A new vehicle model is to be intro\u00adduced to the market quickly, a cur\u00adrent product should be reworked in a short time \u2013 but it often takes months or even years until the pro\u00adduc\u00adtion chain is con\u00adverted and ready for the new require\u00adments. To shorten the time to market launch and increase com\u00adpet\u00adi\u00adtive\u00adness, pro\u00adduc\u00adtion in the auto\u00admo\u00adtive and sup\u00adplier industry must move away from plant-spe\u00adcific machinery and soft\u00adware and embrace dynam\u00adi\u00adcally adapt\u00adable pro\u00adduc\u00adtion with a uni\u00adform soft\u00adware frame\u00adwork. The research project SDM4FZI (Soft\u00adware-defined Man\u00adu\u00adfac\u00adturing for the vehicle and sup\u00adplier industry) is being spon\u00adsored by the German Fed\u00aderal Min\u00adistry for Eco\u00adnomic Affairs and Cli\u00admate Action (BMWi) over the next three years and is working on the rel\u00ade\u00advant require\u00adments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The basis: dig\u00adital twins of the existing plants. These can be used to effi\u00adciently pre\u00adpare and imple\u00adment improve\u00adments while pro\u00adduc\u00adtion is run\u00adning. In addi\u00adtion, how\u00adever, the con\u00adtrol and com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adca\u00adtion infra\u00adstruc\u00adture must be com\u00adpat\u00adible with soft\u00adware-defined man\u00adu\u00adfac\u00adturing \u2013 as must the safety of the machinery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s where Pilz comes in: \u201cThe safety-related assess\u00adment of a plant is a highly manual process that is largely per\u00adformed without tech\u00adnical aids. Any assisted or even auto\u00admated func\u00adtion thus directly results in increased effi\u00adciency,\u201d explains Matthias Schweiker, Dipl.-Ing., Advance Devel\u00adop\u00adment at Pilz. As part of the research asso\u00adci\u00ada\u00adtion made up of automa\u00adtion, mechan\u00adical engi\u00adneering, IT and the auto\u00admo\u00adtive sector, Pilz is working on tool-sup\u00adported CE con\u00adfor\u00admity. This includes defining and eval\u00adu\u00adating impor\u00adtant safety para\u00adme\u00adters for dig\u00adital rep\u00adre\u00adsen\u00adta\u00adtion of a plant and auto\u00admat\u00adi\u00adcally detecting safety-crit\u00adical recon\u00adfig\u00adu\u00adra\u00adtions on a plant. Addi\u00adtional work pack\u00adages include topics con\u00adcerning con\u00adnec\u00adtivity and secu\u00adrity. As soon as all work pack\u00adages are defined, the indi\u00advidual teams will start working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n