Additive Manufacturing Re-designs the Industry

Abstract

The initial spread of Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies, within the manufacturing processes, is attributed to the expiration of some of the key patents on additive printing technology, including the Stratasys’ FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) one. In a short time, researchers, through open-source projects such as RepRap [1], have reduced the critical issues of additive processes, making 3D printing more accessible and defining new ways to use it beyond its traditional use for rapid prototyping. Moving through the early applications of additive technology in industry, which involved visualization and rapid development of prototypes, within a decade the use of AM processes for the fabrication of a wide range of functional components in a variety of industrial fields has grown exponentially.

There are many benefits from introducing AM techniques into design processes, such as high level of customization and reduced waste material. The most significant benefit that researchers are investigating is the capability to produce lattice structures that would otherwise be impossible to obtain with other processes. Primarily through biomimetics, they are investigating how to mimic biological structures that are constantly evolving to optimize both weight and strength. The aerospace sector was one of the first to adopt cutting-edge AM technologies combined with topological optimization methods, that allow to redesign components by removing geometry constraints related to the traditional production methods, while ensuring the reduction of the overall weight and therefore bringing beneficial effects on fuel consumption and environmental impact. In fact, through AM technologies there is a significant improvement in the “buy-to-fly ratio”, which is the ratio between the weight of the raw material and the weight of the finished product, which in additive manufacturing tends to 1 and brings significant reductions in material waste [2]. The article illustrates the main methods of Design for Additive Manufacturing (DfAM) oriented to the aerospace sector in order to explore the possible fields of application and to suggest guidelines for the design process. Through DfAM it will be possible to explore new configurations, by diversifying existing products and creating new forms of design “materialization”. AM technologies in particular provide efficient manufacturing solutions for small production volumes, improving supply chain responsiveness through manufacturing strategies and enabling the reduction of additional logistics costs. In addition, with the implementation of the Rapid Tooling approach, AM will contribute to improving the performance of traditional mass production systems by enhancing the production speed of injection molding machines. Finally, the introduction of new tools for additive design will allow the definition of new scenarios for manufacturing oriented to produce lightweight solutions, with high levels of performance and efficiency, reducing the time between design and production, in order to reduce the time to market.