SPEAKER: PAUL K. WRIGHT
A. Martin Berlin Chair in Mechanical Engineering, The College of Engineering,
and Co-Chair, Mangement of Technology Program, Haas School of Business,
The University of California, Berkeley
ABSTRACT:
Berkeley has established "an experimental fabrication testbed" for an
Internet-accessible, computerized machining service called "CyberCut".
Client-designers can now create mechanical components, beginning with a
CAD system of their choice, and submit appropriate files to the server at
Berkeley for process planning. "CyberCut" utilizes an existing
open-architecture, computerized machine tool at Berkeley for fabrication.
Rapid tool-path planning, novel fixturing techniques, and sensor-based
precision machining techniques allow the original designer to take delivery
of a component with a high-strength and tight-tolerance {e.g. +/- 0.002 inch
(0.05mm)}. As the work proceeds, other services such as laser-cutting and
precision machining will be included. "CyberCut" will first be used by
University collaborators at Carnegie Mellon, Stanford and the MTAMRI at
Illinois.
There are also some instances where the design has a complex shape that
cannot be proto-typed by machining. We then need to evaluate other "Solid
Free Form" technologies for the downstream prototype realization. To
facilitate this step, we are developing a "Manufacturing Analysis Service"
that evaluates the design for fabrication by Stereolithography
or Selective Laser Sintering. We are using our industrial collaborators,
Metalcast Engineering and Plynetics, for these extended services.
Graduate students at Berkeley are using the system today to design simple
parts and get them machined within a day or two. We would be interested in
your feedback on Design Tool which can be found at
SPEAKER BIO:
Previously, he was a Professor of Computer Science at the Courant
Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University, and Director of their Robotics and Manufacturing
Research Laboratory (1987-1991). Between 1979 and 1987 he was a Professor of
Mechanical Engineering and of the Robotics Institute at Carnegie-Mellon
University. He
has also been a Research Associate in Physics at the University of
Cambridge, England
(1978), a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at
the University
of Auckland (1975-1978), and a consulting engineer for an industrial
development laboratory in New Zealand (1972-1975).
He was born in London and obtained his degrees at the University of
Birmingham, England. He has published over 200 papers and reports that span
the areas of: metal processing especially machining; robotics and its
applications in flexible manufacturing systems; the development of expert
systems for manufacturing; controllers for open
architecture manufacturing; rapid prototyping; and Internet-based CAD/CAM.
In this latter area, the ongoing project at Berkeley is entitled "CyberCut:
A Networked Manufacturing Service". This is funded by NSF, Visteon, Sun
Microsystems and Boeing. He is also a consultant on these topics for a
number of industrial corporations, national laboratories
and business planning organizations. His book "Manufacturing Intelligence"
published in 1988 with David Bourne, was one of the pioneering contributions
that combined manufacturing processes with artificial intelligence. Other
books in-press are "Metal Cutting" and "Technology and Management: Bridging
Two Cultures to Create Leading Edge Products"
CyberCut: A Networked Manufacturing Service
Getting leading-edge products to market faster than one's competition, is
a key concern of the Nation's manufacturing enterprises. Correspondingly,
many designers "out there on the Internet" quickly want "one-of-a-kind"
mechanical prototypes or small batches of parts, to visualize and
experiment with during the early conceptual stages of a new "high-tech"
product.
At the University of California, Berkeley, Paul Wright is the holder of
the A. Martin Berlin
Chair in Mechanical Engineering, and is the Co-Chair of the Management of
Technology
Program, a collaboration with the Haas School of Business.