Social media isn’t the only the place application developers are finding lucrative opportunities. Valerie Pezzullo, who received a master’s degree in May from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University, took home $100,000 when she won first prize for her app at the MTConnect Challenge 2 as voted by attendees at the [MC]2 2014 MTConnect: Connecting Manufacturing Conference.
Called “Machining Process Monitoring to Aid in Chatter Identification,” the app integrates data from the machine tool controller through MTConnect with data collected from sensors integrated into the cutting tool to allow a machine operator to monitor potential chatter-causing conditions during machining, Pezzullo explained. The sensors include one to monitor variations in the cutting force, which might indicate vibration at the tool/workpiece interface, and a thermocouple to monitor tool temperature and signal tool wear.
She added that sensors are connected through the CompactRIO controller from National Instruments Corp. and do not go through MTConnect. “There is not a lot of support for sensor integration through MTConnect,” Pezzullo said, “but if that were to change, then my app would be able to be completely MTConnect compliant.”
The application also allows an operator to keep track of part-specific information by scanning a part’s bar code and then saving the machining information in a file for future analysis.
MTConnect is an open, royalty-free set of communications standards to enable enhanced interoperability and information sharing between manufacturing equipment, devices and software applications. “The goal for the MTConnect Challenge was to foster innovative ideas and implementation of applications using MTConnect, as well as entice other application developers to create applications and, hopefully, expand the usage of MTConnect in manufacturing,” Pezzullo said. “I decided to use the challenge as a focal point and end goal of my thesis project.”
Pezzullo conducted her research in collaboration with the Department of Automotive Engineering at the university’s International Center for Automotive Research facility in the Manufacturing Lab under Dr. Laine Mears.
In addition, Pezzullo’s background in performing arts played a role. “It has allowed me to see problems from a different perspective and come up with creative ways of solving them,” she said. “Having an eye for aesthetics also helped me create the layout of the application’s user interface to make it easy to use and flow in a logical manner for minimal user training.”
The Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) Defense-wide Manufacturing Science and Technology (DMS&T) sponsored the MTConnect Challenge, and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining, AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology and the U.S. Army Benét Labs oversaw the competition.
For more information about MTConnect, visit www.mtconnect.org. CTE
Related Glossary Terms
- chatter
chatter
Condition of vibration involving the machine, workpiece and cutting tool. Once this condition arises, it is often self-sustaining until the problem is corrected. Chatter can be identified when lines or grooves appear at regular intervals in the workpiece. These lines or grooves are caused by the teeth of the cutter as they vibrate in and out of the workpiece and their spacing depends on the frequency of vibration.
- cutting force
cutting force
Engagement of a tool’s cutting edge with a workpiece generates a cutting force. Such a cutting force combines tangential, feed and radial forces, which can be measured by a dynamometer. Of the three cutting force components, tangential force is the greatest. Tangential force generates torque and accounts for more than 95 percent of the machining power. See dynamometer.
Author
Alan holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Including his 20 years at CTE, Alan has more than 30 years of trade journalism experience.
