EMU tecnológico: acquisition of a gear profile grinding machine to support the development of intelligent systems using machine learning models to satisfy electric mobility requirements

• Grant number: 22/11458-7
• Support Opportunities: Research Infrastructure Program - Technology and Innovation
• Start date: June 01, 2023
• End date: May 31, 2030
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Mechanical Engineering - Manufacturing Processes
• Principal Investigator: Alfredo Rocha de Faria
• Grantee: Alfredo Rocha de Faria
• Host Institution: Divisão de Engenharia Mecânica (IEM). Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA). Ministério da Defesa (Brasil). São José dos Campos , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Anderson Vicente Borille ; Ronnie Rodrigo Rego

Abstract

The economic recovery from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic accelerates centered on an ESG Agenda (Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance), also called "Green Recovery". The agenda includes the demand for immediate solutions to replace fossil fuel-based propulsion, in which electric mobility emerges globally and with an impact on the entire production chain. In this context, enabling technologies for advanced manufacturing appears as an essential action plan for its viability.The new technical requirements of electric mobility are accompanied by challenges such as high motor speeds, increased power density, reverse loading, and tight dimensional constraints, among others. Such challenges raise concerns about surface quality, durability, and reliability of mechanical components to new heights, engendering special attention to the elements of power transmission systems.The use of artificial intelligence techniques can contribute to the investigation of problems involving complex relationships and large data sets. Machine learning models are essential for creating intelligent processes (decentralized and/or semi-autonomous) using real-time data, supporting the performance and quality expected by electric mobility. Such technologies demand a large amount of data and rigorous and replicable conduction of results. In that sense, the provision of a testing center dedicated to research is remarkably necessary. In this context, the proposal is conceived as an Industry 4.0 test bed, showing the feasibility of the industrial insertion of advanced manufacturing technologies in light of the mobility revolution.The laboratory that will host this proposal is the Competence Center in Manufacturing at ITA (CCM-ITA), which houses the EMBRAPII Power Transmission Unit. CCM-ITA has experience and formal structure in the thematic lines of electric mobility and in the application of artificial intelligence models in manufacturing processes. Its research team holds patents, high impact factor publications, and significant projects with the automotive, aeronautical and energy industries, particularly in surface integrity properties induced by manufacturing processes. Although a mature infrastructure in machining and surface integrity characterization already exists, finishing machining equipment such as grinding machines are not available.To support research projects involving finishing processes, necessary for electrification, it is essential to provide a finishing machining equipment that allows an in-depth mapping of aspects related to surface integrity, in particular the state of residual stresses induced in the component.In this perspective, this project aims to make available a gear profile grinding machine to the technological and innovation group of research in the state of São Paulo. The equipment described is widely used in the gear manufacturing chain and is not yet available in any research center in Brazil. Sensors and acquisition systems that aim to support the instrumentation of the equipment are also requested, as indispensable accessories to support the development and investigation of intelligent systems supported by machine learning models.The choice of gear finishing equipment is justified by the fact that gear manufacturing is characterized as a particular challenge for electrification. Solutions with greater durability, lower noise emission, and greater mechanical efficiency are demanded, simultaneously. The three demands pass for a surface of superior quality, increasing the importance of studies to improve the quality and productivity of finishing operations. (AU)