DMLS -Direct Metal Laser Sintering Awesome HILARIOUS Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjSb51aEpWU

This video is a funny take on GPI Prototype doing a DMLS Rush Order for a customer. You have to check this video out especially the ending. Comment and rate the video on Youtube. It would mean a lot to me!



GPI Prototype Direct Metal Laser Sintering - DMLS

Tim Ruffner
GPI Prototype
http://gpiprototype.com
DMLS, SLA, SLS, FDM, RTV, CNC and more Prototype Experts
timr@gpiprototype.com

DMLS - Direct Metal Laser Sintering Costs and Materials

Happy Monday!

I just logged into analytic's and seen what people are searching when coming to this blog, the top searches include;

-Direct Metal Costs
-DMLS Materials
-Direct Metal Laser Sintering
-Tim Ruffner (yeah I'm so not making that up lol)
-EOS M270
-GPI Prototype

Instead of talking about myself or GPI Prototype I have decided to share with you some costs and materials using direct metal laser sintertering aka DMLS (dmls).

I'm going to post a picture of a part, although I can not share the STL file I will share the picture and go over what costs would be in each material. Costs include setting the job up, material, labor, running time, removal of supports and finishing (includes stress relieving and shot peening).



Part Size - 1 1/2" Tall 1 1/4" Wide 1" Long 20 micron layers

How the part is positioned on the plate and Z Axis is what really determines price. Z axis is very important because that basically is how much powder is being used. Everytime the build plate and vat go down the re-coater arm will re-coat the build plate with powder, essentially using that powder and time. The laser sintering of each layer is quite fast the plate moving for each layer either 20 or 40 microns and the re-coater arm moving from side to side pushing powder is what takes the most amount of time. Setting up the machine takes roughly an hour and a half. Setting up the file takes about 45 min. The part I am giving you a price on was supported width wise so only 1" in height, plus 1/4" in support (giving you clearance for a band saw blade to cut supports from the build platform). Total build time was about 6 hours. Total finishing (support removal and polishing prior to blasting) including post hardening (4 hour process) was about 7 hours. Total time in this one part was about 15 hours.

PH1 - $650.00.

That comes to about $43.00 an hr. Not too bad is it? Not at all considering you have a metal part that can only be made this one way (this part shown has conformal cooling channels). Now as you may or may not know this was only 1 of 4 total parts for this insert for a golf ball but done solely as demonstration purposes to show conformal cooling and to educate you on price.

Pricing is different for most parts, obviously there is quite a bit that has to go into consideration before we give out pricing. Put some of that info perspective and the service we offer and that price is far less expensive then conventional methods including time and service given to you from GPI.

Why am I so candid about pricing? Well because I am not scared lol just playing really because I want to educate you in this field, a lot are surprised by how inexpensive this method is. We are offering you a service not just in regards to your product but giving you complete satisfaction for your part and how you are treated. Quality is exceptional, delivery is phenomenal and service is second to none! Give GPI a chance, send us your file and see how GPI can take your concept to reality. You can send your files to timr@gpiprototype.com there is no obligation when it comes to quoting (although even quotes take up some time as we do a simulated run and see how much time is involved with finishing). Tool inserts are a great way to save costs using DMLS technology!

Have linkedin? Add me timr@gpiprototype.com

Tim Ruffner
Account Executive
GPI Prototype & Manufacturing Services, Inc.
940 North Shore Drive
Lake Bluff, IL 60044
http://gpiprototype.com
Phone: 847.615.8900
Fax: 847.615.8920
Email: Timr@GPIprototype.com
GPI Prototype DMLS on Twitter
Tim Ruffner LinkedIn
GPI Prototype on YouTube

GPI Prototype now on YOUTUBE

That's right

Here we are...



Tim Ruffner
Account Executive
GPI Prototype & Manufacturing Services, Inc.
940 North Shore Drive
Lake Bluff, IL 60044
http://GPIprototype.com
Phone: 847.615.8900
Fax: 847.615.8920
Email: Timr@GPIprototype.com

Direct Metal Laser Sintering: Conformal Cooling

Direct Metal Laser Sintering: Conformal Cooling

Conformal Cooling

Conformal Cooling
Conformal cooling is defined as the ability to create cooling/heating configurations within a tool that essentially follows the contour of the tool surface or deviates from that contour as thin/thick sections of the part may dictate for optimal thermal management. The objective typically is to cool or heat the part uniformly. Conformal cooling provides a tremendous advantage in mold tooling through significant reductions in cycle times. Other than the obvious piece-cost savings, other tangible benefits include tool, equipment and floor space savings.

Recent studies show conformal cooling may reduce cycle times between 30 to 60 percent over conventionally cooled tools. This savings is very much geometry-dependent. The more difficult thermal management is with traditional technology, the greater the opportunity for savings with conformal cooling. The Direct Metal Laser Sintering process naturally lends itself to the integration of conformal cooling into injection molds or other tooling.

