3D printing is a digital manufacturing technology, meaning that a large part of the production process is managed online. However, finishing the printed components still has some manual process steps. The Danish company
The Process of Additive Manufacturing for Creating 3D Objects
Additive manufacturing is the process of creating a 3D object by building it one layer at a time and it is using computer-aided-design (CAD) software or 3D object scanners to direct hardware to deposit material, layer upon layer, in precise geometric shapes. As its name implies, additive manufacturing adds material to create an object.
Although the terms "3D printing" and "rapid prototyping" are casually used to discuss additive manufacturing, each process is a subset of additive manufacturing. Currently the industry uses post-processing methods that are labour intensive, dusty, energy-inefficient and environment-polluting. The latter is especially problematic as current smoothing methods produce micro-fibre plastic polluted water as a by-product. These are mechanical-contact based methods that remove material from the parts, resulting in loss of accuracy, fine features and degradation of part properties while leaving surfaces porous and non-sealed. As a result, opportunities abound for automating the complete process in one system.
Industrial 3D Printing Production, Handling and Finishing Done in One Fully Automated System
Over the past years, the
"When printing in plastic powder - the so-called Selective Laser Sintering technology - this means that the parts are taken out of the build chamber when it has cooled down, so that most of the powder can be removed. The parts are then blasted clean of the remaining powder, and in the case of parts where hygiene and ease-of-cleaning are important, e.g. parts for food contact, they also get a surface sealing. All these processes require manual handling", says Anders Bæk Hjermitslev, Team Manager at the
Danish Technological Institute .
Now, DTI will try to automate these processes in a new EU-supported project called DMS Nextgen. The project will develop a system that can take the entire 3D printed build job immediately after the printing process and do all the finishing, i.e. cooling and unpacking, blasting the parts and finally sealing the surface. For this system, the plan is to use a conveyor bay and robot(s) to move the parts between the various process steps.
The project is done in collaboration with the Danish software automation company
"Automating the post-processing of 3D printed objects possess some very interesting challenges, even with the experience and technology already available at Scape. One primary concern is the accurate identification of an object and its orientation, within a batch of objects that might have differing designs and with the object still not being detailed due to the residuals left by the printing process. These elements combine to a higher degree of variance in the objects than accustomed and will challenge the recognition process in ways different than we are normally confronted with. Secondarily the actual grip and handling of the diversity of objects within a single batch requires consideration, when usual targets with respect to precision and speed are to be upheld", says Carl Johan Danbjørg,
Development Project Manager atScape Technologies .
The
At the end of the project, the entire system will be integrated, and the demo system developed in the project will subsequently be placed at the DTI.
About
DMS Nextgen is a Eurostars project with a total budget of just under
The project runs from
For more information, please contact:
Carl Johan Danbjørg
Development Project Mananger,
+45 5177 7140
cdj@scapetechnologies.com
Marketing & SME Channel Mananger,
+45 2579 9595
je@scapetechnologies.com
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