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Colleagues report on the young field of 4D printing and other innovations

Thomas Töppel from the Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Technology (IWU) is presenting a new approach for a software-based process chain in powder bed-based laser beam melting (LPBF). The IWU expert demonstrates how simulations can be accelerated to quickly obtain optimized process parameters. The close connections between the individual links in the AM chain – for example, between material and technology innovations – are evidenced, among others, by the lectures of Dr. Dilip Chalissery from the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research (IAP) and his colleague Patrick Springer. Chalissery reports on the production of shape memory polymers in 4D printing – even though time itself cannot actually be printed. However, this can be used to specifically induce functional changes in polyurethane foams when certain environmental parameters are applied. It is essentially a functionalizing 3D printing, where the properties of the components are implemented hidden until they are revealed by external influences. In the future, other materials could also be "programmed". They would then expand the application possibilities of 4D printing, it is said. And finally, Springer introduces a, as emphasized, novel additive manufacturing process based on the plastic extrusion process. A bio-based polymer filament that is charged with a physical blowing agent is used. This could be used to produce low-density polymer foams that were not printable with previous additive processes.

Powder bed-based laser beam melting still has weaknesses ...

The design of transition zone parameters between different materials in multimaterial powder bed fusion is the subject of the lecture by Timo Schröder from the Fraunhofer Institute for Foundry, Composite and Processing Technology (IGCV). There are alternatives to powder bed-based laser beam melting (LPBF), the dominant process for producing additive metal components, especially for processing non-weldable materials, as mentioned in this presentation. Thus, the expert exposes a weakness in the LPBF process and immediately addresses it. Dr. Thomas Studnitzky from the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials Research (IFAM) provides an overview of these alternative technologies. In addition to software, material, and technology developments, the Fraunhofer presentation at Rapid.Tech 3D 2024 will also increasingly focus on rapid and secure testing procedures for quality assurance of the additive process. Artificial Intelligence (AI) plays an increasingly larger role for this, as Luke Schüller from the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology (ILT) demonstrates in his lecture. He provides insights into the methods of LPBF quality assurance and introduces a novel method for defect detection in the LPBF process. This involves the use of a high-resolution line camera and a pre-trained neural network.