Additive Manufacturing

Additive manufacturing is a “bottom-up” manufacturing method through material accumulation, which accumulates special metal materials, non-metal materials and medical biological materials layer by layer according to extrusion, sintering, melting, light curing, spraying, etc. A fabrication technique (creating an object by building up material layer by layer) that produces a physical object. Additive manufacturing techniques are often closely integrated with computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM) for an efficient manufacturing process.

Additive manufacturing is a broad term that covers many different technologies such as laser cladding, EDM, 3D printing, etc. Usually the most common additive manufacturing is 3D printing. 3D printing is a technology that uses bondable materials such as powdered metal or plastic to construct objects by layer-by-layer printing based on digital model files. The 3D printing services currently provided by Aixi include SLA 3D printing (stereolithography modeling technology), SLS 3D printing (stereo laser sintering molding technology), and FDM 3D printing (fused lamination molding technology).

Common 3D printing materials include PLA plastic, ABS plastic, nylon aluminum powder, artificial rubber, casting wax and polyester thermoplastic, metal powder, ceramic powder, gypsum powder, etc. Among them, ABS plastic is a thermoplastic engineering plastic with a wide range of uses. Thermoplasticity is a basic requirement for 3D printing consumables. For example, automobile parts are printed with such consumables.

Additive Manufacturing

The production principle of 3D printing technology

SLA 3D printing

SLA 3D printing (stereolithography modeling technology) uses ultraviolet laser to polymerize on the surface of liquid thermosetting photosensitive resin to draw thousands of thin layers to form a three-dimensional solid molding method. Wide selection of materials, extremely high feature resolution and high-quality surface treatment are options for SLA 3D printing.

SLS 3D printing

SLS 3D printing (stereoscopic laser sintering technology) uses high-power optical lasers under computer control to sinter the solid part of the powder according to the interface contour information, and then continuously circulates and builds up layers to produce complex and durable geometric parts. SLS 3D printing builds strong parts from filled nylon material, suitable for functional prototypes and end-use parts.

FDM 3D printing

FDM 3D printing (fused lamination molding technology) uses high temperature to melt the material, extrude it through the print head to form filaments, and accumulate and shape it on the component platform. FDM is the simplest and most common 3D printing technology, usually applied to desktop 3D printing equipment.

Advantages of 3D printing technology

1. Manufacture complex items at no additional cost

2. Product diversification does not increase costs

3. No assembly required

4. Zero-time delivery (print on demand)

5. Design space is unlimited

6. Zero-skill manufacturing

7. Unlimited combinations of materials

8. Small space, portable manufacturing

9. Exact entity replication

10. Reduce waste by-products

Additive Manufacturing

Application of 3D printing technology

3D printing has become the doctor’s right-hand man. Today, the medical industry already has a full range of 3D printed products and applications ranging from instruments, organs to surgery. The simplest application is to use non-living tissue materials such as metals and plastics to customize medical devices such as prosthetics, dental, orthopedic implants, and hearing aid casings. This application is already very popular. If it is advanced, 3D printing can also be used to manufacture blood vessels. , cartilage and other living tissues, what’s more, it can even print artificial livers, hearts, etc.

In the construction industry, engineers and designers have embraced building models printed with 3D printers, which are fast, Low cost, environmentally friendly, and beautifully crafted at the same time. It fully meets the designer’s requirements and can save a lot of materials at the same time.

For different design concepts of parts, 3D printing can print out immediately and quickly, considering different levels of requirements Save time, effort and cost.

Everyone can design toys independently with the help of 3D printers, and everyone can design their favorite toy models. For toy manufacturing companies, upgrading the traditional product development model with technology and using 3D printers for product development and proofing greatly reduces the product development cycle and cost.

Although the necessities of our daily life such as 3D printed clothing, shoes and insoles are out of reach now, they are gradually entering our field of vision, entering our lives, and even running through our daily life in the future.

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