Industrial

From prototyping and design to workforce training and sustainable production, augmented reality is making an impact on the way vehicles are developed and brought to market.

The electric vehicle (EV) market is booming, driven by demand for sustainable transport options and exciting innovations from both established automakers and agile startups. Amidst this rapid growth, manufacturers are increasingly adopting augmented reality (AR) to meet the challenges of shorter development cycles, consumer-driven designs, and sustainable production. Here’s how AR is helping EV manufacturers stay ahead of the curve.

1. Accelerating the Prototyping Process with Augmented Reality

Traditionally, prototyping has been a costly and time-consuming stage in vehicle development, often requiring multiple physical models and extensive trial and error. AR is disrupting this process by enabling engineers to create and test virtual prototypes before building physical ones. Through immersive visualizations, teams can virtually assess design aspects like fit, function, and aesthetics, streamlining modifications and significantly shortening development cycles.

This reduction in prototyping time is a game-changer for EV manufacturers, where innovation is critical and timelines are tight. With AR, teams can quickly test battery placement, optimize aerodynamics, or validate weight distribution in ways that were once resource-intensive. This capability speeds up time-to-market while ensuring high standards for performance and safety are met early in the design phase.

Back in 2020, BMW began using AR for this purpose at a Munich pilot plant. They needed fewer test setups and could verify earlier than before. All told, AR saved them up to a year of time on vehicle validation. As EVs continue to manage regulations, fluctuating demand, and evolving tech, that kind of time could prove crucial.

2. Bringing the Consumer into the Design Process

One of the key shifts in EV manufacturing is the emphasis on consumer-centric design. EV buyers today expect not just efficiency but also vehicles that reflect their lifestyle choices, from customizable interiors to cutting-edge tech features. AR offers manufacturers a way to directly engage consumers in the design process, offering a virtual showroom experience that enhances the customization journey.

For example, consumers can interact with 3D models of their chosen vehicle, experimenting with different features and configurations in real time. They can visualize color schemes and interior layouts or even test virtual drive experiences, allowing them to provide instant feedback. This interactive approach is invaluable for manufacturers, as it enables them to gather real-time data on consumer preferences, enhancing the ability to create vehicles that maximize driving pleasure, safety, and personalization.

3. Streamlining Workforce Training and Maintenance

AR-assisted training is one frontier seeing a lot of adoption. By removing humans from dangerous scenarios while still allowing them to interact with those same scenarios, companies can increase safety while still offering practical training. In one example from Volvo, augmented reality is allowing first responders to assess damage on EV vehicles and proceed with caution.

As EV manufacturing incorporates more advanced machinery, the demand for well-trained operators and technicians has increased. Augmented reality is proving to be a powerful training tool, allowing less experienced employees to adapt to complex tasks quickly. With AR headsets or mobile devices, employees can access step-by-step guides or live assistance while they work, making training more engaging and practical.

This AR-enabled training and maintenance support translates to fewer errors on the production line and contributes to higher accuracy and quality assurance. For manufacturers, this streamlined workforce training ensures smoother operations, quicker onboarding of new staff, and reduced downtime, all of which are crucial for staying competitive in the fast-evolving EV landscape.

4. Supporting Sustainability Goals Through Precision

Sustainability is a core focus for most EV manufacturers, as they seek to minimize waste, optimize energy usage, and responsibly source materials. AR contributes to these efforts by helping manufacturers visualize materials and production requirements before any physical resources are used. Engineers can see a digital overlay of material quantities needed, allowing for adjustments that minimize excess or wastage.

This precision helps cut down on production line waste, as unnecessary resources are identified and removed from the equation early on. For example, augmented reality can highlight where material redundancies occur or offer alternatives that reduce energy-intensive processes. In this way, AR isn’t just a design tool but also a critical component in sustainable manufacturing practices, supporting manufacturers’ goals for an end-to-end green production process.

The Future of Augmented Reality in EV Manufacturing

As AR technology continues to evolve, its role in EV manufacturing is set to expand. From prototyping and design to workforce training and sustainable production, AR is making a tangible impact on the way vehicles are developed and brought to market. Both traditional automakers and EV-focused startups stand to gain, leveraging AR to streamline their operations and meet the demands of a rapidly changing automotive landscape.

With AR, EV manufacturers are not only keeping pace with the market but are also setting new standards in how vehicles are envisioned, created, and delivered to consumers. As the industry continues to grow, AR will likely remain a cornerstone of innovation, helping manufacturers design the next generation of electric vehicles that are both cutting-edge and aligned with consumer values

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How Augmented Reality is Shaping EV Development and Design

Augmented reality (AR) technology is a key ingredient of Industry 4.0 and digital manufacturing initiatives. It brings components of the digital world into a person’s perception of reality. AR layers computer-generated imagery onto a user’s view of the real world, providing a composite view.

