UNIT - 1

INTRODUCTION
 Overview
FUNDAMENTALS OF
TYPES OF RP
RP

FDM SLA

SLS 3D PRINTER
 FUNDAMENTALS OF RP
The Rapid Prototyping
Wheel depicting the 4
major aspects of RP

1-INPUT
2-METHOD
3-MATERIAL
4-APPLICATIONS

Figure 2.1: The Rapid Prototyping Wheel depicting the 4

major aspects of RP
HISTORY OF RAPID PROTOTYPING
 HISTORY OF RAPID PROTOTYPING
• In 60’s ,the first rapid prototyping technique
became accessible in the later eighties and used
for production of prototype and model parts.
• In 70’s ,Herbert Voelcker, engineering professor
developed the basic tools of mathematics that
clearly describe the three dimensional aspects
and resulted in the earliest theories of
algorithmic and mathematical theories for solid
modeling.
• In 80’s, Carl Deckard ,researcher from the University of
Texas. He pioneered the layer based manufacturing , he
thought of building up the model layer by layer. He
printed 3D models by utilizing laser light for fusing metal
powder in solid prototypes, single layer at a time.
Technique called ‘Selective Laser Sintering’.
• Nowadays , the computer engineer has to simply sketch
the ideas on the computer screen with the help of a
design program that is computer aided. Computer aided
designing allows to make modification as required and
can create a physical prototype that is a precise and
proper 3D object.
What is Rapid Prototyping

Rapid Prototyping: Traditional manufacturing:

additive material subtractive material
Basic process of RP
Three stages: pre-processing, building, and
post processing

CAD Model Pre Process RP Process Post Process

Surface/Solid Generate Build Remove

Model .STL file Prototype Supports

in CAD Build Supports Clean Surface

if needed
Post Cure if needed
in RP
systems Slicing
Part Completed
 Classification of RP
• Three are 3 types of RP systems:
 Liquid-Based
 Solid-Based
 Powder-Based
 Liquid-Based
• Liquid-based RP systems have the initial form of its material in
liquid state.
• Through a process commonly known as curing, the liquid is
converted into the solid state.

The following RP systems fall into this category:

(1) 3D Systems’ Stereolithography Apparatus (SLA)
(2) Cubital’s Solid Ground Curing (SGC)
(3) Sony’s Solid Creation System (SCS)
(4) CMET’s Solid Object Ultraviolet-Laser Printer (SOUP)
(5) Autostrade’s E-Darts
(6) Teijin Seiki’s Soliform System
(7)Light Sculpting
(8) Aaroflex
(9) Rapid Freeze
(10) Two Laser Beams
(11) Microfabrication
 Solid-Based
• Except for powder, solid-based RP systems are meant to
encompass all forms of material in the solid state.
• In this context, the solid form can include the shape in the
form of a wire, a roll, laminates and pellets.

The following RP systems fall into this category:

(1) Cubic Technologies’ Laminated Object Manufacturing (LOM)
(2) Stratasys’ Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM)
(3) Kira Corporation’s Paper Lamination Technology (PLT)
(4) 3D Systems’ Multi-Jet Modeling System (MJM)
(5) Solidscape’s ModelMaker and PatternMaster
(6) Beijing Yinhua’s Slicing Solid Manufacturing (SSM), Melted
Extrusion Modeling (MEM) and Multi-Functional RPM Systems
(M-RPM)
(7) CAM-LEM’s CL 100
 Powder-Based
• In a strict sense, powder is by-and-large in the solid state.
However, it is intentionally created as a category outside the
solid-based RP systems to mean powder in grain-like form.

The following RP systems fall into this category:

(1) 3D Systems’s Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)
(2) EOS’s EOSINT Systems
(3) Z Corporation’s Three-Dimensional Printing (3DP)
(4) Optomec’s Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS)
(5) Soligen’s Direct Shell Production Casting (DSPC)
(6) Fraunhofer’s Multiphase Jet Solidification (MJS)
(7) Acram’s Electron Beam Melting (EBM)
(8) Aeromet Corporation’s Lasform Technology
(9) Precision Optical Manufacturing’s Direct Metal Deposition (DMDTM)
(10) Generis’ RP Systems (GS)
(11) Therics Inc.’s Theriform Technology
(12) Extrude Hone’s PrometalTM 3D Printing Process
 RP Technology in Product Development
• The roles that prototypes play in the product development
process are several.
They include the following:
(1) Experimentation and learning
(2) Testing and proofing
(3) Communication and interaction
(4) Synthesis and integration
(5) Scheduling and markers
 Experimentation and learning
To the product development team, prototypes can be used to help the
thinking, planning, experimenting and learning processes whilst designing the
product.
Questions and doubts regarding certain issues of the design can be
addressed by building and studying the prototype.
For example, in designing the appropriate elbow-support of an office chair,
several physical prototypes of such elbow supports can be built to learn about
the “feel” of the elbow support when performing typical tasks on the office
chair.
 Testing and proofing
Prototypes can also be used for testing and proofing of ideas
and concepts relating to the development of the product
For example, in the early design of folding reading glasses for
the elderly, concepts and ideas of folding mechanism can be tested
by building rough physical prototypes to test and prove these ideas
to see if they work as intended.
 Communication and interaction
The prototype also serves the purpose of communicating
information and demonstrating ideas, not just within the product
development team, but also to management and client.
A three-dimensional representation is often more superior
than that of a two-dimensional sketch of the product.

