A Cybermanufacturing System for the Design and Fabrication of Manufacturing Equipment

Cyber-manufacturing is the emerging field that links information systems with the physical systems and hardware used to turn raw materials into manufactured goods. Cyber-manufacturing is a specific part of "the internet of things." A stunningly successful example of cyber-manufacturing is the design and manufacture of integrated circuits that has enabled revolutions in computation, telecommunications and much more. This EArly-concept Grant for Exploratory Research (EAGER) award will investigate of a cyber-manufacturing system for the design and fabrication of manufacturing equipment. This system will have high impact on innovation in manufacturing by dramatically reducing the lead time and cost associated with manufacturing equipment. Invigorating innovation in manufacturing by reducing lead time and cost will enable new product designs and will allow innovators in manufacturing to defend their market positions through rapid improvement. With these changes, innovators in manufacturing will be able to capture economic benefit, rather than watching that benefit go to others, and a sustainable ecosystem in manufacturing innovation can be envisioned.

The lesson learned from the integrated circuit industry is to focus on a specific product class to be fabricated/manufactured because in this way a user community is created which brings the aggregate effort above critical mass and allows for organic growth. Following this lesson, the project focuses on the design and fabrication of manufacturing equipment. This focus area provides the user base and is high impact, and is therefore achievable. This is because: i) in the design of manufacturing equipment, similar challenges are encountered repeatedly, and each type of challenge or subsystem is usually addressed by a choice among a limited range of fabrication technologies, ii) the design of manufacturing equipment is hierarchical and not strongly coupled, and iii) human factors, which are among the most difficult to codify, are better circumscribed and less critical to the competitive advantage of manufacturing equipment, as compared to other realms. Fundamental requirements for applications (apps) will be researched for several classes of subsystems which are frequently incorporated in manufacturing equipment. The user will interact directly with these subsystem apps. The subsystems apps will interface with a CAD system on the front end and a procurement app on the back end. The procurement app will interface with vendors. This work will focus on the requirements for the subsystem apps and the interfaces in the system. The interfaces will embody the abstractions required to codify the exchange between system blocks.