TITLE PAGE

GUJARAT TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY

Summer Internship Program June-2021

With

Value plus Tech Solutions

Technical-Report On

Team 05: Additive + Advance

Manufacturing Processes and Metal Forming

Iron Potters

Name Roll Number Enrolment Number

Yash Gohel GEC10 180200119017
Somen Mondal GEC11 180200119034

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ABSTRACT

ABSTRACT

Throughout the timeline of manufacturing development, we came to know that casting, forming,
machining and joining are the most basic manufacturing methods. We have known all these methods
since decades. But redevelopment in these methods is always required because of demand in accuracy,
speed, precision, cost cutting and optimisation in industries. Nowadays, there are so many new
methods in the market, because every industry and every particular product have their optimised
version of production method and which is very helpful also, to the other beginners. Classification of
these methods is expanding in exponential rate, which shows a requirement of capturing them down
to one place, to make an easy move towards compacting the knowledge in our hands. So, the purpose
of his report is to gather all knowledge and information about additive and advance manufacturing
processes. Metal forming is also a part of this report but metal forming is like an old human among the
additive and advance manufacturing, who always guides them. This report includes all methods and
processes about additive + advance manufacturing and metal forming; their needs, importance,
applications, advantages, limitations, recent developments, histories, case studies, future developments
and industries who are involved in them.

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EXPERIENCE

Team member experience:

Yash Gohel:
From the date of 31st I am very excited about the internship because of I have many questions on my
mind like., How’s it? How’s Going? I got some little bit idea about Internship program work from
the first meeting. After knowing about all rules and working content I am exhausted because of it
was 1000 pages project thaw completing in 15 days only, it was very huge project. After passing
some couple of days, I have familiar with some rules and working environment to manage that work
but still it was very big number of pages. Due to some questions Ravin sir arrange a meeting for
clarification of thoughts. Sir clarifies that “Number of Pages is not important but what you will grab
is important”. After that I am chilled and started my work in exact manner. We started from Additive
Manufacturing and completed that within 5 days just because of lack of format there was only a ruff
document of additive manufacturing but after arrived the format we arrange them into a proper
document. Secondly, we started working on Metal forming Process and working on it
simultaneously. Jay sir and Khyati ma’am supports every time whenever we have some draughts.
Now I am able to do any kind of search and surfing on google just because of this internship because
it’s improves my surfing ability. Also, I get lots of knowledge from the field of manufacturing
personally from my project topics. I rated my Experience to 4 out of 5 stars.

Somen Mondal:
From the first day, it was very suspenseful. Because I didn’t know anything about such internship.
But i was very confident about the completion of report of 1000 pages. But when me and my team
member gathered all topics in index. Our brain hanged. Because it was such a huge work to do. But
when we started our work after the guidance of our mentors, we felt like “let’s give it a shot”. So, we
started with additive manufacturing. And it took us 5 days to complete and found that, report was not
exceedingly even half century. So, our brain hanged again and this time even the task manager was
not responding. But after clarification with Ravin sir, our strained nerves got chilled. He suggested
doing quality work rather than quantity work. Then, we started again and now we are about to
complete the report. Overall score of experience was 8 out of 10. Because my two seasons of Silicon
Valley (series) are still pending.
That doesn’t matter, what matters is i get to know about so many recent developments in
manufacturing processes which i didn’t knew before. And also, I have an attitude addition of “yeah,
now I know, how to search about anything” And question of watching two series of Silicon Valley? I
can cover it overnight after completion of internship.

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INDEX

CONTENTS
Phase- 1
Section – (A) Additive Manufacturing
1. Introduction 1-5
1.1. history
1.2. How does Additive Manufacturing work?
1.3. overview of additive manufacturing
2. Importance of AM 5-6
3. Additive Manufacturing materials 6-8
3.1. What metals can be used?
3.2. What thermoplastics are suitable?
3.3. What unusual materials are used in additive manufacturing?
3.4. Which medical and biochemical materials can be used?
3.5. Can glass be used?
3.6. chocolate
4. Introduction to Powder manufacturing processes: 9-31
4.1. Powder Bed Fusion:
4.1.1. Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)
4.1.2. Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS)
4.1.3. Selective Heat Sintering (SHS)
4.1.4. Electron Beam Melting (EBM)
4.2. Powder manufacturing processes:
4.2.1. The gas atomization process
4.2.2. The VIM gas atomization process and Other atomization
4.3. Binder jetting
4.4. Direct Energy Deposition (or Laser metal deposition)
4.5. Material Extrusion
4.6. Material Jetting
4.7. Sheet Lamination
4.7.1. Laminated Object Manufacturing
4.7.2. Ultrasonic AM
4.8. Vat Polymerization
5. Additive Manufacturing technologies: 32-37
5.1. Stereolithography (SLA)
5.2. Digital Light Process (DLP)
5.3. Continuous Digital Light Process (CDLP)
5.4. Direct Metal Laser Melting (DMLM)
5.5. Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM)
5.6. Poly-Jet/ MultiJet Modelling
6. AM technology advantages: 38-40
6.1. reducing the amount of material used
6.2. ability to manufacture objects with complex geometries
6.3. reduced manufacturing cost for small series
6.4. higher speed and lower prototyping cost
7. AM technology limitations 41-41
8. Applications of additive manufacturing techniques: 41-42
8.1. Aerospace
8.2. Automotive & Car racing

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INDEX

8.3. Healthcare
8.4. Product development
8.5. Additional applications
8.5.1. Prototyping
8.5.2. Tooling
8.5.3. Manufacturing tools
8.5.4. End use parts
8.5.5. Didactics
9. Case studies: 43-49
9.1. Generative design for metal 3d printing
9.2. Objectify & ISRO Use Additive Manufacturing to Develop Legacy Components
9.3. 3D Printed brackets
10. Industrial development: 50-53
1.1. Aerospace
1.2. Medical
1.3. Transportation
1.4. Energy
1.5. Consumer products
11. Future functioning of (AM): 53-54
11.1. Additive for space industry
11.2. Flying robots

Section – (B) Metal Forming Processes

1. History of Metal Forming Processes: 55-58
1.1. Who invented it?
1.2. Defining
1.3. Development till now
2. Need of MFP 59-59
3. Importance of MFP 59-59
4. What is Metal-Rolling? 59-62
5. Metal-Rolling Processes and Equipment: 62-73
5.1. The Flat-rolling Process
5.2. Shape rolling process
5.3. Roll forging (cross rolling)
5.4. Skew rolling
5.5. Ring rolling
5.6. Thread rolling
5.7. Rotary tube piercing
5.8. Tube rolling
5.9. Cold/ Hot rolling
5.10. Flat rolling
5.11. Pack rolling
5.12. Steckel rolling
5.13. Tandem rolling
5.14. Temper rolling

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INDEX

6. What is Forging? 74-75

7. Forging processes: 75-92
7.1. Open-die forging
7.2. Close-die forging
7.3. Impression-die forging
7.4. Precision forging
7.5. Incremental forging
7.6. Isothermal forging
7.7. Net-shape forging
7.8. Tube Swaging
7.9. Rotary swaging
7.10. Up-setting
7.11. Orbital forging
7.12. Coining
7.13. Hubbing
7.14. Fullering
7.15. Cogging
7.16. Piercing
8. What is Extrusion & Drawing? 92-94
8.1. Metal Extrusion and Drawing processes: 94-106
8.1.1. Hot extrusion
8.1.2. forward and backward
8.1.3. cold extrusion
8.1.3.1. hydrostatic
8.1.3.2. impact
8.1.3.3. hooker
8.1.3.4. cold extrusion forging
8.1.4. Jacketing
8.1.5. Ironing
8.1.6. Drawing
8.1.6.1. Wire drawing
8.1.6.2. Rod drawing
8.1.6.3. Tube drawing
8.2. Sheet metal Forming Classification: 106-145
8.2.1. Shearing operations:
8.2.1.1. Die-cutting
8.2.1.2. Fine blanking
8.2.1.3. Slitting
8.2.1.4. Steal rules
8.2.1.5. Nibbling
8.2.1.6. Scrap in shearing
8.2.2. Bending:
8.2.2.1. Press brake forming
8.2.2.2. Bending in four-slide machine
8.2.2.3. Roll beading
8.2.2.4. Flanging
8.2.2.5. Roll forming
8.2.2.6. Tube bending and forming
8.2.3. Metal sheet cutting:

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INDEX

8.2.3.1. Laser-beam cutting

8.2.3.2. Water-jet cutting
8.2.3.3. Band-Saw cutting
8.2.3.3.1. Horizontal band saw
8.2.3.3.2. Vertical band saw
8.2.3.4. Friction-Saw cutting
8.2.3.5. Flame cutting
8.2.4. Deep Drawing:
8.2.4.1. Process Definition
8.2.4.2. Metal deep drawing Process
8.2.4.3. Advantages
8.2.4.4. Disadvantages
8.2.4.5. Importance deep drawing products
8.2.4.6. Rubber Forming
8.2.4.7. Hydroforming
8.2.5. Spinning:
8.2.5.1. Conventional spinning
8.2.5.2. Skew spinning
8.2.5.3. Tube spinning
8.2.5.4. Incremental spinning
9. Rapid-Prototyping:
9.1. What is rapid prototyping? 146-154
9.1.1. Subtractive Processes
9.1.1.1. CNC
9.1.2. Additive Processes
9.1.3. Virtual Prototyping
9.1.4. Direct Manufacturing and Rapid Tooling
9.2. Powder-metallurgy: 154-165
9.2.1. Methods of powder production:
9.2.1.1. Atomization
9.2.1.2. Reduction
9.2.1.3. Electrolytic deposition
9.2.1.4. Carbonyls
9.2.1.5. Comminution
9.2.1.6. Mechanical alloying
9.2.1.7. Blending metal powders
9.2.2. Cold compaction:
9.2.2.1. Conventional Pressing
9.2.2.2. Isostatic pressing
9.2.2.2.1. Cold isostatic
9.2.2.3. Metal Injection molding
9.2.2.4. Roll compacting
9.2.2.5. Powder extrusion
9.2.2.6. Hot compacting
9.2.2.7. Hot isostatic pressing
9.2.2.8. Sintering
9.2.2.8.1. Loose sintering
9.2.2.8.2. Spark sintering
10. Advantages of MFP 166-166
11. Limitations of MFP 166-166

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INDEX

12. Applications 166-173

13. Case studies 174-179
14. Industrial development
15. Future functioning of (MFP) 180-187

Section – (C) Advance Manufacturing Processes

1. History of advance manufacturing: 188-190
1.1. Manufacturing in the beginning
1.2. Manufacturing today
1.3. Manufacturing in future
1.4. Definition
2. Need and importance of AMP 190-194
3. Introduction of Machining Process 195-198
4. Unconventional Machining Processes: 199-213
4.1. Mechanical Energy based processes:
4.1.1. Abrasive Jet Machining (AJM)
4.1.2. Water Jet Machining (WJM) and Abrasive Water Jet Machining (AWJM)
4.1.3. Ultrasonic Machining (USM)
4.2. Electrical Energy based processes:
4.2.1. Electric Discharge Machining (EDM)
4.3. Chemical and electrochemical Energy based processes
4.3.1. Chemical machining
4.4. Thermal Energy based processes:
4.4.1. Electron Beam Machining (EBM)
4.4.2. Plasma Arc machining (PAM)
4.4.3. Laser Beam machining and drilling (LBM)
5. Introduction of metal Casting Process 213-218
6. Advanced Casting Processes: 219-224
6.1. permanent mold casting
6.2. Continuous casting
6.3. Squeeze casting
6.4. Vacuum die casting
6.5. Evaporative pattern casting
6.6. Ceramic shell casting
7. Introduction of Welding Process 225-232
8. Advanced Welding Processes: 233-237
8.1. electron beam welding (EBW)
8.2. laser beam welding (LBW)
8.3. Ultrasonic welding (USW)
9. Introduction of Metal Forming Process 237-243
10. Advanced Metal Forming Processes: 244-249
10.1. high energy rate forming (HERF) process
10.1.1. explosive forming
10.1.2. Electro-magnetic forming
10.1.3. Electro-hydraulic forming
10.2. Stretch forming
10.3. Contour roll forming
11. Fundamentals of Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM): 250-270
11.1. Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM)

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INDEX

11.2. Group Technology

11.3. CAPP
11.4. Flexible Manufacturing system (FMS)
11.5. Integrated Production Management System
12. What is CNC Programming? 271-281
13. CNC Part programming
14. Automation Robotics 282-294
15. Rapid Prototyping: 295-300
15.1. Basics of Rapid Prototyping
15.2. Classification of RP systems:
15.2.1. Liquid Phase
15.2.1.1. Stereolithography (SLA)
15.2.1.2. Fused Deposition (FDM)
15.2.1.3. Ballistic Particle Manufacturing (BPM)
15.2.1.4. Multi Jet Modeling (MJM)
15.2.1.5. Model Maker
15.2.1.6. Shape Deposition Manufacturing (SDM)
15.2.2. Powder Phase
15.2.2.1. Selective Laser sintering (SLS)
15.2.2.2. Three-Dimensional Printing (3DP)
15.2.2.3. Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS)
15.2.3. Sheet form
15.2.3.1. Shape Maker
15.2.3.2. Laminated Object Manufacturing (LOM)
15.2.4. Gas Phase
15.2.4.1. Selective Area Laser Deposition (SALD)
16. Glass Science: 301-315
16.1. Glass and Glassy State
16.2. Glass Compositions and Properties
16.3. Glass furnace and furnace types
16.4. Glass Forming Processes
16.5. Glass processing
17. Composite Materials: 315-331
17.1. Classification of composites
17.2. Manufacturing methods:
17.2.1. Spray Lay-Up
17.2.2. Wet/Hand Lay-up
17.2.3. Vacuum Bagging
17.2.4. Filament Winding
17.2.5. Pultrusion
17.2.6. Resin Transfer Moulding (RTM)
17.2.7. Resin Film Infusion (RFI)
18. Advantages of AMP 332-332
19. Limitations of AMP 333-333
20. Applications 333-334
21. Case studies 335-343
22. Industrial development
23. Future functioning of (AMP)
REFRENCES

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES 1

ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING

Introduction:
History:
 Early Additive Manufacturing Concepts Begin (1880):

 As far back as the 1800s, ideas surrounding 3D scanning were taking shape in their own way.
In 1859, Francois Willeme developed a method called “Photographic Sculpture” in which
he could capture 3D models of human subjects using 24 cameras placed at different angles.
Joseph E.Blanther patented an apparatus that used layering to create three dimensional
topographical maps in 1892.

 The First 3D Printing Technologies are Born (1980):

 It wasn’t until the early 1980s, however, that 3D printing technology really began to kick off.
Dr. Hideo Kodama from the Nagoya Municipal Industrial Research Institute was the first to
invent a layer-by-layer photopolymer rapid prototyping process.
 His method was not commercialized, however, and Charles hull instead became the first to
successfully acquire a patent for his Stereolithography Apparatus and coined the term
“Stereolithography”.
 His method involved building three-dimensional objects layer by layer with photopolymers,
cured by a UV light beam. The first object Hull (Body of a vassal) printed was a black eye-
wash cup. Hull was also responsible for developing the STL file format, the file that 3D
printers most commonly use today. Hull commercialized the process of rapid prototyping and
went on to create 3D Systems.

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES 2

 The late 1980s then gave way to a couple more 3D printing technologies still used today:
Selective laser sintering, a method which uses a laser beam to melt powder into a solid object.

 Developed by Carl Deckard at the University of Texas in Austin who would later go on to
form Stratasys. His early machine “Betsy” was able to print plastic moulds for parts. Fused
deposition modelling, developed by S. Scott Crump & Lisa Crump, was another
technology born in the 1980s in which a material is heated and extruded through a nozzle to
create an object layer by layer, inspired by the ‘Crumps’ use of a hot Glue gun in making
their daughter a toy frog. As of 2020, it is the most commonly used 3D printing technology.

 Technologies Develop and Innovations Grow (1990):

 The 1990s saw the development of many new technologies including Direct Metal Laser
Sintering and Binder Jetting. This is also when 3D printing began paving the way for
innovations in the medical field with the development of bioprinting, which involves
precisely positioning layers of cells and their supportive structures to create functional tissue.
In 1999, the first organ, a Human Bladder, was created by scientists at the Wake Forest
Institute for Regenerative Medicine.

 They 3D printed a synthetic, biodegradable scaffold to create the bladder which was then
coated with the patient's own cells, thus ensuring the organ would not be rejected. This would
allow 3D bioprinting and 3D printing in the medical field to really take shape.
 By the 2000s the cost of machines was starting to decrease and 3D printing technology was
on its way to becoming more accessible. In 2004, reprap (short for replicating rapid
prototype), a desktop printer able to print its own components to build another version of
itself, was invented by Adrian Bowyer as a way of making the technology more accessible
and was the first of the lower-cost printers. The first version of the RepRap printer “Darwin”
was released in 2007, and countless new iterations now exist.

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES 3

 Increase in Accessibility to 3D Printing (2000):

 The internet has continued to increase accessibility to 3D printing technology for anyone
looking to leverage the power of additive manufacturing. Open-source online libraries for 3D
printable files are growing constantly and more businesses are transitioning to 3D printing
and using them to produce professional, quality parts.
 3D printing has also been incorporated in school curriculums even among young students.
Knowledge of 3D printing concepts, technology and software has become a crucial element
of mechanical education and computer science.

 Early Expectations v/s What is Possible Today:

 Charles Hull began developing his 3D printing technology in the early 80’s because he was
frustrated by how time-consuming prototyping was back then. Almost 40 years later, 3D
printing technology has indeed become the fastest and most cost-efficient way of producing
prototypes and has evolved to play important roles in the manufacturing process for many
industries.
 In the past decade, there have been countless innovative projects undertaken using additive
manufacturing as the technology continues to develop. Equipment costs have decreased while
print quality has increased and the printing process is much faster and more efficient.
 It is now possible to create thicker layers and more accurate, complex shapes than ever
before, which has facilitated a shift from prototyping alone to the production of end parts.
Customization is more achievable and affordable with 3D printing than any other
manufacturing process, so businesses can more easily offer personalization options to their
customers.
 3D scanning and printing technology have also allowed for major innovations in the medical
field where patient-specific customizations have helped improve and even save lives.

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES 4

How Does Additive Manufacturing Work?

 3D printing, Rapid Prototyping and Additive manufacturing are all terms used to broadly
describe the same processes, which involve the creation of complex structures and
components by the layering of materials which are gradually built up.

 A technology that’s been around for more than three decades, it’s only recently exploded in
popularity, moving on from merely being a means of producing a 3D printing prototype to
offering fully functional components.
 The possibilities offered are almost endless with the 3D printing industry serving industries
from heavy industry to medicine keen to take advantage of the precision engineering on offer.
 But although Additive Manufacturing provides the potential for new possibilities in science,
the concept behind it and how it works is surprisingly simple.

Overview of Additive Manufacturing:

 There’s a variety of different methods which can be utilized to achieve the final result,
but each broadly goes through the same steps in the process.
 The design is first created using CAD software on a computer: this is what the final
design will be created from, a digital blueprint, so every detail needs to be right. This
software can help engineers predict how the final structure will behave and how
strong it will be so it’s a vital part of the design process.

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES 5

 Once complete the CAD design is converted to a .stl file (standard tessellation
language) which is what’s needed for the printer to be able to interpret the
instructions. This file type was first created in 1987 when it was used by stereo
lithography, a forerunner to the modern Additive Manufacturing technology
 Before the object starts to be created, the orientation of the design and the printer need
to be set up, in the same way as a 2D printer would be. This means configuring the
size and orientation, just how you might select between landscape and portrait prints,
and filling up the cartridges with the right powder or binders to complete the job.
 You’re now ready to let the printer create the product, gradually building up the
design one microscopic layer at a time. A typical layer is around 0.1mm in thickness
but bigger or smaller layers can also be created, depending on the structure being
printed.

 During this time, there’s no intervention required; the printer will simply keep
layering the levels until the product is complete. Periodic checks to make sure no
errors have occurred is all that’s needed. The item could take anything from several
hours to days to complete, depending on the size and complexity of the design.

Importance of additive manufacturing:

 Additive manufacturing, or popularly known today as custom 3d printing, is a technology
which is used to manufacture prototype parts by printing them layer by layer. This
technology has penetrated every major industry from automotive, mobility, aerospace,
defense, consumer products to medical and dental. Most common applications include
functional prototypes, fit and assembly models, patterns for prototype tooling, patterns for
metal casting, presentation models, visual aids, and tooling components. Below are some of
the reasons why additive manufacturing is important in the Rapid prototyping and
Manufacturing industry.

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES 6

1. COMPLEX GEOMETRIES:
 Imagine a prototype that starts with a complex polygonal shape and ends with a circular
structure at the tail end. The smooth transition from a polygon to a circle is difficult to
achieve with conventional manufacturing methods, but can be easily accomplished using
additive manufacturing.

2. REDUCTION IN WEIGHT:
 Additive manufacturing systems either cure, extrude, melt, or sintered material only where it
is needed, allowing for honeycomb structures with higher strength to weight ratio as
compared to completely solid structures. This results in significant weight reduction and
improved part performance.

3. SIMPLIFIED ASSEMBLY:
 3D Printing overcomes some design limitations of traditional manufacturing such as trapped
undercuts. Its flexibility allows for the combination of multiple parts into one component.
This one component streamlines production by eliminating the need for assembly to reach the
desired geometry.
 As we look into the future, it is clear the role of additive manufacturing will continue to
steadily grow. It will not completely replace traditional manufacturing methods such as
injection moulding and die casting, but it will build its footprint layer by layer in the
manufacturing world. New additive manufacturing technologies are making it possible to
produce prototypes that were once considered extremely difficult to produce using traditional
manufacturing technologies.

Additive manufacturing materials:

 Additive manufacturing processes are gradually increasing in their practical application, and
engineers are starting to figure out where, when and how they could be the most useful.
 Rather than looking to completely replace all conventional manufacturing techniques,
additive manufacturing is being used selectively on projects where it can offer a real
advantage. As an example, creating a large-scale item such as a building or a plane wing is
seen as not being advantageous, but manufacturing the small components could provide
previously unavailable benefits.
 The materials which can be used will play a significant part in determining how and where
the process is used, and the role it plays in the future.

 What Metals Can be Used?

 Industrial machines have the ability to use metals; this is not really an option for home
printers because of the cost. The main metals which can be used are: Stainless steel, Steel,
Titanium, Gold, Silver.
 In addition to using pure metals, compounds can also be used but different processes are
generally required during the fusing.

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES 7

 Metal compounds are generally not wholly melted during the sintering process, but the
particles merge. There is a distinction between these two processes as full melting means the
metals all pool together and re-harden as a new compound. This provides waterproofing
qualities not otherwise available.

 As a general rule, metal alloys aren’t suitable for full melting because they have different
melting points. Some metals which have particularly high melting points are also best
sintered rather than fully melted too.

 What Thermoplastics are Suitable?

 Thermoplastics, or polymers, are amongst the cheapest materials that can be used and are the
typical content for commercial 3D printers being sold for home use.
 But despite the widespread availability of these plastics, they still offer some very real benefits.
 The main thermoplastics being used are

 Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)

 Polylactic acid (PLA)
 Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)
 Polycarbonate
 ABS Is the type of polymer which is the
most widespread and can most easily be
described as the type of plastic used for
making Lego bricks.

 PLA is however starting to rise in popularity because of its flexibility, being available in both
rigid and soft finishes. There’s a third type of PLA which provides a rubbery finish, remaining
flexible.
 PVA is used as a material to create supports within the Additive Manufacturing process, and
is entirely dissolvable. These supports can be removed once the final design is complete and
being soluble can just be washed away.
 Polycarbonate is a material which is still in development as it requires a high-temperature
nozzle but holds possibilities for the future.
 The additive manufacturing process allows the combination of plastics with carbon fibre. This
has the advantage of strengthening the product without adding any weight to the design.

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES 8

 What Unusual Materials are Used in Additive Manufacturing?

 Polymers and metals are the most common types of material used and can be used to produce
moulds and functioning components. They are particularly efficient for low-volume
manufacturing and minimise waste.
 There are however possibilities for other materials to be used in additive manufacturing, even
though their use may not be as widespread.

 Which Medical and Biochemical Materials Can be Used?

 As well as industrial manufacturing uses, there’s the possibility that additive manufacturing
processes could be used in the medical field too.
 Bio-ink can be created from stem cells, which are then printed and layered like other
materials, forming new tissue. Exciting results have been created from this technology,
with bladders, blood vessels and kidney parts all having successfully been “printed”.

 It’s not just soft tissue that can be created in this way; new bone has successfully been
grown too. By printing out a compound of a material made from calcium phosphate,
silicon and zinc and combining this with bone cells, new bone growth was stimulated.
The printed material was later dissolved, leaving just the new bone.
 The pharmaceutical industry is starting to become more interested in the ability to use
additive manufacturing to make drugs and medications more cheaply. At present this is
just a fledgling interest and not a developed process in widespread use.

 Can Glass be Used?

 Ground down into a powder so it can be layered thinly as required, glass can be used in
Additive Manufacturing processes. An adhesive bond is required as the cross section of
the design is created and it requires baking before use.

 Chocolate:
 A rather more surprising entrant to this market is chocolate, with baking and cooking set to be
revolutionised by this technology. With an increasingly competitive market, molecular
gastronomy turns up the heat with the ability to create ever more complex shapes and designs.

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Introduction to Powder manufacturing processes:

 Typical PM parts are made in three basic steps: the blending of the metal powder
(pulverization), die compaction, and sintering of the product. Additional heat treatment steps
may be required after sintering in order to achieve the appropriate density, dimensions, and
surface finish.

 Pulverization and sieving prepare the metal powders for use in PM. The powders can vary
in both shape (some are designed to be spherical) and size. Metallic powders can be produced
through one of several different processes, including grinding, crushing, electrolytic
deposition, chemical reactions, and atomization. The size and shape of the particles is an
important factor when designing a part for manufacturing by PM methods.
 Die compaction is accomplished using a predetermined amount of pressure in relation to the
part. This pressure is applied at room temperature, while sintering then begins at elevated
temperatures conducted at atmospheric pressure.
 Note that sintering is performed under strict atmosphere-controlled conditions. After
sintering, secondary heat processes are often used to enhance mechanical properties and
dimensional precision.

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Powder Bed Fusion (PBF):

 The Powder Bed Fusion process includes the following commonly used printing techniques:
Direct metal laser sintering (DMLS), Electron beam melting (EBM), Selective heat sintering
(SHS), Selective laser melting (SLM) and Selective laser sintering (SLS).
 Powder bed fusion (PBF) methods use either a laser or electron beam to melt and fuse
material powder together. Electron beam melting (EBM) methods require a vacuum but
can be used with metals and alloys in the creation of functional parts. All PBF processes
involve the spreading of the powder material over previous layers. There are different
mechanisms to enable this, including a roller or a blade. A hopper or a reservoir below
or beside the bed provides fresh material supply. Direct metal laser sintering (DMLS)
is the same as SLS, but with the use of metals and not plastics. The process sinters the
powder, layer by layer. Selective Heat Sintering differs from other processes by way of
using a heated thermal print head to fuse powder material together. As before, layers
are added with a roller in between fusion of layers. A platform lowers the model
accordingly.

 Powder Bed Fusion: Step by Step:

 A layer, typically 0.1mm thick of material is spread over the build platform.
 A laser fuses the first layer or first cross section of the model.
 A new layer of powder is spread across the previous layer using a roller.
 Further layers or cross sections are fused and added.
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 The process repeats until the entire model is created.

 Loose, un fused powder remains in position but is removed during post processing.

 Advantages of PBF:

 Low cost of machines

 No or minimum support structures needed for the build

 Variety of material selection

 Multiple materials can be used
 Capable of recycling powder

 Disadvantages of PBF:

 Slow and long print time

 Additional post-processing time
 Weaker structural properties

 Variations of surface texture quality

 Support build plate may be needed to avoid warping
 Speed of the print process can determine if the powder is recyclable
 Thermal distortion, mainly for polymer parts
 Machines use a lot of energy to create parts

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Selective laser sintering (SLS):

 Basically, the process uses lasers to sinter, or coalesce, powdered material layer-by-layer to
create a solid structure. The final product, rendered enveloped in loose powder, is then
cleaned with brushes and pressurized air. The main materials used in the SLS 3D printing
process include polyamide (Nylons), Alumite (a blend of Gray aluminium powder and
polyamide), and rubber-like materials. Nylons are strong and durable but do feature some
flexibility, making them excellent for snap fits, brackets, clips, and spring features. Designers
should take the susceptibility for shrinkage and warping of thin parts into consideration
during the conceptual phase.

 SLS machines are made up of three components: a heat source to fuse the material, a
method to control this heat source and a mechanism to add new layers of material over the
previous. The SLS process benefits from requiring no additional support structure, as the
powder material provides adequate model support throughout the build process. The build
platform is within a temperature-controlled chamber, where the temperature is usually a few
degrees below that of the material melting point, reducing the dependency of the laser to fuse
layers together.
 The chamber is often filled with nitrogen to maximise oxidation and end quality of the model.
Models require a cool down period to ensure a high tolerance and quality of fusion. Some
machines monitor the temperature layer by layer and adapt the power and wattage of the laser
respectively to improve quality.

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Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS):

 It uses the same process as SLS, but with the use of metals and not plastic powders. The
process sinters the powder, layer by layer and a range of engineering metals are available.

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Selective Laser Melting (SLM):

 Selective Laser Melting (SLM), also called Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) The
same technical principle is used to produce Selective Laser Melting (SLM) and Direct Metal
Laser Sintering (DMLS) parts, but is exclusively used to produce metal parts. SLM achieves
a full melt of the powder so that single-component metals, such as aluminium, can be used to
create light, strong spare parts and prototypes. DMLS sinters the powders and is restricted to
alloys, including titanium-based alloys. These methods require added support to compensate
for the high residual stress and to limit the occurrence of distortion. Applications include
jewellery and dental industries, spare parts, and prototypes.
 Selective Laser Melting (SLM) Compared to SLS, SLM is often faster, but requires the use
of an inert gas, has higher energy costs and typically has a poor energy efficiency of 10 to
20 %. The process uses either a roller or a blade to spread new layers of powder over
previous layers. When a blade is used, it is often vibrated to encourage a more even
distribution of powder. A hopper or a reservoir below or beside the bed provides a fresh
material supply.

Selective Heat Sintering (SHS):

 (SHS) uses a heated thermal printhead to fuse powder material together. As before, layers are
added with a roller in-between fusion of layers. The process is used in creating concept
prototypes and less so structural components.
 The use of a thermal print head and not a laser benefits the process by reducing significantly
the heat and power levels required. Thermoplastics powders are used and as before act as
support material. The ‘Blue printer’ is a desktop 3D printer that uses the SHS technology,
with a build chamber of 200mm x 160mm x 140mm, print speed of 2-3mm/hour and a layer
thickness of 0.1mm.

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Electron Beam Melting (EBM):

 Layers are fused using an electron beam to melt metal powders. Machine manufacturer
Arcam used electromagnetic coils to control the beam and a vacuum pressure of 1×10-5
MBA). EBM provides models with very good strength properties due to an even temperature
distribution of during fusion. The high quality and finish that the process allows for makes it
suited to the manufacture of high standard parts used in aeroplanes and medical applications.

 The process offers a number of benefits over traditional methods of implant creation,
including hip stem prosthesis (Agaruala, 1995).
 Compared to CNC machining, using EBM with titanium and a layer thickness of 0.1mm, can
achieve better results, in an faster time and can reduce the cost by up to 35%.