Northrop Grumman Corp. is one of a handful of leading manufacturers that are using wearable devices to empower assemblers. The company recently invested in AR technology to streamline operations at its historic Space Park facility in Redondo Beach, CA.

The James Webb Space Telescope was assembled at Space Park. Photo courtesy Northrop Grumman

The 63-year-old campus covers approximately 5-million square feet spread out over more than 45 buildings, including more than 100,000 square feet of Class 10 clean room facilities. Inside, engineers design, test and build complex electronics, payloads and advanced systems for a variety of out-of-this-world applications.

Products assembled at the facility over the years have included everything from top-secret military satellites to the James Webb Space Telescope. Current projects include the Tranche 1 Transport Layer mesh satellite constellation and the Next-Generation Polar Infrared Missile Tracking Satellite.

“Augmented reality is a technology that takes our view of the real world and overlays useful and relevant digital data on top of that view,” says Oscar Castillo, a mechanical engineer who serves as factory modernization and digital transformation project manager at Space Park. “This is usually achieved through a smartphone, or in recent years through an AR headset such as Microsoft’s HoloLens.

“As an example, imagine you’re an online consumer shopping for a new couch,” explains Castillo. “You come across an app that allows you to see that couch in your home. Through your phone’s screen you can move and rotate the couch. All these things increase engagement and help you make your purchase decision.

Northrop Grumman assemblers build a variety of complex satellites. Photo courtesy Northrop Grumman

“In contrast, virtual reality replaces your view completely with digital data,” notes Castillo. „So, you could look at that same couch, but instead of it being in your home perhaps it’s in a showroom or in the factory where it was built.

“Both technologies are powerfully effective at communicating complex information, because our minds want to believe what we are seeing,” says Castillo. “We are drawn in, or to use an industry term, immersed.”

As part of its digital transformation initiative, Space Park uses both technologies, but in different ways.

“We have found that virtual reality can help our design teams assess a product’s producibility from a human factors or ergonomics perspective,” says Castillo. “Using engineering CAD models, we can spot challenges early enough in the design cycle so that changes can be made without great cost or schedule impact.

The Tranche 1 Transport Layer mesh satellite constellation will support U.S. military missions around the world. Illustration courtesy Northrop Grumman

“Augmented reality helps our production teams communicate complex work instructions clearly and intuitively,” adds Castillo. “This translates into shorter manufacturing time spans, reduced defects and reduced learning curves for our new employees.”

Better Work Instructions

According to Castillo, AR technology is ideal for a variety of manufacturing applications. Most of the products built at Space Park have a 3D CAD model associated with them. Northrop Grumman engineers are leveraging those models to create augmented reality work instructions (ARWI).

When operators put on an AR headset, they look at a partially assembled spacecraft. For instance, they see how a complex wiring harness should be installed and routed.

“[They] see where the support mounts for that harness need to be bonded,” explains Castillo. “You even see where other components will be installed in the future. These are your routing ‘keep out’ zones that you need to avoid.

“Everything is a 1-to-1 scale,” says Castillo. “As you move around, the models and annotations remain anchored to the spacecraft. We can even show our technicians photos, videos and process specs that they can reference to better understand the work in front of them.”

In the past, assemblers relied primarily on text-based work instructions and complex engineering schematics. They spent valuable time interpreting and making sense of them. Sometimes, that took minutes; other times, it could take hours. While interpreting those build instructions, mistakes sometimes would happen.

In addition to augmented reality technology, assemblers at Space Park use virtual reality tools. Photo courtesy Northrop Grumman

“The ARWI project is aimed at delivering clear and intuitive work instructions that will result in reduced time spans, reduced defect rates and reduced learning curves for our newer employees,” says Castillo.

Augmented reality is a key component of Northrop Grumman’s digital transformation strategy. The goals of the initiative are to enhance the employee experience, deliver quality products faster to customers and position the company for the future. AR technology checks all those boxes.

“We have a team that has been working to make this technology accessible across the enterprise,” explains Castillo. “They have evaluated hardware and software, gathered and disseminated resources, and worked with our cybersecurity and IT teams. This year, they are partnering with a few of our sister sites around the country to help them with AR projects.”

Although Space Park has been using AR in production for only about one year, Castillo and his colleagues have been pursuing the technology since 2018.

“Back then, we saw the writing on the wall,” says Castillo. “We saw the big tech companies investing heavily into the technology, and we also saw other organizations in our industry celebrating their success using AR for manufacturing.

“It has been a long road for us, but we are happy to finally share this capability across our campus and realize the benefits in efficiency, quality and employee experience,” notes Castillo.

Space Park uses off-the-shelf hardware and software, such as Microsoft’s HoloLens2 and Scope AR’s on-premise WorkLink.

