![]() “It’s a very welcoming environment and one that supports student initiatives. “The facility helps me to apply my classroom learning in a tangible way,” says Lepple. This is an extracurricular junior project. Using information provided by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory supported by NASA, she leads a large team of students to help develop a small Mars rover model using Learning Factory resources. ![]() ![]() He’s helping her develop and execute an idea proposed at this site. Through Ishwar Singh, adjunct professor in the Faculty of Engineering, she was introduced to the Learning Factory. Vienna Lepple is a second-year undergraduate student in the B.Tech. Items built in the Learning Factory carry a RFID tag, bar or QR code that holds data relevant to their production that can be used later to optimize a manufacturing process by associating the quality control data for the part. “Our students and industry partners will benefit from working together on real-world problems, creating sustainable and readily applicable solutions.”Īn aluminum mini car radiator manufactured by a 3D metal printer sits on a table, the intricacies of which involve making channels inside the radiator that cannot be produced using traditional manufacturing methods. Dan Centea, Associate Director of undergraduate studies for the W Booth School of Engineering Practice and Technology. “The Learning Factory is revolutionizing our education programs and enhances the capabilities and competencies of the graduates to implement newer manufacturing and automation technologies in the industry,” says Dr. Using sensors, a robot can determine when it comes into contact with a person and immediately stops its motion. The Learning Factory includes four collaborative robots that work with people and collaborate with each other and with other manufacturing and automation machines. On the other hand, the use of robotic-based automation is constantly increasing in many industries. Modern manufacturing processes appear in many industries the Learning Factory provides to undergraduate and graduate students and to industry employees the opportunity to learn and apply advanced manufacturing approaches such as additive manufacturing and Industry 4.0. ![]() The Learning Factory, located in the Engineering Technology Building, is set up with manufacturing and post-processing stations designed to provide students with experiential learning activities. There is a dual-arm robot programmed by students to assemble an electronic screwdriver made up of 3D printed parts and electronics control board using machines and equipment located in the same room. “We chose to design a space based on our experience and the new knowledge we want to give to our students.” “Our university has always been a key player in manufacturing research and education in the country,” says Professor Mo Elbestawi, Director of the W Booth School of Engineering Practice and Technology. This facility at McMaster is the only one of its kind at any institution in Canada. The Learning Factory, opened in 2017, is where students learn about a small-scale manufacturing assembly line. McMaster students learn about all these concepts and applications. Industry 4.0 is characterized by autonomous equipment, the internet of things, additive manufacturing and 3D printing, smart sensors, augmented reality, predictive maintenance, mobile applications, location detection and more. In the first year of the Bachelor of Technology program, every student is given the opportunity to get exposed to Industry 4.0 without leaving campus.
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