Smart factories are fuelling the renewed interest in the manufacturing industry in Western Europe. A multitude of sensors continuously monitors the production process in these factories, but it’s not the raw data that makes them smart. In his recent inaugural lecture, Professor Ton van den Boogaard said that a truly smart factory can only really get off the ground once experts have analysed and evaluated the data. He holds the chair in Nonlinear Solid Mechanics. This group has developed models for the mechanical behaviour of materials. In his lecture, Prof. Van den Boogaard explained the unique combination of expertise at the University of Twente, and how it is helping to drive the smart factory concept.
“All that factory-generated data is meaningless if you don’t know how to use it effectively,” states Van den Boogaard. “Our simulation models play a crucial role in processing all that data, and the unique combinations of academic disciplines in Twente really help to galvanize their success.”
One of a kind in the Netherlands
Van den Boogaard’s interests go far beyond his own field of mechanics. “Control engineers and model makers have to work closely together on model-based control systems in smart factories. So I maintain solid links with the other chairs in Twente such as Mechanical Automation, Production Engineering and Tribology. Our joint motto is ‘Manufacturing the Future’. This focus on the manufacturing industry makes us unique in the Netherlands. We have lots of other key ingredients for the smart factory concept right here in Twente, too. The department of Design Engineering focuses on the relationship between design and manufacturing. Research groups in other faculties are studying and developing sensors, data processing technology and embedded systems. And finally, this university of technology also has a Faculty of Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences, whose researchers are studying the socio-technical aspects of smart factories, which involves embedding new technologies in society and their social acceptance. These activities, together with our new Science Based Engineering programme, make UT ideally equipped to play a major role in the development of smart factories, in keeping with our High-Tech, Human Touch theme.
Recognition by Fraunhofer
According to Van den Boogaard, the recent launch on the UT campus of the Fraunhofer Project Centre for Engineering Design and Production of Complex High-Tech Systems is reaffirmation of Twente’s position as a force to be reckoned with in the manufacturing sector. “The establishment of the Project Centre enables us as a university to respond far more flexibly to the needs of industry than would otherwise be the case.”
Increase in required accuracy
Alongside cooperation with other academic disciplines, the modelling of mechanical behaviour of materials remains one of the key focus areas of Van den Boogaard’s chair in Nonlinear Solid Mechanics. Good modelling makes it possible to get the most out of materials and processes, and the professor’s research is constantly subject to new accuracy requirements.
Biomedical engineering
Van den Boogaard is proud of other successful UT spin-offs: “Expertise from my particular field is being applied in the area of biomedical engineering, and things are really taking off. The researchers in the biomedical engineering department know all about the mechanical behaviour of bone, cartilage, ligaments, tendons and muscles. They are developing all kinds of devices to help people whose musculoskeletal system has been compromised. The researchers in my department are experts in non-linear models and in devising solutions to the non-linear equations involved in such models. Expertise derived from application and expertise derived from models produce fantastic combinations for further study.
Prof. Ton van den Boogaard’s chair is part of the Faculty of Engineering Technology (CTW) at the University of Twente. He and his colleagues from the UT Department of Applied Mechanics are responsible for the university’s teaching and research endeavours in the field of mechanics. The full text of his inaugural lecture will be provided upon request.
