Automation of a Hybrid Manufacturing System Through Tight Integration of Software and Sensor Feedback

This paper presents a framework for the automation of the Laser Aided Manufacturing Process (LAMP) lab at the University of Missouri-Rolla. The groundwork for the proposed system involves the integration of the LabVIEW software package and a PXI-8195 real time controller with several sensors and actuators. The incorporation of all key control parameters into one virtual instrument will help achieve the goal of an automated hybrid system. To achieve this goal, a five-phase plan, which will be further discussed in the paper, has been developed. The first phase of this plan, which includes the deposition of a thin walled structure without DNC communication between LabVIEW and the CNC has been achieved, and will be the focus of this paper