It should be noted that in many cases, resurfacing the tool might not be necessary to enable the prototype tool to be used in production. Depending on the types of parts being produced, such as volume, surface requirements, abrasiveness of materials, and so on, the prototype tool may be sufficient for production as built.

Conformal Cooling PDF
Conformal Cooling Link

Cooling of injection molding tooling is crucial to the performance of the tooling, influencing both the rate of the process and the resulting quality of the parts produced. However, cooling line design and fabrication have been confined to relatively simple configurations, primarily due to the limits of the fabrication methods used to make tools, but also due to the lack of a design methodology appropriate for cooling lines.

For many years, mold designers have been struggling for the improvement of cooling system performance, despite the fact that cooling system complexity is physically limited by the fabrication capability of conventional tooling methods. Different methods such as helical channels, the baffled hole system, the spiral plug system and heat-pipes have been developed for uniform and efficient cooling of the part. Some mold manufacturers such as Innova Zug Engineering GmbH of Germany optimized the thermal conditions by building cooling channels following the part shape. Other manufacturers such as CITO Products, Inc., developed the pulse cooling technique for better control of the mold temperature, in order to reduce the energy consumption and enhance uniform cooling condition.

The emergence of new processes that can be used to create tools with conformal cooling channels placed with almost arbitrary complexity not only offers the designer new degrees of freedom in the design of injection molding tools, but also simplifies the methodology used to design cooling channels.

Conformal Cooling on the web

CLICK HERE TO LEARN HOW GPI CAN HELP YOU WITH YOUR DMLS APPLICATIONS AND CONFORMAL COOLING

Solid Freeform Fabrication processes such as DMLS have demonstrated the potential to produce tools with complex internal geometry. This work explores the application of this capability to improve thermal management for injection molding tooling through: (i)cooling lines which are conformal to the mold surface which provide improved uniformity and stability of mold temperature and (ii)tools with low thermal inertia which, in combination with conformal fluid channels allow for rapid heating and cooling of tooling, thereby facilitating isothermal filling of the mold cavity. This work presents a systematic, modular, approach to the design of conformal cooling channels. Recognizing that the cooling is local to the surface of the tool, the tool is divided up into geometric regions and a channel system is designed for each region. Each channel system is itself modeled as composed of cooling elements, typically the region spanned by two channels. Six criteria are applied including; a transient heat transfer condition which dictates a maximum distance from mold surface to cooling channel, considerations of pressure and temperature drop along the flow channel and considerations of strength of the mold. These criteria are treated as constraints and successful designs are sought which define windows bounded by these constraints. The methodology is demonstrated in application to a complex core and cavity for injection molding. In the area of rapid thermal cycling, this work utilizes the design methods for conformal channels for the heating phases and adds analysis of the packing and cooling phases. A design is created which provides thermal isolation and accommodation of cyclic thermal stresses though an array of bendable support columns which support the molding portion of the tool where the heating/cooling channels are contained. Designed elasticity of the tool is used to aid in packing of the polymer during the cooling phase.

Conformal Cooling Research from NASA and MIT

3D Printing

Previous means of producing a prototype typically took person-hours, many tools, and skilled labor. For example, after a new street light luminaire was digitally designed, drawings were sent to skilled craftspeople where the design on paper was painstakingly followed and a three-dimensional prototype was produced in wood by utilizing an entire shop full of expensive wood working machinery and tools. This typically was not a speedy process and costs of the skilled labor were not cheap. Hence the need to develop a faster and cheaper process to produce prototypes. As an answer to this need, rapid prototyping was born.

One variation of 3D printing consists of an inkjet printing system. Layers of a fine powder (plaster, corn starch, or resins) are selectively bonded by "printing" an adhesive from the inkjet printhead in the shape of each cross-section as determined by a CAD file. This technology is the only one that allows for the printing of full colour prototypes. It is also recognized as the fastest method.

Alternately, these machines feed liquids, such as photopolymer, through an inkjet-type printhead to form each layer of the model. These Photopolymer Phase machines use an ultraviolet (UV) flood lamp mounted in the print head to cure each layer as it is deposited.

Fused deposition modeling (FDM), a technology also used in traditional rapid prototyping, uses a nozzle to deposit molten polymer onto a support structure, layer by layer.

Another approach is selective fusing of print media in a granular bed. In this variation, the unfused media serves to support overhangs and thin walls in the part being produced, reducing the need for auxiliary temporary supports for the workpiece. Typically a laser is used to sinter the media and form the solid. Examples of this are SLS (Selective Laser Sintering) and DMLS (Direct Metal Laser Sintering), using metals.

DMLS on Video

It will be just a matter of days before I put the DMLS video on youtube. I am going to run a short series along with some several key points in regards to additive manufacturing.

-GPI Into Video
-DMLS - Direct Metal Laser Sintering Process
-Conformal Cooling - The process that can save injection molders at least 30% cycle time.

I will put up the links so they can be followed and hope to see you all watching.