The strategic objective of the Des-MOLD project is to reduce the cost of injection-moulding production by developing and validating a set of knowledge-based tools specifically oriented to mould makers and plastic injection companies, which will reduce the need for mock-ups of moulds, and several try-and-error trials to calibrate process control variables. The production of plastic parts has moved from highly standardized molds, to a more customized demand with small batch production.
This has generated an increasing demand of molds and a new scenario: each injector company has the same volume requirements but much higher diversity of plastic pieces, and therefore, more different molds to handle. Des-MOLD leitmotiv is to build up a new generation of intelligent knowledge-based engineering systems for added-value injection molding and process control optimization at the design time, directly transferable and usable by the European Tool Makers community and thermoplastic injection companies, and considering as a whole the entire industrialization and production process.
Des-MOLD will uses as a main source, past empirical industrial experiences and simulation data to optimize, at the design time, the geometries of the pieces and moulds according to the desired features, material properties, and to the expected process control variables; modeling this domain and supporting reasoning about features. Artificial intelligence techniques such as case-based reasoning and computational argumentation will permit both the inference of quantitative and qualitative information based on a large variety of empirical data and the justification of each decision.
The proper use of Des-MOLD system will imply the reduction of set up time in at least 25%, reduction of scraps with a rejection ratio cut by a factor 2, and an overall increase of productivity of at least 15%. These factors will have a strategic effect on the sustainability of the European plastics industry competitiveness.
| Web resources: |
http://www.desmold.eu
https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/314581 |
| Start date: | 01-09-2012 |
| End date: | 31-08-2015 |
| Total budget - Public funding: | 2 672 580,00 Euro - 1 965 912,00 Euro |
Original description
The main strategic objective of the Des-MOLD project is to reduce the cost of injection-moulding production by developing and validating a set of knowledge-based tools specifically oriented to mould makers and plastic injection companies, which will reduce the need for mock-ups of moulds, and several try-and-error trials to calibrate process control variables.A lot of effort has been put to study and monitor the correlations between process control variables, or to validate, at the design time, mould geometries by simulating the material flow dynamics inside the mould. However, no approach considers as a whole the entire industrialization and production process, starting from the desired features and the geometry of the piece, to the geometry of the mould, the material properties, and the process control through sensorized moulds and machine parameters. This is the focus of Des-MOLD.
Our hypothesis is that within the new scenario where plastic converters industry has moved from highly standardized moulds to customized products with small batches, it is possible to construct an intelligent knowledge-based system that uses as a main source, past empirical experiences and simulation data to optimize, at the design time, the geometries of the pieces and moulds according to the desired features, and to the expected process control variables that will be monitored during production time. Artificial intelligence techniques such as case-based reasoning and computational argumentation permit both the inference of quantitative and qualitative information based on a large variety of empirical data and the justification of each decision.
Status
ONGCall topic
FoF.NMP.2012-6Update Date
27-10-2022
Des-MOLD imply the development of a Geometry module : software to simplify the design of geometry to a set of primitives. It allows the system to compare designs.
Des-MOLD is an intelligent knowledge-based system which presents the use of different Artificial Intelligence techniques to develop a decision support system for designers of plastic parts. Our approach is based on computational argumentation (ARG) and case-based reasoning (CBR) to offer both a recommendation about the design and the reasoning process followed in order to select that solution. Given the geometry of the part, type of material, mould’s material and defects to be avoid, the system combines a knowledge-based system (KBS) based on past experiences with designers social debates for providing a set of recommendations, enabling to update the knowledge database by reusing and adapting solutions from previous designs.
Our approach is based on computational argumentation (ARG) and case-based reasoning (CBR) to offer both a recommendation about the design and the reasoning process followed in order to select that solution. Given the geometry of the part, type of material, mould’s material and defects to be avoid, the system combines a knowledge-based system (KBS) based on past experiences with designers social debates for providing a set of recommendations, enabling to update the knowledge database by reusing and adapting solutions from previous designs
