ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES FACED IN THE DESIGN & MANUFACTURE OF ELECTRIC MOTORS
THE CHALLENGE Manufacturers are often seeking ways in which to evolve processes to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of both production techniques and solutions. Much of this is driven by the end user, and with electrical machines, there is a demand for greater mechanical power from more compact and lightweight devices. In the world of electrification, mass is one of many critical performance parameters, and industry is seeing a drive towards customisation and bespoke components to deliver products sized for their specific application. Through this project, the MTC sought to address these challenges by leveraging its own capabilities and that of its membership network and UK supply chain, to design, manufacture and assemble a high power- density electric motor prototype. In order to best optimise the design and manufacture processes, the following areas of focus were identified: The use of smart design tools Component manufacturing technologies Automation and smart assembly workstations
MTC’S SOLUTION The MTC applied simulation toolsets provided by Siemens Digital Industries to generate and optimise the electro- magnetic, mechanical, and manufacturing design of the electric motor. The toolset allowed for rapid design iterations within a digital environment, so that designers could understand the influence of manufacturing process limitations on the expected performance of the motor. The Computer-Aided Design (CAD) toolsets also allowed MTC designers to reduce the mass of the electric motor product and validate its structure for the calculated loading conditions. The same toolsets were then used to create engineering drawings to facilitate and communicate the design intent for manufacturing and assembly. The electric motor was first manufactured using lowcost 3D printing to create a non-functional prototype, with a view to de-risking the manufacture of expensive metallic parts. This provided designers with the opportunity to experience the physical components and make an informed assessment as to whether design changes were required. In this case, a number of bespoke tooling or fixturing opportunities were identified and subsequently created to make the assembly process safer and more repeatable. The MTC then used its in-house subtractive manufacturing and metrology inspection capabilities to create the first, fully-functional, electric motor prototype. Having access to state-of-the-art equipment, provided by DMG Mori and Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence, gave the MTC an opportunity to critically assess all aspects of the design and manufacturing process. This has allowed further design and process recommendations to be made with a view to improving productivity, reducing costs, and de-risking the end-to-end process.
The scope of this project was such that it gave us the opportunity to explore new technologies within a real-world application, as well as the chance to utilise multiple tools and processes to deliver the end-to- end solution. We can now take our learnings from this work to support future R&D across UK industry.
Tom Cockerill Chief Engineer, MTC
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