4 ms·

The article mentions that they use them for aerospace components, including landing gear. I wonder what the strength of these parts are compared to traditional

by bradyd 13y ago

The article mentions that they use them for aerospace components, including landing gear. I wonder what the strength of these parts are compared to traditional manufacturing techniques. Can these parts be used for actual structural elements?

retroafroman 13y ago
For something critical like landing gear, or say car suspension components, I would highly doubt the use of 3D printed parts, at least in the near term with current production methods. Right now, most parts like this will be forged rather than cast, because there is a higher likelyhood of defects and generally lower strength in cast parts.
bradleysmith 13y ago
They can, but the expense of using this as a mfg process is generally prohibitive. I've read there are some advanced aerospace parts such as turbine blades w/ complex hollows or internal parts that require very advanced castings that it actually makes sense to use SLS as a build method. A good example of part-strength is the 1911 Solid Concepts in Austin printed late last year[0]. They used a EOSINT M 270, a pretty advanced and expensive SLS printer. [1] For reference, that 1911 ran about $600k in build cost. yeesh. [0] - http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2013/12/robert-farago/gun-review-solid-concepts-1911-dmls-direct-metal-laser-sintering/ http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2013/12/robert-farago/gun-r... [1] - http://gpiprototype.com/services/eosintm270.html http://gpiprototype.com/services/eosintm270.html
bsder 13y ago
Even if you could handle the end product strength (and they can ... sort of), there are a lot more problems dealing with metal than plastic. First, metal is a LOT heavier to throw around than plastic. So, your control systems have to be dramatically bigger. Second, the melting points of metals are way higher than plastic, so the energy required to be right at a critical point of flow/melt is a lot bigger. Not to mention the percentage difference between melted and not melted is a lot smaller. Third, a lot of the metal techniques are about melting metal in place. That means that the part is buried in a block of powdered metal. That block of powdered metal is a significant fraction of the weight and cost of a plain old hunk of whatever the metal is. Try imagining fabricating even a small gold part out of a powdered block of 6"x6"x6" of gold--now think about how many metals are WAY more expensive than that. Finally, powdered metal is explosive. Most machines working with powdered metal require nitrogen atmosphere pump down and if there is a leak ... KABOOM.

by bradyd 13y ago

retroafroman 13y ago

For something critical like landing gear, or say car suspension components, I would highly doubt the use of 3D printed parts, at least in the near term with current production methods. Right now, most parts like this will be forged rather than cast, because there is a higher likelyhood of defects and generally lower strength in cast parts.

bradleysmith 13y ago

They can, but the expense of using this as a mfg process is generally prohibitive. I've read there are some advanced aerospace parts such as turbine blades w/ complex hollows or internal parts that require very advanced castings that it actually makes sense to use SLS as a build method. A good example of part-strength is the 1911 Solid Concepts in Austin printed late last year[0]. They used a EOSINT M 270, a pretty advanced and expensive SLS printer. [1] For reference, that 1911 ran about $600k in build cost. yeesh. [0] - http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2013/12/robert-farago/gun-review-solid-concepts-1911-dmls-direct-metal-laser-sintering/ http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2013/12/robert-farago/gun-r... [1] - http://gpiprototype.com/services/eosintm270.html http://gpiprototype.com/services/eosintm270.html

bsder 13y ago

Even if you could handle the end product strength (and they can ... sort of), there are a lot more problems dealing with metal than plastic. First, metal is a LOT heavier to throw around than plastic. So, your control systems have to be dramatically bigger. Second, the melting points of metals are way higher than plastic, so the energy required to be right at a critical point of flow/melt is a lot bigger. Not to mention the percentage difference between melted and not melted is a lot smaller. Third, a lot of the metal techniques are about melting metal in place. That means that the part is buried in a block of powdered metal. That block of powdered metal is a significant fraction of the weight and cost of a plain old hunk of whatever the metal is. Try imagining fabricating even a small gold part out of a powdered block of 6"x6"x6" of gold--now think about how many metals are WAY more expensive than that. Finally, powdered metal is explosive. Most machines working with powdered metal require nitrogen atmosphere pump down and if there is a leak ... KABOOM.