Motor Trends: Additive manufacturing drives production of race-ready parts
Additive manufacturing (AM) has been crucial in the motor sports world for years. In the race for speed and performance, it has been a lynchpin for design and testing. Now, race teams are revealing that AM parts will go far beyond review and evaluation.
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3D PRINTERS VS. 3D PRODUCTION SYSTEMS: 10 Distinguishing Factors to Help You Select a System
This paper addresses the capabilities, roles and positioning of systems geared for professional use. Beginning with the most basic information — the definition of 3D printers — this white paper positions the two product classes.
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3D PRINTING WITH FDM: How it Works
A 3D printer is a machine that creates objects from plastic or other materials using an additive manufacturing process. Additive manufacturing produces objects in a succession of layers from the bottom, up. This is the opposite of traditional subtractive manufacturing processes...
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Constant Improvement: Jeff DeGrange on the state of additive manufacturing for aerospace
Stratasys Vice President Jeff DeGrange, formerly of Boeing, is a longtime advocate for additive manufacturing (AM) for the aerospace industry. He led Boeing’s advanced-manufacturing technology team, applying forward-thinking technologies across defense, commercial-aircraft and space products. DeGrange was the first chairman of Boeing’s Direct Manufacturing Research Center in Germany, which studies emerging additive-manufacturing (sometimes called 3D printing) technology for the engineering and manufacturing community.
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3D Printing Jigs Fixtures and Other Manufacturing Tools
The fundamental objectives of manufacturing — improve quality, decrease cycle time and reduce costs — are the primary reasons that jigs and fixtures are so abundant. It doesn’t matter if the operation is fully automated or entirely manual; jigs and fixtures are deployed throughout manufacturing operations with the goal of reducing costs while accelerating production processes.
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The Accuracy Myth
Most design and manufacturing engineers understand the concepts of accuracy, repeatability and resolution. They know that the term accuracy describes how closely a manufacturing system's output conforms to a tolerance within a specified dimensional range. They know repeatability captures the system's ability to produce consistent output, time after time. And resolution refers to the smallest measurement the system can reproduce.
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Characterization of Material Properties - Fortus ABS-M30
Material properties are an important consideration when evaluating additive manufacturing for advanced applications such as production runs of end-use parts. Since these products will be in service for extended periods and in varying conditions, it is imperative to qualify the properties beyond published specifications.
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Characterization of Material Properties - Fortus Polycarbonate
Material properties are an important consideration when evaluating additive manufacturing for advanced applications such as production runs of end-use parts. Since these products will be in service for extended periods and in varying conditions, it is imperative to qualify the properties beyond published specifications.
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Fortus 360mc-400mc Accuracy Study
Applications beyond concept modeling and general prototyping have stringent demands for qualifying a process' capabilities. For advanced prototyping, analysis and the growing number of direct digital manufacturing (DDM) projects, accuracy assessments must be comprehensive studies based on sound quality control practices.
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Fortus 900mc Accuracy Study
Applications beyond concept modeling and general prototyping have stringent demands for qualifying a process’ capabilities. For advanced prototyping, analysis and the growing number of direct digital manufacturing (DDM) projects, accuracy assessments must be comprehensive studies based on sound quality control practices. To quantify the capabilities of the Fortus 900mc, Stratasys performed an in-depth analysis of accuracy, precision, and repeatability.
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How to Justify the Cost of a Rapid Prototyping System
To designers, engineers and product managers, the value of additive manufacturing machines for rapid prototyping is unquestionable. Yet, in spite of the obvious value, it may not be clear how to convince the management and accounting departments that the benefits justify the capital expenditure.
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Thermoplastics - The Best Choice for 3D Printing
The majority of today’s consumer products — and many commercial ones — are composed of thermoplastics. When designing a new product, engineers can best predict its end performance by prototyping with a material as similar to it as possible.
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How to Design Your Part for Direct Digital Manufacturing
Traditional manufacturing methods, like machining and injection molding have many rules, restrictions, and limitations. These rules don’t apply when using direct digital manufacturing. Designers are free to concentrate on the best design and not concern themselves with manufacturability.
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Measure Twice, Cut Once
In these uncertain economic times, I remind myself to “measure twice; cut once,” a lesson my father taught me as a boy. It’s advice that is obvious and wise but so easy to ignore, especially when resources are tight.
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Is Now The Time To Try Direct Digital Manufacturing?
Additive manufacturing has migrated from use in rapid prototyping to a manufacturing solution, which is referred to as “direct digital manufacturing” (or rapid manufacturing). Increasingly, companies are employing it and proving it is a viable alternative to traditional manufacturing processes. If you have been interested in direct digital manufacturing but are worried it will take a big capital commitment, don’t worry. There is a very inexpensive way to try this process.
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Direct Digital Manufacturing Part One: What is Direct Digital Manufacturing?
The use of additive manufacturing processes is what differentiates direct digital manufacturing (DDM) from conventional manufacturing methods, and it is from these technologies that unique advantages and opportunities arise. Direct from 3D digital data, a component is manufactured—layer-by-layer—without machining, molding or casting.
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Direct Digital Manufacturing Part Two: Advantages and Considerations
The primary advantage of DDM is that it removes constraints imposed by traditional manufacturing processes, such as injection molding or die casting. DDM fundamentally alters many of the “facts” and principles that govern conventional manufacturing enterprises. Since DDM is an additive process that eliminates tooling, it offers advantages that simply are not available with traditional processes. Read more about those advantages and considerations.
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Direct Digital Manufacturing Part Three: How to Identify Opportunities
On first encounter, direct digital manufacturing's unique processing capabilities and innovative advantages make identification of target applications a challenge. When considering DDM, it is vital to understand the opportunities the process affords. Read about how to recognize these opportunities.
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Direct Digital Manufacturing Part Four: Industries and Applications
Direct digital manufacturing (DDM) is being applied in a diverse range of industries. Examples of DDM success are found in aerospace, automotive, consumer products, electronics and defense. Each of these industries—among many others—has applied DDM, and each will continue to see an increase in the number of DDM applications. Read how customers are using DDM today.
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Fused Deposition Modeling: A Technology Evaluation
FDM is presented from a user's point of view.
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The Birth of the Pit Viper: Handcrafting Paired with Advanced Digital Tools
Restoring and customizing cars and trucks is a laborious process that demands skill and attention to detail. Even with weeks of meticulous work, highly skilled individuals are unable to approach perfection. This is where digital technology comes in.
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Direct Rapid Manufacturing with Real Production Plastics Using FDM Technology
This paper discusses recent material advances in Fused Deposition Modeling that benefit rapid manufacturing.
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Rapid Manufacturing with FDM in Jig and Fixture Construction
This report comes from the BMW Department of Jig and Fixture Construction, which has employed an FDM system for years. Daily projects comprise, among other things, designing and manufacturing production tools and testing devices, as well as supporting initial production runs and special resources.
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Reduced part weight in parts
A historic bust of Caesar was scanned and reproduced in ABS plastic.
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How Will Future NASA Missions Get Spare Parts in Space?
NASA hopes to one day use rapid prototyping technology to build parts on the space station or in space travel. It has had good results when experimenting with the Stratasys FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) process to build parts in zero gravity conditions.
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