 Post processing requirements include removing excess powder and further cleaning and CNC
work. One advantage and common aim of post processing is to increase the density and
therefore the structural strength of a part. Liquid phase sintering is a method of melting the
metal powder or powder combination in order to achieve homogenisation and a more
continuous microstructure throughout the material, however, shrinking during the process
must be accounted for. Hot isotactic pressing is another method to increase density; a vacuum
sealed chamber is used to exert high pressures and temperatures of the material. Although
this is an effective technique to improve strength, the trade-off is a longer and more
expensive build time.
 The EBM 3D printing technology attains fusion with the use of a high-energy electron beam
and produces less residual stress resulting in less distortion. It uses less energy and can
produce layers faster than SLS.
 This method is most useful in high-value industries such as aerospace and defence, motor
sports, and medical prosthetics.

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Powder Manufacturing Processes:

 The Gas Atomization Process:

 Gas atomization is a process to manufacture
high quality metal powders. During the gas
atomization process, the molten steel is
atomized thanks to inert gas jets into fine metal
droplets which cool down during their fall in
the atomizing tower. Metal powders obtained
by gas-atomization offer a perfectly spherical
shape combined with a high cleanliness level.
After the atomization process, powders are
collected in a capsule which is sealed and then
compacted by Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP).
 The semi-finished capsule is then further
processed by forging, hot rolling and drawing
or cold rolling into various product forms such
as round and flat bars or profiled wire, sheets
and strips.

 The VIM gas atomization process & Other atomization:

 Commercial vacuum induction melting (VIM)

was developed in the early 1950s, having been
stimulated by the need to produce superalloys
containing reactive elements within an evacuated
atmosphere. The process is relatively flexible,
featuring the independent control of time,
temperature, pressure, and mass transport
through melt stirring.

 As such, VIM offers more control over alloy

composition and homogeneity than other vacuum
melting processes. In the VIM gas atomization
process, the melting takes place in a vacuum
chamber. This process is recommended for super
alloys so as to avoid in particular oxygen pick-up
when working with alloys with reactive elements
such as Ti and Al.

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Binder jetting:
 The binder jetting process uses two materials; a powder-based material and a binder. The binder
acts as an adhesive between powder layers. The binder is usually in liquid form and the build
material in powder form. A print head moves horizontally along the x and y axes of the machine
and deposits alternating layers of the build material and the binding material. After each layer,
the object being printed is lowered on its build platform.
 Due to the method of binding, the material characteristics are not always suitable for structural
parts and despite the relative speed of printing, additional post processing (see below) can add
significant time to the overall process.
 As with other powder-based manufacturing methods, the object being printed is self-supported
within the powder bed and is removed from the unbound powder once completed.

 The technology is often referred to as 3DP technology and is copyrighted under this name.

Materials: Stainless steel, ABS, PA, PC, Glass

Binder Jetting – Step by Step

 Powder material is spread over the build platform using a roller.

 The print head deposits the binder adhesive on top of the powder where required.
 The build platform is lowered by the model’s layer thickness.
 Another layer of powder is spread over the previous layer. The object is formed where the
powder is bound to the liquid.
 Unbound powder remains in position surrounding the object.
 The process is repeated until the entire object has been made.

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 The binder jetting process allows for colour printing and uses metal, polymers and ceramic
materials. The process is generally faster than others and can be further quickened by
increasing the number of print head holes that deposit material. The two-material approach
allows for a large number of different binder-powder combinations and various mechanical
properties of the final model to be achieved by changing the ratio and individual properties of
the two materials. The process is therefore well suited for when the internal material structure
needs to be of a specific quality.

 Layers of build material, often in granular and powder form, are held together using the
adhesive binder. The print head deposits the binding material in micro amounts and the
powder material is used in creating the majority of the overall object mass. A heated build
chamber can help to speed up the printing process by increasing the viscosity of the materials.

 Post Processing: The overall process time is extended as it requires the binder to set and the
part is often allowed to cool in the machine to fully solidify to achieve a high-quality finish.
Post processing is often required to make the part stronger and give the binder-material better
mechanical and structural properties.

Advantages:

 Parts can be made with a range of different colours

 Uses a range of materials: metal, polymers and ceramics
 The process is generally faster than others
 The two-material method allows for a large number of different binder-powder combinations
and various mechanical properties

Disadvantages:

 Not always suitable for structural parts, due to the use of binder material
 Additional post processing can add significant time to the overall process

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Direct Energy Deposition:

 Directed Energy Deposition (DED) covers a range of terminology: ‘Laser engineered net
shaping, directed light fabrication, direct metal deposition, 3D laser cladding’ It is a more
complex printing process commonly used to repair or add additional material to existing
components (Gibson et al., 2010).

 A typical DED machine consists of a nozzle mounted on a multi axis arm, which deposits
melted material onto the specified surface, where it solidifies. The process is similar in
principle to material extrusion, but the nozzle can move in multiple directions and is not fixed
to a specific axis. The material, which can be deposited from any angle due to 4 and 5 axis
machines, is melted upon deposition with a laser or electron beam. The process can be used
with polymers, ceramics but is typically used with metals, in the form of either powder or wire.

 The Electron Beam Melting process uses metals and not polymers or ceramics.
 Metals: Cobalt Chrome, Titanium
Direct Energy Deposition – Step by Step

 A 4 or 5 axis arms with nozzle moves around a fixed object.

 Material is deposited from the nozzle onto existing surfaces of the object.
 Material is either provided in wire or powder form.
 Material is melted using a laser, electron beam or plasma arc upon deposition.
 Further material is added layer by layer and solidifies, creating or repairing new material
features on the existing object.

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 The DED process uses material in wire or powder form. Wire is less accurate due to the
nature of a pre- formed shape but is more material efficient when compared to powder
(Gibson et al., 2010), as only required material is used. The method of material melting varies
between a laser, an electron beam or plasma arc, all within a controlled chamber where the
atmosphere has reduced oxygen levels. With 4 or 5 axis machines, the movement of the feed
head will not change the flow rate of material, compared to fixed, vertical deposition (Gibson
et al., 2010).
 Whilst in most cases, it is the arm that moves and the object remains in a fixed position, this
can be reversed and a platform could be moved instead and the arm remain in a fixed
position. The choice will depend on the exact application and object being printed. Material
cooling times are very fast, typically between 1000 – 5000 degrees Celsius / second (Gibson
et al., 2010). The cooling time will in turn affect the final grain structure of the deposited
material, although the overlapping of material must also be considered, where the grain
structure is changed as the overlapping can cause re-melting to occur, resulting in a uniform
but alternating micro-structure. Typical layer thicknesses of 0.25 mm to 0.5 mm (Gibson et
al., 2010).

Advantages:

 Advantages of DED
 Ability to control the grain structure to a high degree, which lends the process to repair work
of high quality, functional parts

 A balance is needed between surface quality and speed, although with repair applications,
speed can often be sacrificed for a high accuracy and a pre- determined microstructure
(Gibson et al., 2010)

Disadvantages:

 Finishes can vary depending on paper or plastic material but may require post processing to
achieve desired effect
 Limited material use
 Fusion processes require more research to further advance the process into a more
mainstream positioning

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Material extrusion:
 Fuse deposition modelling (FDM) is a common material extrusion process and is trademarked
by the company Stratasys. Material is drawn through a nozzle, where it is heated and is then
deposited layer by layer. The nozzle can move horizontally and a platform moves up and down
vertically after each new layer is deposited. It is a commonly used technique used on many
inexpensive, domestic and hobby 3D printers.
 The process has many factors that influence the final model quality but has great potential and
viability when these factors are controlled successfully. Whilst FDM is similar to all other 3D
printing processes, as it builds layer by layer, it varies in the fact that material is added through
a nozzle under constant pressure and in a continuous stream. This pressure must be kept steady
and at a constant speed to enable accurate results (Gibson et al., 2010). Material layers can be
bonded by temperature control or through the use of chemical agents. Material is often added
to the machine in spool form as shown in the diagram.
 The Material Extrusion process uses polymers and plastics.
 Polymers: ABS, Nylon, PC, PC, AB

Material Extrusion – Step by Step:

 First layer is built as nozzle deposits material where required onto the cross-sectional area of
first object slice.
 The following layers are added on top of previous layers.

 Layers are fused together upon deposition as the material is in a melted state.

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 Advantages of the material extrusion process include use of readily available ABS plastic,
which can produce models with good structural properties, close to a final production model.
In low volume cases, this can be a more economical method than using injection moulding.
However, the process requires many factors to control in order to achieve a high-quality
finish. The nozzle which deposits material will always have a radius, as it is not possible to
make a perfectly square nozzle and this will affect the final quality of the printed object
(Chua et al., 2010). Accuracy and speed are low when compared to other processes and the
quality of the final model is limited to material nozzle thickness (Krar et al., 2003).

 When using the process for components where a high tolerance must be achieved, gravity and
surface tension must be accounted for (Gibson et al., 2010). Typical layer thickness varies
from 0.178 mm – 0.356 mm (Chua et al., 2010).
 One method of post processing to improve the visual appearance of models is through
improving material transmissivity. Methods have been explored by Ahn et all, include
increasing temperature and the use of resin. Experiments using cyamo acrylate resin, often
used to improve the strength of parts, resulted in a 5% increase in transmissivity after 30
seconds and sanding (Ahn, 2004). As with most heat related post processing processes,
shrink- age is likely to occur and must be taken into account if a high tolerance is required.

Advantages:

 Widespread and inexpensive process

 ABS plastic can be used, which has good structural properties and is easily accessible

Disadvantages:

 The nozzle radius limits and reduces the final quality

 Accuracy and speed are low when compared to other processes and accuracy of the final
model is limited to material nozzle thickness
 Constant pressure of material is required in order to increase quality of finish

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Material jetting:
 Material jetting creates objects in a similar method to a two-dimensional ink jet printer.
Material is jetted onto a build platform using either a continuous or Drop on Demand (DOD)
approach.
 Material is jetted onto the build surface or platform, where it solidifies and the model is built
layer by layer. Material is deposited from a nozzle which moves horizontally across the build
platform. Machines vary in complexity and in their methods of controlling the deposition of
material. The material layers are then cured or hardened using ultraviolet (UV) light.

 As material must be deposited in drops, the number of materials available to use is limited.
Polymers and waxes are suitable and commonly used materials, due to their viscous nature and
ability to form drops.

 The material jetting process uses polymers and plastics.

Polymers: Polypropylene, HDPE, PS, PMMA, PC, ABS, HIPS, EDP

Material Jetting – Step by Step

 The print head is positioned above the build platform.

 Droplets of material are deposited from the print head onto the surface where required, using
either thermal or piezoelectric method.

 Droplets of material solidify and make up the first layer.

 Further layers are built up as before on top of the previous.
 Layers are allowed to cool and harden or are cured by UV light. Post processing includes
removal of support material.

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 Material Jetting builds objects in a similar method to a two-dimensional ink jet printer.
Multiple materials can be used in one process and the material can be changed during the
build stage. Material is jetted onto the build platform surface in droplets, which are formed
using an oscillating nozzle. Droplets are then charged and positioned onto the surface using
charged deflection plates. This is a continuous system which allows for a high level of droplet
control and positioning. Droplets which are not used are recycled back into the printing
system.

 Nanoparticle jetting:

The nanoparticle jetting process deposits extremely thin layers of liquid full of metal
nanoparticles onto a build plate. Once deposited, the material gets heated to high
temperatures, causing the liquid to evaporate and leave the metal behind. Drop on Demand
(DOD) is used to dispense material onto the required surface. Droplets are formed and
positioned into the build surface, in order to build the object being printed, with further
droplets added in new layers until the entire object has been made. The nature of using
droplets, limits the number of materials available to use. Polymers and waxes are often used
and are suitable due to their viscous nature and ability to form drops.

Viscosity is the main determinant in the process; there is a need to re-fill the reservoir quickly
and this in turn affects print speed. Unlike a continuous stream of material, droplets are
dispensed only when needed, released by a pressure change in the nozzle from thermal or
piezoelectric actuators. Thermal actuators deposit droplets at a very fast rate and use a thin
film resistor to form the droplet. The piezoelectric method is often considered better as it
allows a wider range of materials to be used. The designs of a typical DOD printhead changes
from one machine to another but according to Ottnad, typically include a reservoir, sealing
ring, Piezo elements and silicon plate with nozzle, held together with high temperature glue.

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 Post processing: Support material can be removed using a sodium hydroxide solution or
water jet. Due to the high accuracy of the process technology, the level of post processing
required to enhance the properties is limited and the functional and aesthetic qualities of a
part are largely determined during the printing stage. Stratasys polyjet technology cures the
material using UV light and therefore no post curing process is needed.

Advantages:

 The process benefits from a high accuracy of deposition of droplets and therefore low waste
 The process allows for multiple material parts and colours under one process

Disadvantages:

 Support material is often required

 A high accuracy can be achieved but materials are limited and only polymers and waxes can
be used Sheet Lamination

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Sheet Laminating:

 Sheet lamination processes include ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM) and laminated
object manufacturing (LOM). The Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing process uses sheets or
ribbons of metal, which are bound together using ultrasonic welding. The process does require
additional cnc machining and removal of the unbound metal, often during the welding process.
Laminated object manufacturing (LOM) uses a similar layer by layer approach but uses paper
as material and adhesive instead of welding. The LOM process uses a cross hatching method
during the printing process to allow for easy removal post build. Laminated objects are often
used for aesthetic and visual models and are not suitable for structural use. UAM uses metals
and includes aluminium, copper, stainless steel and titanium (Ultrasonic Additive
Manufacturing Overview, 2014). The process is low temperature and allows for internal
geometries to be created. The process can bond different materials and requires relatively little
energy, as the metal is not melted.
 Effectively any sheet material capable of being rolled. Paper, plastic and some sheet
metals.The most commonly used material is A4 paper.

Sheet Lamination – Step by Step

 The material is positioned in place on the cutting bed.

 The material is bonded in place, over the previous layer, using the adhesive.
 The required shape is then cut from the layer, by laser or knife.
 The next layer is added.
 Steps two and three can be reversed and alternatively, the material can be cut before being
positioned and bonded.

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Laminating (LOM):

 is one of the first additive manufacturing techniques created and uses a variety of sheet
material, namely paper. Benefits include the use of A4 paper, which is readily available and
inexpensive, as well as a relatively simple and inexpensive setup, when compared to others.

The Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing (UAM):

 process uses sheets of metal, which are bound together using ultrasonic welding. The process
does require additional CNC machining of the unbound metal. Unlike LOM, the metal cannot
be easily removed by hand and unwanted material must be removed by machining. Material
saving metallic tape of 0.150mm thick and 25mm wide does however, result in less material
to cut off afterwards. Milling can happen after each layer is added or after the entire process.

 Metals used include aluminium, copper, stainless steel and titanium. The process is low
temperature and allows for internal geometries to be created. One key advantage is that the
process can bond different materials and requires relatively little energy as the metal is not
melted, instead using a combination of ultrasonic frequency and pressure (The Engineer,
2014). Overhanging can be built and the main advantage of embedding electronics and wiring
(Karunakaran et al., 2012). Materials are bonded and helped by plastic deformation of the
metals. Plastic deformation allows more contact between surfaces and backs up existing
bonds (Janaki Ram et al., 2007).

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 Post processing requires the extraction of the part from the surrounding sheet material. With
LOM, cross hatching is used to make this process easier, but as paper is used, the process
does not require any specialist tools and is time efficient. Whilst the structural quality of parts
is limited, adding adhesive, paint and sanding can improve the appearance, as well as further
machining.

Advantages:

 Benefits include speed, low cost, ease of material handling, but the strength and integrity of
models is reliant on the adhesive used (Krar and Gill, 203)
 Cutting can be very fast due to the cutting route only being that of the shape outline, not the
entire cross-sectional area

Disadvantages:

 Finishes can vary depending on paper or plastic material but may require post processing to
achieve desired effect
 Limited material use
 Fusion processes require more research to further advance the process into a more
mainstream positioning.

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Vat polymerization:

 Vat polymerisation uses a vat of liquid photopolymer resin, out of which the model is
constructed layer by layer. An ultraviolet (UV) light is used to cure or harden the resin where
required, whilst a platform moves the object being made downwards after each new layer is
cured.
 As the process uses liquid to form objects, there is no structural support from the material
during the build phase., unlike powder-based methods, where support is given from the
unbound material. In this case, support structures will often need to be added. Resins are cured
using a process of photo polymerisation (Gibson et al., 2010) or UV light, where the light is
directed across the surface of the resin with the use of motor-controlled mirrors (Grenada,
2009). Where the resin comes in contact with the light, it cures or hardens.

 The Vat polymerization process uses Plastics and Polymers.

Polymers: UV-curable Photopolymer resin

Resins: Visited range (3D systems)

Photopolymerization – Step by Step

 The build platform is lowered from the top of the resin vat downwards by the layer thickness.
 A UV light cures the resin layer by layer. The platform continues to move downwards and
additional layers are built on top of the previous.
 Some machines use a blade which moves between layers in order to provide a smooth resin
base to build the next layer on.
 After completion, the vat is drained of resin and the object removed.

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 The SLA
process has a high level of accuracy and good finish (Chua et al., 2010) but often requires
support structures and post curing for the part to be strong enough for structural use. The
process of photo polymerisation can be achieved using a single laser and optics. Blades or
recoating blades (Gibson et al., 2003) pass over previous layers to ensure that there are no
defects in the resin for the construction of the next layer. The photo-polymerisation process
and support material may have likely caused defects such as air gaps, which need to be filled
with resin in order to achieve a high-quality model. Typical layer thickness for the process is
0.025 – 0.5mm (Chua et al., 2010).
 Post Processing: Parts must be removed from the resin and any excess resin fully drained
from the vat. Supports can be removed using a knife or sharp implement. Care must be taken
not to contaminate the resin and the appropriate safety precautions must be taken. Methods
for removing resin and supports include the use of an alcohol rinse followed by a water rinse.
The processing may be lengthy as parts may require additional scrubbing to remove material
fully. Finally, parts can be dried naturally or by using an air hose. UV light is often used as
well, for a final post cure process to ensure a high-quality object.
Advantages:
 High level of accuracy and good finish
 Relatively quick process
 Typically, large build areas: object 1000: 1000 x 800 x 500 and max model weight of 200 kg
Disadvantages:
 Relatively expensive
 Lengthy post processing time and removal from resin
 Limited material use of photo-resins
 Often requires support structures and post curing for parts to be strong enough for structural
use

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Additive manufacturing technologies:

 Additive manufacturing is a type of manufacturing technology that builds three-dimensional

objects by building up materials, rather than cutting them away. Generally, the method involves
adding layers of material such as plastic, metal and concrete. There are a variety of types of
additive manufacturing, each using different techniques and materials to achieve the result.
These methods all use a somewhat similar general process, consisting of the following steps.

1. 3D modelling: The first step in the additive manufacturing process is producing a digital
model, usually through the use of computer-aided design, or CAD, software.

2. File conversion: After finalizing the CAD model, the designer must often convert it into a
file type that is compatible with the equipment that will produce the part.

3. Manufacturing: The additive manufacturing equipment reads the data from the model and
lays down materials to produce the object in question. Generally, these materials are liquid,
powder or sheet products that can layer easily.

4. Removal: While some methods require little preparation and equipment to remove a finished
part from additive manufacturing machinery, others have more complicated processes — it
all depends on the method in question.

5. Post-processing: The post-processing required after removal depends entirely on the additive
manufacturing method that produced the product. Some products are ready for immediate
use, but generally, most products of additive manufacturing need some surface finishing
technique.

Stereolithography (SLA):

 SLA works by aiming a laser beam into a vat of photopolymer resin, solidifying the resin at
points within the resin to build the model. The SLA machine uses a build platform to elevate
the model, allowing the laser beam to add progressive layers underneath the emerging model.
Once the model is complete, the part gets removed from the vat, rinsed in a chemical bath to
remove excess resin, then cured in an ultraviolet oven. Because the finish the SLA method
produces is extremely high-quality, it tends to be better for producing high-resolution parts.

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Direct light process (DLP):

 DLP is very similar to SLA, except that it uses a digital light projector screen to flash an
image of an entire layer of the design all at once, solidifying the resin for each layer more
quickly. The digital nature of this process projects the image as pixels, resulting in the layers
forming in small rectangular bricks, or voxels. While this process can achieve faster print
times than SLA because of its ability to complete entire layers with a single flash, the surface
finishes of DLP-produced parts are lower-quality due to the presence of voxels. That makes
DLP better for producing high volumes of intricate parts that don’t require high resolution.

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Continuous Digital Light Processing (DLP):

 Continuous DLP is a variation of DLP, with the only exception being that it uses the constant
motion of the build platform to produce models more quickly. Regardless of the specific
process, vat photo polymerization is an excellent technology for creating parts with fine
details and smooth surfaces, though these parts tend to be brittle, and the process tends to be
more expensive compared to other techniques. Most commonly, vat photo polymerization
technologies produce jewellery, injection moulds and certain dental and medical products.

Direct metal laser melting (DMLM):

 Parts can be manufactured using DMLM in a variety of metal and alloy materials.
Geometries remain fixed to a base plate during the building process via a support structure
and are separated afterwards by breaking away the supports. It is not possible, however, to
build detached parts, which can be done when making plastic laser sintered parts. When
working with DMLM, only relevant geometries should be built. Superfluous volumes should
be avoided when using this technology. This is because build volume (the amount of material
to be solidified), along with the number of layers is what determines the production time and
costs, not the complexity of the geometry. Overall, the most ideal geometries are small, self-
supporting parts that would be difficult to manufacture through machining, are too expensive
to investment cast, or are metal parts requiring short lead times. Learn more about design
considerations and key technology information on DMLM by downloading the design guide.

Poly-Jet or Multi-jet modelling (PJM/ MJM):

 In PJM & MJM liquid acrylic polymers are layered onto a build platform with a printhead
with one or more nozzles and cured by exposure to UV lamps. The printhead moves across
the platform in paths pre-defined by a CAD model during the process until a layer is
completely printed. The UV lamps are located directly on the printhead and cure the plastic
as soon as it has been applied. The intensity of the UV light is adjusted so that the uppermost
layer does not cure completely, which achieves a stable connection between the
superimposed layers. Once the last level has been printed, the UV lamps travel over the entire
component several times to complete curing.

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Advantages:

 Very large variety of materials (from solid to rubbery)

 Transparent components
 Composite materials producible
 High precision and surface quality
 Fast process, since no heating and cooling times are needed
 Production of 3D-printed plastic injection moulding cavities
 Good finishing possibilities

Limitations:

 Lower temperature resistance

 Materials slightly brittle
 Materials not UV-resistant (embrittlement and discoloration possible)
 Restrictions in the geometric freedom, since support material must be removable with water
jet (accessibility, risk of damage)

Applications:

 Due to the high dimensional stability and material durability of the produced components,3D
printing using the Poly-Jet or MultiJet process is regarded as a high-end solution in the field
of additive manufacturing processes. In addition, the method stands out because of the large
variety of materials that can be efficiently integrated into a single object. While Poly-jet
Modelling applies substances layer by layer across multiple printheads, in MultiJet modelling
different materials can be processed simultaneously in one printing.

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Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM):

 Fused deposition modeling (FDM) is a additive manufacturin technology commonly used for
modeling, prototyping, and production applications.

The Technology:

 The Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) process constructs three-dimensional objects

directly from 3D CAD data. A temperature-controlled head extrudes thermoplastic material
layer by layer.
 The FDM process starts with importing an STL file of a model into a pre-processing
software. This model is oriented and mathematically sliced into horizontal layers varying
from +/- 0.127 - 0.254 mm thickness. A support structure is created where needed, based on
the part's position and geometry. After reviewing the path data and generating the toolpaths,
the data is downloaded to the FDM machine.
 The system operates in X, Y and Z axes, drawing the model one layer at a time. This process
is similar to how a hot glue gun extrudes melted beads of glue. The temperature-controlled
extrusion head is fed with thermoplastic modelling material that is heated to a semi-liquid
state. The head extrudes and directs the material with precision in ultrathin layers onto a
fixtureless base. The result of the solidified material laminating to the preceding layer is a
plastic 3D model built up one strand at a time.

Once the part is completed the support columns are removed and the surface is finished.

Process:

 FDM begins with a software process, developed byStratasys, which processes an STL file
(stereolithography file format) in minutes, mathematically slicing and orienting the model for
the build process. If required, support structures are automatically generated. The machine
dispenses two materials – one for the model and one for a disposable support structure.
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 The thermoplastics are liquefied and deposited by an extrusion head, which follows a tool-
path defined by the CAD file. The materials are deposited in layers as fine as 0.04 mm
(0.0016") thick, and the part is built from the bottom up – one layer at a timed works on an
"additive" principle by laying down material in layers. A plastic filament or metal wire is
unwound from a coil and supplies material to an extrusion nozzle which can turn the flow on
and off. The nozzle is heated to melt the material and can be moved in both horizontal and
vertical directions by a numerically controlled mechanism, directly controlled by a computer-
aided manufacturing (CAM) software package. The model or part is produced by extruding
small beads of thermoplastic material to form layers as the material hardens immediately
after extrusion from the nozzle. Stepper motors or servo motor are typically employed to
move the extrusion head.
 Several materials are available with different trade-offs between strength and temperature
properties. As well as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)polymer, polycarbonates,
polycaprolactone, polyphenylsulfones and waxes. A "water-soluble" material can be used for
making temporary supports while manufacturing is in progress, this soluble support material
is quickly dissolved with specialized mechanical agitation equipment utilizing a precisely
heated sodium hydroxide solution.
 The term fused deposition modelling and its abbreviation to FDM are trademarked by
Stratasys Inc. The exactly equivalent term, fused filament fabrication (FFF), was coined by
the members of the RepRap project to give a phrase that would be legally unconstrained in its
use. It is a new model.

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Additive manufacturing technology Advantages:

 Well, now that we know what additive manufacturing is, surely you can imagine many
advantages that these technologies can have over more conventional means of manufacturing.
Obviously, each technology within additive manufacturing has its own advantages over the
others, but by sharing a methodology they also share a number of advantages

 Reducing the amount of material used:

 It may be obvious, but by depositing just the right amount of material instead of removing
material from a solid block, we do not generate waste. Here is an example of this.
 It is a small pawn 25 mm high from a set of chess pieces. Suppose this piece was made by a
more traditional technique such as turning a solid block. Assuming the most optimistic ideal
case, in which we could use the minimum amount of material we would still have to use a
block like the one below.
 In this particular case, we would be talking about a material reduction of approximately 70%.
This could be further optimized as we could manufacture the part with less than 100% filler
so that the amount of material used would be further reduced.
 In an extreme case, but perfectly feasible, we could hollow out the piece completely, leaving
a “crust” of 1.5 mm. In this case we would have reduced the material used by more than 97%
compared to subtractive manufacturing, even though it is an ideal case for this.

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 Ability to manufacture objects with complex geometries:

 If you’ve ever designed a part to be made by more traditional means such as CNC, you’ll
know that many geometries are literally impossible to make. This is why it is common to
divide the part into several smaller parts to avoid complex geometries, requiring a subsequent
assembly and increased design and manufacturing time.
 Additive manufacturing allows us to make parts that would be practically impossible to
achieve with other means, with extremely complex geometries.

 Parts such as the one shown above are usually manufactured to demonstrate the technical
capabilities of additive manufacturing equipment, making clear their advantage over other
means of manufacturing.

 Reduced manufacturing cost for small series:

 While the cost of manufacturing varies greatly depending on which additive manufacturing
technology we use, in general the price is significantly lower than with traditional
manufacturing.
 The graph above shows that the price for short series is lower in additive manufacturing. It is
also true that the price practically does not fall with the number of units, as is the case with
subtractive manufacturing or injection moulding.

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 Higher speed and lower prototyping costs:

 As we have seen in the

previous section,
additive manufacturing
is the cheapest
technology when the
number of units of a part
we want to produce is
low. This is why it is
ideal for rapid
prototyping, where we
want to make only one
or a few units of a part in
order to check for
possible failures.
 This also fits in with the well-known fast methodologies such as Scrum, where the
development of a product requires iterative prototyping until a definitive version is reached.
 In addition to being cheaper, it is also more accessible. Additive manufacturing equipment
such as 3D FDM printers that we will talk about later, are very cheap to acquire, maintain and
operate, so it is viable for almost any company to have its own prototyping workshop, unlike
what happens with equipment such as CNC or multi-axis milling machines.
 As a summary we leave you with this image, where you can see where the additive
manufacturing, and more specifically the 3D printing, is located, compared to other
manufacturing models.
 To manufacture few and highly complex parts, choosing additive manufacturing will help
you save costs, prototype faster and therefore earlier and cheaper in the market.

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Additive manufacturing technology Limitations:

Potential Weaknesses:
 Deposited layers can create weakened parts if not calibrated perfectly
 Much too slow for mass manufacturing
 Special materials are required for application in corrosive environments, or where food-grade
materials are required
 These types of parts do not fare well in settings that expose them to high temperatures and
high speeds which may create both friction and wear. They become a semi-solid at
temperatures less than 200 *C (400 *F), and even the friction caused by sandpaper can cause
them to warp. Some material can withstand a higher temperature.
 These parts also have weaknesses when exposed to shear stress, which is a load placed in
parallel to the layers.
 Since the adhesion between layers is the weakest point of bonding, especially if the
temperatures are not calibrated perfectly, this kind of stress can lead to failure.
 One benefit of these plastic parts, however, is their flexibility when compared to metal parts,
which are often brittle. Some situations require a bit of flex from the part, and this can be
achieved quite naturally on plastic parts without leading to cracking.
 In some applications, such as custom-designed robot grippers, some sort of spring constant is
desirable, such as a pneumatic vacuum gripper. This process would be an excellent choice
since the size is relatively small, the geometry might be quite complex, the temperatures are
not excessive, and the quantity of those custom grippers will likely be small in number.

The Current Weaknesses:

 The equipment and raw materials are still quite expensive

 All the parts require some post-processing, the part is not installation-ready once complete
 The machines require very highly trained maintenance teams

Applications of Additive Manufacturing Techniques:

Additive manufacturing technology has advanced quickly within the past few decades, expanding the
number of additive manufacturing applications across multiple industries. Here are just a few
examples.

 Aerospace: The aerospace industry was one of the early adopters of additive manufacturing,
and is one of the sectors leading the continued development of additive manufacturing
techniques. As of 2015, the aerospace and defense industries contributed 16 percent of the
global revenue from additive manufacturing. Typically used for low-production custom parts
and prototypes, additive manufacturing has achieved much in the aerospace industry.

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 Automotive: The automotive industry uses additive manufacturing on a massive scale, from
racing vehicles to commercial automobiles. Typically, additive manufacturing produces both
high- and low-volume parts like prototypes, fixtures, molds and custom parts. Analysts
project the market for additive manufacturing in the automotive industry to continue
expanding, which is impressive, considering the automotive industry already accounted for
16.1 percent of all additive manufacturing processes in 2015.

 Medical: Additive manufacturing has had an enormous impact on the medical industry,
introducing new possibilities that were previously unimaginable. Thirteen percent of all
additive manufacturing revenue came from the medical industry as of 2015, and it’s easy to
see why. 3D printers now make surgery easier by producing patient-specific surgical guides
and models, and doctors of all fields can produce several types of implants within their
offices. Researchers are even exploring the technology for its potential to print human organs.

 Product Development: This application enables a process called “rapid prototyping” which
objective is to develop and test models more quickly and at a lower cost. It allows you to
perform more iterations of the project and arrive at better products. This prototyping process
still avoids errors and unnecessary expenses and also accelerates the development of new
products.