For example, a physical prototype of a cellular phone can be

presented to carefully selected customers. Customers can handle
and experiment with the phone and give feedback to the
development team on the features of and interactions with the
phone, thus providing valuable information for the team to improve
its design.
 Synthesis and integration
A prototype can also be used to synthesize the entire product
concept by bringing the various components and sub-assemblies
together to ensure that they will work together.
This will greatly help in the integration of the product and
surface any problems that are related to putting the product
together.

An example is a complete or comprehensive functional

prototype of personal digital assistant (PDA). When putting the
prototype together, all aspects of the design, including
manufacturing and assembly issues will have to be addressed,
thus enabling the different functional members of the product
development team to understand the various problems associated
with putting the product together.
 Scheduling and markers
Prototyping also serves to help in the scheduling of the
product development process and is usually used as markers for
the end or start of the various phases of the development effort.
Each prototype usually marks a completion of a particular
development phase, and with proper planning, the development
schedule can be enforced.
It should be noted that in many companies, prototypes do not
necessary serve all these roles concurrently, but they are certainly
a necessity in any product development project.
What is Additive Manufacturing?
 The process of joining materials to make objects from three-
dimensional (3D) model data, usually layer by layer
 Commonly known as “3D printing”
 Manufacturing components with virtually no geometric limitations or
tools.
 AM uses an additive process
 Design for manufacturing to manufacturing for design
 Distinguished from traditional subtractive machining techniques

22
Functional principle
 The system starts by applying a thin layer of the powder material to the
building platform.
 A powerful laser beam then fuses the powder at exactly the points
defined by the computer-generated component design data.
 Platform is then lowered and another layer of powder is applied.
 Once again the material is fused so as to bond with the layer below at
the predefined points. 23
 ADVANTAGES
 Freedom of design
 Complexity for free
 Potential elimination of tooling
 Lightweight design
 Elimination of production steps

DISADVANTAGES
 Slow build rates
 High production costs
 Considerable effort required for application design
 Discontinuous production process
 Limited component size.
24
Applications
AM has been used across a diverse array of
industries, including;

 Automotive
 Aerospace
 Biomedical
Consumer goods and many others

25
 Additive Manufacturing

AM Materials

However, there are now way too many proprietary materials from the many different 3D printer vendors
to cover them all here.
Instead, we will look at the most popular types of material in a more generic way. And also a couple of
materials that stand out.

Liquid Based Powder Based Solid Based

EN-MME/ Th. Sahner 26

 Additive Manufacturing

AM Materials

Nylon, or Polyamide, is commonly used in powder form with the sintering process or in filament form
with the FDM process. It is a strong, flexible and durable plastic material that has proved reliable for 3D
printing. It is naturally white in colour but it can be coloured — pre- or post printing. This material can
also be combined (in powder format) with powdered aluminium to produce another common 3D
printing material for sintering Alumide.

ABS is another common plastic used for 3D printing, and is widely used on the entry-level FDM 3D
printers in filament form. It is a particularly strong plastic and comes in a wide range of colours.
ABS can be bought in filament form from a number of non- propreitary sources, which is another reason
why it is so popular.

PLA is a bio-degradable plastic material that has gained traction with 3D printing for this very reason. It
can be utilized in resin format for DLP/SL processes as well as in filament form for the FDM process. It
is offered in a variety of colours, including transparent, which has proven to be a useful option for some
some applications of 3D printing. However it is not as durable oras flexible as ABS.

EN-MME/ Th. Sahner 27

 Additive Manufacturing

AM Materials

LayWood is a specially developed 3D printing material for entry- level extrusion 3D printers. It comes in
filament form and is a wood/polymer composite (also referred to as WPC).

A growing number of metals and metal composites are used for industrial grade 3D printing. Two of the
most common are aluminium and cobalt derivatives.

One of the strongest and therefore most commonly used metals for 3D printing is Stainless Steel in
powder form for the sintering/ melting/EBM processes. It is naturally silver, but can be plated with other
materials to give a gold or bronze effect.
In the last couple of years Gold and Silver have been added to the range of metal materials that can be
3D printed directly, with obvious applications across the jewellery sector. These are both very strong
materials and are processed in powder form.
Titanium is one of the strongest possible metal materials and has been used for 3D printing industrial
applications for some time.

Supplied in powder form, it can be used for the sintering/melting/ EBM processes.

EN-MME/ Th. Sahner 28

 Additive Manufacturing

AM Materials

Ceramics
Ceramics are a relatively new group of materials that can be used for 3D printing with various levels of
success. The particular thing to note with these materials is that, post printing, the ceramic parts need to
undergo the same processes as any ceramic part made using traditional methods of production - namely
firing and glazing.

