Rapid prototyping is another word 3D printing that is increasingly getting replaced by additive manufacturing by the manufacturing industry. As rapid prototyping misleads 3D printer’s application for prototyping purposes alone, manufacturers started addressing it as additive manufacturing with its broader applications across various manufacturing lifecycles. Rapid prototyping technology is instrumental in building product test design, functional components, molds, and complex demonstration models. There are more than 40 materials that are compatible with production with additive manufacturing and the process that is used will depend on the part that is being used.
Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) and Selective Laser Melting (SLM) are three of the most common techniques provided by 3D printing in Coimbatore. SLS and DMLS function on the same process in which particles in the materials are merged together to obtain the full shape. SLS is known for its sintering process for non-metal materials while DMLS is used for metallic materials. SLM printing has a slight difference from other technology in the way it processes materials to form the end result. It takes the added layers through a full melt heating and then allows to be cooled down for fuller consolidation.
Benefits of Additive Manufacturing
Additive Manufacturing can benefit manufacturers in several areas where traditional manufacturing methods were inadequate. The technology has set a new approach for overcoming inefficiencies in the product design and manufacturing processes. As it enables a product prototyping and manufacturing to be design-driven, the accuracy and quality of the product output wouldn’t be affected by any factors other than the provided 3D design. With this added layer printing technology manufacturers will be able to obtain even the most complex design can be visualized as light and stable 3D structures. 3D printing technologies are capable of enabling a higher level of design freedom for products, thus making it easier for stakeholders, designers, and engineers to optimize and integrate functional features of the product they expect to bring in the market. The technology can be of great benefit in manufacturing products or parts in smaller quality, at reasonable costs and with better customization.
Functional Principle
The process of additive manufacturing starts with depositing a thin layer of powder material on the 3D printer build platform. The powder material will be fused layer by layer on the exact points commanded by the software-generated design data using a powerful laser beam. The build platform will be lowered after printing each layer for the next layers of powder to be applied. The material is fused together to bond the layers at the specific points. Manufacturers have to choose from technologies like stereo lithography, laser sintering or fused deposition modeling depending on the material they want to get their product build with.
Additive manufacturing is advanced in a way to help the manufacturing and engineering industries to over challenges in the market. One of the recent innovations in 3D printing is the Micro Laser Sintering (MLS) technology that is recently developed by leading 3D companies. This technology can be used in direct manufacturing of several products on a mass scale as it provides all the benefits of e-manufacturing of miniaturized parts. The upcoming advancements in the 3D printing technology are expected to help several more new industries for innovating products, technologies, and solutions as well enable the infrastructure for the series manufacturing of micro-parts. Additive manufacturing technologies can be a great solution for manufacturers aiming to produce small, complex or individualized parts. It will also be instrumental for building structures – products or parts that require a large surface with small volume or for getting a small, lightweight build metal parts or high-melting materials.
The Future of Additive Manufacturing
Additive manufacturing technology is already having a multitude of application in several rapid micro technology industries. It has already made revolutionary, life-changing applications in medical technology, automotive, electrical and electronics industries. It has been of particular interest for manufacturers in micro-molded parts, micro eroding, and micro fluid mixers. The benefits of advanced 3D printing technologies are realized by industries like jewelry and food as well as in applications such as sensors, and mechanical transmission elements. With leading 3D printing technology companies working on to bring further developments in additive manufacturing, its future potential can be immense in accelerating various industries and improving the quality and custom offerings of various consumer deliverables.