Additional applications:

 Prototyping – Laser-sintering can help by making design and functional prototypes

available. As a result, functional testing can be initiated quickly and flexibly. At the same
time, these prototypes can be used to gauge potential customer acceptance.
 Tooling – The direct process eliminates tool-path generation and multiple machining
processes such as EDM. Tool inserts are built overnight or even in just a few hours. Also the
freedom of design can be used to optimize tool performance, for example by integrating
conformal cooling channels into the tool.
 Manufacturing Tools: The development of tools using additive manufacturing brings more
autonomy to industries, as they no longer depend on third-party suppliers. Besides, it ensures
lower costs and reduces lead time.
 End-use parts: Additive manufacturing is used to manufacture a low volume of end-use
parts. It offers flexibility, allowing companies to produce small quantities, avoiding risks
involved in making a large batch, or enables them to create more innovative designs.
 Didactics: The application of additive manufacturing for teaching purposes has been growing
a lot with the popularization of technology. Universities and schools use 3D printed articles
to illustrate concepts in a more didactic and engaging way. Likewise, many doctors benefit
from 3D printed representations of human anatomy, analyzing complex scenarios, and
explain them to patients. Architects also use 3D low-cost models to display architectural
projects to clients in an impactful way.

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Case studies:

Generative Design for Metal 3D Printing

 Problem:
 Client was using this bracket which fit in their final structure where the quantity was 250 numbers
in a single unit. It was always the lead time of these units that was delaying the project. Short batch
with quicker delivery to expedite production and making the unit lighter was the main objective for
the client to adopt AM technology.

 Solution:
 There’s a common misconception in the industry, wherein, people often think that the only
applications of additive manufacturing (AM) are rapid prototyping and minimal quantity
manufacturing for aerospace applications. Contrary to this, AM can also be used for batch
production of components that are required in lesser quantities, as compared to high-volume
production.

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 Economics of using metal 3D-printing over traditional manufacturing is mainly driven by the
Output/Quantity vs Unit Cost graph. In traditional manufacturing, the unit cost rapidly decreases as
we build more quantities. Therefore, it only makes economic sense to use 3D printing for parts that
fall behind this breakeven point; which is why it is used so frequently for rapid prototyping and
limited sized batch production. AMISON Engineering executed an innovative project, in which the
cost of manufacturing 500 metal components was significantly reduced by over 18%, by using AM.

 The original component was designed keeping in mind the design constraints of the conventional
pressure die casting manufacturing process. Taking into consideration the design freedom provided
by AM, we redesigned the entire bracket using Generative Design methodology and applying
DfAM (Design for AM) principles.

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 This resulted in a highly optimized design that was not only 12% lighter and 18% cheaper, but also
25% stronger, in terms of its maximum load-bearing capacity. Finally, an elaborate process was set
up for batch production. Please feel free to reach out to us to discuss such innovative cost-saving
design/manufacturing ideas for your product.

Objectify & ISRO Use Additive Manufacturing To Develop Legacy Components.

 The Challenge:
 The conventional production of AISI-316L brackets relies on casting and shaping of bulk feed
stock materials, followed by subsequent machining to final shapes and dimensions. These
ancient manufacturing processes forever inevitably end in an outsized quantity of fabric waste,
high machine hours, high producing value and long lead times. The material needed for
producing Type-I bracket of weight three.5 kg was calculable to be a forged/rolled block of 100
kg and thickness 125 mm, wherein 96.5% of fabric is wasted throughout machining. The buy to
fly ratio is ~ 28 just in case of a conventionally factory-made one. Additive manufacturing will
bring down the get to fly ratio to ~ 1, leading to significant value and time savings.

 The Solution:
 A reduction of lead time and cost will be achieved for parts thanks to a number of the
characteristics of AM; shorter lead time from design to production, adaptability to design
changes, complicated geometries at no additional price and significantly less post-processing as
compared with the conventional production routes. For this case we found Powder Bed Fusion to
be the most suitable and optimum option to ensure part-built quality and integrity.

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 Process & Specification:

 Stress-relieving of 3D Printed brackets and was performed by soaking at 600 °C for 2 hrs. as
per AMS 2759-4C. The temperature of 600 °C is adequate, as 3D printing doesn’t generate
any major residual stresses like thick section moulded product. Also, a high-temperature
stress-relieving would cause distortion of thin sections. Brackets were subjected to
sandblasting for improving the surface finish.
 The following activities were performed in the entire Additive Manufacturing process:
 Mechanical Property improved.
 Microstructural Evaluation at par.
 Computed Metro Tomography (CT) Inspection was successful.
 Dimensions and Geometrical Inspection ensured accuracy of the final part.
 Structural Testing resulted in real-time results.

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 Testing & Approvals:

 Computed metro tomography analysis confirms the soundness of brackets realized by 3D
printing. The porosity level in this process is higher than that of wrought products and size
approximated to be 100 µm; however, this will not affect the functionality of the products. It
may also be noted that the porosity noticed in 3D printed components is less than the sizes
resolvable by conventional NDT techniques such as ultrasonic testing and X-radiography.

 Comparison:
 The tensile properties achieved by the LPBF 3D printing process for AISI-316L have been
compared with wrought products of 100 mm section thickness as shown above. It is observed
that the yield strength achieved in the LPBF process is much higher than that achieved by
wrought products, whereas % elongation is on the lower side. Similar trend of mechanical
properties has been reported. In this case, it may be noted that AISI-316L stainless steel
wrought products are processed by hot working, followed by solution annealing at
temperature ~ 1040 °C. LPBF being a layer by layer processing, stress relieving at 600 °C is
adequate for relieving the residual stresses generated by the processing.

 Microstructure:
 Subsequent to tensile testing, the cross section of tensile specimen ends was prepared as per
conventional metallographic polishing and then etched using 10% oxalic acid electrolytic
reagent to reveal the microstructure as shown in Fig. 5a–d. The microstructures shown below
revealed that the thickness of each melt pool layer was ~ 100 µm, indicating two to three
layers of power are fused during each laser beam scan.

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 Orientation:
 The ‘standard specification for additive manufacturing stainless steel alloy with powder bed
fusion as per ASTM F3184-16 in Class A condition (stress relieved condition)’ was followed
for 3D printing of these brackets. Test coupons in four directions (X, Y, Z and 45° to XY, YZ
and ZX planes, i.e., body diagonal of an imaginary cube) were 3D printed along with the
brackets for evaluating the tensile properties and impact strength. Build orientation followed
for 3D printing of brackets and test coupons for characterization are as shown above.

 Tensile:
 To compare the mechanical properties of LPBF 3D printed AISI-316L test in solution-annealed
condition, the specimens were subjected to solution annealing and tensile properties were
evaluated. The comparison is shown above. These results confirm that the LPBF process can
give better mechanical properties (including the minimum guaranteed % elongation) as
compared to the conventional wrought products even in solution-annealed condition.

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 Testing:
 Functional acceptance tests of LPBF 3D printed brackets were performed by structural testing
(test setup shown below) by applying four times the actual thrust and inertial loads. The brackets
successfully withstood the test, and strains observed were very benign/negligible of ± 9 με in
tension and compression loading conditions. Thus, these brackets were qualified for the intended
end use. Trial suiting of the brackets with the thrusters was carried out and found to meet the
geometric requirements for the intended application.

 Conclusion:
 Two kinds of brackets for aerospace applications were realized through the LPBF/ DMLS 3D
printing, followed by stress-relieving heat treatment and subjected to careful characterization.
the subsequent are the conclusions from this study:
 The distortion noticed on thin wall regions was avoided by adding additional stock at thin
sections and removing by post-processing.
 The mechanical properties in stress-relieved condition meet the necessity as per ASTM F 3184-
16 and also the achieved properties are akin to molded product. The LPBF method provides
higher mechanical properties than standard molded products even in solution toughened
condition.
 In the early stages, failure ascertained in 45° specimens was attributed to incomplete sintering at
these layers. The basic cause was established as improper spreading of powder at one amongst
the layers.
 Non-destructive testing was performed by macro-CT and brackets were found to be free from
defects. The porousness was approximated to be 100 µm, which can not affect the functionality
of the product. The porousness noticed in Additively Manufactured components is a smaller
amount than the sizes resolvable by standard NDT techniques such as ultrasonic testing and X-
radiography.
 If needed in the future, structural testing confirmed that enough margins are accessible within
the designed brackets with laser powder bed fusion AM route and additional weight reduction
are often achieved by topology optimization through design for additive manufacturing (DfAM).

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Industrial development:

5 PLACES WHERE ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING IS UNSTOPPEABLE

There are five industries in particular where the amazing capabilities of additive manufacturing have
transformed production:

1. Aerospace:
 Aerospace companies were some of the first to adopt additive manufacturing. Some of the
toughest industry performance standards exist in this realm, requiring parts to hold up in
harsh conditions. Engineers designing and manufacturing for commercial and military
aerospace platforms need flight-worthy components made from high-performance materials.

 With ITAR registration and both ISO 9001 and AS9100 certifications, Stratasys Direct
Manufacturing has had the opportunity to see a range of innovative designs transform the
production of aerospace parts for major companies. Common applications include
environmental control systems (ECS) ducting, custom cosmetic aircraft interior components,
rocket engines components, combustor liners, tooling for composites, oil and fuel tanks and
UAV components.

 3D printing delivers complex, consolidated parts with high strength. Less material and
consolidated designs result in overall weight reduction – one of the most important factors in
manufacturing for aerospace. The benefits of additive manufacturing for major companies
and organizations continue to push forward the innovative designs and applications for the
world of flight.

2. Medical:
 The rapidly innovating medical industry is utilizing additive manufacturing solutions to
deliver breakthroughs to doctors, patients and research institutions. Medical manufacturers
are utilizing the wide range of high-strength and biocompatible 3D printing materials, from
rigid to flexible and opaque to transparent, to customize designs like never before.

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 From functional prototypes and true-to-life anatomical models to surgical grade components,
additive manufacturing is opening the door to unforeseen advancements for life-saving
devices. Some applications shaking up the medical industry are orthopedic implant devices,
dental devices, pre-surgery models from CT scans, custom saw and drill guides, enclosures
and specialized instrumentation. Stratasys Direct Manufacturing continues to expand its
offering to support medical applications such as seamless medical carts, anatomical models
and custom surgical tools.

 Material development is also key in this industry – the more validation of biocompatible
materials and the methods used to produce parts could open the door for more customized
implants, life-saving devices and pre-surgical tools that increase patient outcomes.

3.Transportation:
 Life in the fast lane means endurance to tough environments like extreme speeds and heat.
The transportation industry needs parts that stand up to harsh testing and are lightweight
enough to avoid unnecessary drag. With a wide array of rugged, high temperature materials
and additive manufacturing technologies and the ability to build very complex geometries,
transportation companies are just scratching the surface of what can be made additively
manufactured for their vehicles.
 We have helped automotive suppliers and companies develop consolidated, lightweight
components that lead to more efficient vehicles. Some of the applications that have
transformed the industry include complex duct work that can’t be fabricated with
conventional manufacturing methods, resilient prototypes, elastomeric models, grilles,
custom interior features and large paneling.

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 The continuing advancements in 3D printing have also opened up new opportunities for end-
use and mass customization applications. One of the most exciting applications realized today
is the opportunity to reproduce aftermarket parts for restoring classic cars. Watch our
conversation with Jay Leno about how he's utilizing DMLS to build parts for his vintage
autos.

4. Energy:
 Success in the energy sector hinges on the ability to quickly develop tailored, mission-critical
components that can withstand extreme conditions. Additive manufacturing’s advancements
in producing efficient, on-demand, lightweight components and environmentally friendly
materials provides answers for diverse requirements and field functions.

 Some key applications that have emerged from the gas, oil and energy industries include
rotors, stators, turbine nozzles, down-hole tool components and models, fluid/water flow
analysis, flow meter parts, mud motor models, pressure gauge pieces, control-valve
components and pump manifolds.
 With the development of corrosion resistant metal materials for customized parts that may
need to experience under-water or other harsh environments, there’s no telling what major
energy companies may accomplish with additive manufacturing.

5. Consumer Products:
 For designers, graphic artists and marketing teams, the time it takes to form an idea and
deliver it to the market is everything. Part of that time is simulating the look and feel of the
final product during design reviews to prove ideas to key stakeholders. Consumer product
manufacturers have embraced 3D printing to help develop iterations and quickly adjust
design.
 3D printing is great for producing detailed consumer electronics early in the product
development life cycle with realistic aesthetics and functionality. Sporting goods have
benefited from early iterations delivered quickly and with fine details. Other successful
applications include entertainment props and costumes, lightweight models and sets, and
finely detailed architectural models.

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 As 3D printing technology advances in speed and build volume, more consumer products
may turn to additive manufacturing for their large volume demands.

Future possibilities:

 Although the technology has been around for more than 30 years, it’s only recently that the
materials suitable for use and their possible functions have really expanded. There are an
almost limitless number of industries that could benefit from incorporating Additive
Manufacturing into the processes, changing the face of what’s possible.

Additive for the space industry:

 According to Carol Tolbert, manager of the Manufacturing Innovation Project at NASA Glenn
Research Centre, Cleveland, a total of nine NASA centers use additive manufacturing. At her
location, contractors working for NASA Glenn are using direct laser sintering to produce a
subscale multielement injector for a rocket engine and reduce testing costs.
 “We will be testing an injector this summer at NASA Glenn,” says Tolbert. “If the testing is
successful, building injectors this way will significantly impact the rocket industry.
Traditionally, full-size injectors take months to make because a lot of measuring must be done
and it has to be exact.” Should someone make a mistake, everything must be machined all over
again, which can take several months. If additive manufacturing proves successful, time
between iterations will drop to weeks.
 In this context, “subscale” refers to the model injector’s nozzle size, which is smaller than those
used in a full-size rocket but bigger than a desktop model. “The subscale injector lets us learn
about a lot of properties — for example, how hydrogen and oxygen mix in the rocket
combustion chamber,” she says. “There are lots of nuances we must understand about the
injector before we can take the next step and print a full-size unit.”
 Current technology is capable of making an additively manufactured full-scale injector by
printing two builds and then attaching them together. Even so, Eric Baumann, lead engineer of
NASA Glenn’s Manufacturing Innovation Project, indicates that the printed injector needs
more work before it can be called a space-rated part. Therefore, this is a field of innovation still
undergoing technical development.
 In another project, the agency is testing an approach it calls electron-beam free-form fabrication
or EBF3. The technique uses an electron beam to weld together wire and build up parts.
Ultimately, this could let astronauts make replacement parts while in space. Missions would,
thus, avoid costly payloads just to carry spare parts.
 They are currently exploring how the technique works with different materials — and NASA
Langley personnel are testing EBF3 in a special aircraft that undergoes microgravity flights,
which simulates the use of the process in space.
 According to Tolbert, NASA will continue with 3D printing and additive manufacturing, which
is what they see the industry doing as well. “The administration got behind additive
manufacturing some years ago and that push is continuing. We will all benefit from it in the
end,” she says.

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Flying robots:

 In another interesting application, Aurora Flight Sciences Corp. in Cambridge, Mass., uses
fused-deposition modeling (FDM) to manufacture flying drones. Recall that in FDM, a
polymer-based extruded bead accumulates to form the part.
 “As with many companies, additive manufacturing is relatively new for us,” says Company
Structures Research Engineer Daniel Campbell. “We became involved in additive
manufacturing about two years ago for a joint project with the Air Force to develop new
materials for FDM,” he says. “Then we got the idea that it would be possible to print the entire
structure of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or small aircraft — those with about a 6-ft
wingspan — using FDM,” he adds. About half the work is material development and the rest
is the actual design and manufacturing of the drones.
 Previously, the company made the drones using traditional methods involving composite
layup. In this approach, a composite covers a core material — either foam or an aluminum
honeycomb.
 “We decided to check out additive manufacturing because there is a lot of buzz about it,”
continues Campbell. Only recently has the approach been taken beyond prototyping for use on
engineered parts. “Now, printing the UAV helps minimize logistics because it reduces the
number of parts going into the plane and slashes material usage. The technique also helps keep
inventories low because it is location agnostic.” For example, instead of shipping entire planes
cross county, additive manufacturing could soon allow Aurora to digitally send over build-path
files to equipped locations for creation.
 FDM is a familiar additive-manufacturing process and, for aerospace applications, it has one
of the highest strengths per material weight. “From a production perspective, our first use
would be for tooling. But we are already discussing different parts on a plane that could benefit
from the technology,” Campbell adds. Is FDM as strong as composite? “No, it falls a bit short
on the modulus- to-weight ratio,” he says. “For small aircraft though, the benefit is having lots
of design freedom. We find that the performance of the small printed aircraft comes pretty
close to that of conventional composite craft.” For this reason, Aurora plans on continuing the
use of additive manufacturing into the future.

Although the technology has been around for more than 30 years, it’s only recently that the materials
suitable for use and their possible functions have really expanded. There are an almost limitless number
of industries that could benefit from incorporating Additive Manufacturing into the processes,
changing the face of what’s possible.

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METAL FORMING PROCESSES

History of metal forming processes:

 Who invented it?

 The present-day use of metals is the culmination of a long path of development extending
over approximately 6,500 years. It is generally agreed that the first known metals were gold,
silver, and copper, which occurred in the native or metallic state, of which the earliest were in
all probability nuggets of gold found in the sands and gravels of riverbeds. Such native metals
became known and were appreciated for their ornamental and utilitarian values during the
latter part of the stone age.

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 Defining:

 Forming is the process of obtaining the required shape and size on the raw material by
subjecting the material to plastic deformation through the application of tensile force,
compressive force, bending or shear force or combinations of these forces.

 Development till now:

 Gold can be agglomerated into larger pieces by cold hammering, but native copper cannot,
and an essential step toward the Metal Age was the discovery that metals such as copper
could be fashioned into shapes by melting and casting in moulds; among the earliest known
products of this type are copper axes cast in the Balkans in the 4th millennium BCE. Another
step was the discovery that metals could be recovered from metal-bearing minerals. These
had been collected and could be distinguished on the basis of colour, texture, weight, and
flame colour and smell when heated.
 The notably greater yield obtained by heating native copper with associated oxide minerals
may have led to the smelting process, since these oxides are easily reduced to metal in a
charcoal bed at temperatures in excess of 700 °C (1,300 °F), as the reductant, carbon
monoxide, becomes increasingly stable. In order to affect the agglomeration and separation of
melted or smelted copper from its associated minerals, it was necessary to introduce iron
oxide as a flux. This further step forward can be attributed to the presence of iron oxide
gossan minerals in the weathered upper zones of copper sulphide deposits.

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 Most metalworking was done by hand until the 13th century. At this time, the tilt hammer
was developed and used primarily for forging bars and plates. This hammer used water power
to raise a lever arm that had a hammering tool at one end. It was called a tilt hammer because
the arm tilted as the hammering tool was raised. After raising the hammer, the operator let it
fall under the force of gravity, thus generating the forging blow. This relatively simple device
remained in use for a number of centuries.

 The development of rolling mills followed that of forging equipment. Leonardo da Vinci’s
notebook includes a sketch of a machine designed in 1480 for the rolling of lead (Pb) for
stained glass windows. In 1495, Leonardo da Vinci is reported to have rolled flat sheets of
precious metal on a hand operated two roll mill for the purpose of making the coins.
 Later several designs for rolling mills were developed and utilized in many European
countries. However, the development of large mills capable of hot rolling ferrous materials
took almost 200 years. This relatively slow progress was primarily due to the limited supply
of iron. Early rolling mills used flat rolls for making sheet and plate, and until the middle of
the 18th century, these rolling mills were driven by water wheels.
 During the Industrial Revolution at the end of the 18th century, processes were devised for
making iron and steel in large quantities to satisfy the demand for metal products. A need was
also felt for forging equipment having higher capacity. This need was met with the
development of the high-speed steam hammer, in which the hammer is raised by steam
power, and the hydraulic press, in which the force is supplied by hydraulic pressure. From
such equipment came several products which ranged from locomotive parts to firearms.

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 The steam engine also spurred developments in rolling of metals, and, in the 19th century, a
variety of steel products were rolled in rolling mills in substantial quantities. The past 125
years have seen the development of new types of metalworking equipment and new materials
with special properties and applications. These new types of metalworking equipment also
include mechanical and screw presses and several kinds of rolling mills including high speed
tandem rolling mills. The materials which are benefited from such advancements in
equipment range from the low C steel and advanced high strength steels (AHSS) used in
automobiles and appliances, specialty aluminium (Al) base, titanium (Ti) base, and nickel
(Ni) base alloys used in the aerospace and other industries. Since the 1980s, methods for the
bulk forming of a number of new materials, such as intermetallic alloys and composites, have
been developed.
 Also, the advent of user-friendly computer programs and inexpensive computers has led to a
revolution in the application of numerical methods for the design and control of an abundance
of bulk forming processes. This has led to higher quality products and increased efficiency in
the metalworking industry.

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Need of metal forming processes:

 Non-cutting or non-machining shaping processes are referred to as mechanical working
processes. It means an intentional and permanent deformation of metals plastically beyond
the elastic range of the material. The main objectives of metal working processes are to
provide the desired shape and size, under the action of externally applied forces in metals.
Such processes are used to achieve optimum mechanical properties in the metal and reduce
any internal voids or cavities present and thus make the metal dense.

Importance of metal forming processes:

 Metal forming is a very important manufacturing operation. It enjoys industrial importance
among various production operations due to its advantages such as cost effectiveness,
enhanced mechanical properties, flexible operations, higher productivity, considerable
material saving.

What is Metal rolling processes?

 Rolling is the most important metal forming process. More than 95% of ferrous and non-
ferrous metals and alloys are processed to their usable shapes by rolling. Usable shapes of
rolled metals are plate, sheet, strip, foil, different sections like rail, beam, channel, angle, bar,
rod, and seamless pipe, etc.

 In the rolling process, permanent deformation

is achieved by subjecting the material to high
compressive stress by allowing the material to
pass through the gap between two rotating
cylindrical rolls.
 The rolls may be flat or grooved, and are kept
at a fixed distance apart from each other. The
rolls are rotated in opposite directions by
means of an electrical drive system (motor,
gearbox, spindle and couplings).

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 Depending on the direction of rotation of the rolls, the input material enters the gap between
the rolls from one end and comes out from the other end with a reduced cross-section, the roll
gap area being kept less than the cross-sectional area of the input material (rolling stock). For
obtaining the desired final shape of rolled material, it is generally necessary to pass the
material through the rotating rolls several times. During each of the passes, the roll gap is
adjusted by bringing the two rolls closer to each other, or by allowing the material to pass
through different set of roll gaps with diminishing cross sectional area.
 The entire assembly of the rolls mounted on bearings is held in bearing blocks (called
chocks), which in turn are held between the gaps of two cast frames (called housings),
complete with roll gap adjustment facilities and roll driving arrangement. The entire setup is
called a rolling mill stand. One or more rolling stands in combination with other necessary
and related equipment to obtain finished rolled products from one or similar group of input
materials is called a rolling mill or rolling plant.

 Rolling is the most important and widely used metal forming process because of its lower
cost and higher productivity. The rolling process is best defined as the shaping of metals into
semi-finished or finished forms by passing between rollers rotating in opposite direction. Just
like any other metal forming process, rolling works in the same way.
 The deformation takes place when a compressive force is applied by a set of rolls on ingot or
any other product like billets, blooms, sheets, slabs, plates, strips, etc. This deformation
decreases the cross-section area of the metal and converts it into the required shape. The main
purpose of rolling is to decrease the thickness of the metal. Steel, magnesium, aluminium,
copper, and their alloys are the materials commonly rolled. As a result of the friction between
the rolls and the metal surface, the metal is subjected to high compressive stresses. High
production rate, grain structure, and surface-finish are obtained, which makes it a most
suitable metal forming process for large length cross-section workpieces like plates and
sheets of steel and aluminium for other works and structure. However, the high set up cost of
the rolling machine makes it an alternative process.

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 The rolling process is done both hot and cold, which is accomplished in rolling mills. A
rolling mill is a complex machine having two or more supporting rollers, working rollers,
drive motor, roll stands, working rollers, coupling gear, flywheel, etc. According to the
requirements of the process and technical issues, these rolling machines are available in
different shapes and sizes. Each rolling mill consists of a minimum of two rolls. As per the
process requirement, these numbers can extend even.
 Depending upon the shape of the rolled product, the rollers may be grooved or plain. The
shape of the metal changes gradually during the period in which it's in contact with the two
rollers. Compared to forging, rolling is a more economical method of deformation when
metal is required in long lengths of uniform cross-section. The hot rolling process occurs with
the initial breakdown of ingots into billets and blooms. This is followed by further hot rolling
into the sheet, plate, bar, rod, rail, and pipe. It's done at the above recrystallization
temperature and used for large deformations. Hot rolling gives residual stresses free product,
but due to scale formation, it gives poor dimension accuracy and surface finish.

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 A major role in the industry is the cold-rolling of metals by providing sheet, strip, foil with
high mechanical strength, good surface finish, along with dimension accuracy. The cold
rolling which is done to get the final product is done at below recrystallization temperature.

 There are mainly two types of rolling:

o Shape rolling
o Flat rolling
 But according to temperature:
o Hot rolling
o Cold rolling

The Types of Rolling Process:

 Flat Rolling
 Shape Rolling
 Transverse Rolling/Roll Forging
 Skew Rolling
 Ring Rolling
 Thread/Gear Rolling
 Rotary Tube Piercing
 Tube rolling
 Hot and cold rolling
 Pack rolling
 Steckel Mill rolling
 Tandem rolling
 Temper rolling
 Roll Bending
 Controlled Rolling

A) Flat Rolling:
 This is the most basic form of rolling in which the starting and end material both have a
rectangular cross-section. The material is fed in between two rollers that rotate in opposite
directions. The two rollers in flat rolling are called working rolls.
 The gap between the two rolls is less than the thickness of the starting material, which causes
the deformity of it. The material, which is pushed through due to the friction at the interface
between the material and the rolls, even elongates due to the decrease in material thickness.
However, the friction between the rolls limits the amount of deformation possible in a single
pass. The rolls just slip over the material and do not draw it in if the change in thickness is
too great.

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B) Shape Rolling/Structural Shape Rolling/Profile Rolling:

 The shape rolling is used to cut different shapes on the metal workpiece. It does not involve
any significant change in thickness. It’s a special type of cold rolling that is suitable for
producing moulded sections such as irregular shaped channels and trim. It's used to roll
construction shapes such as I-beams, L-beams, and U channels, rails for railroad tracks, and
round and square bars and rods, etc.
 The applications of shape rolling are.,

 Construction materials
 Ceiling panel
 Metal furniture
 Household appliances
 Partition beam
 Steel pipe
 Automotive parts
 Roofing panels
 Door and window frames and other metal products

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METAL FORMING PROCESSES 64

C) Transverse Rolling/ Roll Forging:

 Forging process where the workpiece is fed through two specially shaped rolls to create a
long product with varying cross section.
 Heated workpiece, usually a rod of some form, is fed in between two shaping rollers. The
grooves in the rollers allow the part to have a variable cross-section optimized for the next
operation which can be swaging or machining. Thus effectively minimizing the need for
material removal before the completion of the final detail.

D) Skew Rolling:
 This is a process similar to roll forging. Typically used for making ball bearings. In this
process, round wire or bar is fed directly into specially designed rollers which continuously
form spherical balls by rolling action. Used for the mass production of small size spherical
balls.

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E) Ring Rolling:
 Ring rolling is a type of hot rolling that increases the diameter of a ring. Two rollers i.e. main
and idler are arranged and rotated in the same direction to each other in this process. Due to
the rotation of the roller, the ring rotates and the rollers then start moving close to each other,
with a decrease in ring thickness and hence this results in an increase in its diameter. To
maintain the height of the ring, a pair of edge rollers are used, which does not allow metal
flow in the direction of height. This process gives material finish and high accuracy.
Common applications of ring rolling include -

 Large bearings
 Turbines
 Airplanes
 Railway tyres
 Gears
 Rockets
 Pipes
 Pressure vessels

F) Thread/Gear Rolling:
 The thread/gear rolling is a cold-forming type of rolling process used to cut gear or threads on
a cylindrical blank. In this process, the threaded dies are fitted on cylindrical rollers of the
rolling machine. The cylindrical blank presses the threaded roller and roll against the faces,
which displace the material and form threads on the cylindrical blank.
 The thread-rolling process has the benefit of generating threads with high strength (due to
cold working), without any material loss (scrap) and good surface finish. The thread/gear
rolling is used for the production of screws, bolts, etc. in mass quantities.

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G) Rotary Tube Piercing:

 Tube piercing is another rolling process in which you can find a stationary mandrel at the
centre of tube and cavity form, due to tensile stress in a cylindrical rod when subjected to
external compressive stress. Two rolls are rotated in the opposite direction in this process
which compresses the tube and feeds it against the mandrel which creates a hollow cavity in
it. This process is used to make seamless hollow tubes of a thick wall.

H) Tube Rolling:
 The production of seamless metal pipe and tubing by rolling on special mills, called tube-
rolling units. Seamless pipe and tubing—by which means products without longitudinal or
spiral welded seams—is widely used in the manufacture of automobiles, tractors, aircraft, and
boilers. It is also used in various other branches of the machine-building industry, in
petroleum extraction, in the chemical industry, and in public works. Tube rolling includes the
production of both hot-rolled pipe and cold-rolled pipe, which is first hot-rolled and then
cold-rolled.
 Tube rolling usually consists of two main operations and several auxiliary operations. The
first operation, piercing, consists in the formation of a longitudinal opening in a round bar or
billet, forming a thick-walled pipe called a shell. In the second operation, plug rolling, the
pierced bar or billet is elongated and its wall thickness is decreased to the approximate
dimensions required for the finished pipe. Both operations are performed in one heating. The
first operation is performed on piercing mills by rotary rolling between barrel-shaped or
mushroom-shaped rolls on a short mandrel.

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 The second operation is performed on continuous, short-mandrel, Pilger, or three-high thread-

rolling mills. After plug rolling, the pipe is sized in special sizing mills and is then cooled,
straightened, and inspected.
 After hot-rolling, the pipe is cold-rolled on special longitudinal intermittent-acting mills and
is also cold-drawn. These operations are intended to decrease its diameter and wall thickness,
to improve its mechanical properties, and to obtain a smooth surface and exact dimensions.

 Contemporary tube rolling is characterized by high labour productivity, by automation and

mechanization of most basic and auxiliary technical operations, and by the availability of a
wide range of high-quality rolled pipe and tubing.

I) Hot and Cold Rolling:

 Hot rolling:
 Hot rolling is the process of rolling the steel at a high temperature (usually over 935°C).
These extreme temperatures are higher than the steel’s recrystallisation temperature, meaning
it can be shaped and formed more easily. Hot rolling is more common than cold rolling as it
is cheaper and less time consuming. Hot rolling has less manufacturing delays due to the fact
steel does not need to be reheated, as is the case with cold rolled steel.

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 When cooling steel after hot rolling, you should expect the steel to shrink slightly. You may
find that you have less control over the final size and shape of your steel when using a hot
rolling method. Hot rolling, however, allows steel to be formed into much larger sizes than
cold rolling.

 Cold rolling:
 Cold rolling involves a similar process to hot rolling; however, the steel is subjected to
further processing. After being rolled, the steel is cooled at room temperature in cold
reduction mills. After the steel has cooled, it is subjected to annealing and/or tempers rolling,
in order to provide a wide range of surface finishes and more accurate dimensional
tolerances.

 Cold rolled steel is often erroneously used to refer to all products, when the product name
refers specifically to flat rolled sheet and coil products. When referring to bar products, the
process is referred to as cold finishing, a process that instead involves cold drawing, grinding
and/or polishing. Generally speaking, cold treated steel and metals have a superior surface
finish, tolerance, concentricity, and rigidity when compared to hot rolled products.

J) Pack Rolling:
 Pack rolling is a sheet metal fabrication process used to produce several thin film sheets at the
same time. The process has several advantages including not requiring the usual small roller
sizes due to the increased starting thickness of the “pack” of raw stock. This allows the use of
conventional rolling equipment and has no negative effect on the finished product. The
process typically produces aluminium foil sheets for the lithographic printing, food
packaging, and electronics industries. Pack rolled foils have a distinctive appearance
featuring one side which is bright and the other having a matte finish.
 Metal foils are produced by running sheet ingots through rollers of progressively smaller
tolerances. Once a suitable thickness is achieved, the sheets are passed through foil rolling
mills to produce the required finished thickness. Foils are classified as sheets of metal thinner
than 0.0079 inches (200 µm). The most common of these foils is aluminium foil which is
used extensively in a wide range of applications. Aluminium foil is often produced by an
alternate process known as pack rolling.

