THE FUNDAMENTALS

THE FUNDAMENTALS WORDS: LAURA GRIFFITHS

The feats of additive manufacturing (AM) in the automotive industry are welldocumented. From Formula 1 parts to tooling for mass production lines, metals to polymers, track to off -track, there isn’t a pocket of the industry that isn’t using 3D technologies in some way.

So when AM pioneer 3D Systems set out its roadmap following the induction of CEO Jeff Graves last year, it came as no surprise that the company selected transportation and motorsports as the focus of one of its newly established industrial teams.

“Transportation and motorsports has been a big piece of 3D Systems from its inception,” Kevin Baughey, Segment Leader, Transportation and Motorsports at 3D Systems, told TCT. “We talked to our Applications Engineers and I was really taken aback by the expertise that they had in sitting in with the companies and teams within the segment.”

From those initial conversations, breaking down current industry applications and challenges, two key areas emerged. One was productivity and effi ciency within existing use cases. The other was around “advancing the science.”

“The folks that we were looking at in those areas were really looking at the fundamental science and engineering to solve problems,” Baughey explained. “That's pretty typical in Formula One because they're on that advanced edge but we're also seeing [it] in the consumer

“That's pretty typical in Formula One because they're on that advanced edge but we're also seeing [it] in the consumer side, [..] given the prevalence of EV and hybrid and all the advanced propulsion systems that are coming into the market.”

In metals, Baughey points to thermodynamic and fl uid management applications where the design freedoms aff orded by AM are allowing components like heat exchangers and hydraulic accumulators to be packaged more effi ciently. There are also metal structural applications where lightweighting and conserving mass are typically the goal. But, as Baughey explains, the reasons behind that are much more complex.

“When you look at the science behind it, there's static forces, dynamic forces that are being managed,” Baughey elaborated. “In many cases, the lightweighting is what you're achieving but understanding why you're achieving it is important. Sometimes it's more mass management than just pure lightweighting. Sometimes it's ‘can we lower the centre of gravity or shift the centre of gravity in certain areas and take advantage?’ Another thing is the inertia of it. A lot of additive is being applied to mass motion components that are dynamically rotating or shifting back and forth and taking out that inertia takes out all of the effi ciency losses, as well as the durability. [...] The key thing is looking beyond just the typical term of lightweighting and looking at the fundamental sciences that are being applied to solve problems.” vehicle is now also being challenged. Rather than doing things the way they’ve always been done (“We weren't fundamentally just rolling out a blank sheet of paper very often,” Baughey recalls of his past experience working in systems engineering and vehicle programme management.), now it’s about “getting down to the math” to understand the problems the industry is trying to solve, and that’s applicable to not only advanced motorsport applications but is also trickling down into the consumer space.

“To be quite frank, if the industry hadn't been disrupted through autonomous and EV and so on, this would probably not be advancing as fast as it is now and entering into the consumer side,” Baughey added.

Thanks to innovations in drivetrain, Thanks to innovations in drivetrain, autonomy and electric vehicles, the autonomy and electric vehicles, the automotive industry is evolving. Because automotive industry is evolving. Because of that, Baughey says of that, Baughey says the fundamental the fundamental architecture of a architecture of a

Recent material developments are also driving more advanced applications. In metals, a newly certifi ed Scalmalloy high-strength aluminum alloy has been engineered for weight-effi cient, load-bearing structural components including suspension brackets and energy and fl uid management components, while Certifi ed M789 is opening up possibilities for automotive parts with higher fi delity and thinner walls, like die inserts with conformal cooling, tire tread molds, drive train parts and axle components. It’s not just metals either, the recently added Accura AMX Rigid Black SLA resin has been adopted by TOYOTA Gazoo Racing to create long-lasting polymer production parts, while Baughey also notes some less obvious opportunities leveraging 3D Systems clear resins to manufacture interior automotive parts such as manufacture interior automotive parts such as complex structures to pipe lighting through the complex structures to pipe lighting through the vehicle. vehicle.

Baughey added: “Some of the advancements Baughey added: “Some of the advancements in materials have really taken them from in materials have really taken them from what were traditionally prototypewhat were traditionally prototypeuse materials, really into what use materials, really into what an automotive lifecycle an automotive lifecycle is going to look is going to look like.” like.”

FROM PROTOTYPE TO PRODUCT IN 41 DAYS

Face mask, injection molded for series production with the ALLROUNDER

CONSOLIDATED EXPERTISE IN PLASTICS PROCESSING

ARBURG was very quick to step up when there was a shortage of face masks at the start of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Its project launched in March 2020 and what transpired in the following 41 days was a testament to the power of innovation and commitment: a dozen or so industrial partners working closely together to develop a new mask and get it ready for mass production.

With the help of the freeformer and ARBURG Plastic Freeforming (APF), they managed to design, produce, and refine a prototype. To produce the mask on a large scale, ARBURG relied on its ALLROUNDER injection molding machine. Within the space of a few weeks, a full production line was set up at the company’s headquarters in Lossburg, which is able to produce around 3,500 masks a day.

“We wanted to develop and produce a unique mask that could be sterilized and, as such, used more than once, while also offering a high level of comfort and reliable protection against the virus,” said ARBURG project manager Manuel Frick, who was responsible for developing the mask. During the prototype phase, the mask’s design was tested on an ongoing basis and the shape gradually refined. Because it was possible to use standard granulate as a basis, functional prototypes in hard/soft combinations could be produced using the APF process in the freeformer.

As they prepared the product for series production, the team of engineers used the freeformer to manufacture prototypes, test their effectiveness, and, as a result, detect problems early and proactively resolve them before mass production. This made the entire mask production process simple and efficient. Instead of design validation, taking the usual weeks per iteration, this could be accomplished in the space of a few days.

For the injection molded flexible masks, ARBURG ended up opting for liquid silicone rubber (LSR). To produce the masks in-house, ARBURG designed a turnkey system for its headquarters in Lossburg.

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Further information: www.arburg.com