Die Casting Process And Die Design Virtual Simulation Experiment And Digital Twin Platform Construction

With the rapid development of the aluminum alloy die-casting industry,issues such as a shortage of die-casting talent,low levels of information and intelligence in diecasting industries have become more prominent.To adapt to the needs of talent training and industrial upgrading,this study takes the die-casting process of a typical ring-shaped die-cast part,the crankshaft rear cover,as a case study for developing a virtual simulation experiment platform that combines die-casting with real-time communication management using Unity3 D software.The specific research content is as follows:Firstly,to make the die-casting virtual simulation platform instructional and effective,two typical die-casting parts,the crankshaft end cover,and camshaft cover,which are widely used and extremely important in automobiles,were selected to establish a process case library.The die-casting mold and process development of the camshaft cover have been completed as preliminary work.This thesis focuses on the urgently needed crankshaft rear cover for mold design and process development.The theoretical design was based on the analysis of the casting features,and two sets of pouring and overflow systems,as well as die-casting machine models,were determined.Then,the models of the two schemes were imported into Pro CAST for numerical simulation.Based on the simulation analysis results of filling and solidification,a tapered gate and eight overflow slots were determined as the best solution,which could avoid turbulence during filling and better compensate for the isolated liquid phase during solidification.Subsequently,the best die-casting scheme was used to open the mold and conduct trial production.Experimental analysis of the die-cast parts revealed that the appearance quality was excellent,no casting cracks were detected by X-ray inspection,and the positions of the thick shrinkage cavities matched the predicted defects.Observations of the microstructures by optical and electronic microscopy indicated that the grain size was fine,the organization was dense,the grain orientation difference was small,which was consistent with the simulated results of the structure.Analysis of the energy spectrum and X-ray diffraction showed that the composition of the castings was uniform,and there were no impurities in the internal structure.Results of tensile and microhardness experiments showed that the mechanical properties of the castings met the requirements for use.This study can provide a reference for the mold and process development of aluminum alloy die-casting parts such as end covers.Finally,the three-dimensional models of the mold,die-casting machine,and other mechanical parts were imported into 3D Max for model rendering.After rendering,the models were imported into Unity3 D,and scenes and user interface(UI)were created.Using VS2019,C# programs were written to implement the functions of each module of the platform.The industrial Internet of Things was used as the information transmission platform to establish real-time communication between the die-casting production control PLC(S7-1200)signals on the production site and the Unity3 D virtual simulation platform through the OPC communication protocol,achieving the mapping from the physical space to the twin space.Production data was uploaded to the Alibaba Cloud database and displayed in real-time on the production site monitor,making it easy for on-site technical personnel to understand the production process and arrange production capacity reasonably.This study integrates the development of die-casting technology and mold development,factory scenes and worker operations,assembly of molds,and simulation of die-casting machine movements to develop a virtual simulation experimental module.Based on existing die-casting equipment control systems and virtual simulation experimental modules,the concept of digital twinning technology is introduced to develop a die-casting production management system.Finally,the system is managed using Alibaba Cloud servers.Through virtual simulation experiments and the die-casting production management system,not only is it convenient to carry out courses that have high risk,high cost,and are difficult to meet experimental requirements,but it also optimizes die-casting production pace and improves production efficiency.This study developed a virtual simulation experiment module integrating die casting process and mold development,factory scenarios and worker operations,assembly of molds and simulation of die casting machine movements.Based on the existing die casting equipment control system and virtual simulation experiment module,the concept of digital twin technology was introduced to develop a die casting production management system.Finally,the system was managed through Alibaba Cloud servers.The die casting process and die development have realized the high efficiency and high quality production of the crankshaft end cover.The virtual simulation experiment makes it convenient to carry out the course experiment with high risk,high cost and difficult to meet the experimental requirements.The die casting digital twin system optimizes the die casting production rhythm and improves the production efficiency.