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 This process has several advantages over more conventional foil rolling techniques which
require specialized equipment. These foil rolling mills are specially configured to produce the
thinner sheets and feature smaller, more expensive rollers. The single layer foils produced on
these machines are difficult to work with and are prone to tearing. The process of rolling
single sheets is also fairly slow. These issues are all addressed by using the pack rolling
process.
 Pack rolling involves feeding several sheets of stock through the roller at the same time. This
effectively increases the starting thickness of the raw stock and does away with the need for
small rollers. The extruded product is also tougher due to its increased thickness; it is also
less inclined to tear, thus allowing for increased rolling speeds and better production rates.
This process gives pack rolled aluminium foil its distinctive bright on one side and matte on
the other appearance. This is caused by the surfaces in contact with the rollers being polished
to a bright sheen while the those in contact with the foil remaining dull.
 Pack rolling requires the raw sheets to be lubricated prior to rolling. For non-food industry
foils, a kerosene-based lubricant is sprayed onto the sheets while food industry foil is sprayed
with an industry approved lubricant. Foils become hard during rolling and are annealed or
heated to resoften them after pack rolling. This heating burns all the excess lubricants off the
foil and leaving a dry surface.

K) Steckel mill rolling:

 A Steckel mill is a type of metalworking tool that is used to turn steel ingots into metal
sheets. Also called a reversible finishing mill, a Steckel mill uses a series of rollers to turn
raw metal into flattened, usable metal. They are called reversible finishing mills because the
rollers on the machine can be set to roll both forward and backward over the raw material. A
more modern type of mill, the Steckel mill allows finishing to occur in fewer passes through
the machine than in other mill types.
 In Steckel and similar mills, rollers are used to flatten out metal stock. The rolling process
can be hot or cold, depending on the temperature. It is considered hot rolling when the
temperature of the rollers is higher than the recrystallization points of the metal.

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 When the temperature of the rollers is lower than the recrystallization temperature of the
metal, it is called cold rolling. The most tonnage each year is produced by hot rolling. A
Steckel mill can be used for either hot or cold rolling, though hot is more common.

 There are several types of mills that can be used in rolling and finishing metal. A Steckel mill
is a type of tandem rolling mill. This means that the mill is composed of a series of different,
connected rollers that the metal passes through. Instead of having to pass the metal through
one set of rollers several times, the same finish can be achieved with just one pass through a
Steckel mill, though multiple passes through the entire mill may still be required.
 The design of a Steckel mill includes two coilers instead of the normal single coiler on most
rolling mills. The coilers direct the flow of the metal into and out of the machine. At the
entrance of the machine, the first coiler pulls the material into the work area. The second
coiler is found at the exit and pulls the worked material through and out of the machine. If
desired, the coilers can be reversed so that the exit coiler pulls the material back through the
rollers, working the metal through the finishing process again.
 These mills also feature heated reels, or drums, that the finished product can be rolled onto as
it comes out of the machine. The drums not only store the product until the direction of the
rolling is reversed, but they also help keep the product consistent and uniform. In this way,
the manufacturer can process a larger quantity of material at one time than on some other
mills.

L) Tandem mill rolling:

 Tandem cold rolling mills can be basically split into two groups; sheet mills if they reduce
hot band to sheet gauge or tin mills if they roll the same incoming material to tinplate stock.
 Key advantages of the tandem rolling process include cost reduction and good improvements
in productivity especially when integrated with a continuous casting process.
 Rolling strip is widely used for automobile manufacturing, food packaging, household
electric appliances, machinery, light industry, instruments, communications, military affairs
and other fields.
 In cold rolling, usually no heat is applied to the work piece before forming. Only some
special steels like spring steel, tool steel, tempering steel or alloyed steels may be subjected to
heat treatment before pickling and rolling. However, frictional energy at the contact surfaces
of the work piece is converted to heat. This heat may increase temperatures in rapid adiabatic
processes over 100°C.

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 The processing of steel in cold rolling mills differs considerably from the production in hot
rolling mills. The raw material is first descaled (usually pickled, sometimes shot blasted and
pickled), then cold rolled and heat treated. Further treatment steps include slitting, skin-pass
rolling, coiling and packing.

 Tandem cold rolling mills are named by their stand arrangement and designed as “sheet
mills” if they reduce hot band to sheet gauge or “tin mills” if they roll the same incoming
material to tinplate stock.

 The tandem rolling mill consists of several stands that the work material constantly passes
through. At each stand the thickness of the work strip is reduced a certain amount. The total
reduction between the first and last stand can be significant. There are technical problems
associated with tandem rolling, caused particularly by the fact that the speed of the work
material increases as it passes through each stand. In manufacturing practice, various control
systems are used to keep the entire operation synchronized.

 Once the particular technical problems and initial setup investment has been overcome,
tandem rolling can provide a great advantage in the cost and productivity of an industrial
metal rolling process. Tandem rolling can be even more advantageous when integrated with
continuous casting.

 The tandem cold rolling process is composed of treading, acceleration, run speed operation,
deceleration and tailing out. Figure illustrates a typical speed diagram for tandem cold
rolling. It shows the threading is the first phase of the rolling. Following the threading,
dynamic control loops (AGC and AFC) are closed and corresponding actuators are activated.

 Then the mill speed is increased during the acceleration phase. Once the mill speed is up to
the present maximum mill speed, the speed control system will keep the rolling speed in the
vicinity of the maximum speed. This phase is defined as run speed operation. Towards the
end of a coil, the mill is decelerated to the pre-set de-threading speed preparing the strip for
tailing out. This session addresses individual phases and the disturbances accompanying these
phases and control measures being taken in cold rolling.

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M) Temper Rolling:
 Temper rolling is the process of lightly cold rolling sheet steel. It is typically done after the
annealing process, or hot roll after pickling, to improve flatness, minimize any tendency to
stretch, strain, and flute, and create a specific surface texture.

N) Roll Bending:
 In roll bending, a cylindrical shaped product is produced from plate or steel metals. The rolls
change shape during rolling because of the forces acting on them, which tends to bend the
elasticity of the rolls during rolling. If the elastic modulus of the roll material is high, then the
roll deflection would be smaller. Compared to its edges, the rolled strip tends to be thicker at
the center. We can avoid this problem by grinding the rolls in such a way that their diameter
at the center is slightly larger than at their edges.

O) Controlled Rolling:
 It’s a type of thermo-mechanical processing which combines heat treating and controlled
deformation. The workpiece is brought above the recrystallization temperature with the help
of heat, which performs the heat treatments to avoid any subsequent heat treating. Controlling

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the nature, size, and distribution of various transformation products; production of a fine
grain structure; controlling the toughness; inducing precipitation hardening are some of the
types of heat treatments included.
 The entire process must be closely monitored and controlled, to achieve this. The
deformation levels, cool-down conditions, starting material composition and structure, and
the temperature at various stages are the common variables in controlled rolling. Better
mechanical properties and energy savings are the benefits of controlled rolling.

Application of rolling:

 Rolling is used for making hollow seamless tubes, rods etc.

 Large length cross sections are produced by rolling process.
 It is use for mass production of threaded parts like screw, bolts etc.
 Gears can be cut on gear blank by rolling process.
 Construction material, roofing panels, partition beams, railroads, etc. are rolling product.
 It is used in automotive industries for manufacture various parts.
 Rings of turbines, bearing and other machines are rolling product.
 Steel sheets, plates are made by rolling process

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What is the metal forging process?

 Forging is a basic process in which the workpiece is shaped by compressive forces applied
through various dies and tooling. One of the oldest and most important metalworking
operations, dating back at least to 4000 B.C., forging was first used to make jewellery, coins,
and various implements, by hammering metal with tools made of stone. Forged parts now
include large rotors for turbines, gears, cutlery, hand tools, components for machinery,
aircraft, railroads, and transportation equipment.

 Unlike rolling operations that generally produce continuous plates, sheets, strips, and various
structural cross-sections, forging operations produce discrete parts. Because the metal flow in
a die and the material’s grain structure can be controlled, forged parts have good strength and
toughness, and are very reliable for highly stressed and critical applications. Simple forging
operations can be performed with a heavy hammer and an anvil, as has been done
traditionally by blacksmiths. Most forgings require a set of dies and such equipment as press
or powered hammers.

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 Each process has its own advantage; and limitations regarding external and internal
characteristics, material properties, dimensional accuracy, surface finish, and the economics
of production. Forging may be carried out at room temperature (cold forging) or at elevated
temperatures (hot forging), depending on the homologous temperature. Cold forging requires
higher forces, because of the higher strength of the workpiece material, which also must
possess sufficient ductility at room temperature to be able to undergo the required
deformation without cracking. Cold-forged parts have good surface finish and dimensional
accuracy. Hot forging requires lower forces, but the dimensional accuracy and surface finish
of the parts are not as good as those in cold forging.
 Forgings generally are subjected to additional finishing operations, such as heat treating to
modify properties and machining for accuracy in final dimensions and good surface finish.
The finishing operations can be minimized by precision forging, which is an important
example of net-shape or near-net-shape forming processes. As described throughout this
book, parts that can be forged successfully also may be manufactured economically by other
methods, such as casting, powder metallurgy, or machining. Each of these methods will
produce a part having different characteristics, particularly with regard to strength, toughness,
dimensional accuracy, surface finish, and the possibility of internal or external defects.

Types of forging and its operations:

 Open-die forging
o Cogging
o Piercing
o Solid forging
o Hollow forging
o Closing in
o ring forging
o upsetting
 Close-die forging
 Impression-die forging
 Hot and cold forging
 Cold forging
o Forward extrusion
o Backward extrusion
o Side extrusion
o Upsetting
o Ironing
o Noising
o Radial forging
o Bending
o Process sequence
 Hot forming

 Precision forging
 Incremental forging
 Isothermal forging
 Net-shape forging
 Tube Swaging
 Rotary swaging
 Up-setting

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 Orbital forging
 Coining
 Hubbing
 Fullering

A) Open Die Forging:

 Open die forging is performed between flat dies with no pre-cut profiles is the dies.
Movement of the work piece is the key to this method. Larger parts over 200,000 lbs. and 80
feet in length can be hammered or pressed into shape this way.

 Open-die forging can produce forgings from a few pounds up to more than 150 tons. Called
open-die because the metal is not confined laterally by impression dies during forging, this
process progressively works the starting stock into the desired shape, most commonly
between flat-faced dies. In practice, open-die forging comprises many process variations,
permitting an extremely broad range of shapes and sizes to be produced. In fact, when design
criteria dictate optimum structural integrity for a huge metal component, the sheer size
capability of open-die forging makes it the clear process choice over non-forging alternatives.
At the high end of the size range, open-die forgings are limited only by the size of the starting
stock, namely, the largest ingot that can be cast.

 Open-die shape capability is indeed wide in latitude. In addition to round, square, rectangular,
hexagonal bars and other basic shapes, open-die processes can produce:

 Step shafts solid shafts (spindles or rotors) whose diameter increases or decreases (steps
down) at multiple locations along the longitudinal axis.

 Hollows cylindrical in shape, usually with length much greater than the diameter of the part.
Length, wall thickness, ID and OD can be varied as needed.

 Ring-like parts can resemble washers or approach hollow cylinders in shape, depending on
the height/wall thickness ratio.

 Contour-formed metal shells like pressure vessels, which may incorporate extruded nozzles
and other design features.

 Not unlike successive forging operations in a sequence of dies, multiple open-die forging
operations can be combined to produce the required shape. At the same time, these forging
methods can be tailored to attain the proper amount of total deformation and optimum grain-
flow structure, thereby maximizing property enhancement and ultimate performance for a
particular application. Forging an integral gear blank and hub, for example, may entail
multiple drawing or solid forging operations, then upsetting. Similarly, blanks for rings may
be prepared by upsetting an ingot, then piercing the center, prior to forging the ring.

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 Cogging:

 Cogging is the systematic reduction of an ingot to billets or blooms by narrow dies. Narrow
dies exceed the width of the workpiece, but not the length. Narrow dies may be flat, as
shown, V, concave or convex.

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 The ingot is reduced and elongated by repeated strokes as it is systematically advanced and
sometimes rotated. The process changes the grain structure of the metal and consolidates
internal ingot defects such as porosity and blow holes.

 Piercing:

 This is a process of indenting (but not breaking through) the surface of a workpiece with a
punch, in order to produce a cavity or an impression. The workpiece may be confined in a
container, such as a die cavity or may be unconstrained. The extent of surface deformation of
the workpiece depends on how much it is constrained from flowing freely as the punch
descends. A common example of piercing is the indentation of the hexagonal cavity in bolt
heads. Piercing may be followed by punching to produce a hole in the part. Piercing also is
performed to produce hollow regions in forgings, using side-acting auxiliary equipment. The
piercing force depends on (a) the cross-sectional area and the tip geometry of the punch, (b)
the strength of the workpiece, and (c) friction at the punch–workpiece interfaces. The
pressure may range from three to five times the strength of the material, which is about the
same level of stress required to make an indentation in hardness testing

 Drawing or Solid Forging

 Drawing or solid forging is used to produce a shape with length much greater than its cross
section by reducing the section and simultaneously elongating the ingot or bloom. It is used
to produce stock for further forging operations or end products, such as bars or shafts.

 Hollow Forging:

 Hollow forging is used to produce hollow forms by expanding or lengthening on a mandrel.

The process begins with a pierced or cupped forging. Wall thicknesses are reduced and length
increased by a drawing operation. Long hollow forms use a mandrel, in an operation similar
to ring forging

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 Closing-in:

 Closing-in is used to reduce the section on a portion or portions of a hollow forging. The area
or areas to be reduced are reheated to forging temperature and reduced using V-tapered,
curved or formed dies. The forging was provided with a step on the outer diameter, which is
reduced so that only the bore is reduced at the site.

 Ring Forging:

 Ring forging produces rings from pierced blanks by open die forging over a mandrel. Slight
rotation of the ring on each press stroke reduces the ring wall uniformly and increases both
the inside and outside diameters. The height of the ring remains nearly constant, but may
require edging.

 Upsetting:

 Upsetting is working with the axis of the stock in the vertical position under the forging press
or hammer. The operation decreases the axial length of the stock and increases its cross
section. Upsetting is usually accomplished with flat dies. Flat dies are larger than the cross
section of the workpiece. Friction between the dies and workpiece is inevitable, and causes
the barrelling effect.

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 Practically all forgeable ferrous and non-ferrous alloys can be open-die forged, including
some exotic materials like age-hardening superalloys and corrosion-resistant refractory
alloys.

B) Closed Die Forging:

 Impression die forging is sometimes called "closed die forging". However, although the terms
are sometimes used interchangeably, this design guideline identifies closed die forging as a
special form of impression die forging.
 In true closed die forging, however, a flash does not form, and the workpiece completely fills
the die cavity. The accurate control of the blank volume and proper die design are essential to
producing a forging with the required dimensional tolerances. Undersized blanks prevent the
complete filling of the die cavity; conversely, oversized blanks generate excessive pressures
and may cause dies to fail prematurely or the machine to jam.

 The dies make no provision for flash because the process does not depend on the formation of
flash to achieve complete filling. Actually, a thin fin or ring of flash may form in the
clearance between the upper punch and die, but it is easily removed by blasting or tumbling
operations, and does not require a trim die. The process is also called "fleshless forging".
 The absence of flash is an obvious advantage for fleshless forging over the conventional
impression die process, but the process imposes additional requirements.
 closed-die forging of steel, aluminium, titanium and other alloys can produce an almost
limitless variety of 3-D shapes that range in weight from mere ounces up to more than 25
tons. Impression-die forgings are routinely produced on hydraulic presses, mechanical
presses and hammers, with capacities up to 50,000 tons, 20,000 tons and 50,000 lbs.
Respectively.
 As the name implies, two or more dies containing impressions of the part shape are brought
together as forging stock undergoes plastic deformation. Because metal flow is restricted by
the die contours, this process can yield more complex shapes and closer tolerances than open-
die forging processes.

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 Additional flexibility in forming both symmetrical and non- symmetrical shapes come from
various performing operations (sometimes bending) prior to forging in finisher dies.
 Part geometry's range from some of the easiest to forge simple spherical shapes, block-like
rectangular solids, and disc-like configurations to the most intricate components with thin and
long sections that incorporate thin webs and relatively high vertical projections like ribs and
bosses. Although many parts are generally symmetrical, others incorporate all sorts of design
elements (flanges, protrusions, holes, cavities, pockets, etc.) that combine to make the forging
very non-symmetrical. In addition, parts can be bent or curved in one or several planes,
whether they are basically longitudinal, equidimensional or flat.

C) Impression Die Forging:

 In impression-die forging, the workpiece takes the shape of the die cavity while being forged
between two shaped dies. This process is usually carried out at elevated temperatures, in
order to lower the forging forces and develop enhanced ductility of the workpiece. during
deformation, some of the material flows outward and forms a flash.
 A flash gutter is often formed in the dies to receive the flash and allow the dies to reach the
predetermined position at lower pressures. Quality and production economy are optimized by
using a sequence of forging operations, which are generally classified as "pre forming" and
"finishing".
 The flash has an important role in impression-die forging: The high pressure, and the
resulting high frictional resistance in the flash, presents a severe constraint on any radially
outward flow of the material in the die. This is due to the friction hill effect,
 The formation of flash, which is excess metal that is subsequently trimmed off. Thus, based
on the principle that, in plastic deformation, the material flows in the direction of least
resistance (because it requires less energy), the material flows preferentially into the die
cavity, eventually filling it completely.
 Instead of being made as one piece, dies may be made of several pieces (segmented),
including die inserts and particularly for complex part shapes. The inserts can easily be
replaced in the case of wear or failure in a particular region of the die, and are usually made
of stronger and harder materials.

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 The blank to be forged is prepared by cropping from an extruded or drawn bar stock; powder
metallurgy or casting; or a preformed blank from a prior forging operation. The blank is
placed on the lower die, and as the upper die begins to descend, its shape gradually changes.
 Performing operations are typically used to enhance the distribution of the material into
various regions of the blank, using simple dies of various contours.
 In fullering, material is distributed away from a region in the dies. In edging, it is gathered
into a localized region. The part is then formed into a rough shape by a process called
blocking, using blocker dies. The final operation is the finishing of the forging in impression
dies, which give the forging its final shape; the flash is later removed by a trimming
operation.
 Impression die forgings range in size from a few ounces to over 10,000 pounds, and vary in
length from a fraction of an inch to over twenty-six feet. The process accounts for the vast
majority of all commercial forging production.
 Impression die forging provides three-dimensional control of the workpiece, which provides
much closer dimensional control than does open die forging. The control is achieved by a pair
of matched dies with specially fabricated impressions, which form an impression, or cavity in
the shape of the forging. The term "impression die" forging derives from the impressions.

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 Impression dies forging pounds or presses metal between two dies (called tooling) that
contain a precise profile of the desired part. Parts from a few ounces to 60,000 lbs. can be
made using this process. Some of the smaller parts are actually forged cold.

 Most engineering metals and alloys can be forged via conventional impression-die processes,
among them: carbon and alloy steels, tool steels, and stainless, aluminium and copper alloys,
and certain titanium alloys. Strain-rate and temperature-sensitive materials (magnesium,
highly alloyed nickel-based superalloys, refractory alloys and some titanium alloys) may
require more sophisticated forging processes and/or special equipment for forging in
impression dies.

D) Hot and Cold forging:

 Cold forging:
 Cold forging is one of the most widely used chapless forming processes, often requiring no
machining other than drilling. The commonly accepted definition is the forming or forging of
a bulk material at room temperature with no heating of the initial slug or inter-stages. The
term "no heating" does not include in-process annealing, which may be performed at
intermediate stages to relieve the effects of work hardening.
 The process produces greater dimensional accuracy than hot forming, and does not produce
scale. However, the plastic flow characteristics of the workpiece are not as good, so that
higher forging pressures are required. Component size is generally limited to 50 pounds or
less. The majority of cold forgings weigh less than 10 pounds.

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 Cold forging is being used in a wide variety of industries including fastener, automotive,
pole-line hardware, truck-trailers, outboard engine controls, bicycle pedal cranks, constant
velocity joints, universal joint crosses, and military projectile hardware. Shapes generally
have been limited to rotationally symmetrical and axisymmetric, including long shafts and
struts. Shape capability is being expanded by developments in technology. Some of the most
common shapes and combinations of shapes are illustrated below.

 Forward Extrusion:

 In the most common forward extrusion process, a billet is pushed through a container or die
by means of a punch. The material flows in the same direction as the punch to provide
various types of exit sections. The process is also used on hollow slugs to reduce wall
thickness, and to manufacture cans with either cylindrical cavities or cavities with varying
cross sections. It is used to produce solid shapes such as rounds, thread blanks, squares,
rectangles, triangles, polygons and splines. Hollow shapes, including rounds, polygons and
splines are also forward extruded.

 Backward Extrusion:

 In this process, the material flows in the opposite direction to the upper punch. The
workpiece is formed either in the cavity formed between the punch and die, or in the cavity of
the punch. Backward extrusion is used to produce circular inside and outside diameters,
squares with rounded corners, multiple outside diameters and multiple inside diameters.

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 Side Extrusion:
 In this process, the material flows lateral to the direction of the punch, generally in one
direction.

 Upsetting:
 In this process, material flows lateral to the direction of the punch in all directions, increasing
the cross section of the stock. The term "heading" is often used interchangeably with
upsetting. Sometimes a distinction is drawn, and "heading" (or "flanging") is used to describe
upsetting at the end of the workpiece, and "gathering" to describe upsetting at locations other
than the end. Headed shapes include T- and L-heads, ball heads, square heads and socket
heads.

 Ironing:
 In this process, the wall thickness of hollow cans or tubes is reduced. The force is applied to
the bottom of the preform by a relatively long punch. The process differs from forward
extrusion in that the workpiece is in tension, whereas forward extrusion places the workpiece
in compression.

 Nosing:
 Nosing is used to reduce the end of a backward extrusion, or its radius.

 Radial Forging:
 In this process, tools moving radially forge the workpiece to the desired shape. Radial forging
can also be used to make solid parts, such as axles. Hollow parts, such as gun barrels, can be
axially forged using a mandrel.

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 Bending:
 Bending operations are often used to generate non-symmetrical shapes. The process is used to
produce rod and bar shapes with and without heads, including J-, S, U-, W-, and Z-bends.

 Hot forging:
 Process sequences for two cold forgings. The process sequence for the bevel gear. Warm
forging is performed with the workpiece heated to a range that is generally above the work
hardening temperature and below the temperature at which scale forms. The process fills the
niche between the closer tolerance, but sometimes expensive cold forging process and the
somewhat lower precision hot forging process. It is being used to produce close tolerance
components in steel alloys that were not feasible or impossible by cold forging. It is also
being used to produce components very close to final shape that were formerly made by hot
forging with generous finishing allowances. Shafts, gears and automotive front wheel drive
tulips are currently being warm forged.
 Warm forging will also allow conversion of some components from other processes, which
may not be candidates for hot or cold forging.

E) Precision forging:

 In order to reduce the number of additional finishing operations (hence cost), the trend
continues toward greater precision in forged products (net-shape forming). Typical precision-
forged products are gears, connecting rods, and turbine blades. Precision forging requires (a)
special and more complex dies, (b) precise control of the blank’s volume and shape, and (c)
accurate positioning of the blank in the die cavity. Also, because of the higher forces required
to obtain fine details on the part, precision forging requires higher capacity equipment.
Although steel and titanium also can be precision forged, aluminum and magnesium alloys
are particularly suitable, because of the relatively low forging loads and temperatures that
they require; however, steels and titanium also can be precision forged.

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F) Incremental forging:

 Incremental forging is a flexible bulk-forming process offering material and energy savings
when compared to present-day machining operations. Due to the forming load, which is low
in comparison to the die forging method, and the use of simple tooling it is possible to
enhance the application of conventional, integrated and computer-controlled hand-forging
equipment by the incremental forging of components with flat basic shapes.

G) Isothermal forging:

 Heat transfer from the workpiece to the die surfaces causes thermal gradients in the
workpiece. The cooler areas at the die surfaces undergo less plastic flow than in the hotter
core areas, so that plastic flow is not uniform. This is termed die chilling. In conventional
forging practice, dies for steel forgings are typically heated to a maximum temperature range
of 400 to 500°F (205 to 260°C), depending on equipment, to reduce chilling. The effects of
chilling can also be reduced by using fast-acting forging machines, such as hammers, screw
presses and mechanical presses, to reduce the contact time. The use of glass lubricants assists
by forming a thermal barrier between the workpiece and die surfaces and reduce the die
chilling effect.
 Die chilling can be reduced by heating the dies nearer to the actual forging temperature. Die
chilling can be eliminated entirely by heating the dies to essentially the same temperature as
the workpiece. The former is called hot die forging; the latter isothermal forging.
 Aluminium alloys are usually hydraulic press forged under isothermal or near isothermal
conditions at around 800°F (425°C). In this range, conventional die materials do not undergo
any significant loss of strength or hardness.
 However, steels and alloys of titanium and nickel are forged in the range of 1700 to 2300°F
(925 to 1260°C). Isothermal forging of these alloys requires special tooling materials, such as
nickel-based superalloys and molybdenum alloys for dies, and lubricants that can perform
adequately at these temperatures. Special attention to the surrounding atmosphere is also
important, such as the use of an inert gas or vacuum to protect both the dies and the
workpiece from oxidation.
 Hot die and isothermal forging offer advantages and disadvantages. The primary advantages
are closer forging tolerances resulting in reduced machining and material costs, a reduction in
the number of preforming and blocking operations resulting in reduced processing and
tooling costs, and the use of slow ram speeds resulting in lower forging pressures and the use
of smaller machines.

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 The primary disadvantages are the requirements for more expensive die materials, uniform
and controllable die heating systems, and an inert atmosphere or vacuum around the dies and
workpiece to avoid oxidation of the dies. The typical production rates are very low to permit
proper die filling at the low forging pressures.

H) Net shaping process:

 Net and near net shape forging represent some relatively recent developments of the
conventional impression die forging process. Net and near net shape forgings are
distinguished by geometric features that are thinner and more detailed, varying parting line
locations, virtual elimination of draft, closer dimensional tolerances and with many as-forged
surfaces. The resulting product benefits are much fewer machining operations, reduced
weight and lower costs for raw materials and energy. In many cases, the only machining
operations required are drilling of attachment holes.
 Net and near net shape forgings in the as-forged and heat-treated condition usually reflect a
higher production cost than do their conventionally forged counterparts. They are often but
not necessarily fleshless. The cost advantage shifts to net shape forging as post-forging
machining operations are eliminated.
 A cost study for an aircraft aluminium forging made by four processes identifies the cost
drivers and illustrates the trade-offs for this application. The four processes are hand forging,
blocker type (forging to approximate shape and machining), conventional forging and net
shape forging.

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I) Tube Swaging:

 In this process, the internal diameter and/or the thickness of the tube is reduced, with or
without the use of internal mandrels. For small-diameter tubing, high-strength wire can be
used as a mandrel. Mandrels also can be made with longitudinal grooves, to allow swaging
of internally shaped tubes. For example, the rifling in gun barrels (internal spiral grooves to
give gyroscopic effect to bullets) can be produced by swaging a tube over a mandrel with
spiral grooves. Special machinery can swage gun barrels, and other tubular parts, with
starting diameters as large as 350 mm.

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J) Rotary Swaging:

 In this process, also known as radial forging, rotary forging, or simply swaging, a solid rod
or tube is subjected to radial impact forces using a set of reciprocating dies. The dies are
activated by means of a set of rollers within a cage, in an action similar to that of a roller
bearing. The workpiece is stationary and the dies rotate (while moving radially in their slots),
striking the workpiece at rates as high as 20 strokes per second. In die-closing swaging
machines, die movements are through the reciprocating motion of wedges.
 The dies can be opened wider than those in rotary swagers, thereby accommodating large-
diameter or variable-diameter parts. In another type of machine, the dies do not rotate but
move radially in and out.
 Typical products made by this machine are screwdriver blades and soldering-iron tips.
Swaging also can be used to assemble fittings over cables and wire; in such cases, the tubular
fitting is swaged directly onto the cable.
 The process also is used for operations such as pointing (tapering the tip of a cylindrical part)
and sizing (finalizing the dimensions of a part). Swaging generally is limited to a maximum
workpiece diameter of about 150 mm and parts as small as 0.5 mm have been swaged;
dimensional tolerances range from ±0.05 to ±0.5 mm. The process is suitable for medium-to-
high rates of production, with rates as high as 50 parts per minute possible, depending on
part complexity. Swaging is a versatile process and is limited in length only by the length of
the bar supporting the mandrel, if one is needed.

K) Orbital Forging:

 In this process, the upper die moves along an orbital path and forms the part incrementally,
an operation that is similar to the action of a mortar and pestle, used for crushing herbs and
seeds. Typical components that may be forged by this process are disk-shaped and conical
parts, such as bevel gears and gear blanks. The forging force is relatively small, because at
any particular instant, the die contact is concentrated onto a small area of the workpiece (see
also incremental forging below). The operation is relatively quiet, and parts can be formed
within 10–20 cycles of the orbiting die.

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L) Coining:

 A closed-die forging process, coining was originally used in the minting of coins,
medallions, and jewellery, but currently is used to produce a wide range of parts with high
accuracy, such as gears, industrial seals, and medical devices. The blank or slug is coined in
a completely closed-die cavity, in order to produce fine details, such as in coins; the
pressures required can be as high as five or six times the strength of the material. On some
parts, several coining operations may be required. Lubricants should not be applied in
coining, because they can become entrapped in the die cavities and, being incompressible,
prevent the full reproduction of die-surface details and surface finish. Marking parts with
letters and numbers also can be done rapidly through coining. Sizing is a process used in
forging, and other processes, to improve surface finish and to impart the desired dimensional
accuracy with little or no change in part size.

M) Hubbing:

 Hubbing is a metalworking process that is used to make dies. It is a cold-working process,

which means that it occurs well below the melting temperature of the metal being worked.
 In hubbing, a male hub (master) is created with a profile that will form an impression on the
female piece. The male hub is generally hardened and the female die block softened by
annealing to help form the impression. As the metal flows the face of the die block is
deformed, and, generally, must be machined flat. The die block is often a cylinder that is
reinforced with a surrounding steel ring during the hubbing process. Hubbing is usually less
expensive than die sinking, i.e., machining the female die, and multiple dies can be made
from the male hub.

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N) Fullering:

 Material is distributed away from an area In fullering, the die is a convex shape This
operation is used to increase the length and decrease the cross-sectional area of the material.
 Fullering acts to cause metal to flow out of one area and to both sides.
 It increases the thickness of unused areas.
 Less force required.

What is Extrusion and drawing?

 Extrusion and drawing have numerous applications in manufacturing continuous as well as
discrete products from a wide variety of metals and alloys. In extrusion, a usually cylindrical
billet is forced through a die, in a manner similar to squeezing toothpaste from a tube. A wide
variety of solid or hollow cross-sections can be produced by extrusion, which essentially are
semi-finished products.
 A characteristic of extrusion is that large deformations can take place without fracture,
because the material is under high triaxial compressive stresses. Since the die geometry
remains unchanged throughout the process, extruded products typically have a constant cross-
section. Typical products made by extrusion are railings for sliding doors, window frames,
tubing, aluminium ladder frames, and structural and architectural shapes.
 Extrusions can be cut into desired lengths, which then become discrete parts, such as
brackets, gears, and coat hangers. Commonly extruded metals are aluminium, copper, steel,
magnesium, and lead; other metals and alloys also can be extruded, with various levels of
difficulty. Each billet is extruded individually, thus extrusion is a batch or semi continuous
operation. The process can be economical for large as well as short production runs. Tool
costs generally are low, particularly for producing simple, solid cross-sections. Depending on
the required ductility of the material, the process is carried out at room or at elevated
temperatures.

