Multibody Dynamic System for Servo Press Condition Monitoring

Servo presses spend most of their lifecycle performing cutting and stamping operations, which gradually lead to mechanical deterioration. On top of that, misuse and fatigue can introduce issues which, if left unattended, will cause major equipment failure. The detection of anomalous situations before damage propagation throughout several components, as well as the understanding of their health condition, is crucial for failure prediction. To support this, digital twins can be integrated into maintenance programs to enable real-time monitoring, simulation, diagnosis and prognostics. Digital twin simulations make it possible to visualise the impact of changes in operational or structural parameters. Therefore, this work focuses on the simulation of a real 4000 kN servo press for blanking processes, manufactured by Mecânica Exacta. A multibody system (MBS) of the 4000 kN servo press was developed in SimulationX ® software to study its dynamic behaviour. Components were modelled as rigid bodies connected through linear and revolution joints. The dynamic behaviour of the servo press was assessed under different loading conditions, including without loading, under balanced and unbalanced loading. This allowed the identification of critical regions, regarding vibration, mechanical loading and power losses due to contact between the slide and frame. Additional features, such as pneumatic counterbalancing cylinders and plain journal bearings, were also included in the model. The integration of these simulations with real-time monitoring of the servo press, using several sensors, allows for a more reliable and efficient condition monitoring. By providing a virtual counterpart, the digital twin becomes a valuable tool for understanding the system’s behaviour beyond what can be inferred from sensor measurements alone.