“Much of our work happens in restricted areas,” says Castillo. “Up until now, AR has been used in our open manufacturing areas. However, we are making good progress with our cybersecurity teams to approve the use of AWRI in all our production areas at Space Park.”

Numerous AR Applications

Castillo and his colleagues are deploying AR technology on the plant floor to build better products and improve productivity. Applications include ergonomics, error proofing, quality control and knowledge transfer.

“We use AR to overlay engineering CAD models on top of the actual spacecraft, sequentially revealing the parts of the model that are most relevant to that task,” explains Castillo. “Picture Lego instructions, but in 3D and projected onto the bricks. We can also add annotations or animation, and we can bring in other models, such as tools or fixtures.

“What I especially appreciate about the technology is how manufacturing now has the capability to communicate in 3D,” says Castillo. “Let’s say there is some domain knowledge that a production team has built over the years. In the past, we would do our best to capture that knowledge using words in our build instructions.

“But now, we have so many more tools at our disposal,” Castillo points out. “That knowledge can be captured and projected back onto the work product, ensuring clear communication of design intent to all parties.”

According to Castillo, AR is a great tool for error proofing. It can reduce errors when positioning or orientating components or tooling, or when it’s important to distinguish between similar but different design features.

“In these cases, AR can improve quality and reduce defects,” says Castillo. “In fact, we had an incident on one of the first ARWI enhanced assemblies. A technician was preparing to bond a component to the spacecraft, but relied on traditional work instructions and drawing views.

The Next-Generation Polar Infrared Missile Tracking Satellite will detect ballistic missile launches. Illustration courtesy Northrop Grumman

“A second technician, who happened to be less experienced, picked up the AR headset, fired up the ARWI, and immediately saw that the location that was being prepped for bonding was the wrong location,” explains Castillo. “Thankfully, they caught the error before it was considered a defect. This saved us up to three days of schedule time.”

AR technology can also help address issues and challenges related to knowledge transfer. First, there is the communication of design intent to the shop floor, and then there is the communication from production team to production team.

“Because Space Park has a high mix of products that we create at low volume, a technician’s job is almost always a little different,” Castillo points out. “We are in a perpetual state of generating and interpreting new build instructions that aim to capture the design intent. By leveraging the design models, we can make sure that this design intent is preserved and literally projected right onto the work, cutting through many layers of manual knowledge transfer processes.

“In addition, because of that high mix of products and tight schedules, our production teams are not always 100 percent sure of how they are going to assemble a product,” says Castillo. “Some of our planning must be left flexible, allowing production teams to iterate and adjust their plans.

“AR can be used to capture that flow,” adds Castillo. “This can be very helpful to communicate to downstream teams that will continue the manufacturing of this product or future teams that are looking for ‘lessons learned’ when building similar products.

“Currently, we aren’t using AR for employee training, but it is on our roadmap,” says Castillo. “There are specific integration and test skills that are fairly universal across the various satellite products we deliver. We believe there is a great opportunity to create AR to support that kind of training.”

How to Deploy Augmented Reality in a Factory Setting

Implementing augmented reality technology in a factory can be challenging. For instance, veteran employees may resist using wearable devices that some people associate with gamers.

Oscar Castillo, a mechanical engineer who serves as factory modernization and digital transformation project manager at Northrop Grumman’s Space Park, has several tips for other engineers.

“I’ve been leading digital transformation projects at Space Park for about five years and one of my common sayings is that the technology is the easiest part of the job,” says Castillo. “Implementing large change within an organization is where most of your time will be spent.”

AR technology is ideal for a variety of satellite manufacturing applications. Photo courtesy Northrop Grumman

According to Castillo, four things can ensure a smooth transition:

• Start small and highlight your wins, gaining momentum and trust along the way all while delivering incremental value.
• “When you face resistance, doggedly work to uncover the specific issues, uncertainties or fears your stakeholder is having and address them head on,” says Castillo. “Win them over and they’ll be your biggest fans.”
• Take a top-down and bottom-up approach. “You must frame your proposals in a language that speaks to your [organization’s] needs, but also build AR experiences that address specific technician pain points,” suggests Castillo. “Balancing those two in one solution is challenging, but necessary for success.”
• Choose the right use case. “Start with the well-known use cases, such as installation of complex cable and wire harness components; orientation and placement of components or tooling; and distinguishing between similar components, such as fasteners, that have different requirements,” concludes Castillo. “You’ll have a better shot of building a strong business case around these high-value use cases.”

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Foto: Northrop Grumman is using augmented reality technology to communicate complex work instructions clearly and intuitively. Photo courtesy Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems

https://www.assemblymag.com/articles/98727-northrop-grumman-uses-augmented-reality-to-assemble-satellites