Project "FlexiMon": Autonomous Manufacturing Modules

There's a lot of talk about the fourth industrial revolution in which machines and systems autonomously furnish information about their spare capacity and maintenance status, for example. But how can these technologies be designed from the outset so that they not only assist manufacturing staff in performing their work, but are also viewed by the latter as an asset?

HARTING Technology Group is currently exploring this research topic - among others - in the joint project dubbed "FlexiMon - Flexible Assembly Concept, which employs autonomous mechatronic manufacturing components. The project is part of the leading-edge cluster "It's OWL", which is being carried out as part of the "Leading-edge Cluster Competition" of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) within the framework of the High-Tech Strategy 2020 for Germany.

The launch point is the development of a modular production platform, which will be unveiled at the Hannover Messe 2014 trade fair and will feature - for the first time - the interplay of several production islands. The core of this platform is made up of configurable autonomous manufacturing modules equipped with "Plug n Produce" capabilities, autonomous control and a central, modular-independent man-machine interface.

HARTING Technology Group will use the Hannover trade fair to premiere three modules which handle the processes of screwing, stamping and inspecting. It is essential that these modules be adaptable during the production process so that, e.g., changes in a work plan for the manufacture of a product can be directly implemented at the production level with no additional intervention.

ZF-Duoplan for Machine Tools

ZF Industrial Technology is presenting at the Hanover Fair 2014 for the first time, its Industrial Technology Division. ZF's focal points are electronic and industrial solutions, E-mobility, system expertise, innovative products and development expertise. One of the exhibits is the ZF-Duoplan manual transmission.

Today, a machine tool must be universally applicable in order to process different materials. The two-speed ZF-Duoplan manual transmissions live up to these demands. High cutting speeds are needed for soft materials and major cutting forces for hard materials.

This level of flexibility can be obtained through the application of a shiftable transmission. On the one hand, the high speeds of the drive motor in the direct gear (1:1) are maintained and on the other hand, the motor's drive torque is multiplied via the ratio (e.g. i = 4.00) while the speed is respectively reduced.

The high-speed model range is used for higher speeds of up to 18,000 rpm; it is characterized by particularly smooth running and lowest possible temperature development. The latest development of the Duoplan model range is the hollow shaft drive.

This product owes its special feature to the innovative construction for which a patent was filed: The extremely compact planetary gearset is only active when it is really required. For high speeds in direct gear (transmission ratio 1:1), it stays decoupled, so that the rotary masses are significantly reduced.

High Voltage Electrode Boiler

Parat Halvorsen AS (Hall 27, Stand G33) has been making boilers since 1920. The electrode boiler has been designed and developed by its in-house engineers and manufactured at the company's workshop in Norway for more than 20 years.

Parat has delivered more than 7000 boilers to the Norwegian market alone, and is today the largest supplier of boiler systems in Norway. Increasing power generation from wind and solar systems have created a demand for fast frequency regulation of the electrical power grids. The Parat electrode boiler can be used for primary regulation with less than 30 seconds response time from minimum to full load.

Converting electrical power to heat makes it possible to accumulate renewable energy in periods of overproduction. Parat's partner AS:SCAN in Denmark has installed more than 7 electrode boilers in the Danish grid

Superconductors: Unique Potential for Automation Technology

Festo is carrying out research on superconductor technology for automation and will show three new application concepts at the Hannover Fair.

Superconductors have fascinating properties: when cooled to a certain temperature, they not only lose their electrical resistance but can also "freeze" the field of a permanent magnet positioned nearby and thus hold the magnet in position at a constant distance. The resulting stable air gap allows the contact-free, frictionless positioning and moving of objects without the need for control technology. For several years, Festo has been carrying out research into the advantages of superconductor technology for automation; the company is demonstrating three new, unique application concepts at the 2014 Hannover Fair.

With the SupraShuttle, Festo is demonstrating the movement of a levitating object in all directions and, for the first time, the handling of the superconductor element itself: the cryostat with the superconducting material is transferred from one electric axis system to another. The exhibit also shows how easily hovering objects can be introduced into a hermetically sealed space and moved within it. This feature would be useful, for example, for applications involving work with gases or in a vacuum.

