RESEARCH ALLIANCE FOR EFFICIENT PRODUCT AND PROCESS DEVELOPMENT BY KNOWLEDGE BASED SIMULATION

When used correctly, the simulation of product properties and manufacturing processes offers significant potential for the efficiency of development due to the early knowledge acquisition and the use of pure virtual prototypes.

However, the individual product developer usually does not have a complete overview of the performance of currently used simulation and calculation tools for securing product and manufacturing process characteristics. Since he only irregularly carries out simulations himself in many cases, he is also dependent on expert knowledge in the application. This knowledge normally exists in the own business environment, however, there is a high potential in improving its preparation, provision and usage. As a result, simulations are often late, rarely, used at non-ideal times or incorrectly and there are unnecessary iterations, waste of resources, time to market delays and quality problems in serial production.

The objective of the research alliance FORPRO² is to increase efficiency of virtual product and process development through the creation of a simulation framework, based on expert knowledge, for property optimization and quality improvement of new products. The expected result is to provide the necessary situational simulation knowledge as a function of decisive factors such as the phase in the development process, the manufacturing processes employed, and the company's individual circumstances.

The business value results from shortened development cycles by increased transparency of the impact of design specifications on product and process characteristics, improved quality and performance evaluation of products, and the situational demonstration of action alternatives for product and manufacturing process optimization.