Major Components
Machining/Assembly
History (Machining and assembly equipment/facilities)
Year
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Production method
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Machining and assembly equipment/facilities
|
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---|---|---|---|---|
Equipment/facilities
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In-house machine-making
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Controls
|
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1937
|
|
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Dependent on skill until 1954
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1937
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Start in-house making
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1947
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2-machine responsibility
|
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1950
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Andon use commenced
|
|
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1953
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Kanban use commenced
|
Japan-made special-purpose machines introduced
|
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1955
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|
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Control by electric and hydraulic/pneumatic equipment until 1964
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1956
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First Japan-made transfer machine introduced
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1960
|
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First in-house transfer machine made
|
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1962
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Automatic inspection process
|
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1963
|
Multi-process responsibility
|
|
Building-block method
|
|
1964
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In-house honing machines
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1965
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Inter-process automatic transport
|
1965-1970 Japan-made special-purpose machines introduced
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Large-volume introduction of transfer machines
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||||
1970
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Assembly transfer machines
|
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1973
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Machining line for multi-parts variety
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Engine auto assembly line
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1975
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|
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Control by electronics and servo technology until 1984
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1978
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High-accuracy nut runner
|
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Equipment size reduction
|
||||
NC machine for mass production
|
||||
1979
|
|
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Function tester
|
|
1980
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Valve clearance automatic adjustment equipment (earns JSPE Memorial Award)
|
|
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1982
|
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Palletizing robot
|
|
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1983
|
|
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NC machine for mass production
|
Personal computer system and CAD/CAM system developed
|
1984
|
FMS line for mass-produced engines
|
AGV
|
Electronic equipment for machine making
|
|
Andon multiplex transmission
|
||||
Production instruction system
|
||||
1985
|
A/T assembly room
|
High-precision gear shaper
|
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1986
|
CAD/CAM introduced
|
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Assembly robot
|
|
1987
|
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Fillet grooving miller for crankshaft pin
|
Mechanical reciprocating-type bore honing
|
|
Changeable gang head
|
In-house high-performance motor and controller for equipment
|
|||
NC hobbing machine
|
||||
1988
|
Operation drawing by CAD
|
Cubic boron nitride (CBN) cam grinder
|
Full-scale support to overseas projects
|
Gleason: Machining support system
|
Ball groove creep-feed grinding
|
||||
Friction pressure welding (for CVJs)
|
||||
1989
|
Flexible production line with medium variety and medium volume capability
|
Skiving introduced for crankshaft journal turning
|
|
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Single-rank bore machining
|
||||
1990
|
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Electrostatic resin coating on piston skirt
|
|
|
Vibro-broach (broaching of hardened spline with additional vibration)
|
||||
1991
|
|
Contouring machining
|
|
|
Piston profile NC lathe
|
||||
Turn-broach machining of crankshaft journal
|
||||
NC hypoid gear shaper
|
||||
High-speeded Gleason
|
||||
6-spindle cage window grinder
|
||||
1992
|
|
|
Immediate startup due to all people involved working together at the spot (TMUK Engine plant)
|
|
1993
|
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Deck face grinding of aluminum die cast block
|
Multi-arm robot for assembly operations (earns JSPMI Prize)
|
|
Internal cam miller (for camshaft)
|
||||
Full automated engine assembly
|
||||
1994
|
Prototype model by rapid prototyping
|
Gear face honing machine
|
|
|
Energy-saving and environment-improving activities
|
||||
1995
|
Line with flexibility
|
Turret shaving machine
|
Hansin Great earthquake disaster restoration support
|
Distributed control system (transfer machine)
|
CART (motor sports) parts production
|
Major component CASE activities
|
|||
1996
|
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Lead-time-reduction activities
|
|
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Low-cost helical broach
|
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1997
|
Multi-row line by single-axis NC machine
|
Line simulation (Virtual pre-evaluation of production capacity)
|
Emergency support to Aisin disaster
|
Large built-in motor
|
Engine parts variety-reduction activities
|
Skillet conveyor for engine assembly line
|
|||
Engine motoring system
|
Hypoid gear grinder
|
|||
1998
|
Actual application of line simulation
|
Globally standardized production preparation tasks
|
|
|
Proto-production line for precision small parts (for D4 pump and common rail parts)
|
CVT complex grinder
|
|||
Automatic assembly of differential case interior
|
||||
1999
|
Standardized axle machining line (first step)
|
3D process design support system
|
Separation of jigs and tooling
|
|
Low-thrust transport monorail between machines
|
||||
2000
|
First phase of general-purpose line construction (for MZ)
|
Production preparation lead time 3M activities
|
|
|
F1 (Motor sports) parts production commenced
|
||||
2001
|
Automatic calculation of ergonomics (workload) evaluation point
|
Production preparation support system
|
|
|
Digital SE group (for digitalization promotion)
|
Engine standard line
|
|||
NVOP established
|
Global production preparation process reform (systemized job-sharing by equipment segmentation)
|
|||
|
NC friction pressure welding (for CVJs)
|
|||
2002
|
Reform addressing all casting and machining processes
|
Low-thrust transfer equipment
|
|
|
Standard axle shaft-parts machining line
|
GEL assembly line
|
|||
GTL assembly line
|
||||
2003
|
Virtual confirmation of NC program
|
Production start of concave cam grinding
|
Changeable jig and multi-face machining jig (i.e., production application of all-direction machining jig)
|
|
BT2 in-house activity to improve cost competitiveness
|
||||
Sub-assembly expansion at assembly line
|
||||
Separation of specialized and general-purpose equipment
|
||||
2004
|
Production Engineering study on CPUs (digital engineering)
|
Machining GEL line
|
|
Andon monitor introduced
|
Assembly GTL line (Assembly room clean technology)
|
In-house programming of NC machining
|
|||
2005
|
Fully automatic axle assembly line
|
Automation by robots
|
OJT training of TMMP maintenance members
|
|
Automation of A/T sub-assembly
|
Equipment set-up building method
|
|||
Equipment lock-out system
|
Assembly GCL line
|
|||
Traceability system
|
Face-hobbed hypoid gear- cutter based on in-house technology
|
|||
Assembly GDL line
|
||||
2006
|
3D digitalization promotion for drive-trains
|
CX pin grinding machine introduced for crankshaft (ZR)
|
|
Simulation technology for hobbing and lapping processes
|
Robot-washing machine
|
||||
2007
|
Second phase of general-purpose line construction (at Shimoyama Plant)
|
Single-axis general-purpose NC machine applied to specialized finishing process
|
|
|
2008
|
Skill-Up Center established (for conveying skill)
|
Full automation of engine block sub-line (for AR engine)
|
|
|
2009
|
Activities to improve drawing completeness
|
Full automation of piston sub-assembly (at Shimoyama Plant)
|
|
|
Low-thrust and simple material handling
|
||||
2010
|
|
Reciprocating-type SS assembly conveyor
|
|
|
2011
|
|
Blade assembly machine for face-hobbed hypoid gear- cutter
|
Support for East-Japan great earthquake disaster
|
Low-cost universal NC equipment
|
Aggregated assembly process
|
Emergency support for Thailand flood
|
Safety circuit control switched to software
|
||
Simple and Slim jig and tools
|
Expansion of universal control devices
|