Paper
Standard A4 copier paper is a 3D printing material employed by the proprietary SDL process supplied
by Mcor Technologies. The company operates a notably different business model to other 3D printing
vendors, whereby the capital outlay for the machine is in the mid-range, but the emphasis is very much
on an easily obtainable, cost-effective material supply, that can be bought locally. 3D printed models
made with paper are safe, environmentally friendly, easily recyclable and require no post-processing.

Bio Materials
There is a huge amount of research being conducted into the potential of 3D printing bio materials for a
host of medical (and other) applications. Living tissue is being investigated at a number of leading
institutions with a view to developing applications that include printing human organs for transplant, as
well as external tissues for replacement body parts. Other research in this area is focused on developing
food stuffs - meat being the prime example.
EN-MME/ Th. Sahner 29
 Additive Manufacturing

AM Materials

Bio Materials
There is a huge amount of research being conducted into the potential of 3D printing bio materials for a
host of medical (and other) applications. Living tissue is being investigated at a number of leading
institutions with a view to developing applications that include printing human organs for transplant, as
well as external tissues for replacement body parts.

Food
Experiments with extruders for 3D printing food substances has increased dramatically over the last
couple of years. Chocolate is the most common (and desirable). There are also printers that work with
sugar and some experiments with pasta and meat. Looking to the future, research is being undertaken, to
utilize 3D printing technology to produce finely balanced whole meals.

Other
And finally, one company that does have a unique (proprietary) material offering is Stratasys, with its
digital materials for the Objet Connex 3D printing platform. This offering means that standard Objet 3D
printing materials can be combined during the printing process — in various and specified
concentrations to form new materials with the required properties. Up to 140 different Digital Materials
can be realized from combining the existing primary materials in different ways.

Concrete
EN-MME/ Th. Sahner 30
Materials of Additive Manufacturing
• Nylon
• ABS
• PLA
• Laywood
• Ceramic
• Biomaterials
• concrete
Economics of Additive Manufacturing
• Less waste
• No tooling cost
• Smaller production runs
• Large scale customization
• Eliminates lead time
 What is Rapid Tooling
• Rapid tooling is a term used to describe a process
which either uses a rapid prototyping model as a
pattern to create a mould quickly or uses the rapid
prototyping process directly to fabricate a tool for a
limited volume of prototypes.

The most common rapid tooling methods are

Keltool Investment casting

Sprayed metal tooling Selective laser sintering
ACES Stereolithography
 Examples of Rapid Tooling Products

(a) (b)

(a) Example of a porous metal mould made by rapid tooling

http://www.physorg.com/news176456761.html (b) Shows an example of a plaster
mould made by rapid tooling http://www.ultracast.com/mold-production.html
 Examples of Rapid Tooling Products

(a) (b)

(a) An example of a case mould developed through rapid tooling

http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/311652056/CD_container_mould_dvd_case_m
ould.html
(b) Shows an example of a sand casting mould made by rapid tooling
http://www.objet.com/Misc/_Pages/Application_Notes_Left_Pane/Sand_Casting_A
pplications/
 How is it different from conventional
tooling?
• Tooling time is much shorter than for a
conventional tool. (almost below one-fifth
that of conventional tooling)
• Tooling cost is much less than for a
conventional tool. (Cost can be below five
percent of conventional tooling cost).
• Tool life is considerably less than for a
conventional tool.
• Tolerances are wider than for a
conventional tool.
 Types of RT
Rapid Tooling can be broadly classified as:
1. Indirect Tooling
2. Direct Tooling
• Indirect tooling methods used RP inserts to
produce moulds
• But direct RT methods allow injection moulding
and die-casting inserts to build directly from 3D
CAD models
• Indirect or Pattern-based Tooling
approaches use master patterns to
produce a mould or die, and Direct
Tooling, where the additive process
builds the actual moulds.
 Rapid Tooling(RT)

Indirect RT Direct RT
 Techniques for Indirect RT

1) RSP Tooling
2) Reconfigurable Tooling
3) Silicone Rubber Tooling
4) Aluminum filled Epoxy Tooling
5) Spray Metal Tooling
6) Cast kirksite
7) 3D Keltool
8) RIM
 Direct Rapid Tooling
The CAD file is used directly to produce the part
without need for further operations
Can be used for;
• Selective Laser Sintering
• Produces porous metal moulds by CAD/CAM
• Plaster moulds made by CNC machining
• 3D printing
• Uses a wide variety of material – steel, copper
polyamide etc.
 Advantages
• -Reduced manufacturing time
• -much less expensive
• -Effective communication
• -decreases development time
• -removal of redundant features
• -early viewing of the product
• -early market testing
• -early testing (assembly, functional)
 Disadvantages
• shorter tool life
• -less accurate tolerances
• -not suitable for large sized applications
• -fail in product replication
• -cost is debatable
• -lacks an obvious stopping point
• -Usually does not produce reusable batch
code