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 Extrusion at room temperature is often combined with forging operations, in which case it is
generally called cold extrusion, with numerous applications, such as fasteners and
components for automobiles, bicycles, motorcycles, heavy machinery, and transportation
equipment.

 In drawing, it developed between 1000 and 1500 a . d The cross-section of a solid rod, wire,
or tubing is reduced or changed in shape by pulling it through a die. Drawn rods are used for
shafts, spindles, and small pistons, and as the raw material for fasteners such as rivets, bolts,
and screws. In addition to round rods, various profiles also can be drawn. The distinction
between the terms rod and wire is somewhat arbitrary, with rod taken to be larger in cross-
section than wire. In industry, wire is generally defined as a rod that has been drawn through
a die at least once, or that its diameter is small enough so that it can be coiled. Wire drawing
involves much smaller diameters than rod drawing, with sizes down to 0.01 mm for magnet
wire, and even smaller for use in very low current fuses

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Drawing Extrusion

Types of Extrusion:

 Extrusion can be broadly classified into two types, one is Hot Extrusion another one is Cold
Extrusion. These aforementioned categories are also subdivided into categories, they are as
follows:

 Hot Extrusion
o Forward extrusion and Backward extrusion
 Cold Extrusion
o Hydrostatic Extrusion
o Hooker Extrusion
o Impact Extrusion
o Cold Extrusion Forging
o Jacketing

Hot Extrusion:

 I hope you have already guessed by the name of this type “Hot extrusion”. Here in this
process workpiece or billet is heated above the recrystallization temperature, then it’s loaded
to the container and then ram exert force on it.
 As the workpiece is already heated above the recrystallization temperature, it quite easily
flows through the die, and also very accurately and effectively reshaped.
 The common materials used in this type of extrusion are Magnesium, Copper, Steel,
Aluminium, Nickel, etc.

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 For metals and alloys that do not have sufficient ductility at room temperature, or in order to
reduce the forces required, extrusion can be carried out at elevated temperatures.

 As in all other elevated-temperature operations, hot extrusion has special requirements,

because of the high operating temperatures involved. For example, die wear can be excessive,
and cooling of the hot billet surfaces (in the cooler container) and the die can result in highly
nonuniform deformation of the billet
 Thus, extrusion dies may be preheated, as is done in hot-forging operations. Because the
billet is hot, it develops an oxide film, unless it is heated in an inert atmosphere. Oxide films
can be abrasive, and can affect the flow pattern of the material. Their presence also results in
an extruded product that may be unacceptable when good surface finish is required. In order
to avoid the formation of oxide films on the hot extruded product, the dummy block placed
ahead of the ram is made a little smaller in diameter than the container.

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 As a result, a thin shell (skull), consisting mainly of the outer oxidized layer of the billet, is
left in the container. The skull is later removed from the chamber.

 Forward and backward extrusion:

 The most common method of extrusion, known as direct extrusion, can also be referred to as
forward extrusion. The process is generally very straightforward. The material to be forced
through is known as the billet, and the mold it is being forced through is the die.
 To begin with, the billet that is to be extruded is placed in a heavily walled container. The billet
is then pushed through the die using a ram or screw. It is known as forward extrusion because
the billet and the ram are moving forward in the same direction. A dummy block is placed
between the ram and the billet in order to prevent them from touching.
 There is one major drawback to this method, which is the amount of force required to force the
billet through the die. The frictional forces are relatively high due to the fact that the billet must
travel the entire length of the container. As such, the force at the beginning of the process is at
its highest, and it slowly decreases as the billet is extruded. Then, near the end, the force greatly
increases again, as the material must flow radially in order to push out of the die. This also
means that the end of the billet cannot be used as part of the extrusion and must be discarded
or recycled.

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 By comparison, indirect extrusion has a number of advantages. It also goes by the name
backwards extrusion and, as the name suggests, it is in many ways the opposite process to
direct extrusion. In this method, the billet and container move in tandem while the ram and the
die remain stationary. This is accomplished by employing a stem, which must be longer in
length than the container. In this way, the billet is forced through the stationary die.
 This method eliminates nearly all of the frictional forces. As the billet movement matches that
of the container, all the frictional forces are reduced, resulting in a 25 to 30% reduction of total
friction. This allows for the extrusion of larger billets at a faster rate. Additionally, smaller
cross-sections are also possible. Other advantages include less cracking because there is no
heat formation, the container is subject to less wear and tear, and a lower number of extrusion
defects and coarse-grained peripheral zones.
 On the other hand, indirect extrusion does have some drawbacks. The process is not nearly as
versatile as direct extrusion. This is because the size of the cross-section is confined by the
stem size. Moreover, any defects in the billet’s surface will greatly affect the finished extrusion,
sometimes even destroying the piece. To avoid such calamities, it’s necessary to wire brush,
machine, or chemically clean the billet before it is extruded.

Cold extrusion:

 Developed in the 1940s, cold extrusion is a general term often denoting a combination of
operations, such as a combination of direct and indirect extrusion and forging. Cold extrusion
is used widely for components in automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles, appliances, and in
transportation and farm equipment. The cold-extrusion process uses slugs cut from cold-
finished or hot-rolled bars, wire, or plates. Slugs that are less than about 40 mm in diameter
are sheared (cropped), and, if necessary, their ends are squared off by processes such as
upsetting, machining, or grinding. Larger diameter slugs are machined from bars into specific
lengths. Cold-extruded parts weighing as much as 45 kg and having lengths of up to 2 m can
be made, although most parts weigh much less. Powder metal slugs (preforms) also may be
cold extruded.

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Cold extrusion has the following advantages over hot extrusion:

 Improved mechanical properties, resulting from work hardening, provided that the heat
generated by plastic deformation and friction does not recrystallize the extruded metal.
 Good control of dimensional tolerances, thus reducing the need for subsequent machining or
finishing operations.
 Improved surface finish, due partly to the absence of an oxide film and provided that
lubrication is effective.
 Production rates and costs are competitive with those of other methods of producing the same
part. Some machines are capable of producing more than 2000 parts per hour.

 The magnitude of the stresses on the tooling in cold extrusion, on the other hand, is very high
(especially with steel and specialty-alloy workpieces), being on the order of the hardness of
the workpiece material. The punch hardness usually ranges between 60 and 65 HRC, and the
die hardness between 58 and 62 HRC. Punches are a critical component, as they must possess
not only sufficient strength but also high toughness and resistance to wear and fatigue failure.
Lubrication is critical, especially with steels, because of the possibility of sticking (seizure)
between the workpiece and the tooling, in case of lubricant breakdown. The most effective
means of lubrication is the application of a phosphate-conversion coating on the workpiece,
followed by a coating of soap or wax. Tooling design and the selection of appropriate tool
and die materials are essential to the success of cold extrusion. Also important are the
selection and control of the workpiece material with regard to its quality and the repeat
accuracy of the slug dimensions and its surface condition.

Hydrostatic Extrusion:

 In hydrostatic extrusion, the pressure required in the chamber is supplied via a piston and
through an incompressible fluid medium surrounding the billet. Pressures are typically on the
order of 1400 MPa. The high pressure in the chamber transmits some of the fluid to the die
surfaces, where it significantly reduces friction.

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 Hydrostatic extrusion is usually carried out at room temperature, typically using vegetable
oils as the fluid. Brittle materials can be extruded successfully by this method, because the
hydrostatic pressure, along with low friction and the use of small die angles and high
extrusion ratios, increases the ductility of the material.
 Long wires also have been extruded from an aluminium billet, at room temperature and an
extrusion ratio of 14,000; this means that a 1-m billet becomes a 14-km-long wire. In spite of
the success obtained, hydrostatic extrusion has had limited industrial applications, mainly
because of the complex nature of the tooling, the design of specialized equipment, and the
long cycle times required—all of which make the process uneconomical for most materials
and applications.

Impact extrusion:

 Impact extrusion is similar to indirect extrusion, and the process often is included in the
cold-extrusion category. The punch descends rapidly on the blank (slug), which is extruded
backward. Because of volume constancy, the thickness of the tubular extruded region is a
function of the clearance between the punch and the die Cavity.
 The extruded parts are stripped by using a stripper plate. (a) Impact extrusion of a collapsible
tube by the Hooker process, (b) and (c) Two examples of products made by impact
extrusion. These parts also may be made by casting, forging, or machining; the choice
depends on the materials part dimensions and wall thickness, and the properties desired.
Economic considerations also are important in final process selection.
 Products are collapsible tubes (similar to those used for toothpaste), light fixtures,
automotive parts, and small pressure vessels. Most nonferrous metals can be impact extruded
in vertical presses and at production rates as high as two parts per second.

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 The maximum diameter of the parts made is about 150 mm. The impact-extrusion process
can produce thin-walled tubular sections, with thickness to-diameter ratios as small as 0.005.
Consequently, the symmetry of the part and the concentricity of the punch and the blank are
important.

Hooker extrusion process:

 This process is also known as the extrusion down method. It is used for producing small thin-
walled seamless tubes of aluminium and copper. This is done in two stages. In the first stage
the blank is converted into a cup shaped piece. In the second stage, the walls of the cup one
thinned and it is elongated. The process can be understood by referring to Figure. This
process is a direct extrusion process.

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Cold extrusion forging:

 This process is depicted in Figure. This is generally similar to the impact extrusion process;
but there are two differences: In this process the punch descends slowly. The height of the
extruded product is short and the side walls are much thicker than the thin-walled products
produced by the impact extrusion process. In essence, this process is one of backward
extrusion.

Jacketing:

 In several medical device applications, polymer material is jacketed over fine wires in order
to insulate them. For example, in neurostimulation devices used for electrically stimulating
the spinal cord, brain, or bladder to treat chronic pain, thin lead wires are jacketed to protect
the body from undirected electrical pulses. Similarly, in cochlear implants, polymer material
is used to insulate the wires between the implant body and the electrode contact. In both types
of devices, very fine lead wires are jacketed using an ultrafine layer of such fluoropolymers
as ETFE, FEP, PFA, and PTFE.

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 However, extruding a polymer layer around a wire core is easier said than done. Made from
titanium, 300-series stainless steel, silver-plated copper, platinum composites, or such super
alloys as MP35N, the solid wires used in neurostimulation and cochlear implant applications
typically range in diameter from 0.0015 to 0.008 in. (0.038 to 0.203 mm). Depending on the
diameter of the wire, the jacket's minimum wall thickness can measure as low as 0.0005 in.
(0.013 mm) --smaller than the diameter of a human hair.
 A common wire used in neurostimulation devices and cochlear implants is made from
titanium alloy, has an outer diameter of 0.004 in. (0.102 mm), and is jacketed by an ultrathin
fluoropolymer layer with a thickness up to 0.001 in. (0.025 mm). Such wires are so small that
they are difficult to see with the naked eye. In addition to overcoming the daunting size
challenges associated with manufacturing tiny jacketed wires, the tension requirements for
introducing (deerlings) and winding fragile ultrafine wires is a delicate process. If too much
tension is applied, the wires can deform or break.
 The appropriate tension level for the extrusion process in question can be determined by the
wire's gauge and yield stress. Provides a general guide for determining the winding stress of
different fine-wire materials.
 Based on its winding stress and cross-sectional area, a 0.004-in.-diam titanium wire has a
deerlings and winding tension level of approximately 56 g. In contrast, a 0.004-in.-diam
copper wire has a tension level of approximately 23 g, just slightly higher than the tension
level of 20 regular-sized paperclips.

 These tension levels result from the fine-wire wrapping around a lightweight sheave but not
from the sheave itself. However, the weight of the sheave can also impact tension levels. For
example, an extremely light sheave can easily add 4 to 10 g of tension. Because of the
challenges associated with deerlings and winding ultrafine wires, special recoiling and
winding equipment is required for controlling tension levels down to 20 g.
 Besides size and tension constraints, jacketing fine wires requires the use of specialized micro
extrusion equipment that can produce low output rates without degrading the polymer.
Exposing the polymer to excessive residence times in the barrel and screw channels can result
in material degradation. To prevent this issue, manufacturers must occasionally resort to the
use of a bleed port, which allows for significantly lower outputs than a micro extruder.

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 Once a wire has been jacketed, manufacturers perform inline measurements to extract quality
data. However, performing quality control is challenging because it is difficult to measure the
wall thickness of the jacketed layer down to 0.001 in. using ultrasonic wall measurement
technology. Consequently, manufacturers typically measure the core wire before the extruded
jacket is applied and then measure the final outer diameter after extrusion in order to
calculate the wall thickness of the jacket.

Ironing:

 Ironing is a very useful metal forming process when employed in combination with deep
drawing to produce a uniform wall thickness cup with greater height-to-diameter ratio. In the
ironing process, a previously deep-drawn cup is drawn through an ironing ring with a moving
ram to reduce the wall thickness. In cup drawing, the upper part of the cup wall usually is
formed thicker than the original blank. The ironing process, therefore, must be adopted in
deep drawing to produce uniform thickness in the wall.
 This work studied the ironing of commercial aluminium blanks. For this purpose, several
ironing experiments were carried out under various conditions, and the effect of some
parameters, such as thickness reduction, friction, heat treatment, and material properties, were
investigated. During the experiments, the optimum condition for surface smoothness through
the ironing process was obtained.

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Drawing:

 Today we will learn about drawing process Working and its types like wire drawing, rod
drawing and tube drawing. Drawing is a metal forming process used to reduce cross section
and increase length of workpiece. This process associated with tensile force which
distinguishes it from other metal forming processes like extrusion, forging etc.
 In this process a large cross section workpiece is forced to pass through a die which has a
smaller opening comparing the cross-section area of the workpiece. This will plastically
deform the work piece by decreasing its cross-section area and increasing its length. This
process is used for making wires, rods, tubes etc.

Requirement of Drawing Process:

 The material should have sufficient ductility so it can sustain tensile force.
 The material should possess high tensile stress.
 The rod or wire should be properly cleaned and dust or scale free before drawing.
 It should be properly lubricated to reduce friction associated with operation.

Drawing Process:
Drawing process can be divided into the following three types.

 Wire Drawing
 Rod Drawing
 Tube Drawing

Wire Drawing:

 A wire is a circular, small diameter flexible rod. Wire drawing is an cold working process. It
is an operation to produce wire of various sizes within certain specific tolerances. This
process involves reducing diameter of thick wire by passing it through a series of wire
drawing dies with successive die having smaller diameter than the preceding one. Mostly die
are made by chilled cast iron, tungsten carbide, diamond or other tool material. The
maximum reduction in area of wire is less than 45% in one pass.

Rod Drawing:

 Rod drawing is similar process like wire drawing except it is rigid and has larger diameter
compare to wire. This process need heavier equipment compare to wire drawing because the
wire can be coiled but a rod should be kept straight. The work piece is first fed into die and
pulled by a carriage which increase its length and decrease its cross section. Now the rod is to
be cut into sections.

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Tube Drawing:

 Tube drawing is also similar to other two processes except it uses a mandrel to reduce wall
thickness and cross section diameter of a tube. This mandrel placed with die and the work
piece is pulled by a carriage system as describe in rod drawing. The tube is either circular or
rectangular. It also required more than one pass to complete drawing operation.

Working Process:

 All drawing processes work on the same principle. Its working can be summarized as follow.
Types of Drawing Process: Wire Drawing, Rod Drawing and Tube Drawing First a hot rolled
rod is created by other metal forming processes like forging, extruding, centrifugal casting
etc.
 Now the rod is made pointed to facilitate the entry into the die.
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 The dust or other scale particles should clean from the rod. This process is done by acid
pickling.
 Now the prepared skin is coated with lubricant. This process uses either sulling, coppering,
phosphating or liming. Sulling is a process of coating with ferrous hydroxide. In phosphating
magnesium or iron phosphate is coated. Cu and Sn are used for lubricant high strength
material. Oil and grease use for wire drawing and soap is used for dry drawing.
 Now the rod is pulled through various dies to convert it into desire shape. The die is affected
by several stresses so it is made of high strength alloy steel like tungsten carbide etc.

Application:

 This process is used for making wire of copper, aluminum etc. which are used in electrical
industries.
 Paper clip, helical spring etc. are wire drawing products.
 Small diameter rods and tubes are drawing products.
 It is used to produce large lengths of small cross sections.

 This is all about the basic principle of drawing process types like wire drawing, rod and tube
drawing. If you have any query regarding this article ask by commenting. If you like this
article, don’t forget to share it on your social networks. Subscribe our website for more
interesting articles. Thanks for reading it.

Sheet metal Forming Classification:

Shearing:

 Before a sheet-metal part is made, a blank of suitable dimensions first is removed from a
large sheet (usually from a coil) by shearing. This sheet is cut by subjecting it to shear
stresses, generally using a punch and a die
 Note that the edges are not smooth nor are they perpendicular to the plane of the sheet.
 Shearing generally starts with the formation of cracks on both the top and bottom edges of the
workpiece.
 These cracks eventually meet each other and complete separation occurs. The rough fracture
surfaces are due to the cracks; the smooth and shiny burnished surfaces on the hole and the
slug are from the contact and rubbing of the sheared edge against the walls of the punch and
die, respectively.
 The major processing parameters in shearing are,
 The shape of the punch and die
 The speed of punching
 Lubrication
 The clearance, between the punch and the die

 The clearance is a major factor in determining the shape and the quality of the sheared edge.
As the clearance increases, the zone of deformation becomes larger and the sheared edge
becomes rougher. The sheet tends to be pulled into the clearance region, and the perimeter or
edges of the sheared zone become rougher. Unless such edges are acceptable as produced,
secondary operations may be required to make them smoother (which will increase the
production cost).

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 The ratio of the burnished area to the rough areas along the sheared edge

a) increases with increasing ductility of the sheet metal and

b) decreases with increasing sheet thickness and clearance.

Shearing Operations:

1. Die-Cutting:

 This is a shearing
operation that consists of
the following basic
processes:

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 Perforating: punching a number of holes in a sheet

o Perforating involves the simultaneous punching of a pattern of holes in a sheet metal.

o The hole pattern is usually for decorative purposes, or to alloy passage of light, gas or
fluid.

 Parting: shearing the sheet into two or more pieces

o Parting involves cutting a sheet metal strip by a punch with two cutting edges that match
the opposite sides of blank.
o Parting is less efficient than cut-off in the sense that it results in some wasted materials.

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 Notching: removing pieces (or various shapes) from the edges

o Notching involves cutting out a portion of a metal from the side of a sheet or strip.
o Semi notching removes a portion of a metal from the interior of the sheet.

 Lancing: leaving a tab without removing any material.

 Creating a partial cut in the sheet, so that no material is removed.
 The material is left attached to bent and form a shape, such as a tab, vent, or louver.

 Parts produced by these processes have various uses, particularly in assembly with other
components. Perforated sheet metals with hole diameters ranging from around 1 mm to
75 mm have uses as filters, as screens, in ventilation, as guards for machinery, in noise
abatement, and in Weight reduction of fabricated parts and structures. They are punched
in crank presses at rates as high as 300,000 holes per minute, using special dies and
equipment.

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2. Fine Blanking:

 Very smooth and square edges can be produced by fine blanking. One basic die design
is shown in Fig. A V-shaped stinger or impingement mechanically locks the sheet
tightly in place and prevents the type of distortion of the material shown in Figs. The
fine-blanking process, which was developed in the 1960s, involves clearances on the
order of 1% of the sheet thickness and that may range from 0.5 to 13 mm in most cases.
Dimensional tolerances are on the order of 0.05 mm and less than 0.025 mm in the case
of edge perpendicular.

3. Slitting:

 Shearing operations can be carried out by means of a pair of circular blades similar to
those in a can opener. In slitting, the blades follow either a straight line, a circular path,
or a curved path. A slit edge normally has a burr, which may be folded over the sheet
surface by rolling it (flattening) between two rolls. If not performed properly, slitting
operations can cause various distortions of the sheared edges
 Slitting can be used equally well for both sheet or coil rolls.
 Slitting blades are designed depending on the job required. The three critical
determinants of the blade configuration include:
 The workpiece material thickness
 The type of material to be slit
 The tolerances that must be held while slitting.

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4. Steel Rules:

 Soft metals (as Well as paper, leather, and rubber) can be blanked with a steel-rule die.
Such a die consists of a thin strip of hardened steel bent into the shape to be produced (a
concept similar to that of a cookie cutter) and held on its edge on a flat wood or polymer
base. The die is pressed against the sheet, which rests on the flat surface, and it shears the
sheet along the shape of the steel rule.

5. Nibbling:

 Nibbling. In nibbling, a machine called a nibbler moves a small straight punch up and down
rapidly into a die. A sheet is fed through the gap and many overlapping holes are made.
With manual or automatic control, sheets can be cut along any Clearance Upper pressure
pad Fracture surface Lower pressure cushion desired path.
 In addition to its flexibility, an advantage of nibbling is that intricate slots and notches, such
as those shown in Fig, can be produced with standard punches. The process is economical
for small production runs because no special dies are required.

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Scrap in Shearing:

 The amount of scrap (trim loss) produced in shearing operations can be significant and can be
as high as 30% on large stampings. Scrap can be a significant factor in manufacturing cost, and
it can be reduced substantially by efficient arrangement of the shapes on the sheet to be cut
Computer-aided design techniques have been developed to minimize the scrap from shearing
operations.

The process:
 The workpiece is placed on the die with a rear stop position after which the punch presses
a hole. The punch is then lifted and moved over the plate until the stop position again
positioning the punch that knocks out another hole. The process is repeated while the plate
is rotated to create a nonlinear slit.
 This description applies to equipment intended solely for nibbling. Nibbling is also
performed frequently as a part of Multi Operation Punch and Sheet Metal.

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Bending:

 Bending is one of the most common industrial forming operations. We merely have to look at
an automobile body, appliance, paper clip, or file cabinet to appreciate how many parts are
shaped by bending. Furthermore, bending also imparts stiffness to the part by increasing its
moment of inertia.
 Note, for example, how corrugations, flanges, beads, and seams improve the stiffness of
structures Without adding any Weight. As a specific example, observe the diametral stiffness
of a metal can with and without circumferential beads.
 The terminology used in the bending of a sheet or plate is shown in Fig.
 As from the fig, the outer fibres of material are in tension, while inner fibres are in compression.
 Because of Poisson’s ratio, the width of the part (bend length, L) in the outer region is smaller,
and in the inner region it is larger, than the original width Bending terminology.
 Note that the bend radius is measured to the inner surface of the bent part.

1. Press brake forming:

 Sheet metal or plate can be bent easily with simple fixtures using a press. Sheets or
narrow strips that are 7 m or even longer usually are bent in a press brake. The machine
utilizes long dies in a mechanical or hydraulic press and is particularly suitable for small
production runs. As can be seen in Fig. The tooling is simple, their motions are only up
and down, and they easily are adaptable to a wide variety of shapes. Also, the process
can be automated easily for low-cost, high-production runs. Die materials for press
brakes range from hardwood (for low-strength materials and small-production runs) to
carbides for strong and abrasive sheet materials and also are chosen to improve die life.
For most applications, however, carbon-steel or gray-iron is generally used.

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 Break Forming is one of the oldest mechanical metal deformation processes. During the
process, a piece of sheet metal is formed along a straight axis. This may be accomplished by a
"V"- shaped, "U"-shaped, or channel-shaped punch and die set.
 Although press braking appears a simple concept, maintaining accuracy can often be quite
difficult. Precision bending is a function of both the press, the tooling, and the work-piece
material. Material properties such as yield strength, ductility, hardness, and the condition of
the material, all affect the amount of spring back of the material.
 The most common industrial press braking process is called air bending. Air bending relies
upon three-point bending. The angle of the bend is dictated by how far the punch tip penetrates
the "V" cavity. The greater the penetration of the punch tip the greater the angle achieved.

The main benefit of air bending is that it uses much less force than other methods to achieve a 90°
bend due to the leverage effect.
Characteristic of the metal brake forming process include:
 Its ability to form ductile materials,
 Its use in both low and medium production run applications,
 The need for minimal tooling,
 Its suitability to produce smaller parts,
 Its output is long workpieces using a "V", "U", channel, or other special punch and dies.

The illustrations that follow provide a two-dimensional look at a typical press brake setup. Note how
the tool removes the notched part. The left side of the illustration shows the press brake in the open
position and the right side shows it in a closed position, press braking the metal workpiece.

 Brake forming can commonly form metals up to 10" thick and some machinery will form pieces
as long as 20 feet.
 The press braking process can produce a variety of shapes. Some of the most common shapes
appear, two-dimensionally, in the table below.

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Shape Type of Bend

90° Rib Form

90° Bottom / V Bottom

Channel

Closing

Double Form

Hat Channel

M.T. Offset

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Offset

Open Hat Channel

Radius

Single Form

Wipe Die

Materials commonly used in the brake forming process include:

 Aluminium
 Brass
 Cold rolled carbon steel
 Hot rolled carbon steel
 Stainless steel
Tool materials for brake forming include low-carbon steel, tool steel, carbide, and hardwood.

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2. Bending in four-slide machine:

 Bending relatively short pieces can be done on a machine such as that shown in Fig.
In these machines, the lateral movements of the dies are controlled and synchronized
with the vertical die movement to form the part into desired shapes.
 This process is useful in making seamed tubing and conduits, bushings, fasteners, and
various machinery components.

3. Roll bending:

 In this process, plates are bent using a set of rolls. By adjusting the distance between
the three rolls, various curvatures can be obtained. This process is flexible and is used
widely for bending plates for applications such as boilers, cylindrical pressure vessels,
and various curved structural members.

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4. Roll Beading:
 In beading, the periphery of the sheet metal is bent into the cavity of a die. The bead
imparts stiffness to the part by increasing the moment of inertia of that section.

 Also, beads improve the appearance of the part and eliminate exposed sharp edges that
can be hazardous.

5. Flanging:
 This is a process of bending the edges of sheet metals, usually to 90°. In shrink flanging,
the flange is subjected to compressive hoop stresses that, if excessive, can cause the
flange periphery to wrinkle. The wrinkling tendency
 Various flanging operations.

o (a) Flanges on a flat sheet.

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o (b) Dimpling.

o (c) The piercing of sheet metal to form a flange. In this operation, a hole does not have
to be pre punched before the punch descends. Note, however, the rough edges along
the circumference of the flange.

o (d) The flanging of a tube. Note the thinning of the edges of the flange.

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6. Roll forming:

 This process, which is also called contour-roll forming or cold-roll forming, is used for forming
continuous lengths of sheet metal and for large production runs. As it passes through a set of
rolls, the metal strip is bent in consecutive stages.
 The formed strip is then sheared into specific lengths and stacked continuously. Typical roll-
formed products are panels, door and picture frames, channels, gutters, siding, and pipes and
tubing with lock seams. The length of the part is limited only by the amount of material supplied
to the rolls from the coiled stock. Sheet thickness usually ranges from about 0.125 to 20 mm.
Forming speeds are generally below 1.5 m/s, although they can be much higher for special
applications. The design and sequencing of the rolls (Which usually are mechanically driven)
require considerable experience. Dimensional tolerances and spring back, as well as tearing
and buckling of the strip, have to be considered. The rolls generally are made of carbon steel
or of Gray iron, and they may be chromium plated for a better surface finish of the formed
product and for better Wear resistance of the rolls.
 Lubricants may be used to reduce roll Wear, to improve surface finish, and to cool the rolls and
the sheet being formed.

7. Tube bending and forming:

 Bending and forming tubes and other hollow sections requires special tooling because
of the tendency for buckling and folding, as one notes when trying to bend a piece of
copper tubing or even a plastic soda straw.
 The oldest method of bending a tube or pipe is to first pack its inside with loose particles
(commonly sand) and then bend it into a suitable fixture. The function of the filler is to
prevent the tube from buckling inward.
 After the tube has been bent, the sand is shaken out. Tubes also can be plugged with
various flexible internal mandrels for the same purpose as the sand. Note that (because
of its lower tendency for buckling) a relatively thick tube to be formed to a large bend
radius can be bent safely without the use of fillers or plugs.

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Metal sheet cutting:

Laser Beam Cutting:

 Laser cutting is a technology that uses a laser to vaporize materials, resulting in a cut
edge. While typically used for industrial manufacturing applications, is now used by
schools, small businesses, and hobbyists. Laser cutting works by directing the output
of a high-power laser most commonly through optics. The laser optics and CNC
(computer numerical control) are used to direct the material or the laser beam generated.
A commercial laser for cutting materials uses a motion control system to follow a CNC
or G-code of the pattern to be cut onto the material. The focused laser beam is directed
at the material, which then either melts, burns, vaporizes away, or is blown away by a
jet of gas leaving an edge with a high-quality surface finish

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 Process:
 The laser beam is a column of very high intensity light, of a single wavelength, or colour. In
the case of a typical CO2 laser, that wavelength is in the Infra-Red part of the light spectrum,
so it is invisible to the human eye. The beam is only about 3/4 of an inch in diameter as it
travels from the laser resonator, which creates the beam, through the machine’s beam path.
 It may be bounced in different directions by a number of mirrors, or “beam benders”, before
it is finally focused onto the plate. The focused laser beam goes through the bore of a nozzle
right before it hits the plate. Also flowing through that nozzle bore is a compressed gas, such
as Oxygen or Nitrogen.
 Focusing the laser beam can be done by a special lens, or by a curved mirror, and this takes
place in the laser cutting head. The beam has to be precisely focused so that the shape of the
focus spot and the density of the energy in that spot are perfectly round and consistent, and
cantered in the nozzle. By focusing the large beam down to a single pinpoint, the heat density
at that spot is extreme. Think about using a magnifying glass to focus the sun’s rays onto a leaf,
and how that can start a fire. Now think about focusing 6 KWatts of energy into a single spot,
and you can imagine how hot that spot will get.
 The high-power density results in rapid heating, melting and partial or complete vaporizing of
the material. When cutting mild steel, the heat of the laser beam is enough to start a typical
“oxy-fuel” burning process, and the laser cutting gas will be pure oxygen, just like an oxy-fuel
torch. When cutting stainless steel or aluminium, the laser beam simply melts the material, and
high-pressure nitrogen is used to blow the molten metal out of the kerf.
 On a CNC laser cutter, the laser cutting head is moved over the metal plate in the shape of the
desired part, thus cutting the part out of the plate. A capacitive height control system maintains
a very accurate distance between the end of the nozzle and the plate that is being cut. This
distance is important, because it determines where the focal point is relative to the surface of
the plate. Cut quality can be affected by raising or lowering the focal point from just above the
surface of the plate, at the surface, or just below the surface.
Application:
 Heavy Manufacturing
1. Seam & spot welding
2. Cladding & Drilling

 Light Manufacturing
1. Engraving
2. Drilling

 Electronics
1. Skiving of circuit
2. Wire stripping

 Medical
1. Cosmetic surgery
2. Hair removal

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Advantages:
 Non-contact
 No solvent chemical
 Selective Material Removal
 Flexibility
 Fully automated

Disadvantages:
 Required specially trained operators
 Not for mass metal removal process
 Required great control of joint tolerances
 Expensive equipment
 Consumes much energy
Water jet cutting:

 A water jet cutter, also known as a water jet or waterjet, is an industrial tool capable of cutting
a wide variety of materials using an extremely high-pressure jet of water, or a mixture of water
and an abrasive substance. The term abrasive jet refers specifically to the use of a mixture of
water and abrasive to cut hard materials such as metal, stone or glass, while the terms pure
waterjet and water-only cutting refer to waterjet cutting without the use of added abrasives,
often used for softer materials such as wood or rubber.
 Waterjet cutting is often used during fabrication of machine parts. It is the preferred method
when the materials being cut are sensitive to the high temperatures generated by other methods;
examples of such materials include plastic and aluminium. Waterjet cutting is used in various
industries, including mining and aerospace, for cutting, shaping, and reaming.

