14.3 Introduction

Figure 14-1 Gork’s Digital Factory

The transition from hand crafted products to mechanized assembly line was seen as a significant accomplishment in the early 1900's and later during World War II was instrumental in our being able to field the weapon systems we needed in order to win wars on two fronts. Since then improvements in machines have contributed to higher precision, better quality, faster processing times, and lower cost. Improvements in technology have continued to play a major role in advancing the productivity of our industrial economy. But nowhere has "modernization" had a more dramatic impact then on emerging computer technology as applied to industrial equipment. For example, in the 1980's mechanical tool control devices, such as special cams for automatic lathes, were replaced by direct numerical controls which eliminated the need for a special set of cams for each new part configuration. This innovation not only eliminated a costly tool component but drastically reduced set-up time for each new part. While maintaining the same capability to accurately reproduce many parts, greater freedom for part variation was provided. With machine control centered in a computer program, a relatively minor computer program change is needed to affect a change in part configuration compared to two to three hours previously required to change cams. But that was in the 1980's and the change from cams to numerical controls took many years. Today's improvements are coming at us at an ever increasing pace.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is focusing on manufacturing technology improvements under the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP) with efforts in the following areas:

• Robotics: NIST is supporting the National Robotics Initiative through the development and deployment of measurement science to increase the versatility, autonomy, and rapid re-tasking of intelligent robots and automation technologies to improve the utilization of robotics in manufacturing. The program addresses major barriers including perception, manipulation, intelligent planning, and safety. Robots that can collaborate with humans and readily handle a wider variety of tasks at lower cost will give all U.S. manufacturers – large and small – an edge in quality and responsiveness to their customers.
• Nanomanufacturing: NIST is working with partners in academia and industry to develop the measurement tools and instrumentation needed to enable cost-effective in-line measurement techniques for closed-loop process control, required for large-scale production of nanomaterials and devices.
• Advanced Materials Design: As part of the Materials Genome Initiative, NIST is working with partners across the government to develop:
  • computational and validated materials databases, data assessment tools, techniques and standards;
  • reference materials models and simulations;
  • mechanisms for exchange of materials information and best practices;
  • consortia to determine consensus standards for materials data interchange; and
  • teams built through a Center of Excellence for identifying the critical barriers that can be technically overcome to achieve Integrated Computational Materials Engineering.

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