(1) Introduction An assembly is a collection of independent parts.

It is important to understand the dependencies between various parts in an assembly to assemble the parts properly. Assembly model includes the spatial positions and hierarchical relationships among the parts and mating conditions between the parts. One of the obvious ways to facilitate the assembly process at the design phase is to simplify the product by reducing the number of different parts to a minimum. In addition to product simplification, the assembly process can be greatly facilitated by introducing guides and tapers into the design of various parts. Sharp corners usually hinder guiding parts into their correct positions during assembly. Assembly planning is the checking of both hard and soft clashes, of generating assembly sequences in order to check the feasibility of the removal path and verifying the correct sequence and the correct fit both dynamically and statically during the disassembly process.

Figure 35.1 (a) Collection of pieces used to define an assembly planning problem

Figure 35.2 (b) Assembly planning determining a sequence of motions for assembly

The use of computers for planning the assembly of mechanical products originated in the research on planning with artificial intelligence. There are many reasons for systematization and the computerization of assembly planning, some of which are as follows;

Industrial designers will benefit from having a tool with which they can quickly assess their designs for ease of assembly Although many experienced personals have a skill for devising an efficient ways to assemble a given product, systematic procedures are necessary to guarantee that no good assembly plan has been over looked. Sometimes, the number of different assembly alternatives is so large that even skillful engineer may fail to notice many possibilities.

An automatic generator of assembly sequence can be an efficient aid to designer. Whenever one modifies the feature of the product, the influence of these modifications can immediately be checked on the sequences. For small batch production, the automatic generation of assembly sequences is faster, more reliable and more cost-effective than manual generation.

(2) Computer Aided Assembly Planning Computer aided assembly planning involves automatically determining a sequence of motions to assemble a product from its individual parts. The motions can include

part motions, grasping locations, tool access, fixture planning, factory layout, and many other issues, all of which have complex geometric components that use computational geometry techniques. A number of technical issues that must be addressed for assembly automation includes following; (2.1) Representation of assemblies and assembly plans A computer representation of mechanical assemblies is necessary in order to automate the generation of assembly plans. The main issue in this stage is to decide what information about assemblies is required, and how this information is represented in the computer. An assembly of parts can be represented by the description of its individual components and their relationships in the assembly. Assembly data base stores the geometric models of individual parts, the spatial positions and orientations of the parts in the assembly, and the assembly or attachment relationships between parts. One of the widely used methods for representation of assemblies is based on graph structures. In this scheme, an assembly model is represented by a graph structure in which each node represents an individual part or a sub assembly. The branches of the graph represent relationship among parts. Four kinds of relationships exist: part-of (P), attachment (A), constraint (C) and sub assembly (SA).

The "part-of" relation represents the logical containment of one object in another. For example, the head and shaft of a screw are "part-of" the screw itself. There are three types of attachment relationships: rigid, non rigid, and conditional. o Rigid attachment occurs when no relative motion is possible between two parts. o Non rigid attachment occurs when parts cannot be separated by an arbitrarily large distance but relative motion between the two parts is possible. o Conditional attachment is related to parts supported by gravity, but not strictly attached. Constraint relationships represent physical constraint of one part on another. Subassembly relationship indicates that an assembly is merged into a higher assembly.

The graph structure of electric clutch assembly is shown in figure 35.2

Figure 35.2 Graph structure of electric clutch assembly

Another method for representation of assembly is location graph of the part which is a relative property. In this method, a co-ordinate system is the used to specify location of one part relative to another. A location in one coordinate system also defines a new coordinate system for the located part, with its origin and axes. Other locations can be defined in terms of this second one. Thus, a chain of locations can be defined such that each location is defined in terms of another part's coordinate system. A set of these chains results in a graph referred to here as a location graph.

Figure 35.3 Location graph of electric clutch assembly

(2.2) Generation of Assembly Sequences and Assembly plans For usefulness, an assembly planning system must generate correct assembly plans. Further, to solve problems that require optimization, such as selection of best assembly alternative, one must be able to traverse the space of all candidate solutions. The number of distinct feasible assembly plans can be large even for assemblies made of a small number of parts therefore complete enumeration is not possible in most cases real applications. Finding systematic ways to narrow down alternatives is crucial for the automatic planning of assembly. Some of the widely used techniques in evaluation of assembly sequence are discussed below. Precedence Diagram The precedence diagram is designed to show all the possible assembly sequences of a given product. To develop the precedence diagram for a product, each individual assembly operation is assigned a unique number and it is represented by an appropriate circle with the number inscribed. The circles are connected by arrows showing the precedence relations. The precedence diagram is usually organized into columns. All the operations that can be carried out first are placed in the first column, and so on. Usually, one operation appears in the first column: the placing the base part on the work carrier where whole assembly process occurs.

Figure 35.3 Precedence diagram of electric clutch assembly

Liaison-Sequence Analysis The liaison method develops all possible assembly sequences in two steps. First it characterizes the assembly by a network wherein nodes represent parts and lines between nodes represent any mating conditions between parts. These mating conditions referred to in this method as liaisons. The network itself is known as liaison diagram.

Figure 35.4 Liaison-Sequence of electric clutch assembly

When developing a liaison diagram, to note that the liaison count (number of liaisons) l is related to the part count (number of parts) n by the following inequality:

Precedence Graph Unlike the previous two methods, this method is fully automatic. It is based on the virtual link data structure and requires the mating conditions as input to automatically generate assembly sequences for various assemblies. Once the mating conditions are provided, they are organized in the form of a mating graph. The parts in an assembly are then structured in a hierarchal assembly tree. Then assembly sequence is generated with the aid of interference checking. In this method, the assembly sequence is referred to as a precedence graph.

Figure 35.4 Precedence graph of electric clutch assembly

(2.3) Integration with CAD programs A mechanical assembly is a composition of interconnected parts. Frequently, the parts are being designed using CAD programs therefore the shape of each part and geometric information are already available in computer database. The assembly planning will be more efficient if these CAD databases can be directly integrated with programs that generate assembly models. (2.4) Integration with task and motion planners With the progress of digital electronics, the programmable robots are introduced in manufacturing. These robots can be adapted to execute different operations by changing their internal programs. Task and motion planners that will facilitate robot programming are constantly getting developed. With a view toward future integration,

the output of assembly planners should compatible with what is required by task and motion planners. It is also desirable that assembly planners also take into account the capabilities and limitations of task and motion planners.

(3) Benefits of Computer Aided Assembly Planning

Accelerate new product introductions Shorten time-to-production Optimize production management Decrease operating costs Ensure overall product and process quality Allow engineers, designers and shop floor personnel to collaborate interactively