 Process:

 The process begins at a large electric driven oil pump, which pumps oil at 2750 psi into a
heavy-duty intensifier (pressure amplifier) assembly.
 Inside the intensifier the pressure is increased from domestic supply pressure (50-60 psi) up to
55,000 psi. This increase in pressure is achieved due to the greater surface area of the hydraulic
piston (20 times the surface area of the water piston) to amplify water pressure to 20 times the
pressure of the oil.
 The ultra-high-pressure water is then fed via stainless steel pressure piping into a cutting head
on a profile cutting table.
 At the cutting head, the stream of high-pressure water is focussed through a ruby, sapphire, or
diamond orifice which focuses the water into a fine "needle."
 The ultra-high-pressure water is then fired through a mixing chamber where abrasive garnet
sand is drawn into the water stream.
 The abrasive and water mixture then exits the cutting head through a focussing tube at speeds
up to mach 2, thus creating a highly efficient and powerful cutting tool.

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Types of Jet:
 The two types of water jets are the pure water jet and the abrasive water jet.
 A pure water jet is used to cut soft materials, and within just 2 minutes the very same water jet
can be transformed into an abrasive water jet to cut hard materials by adding abrasives to it.
 Pure water jet uses pure pressurized water whereas abrasive water jet uses abrasives like
Aluminium oxide, silicon carbide and garnet.

Pure water jet:

 Pure Water jet is the original water cutting method.
 The largest uses for pure water jet cutting are disposable diapers, tissue paper, and automotive
interiors.
 Provides Very thin stream (0.004 to 0.010 inch in diameter is the common range).
 Very little material loss due to precise cutting.
 Non-heat cutting, usually cuts very quickly.
 Able to cut soft, light materials (e.g., fibreglass insulation up to 24" thick).
 Extremely low cutting forces.

Abrasive jet cutting:

 In the abrasive waterjet, the waterjet stream accelerates abrasive particles and those particles,
not the water, erode the material.
 The abrasive Waterjet is hundreds of times more powerful than a pure Waterjet.
 Extremely versatile process, No Heat Affected Zones, No mechanical stresses
 Easy to program, Little or no burr
 Thin stream (0.020 to 0.050 inch in diameter)
 10-inch-thick cutting, little material loss due to cutting
 Quickly switch from pure waterjet to abrasive waterjet

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Advantages:
 No heat affected zone
 Saves the raw material
 Wide range of materials
 Ability to Cut in Any Direction
 Environmentally friendly
 No need for surface finish
 No tool changing
 Unlike machining or grinding, waterjet cutting does not produce any dust or particles that are
harmful if inhaled.
 Waterjet cutting can be easily used to produce prototype parts very efficiently.
 An operator can program the dimensions of the part into the control station, and the waterjet
will cut the part out exactly as programmed.
 water jets are much lighter than equivalent laser cutters, and when mounted on an automated
robot. This reduces the problems of accelerating and decelerating the robot head, as well as
taking less energy

Disadvantages:
 Limited number of materials can be cut economically
 Very thick parts cannot be cut with Water Jet
 Cutting and still hold dimensional accuracy
 Slower cutting
 Higher entry cost
 A limited number of materials can be cut economically. While it is possible to cut tool steels,
and other hard materials, the cutting rate has to be greatly reduced.
 Another disadvantage is that very thick parts can not be cut with waterjet cutting
 and still hold dimensional accuracy. If the part is too thick, the jet may dissipate some, and
cause it to cut on a diagonal.
 Taper is also a problem with waterjet cutting in very thick materials. Taper is when the jet exits
the part at a different angle than it enters the part, and can cause dimensional inaccuracy.

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Application:
 Textiles
 Plastics
 Paper
 Fibrous materials
 Elastomers
 Foils
 Sealing materials
 Insulating materials
 Foam
 Silicone
 Leather
 Food

Band-Saw Cutting:

 There are two types of band saws available in the market – one is the horizontal band saw and
the other is vertical band saw. Band saws have become fairly common in any machine shop
and require no special skills to use. However, considering the nature of work involved, it is
important that you familiarize yourself with the equipment and follow a few simple steps
when using a band saw. Here are some simple instructions on how to safely use vertical band
saws.

Step 1: Safety

 Before handling any sort of power tool, it is important to wear safety goggles, gloves and any
other relevant safety gear. Try to minimize loose clothing as it could potentially get caught in
the saw blades.

Step 2: Know your Machine

 Most band saw machines come with variable speeds but if yours is only one speed that is not a
cause of concern. Your power switch and speed indicators are usually located on the left side
of the machine if you are standing in front of the machine. The transmission shift lever and the
variable speed control will be located at the back of the machine. The tilt table at the front
allows you to move the object you are cutting with ease. The air blower at the top of the blade
makes sure any particles are blown away from you and not towards you.

Step 3: Measurements

 Mark your measurements on the object you need to cut. Make sure that the sizes that you are
trying to cut are able to fit through the machine. This is more important for any contour sawing
as opposed to straight line cutting. When cutting straight lines, make sure the width of the
object does not increase the distance between the blade and the column of the machine. If you
are cutting a contour, make sure the object can pass through the gap between the column and
blade in all directions. If that is not the case, simple cutoff any excess object that you can before
using the machine.

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Step 4: Set Speed

 Depending on what type of material you are cutting, the speed of the saw will vary accordingly.
The general rule of thumb is to use fast speed for softer materials and relatively slower speed
for harder materials. Once you switch on the machine, wait a few seconds as it powers up and
settles at its working speed.

Step 5: Feeding

 Once you have marked the object and set the speed, you are ready to feed the object through
the machine. Depending on what type of machine you are using, the object can be fed manually
or using the powered feeder. Before feeding the object and even before turning the machine
on, check which side the teeth of the blade are facing. This is the side you will be feeding the
object from.
 If you are manually feeding the object make sure you keep your hands out of the way of the
blade and if you are using the powered feeder, make sure you are not in a position to get caught
in any of the moving part of the machine.

 Firmly grab the object, align the cutting line with the blade, clear your hands from the path of
the blade and push the object into the line of the band saw blades. Once you have cut through
the object, remove the articles from the machine and turn the machine off.

Safety:

1. Know where the start and stop switches are located.

2. Make sure that the blade is adjusted correctly and that the doors are closed before using the
machine.
3. Use the right blade for the thickness of the material being cut. There should be at least three
teeth for the thickness of the material.
4. Never run the machine faster than the recommended speed for the specific material.
5. Make sure that the saw blade is sharp enough to cut the material.
6. Adjust all guards in place before operation. The upper guide/guard assembly should be placed
within ¼ of an inch of the workpiece.
7. Make sure the workpiece is flat on the table before starting the cut.
8. Do not start cutting until the blade has attained its full speed.
9. Maintain a safe distance between your hands and the blade.
10. Use the appropriate amount of force when cutting a piece.
11. When pushing irregular or small stock, use a board or push stick.
12. Be mindful of thin pieces jamming the slot or hitting the end of the slot in the insert.
13. If blade binding occurs, turn the machine off by unplugging the power cord and wait until it
stops fully before attempting to remove the blade from the workpiece. Blade binding is when
the saw blade gets stuck in the workpiece.
14. Never make adjustments until the machine has fully stopped.
15. In the event of a broken band, unplug and keep away from the machine until it comes to a
complete stop. Contact the instructor immediately.
16. Remove excess chips using brushes or rags after stopping the machine in order to prevent large
quantities of chips from accumulating.
17. Make sure the machine is turned off and clean before leaving the workspace.

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Horizontal bandsaw:

Adjusting the Vice:

 Loading Vice:

 Turning the handle to the left will loosen the vice. Turning it to the right will tighten it.
 The vice will be movable by hand if it is not clamped down. Some force may be needed to
move the vice, and if it is sticking, slightly loosening the handle should resolve the problem.
 The workpiece should be secured in a manner in which it will not pop out during the cutting
process.
 Make sure that the workpiece is being cut by multiple blade teeth, not just one.

 Rotating Vice:

 If the desired cut is not a 90-degree angle, the vice’s angle can be adjusted by up to 45
degrees.
 To change the angle, lift the cutting head and adjust the bolts as shown on the image below.
 Before cutting, tighten the bolts and restore the jaws to their original position.
 When the vice is rotated by a full 45 degrees, the maximum size for the stock becomes 8” round
and 8” square.

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 Procedure:

1. Lift the handle and lock the machine in place.

2. Mount the stock inside the vice and tighten it.
3. Do not cut thin, vertical pieces, as they can damage the blade.
4. Do not cut large, flat pieces on the horizontal bandsaw. Cut these pieces with the vertical
bandsaw.
5. Adjust the blade holders so that they clear the stock.
6. Turn the coolant or cutting oil on if necessary.
7. Place the emergency stop button in the extended position.
8. Turn the machine off by pressing the green button.
9. Adjust the speed of the blade to suit your needs.
10. Slowly turn the vertical feed lever and change the speed as needed.Ask your instructor about
head speed. If the speed is too low, the blade can become dull. However, if the speed is too
high, it may damage the blade. The blade should be doing all of the work.
11. The machine will stop automatically after cutting the workpiece.
12. Return the head speed to the default and clean the machine.

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VERTICAL BANDSAW:

 Setup:

1. Make sure that the power is off and adjust the height of the guidepost to ¼ of an inch above
the top face of the stock by loosening the guidepost lock. When finished, remember to tighten
the lock.
2. Make sure that there is a push stick available.

 Procedure:

1. Turn the machine on and wait for it to reach maximum speed.

2. Cut the stock, making sure to keep fingers at least 4 inches away from the blade.
3. When cutting small objects, use a push stick.
4. Make relief cuts when cutting curves or intricate cuts. This will lower the amount of blade
stain. It will also remove the need to back out of a cut.
5. Use a tail man when re-sawing or cutting long pieces.
6. When ripping bevels keep the fence on the low side of the blade.
7. If the blade makes clicking sounds, turn the machine off immediately. The sound signifies a
breaking blade. Notify the instructor immediately.
8. Turn off the machine and stop the blade using the foot brake when finished cutting. Do not
leave the band saw without stopping the blade completely.

Applications:

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 The band saw machine is used for external and internal sawing
 With the use of attachments, the band saw machine can also serve a variety of other functions.
 Band files and polishing bands can be used in place of the band saw blade for filing and
polishing operations.
 A disk cutting attachment permits the cutting of true circles. An angular blade guide attachment
is furnished with most band saw machines. This attachment twists the band saw blade so that
large or long work pieces that would not normally clear the band saw machine column can be
cut.
 A mitre guide attachment can be used to guide the work piece at any convenient angle.

Advantages:

 Material can be cut using less power.

 Saving in raw material.
 Proper planning of utilization of material results in less material cost.
 Required accuracy can be achieved.
 Requires less skilled operators.

Limitations:

 Only length cutting can be done.

 Other dimensions like, diameter, lateral dimensions cannot be performed

Friction-saw Cutting:

 Friction sawing is not an entirely new concept in cutting. Several distinct advantages are
apparent with the use of the band saw for friction cutting. Less horsepower is required; contour
cutting possible; the thin band tool had less kerf than circular blades; and irregular pieces could
be cut without support since there was very little down drag or pull during band friction sawing.
So, there was an entire new field of cutting developed from an old cutting principle. To better
understand the cutting action, let us take a look at the principles behind friction sawing.
 In friction cutting or burning, the heat generated is a product of some co-efficient of friction of
the metal or metals in contact, times the pressure, time the distance moved. Note that speed is
not mentioned. The BTUs of heat generated depends on the pressure, the kind of material, and
the distance moved, and is not affected by the area of contact nor the tie or speed.
 Bearing this in mind, we can explain the way of doing certain thigs in successful friction cutting
or any other application of frictional heat. This also explains why a toothed blade is more
successful than a solid band. The pressure exerted by the operator is transmitted to the teeth
making contact with the work. This makes for high pressures in contact with the work and more
heat at the point of contact. The teeth of the blade also carry fresh air and oxygen into the cut
to increase the burning action.

 First, we must consider that heat tends to dissipate by radiation, convection and conduction.
We have a definite amount of heat generated that we want to use in melting a certain area or
amount of material so we must concentrate this heat to the material we want to melt and prevent

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dissipation as much as possible. In sawing, we want to melt the material in the kerf, so we make
that material one of our friction pair; one-half of our heat will be generated in the material we
wish to melt and remove, and the other half will be generated in our saw blade, which we do
not want to melt. Radiation will be minor as the area heated will be small and enclosed on at
least three sides, for the same reason convection will be negligible. But conduction will be high
as it can flow into the contiguous material in at least three directions; however, heat will travel
a certain speed in each of the various materials and will not be hurried. That is why we must
use very high speed so our heat will not dissipate before it attains the temperature necessary to
melt or burn the material we want to remove.

 Temperature is the quotient of quantity of heat divided by the mass of the heated material. If
we use speed to keep the heat largely concentrated I the minimum amount of mass and use
speed to feed the BTU’s per unit of frictional distance very rapidly, we soon attain a
temperature which burns away the material in the kerf. If we feed fast enough and the saw runs
fast enough, the heat conducted into the surrounding material will be negligible. The heat in
the saw blade is spread over the entire periphery or length of the blade and radiation and
convection have free play for about 99% of the time. This being about the proportion of the
entire blade that is in the kerf at any instant of time. This is the theory of friction heat.
 Now let us consider how this theory applied to band friction sawing. We use a band saw running
at very high speeds, the machine has very strong wheels to withstand the high speeds. Since
this cutting I on the friction principle, it I not necessary to discard a blade when it has become
dull. In fact, just the opposite is true, the more resistance that we obtain from a dull blade, the
faster the cutting action. The only reason for discarding a blade is that it has broken from high
speed flexing. Since larger wheels cause less blade flexing, it is mandatory that large wheels
be used or machines that are designed for friction cutting. The most common size wheels used
for friction cutting are 36” and 42” diameter.
 The blade traveling at a nominal friction cutting speed of 12,000 feet per minute and having 10
teeth per inch or 120 teeth per foot passes 1,440,000 teeth per minute through the kerf. In other
words, we have 24,000 active teeth every second and in material 1/5” thickness, the blade

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would be in the kerf for any abut 1/12,000 of a second. This speed is what prevents the heat
from traveling into the adjacent material to any great extent.
 This being a melting, burning action, the hardness of the saw or the material being cut does not
affect the action except in the change of the co-efficient of the friction. Therefore, we select a
saw only with the idea of getting one that will stand the constant flexing around the wheels for
the longest time. We need a good wide set in the teeth to minimize side friction of the blade.
The saw blade manufacturers have kept these requirements in mind when developing their
special friction sawing bands. The teeth in the friction band have a special purpose in that they
carry oxygen enriched air into the cut and it becomes a melting, burning operation in the same
way that we make an oxygen-rich flame in our cutting torch to facilitate the actual burning of
the material.

 As you approach the limit of the material thickness, you should tip the piece to present for an
instant a much shorter kerf. Once the flame is started, the cut will proceed with ease. This flame
in one of the cobalt blue-white colour indicating that oxygen is combined with the iron.
Emphasizing once again that this is a melting, burning operation, the metal that is being cut
may be of any hardness; in fact, in the case of most steels, the harder tempered steels have a
higher co-efficient of friction and, therefore heat more easily and rapidly.
 Most ferrous metals can be sawed on a Friction Saw, but the speed of sawing and the thickness
that may be cut with a given speed and power varies much. The cutting rate of sheet steel is
only limited by the ability of the operator to handle the work piece. On thicker pieces, the
cutting rate varies with the speed of the blade, and the pressure exerted by the work against the
blade. Some non-ferrous such as hard alloys or hard bronze with silicone additives are best cut
on a high-speed friction saw. The blade cost is much lower than slow speed cutting.
 Some of the high-carbon steel surfaces, particularly near the edges, become hardened, but never
more than we allow it to lay there without sufficient feed. When proper feed and speed are
maintained, this hardening should not exceed .001” o .002” in depth. Even with this slight

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hardening of the edges, there I no distortion in thin metals or thin tubing. Since this is a burning
operation, it will not leave a polished surface on the cut but is much smoother and straighter
than torch cutting. It generally is smoother than ordinary sawing if proper feed and speed is
maintained. Also, there is a burr left on all types of friction sawing. This burr is very thin and
removed easily if it is objectionable
 Friction sawing does not require a lot of operator training. With a few tires, you can become
an expert in friction sawing on a machine. Constant feed pressure is necessary, and for this a
hydraulic powered table is useful. The constant pressure of a hydraulic table feed obtains the
maximum cutting rate on hard, thick materials. Hydraulic tables are available on all Friction
Saws.
 Friction sawing is here to stay. In some cases, it has become the only method of sawing the
hard, exotic metals used by the missile industry. It is also proving itself as the fastest and
cheapest method in parting gates and risers of stainless-steel casting. It becomes very valuable
when you have difficult sawing of odd shaped pieces since the material may be readily held in
the hand without any catching of the blade. It is the most rapid cutting method for metal whether
it is mild steel or hard stainless steel, short of the large shears. Within its work thickness
capacity of very thin up to 1”, lies a whole field of cutting possibilities.
 Since it is not necessary to change the blade for different types of materials, a friction saw is
the most useful all-purpose machine found in a fabricating shop. The easier operation, the
versatility of the cut and the low tool cost combined with simplicity of the machine will demand
constant use of friction cutting in all types of industries. Any manufacturer who works with
ferrous metals should consider the possibility of friction sawing on a high speed band saw.
 Horsepower and blade speed vary according to the size and type of material. The thicker and
harder the material to be cut, the faster the blade speed required. The higher the sustained blade
speed, the more horsepower required to maintain this speed. The chart below shows the
minimum horsepower recommended for various blade speeds;

Flame Cutting:
A process known by many names:
 The process often called Flame Cutting is known by many names, such as Oxy Acetylene
Cutting, Oxy Fuel Gas Cutting, Oxygen Burning, Steel Burning and other terms too numerous
to mention. The process is now about 111-112 years old as it was patented in 1901 by Thomas
Fletcher. One of the first commercial applications was what the British referred to as “an
unauthorized bank entry”, or a “safe cracking”.
The process:
 Combustion gas mixture is burned at the cutting nozzle with the purpose of heating the material
to the ignition temperature. Pure oxygen gas is supplied through the centre of the die. which
supplies the additional energy needed to carry out the actual cutting. This cutting beam helps
to melt and burn the material, and thus creates a cut in the workpiece. Material residues are
pushed away from the section of the oxygen gas in the form of a slag stream.
 The oxygen purity and outflow rate, which is largely influenced by nozzle design, greatly
affects gas cutting results.

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 What fuel gas is chosen depends on several factors such as thickness of the workpiece and the
time for heating.
 Cutting with multiple parallel cutting heads is a common way to increase productivity.

Working:
 The process is a Thermo-Chemical Process requiring a source of intense heat, referred to as
“Preheat”, and pure oxygen. The pure oxygen requirement is of a 99.5% minimum purity,
which is the minimum purity typically provided in cylinders and bulk systems. A reduction in
purity of 0.1% will reduce cutting speed by about 10%, so one can see the necessity for purity.
 While the source of the Oxygen may be pure, improper connections, bad hoses, or leaks of any
sort can allow impurities in the system thereby reducing the cutting speed. The high purity of
the Oxygen presents a very dangerous situation and requires extreme care in the selection of
equipment and the design of piping systems for its use. There are numerous documents
available to assist with these safety issues. Federal Law (OSHA) presents numerous
requirements for the equipment to be used, as well as the procedures to be followed.
 The process can be used for cutting/severing many different materials with the basic
requirement that the oxide formed must have a lower melting point than the base material to
be cut. A good example of a material one cannot cut is Aluminium whose melting point is in
the order of 1,200-1,300 degrees F but whose oxide is in the range of 5,000+ degrees F.
Stainless steel has additives such as Chromium and Nickel added for “Oxidization Resistance”
and this is the process (Oxidization) one is trying to promote, i.e. this type material is not cut
without some assistance.

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Thickness of material can be cut:

 The process can cut from sheet metal thicknesses to 100-inch material. Prior to 1958, when
Plasma was introduced, all thicknesses were flame cut. Today metals thinner than 3/8-1/2 are
typically only cut by plasma or laser, as thin materials are very challenging to flame cut. Thin
material requires a very intense preheat as the cutting speed required for a good quality cut is
very high, therefore a high temperature high velocity preheat is desired.
 The process for all thicknesses is the same and that is the material must be “preheated” to a
temperature of 1,600-1,800 degrees F, then the pure Oxygen is discharged into the preheated
area and the steel is then oxidized or burned, hence the term “burning”. (The term “burner” is
often used for the operator.) The quality of the final cut surface can be quite excellent with a
sharp top edge, square/flat cut surface, and a sharp slag- free lower edge.
Parameters that control Flame Cutting:

 Cut quality is dependent on a number of parameters, the primary one being the competency of
the burner/operator. A brief, but not complete list of items/parameters that control cut quality
includes:
1. Proper cutting tip selection
2. Proper cutting oxygen pressure selection
3. Proper preheat (a function of the cutting tip and the operator) this includes quantity of
preheat as well as ratio of Oxygen to the fuel gas
4. Proper cutting speed
5. Proper tip to work
6. Proper selection of the fuel gas
7. A gas supply system (both fuel gas and Oxygen) that is sufficient to supply the quantity of
gas required at the pressure required.

 Most of these parameters may vary depending on the material and surface condition of the plate
to be cut. All of these items are controlled by the operator and emphasize the importance of a
well-trained operator as well as a proper and well-maintained machine.

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Oxyfuel Cutting Gas Types:

Common fuel gas types include acetylene, MAPP, propane and natural gas.

 Acetylene: Hottest gas but can be unstable and expensive.

 MAPP: Hot gas but not as available as other gases.
 Propane: Cheaper and clean-burning but not as hot as other gases.
 Natural gas: Cheaper and widely available but offers low delivery pressure.

Advantages:

 Low equipment and consumables costs

 Easy to use
 Broad range of material thickness, from 1 to above 400 mm (in general >25mm)
 Could be portable equipment (usable outside the workshop)
 Suitable for the preparation of welds and for bevel cuts

Limitations:

 Wide HAZ through the entire thickness

 Poorer tolerances compared to plasma
 Risk of hydrogen embrittlement on high grades and thick plates
 Slow cutting process compared to plasma or laser for thinner plates
 Process difficult to automatize compared to laser or plasma cutting methods because of heat
distortion

Recommendations:

 Flame cutting is the most economical cutting method for thick plates (>25mm) when narrow
tolerances are not demanded.

Applications:

 Useful only for materials which readily get oxidized and the oxides have lower melting points
than the metals.
 Widely used for ferrous materials.
 Cannot be used for aluminium, bronze, stainless steel and like metals since they resist
oxidation.
 Automobile sector
 Navy ships
 Factories

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Deep Drawing:

 Deep drawing is a sheet metal forming process by which a sheet metal blank is slightly clamped
along its perimeter by a blank holder and radially drawn into a forming die by use of a punch.
 Deep drawing is one of the most widely used processes in Sheet Metal Forming. Apart from
its use in many other sectors, it is applied in the automotive industry for the manufacturing of
car body parts.

Process definition:

 The deep drawing process is a forming process which occurs under a combination of tensile
and compressive conditions. A flat sheet metal blank is formed into a hollow body open on one
side or a hollow body is formed into a hollow body with a smaller cross-section. [DIN 8584]
Deep drawing processes are divided into three types:
 Deep drawing with tools
 Deep drawing with active means
 Deep drawing with active energy

Metal deep drawing process:

 The metal deep drawing process is an effective method of manufacturing cups, cans and other
similar deep drawing products. The deep drawings have two main categories.

 First- stage drawing

 Redrawing

 When first stage drawing a blank shape metal is made up of cup and that formed cup is drawn
again and again and then finally reaches the required shape of cup or other similar product.

 The first stage of drawing cannot be

drawn normally with a high degree
of deformation.

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 First stage drawing:

 The blank shape of metal is placed on the die and contact with the punch. When the metal
specimen is a flat piece of sheet metal used in forming and finishing the product.
 Initially the punch moves in a downward direction. The outer rim of blank is subjected to pure
radial drawing (drawing toward in vertical axes) between die and blank metal. The metal
becomes a bend and sliding over the die and also stretched between die and punch. The metal
in vicinity of punch head and contact with it bend and slide over radii and stretch over punch
head.

 Redrawing:

 The components drawn from the first stage again are redrawn and converted into more depth
to form a cup shape in the die and punch. The second stage of drawing is called redrawing.
 deep drawings of Redrawing process
 The wall of the cup undergoes double bend and unbending. The severity of which is expected
to be high because of the respective direction of deform at right angles to each other.
 Consist of as shown in figure low severity and double bending is obtained. The redrawing can
be used only for relatively low cup diameter (or) wall thickness ratio. Which does not require
use of blank.

Advantages of deep drawings:

 High production rates

 Contain all shape and size are manufactured
 Can make parts of that process, no other process can make.

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Disadvantages of deep drawings:

 Only limited shape manufactured
 The quality of metal is critical obtain good parts
 The expensive dies are required.

Important deep drawing products, some deep drawings Products in industries.

 Gas tanks
 Cups
 Shells
 Short tube
 Appliance covers
 Beverage cans
 Household hardware

Rubber Forming:

 Rubber forming uses a flexible material, such as rubber or polyurethane, to form a sheet metal
work piece. Often the rubber is incased in a steel container and serves as a punch. A work piece
is placed over a rigid die. The punch forces the work into the rubber. Rubber is forced all around
the work, creating pressure and forming the metal onto the die. This is known as the Guerin
process. The location of the rubber can be switched between punch and die. In this case, a rigid
punch presses a sheet metal work stock that is located over a die consisting of rubber incased
in a steel container. The later process is illustrated below.

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 Rubber forming processes are limited in the depth of parts they can produce, (this is not true
of hydroforming). Limitations in manufacturing exist because the pressure generated by the
rubber is low, only 1500 lbs/in2, (10MPa). The same rubber punch or die can be used for many
different forming blocks. Rubber forming is used in the aircraft industry to produce sheet metal
components. Low cost tooling makes setup for rubber forming inexpensive. This
manufacturing process is useful for the production of small quantities of parts.

Hydroforming:

 Hydroforming is an effective sheet metal forming process. Hydroforming can typically obtain
deeper draws than conventional deep drawing operations. Hydroforming uses a rigid punch to
push a sheet metal workpiece into a rubber membrane. Behind the rubber membrane is a
chamber of pressurized fluid. When the work is pressed into the chamber, the rubber membrane
surrounds it completely and the pressure of the fluid forces the sheet metal to form on the
punch.

 Fluid pressure can be controlled during the operation and can be as high as 15,000 lbs/in 2,
(100MPa). Due to the large amount of evenly distributed pressure on the workpiece, very deep
draws, (high percent reduction), can be performed with hydroforming. Friction acts to reduce
tensile stresses in the material during the process.
 Lubrication affects friction and is an important factor in any type of rubber forming, (this
includes hydroforming), process. One advantage of manufacturing by a rubber forming process
is that the rubber, or flexible material, will be less likely to damage the surface of the sheet
metal part.

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Spinning:
 Spinning is a process that involves the forming of axisymmetric parts over a mandrel by the
use of various tools and rollers-a process is similar to that of forming clay on a potter’s wheel.
 The symmetrical parts can be formed over mandrels by using a sheet metal spinning process.
The rotation of sheet metal with high speed on a spinning lathe. The axis- symmetric
components formed by using spinning sheet metal forming as shown in figure.
 The basic metal hanging tool is called a spoon (blunt tool). Require the shape of sheet metal to
prepare mandrel or former. Their mandrel made from hardwood (or) cast or carburizing steel
depends on the sheet metal to be spun and number of operations required from the same form.
The mandrel is mounted on lathe headstock. The lathe is used in this process as an ordinary
type. The carriage tool rest is provided to hold the blunt tool. The mandrel speed depends on
the diameter, thickness and workability of metal. For heavy sheet metal to require low speed
and vice versa.
 First, the sheet metal cut with circular shape. Which sheet metal is held against the mandrel
and compress by a bad which support by tail stock center of lathe. The sweeping motion obtain
in the sheet metal evenly transformed around with the mandrel into require shape.
 During the spinning of metal, the lubrication obtained like wax, soap and linseed oil are used
to reduce the friction at tool and work contacts. spinning tools can be made from parts such as
hardened steel with aluminium and solid brass for spinning stainless steels and mild steel.
Either hand spinning metal or CNC spinning metal the rollers are mounted on the end of the
tools.

Conventional Spinning:
 In conventional spinning, a circular blank of flat or preformed sheet metal is placed and held
against a mandrel and rotated while a rigid tool deforms and shapes the material over the
mandrel. The tool may be activated either manually or (for higher production rates) by
computer-controlled mechanisms. The process typically involves a sequence of passes, and it
requires considerable skill. Conventional spinning is suitable particularly for conical and
curvilinear shapes, which otherwise would be difficult or uneconomical to produce. Part
diameters range up to 6 m. Although most spinning is performed at room temperature, thick
parts and metals with high strength or low ductility require spinning at elevated temperatures.

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Skew Spinning:

 Also known as power spinning, How turning, hydro spinning, and spin forging, this operation
produces an axisymmetric conical or curvilinear shape, reducing the sheet’s thickness while
maintaining its maximum (blank) diameter. A single forming roller can be used, but two rollers
are preferable in order to balance the forces acting on the mandrel. Typical parts made are
rocket motor casings and missile nose cones. Parts up to 3 m in diameter can be formed by
shear spinning. This operation wastes little material, and it can be completed in a relatively
short time--in some cases in as little as a few seconds. Various shapes can be spun with fairly
simple tooling, which generally is made of tool steel.

 The spinnability of a
metal in this process generally is defined as the maximum reduction in thickness to which a
part can be subjected by spinning without fracture Spinnability is found to be related to the
tensile reduction of area of the material, just as is bendability. Thus, if a metal has a tensile
reduction of area of 50% or higher, its thickness can be reduced by as much as 80% in just one
spinning pass. For metals with low ductility, the operation is carried out at elevated
temperatures by heating the blank in a furnace and transferring it rapidly to the mandrel.

Tube Spinning:

 In tube spinning, the thickness of hollow, cylindrical blanks is reduced or shaped by spinning
them on a solid, round mandrel using rollers. The reduction in wall thickness results in a longer
tube. This operation may be carried out externally or internally; thus, various external and
internal profiles can be produced from cylindrical blanks with constant wall thickness. The
parts may be spun forward or backward; this nomenclature is similar to that of direct and
indirect extrusion.

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 The maximum thickness reduction per pass in tube spinning is related to the tensile reduction
of area of the material, as it is in shear spinning. Tube spinning can be used to make rocket,
missile, and jet-engine parts, pressure vessels, and automotive components, such as car and
truck Wheels.

 The
tube spinning provides symmetrical products that usually start from preform of cylindrical
blank. That tube spinning is carried out in both external and internal shape of the surface. In
this case reduce the wall thickness and do it with a long tube. It is employed with three rollers
for complex design shape. The sheet metal ironed ahead of rollers. That is to increase the
hardness and tensile strength of sheet metal.

Incremental Sheet forming/ Spinning:

 Incremental sheet forming (or ISF, also known as Single Point Forming) is a sheet metal
forming technique where a sheet is formed into the final workpiece by a series of small
incremental deformations. However, studies have shown that it can be applied to polymer and
composite sheets too. Generally, the sheet is formed by a round tipped tool, typically 5 to
20mm in diameter. The tool, which can be attached to a CNC machine, a robot arm or
similar, indents into the sheet by about 1 mm and follows a contour for the desired part. It
then indents further and draws the next contour for the part into the sheet and continues to do
this until the full part is formed. ISF can be divided into variants depending on the number of
contact points between tool, sheet and die (in case there is any).

