The AMRC led an international consortium of businesses and researchers to develop new approaches to assembling large, flexible and difficult-to-handle structures. The results can help the manufacturers of anything from jet engines to washing machines.

The Affix project brought together universities, large companies and SMEs from across Europe. The four-year project was partly funded under the European Commision Sixth Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP6), which aims to strengthen the technological base and promote the international competitiveness of European industry.

Researchers tackled real-world problems encountered by the industrial partners, including Fiat, Electrolux, EADS and Rolls-Royce.

Each of these demonstrator projects demanded a cross-disciplinary approach, involving robotics, mechanical engineering and design, computer modelling and simulation, and sensor technology. Research at the AMRC focused on innovative vision systems which allow robots working on large assemblies to be more adaptive and achieve higher levels of accuracy.

By focusing on real industrial problems, the Affix researchers provided a proof of principle for new manufacturing processes and techniques, which can be adapted and applied in a wide range of industries.

To promote the technologies developed in the Affix project, the AMRC has produced a short video showcasing some of the core projects.

For more information, contact Dr Rosemary Gault.

To find out more about the AMRC's collaborative research, see our European projects page.