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Tolerance allocation, Optimization techniques, Alternative process selection, Lagrange’s multiplier method, Bottom curve follower approach

Components cannot be manufactured according to the required nominal dimensions due to inherent variations in workmanship, materials and machine tools. Tolerance specification of part dimensions affects the performance, quality and cost of a product. The proper distribution of tolerance, known as tolerance allocation, reduces the manufacturing cost of a product. Thus, researchers in this field are keenly interested in tolerance allocation. The choice of alternative processes for tolerance allocation also plays a vital role in reducing manufacturing costs. Near-optimal allocated tolerances are obtained using non-traditional optimization techniques, in which solutions are randomly achieved. However, there is the possibility that a better allocation process will not be discovered because the randomness of the results of successive runs will not yield consistent results. In this work, an attempt has been made to solve the above problem using the Lagrange multiplier (LM) method for complex assembly and the bottom curve follower approach. The methodology has been demonstrated on a wheel mounting assembly. Compared to Singh’s method [14], a 1.95% savings in manufacturing cost was achieved after implementing the proposed method. Keywords: Tolerance allocation, optimization techniques, alternative process selection, Lagrange’s multiplier method, bottom curve follower approach.