Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technology

Principles and Applications

G. K. Awari, C. S. Thorat, Vishwjeet Ambade, D. P. Kothari

• Publisher: CRC Press
• Year: 2021
• ISBN:
  9781000338706
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Technik & Maschinenbau
• Subtopic: Maschinenbau

Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technology: Principles and Applications consists of the construction and working details of all modern additive manufacturing and 3D-printing technology processes and machines, while also including the fundamentals, for a well-rounded educational experience. The book is written to help the reader understand the fundamentals of the systems.

This book provides a selection of additive manufacturing techniques suitable for near-term application with enough technical background to understand the domain, its applicability, and to consider variations to suit technical and organizational constraints. It highlights new innovative 3D-printing systems, presents a view of 4D printing, and promotes a vision of additive manufacturing and applications toward modern manufacturing engineering practices.

With the block diagrams, self-explanatory figures, chapter exercises, and photographs of lab-developed prototypes, along with case studies, this new textbook will be useful to students studying courses in Mechanical, Production, Design, Mechatronics, and Electrical Engineering.

1 Introduction to Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technology

1.1 Development of Additive Manufacturing

Since the 1980s, 3D printing technology, also known as additive manufacturing, has existed in some form or another. Nevertheless, the technology was neither efficient nor cost-effective enough for most end-products or high-volume industrial manufacturing. Expectations are very high that these shortcomings are about to be eliminated. Additive manufacturing (AM) technology has emerged as a result of developments in a variety of technology sectors. As additive manufacturing continues to gain popularity and its technology rapidly evolves, designers are able to produce better goods faster and cheaper, without thinking about the limitations of conventional manufacturing processes. Unlike other industrial innovations, increased computing capacity and decreased mass storage costs paved the way for the processing of vast volumes of data typical of modern 3D computer-aided design (CAD) models within a realistic timeframe. Nowadays, researchers have become used to having powerful computers and other complex electronic devices around them, and often it can be difficult to understand how the pioneers struggled to build the first AM devices. This subject highlights some of the key moments in the growth of additive manufacturing technology, and how the various technologies converged to the point that they could be merged into AM machines will be explained. The AM technologies milestone will also be discussed. In addition, how the application of additive manufacturing has evolved to include greater functionality and a wider range of applications beyond the initial intention of prototyping will be discussed. Emphasis is also placed on how additive manufacturing affects the automotive and aerospace industries. The use of AM in product development is necessary to enable companies to compete with industry standards.

Additive manufacturing, better known as 3D printing (3DP) on the market, has evolved over the past 40 years. There is growing evidence that the advances in technology and materials have finally gone beyond the hype level. Thirty-six percent of businesses are either applying or planning to apply 3DP, according to a recent World Economic Year survey of various firms. Aerospace, defense, and automotive are the most specialized sectors to apply 3DP. ThreeD printing technology will advance through a loosely coordinated development in three areas: Printing and printing methods, design and printing software, and printing materials. However, awareness of 3DP and willingness to leverage it for prototyping, tools, fixtures, and even finished products is increasing in other industries for a number of reasons.

• Quality and speed: As printer speed has increased, quality assurance tools embedded in printers enable better layer-by-layer validation of whether the printed product is within acceptable tolerances.
• Availability of materials: A wide range of materials and sources of materials are now available, creating more incentives for the industry to manufacture parts and goods. Many manufacturers and industries are now working with suppliers of materials to create their own material variations in order to meet their specific requirements or to improve quality.
• Workforce knowledge: The newest and youngest generation of designers and engineers is more knowledgeable about 3DP.
• Product development: 3DP improves time-to-market and shortens product design cycles.
• Manufacturing: 3DP reduces process time by using improved tools, a technology that tends to reduce waste.
• Engineering and maintenance: Maintenance processes are more flexible and may reduce maintenance costs.
• Storage and warehousing: Reduced inventory, logistic, and storage costs.
• Aftermarket: Improved flexibility in the supply of spare parts and decreased costs in the manufacture of spare parts.

1.2 Major Trends Shaping the Evaluation of 3D Printing

Several developments in the commercial and corporate sector have accelerated 3D printing to the top in manufacturing industry. Approximately 25% of global companies uses 3D printing, with another 12% considering it, 3D printing technology is one of the greatest inventions to date and is becoming a reality—with a large amount of new opportunities and challenges.

The key business trends for the evolution of 3DP are as follows:

• Individualization—customer co-creation: There is significant growth and development in the modern economy for the modification and individualization of manufactured products according to consumer needs and requirements. Manufacturers responded by adding 3DP and choose to explore prospects for the use of 3DP in future applications.
• Democratization—mass innovation and development: 3DP makes it easier for individuals or collaborative teams to design or manufacture end-products and reduces barriers and challenges to innovation. The manufacturer of the product, which may be hampered in a traditional routine with difficult requisitioning processes and long logistical wait times, would now have the option of making the products faster. Design teams can “fax” their parts to work with substantial products for intra-company collaboration. When the required engineering or design resources are not co-located or even virtually linked, companies have turned to crowdsourcing.
• Sustainability—a circular economy...