Checking your account balance with a glance at your cell phone is a matter of course these days. It can even be used to check whether the heating is running and whether the robot mower or vacuum cleaner is doing its job as planned. More and more household appliances are online, but the Internet of Things has now also found its way into industry. An operator can also use their smartphone to monitor whether the systems in their press shop are running.

Press force and stroke rates, for example, can be called up remotely at any time, including historical data. They provide an indication of incorrectly positioned tools and impending damage, for example. The cooling and lubrication circuits can also be recorded and displayed, including temperatures and system pressures. In addition to temperatures, important parameters for the drive system include electrical power consumption, for example.

An Edge Gateway is already installed in newer machines, while older lines can be retrofitted relatively easily. This allows the machine and process data to be processed in the Edge before it is stored in a central location. With the operator's consent, the data can also be transmitted via a secure connection to a data center, where the computer processes it and visualizes it in graphics that are as clear as possible. Unplanned downtimes in the press shop can thus be effectively avoided.

If you want to go one step further, you can install cameras in your presses that use intelligent software to monitor the forming process. They detect, for example, if a punching scrap has strayed into the tool and threatens to damage it, and stop the system immediately. This is made technically possible by comparing the actual and target status within fractions of a second. Schuler calls this solution "Visual Die Protection".

Support from a distance

And if, despite all these safety precautions, a standstill does occur, press operators no longer have to wait hours for a service technician to arrive. With the help of special software, they can get an immediate impression of the condition of the system: As with a video chat, all the customer has to do is point their smartphone at the machine. Thanks to augmented reality technology, the expert can then mark defective parts on the press directly in the cell phone user's field of vision or show the change to a setting. If the customer uses data glasses, they have both hands free to solve the problem themselves. In the vast majority of cases, a standstill can be rectified in this way.

Ideally, the forming process and part cycle have already been simulated on the computer before the design of the tool has even begun. This minimizes the risk of failure in advance. The usual processes within the press can also be represented virtually long before the start of production with the help of its digital twin. Initial tests and software adjustments are also possible, which noticeably speeds up commissioning. Another advantage is that the operating personnel can familiarize themselves with the system in advance using the digital twin. This means that training on the control system is possible while the system is still being set up - and without the risk of operating errors. As soon as the press is running, training on the virtual image is also useful because production on the real system does not have to be interrupted.

Electronic assistants for tool set-up

Electronic assistants can also speed up the start of production. For example, there is software that runs on mobile devices or the press control system and explains how to set up the dies step by step with images and videos. In return, the operators enter data from which the system calculates the optimum movement curves of the ram and transfer required for the highest possible output.

"Track & Trace provides seamless proof of quality for ongoing production. The system marks each component with its own ID, which can be traced back to different points in time and product stages. All important information about this ID is stored in a database so that it is possible to trace the coil from which the processed component originated, the parameters used in the forming process and the quality characteristics of the component. Schuler has brought together all these solutions for networking and digitizing forming technology in its "Digital Suite".

In the Smart Press Shop in Halle (Saxony-Anhalt), the intelligent press shop is becoming a reality. The joint venture between Porsche and Schuler operates a servo press line, a work-in press and a blanking line with laser, producing body and structural parts. Among other things, the "Track & Trace" and "Visual Die Protection" solutions described above are used.