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 The term Single Point Incremental Forming (SPIF) is used when the opposite side of the
sheet is supported by a faceplate and Two Point Incremental Forming (TPIF) when a full or
partial die supports the sheet.

Advantages of spinning metal:

 No material wastage during process

 Tooling and setup cost is less
 Material properties not affected
 Flexibility to adopt any complex design changes
 The unlimited variety of circular shape

Application of spinning metal:

 Pesticide bottles
 Rocket nose cone
 Air frames
 Lamp shades
 Dishes
 Truck wheels
 Seamless tubing
 Reflector
 Aircraft Engine parts
 Jet engine parts pressure cooker pots
 Television tube cone.
 Waste receptacles
 Biomedical Implant
 Automobile
 Aerospace
 Nuclear Reactor
 Défense

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What is a RAPID PROTOTYPE?

 Rapid prototyping is the fast fabrication of a physical part, model or assembly using 3D CAD
models. The creation of the part, model or assembly is usually completed using Additive
Manufacturing, or more commonly known as 3D printing.

 Where the design closely matches the proposed finished product, it is said to be a high-fidelity
prototype, as opposed to a low fidelity prototype, where there is a marked difference between
the prototype and the final product.
 Rapid prototyping (RP) includes a variety of manufacturing technologies, although most utilise
layered additive manufacturing. However, other technologies used for RP include high-speed
machining, casting, moulding and extruding.
 While additive manufacturing is the most common rapid prototyping process, other more
conventional processes can also be used to create prototypes.
 In the development of a new product, there is invariably a need to produce a single example,
or prototype, of a designed part or system before allocating large amounts of capital to new
production facilities or assembly lines. The main reasons for this need are that the capital cost
is very high and production tooling takes considerable time to prepare. Consequently, a
working prototype is needed for design evaluation and troubleshooting before a complex
product or system is ready to be produced and marketed.
 Toys are examples of mass-produced products that have universal appeal. However, some toys
are actually quite complex, and the function of a computer aided design (CAD) cannot be
ensured until prototypes are produced. Each component was produced separately and
assembled into the squirt gun, and the prototype could actually hold and squirt water. The
alternative would be to produce components on CNC milling machines or fabricate them in
another fashion, but this can be done only at much higher cost. By producing a prototype,
interference issues and assembly problems can be assessed and corrected if necessary. Further;
from an aesthetic standpoint, the elaborate decorations on such a toy can be more effectively
evaluated from a prototype than on a CAD file and can be adjusted to improve the appeal of
the toy. Each component, having its design verified, then has its associated tooling produced,
with better certainty that the tooling as ordered will produce the parts desired

Developments in rapid prototyping began in the mid-1980s. The advantages of this technology include
the following:

 Physical models of parts produced from CAD data files can be manufactured in a matter of
hours and allow the rapid evaluation of manufacturability and design effectiveness. In this way,
rapid prototyping serves as an important tool for visualization and for concept verification.

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 With suitable materials, the prototype can be used in subsequent manufacturing operations to
produce the final parts. Sometimes called direct prototyping, this approach can serve as an
important manufacturing technology.

 Rapid-prototyping operations can be used in some applications to produce actual tooling for
manufacturing operations; Thus, one can obtain tooling in a matter of a few days.

Rapid-prototyping processes can be classified into three major groups: Subtractive, Additive, and
Virtual. As the names imply,

 Subtractive processes involve material removal from a workpiece that is larger than the final
part.
 Additive processes build up a part by adding material incrementally to produce the part.
 Virtual processes use advanced computer-based visualization technologies.

Almost all materials can be used through one or more rapid-prototyping operations. However, because
their properties are more suitable for these operations, polymers are the workpiece material most
commonly used today, followed by metals and ceramics. Still, new processes are being introduced
continually.

Subtractive Processes:
 Making a prototype traditionally has involved a series of processes using a variety of tooling
and machines, and it usually takes anywhere from weeks to months, depending on part
complexity and size. This approach requires skilled operators using material removal by
machining and Hnis/cling operations (as described in detail in Part IV)-one by one-until the
prototype is completed. To speed the process, subtractive processes increasingly use computer-
based technologies such as the following:

o Computer-based drafting packages, which can produce three-dimensional representations of

parts.
o Interpretation software, which can translate the CAD file into a format usable by manufacturing
software.
o Manufacturing software, which is capable of planning the operations required to produce the
desired shape.
o Computer-numerical-control (CNC) machinery with the capabilities necessary to produce the
parts.

 When a prototype is required only for the purpose of shape verification, a soft material (usually
a polymer or a wax) is used as the workpiece in order to reduce or avoid any machining
difficulties. The material intended for use in the actual application also can be machined, but
this operation may be more time consuming, depending on the machinability of the material.
Depending on part co machining capabilities, prototypes can be produced in a few days to a
few weeks. Subtractive systems can take many forms; they are similar in approach to the
manufacturing cells described in Section 39.2. Operators may or may not be involved, although
the handling of parts is usually a human task

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Additive Processes:
 Additive rapid-prototyping operations all build parts in layers, they consist of
stereolithography, Multijet/polyjet modeling, fused deposition modeling, ballistic-particle
manufacturing, three-dimensional printing, selective laser sintering, electron-beam and
laminated-object manufacturing. In order to visualize the methodology used, it is beneficial to
think of constructing a loaf of bread by stacking and bonding individual slices on top of each
other.
 All of the processes described in this section build parts slice by slice. The main difference
between the various additive processes lies in the method of producing the individual slices,
which are typically 0.1 to 0.5 mm thick and can be thicker for some systems.
 All additive operations require elaborate software. The first step is to obtain a CAD file
description of the part. The computer then constructs slices of the three-dimensional part. Each
slice is analysed separately, and a set of instructions is compiled in order to provide the rapid-
prototyping machine with detailed information regarding the manufacture of the part.
 This approach requires operator input in the setup of the proper computer files and in the
initiation of the production process. Following that stage, the machines generally operate
unattended and provide a rough part after a few hours. The part is then subjected to a series of
manual finishing operations (such as sanding and painting) in order to complete the rapid-
prototyping process.
 It should be recognized that the setup and finishing operations are very labor intensive and that
the production time is only a portion of the time required to obtain a prototype. In general,
however, additive processes are much faster than subtractive processes, taking as little as a few
minutes to a few hours to produce a part.

CNC Prototyping:

 CNC prototyping involves utilization of 3D solid model CAD designs as the input, and
correspondingly fabricating the part directly from solid material through a computer controlled
cutting and milling process. Some have used the term, “subtractive” rapid prototyping to
describe this process, to contrast it with 3D printing, which is sometimes referred to as
“additive” manufacturing. The subtractive aspect is that the CNC machine removes material
from a starting material block to create the final part precisely to the CAD model specifications.
With modern CNC machines, this material removal process is efficient, quick, and accurate to
demanding specifications. Because of this subtractive nature, CNC prototyping allows for parts
made from literally any material that is machinable and commercially available in cast or
extruded stock. This provides material versatility and permits prototyping in materials that are
often identical or very similar to those specified in production use. CNC prototyping suppliers
offer an outstanding option for low volume customized products and prototypes with precision
results!

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 While prototyping offers many benefits, two stand out. First, by creating a model before
producing hundreds or thousands of finished products, engineering teams can identify potential
problems, oftentimes minor geometry or functional issues that by human nature are inherently
difficult to catch in a computer model alone. This can allow the manufacturer to make the
necessary corrections before going into full production, which saves a significant amount of
money. Secondly, human factors, or how humans interact with the product are most often best
assessed on the prototype. Issues such as color, texture, feel, light, shadows, temperature to
touch, resistance to motion, etc. can be assessed with prototypes made to high craftsmanship,
quality, and proper materials.
 Prototyping and CNC Prototyping in particular can benefit any industry, whether aviation,
automotive, architecture, aerospace, construction, medical, or something else that requires a
finished product with precision and detail. Investing in the prototype process with CNC
machining reduces the risk of time-consuming and costly mistakes.
 Likewise, CNC is a viable option for many lower volume production projects. Depending on
the geometry and material, whether a customer needs 100 or 1,000 units, CNC machining may
be an excellent option as it eliminates the need for upfront tooling and molds due to its “on-
demand” manufacturing methodology. Whenever a customer needs a plastic or metal prototype
or multiple pieces in low volume manufacturing, CNC machining can be an outstanding
process.

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VIRTUAL PROTOTYPING:

 Virtual prototyping is a method in the process of product development. It involves using

computer-aided design (CAD), computer-automated design (CAutoD) and computer-aided
engineering (CAE) software to validate a design before committing to making a physical
prototype. This is done by creating (usually 3D) computer generated geometrical shapes (parts)
and either combining them into an "assembly" and testing different mechanical motions, fit and
function. The assembly or individual parts could be opened in CAE software to simulate the
behaviour of the product in the real world.

 Today, manufacturers are under pressure to reduce time to market and optimize products to
higher levels of performance and reliability. A much higher number of products are being
developed in the form of virtual prototypes in which engineering simulation software is used
to predict performance prior to constructing physical prototypes. Engineers can quickly explore
the performance of thousands of design alternatives without investing the time and money
required to build physical prototypes. The ability to explore a wide range of design alternatives
leads to improvements in performance and design quality. Yet the time required to bring the
product to market is usually reduced substantially because virtual prototypes can be produced
much faster than physical prototypes.

End-to-end prototyping:

 End-to-end prototyping accounts fully for how a product or a component is manufactured and
assembled, and it links the consequences of those processes to performance. Early availability
of such physically realistic virtual prototypes allows testing and performance confirmation to
take place as design decisions are made; enabling the acceleration of the design activity and
providing more insight on the relationship between manufacturing and performance than can
be achieved by building and testing physical prototypes. The benefits include reduced costs in
both design and manufacturing as physical prototyping and testing is dramatically
reduced/eliminated and lean but robust manufacturing processes are selected

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Examples:
 Fisker Automotive used virtual prototyping to design the rear structure and other areas of its
Karma plug-in hybrid to ensure the integrity of the fuel tank in a rear end crash as required for
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) 301 certification. Agilent Technologies
used virtual prototyping to design cooling systems for the calibration head for a new high-
speed oscilloscope. Miele used virtual prototyping to improve the development of its washer-
disinfector machines by simulating their operational characteristics early in the design cycle.
Several CAE software solutions (for example, Working Model and SimWise) offer the
possibility to check the benefits of virtual prototyping even for students and small companies,
and collections of case studies have been available since 1996.

DIRECT MANUFACTURING:

 Direct manufacturing is an evolving concept in manufacturing technology. The idea is to obtain

the advantages of conventional mass production (such as high output volume, low unit cost,
reliable interchangeability and quality control, and minimized need for person-hours of labor)
while bypassing its disadvantages (mainly the capital intensity and lead time associated with
toolroom work). Another way to understand the concept is to view it as the next step in the
gradual development of manufacturing technology, which since the Industrial Revolution has
evolved from skilled handcrafts to armoury practice to (what we currently call) conventional
mass production. The next step involves further innovation in information technology (IT) and
its further integration into manufacturing, to the point where computer-controlled machines
can create finished products directly from information (via digital files, that is, "electronic
blueprints") without the need for intermediate toolroom work. The analogy of a "next step" has
its limits, as the evolution of IT-based automation in manufacturing technology has been a
continuous spectrum rather than a set of discrete steps. However, the analogy is useful for basic
understanding.
 While armoury practice and conventional mass production succeeded in drastically reducing
the need for skill and human labour time per unit output of finished goods, they did not
eliminate it. They did eliminate a good portion of it, and transferred another portion from the
factory floor to the toolroom. (The latter transfer has often been called "building the skill into
the machine tool.") Instant manufacturing aims to one-up this achievement by using IT to
whittle down what remains of the need for human labour time (of any type—skilled or
unskilled, factory floor or toolroom).

Some simple examples through which to understand this idea are the following:

 If you have a robot that has the ability to move quickly while also knowing its position in 3D
space to within a fraction of a millimetre, it is more efficient to have a computer program
instruct the robot to move to a certain spot and drill a hole than to have a labourer measure
carefully to the spot and drill, or to have a toolmaker create a jig or fixture for the labourer to
use.

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 If you can create a plastic part by aiming lasers at certain spots where powder or liquid is
changed to solid, then you don't need to make a mold, as would traditionally be needed for such
parts.
 Mechanical, electromechanical, and hydraulic forms of automation all existed in impressive
states by the time of the second world war; but in order for instant manufacturing to evolve
from pre-WWII-style mass production, computer technology was needed (transistors,
integrated circuits, software, CNC, PLC, robotics, and so on). (Advancing materials science
and engineering has also been key.) Although every decade since that war has brought
impressive advances in the development of IT and its integration into manufacturing, an era of
robust and widely distributed instant manufacturing is only now just beginning.

RAPID TOOLING:

 Rapid Tooling is when Rapid Prototyping techniques and conventional tooling practices are
used together to produce a mould quickly. This process is also used to prepare parts of a model
from CAD data in less time and at a lower cost compared to traditional manufacturing methods.
Rapid Tooling is used as a channel to produce injection moulded parts.

 Rapid tooling is known by many names including prototype tooling and soft tooling, but it is
essentially pared back injection mold tooling enabling you to quickly and cheaply get parts.

Applications:

 There are many applications for rapid tooling, and these applications will continue to grow
because of the development of new procedures. Here are some of them:

 The making of molds – both metallic and non-metallic molds can be made through rapid
tooling.

 The making of casting shapes and cores – SLS application is the latest technology invented in
sand casting shapes and cores.

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 The electrodes for EDM, making of marking stamps, production of hybrid patterns for casting,
and producing splintering tools are some of the applications of rapid tooling.

 There are many reasons why you should consider rapid tooling. It is a low cost, quick and
effective way that will allow you to market parts faster. The cost advantage is the most useful
because it will enable market testing, which is suitable for low volume production.

 Injection moulding is used for rapid prototyping and for low-high volume manufacturing. It is
used for producing parts in the thousands. Well known examples of injection moulding are lego
bricks, bottle caps, and medical syringes.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

(Injection Moulding for Rapid Tooling)

 The injection moulding process has three major components; an injection moulding machine,
raw plastic, and the machined mould. The raw plastic is melted in the injection moulding
machine and then injected into the mould where it cools and solidifies into the final part. Once
the part has cooled, it is removed and finished.

Benefits of Rapid Tooling:

 It provides an opportunity for innovation:
 Because rapid tooling eliminates the use of conventional tooling, it initiates up a new range of
opportunities for improvements. Traditional prototyping takes a long time because it needs
making the prototype tooling and its components to exact the tolerances. In rapid prototyping,
the designers can conceive complex geometries that will be impossible to develop in
conventional prototyping too.

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 Time-saving:
 Rapid tooling is time-saving because it eliminates the need to produce molds, patterns, and
special tools that you used in conventional tooling. Because of this, rapid tooling shortened the
time between the initial idea and evaluation.
 The resulting prototypes are accurate and readily accessible for testing the forms, features,
usability, and performance. Its designers can also modify the product based on the feedback.
A fast turnaround can help the company to obtain a competitive edge to bring new products
into the market.

 Cost Savings;
 Another benefit of rapid tooling is the cost savings. The part produced in rapid tooling is
synonymous with full-scale production. You can use these parts for impact and stress testing.
With the results from testing, you can determine the changes needed before going into an
expensive tooling process.

Powder Metallurgy:

 Powder metallurgy (PM) is a process for forming metal parts by heating compacted metal
powders to just below their melting points. In other words, PM is a metal shaping process that
creates near-net parts from powdered metal.

Methods of powder production:

 Atomization:

 Atomization involves a liquid-metal stream produced by injecting molten metal through a small
orifice. The stream is broken up by jets of inert gas or air or water, known as gas or water
atomization, respectively. The size and shape of the particles formed depend on the temperature
of the molten metal, rate of flow, nozzle size, and jet characteristics. The use of water results
in a slurry of metal powder and liquid at the bottom of the atomization chamber. Although the
powders must be dried before they can be used, the water allows for more rapid cooling of the
particles and higher production rates. Gas atomization usually results in more spherical
particles.

 In centrifugal atomization, the molten-metal stream drops onto a rapidly rotating disk or cup,
so that centrifugal forces break up the stream and generate particles. In another variation of this
method, a consumable electrode is rotated rapidly in a helium-filled chamber. The centrifugal
force breaks up the molten tip of the electrode into

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Methods of metal-powder production by atomization:

o (a) gas atomization;

o (b) water atomization;
o (c) centrifugal atomization with a spinning disk or cup; and
o (d) atomization with a rotating consumable electrode

 Reduction:

 The reduction of metal oxides uses gas such as hydrogen and carbon monoxide, as reducing
agent. By this means very fine metallic oxides are reduced to the metallic static.

 The powders produced are spongy and porous and have uniformly sized spherical or angular
shapes.

 Electrolytic Deposition:

 Electrolytic deposition utilizes either aqueous solutions or fused salts. The powders produced
are among the purest available.

 Carbonyls:

 Metal carbon)/ls, such as iron carbonyl [Fe(CO)5] and nickel carbonyl [Ni(CO)4] are formed
by letting iron or nickel react with carbon monoxide. The reaction products are then
decomposed to iron and nickel, and they turn into small, dense, uniformly spherical particles
of high purity.

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 Comminution:

 Mechanical comminution (Puli/erization) involves crushing, milling in a ball mill, or grinding

of brittle or less ductile metals into small particles. A ball infill is a machine with a rotating
hollow cylinder partly filled with steel or white cast-iron balls. The powder or particles placed
into a ball mill are impacted by the balls as the cylinder is rotated or its contents are agitated.
This action has two effects:

o (a) the particles periodically fracture, resulting in smaller particles, and

o (b) the morphology of the particles is affected. With brittle materials, the powder particles
produced have angular shapes; with ductile metals, they are flaky and are not particularly
suitable for powder-metallurgy applications.

 Mechanical Alloying:

In

 Mechanical alloying, powders of two or more pure metals are mixed in a ball mill. Under the
impact of the hard balls, the powders fracture and bond together by diffusion, entrapping the
second phase and forming alloy powders. The dispersed phase can result in

 Blending Metal Powders:

 Blending (mixing) powders is the next step in powder-metallurgy processing. It is carried out
for the following purposes:

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 Powders of different metals and other materials can be mixed in order to impart special physical
and mechanical properties and characteristics to the PM product. Note that mixtures of metals
can be produced by alloying the metal before producing a powder, or else blends can be
produced. Proper mixing is essential to ensure the uniformity of mechanical properties
throughout the part.
 Even when a single metal is used, the powders may vary significantly in size and shape; hence,
they must be blended to obtain uniformity from part to part. The ideal mix is one in which all
of the particles of each material (and of each size and morphology) are distributed uniformly.

 Lubricants can be mixed with the powders to improve their flow characteristics. They reduce
friction between the metal particles, improve flow of the powder metals into the dies, and
improve die life. Lubricants typically are stearic acid or zinc stearate in a proportion of from
0.25 to 5% by weight.
 Other additives, such as binders (as in sand moulds), are used to develop sufficient green
strength, and additives also can be used to facilitate sintering.

Powder mixing must be carried out under controlled conditions in order to avoid contamination or
deterioration. Deterioration is caused by excessive mixing, which may alter the shape of the particles
and cause work hardening, making subsequent compaction more difficult. Powders can be mixed in
air, in inert atmospheres (to avoid oxidation), or in liquids (which act as lubricants an

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Limitations (hazards):

 Because of their high surface area-to-volume ratio, metal powders can be explosive,
particularly aluminium, magnesium, titanium, zirconium, and thorium. Great care must be
exercised both during blending and in storage and handling.

Precautions include:

 Grounding equipment,
 Preventing sparks (by using non sparking tools) and avoiding friction as a source of
heat, and
 Avoiding dust clouds, open flames, and chemical reactions.

Cold Compacting (pressing):

1. Axial Pressing (Conventional Pressing)

2. Isostatic Pressing- a technique where pressure is applied uniformly to the metal powders.

 Cold pressing is the method of applying pressure upon a column of loose (apparent
density) metal powders in a closed die to form a green compact. This method of
compaction is used more than any others and accounts for the great majority of parts
fabricated by the powdered metallurgy process.

 To better understand the pressing operation a few important principles involved in the
process will be discussed.

 It has been found that powders do not behave under pressure, in a cold die, in the same
way as a liquid. Pressure exerted on a liquid in a closed container is transmitted evenly
in all directions. This is not the case with metal powder. When metal powders are
pressed in a closed die they flow mainly in the direction of the applied pressure.

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 The effects of pressure on metal powders depend on a number of variables and included among
them is the powder itself. Pressing of metal powders depends upon their physical
characteristics and properties. These include particle size, shape, composition, and size
distribution. The type of powder and its method of manufacture also influences its behaviour
under pressure in a cold die.

 Usually, it is important that the density of the compact be as uniform as possible throughout its
entire height. Uneven distribution of density in a compact is caused by pressure not being
transmitted through the green shape without a drop (loss) due to friction. The influence of die
friction upon the density distribution in compacts is an important consideration when producing
parts. Uniform density is essential to insure dimensional consistencies during sintering. In
pressing any P/M part, whether simple or varying in shape it is important that the compression
ratio remains the same throughout the cross section of the part.

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 The pressure required to obtain a given green density depends upon the metal powder material
being pressed. Excessive pressures can present some complex problems such as punch and die
fractures, slip cracks and cleavage fractures in the green part. Although high pressures are
required for pressing high density shapes they should not be excessive.

 Another pressing operation usually performed on P/M parts when required is sizing or
repressing. Generally, this operation is performed after the first sintering operation. This
special pressing operation is frequently necessary to hold dimensional tolerances beyond the
capacity of the green compacting operations. When extremely accurate dimensions are required
the P/M part or parts must be repressed because of dimensional changes during the sintering
operation. This is a rapid operation usually performed on high-speed presses.

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The principal steps in the processes of compacting metal powders with presses are:

 Feeding the powder into the die cavity

 Compacting the powder into the required shape by applying pressure.
 Removing the shaped part from the press

Applications:

 The earlier presses used for compacting metal powders were developed by modifying
pharmaceutical pills and small stamping presses.
 The modified pharmaceutical and stamping presses possessed poor rigidity characteristics and
consequently, good punch and die alignment could not be maintained. They also required quite
a bit of set up time to change dies and punches because of the lack of adjustability and
controls. The tonnage capacity of the modified pressing equipment was quite small therefore
only small simple parts with less density could be produced.

 Today standard equipment is available in a wide range of tonnage capacity depending on design
and type of equipment. Refinements in design and utilization of better and stronger material
have greatly improved the rigidity and accuracy of current equipment.

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 The majority of P/M parts are compacted by mechanical means. Mechanical presses, in
general, are used for making parts in the lower pressure range because their speed exceeds
those of hydraulic presses in most cases. The two basic categories of P/M compacting presses
are mechanical and hydraulic. The main difference between the two are the mechanism for
providing the source of energy to the compacting tools.

Cold Isostatic Pressing:

 Cold isostatic pressing, (CIP), is performed at room temperature and uses a mould made from
an elastomer material such as urethane, rubber, or polyvinyl chloride. The fluid in cold
isostatic pressing is usually oil or water. Fluid pressure during the operation is typically from
60,000 lbs/in2 (400 MPa), to 150,000 lbs/in2 (1000 MPa). A disadvantage to this
manufacturing process is a low geometric accuracy because of the flexible mould. First the
powder is compacted to a very uniform density by cold isostatic pressing. Then the green
compact is usually sintered conventionally, to produce the desired part.

Metal Injection Moulding:

 Metal injection moulding is a manufacturing process that can be used to form complex solid
parts from powders. The advantage in the utilization of this particular process is the ability to
produce intricate geometries and thin walls. However, the size of the work is usually limited to
small parts. Although the name of the process is metal injection moulding nonmetals may be
contained in the mix.
 Powders are first mixed with a special binder. This binder is often a polymer, but wax based,
or inorganic materials may also be used. Binder material coats the surface of the powder
particles. The mix is then heated and injected into a die cavity. This injection process is similar
to die casting, where molten metal is forced to flow into a mould. The mixture in metal injection
moulding likewise flows into the mould. Flow characteristics are created because of the large
quantity of heated polymer binder, (or other material), acting in the powder mix.
 The work is taken from the mould and then is subjected to a process by which the binder is
removed. Processes of binder removal are of two main groups, solvent to dissolve the binder,
or low temperature heating, to burn it off. Once the binder is removed the part is sintered. A
large amount of shrinkage will occur in the part during sintering, when using the metal injection
moulding technique.

Roll Compaction:

 Roll compaction, or powder rolling, is a process that can manufacture continuous lengths of
metal strip, or sheet, from powders. Powder stock is fed into the gap between two rotating rolls.
This is usually performed cold. The powder is compacted into a sheet and pushed forward. It
then travels into a furnace where it is sintered. After which, the sheet is often rolled again and
sintered for a second time. Further processing of the work is dependent on the desired material
properties and use.

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Powder Extrusion:

 Powder extrusion is an alternative powder metallurgy process used to manufacture parts

with high length to diameter ratios. In this manufacturing process, powders are placed in a
container of thin sheet metal. This is evacuated and sealed, producing a vacuum inside. The
container containing the powder is then extruded.

Hot compacting:

 Isostatic pressing:
o Isostatic pressing is a powder processing technique characteristic in the use of fluid
pressure in order to compact the part. Metal powders are placed in a flexible container.
This sealed container is the mould for the part. Fluid pressure is exerted over the entire
outside surface of the container, causing the container to press and form the powder
into the correct geometry. Most processes exert forces on the powder through an axis.
Isostatic pressing is special in its use of all around pressure.
o The all-around pressure exerted by the fluid during isostatic pressing manufacture,
provides uniform compaction of the powder and uniform density within the compacted
part. Density variation within the compact is a major concern of conventional
processing, particularly with certain parts. Isostatic pressing is commonly used over
conventional metallurgical techniques to produce parts that are larger, have high
thickness to diameter ratios, or for superior material properties. Isostatic pressing tends
to have long cycle times and is best utilized for short production runs.
o This manufacturing process consists of two main categories, cold isostatic pressing and
hot isostatic pressing.

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Hot Isostatic Pressing:

 Hot isostatic pressing, (HIP), is performed at an elevated temperature. The mould material in
hot isostatic pressing is usually sheet metal. Sheet metal material must have a high enough
melting point to maintain its integrity throughout the operation. In some special cases a
ceramic mold is employed. The fluid used to pressurize the mould and form the part is
usually an inert gas such as argon, a glass like fluid is also sometimes used. A common
pressure and temperature for this manufacturing process is 15,000 lb/in2, (100 MPa), at
2000F (1100C).

 Simultaneous application of all around pressure and temperature presses and sinters the part in one step.
Hot isostatic pressing causes an elimination of practically all porosity, producing work material that is
essentially 100% true material density. In addition to the elimination of porosity, the conditions of this
powder process also provide very complete bonding throughout the structure of the material. A solid
uniform grain structure is established. For these reasons, hot isostatic pressing produces work with
superior mechanical properties. A component manufactured from a typical material by HIP will produce
a much stronger part than the same component and material manufactured by conventional powder
metallurgy, or casting. Casting and forging together can produce work with excellent mechanical
properties. However, not all materials are well suited for casting and forging. Hot isostatic pressing is
a valuable process in that it is a powder process that is capable of creating parts having mechanical
properties comparable to parts manufactured by the combination processes of casting and forging.
 The HIP process can also be used as a secondary operation to eliminate porosity and improve the
mechanical properties of parts already manufactured by other methods. Hot isostatic pressing is an
expensive manufacturing technique with a high cycle time, useful for small production runs of special
parts. Components for use in the aerospace industry are often manufactured by hot isostatic pressing.

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Sintering:

o Loose Sintering:
o Loose sintering, also known as pressure less compaction, is a manufacturing method of
forming a part from powders, without compacting the powders in any way. Powder is poured
into the die cavity and sintered in the mould. Sintering times tend to be longer with this
method. Parts produced by pressure less compaction are extremely porous. This powder
process is used to manufacture items such as metal filters.

o Spark Sintering:
o Spark sintering is a unique powder process that uses both electrical and mechanical energy
to form the part. A high power electric current travels through the compact, simultaneously
the work is compressed. This is possible because the punch are also electrodes. The entire
part can be pressed and sintered in seconds. These current burns away surface films from
powder particles and heats the work. Unlike hot pressing, the heat is generated from within
the work rather than traveling from outside.

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Advantages of MFP:
 The amount of wastage of metal during forming process is negligible
 Grain orientation is possible
 Because of grain orientation the material is converted from isotropic to anisotropic material
 Sometimes the strength and hardness of work material is increasing
 Some other metal forming processes, the surface finish obtained on the component is very good
and excellent.
 HIGHER PRODUCTIVITY – Rolling & Forging units fabricate hundreds of tonnes of end
product High-Standard Quality Products
 Required physical, Mechanical & structure can be achieved
 High strength, Corrosion & Wear resistance
 High dimensional accuracy & Surface finish
 Extra thin Foil, Wire, Sheet steel can be made. Other processes can't able to produce
 Minimum waste of metal – No chip formation
 By controlling the end forming temperature & the degree of deformation, it is possible to impart
the strength within the permissible range
 During metalworking, the grains of the material get elongated in the metal flow. The part able
to offer more resistance to stress them.

Limitations of MFP:
 Higher amount of force and energy is required for the metal forming process compared to other
manufacturing methods.
 Except for the forging operation, all other metal forming processes are used for producing
uniform cross sectioned components only.
 The components with cross holes cannot be produced easily using metal forming process.

Applications of MFP:
 It includes smaller radar dish, cone and other
 shapes in thinner and small works,
 Reduction of capital investment for low volume
 Aerospace applications,
 In Automobile sector such as inside components of a passenger car door,
 Miniature and fancy equipment having complicated profiles for the electronic industry, etc.
 In ship building to form large plates / parts (up to 25 mm thick).
 Bending thick tubes/ pipes (up to 25 mm thick).
 Radar dish
 Space applications
 Electromagnetic forming process is capable of a wide variety of forming and assembly
operations.
 Crimping of coils, tubes, wires
 Bending of tubes into complex shapes
 Bulging of thin tubes.
 It has found extensive applications in the fabrication of hollow, non-circular, or asymmetrical
shapes from tubular stock.

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 Flat coils have been used on flat sheets to produce stretch (internal) and shrink (external)
flanges on ring and disc-shaped work pieces.
 Electromagnetic forming has also been used to perform shearing, piercing, and riveting.

