Feature-based Print Method for Multi-Axis Material Extrusion in Additive Manufacturing

摘要

Additive manufacturing technology develops very dynamically in terms of new processes, materials and areas of application. Cost intensive post processing, especially removal of support structures is one big challenge in material extrusion (ME) processes and drives development of new machine designs like 5-axis printers. Currently, time intensive manual programming of machine code is necessary in order to slice parts for multi-axis printing. This paper deals with an experimental study of state-of-the-art 3D-printers developing a feature-based print method for multi-axis systems by using an adaptive layer height while reducing support structures and stair-step effect. Computer-aided manufacturing for ME is investigated in order to develop a geometric model for trajectory planning.