Multi-Objective Approaches Applied to Manufacturing Processes

Abstract

The determination of optimum parameters of any manufacturing process is usually a difficult work where the following aspects are required: knowledge of manufacturing process, empirical equations to develop realistic constraints, specification of machine tool capabilities, development of effective optimization criteria, and knowledge of mathematical and numerical optimization techniques. In a multi-objective optimization (MOO) problem, the set of non-dominated solutions, which simultaneously belong to the feasible region (i.e., that fulfill all the constraints) is called Pareto optimal and its corresponding target vectors, Pareto front. These solutions are optimal in the wide sense that there is no other solution in the feasible region that improves one optimization target without worsens some other. There are three main criteria for dealing with this situation, a priori, progressive and a posteriori approach. This chapter presents an approach to multi-objective optimization techniques applied to either subtractive or additive manufacturing processes. Finally, the suitability of MOO methods are depicted through a case study related to the selective laser melting process.