BMW acquired a Spot quadruped from Boston Dynamics to conduct automated inspections in 2023. | Source: Boston Dynamics
BMW Group’s Hams Hall plant close to Birmingham, England, generates oceans of information within the technique of assembling its engines and parts. Making sense of that information, and, extra crucially, determining the place its blind spots are, was once like sorting by means of piles of puzzle items, in response to Boston Dynamics.
Now, with digital twin expertise and Boston Dynamics‘ Spot quadruped, the automaker said it’s profiting from the info it generates.
BMW produces engines, information inside Hams Hall plant
The Hams Hall plant machines key engine parts and assembles three- and four-cylinder inside combustion engines, in addition to V8 and V12 engines, for a variety of BMW Group automobiles. Its working quantity manufacturing throughout three machining traces totals 1.4 million parts per 12 months, whereas its two manufacturing amenities produce round 400,000 engines a 12 months.
At one level, inside groups had been utilizing over 400 customized dashboards to compile information related to their particular areas, all utilizing completely different strategies of information entry. Hams Hall wanted a “single source of truth” that each one group members may entry.
In response, the corporate developed a completely linked digital twin of the power. Creating the digital twin concerned integrating greater than 15 IT methods right into a three-dimensional mannequin of the manufacturing unit that group members may entry utilizing a smartphone or pill. The twin now shows dwell manufacturing information utilizing inexperienced or purple symbols to indicate the well being of a given system contained in the manufacturing unit.
BMW mentioned the quantity of equipment required to take care of manufacturing is immense, as is the necessity to make sure that tools is at all times working correctly by way of common inspections. Hams Hall has an in depth tunnel system with pipes, chillers, and hydraulic panels which can be weak to air leaks. Despite the essential position of this tools, the digital twin revealed areas of the power the place inspection information was lacking altogether.
It was clear the Innovation and Digitalization (I&D) group wanted to help upkeep staff to develop and automate inspection efforts.
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Spot covers inspections
Previously, the manufacturing unit introduced in contractors to examine for air leaks with specialist tools. Having the Hams Hall upkeep group take over these guide inspections would take hours away from time spent on precise upkeep or repairs. The I&D group turned to automation as a substitute.
Placing Internet of Things (IoT) sensors on tools was one possibility for gathering automated readings, however the I&D group decided it could take years to put in all of the sensors required and show too pricey. A cell robotic outfitted with IoT sensors that would cowl the identical quantity of space, repeating the precise measurements in difficult situations can be a fraction of the associated fee. Boston Dynamics’ Spot robotic was the clear alternative, BMW mentioned.
“We recognized we have a really good level of transparency now in our production data,” mentioned Brad Tomlinson, the technical lead of Hams Hall’s I&D group. “With that transparency, we can start to identify the gaps, and we wanted to use Spot to fill those gaps. We didn’t have temperature data about all our assets, or manual dial readings and acoustic anomaly reports down to specifics. That’s how we’re using Spot.”
Robot makes routine inspections
Spot at present makes use of a number of sensors for inspections, together with a thermal digicam to measure temperature, a Fluke SV600 acoustic sensor to determine air leaks, a 360° digicam, and lidar for 3D scanning. As these machines need to be operating 24/7, they’ve precedence on auto walks so a schedule is created for a sure station to be inspected as soon as a day, and one other station as soon as per week.
For 80% of its schedule, Spot makes routine inspections. However, the opposite 20% of the time is spent trying ahead.
Controlling Spot with a pill, a BMW group member can convey the robotic to manufacturing traces for advert hoc inspections. Employees with years of expertise and who know their tools may wish to use Spot to research a unfastened bearing or uncommon vibration. The intern will convey Spot over to take a measurement, and the group can resolve if a restore is pressing or if it could actually wait.
“It’s almost like completing the loop from Spot to the digital twin and right back down onto the factory floor with the maintenance associates,” mentioned Tomlinson. “Spot’s actually almost fully embedded into the maintenance system.”
BMW rapidly will get outcomes with Spot
BMW mentioned its workers rapidly discovered learn how to work with Spot. | Source: Boston Dynamics
During the primary weeks of inspections with the acoustic sensor, Christian Poss, the Innovation and Digitalization group supervisor, mentioned Spot discovered air leaks in sudden locations, which piqued the curiosity of group members on the manufacturing unit flooring to make sure they had been monitored frequently.
Tomlinson says an ideal instance of how the legged robotic has made operations extra environment friendly is with upkeep requests. Employees can now log into the digital twin, zoom into particular areas to view Spot’s inspection particulars, and submit a upkeep request proper there on display screen.
Another clear benefit of Spot is that it doesn’t require years of expertise to function, BMW mentioned. This is very necessary as a result of the corporate has an internship program for college college students. In the U.Okay., undergraduate college students dedicate their whole third 12 months of research to knowledgeable internship.
Interns rotate by means of yearly, nevertheless, so BMW Group Plant Hams Hall wanted expertise interns who may be taught and adapt rapidly. Spot permits the I&D group to scale inspections and develop different options whereas making certain a top quality internship for college students. In truth, two interns lead the Spot integration program.
“We’re working with a team of young professionals, which helps us be agile in terms of how quickly we can roll these things out. Also, it gives these students a really good internship, but it equally reflects on how flexible the existing hardware is.” mentioned Tomlinson.
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Boston Dynamics to keynote Robotics Summit
Aaron Saunders, chief expertise officer at Boston Dynamics, will give a keynote speak on the Robotics Summit & Expo. The present will probably be on the Boston Convention and Expo Center from April 30 to May 1. It will convey collectively over 5,000 builders centered on constructing robots for a wide range of business functions.
Saunders will open the second day of the present with a session on “Redesigning Atlas: Boston Dynamics on the Future of Humanoids.”
With over 20 years at Boston Dynamics, Saunders has held key roles, together with vice chairman of engineering. He leads multidisciplinary groups to set the corporate’s technological imaginative and prescient and align analysis and improvement with enterprise wants. Saunders holds a grasp’s in mechanical engineering from the University of Victoria and a bachelor’s from the University of Alberta.
You can even view the total agenda right here to plan your journey and register right here. Early chicken registration for the Robotics Summit ends Feb. 28. Note that audio system are nonetheless being added.