The ASTM standards organization has a definition for sheet lamination-- an additive manufacturing process in which sheets of material are bonded to form an object. 3D printing /additive manufacturing continues to evolve, so there are several … [Read more...]
Subtractive Manufacturing: What You Need to Know
Not everyone thinks that subtractive manufacturing has a place in the Additive Manufacturing arena. After all, subtractive manufacturing is really CNC machining—a process that removes material from a larger piece of material through standard … [Read more...]
Tips on selecting 3D printers
This feature is part of a series of features for the 2011 Make Parts Fast Handbook. A 3D printer can be used to analyze form, fit, feel, function, or some combination of these features. But it can do more. Today’s printers also function as … [Read more...]
Fused Deposition Modeling and Material Advances
Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) technology was developed by S. Scott Crump in the late 1980s and was commercialized in 1990. The build material is usually a filament or wire of thermoplastic material but can also be plastic pellets fed from a hopper. … [Read more...]
A Multitude of Materials for Additive Manufacturing
Hundreds of materials are available for additive manufacturing systems. Each offers different capabilities to meet your form, fit, and function needs. For the most part, each vendor of an AM machine offers materials that function best with that … [Read more...]
Stereolithography – Shaping Resins
In 1986, inventor Charles W. Hull developed a “solid imaging process” known as stereolithography, which initiated the rapid prototyping revolution. Stereolithography (SLA) builds three-dimensional models out of liquid photosensitive polymers that … [Read more...]
Selective Laser Sintering
Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) technology can truly be called an additive manufacturing technology. Long used to build prototype parts early in the design cycle, increasingly it is used in limited-run manufacturing to produce end-use parts. It was … [Read more...]
3D Scanners Reproduce Reality
A 3D scanner is used to convert a three-dimensional object into digital bits (or a point cloud of information), which are used for many processes, such as: • Ensure proper fit and form of medically implantable devices, such as orthotics, … [Read more...]
