Recent Research on Flexible Fixtures for Manufacturing Processes

Abstract

Fixtures, are used to fixate, position and support workpieces, and form a crucial tool in manufacturing. Their performance influences the manufacturing (and assembly) process of a product. Furthermore, fixturing can form a significant portion of the needed investment and total process planning time for the manufacturing system. Many fixturing concepts, as contribution to increase the flexibility of the manufacturing system, are reported in the literature. The flexible fixturing designs can be classified into the following seven categories: modular fixtures, flexible pallet systems, sensor-based fixture design, phase-change based concepts, chuck-based concepts, pin-type array fixtures and automatically reconfigurable fixtures. It is observed that the more intelligent and automated fixturing systems are designed with the demands for automation in certain industries in mind. Furthermore, different fixturing solutions suit the engineering demands for different manufacturing areas, this means that for the foreseeable future all technologies will remain current. From the self-reconfigurable fixturing techniques a new fixturing capability is emerging: in process reconfigurability for the optimal placement of clamps and supports during the whole process time. These several concepts together with some recent patents are studied here. The paper concludes with some prospective research directions in the field of flexible fixturing.

Development of Flexible Fixtures with Incomplete Locating: Connecting Rods Machining Case Study

“…Overall, the proposed methodology continues recent strategies in the development of flexible fixtures [33], increases the reliability of the automated flexible fixture systems for mass production [34], improves methods for flexible fixture design in the automotive industry [35], extends recent developments in reconfigurable fixture design [36], and improves simulation approaches in fixture design [37].…”

Ensuring economic efficiency of flexible fixtures in multiproduct manufacturing

“…The design of flexible fixtures is a complicated and time-consuming process that requires considering many parameters. Kotliar et al (2019b) focused on production conditions; Krol and Sokolov (2018) considered technological capabilities of metal-cutting Engineering Management in Production and Services equipment; Li, Chen and Shi (2016), Kostyuk, Nechyporuk and Kostyk (2019), and Kostyuk (2019) examined parameters of cutting tools; Bakker et al (2013) and Shaik, Rao and Rao (2015) studied design and technological features of parts; Basova et al (2018) and Sokolov, Krol and Baturin (2019) investigated dynamic characteristics; Denysenko et al (2019) and Dynnyk et al (2020) evaluated quality indicators; and Yarovyi and Yarova (2020) appraised energy-efficient criteria. Meanwhile, Qin et al (2010) presented a literature review on existing fixture systems, their functionality, design features, and sufficient use.…”

Flexible Fixtures for Parts Machining in Automobile Industry

“…It should be noticed that the greatest time consumptions during adjustment is the auxiliary and preparatory components of standard time, connected with replacement of fixture and set of cutting tool. Therefore, the design of flexible fixtures is an urgent task which proved by recent research [2], [3], [4], [5].…”

“…However, this is true for all areas of machine-building industry. Work [2] describes the latest researches in the area of design of flexible fixtures and presents adjustable constructions of fixtures for machining the cylinders block head [14] on the basis of the system of modular fixtures. Analysis of researches in fixture design presents that the modular fixtures should be used, as a rule, for increasing the flexibility, which are flexible only until the moment of their assembly.…”