Software Protection & Piracy

When companies like Sony, Kodak, Motorola and Siemens think of software security and DRM (Digital Rights Management) for documents and media, they think of Wibu-Systems AG (Hall 8, Booth D05). The lead theme chosen for this year is "Integrated Industry - NEXT STEPS" which reflects not just the urgency created by the advent of Industry 4.0 and the recent NSA surveillance scandal, but also the need to outline policies that protect both citizens and companies.

Wibu-Systems is definitely promoting this pragmatic approach and having its voice heard through industry associations as well as its own vision; the main concepts have resulted in a number of guidelines and best practices for manufacturers. European priorities are set on IT security and privacy at a level higher than ever before. By securing software and protecting the IP on the one hand, and by multiplying license schemes and facilitating their integration with existing networked and cloud infrastructures, we support ISVs and OEMs to maximize their software monetization models and ultimately we stimulate a fair economy system.

Automated Parking System from Bavaria

A whole new way to park cars will be shown serva transport systems GmbH (Hall 17, Booth F58) - an idea that revolutionised the transport of cars and parking in. The Bavarian company will be located on the "Red Carpet" which features the highlights of Industrial Automation.

In the serva automated parking system, a patented robotic system takes over the transportation and parking of cars, making it fast, easy and safe. This is ideal for car storage in the automobile industry and parking garages. The three founding partners, Rupert Koch, Cary Bellaflor, and Leopold Meirer developed this very special system under the motto "We park for you!" with early investment provided by the entrepreneurial family, Meltl, from Bavaria. The system has been ready to go since 2013. In April 2014, the automated system will be at D?sseldorf International Airport available everyday for airport customers. Further projects are already being planned such as an interim car storage facility for the automotive industry, a vintage car storage facility, and a facility for towed cars.

The system at the Hannover Fair will demonstrate how the automated parking works: the driver drives his car into a transfer station and the rest of the park-process is performed by robotically. The highly flexible automated guided vehicle (AGV) adapts automatically to the dimensions of each vehicle and brings it safely to its destination. Since the AGV's do not require rails, they are able to take individual routes and also maneuver in tight spaces. Car storage and parking garages can take on dynamic shapes.

Innovative Composite Drive Shafts in Highly Integrated Lightweight Design

The Institute of Lightweight Engineering and Polymer Technology (ILK) at the Technische Universit?t Dresden has developed a novel highly integrated lightweight design for composite dive shafts and associated methods for cost-efficient manufacturing within the support programme "Validierung des Innovationspotenzials wissen-schaftlicher Forschung (VIP)" of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

In contrast to conventional drive shafts in multi-material-design one yoke of the cardan joint and part of the length compensation have been integrated into the composite structure. This integration of functional components allows the realization of new lightweight potentials.

A highly stressed drive shaft for railway applications with a maximum torque of 32 kNm served as an exemplary reference for the development and technological realization of a generic ultra-lightweight drive shaft. The mass of the experimentally tested ultra-lightweight drive shaft is about 50 % lower compared to the metallic reference drive shaft.

The composite drive shaft will be presented at the Hannover Messe at Hall 6, Booth D38.

Seamless E-Vehicle/Smart Grid Connectivity Through Intelligent Communication

To prevent e-vehicles from overloading power grids while charging, seamless connectivity is required. To help address this issue, Fraunhofer ESK is developing underlying communication methods for a uniform energy management system. At the Hannover Trade Fair (Hall 13, Booth C10), ESK researchers will be demonstrating how the charging station serves as an interoperable node between the e-vehicle and the network control centre using the ISO/IEC 15118 and IEC 61850 standards. Having already implemented both communication interfaces, ESK engineers can now illustrate how the concept works in practice. With its solution, the institute helps charging station and e-vehicle manufacturers and grid operators to implement the communication standards and test their products for standards compliance.

Whether vehicle authentication, automatic time-delayed charging or dynamic billing models - digital communication before, during and after charging is essential not only for the charging process. It also allows charging station operators to offer customers a wide range of value-added and convenience services. This also requires complex, EUwide communication technologies. This requirement, which is also being demanded by the EU, led to the creation of the ISO/IEC 15118 standard. "Our experience has shown that charging station manufacturers are still shying away from the standard because the implementation is too complex," explains Dr Erik Oswald from Fraunhofer ESK in Munich. "For this reason, we developed a reference installation that significantly streamlines the implementation."