Pulse of Production is a transfer team affiliated with RWTH Aachen University that is developing the “Pulse Watcher,” a solution for more efficient maintenance of tools in sheet metal forming processes such as punching and fine blanking. The technology combines structure-borne sound measurements with artificial intelligence to monitor tool wear and process stability in real time and determine the optimal maintenance time—where traditional approaches often detect changes too late. Precise signal preprocessing extracts relevant process signatures from the measurement data, making even early changes in condition visible. This reduces unplanned downtime and scrap – a key lever for stable, cost-efficient series production. Pulse of Production thus offers a solution for predictive maintenance in forming technology – a key to more resilient, efficient production.
