Those who work with tube bending machines today increasingly face a real problem: high operator turnover and growing difficulty in finding specialized personnel.
In this scenario, artificial intelligence can provide valuable support because it reduces dependence on individual experience and makes the process more repeatable and controllable.
But how does all this become possible?
Artificial intelligence is now an integral part of our daily lives. We rely on it for a wide range of activities and turn to its support when we need advice, information, help editing a photo or to solve a problem.
While its presence is well established in everyday life, in the industrial context the adoption of AI still represents an open challenge, continuously evolving and full of opportunities. Its integration can in fact translate into a significant competitive advantage, helping companies successfully face future challenges.
In the business environment, artificial intelligence must operate on very specific processes and operations, provide reliable and accurate responses, be easy to use and represent concrete support for everyone involved. Only by meeting these requirements is it possible to effectively integrate this technology into the production process.
The VGP_AI service, developed by BLM GROUP for tube bending, was created precisely on these principles and represents a practical application of them.
Together with several other hardware tools, software and services, VGP_AI is an integral part of a complete ecosystem for tube bending that supports the operator at every stage of the work.
Discover the BLM GROUP tube bending ecosystem >
Let’s proceed step by step.
The introduction of VGP_AI represents only the latest step in the innovation journey of BLM GROUP solutions for tube bending.
VGPNext, the BLM GROUP tube bending programming software, already integrates advanced algorithms capable of estimating phenomena such as material elongation and springback, in order to achieve the first part right at every production changeover, reducing time and scrap.
However, the quality of a bend is not limited to geometric accuracy alone. The correct setting of technological parameters is essential to control material deformation and prevent defects such as wrinkles, scratches, ovalization and thinning on the outer radius.
In the image below, for example, it is possible to observe the same part program executed with different technological parameters.
These aspects take on different levels of importance depending on the industrial sector.
In aerospace, for example, there are particularly strict tolerances on surface quality of the bend and on thinning of the outer radius. In furniture and design, wrinkles and ovalization are absolutely unacceptable as they negatively affect the aesthetic quality of the product. In sectors such as pharmaceutical, data center air conditioning and clean rooms, the internal roughness of the bend must be extremely low to prevent oxidation and the accumulation of impurities, avoiding any type of contamination.
Tube bending technological parameters are saved together with the part program and depend on the type of tube and tooling. This means that, at every new production (new tube type or tooling), the operator must again identify the optimal configuration.
Generally, the selection of parameters is based on operator experience and is often the result of multiple trials before achieving the desired outcome. Today, however, artificial intelligence for tube bending completely changes the rules of the game.
Trained on thousands of experimental tests accumulated over time, VGP_AI automatically determines, with a single click, the most suitable technological parameters based on the geometry of the part and the material characteristics.
Today, high operator turnover makes it increasingly difficult to find specialized personnel. In this scenario VGP_AI represents concrete support by reducing dependence on individual experience and making the process more repeatable and controllable.
At the same time, it proves to be a valuable tool also for more experienced operators, especially when facing new processes or materials never used before. For subcontractors, who work on constantly changing orders, this translates into greater adaptability to expand their offering into new sectors. With VGP_AI it is like having an expert operator always at your side.