Any additive manufacturing (AM) process deployed for the production of functional and end-use parts must be accurate and repeatable when it comes to the geometric dimensions and material properties of manufactured parts. One method of evaluating the variability of an AM process is to examine the accuracy and precision of part dimensions and mechanical properties, as well as the repeatability of those results on a build-to-build and machine-to-machine basis.
Although dimensional accuracy is critical to any application, an AM process with high repeatability in the geometric dimensions of produced parts can automatically compensate for dimensional inaccuracies through the use of software-centric techniques. Furthermore, a process that produces parts exhibiting a high degree of isotropy provides greater flexibility, ease of use and confidence across various part geometries and build scenarios. In the absence of these key properties, the high degree of unpredictability can present barriers to scaling up manufacturing volumes and operations in many applications. Hence, these aspects are critical factors in developing confidence in any AM process.
The goal of this study was to perform an evaluation of Origin One’s Programmable Photopolymerization (P3™) technology in terms of part accuracy and system repeatability of dimensional measurements and mechanical properties across multiple Origin One manufacturing systems and across consecutive production builds.
