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Topics
3D Printing
Additive Manufacturing
Rapid Prototyping
By Andrew Crouch
jcrouc15@ford.com
“It’s not a question of
whether Ford should invest
in 3D printing technology,
it’s a question of when and
how much”.
Glossary
Additive Manufacturing (AM) –
Refers to any process that
produces a three-dimensional
solid object by building by adding
material, usually in layers;
opposed to the traditional
processes of machining, which
create the desired shape through
subtraction of material.
Rapid Prototyping (RP) – An
older term initially used to refer to
the same methods as additive
manufacturing, when they were in
their early stages and used only
for prototyping.
3D Printing – Newer jargon that
mostly refers to ‘desktop’ additive
manufacturing machines, but
most media outlets use it
interchangeably with additive
manufacturing.
Fused Deposition Modeling
(FDM) – Additive Manufacturing
processes that use an extruder to
deposit small quantities of
material in layers to create the
desired shape. Most commonly
used with thermoplastics (plastics
that become moldable at a
specific temperature and then
return to a solid state when
cooled).
Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)
– Additive manufacturing
processes that use a laser to fuse
powdered material into the
desired shape. After a layer is
fused, another layer of powder is
added above it and the process
repeats. This additive
manufacturing method can use a
wide variety of materials,
including plastics, metals,
ceramics, and glass.
3D Printing: The Basics
st
May 31 , 2013
“3D printing allows you to make that part right the first time, it allows
you to make it from the core up so you basically don't have as
much waste, the tooling is cheaper, the cycle time is faster, and
that is the Holy Grail.” ‒ Jeff Immelt, Chairman & CEO, General
Electric Company
Background Information
General Electric recently made news when it announced that it would be
making fuel nozzles for its new turbofan with a 3D printing process. The old process
required the welding of 20 small parts, a task that was labor intensive and caused a
lot of material to be wasted. The new process not only reduces waste, it creates a
lighter product that GE says will contribute to significant fuel savings for airlines and
the machines that produce the nozzles can run overnight, shortening production
times.
3D printing is not a new thing in industry; originally called rapid prototyping,
it has had many names during its nearly 30 year history. Today additive
manufacturing is the term commonly used for industrial purposes, and 3D printing
tends to refer to the smaller scale applications, especially consumer grade
machines. The old name of 3D printing gives us some insight into the technology’s
primary use: prototyping. 3D printing allows engineers and designers to create a
physical part based on their digital designs in a matter of hours or days, rather than
the old processes which could take weeks or months. In recent years 3D printing
processes have expanded to be used in short-run manufacturing, production of one-
of custom items, and some other things, like printing in concrete.
The first incarnation of 3D printing was stereolithography (SLA); invented in
the mid-1980s, stereolithography uses computer control to harden layers of light-
sensitive resin (photopolymer) with an ultraviolet laser to produce solid objects.
Since then, 3D printing technologies have become quite varied in both the method
and the material used. The methods used can be grouped into two general
categories: processes that extrude a material in layers and those that fuse specific
portions of a layer of material.
 Extrusion Techniques – Extrusion techniques are currently the most
common consumer 3D printing technologies by a large margin. The general
idea is this: An extruder, which can move along the horizontal plane, is
used to place layers of melted plastic (or other material) onto a build
platform that moves on a vertical axis as the build proceeds, creating a
three-dimensional solid layer by layer. The extruder is directed using a 3D
model that has been sliced horizontally into layers by another program.
Typically, the more layers an object is sliced into, the better the print quality.
These techniques are limited by the materials that can be used, which
consist mainly of thermoplastics, but also include some others, like wax and
chocolate.
 Fusing Techniques – Fusing techniques are the more robust of the two
methods for producing finished products. They can use a wider variety of
materials including various metals, plastics, ceramics, and glass. Fusing
techniques consist of a build container that has material in it, either a liquid
polymer of some sort as in SLA, or a powdered material in a method called
selective laser sintering (SLS). A mechanism fuses a layer of material in the
desired shape, and then a new layer is placed above it. In SLA, there is a
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Stereolithography (SLA) –
Additive manufacturing processes
that use a ultraviolet laser to cure
a photopolymer in layers to
produce the desired shape. The
first 3D printer used a
stereolithography process.
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build platform that lowers deeper into the tank of photopolymer with each
layer and an ultraviolet laser is used to solidify the plastic. In SLS a
mechanism is used to spread another layer of powder above the material
after it is fused by a laser in the desired shape.
Besides the interest from industry, there’s been a lot of interest in 3D
printing in the consumer and public arenas as well. In his 2013 State of the Union
address, President Barack Obama mentioned a public initiative for innovation in
additive manufacturing. The institution that the president referred to is NAMII, the
National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute, a collaborative effort between
public and private institutions to experiment with and extend the use of additive
manufacturing in the United States. It’s not just the president who’s interested in 3D
printing though; there has been a huge influx of interest from the public as well. Two
of the top three most funded technology projects on Kickstarter are 3D printing
technologies, with three more in the top ten. Consumer grade 3D printers are still
largely in their hobbyist stage, with many printers coming in kits and requiring
extensive assembly and calibration to get a good print. They are also almost
exclusively extrusion printers, partly due to some patents that expired recently, and
because they can be made with widely available parts. Consumer printers are
getting better though, and significantly cheaper, with some kits reaching the $500
mark. The ‘desktop’ 3D printer industry is currently undergoing some restructuring;
mergers and takeovers have been common recently, and proprietary materials are
slowing the price fall somewhat.
Recommendations
In my mind it’s not a question of whether Ford should invest in 3D printing
technology, it’s a question of when and how much. The potential for increasing
efficiency in design and engineering spaces is clear, and as the technology
improves new opportunities will open up; instead of shipping a part, send a file and
produce the part on site. But the limitations of the technology are still being
overcome; it’s not practical at all for mass production of identical parts, and for
consumers ease of use isn’t quite where it needs to be for widespread adoption.
The time investment required to produce effective prints with consumer-grade
technology is significant, and contributes to the technology remaining in the hobbyist
realm for the time being. Look for a ‘killer app’ to emerge that catapults 3D printers
into the mainstream once consumer machines become more accessible in price
and use. Expect adoption of high-grade printers to increase in industries where
high-precision, low-count part runs are needed.
Reviewed By:
Where to Learn More Len Kinnaird-Heether
Rob Bromley
 http://www.additive3d.com/home.htm
 http://www.tested.com/tech/3d-printing...manufacturing/
Bottom Line
Don’t look for Star Trek style replicators any time soon, but increased public
interest in a technology that has been industry standard for a while is spurring
innovation in 3D printing, lowering costs, improving quality, and ease of use. As
the technology improves be on the lookout for new opportunities to leverage 3D
printing.
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