New solution for the improvement of metallic prototypes regarding surface quality, dimensional changes and solidity

摘要

Nowadays, many companies face increasing competition in the global production market. To maintain a favourable share of the market and to withstand any direct competition, these companies are often forced to release their new products as quickly as possible. Additionally, consumer behaviour has changed drastically over the last few years in that specific products are now being requested for, meaning less lot sizes for the industry. To fulfil the aforementioned demands, manufacturers have therefore been compelled to develop newer techniques such as Rapid Prototyping (RP) and Rapid Tooling (RT). Both techniques are based on the same principle, that is, the specification of the desired part is initially drafted with 3-D CAD (Computer-Aided-Design) software, with the resulting part being later computer-dissected into horizontal layers of about 0.1 mm thickness. In the laser process, a scanner deflects the beam in both the x- and y-directions to generate a first layer corresponding the desired scheme. The sintered layer is then displaced downwards to allow for the deposition of a new powder layer before recommencement of the laser process again.