It is interesting to note that some Man-ufacturing-as-a-Service (or Cloud Manufacturing) companies already offer some
degree of design for manufacturability validation that falls into this approach.
When designers upload their designs to
these services, these companies check for
manufacturability against their manufacturing capabilities, using a combination
of automated and manual checks. For
example, ProtoLabs offers DFM analysis
for 3D printing, CNC machining, and injection molding, and Shapeways provides
automated and manual checks, as well as
some geometry fixing tools. Most of these
services also provide cost estimation.
3 Generate a Manufacturable Design
Generative design mimics nature’s evolutionary approach to design. Designers or
engineers input design goals into generative design software, along with parameters
such as materials, manufacturing methods,
and cost constraints. Then, using cloud
computing, the software explores all the
possible permutations of a solution, quickly generating design alternatives. It tests
and learns what works and what doesn't
work from each iteration. With generative
design, designers tell the computer what
they want instead of how to do it.
With this approach, manufacturability
is baked into the parameters used to generate the design. So, instead of defining the
geometry of a part and then checking it for
manufacturability, the system generates a
design that is manufacturable in the first
place. If it cannot be made, it is not proposed as a design alternative. This effectively blurs the lines between design and
manufacturing, and gets us much closer to
“push button manufacturing” nirvana.
Design for additive manufacturing is
particularly suited for this approach because of the organic, curvy geometries
often produced by generative design algorithms. In fact, there are already a few
real-world examples of generative design
used to generate parts that are 3D-print-
able, like the Airbus A320 partition, the
Hack Rod performance car, and the Under Armour 3D-printed shoes.
A Tipping Point Has Been Reached
One important characteristic shared by these three approaches for connecting design and manufacturing is that they capture best practices,
expertise, and tribal knowledge that otherwise would be very difficult to put in the
hands of the designer. This is particularly
important in a time where most manufacturers are losing their experienced workers
to retirement and struggling to find new
skilled workers.
Finally, we believe that we are reaching
a tipping point that allows us all to take a
fresh look at the problem and come up with
new and innovative ways to connect design
and manufacturing.
The convergence between the maturation of key technologies such as 3D printing, AI, machine learning, generative
design, and cloud computing, on the one
hand, and market demands for greater innovation, faster time to market, and personalized products, on the other hand, is
driving a closer integration between design
and manufacturing.
As an industry, we spend tremendous
amounts of time and resources figuring out how
we are going to manufacture our designs and
fixing them when we don’t get it right. We cannot afford this waste anymore -- and we don’t
haveto.Thetimetoclosethisgapisnow! M
MANUFACTURING
LEADERSHIP JOURNAL
..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
www.ManufacturingLeadershipCommunity.com
................... ................... ................... ................... ................... ................... ...................
We are
reaching a
tipping point
that allows
us to take a
fresh look
and come
up with new
ways to con-
nect design
and manu-
facturing.
