construction plan being better than the assessment of the first construction plan.