Shape Automation
Shaping new possibilities of laser processing
Published online: 06.11.2024
Shape Automation
Shaping new possibilities of laser processing
Published online: 06.11.2024
By Trine Reinholt Andersen, AAU Technology Transfer Office
The plate manufacturing industry faces several significant challenges when it comes to sustainable and efficient manufacturing. Achieving high precision and consistency in cutting, bending, and forming sheet metal is crucial but challenging, especially with varying material properties and thicknesses.
Furthermore, having a flexible manufacturing process enabling customization, prototyping and production of small quantities to meet customer requirements is a difficult task in the industry, as it often requires several machines, customized tools, and expensive manual labor.
Finally, quality control combined with production efficiency, while minimizing waste, are nearly impossible factors to balance all at once. Ensuring every plate of sheet metal meets the stringent quality standards of the industry involves rigorous inspection processes, which can be both time-consuming and prone to human error and, thus, trip up the production efficiency.
Thus, solving these challenges is essential for manufacturers to maintain competitiveness, ensure product quality, and optimize production costs. Shape Automation is on a mission to address these exact, widespread challenges.
REVOLUTIONIZING TRADITIONAL PRODUCTION
Shape Automation’s fast, flexible, and automated technology offers integrated laser solutions, unlocking the benefits of immaculate cuts, intricate shapes, and seamless welding, all while decreasing production time and with a focus on sustainability when reducing material waste.
The innovative technology enables the use of traditional laser production technologies in a revolutionary new way via tailor-made laser beam patterns and laser bending. Besides fully automated manufacturing, the solution also enables data collection and documentation during the manufacturing of each component functioning as an additional quality control of sheet metal blanks to achieve a more accurate and cost-effective production.
Furthermore, what is especially unique about the solution is the ability to continuously monitor the bending process. When metal is bent and shaped via laser, there is no physical contact nor pressure. The material is solely bent by the thermal stress induced by the laser. With Shape Automation’s unique laser technology, the local differences in the material properties are analyzed and managed automatically. Therefore, there is no requirement of knowing the properties of the material prior to the process, enabling a more efficient production.
FROM PHD PROJECT TO GRAND SOLUTION TO IMPACT
Shape Automation is a spin-out based on 10 years of research at Aalborg University where the technology has been developed through several research projects and supported by private funding. The PhD project LaserForm, supported by MADE, formed the basis of developing the laser forming software, enabling first results. These results later led to the first Grand Solution project INTERLASE, as well as further developments through a Poul Due Jensen Fund project, and lastly a second Grand Solution project called FLIP.
Running from November 2017 to April 2021 and supported with a total DKK 9,4 mio, the project INTERLASE (Integrated laser processes for cost effective prototyping and one-of-a-kind production) laid the foundation for the groundbreaking laser technology and the establishment of Shape Automation as a spin-out in 2021.
The founding team includes Associate Professor Morten Kristiansen, former Associate Professor Ewa Kristiansen, and former Postdoc Anders Noel Thomsen from AAU Materials and Production.
In July 2023, Shape Automation entered as partner in the Grand Solution project FLIP (Flexible Laser Integrated Production) with the goal of further maturing the technology and developing an end-product aimed at the sheet metal industry. The project runs from July 2023 to June 2026, involves a wide consortium consisting of end users and technology developers and is supported with a total DKK 13,5 mio.
THE COMMERCIALIZATION PROCESS
The AAU Technology Transfer Office and AAU Grants & Contracts have supported the entire process since the beginning of the INTERLASE project and onwards to the FLIP project including the steps towards market, and not least a license agreement with Shape Automation.
The team have furthermore been supported in the application process for the projects LaserForm, INTERLASE, FLIP and the Poul Due Jensen’s Fund project including applying for the Odense Robotics StartUp Fund which Shape Automation was accepted as the first company for incubation in September 2023.