The RAPID 2013 Conference & Exposition Directory - Society of ...

ConferenCe Details
layer encodes the material limits of the output device (an FDM 3D
printer) into a design of a digital 3D module. The user can then
gesture with his hand to digitally model a sculptural form, which
is also instantly optimized for 3D printing. Potential applications of
this 3D scanning/sensing/printing approach have been explored
at the scale of the building, through architectural ornament,
and at the scale of the body, through wearable armature. This
interface between digital design and physical production
demonstrates how designers can rapidly generate intricate
and elegant digital forms that are both grounded in a physical
context and are instantly available to be made tangible through
3D printing.
11:30–11:55 am
Precious Metals in Additive Manufacturing
Joseph Strauss, PhD, Engineer/President, HJE Company Inc.
There is significant interest in additive manufacturing of precious
metals in the jewelry, watch, and dental industries. Although
direct manufacture of functional metal parts is practiced with
traditional engineering materials (steels, Ti-alloys, Co-Cr, etc.)
direct manufacture of precious metal alloys has several unique
requirements and challenges. For example: the part’s surface
finish is more critical, machine size and type can strongly affect
process economics, and the powder supply chain is in its
infancy. This presentation will discuss the application of additive
manufacturing to precious metals with respect to technical,
economic, and infrastructure aspects and also report on current
activity in additive manufacturing of precious metals.
Final Part Production
1:30–5 pm
Additive Manufacturing is not just for prototyping. This session
will detail applications where the additive process is used to
save time and expense in final part production.
1:30–1:55 pm
A Case Study in the Use of Additive Manufacturing
as a Viable Production Process
David K. Leigh, President, Harvest Technologies Inc.
Ben Fulcher, Engineer, Harvest Technologies Inc.
manufacture, minimal geometrical limitations, and the lack of
an initial tooling investment (as compared to injection molding).
Many of the AM technologies have been built around prototyping
and concept model criteria and do not lend themselves to
functional parts to be used in “end-use” applications. However,
as the knowledge and adoption of additive manufacturing
grows, the market for additively manufactured end-use parts
grows with it. Powder-bed fusion (PBF) processes, such as laser
sintering (LS) of polymers and selective laser melting (SLM) of
metals, have been increasingly used in recent years as a bridge
to traditional production processes as well as the production
process of choice. The ability to consistently produce quality
parts within dimensional and mechanical specifications has been
a key to this progression and is necessary for its future. Harvest
Technologies (Harvest), an AM production company of LS and
stereolithography (SLA), continues to pioneer efforts to make
LS relevant for the sustained production of end-use parts. This
presentation will be a case study of the production and quality
processes necessary to maintain production within the additive
manufacturing industry.
2–2:25 pm
Battlefield Printing of Surgical Instruments
by Fused Deposition Modeling
Shayne A. Kondor, Medical Modeling Engineer,
Naval Postgraduate Dental School
Limited availability of sterile surgical instruments in austere
and combat environments is a challenge. Logistic and supply
constraints limit the quantity and variety of surgical instruments
available in the field, and sterilization equipment is often not
available to support the instruments on hand. Fused Deposition
Modeling (FDM) presents a solution to these problems: durable,
biocompatible plastic resins can be printed by FDM into any shape,
and emerge sterile from the process. This concept was explored
by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
Service Chiefs Fellowship Program as a 90-day proof of concept.
Over a period of less than three months, the team developed and
demonstrated the ability to produce sterile surgical instruments in a
field setting using an FDM additive manufacturing device.
Additive manufacturing (AM) of plastics naturally lends itself
to the prototyping business model due to the ability for fast
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