Evolvable Micro Production Systems: Specific needs and differences to macro

There exist a need for more cost effective and adaptable production solutions for miniaturised products. One promising approach to meet the market demands bases on so called desktop factories. They inherently offer a sustainable and energy efficient solution for the assembly of meso- and micro-sized parts. The realisation of adaptable automation solutions based on desktop factories under the paradigm of Evolvable Production Systems leads to the question of downscaling the implementation following the EPS guidelines. This paper describes some of the requirements and boundary conditions which occur in that process. The obligation to have an in-depth knowledge and understanding of all aspects along the production process is shown.