Common applications of metal forming processes and industries related to it:

ROLL FORMING:
 In short, roll forming involves continually feeding a long strip of metal through drum rollers to
attain a desired cross-section.
 Some general notes about roll forming that you should be aware of:

1. Allows for advanced inline addition of punched features and embossing’s

2. Is best suited for large volumes
3. Yields complex profiles with intricate bending
4. Has tight, repeatable tolerances
5. Has flexible dimensions
6. Can be cut to any length
7. Requires little tool maintenance
8. Is capable of forming high-strength metals
9. Permits ownership of tooling hardware
10. Reduces room for error
11. Creates less scrap

 Common Applications & Industries

INDUSTRIES:
 Aerospace
 Appliance
 Automotive
 Construction
 Energy
 Fenestration
 HVAC
 Metal Building Products
 Solar
 Tube & Pipe

COMMON APPLICATIONS:
 Construction Equipment
 Door Components
 Elevators
 Framing
 HVAC
 Ladders
 Mounts
 Railings

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 Ships
 Structural Components
 Tracks
 Trains
 Tubing
 Window

EXTRUSION:

 Extrusion is a metal forming process that forces metal through the die of a desired cross section.
 If you're thinking of pursuing extrusion metal forming, you should keep in mind that:

1. Aluminium is primarily the extrusion of choice, though most other metals can be used
2. Dies (aluminium) are relatively affordable
3. Punching or embossing done as a secondary operation
4. It can produce hollow shapes without seam welding
5. It can produce complex cross-sections

 Common Applications & Industries

INDUSTRIES:
 Agriculture
 Architecture
 Construction
 Consumer Goods Manufacturing
 Electronics Manufacturing
 Hospitality
 Industrial Lighting
 Military
 Restaurant or Food Service
 Shipping & Transportation

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COMMON APPLICATIONS:
 Aluminium Cans
 Bars
 Cylinders
 Electrodes
 Fittings
 Frames
 Fuel Supply Lines
 Injection Tech
 Rails
 Rods
 Structural Components
 Tracks
 Tubing

PRESS BRAKING:

 Press braking involves bending sheet metals (usually), forming the metals to a predetermined
angle by pinching it between a punch and a die.
 If you're interested in press braking, be aware that it:

1. Works best for shorter, smaller runs

2. Produces shorter parts
3. Is best suited for compatible shapes with more simple bend patterns
4. Has a high associated labour cost
5. Produces less residual stress than roll forming

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 Common Applications & Industries

INDUSTRIES:
 Architecture
 Construction
 Electronics Manufacturing
 Industrial Manufacturing

COMMON APPLICATIONS:
 Decorative or Functional Trim
 Electronics Enclosures
 Housings
 Safety Features

STAMPING:

 Stamping is the process of placing a flat sheet (or coil) of metal into a stamping press, where a
tool and die apply pressure to form the metal into a new shape, or cut out a piece of the metal.
 Stamping is associated with:

1. Single-press stroke forming

2. Consistent pieces with fixed dimensions
3. Shorter parts
4. Higher volumes
5. Creating complex parts in a short amount of time
6. Requiring high-tonnage presses

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 Common Applications & Industries

INDUSTRIES:
 Appliances Manufacturing
 Construction
 Electrical Manufacturing
 Hardware Manufacturing
 Fastenings Manufacturing

COMMON APPLICATIONS:
 Aircraft Components
 Ammunitions
 Appliances
 Blanking
 Electronics
 Engines
 Gears
 Hardware
 Lawn Care
 Lighting
 Lock Hardware
 Power Tools
 Progressive Die Stamping
 Telecom Products

FORGING:

 Forging involves shaping metals using localized, compressive forces after heating the metal to
a point where it's malleable.
 If you're considering forging, keep in mind that:

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1. Precision forging combines production and manufacturing by forming the raw material into
the desired shape, with the lowest possible amount of secondary operations needed
2. It requires little to no subsequent fabrications
3. It requires high tonnage presses
4. It yields a tougher end product
5. It results in a product with high strength and hardness

 Common Applications & Industries

INDUSTRIES:
 Aerospace
 Automotive
 Medical
 Power Generation & Transmission

 APPLICATIONS:
 Axle Beams
 Ball Joints
 Couplings
 Drill Bits
 Flanges
 Gears
 Hooks
 Kingpins
 Landing Gear
 Missiles
 Shafts
 Sockets
 Steering Arms
 Valves

CASTING:

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 Casting is a process that involves pouring liquid metal into a mould, containing a hollow cavity
of the desired shape.
 Those considering utilizing a casting metal forming process should keep in mind that it:

1. Can use a large range of alloys & custom alloys

2. Results in affordable short-run tooling
3. Can result in products with high porosity
4. Is best suited for smaller runs
5. Can create complex parts

 Common Applications & Industries

 INDUSTRIES:
 Alternative Energy
 Agriculture
 Automotive
 Construction
 Culinary
 Défense & Military
 Health Care
 Mining
 Paper Manufacturing

 COMMON APPLICATIONS:
 Appliances
 Artillery
 Art items
 Camera Bodies
 Casings, Covers
 Diffusers
 Heavy Equipment
 Motors
 Prototyping
 Tooling
 Valves
 Wheels

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Case studies:

 Industrial applicability of single point incremental forming:

 A case study was developed for the validation of the feasibility of using SPIF for the
manufacture of design parts. By considering the possible part configuration, part stiffness,
freeform possibilities and design guidelines of the SPIF process, the goal was to explore and
generate new concepts reinterpretations for iconic objects, thought for SPIF.

 The case study focused on the development of a stool due to its importance as a design object.
The developed concepts take advantage on the free form capability to develop ergonomic seat
for the stool. Further, the high specific strength of 3D shaped sheet metal parts allows to design
light and clean proposals. The proposals take advantage not only on the SPIF part development
possibilities but also on it's association with other materials. Stool SPIF forming operation Leg
mount SPIF flanging operation Finished aluminium stool One panel SPIF forming operation
Panel side bending operation

 Finished installation with 3 x 3 panels matrix A proof of concept case study was developed to
test the use of SPIF in architecture applications. As a result, facade panels were designed to be
developed in sheet metal using SPIF as a primary manufacturing process. A variety of panels
were drafted, exploring the possibilities given by the different conceivable part configuration.
Each facade sample installation was established by assembling nine unique panels in a 3 x 3
matrix.

 This prototypical proposal allows to anticipate and evaluate the aesthetic effect on a larger scale
since in uses both boundary and central panels. The developed concept is based on a crumpled
paper idea, exploring the definition of multiple directional faces to create a dynamic light
effect. Each panel part is pattern as a multi container configuration, defined by a group of fix
slope triangular walls. The panels are differentiated by using different container mapping,
different wall slopes and different areas.

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Case Study: Prototyping to Production: ultra-tools and manufacturing:

 Aluminium frame with pem nuts This customer came to Ultra with a two-piece aluminium
frame requiring welded assembly and 21 inserted pem nuts. They were looking for a redesign
and a new production process to solve their problems.

Manufacturing Issues:
 Increasing production costs.
 Leakage was occurring because of the welded assembly.
 Hardware insertion was difficult and becoming a very time-consuming process.
 A challenge to correctly form the aluminium frame.
 Redesign Process
 The original two-piece aluminium frame, 27" long x 12" wide, required welded assembly with
the insertion of multiple pem nuts.

 First, the redesign process began with a form analysis to establish the manufacturability of the
proposed one-piece design. Then various grades of aluminium were tested to identify the
specific aluminium that would be strong enough for the new design. This included shock and
vibe tests on the different types of aluminium until the results met the customer’s standards.
This prototyping process ensured the frame could meet its performance requirements in an
industrial environment.
 Second, our Die Design team designed a progressive stamping die to support this new one-
piece model. The prototyping continued as the Toolmakers built the various die components.
They utilized our fibre laser to cut different strip configurations and fine-tune the die design to
eliminate wrinkles.
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 Progressive stamping die for an aluminium frame Third, to improve the accuracy and
productivity of the 21 pem nuts that needed to be inserted we selected a mechanical stamping
press. This equipment can insert the required hardware including three different types in just
one-set up.

 This redesign created a more efficient manufacturing process that lowered costs and improved
the frame's quality.

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 Prototyping provided 100% confidence that

the frame would function hassle-free.
 The customer then selected Ultra to redesign
their even larger frame – 35” long x 17 wide”
with a similar shape and hardware insertions.
 On-time delivery of metal frames

Case Study: Meeting Design Challenges for a Metal Stamped Part: ultra-tools and
manufacturing:

 Metal Stamping for Lawn and Garden Equipment Manufacturer

 CUSTOMER:
 Lawn & Garden Equipment Manufacturer

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 PART:
 Lock Washer

 Manufacturing Issues:
 The customer's current tooling supplier was having difficulties achieving the “twists” in the
lock washer's tabs. This was leading to the parts never passing the initial testing phase.
 Full production was being delayed as a result for both the lock washer and the final end product.

 Customer's Goal:
 Have Ultra inherit the tooling die and fix it to accurately produce lock washers that match the
design print.
 Maintain the integrity of the “twists” on the lanced and formed tabs since the twists are critical
to the overall function of the lock washer. These "twists” are the major contributor to obtaining
the locking features and achieving the minimum force requirements.

 Redesign Process:
 Ultra’s team of Die Designers, Toolmakers and Engineers evaluated the customer's current
tooling die and determined it was incapable of being modified to meet the part print. We
recommended designing and building a new progressive stamping die.
 The customer was obviously concerned about the time to complete this project and if it was
even necessary. To better support our recommendation, we highlighted a similar part Ultra had
successfully developed and currently metal stamps. Also, we completed detailed prototyping
before the actual die designing began.
 For the prototyping, we first designed and built the testing equipment which was a force test
fixture and a gauge. This allowed us to develop the cut and form geometry of the locking
features (“the twists”) against the force test requirements, as well as the torque and return height
requirements which are all critical to the function of the lock washer.
 Also, during this prototyping we were also able to prove out the overbends and cut/form
sequences that would be used in the progressive stamping die to determine what would yield
acceptable parts. Once these prototypes of the lock washers passed the customer's testing, it
was time to proceed forward with designing and building this tooling die.
 Another key feature when designing this stamping die was building in features that allowed for
adjustments to the tabs as needed. This was necessary to accommodate for natural variations
in the ½ hard stainless steel that was utilized to stamp the lock washers. We also included
features that made die maintenance easier which is handled at Ultra for the customer.

 Customer Outcome:
 Ultra-currently is metal stamping 1,300,000 of these lock washers every year; and they are
successfully passing the customer's various performance standards.

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Future functioning:

 LASER FORMING:
 Laser forming (LF) is a highly flexible rapid prototyping and low-volume manufacturing
process, which uses laser-induced thermal distortion to shape sheet metal parts without hard
tooling or external forces. The laser forming process is of significant value to industries that
previously relied on expensive stamping dies and presses for prototype evaluations, relevant
industry sectors include aerospace, automotive, and microelectronics.
 In contrast with conventional forming techniques this method requires no mechanical contact
and hence offers many of the advantages of process flexibility associated with other laser
manufacturing techniques such as laser cutting and marking. Laser forming can produce
metallic, predetermined shapes with minimal distortion.

 PRINCIPLE INVOLVED:
 The laser beam is guided across the sheet surface, the path of the laser depends on the desired
forming result. In the simplest case it may be a point, in other cases it may be a straight line
across the whole part and, for spatially formed parts and extrusions the paths would be very
sophisticated radial and tangential lines.
 There are several distinct mechanisms of laser forming depending on the process set-up, for
the Temperature Gradient Mechanism (TGM) above, using a small spot size and fast traverse
speed, the thermal expansion of the upper surface of sheet metal would be hindered by the
surrounding material, which would result in an upsetting of the heated material.

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 After cooling, the material at the surface is shorter than the material below, giving a bending
of the sheet towards the laser beam.
 ADVANTAGES:
 No separate external tool is needed for this process.
 No physical contact. Easy control – laser power, flare diameter and size of the beam.
 Energy efficient.
 Variety of applications.
 Applied for materials that are difficult to form.

 APPLICATIONS:
 Connecting rods.
 Automatic transmission races and torque converter races.
 High-strength gears.
 High-impact strength safety components and rolling-contact fatigue applications.
 High-pressure hydraulic circuit components.

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POWDER METAL FORGING:

 Powder forging (P/F) is used to produce components essentially free of internal

porosity. The associated properties are equivalent to those developed in conventional
precision forged products made from billets.
 Powder forging produces parts that possess mechanical properties equal to wrought materials.
Since they’re made using a net-shape technology, P/F parts require only minor secondary
machining and offer greater dimensional precision and less flash than conventional precision
forgings.
 In powder forging an as-pressed component is usually heated to a forging temperature
significantly below the usual sintering temperature of the material and then forged in a closed
die. This produces a fully dense component with the shape of the forging die and appropriate
mechanical properties.

POWDER FORGING PROCESS:

 ADVANTAGES:
 Improved strength and density
 High-level static and dynamic properties
 Material flexibility – from low- to high-alloy steels
 Minimal weight fluctuations and reduced burr waste
 Increased precision and tighter tolerances compared to wrought forging

 APPLICATIONS:
 Connecting rods.
 Automatic transmission races and torque converter races.
 High-strength gears.
 High-impact strength safety components and rolling-contact fatigue applications.
 High-pressure hydraulic circuit components.

 MATERIALS USED:
 Low alloy steels
 High alloy steels.

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Industries leading in USA and Canada:

 Cold Headed Parts Manufacturers:

 Cold Forming – Shamrock International Fastener scold headed parts are finished or stock
shapes produced through a specialized process more broadly known as cold working. Although
cold heading is a popular option, it is part of this larger group of manufacturing processes also
referred to as cold forming. As the name would suggest, none of these techniques involve heat,
but instead materials are processed and formed at ambient temperatures. While the name might
imply that the temperature is further reduced for cold metallurgical processes, most are carried
out with machines and materials left at room temperature.

 business Leading Cold Headed Parts Manufacturers

 B & D Cold Headed Products
 Taylor, MI | 734-728-7070
 Novaria Group
 North Richland Hills, TX | 817-381-3810
 Radax Industries, Inc
 Webster, NY | 877-211-5210
 Jeffrey-Jae Company, Inc.
 Wheeling, IL | 877-327-8783
 Mid-West Fabricating Company
 Amanda, OH | 740-969-4411

 Expanded Metal:
 Expanded Metals Manufacturers – New Metals, Inc. Expanded metals are made from plate or
sheet metal that is perforated by a series of slits, cut along parallel lines, and then pulled or
stretched into a mesh. The resulting piece may be as much as ten times its original width,
depending on the length of the cuts, width of the metal between the cuts, and the amount of
stretching. It is a light weight, less expensive alternative to solid plates and sheets, and it will
not unravel. The mesh can be used to filter light, air, water, materials, sound, and the view. It
is used for decking, fencing, screening, lath, or decoration.
 It can be made from aluminium, steel, mild steel, carbon steel, stainless steel, copper, or even
plastics. A wide variety of finishes may be added, according to design. The perforation lines
may be staggered, which provides the greatest open area when stretched, or the fine lines may
be evenly spaced.
 Typical metal mesh patterns reveal holes with diamond shapes, but other patterns may be
produced, as well. Measurements are based on long way diamond (LWD) and short way
diamond (SWD) specifications. The size and shape of the opening will be determined by the
necessary requirements of the final application. Standard expanded metals may be
manufactured from different thickness of plate or sheet metal with a variety of opening sizes.
The SWD bonds and LWD strands that divide the apertures are set at a uniform angle, offering
increased rigidity with maximum flow. Because the metal remains a single piece, it provides
much higher tensile strength than woven wire of equal weight. By cold rolling the expanded
sheets, they are flattened to create a smooth surface.

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 This process can further extend the length of the piece by as much as five percent. Perforated
metals, not to be confused with expanded metals, are solid metal sheets that have holes of
specific design punched out. The material is not stretched in any way. Their uses are similar,
but the expanded sheets weigh less, inch for inch, and provide more flexibility.

 business Leading Expanded Metal Manufacturers

 Metalex
 Libertyville, IL | 877-667-8634
 Remaly Manufacturing Company, Inc.
 Tamaqua, PA | 888-218-2260
 Hendrick Manufacturing Company
 Carbondale, PA | 800-225-7373
 Alabama Metal Industries Corporation (AMICO)
 Birmingham, AL | 800-366-2642
 Marco Specialty Steel, Inc.
 Houston, TX | 800-200-3047

 Metal Spinning Manufacturers:

 Metal Spinners – Acme Metal Spinning Inc. Metal spinning, often called spin forming, is a
cold metalworking process in which a flat metal disc affixed to a lathe mandrel is rotated at
high speeds and formed by shaping tools.
 A metal spinner applies pressure to the rotating disc, which is called a blank, using several
tools, which are called spoons, to shape the metal over a mandrel. This pressure can be applied
by a single tool or by multiple tools. The finished product should have no wrinkling or warble,
and the process is quick and cost-effective. An average metal piece will take only five to ten
minutes to be formed, and very little metal waste is produced per part.

 business Leading Metal Spinning Manufacturers

 Charles H. Schillinger Company
 Bensalem, PA | 888-245-1912
 H & H Manufacturing & Engineering, Inc.
 Bell Gardens, CA | 323-773-1356
 M.W. Metal Spinning
 Downsview, ON | 416-661-8003
 METCOM Inc.
 Cookeville, TN | 931-526-8412
 Accurate Metal Spinning
 Medley, FL | 305-885-9988

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 Powdered Metal Parts Manufacturers:

 Powdered Metal – SMC Powder Metallurgy, Inc. Numerous industries utilize solid metal parts
made of powdered metal. Powdered metal components, which are made from powdered metal
via powder metallurgy, can be found in applications spanning across industries such as lawn
and garden, computer, electronics, hardware, and automotive.
 More specifically, powder metal parts include magnetic assemblies, filtration systems,
structural parts, and automobile components. Powder metal gears are inherently porous and
they naturally reduce sound, making them a suitable component to the sintering process.
Bearings and bushings can simply be produced by way of sintering; however, they may require
a secondary sizing operation because their fabrication leaves little room for error.

 business Leading Powdered Metal Parts Manufacturers

 Catalos Corporation
 St. Marys, PA | 814-781-7004
 Precision Sintered Parts
 Tulsa, OK | 918-663-7511
 Nichols Portland
 Westbrook, ME | 207-774-6121
 Sintergy Inc.
 Reynoldsville, PA | 877-653-9640
 Clearfield Metal Technologies
 Clearfield, PA | 814-765-7860

 Roll Forming Manufacturers:

 Roll Formed Parts – MP Metal Products Roll formed parts are metal products shaped by a
series of rollers, during the process known as roll forming. Most metals can be roll formed, but
the most commonly roll formed metals are brass, steel, zinc, aluminium and zirconium.
 Roll formed parts are valued for many reasons, among them uniformity, accuracy, structural
integrity and low tooling costs. They serve a myriad of industries, such as: building
construction and architecture, carpentry, commercial automotive and home improvement. They
‘re also used to fabricate a wide variety of commercial, consumer and industrial products.
 Examples of common roll formed products for carpentry and building construction include:
angle irons, aluminium angles, steel angles, metal channels and metal trim. Angles are designed
to provide support in two directions, and frequently feature slots or holes for connecting parts.

 Review Our Roll Forming Power Page Article

 business Leading Roll Forming Manufacturers
 Samson Roll Formed Products Company
 Skokie, IL | 847-965-6700
 Johnson Bros. Roll Forming Co.
 Berkeley, IL | 708-449-7050
 United Roll Forming, Inc.
 Elkhart, IN | 800-998-5940
 Roller Die & Forming Company, Inc.

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 Louisville, KY | 502-969-1327
 M.P. Metal Products, Inc.
 Ixonia, WI | 920-261-9650
 Premier Products of Racine, Inc.
 Racine, WI | 262-633-2200

 Springs Manufacturers:
 Torsion Springs – American Precision Spring Corporation Springs can be found as a necessary
component in many devices, machines, and systems. A spring is an elastic device that applies
a resistant force when compressed or stretched. Springs are used to store and absorb energy
and maintain force or tension in the application for which it is designed.
 Some of these applications include circuit breakers, solenoid valves, writing instruments, and
electronics. Springs come in four main styles, which are compression springs, extension
springs, torsion springs, and flat springs. The combination of a flat spring and a coil spring is
known as a constant force spring.
 Aside from these four major categories, springs can be found in a wide range of styles.
Industrial springs are typically made from thick wire, while smaller springs can be made from
wire that is flexible and thin. Some of these springs are too small to be seen by the naked eye.
Learn More

 Review Our Springs Power Page Article

 business Leading Springs Manufacturers
 R & L Spring Company
 Lake Geneva, WI | 262-249-7854
 Stanley Spring and Stamping Corporation
 Chicago, IL | 773-777-2600
 Western Spring Manufacturing
 Hugo, MN | 888-224-1721
 W.B. Jones Spring Company
 Wilder, KY | 859-581-7600
 Michigan Steel Spring Co.
 Detroit, MI | 313-838-3925
 Katy Spring & Mfg., Inc.
 Katy, TX | 281-391-1888

 Wire Forms Manufacturers:

 Wire Forming – Merrill Manufacturing Wire forms consist of various shapes and parts that
have been fabricated through the manipulation of wire, which includes anything that alters the
shape of the wire such as wire cutting, bending or heat treating. Vital to numerous applications,
wire forms serve an extensive range of industries such as: commercial and retail, for wire
displays used for product placement such as point of purchase (POP) displays and wire grids;
industrial manufacturing, for wire racks and wire shelves that are used in storage systems as
well as for wire guards as protective equipment for machinery. Learn More

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 Review Our Wire Forms Power Page Article

 business Leading Wire Forms Manufacturers
 Acme Wire Products Company, Incorporated
 Mystic, CT | 800-723-7015
 John Evans’ Sons, Inc.
 Lansdale, PA | 215-368-7700
 Master Spring & Wire Form Co.
 River Grove, IL | 708-453-2570
 All-Rite Industries
 Lake Zurich, IL | 847-540-0300
 Angola Wire Products
 Angola, IN | 260-665-9447
 Hoosier Spring
 South Bend, IN | 574-291-7550

 Wire Mesh Manufacturers:

 Architectural Wire Mesh – Universal Wire Cloth Company Wire mesh is an industrial
product of weaved interlocking metal wires welded or sintered into a wire mesh with evenly
spaced, uniform openings that is used as a material for a wide variety of filtering, screening,
structuring and protecting in industrial, agricultural and residential applications.
 In industries like Petro-chemical processing, screen printing, pharmaceutical manufacturing
and food and beverage processing select wire mesh materials on a case-to-case basis,
depending on their application requirements. Some applications require a specific weave
pattern. The most common of these are twilled square mesh weave, plain square mesh weave,
plain Dutch weave, reverse plain weave and twill Dutch weave. Each weave pattern brings
something different to the table. For instance, plain square meshes, which are made from Shute
wires or lateral wires and warp wires or longitudinal wires of equal gauge, are perfect for basic
mesh operations. Learn More

 business Leading Wire Mesh Manufacturers

 Langley Wire Cloth Components, Inc.
 Adamsville, TN | 800-664-0748
 GKD-USA, Inc.
 Cambridge, MD | 410-221-0542
 Precision E-forming LLC
 Cortland, NY | 607-753-7680
 W.S. Tyler
 Mentor, OH | 800-321-6188
 Best Welded Mesh
 Montclair, CA | 866-844-8205

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ADVANCE MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGIES

History of Advanced Manufacturing Processes:

 Manufacturing has long been a cornerstone of the modern economy, with advances in
technology changing the processes and output volume drastically for all sorts of industries
from food production to home goods, chemicals and electronics. Where it will go in 2017 and
beyond will depend heavily on economic changes, but a look at where it was and where it is
now can give us a good idea as to what manufacturing will do in the future

 Manufacturing in the Beginning:

Before heavy machinery and automation, manufacturing was done by hand. With no computers to
handle each step of the design, production and QA, the responsibilities fell to skilled tradespeople.
 Only the most skilled workers could perform these tasks, slowing production time but
keeping demand high.
 Apprenticing was a common way for knowledge to be passed down correctly while
maintaining quality, keeping these skill sets fairly small amongst the general population.
 Most of these skilled trades were performed rurally.
Rural manufacturing could only support so many people before it plateaued, so putting-out systems
were implemented to centralize a collective of manufacturers under one business hub. The central
provider was able to subcontract specific orders to rural manufacturers, spreading the workload among
tradespeople and giving those tradespeople a wider customer base. Versatility and the division of labor
would be key if the American manufacturing industry were to take off, however.
 Interchangeable parts led to reduced downtime, efficient labor usage and mass production.
 Fixtures, jigs and gauges paved the way for identical parts to be manufactured quickly and
correctly before being passed along to less-skilled assembly workers.

 Manufacturing Today:
With connectivity at our fingertips through the internet, customization of the labor flow and
segmentation of the various components of manufacturing is easier than ever. The addition of robotic
systems has cut down on labour costs, human error, and lag time between steps in the assembly process.
 Raw materials can be quickly processed at one location, shipped and then manufactured
elsewhere.
 Just-in-time and lean manufacturing eliminate waste and reduce flow times.
 Prefabrication saves on time by shipping fully assembled or partially assembled units directly
to the site where they will be used.
 Flexible manufacturing systems allow for systems to react in case of predicted or unpredicted
changes to workflow.

 Manufacturing in the Future:

 The continued automation of manufacturing tasks paired with emerging smart technologies
such as the Internet of Things signals that streamlining in manufacturing will play an even
bigger role in 2017 and beyond. Toll manufacturing could become less of a practice as more
facilities process materials and manufacture finished products on site, which is sure to impact
logistical networks from resource to refinery to manufacturer and so on.

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 The evolution of manufacturing has shaped the way we do business, as it’s always factored
into what types of services we offer and what sorts of efficiencies we keep in place. Share your
thoughts on manufacturing and where it’s headed by leaving a comment for us below.

 Defining:

 The field of manufacturing continues to evolve with each passing year. The advent of new
processes, tools and equipment allow manufacturing companies to produce products more
efficiently. This is where advanced manufacturing comes into play:
 Defined as the use of innovative technology to improve products and/or manufacturing
processes, advanced manufacturing is a hot topic among companies. The White also released
a statement, in which it said: “A concise definition of advanced manufacturing offered by some
is manufacturing that entails rapid transfer of science and technology (S&T) into
manufacturing products and processes.”
 In other words, advanced manufacturing integrates technological processes into manufacturing
to assist companies in their efforts to produce products more efficiently. One of the
fundamental goals of manufacturing is to produce products in the least amount of time while
also minimizing the amount of waste. Advanced manufacturing helps companies achieve this
goal. According to Wikipedia, manufacturing companies producing products using advanced
manufacturing should embrace the following characteristics:
 Products are produced with a high level of design.
 Products are technologically complex and superior to their counterparts.
 Products are cutting-edge and innovative.
 Products are reliable, affordable, and readily available.
 Companies produce newer, better and more exciting products.
 Products solve a variety of common problems faced by the user and society in general.
 Purdue University further explains that advanced manufacturing involves aggressive research
and development. Of course, research and development is a fundamental component of all
manufacturing, it’s specifically important for advanced manufacturing. Companies must
research and develop new processes to perform their manufacturing tasks more efficiently.
 So, what’s the difference between advanced manufacturing and traditional manufacturing?
Advanced manufacturing differs from traditional manufacturing in several ways.

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 For starters, traditional manufacturing refers to the process of converting raw materials into a
finished ready-to-sell product through the use of manual and/or mechanized transformational
techniques. The end goal of traditional manufacturing is to add value to achieve the objective.
Advanced manufacturing, on the other hand, typically involves manufacturing processes in
specific industries such as aerospace, medical, pharmaceutical, etc., while using advanced
techniques and equipment.

 Hopefully, this gives you a better understanding of advanced manufacturing. Basically, it’s a
technique that involves the use of innovative processes and/or techniques to improve the
manufacturing of products.

Need and importance of AMP:

 For the past few decades, the scramble for competitive advantage in manufacturing has largely
revolved around finding new and abundant sources of low-cost labor. But with wages rising
rapidly in China and other emerging markets, manufacturers worldwide are under intensifying
pressure to gain advantage the old-fashioned way—by improving their productivity.

 Technological development is likely to be the catalyst for the next wave of manufacturing
productivity gains. This development, which some refer to as Industry 4.0, is characterized by
cyber-physical systems (CPS) and dynamic data processes that use massive amounts of data to
drive smart machines. A confluence of forces—falling prices and rising performance of
enabling hardware and software, the digitization of industry, increasing connectivity, and
mounting pressure on manufacturers to be more flexible and eco-friendly—is likely to
accelerate adoption of the next generation of advanced manufacturing technologies. In the near
future, they may transform the economics of global production in many industries.

 The term “advanced manufacturing” has been around for decades and means many things to
many people. We define advanced-manufacturing technologies as a set of highly flexible, data-
enabled, and cost-efficient manufacturing processes. These tools offer a range of benefits that,
taken together, could redefine the economics of global-manufacturing competitiveness in a
number of industries. In fact, leading-edge manufacturers, such as Ford and General Electric,
are already using some of the most advanced tools to make high-precision components.

 Our research has found that a large majority of American-based manufacturing executives are
beginning to explore advanced manufacturing. In our third annual survey of U.S.-based
manufacturing executives at companies with sales of at least $1 billion, 72 percent of
respondents said that they will invest in additional automation or advanced-manufacturing
technologies in the next five years. Only 10 percent said that they are unlikely to do so. Roughly
three-quarters of the executives we surveyed said that they expect advanced manufacturing to
improve productivity and create more localized production. Fifty-six percent of respondents
predicted that lower automation costs will improve their competitiveness against products
made in low-cost countries.

 Advanced-manufacturing technologies can boost productivity in a number of ways. They

dramatically increase flexibility by making it feasible for manufacturers in some industries to
offer customers the option to “have it your way.” Manufacturers can also make products in
small batches for specific customers, adjust production lines in response to design changes, and
even speed time to market by generating prototypes very quickly.

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 Advanced-manufacturing technologies can boost innovation, too, by allowing manufacturers

to create new kinds of products that can’t be made cost effectively with conventional processes.
They also permit manufacturers to produce high-quality goods made to buyers’ exact
specifications. What’s more, these processes are good for the environment because they often
consume fewer raw materials and generate less scrap. They improve safety as well, by exposing
workers to fewer hazardous materials.

 As of now, we believe that the following five technological tools have the greatest potential to
influence the manufacturing landscape and improve productivity in the years ahead.

 Autonomous Robots. A new generation of automation systems links industrial robots with
control systems through information technology. New robotic and automation systems
equipped with sensors and standardized interfaces are beginning to complement—and, in some
cases, eliminate—human labor in many processes. This could enable manufacturers to cost-
effectively produce items at smaller scale and to improve their ability to enhance quality. (See
“The Rise of Robotics,” BCG article, August 2014.)

 Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME). By creating computer models of

products and simulating their properties before they are fabricated—rather than building and
testing multiple physical prototypes—engineers and designers can develop products better,
faster, and cheaper.

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 Digital Manufacturing. Virtualization technology can be used to generate complete digital

factories that simulate the entire production process. Among other things, digital simulation
can help engineers save time and money by optimizing the layout of a factory, identifying and
automatically correcting flaws in each step of the production process, and modeling product
quality and output. Entire assembly lines can be replicated in different locations at relatively
low cost.

 The Industrial Internet and Flexible Automation. Manufacturing hardware can be linked
together so that machines are able to communicate with one another and automatically adjust
production based on data generated by sensors. They can “see” into the supply chain.

 Additive Manufacturing. Commonly known as 3-D printing, additive-manufacturing processes

create three-dimensional objects based on digital models by successively depositing thin layers
of materials. Such processes are already starting to be used for making prototypes in some
industries, including aerospace, automotive parts, and basic consumer items. In the future, these
processes are expected to be used to build small batches of new kinds of products made out of
one solid piece of material, such as hollow spheres that have no seams. (See “3D Printing Will
Change the Game,” BCG article, September 2013.)

 These technologies are not widely deployed today and won’t have a significant impact in the
very short term. They are also unlikely to replace labor as the most important cost factor in
many industries over the next five to ten years. The material science of 3-D printing is still
evolving, for example, with significant advances required to make it viable and cost effective
for many substrates and particularly for end-use parts. But, to varying degrees, each of these
advanced-manufacturing tools is already being used by leading-edge manufacturers with
impressive results. And they are expected to eventually become important factors in industry.

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 While predictions of a new technological leap in manufacturing have been circulating for quite
some time, the move is now getting closer to reality for several reasons. One is a trend that
BCG has been following for the past three years: the shifting economics of global
manufacturing. (See The Shifting Economics of Global Manufacturing: How Cost
Competitiveness Is Changing Worldwide, BCG report, August 2014.) For example, when
Chinese labor costs were around one-twentieth of those in the U.S. a little more than a decade
ago, it was a no-brainer to locate production in China rather than invest in expensive state-of-
the-art capacity in the U.S. Today—after accounting for productivity, logistics, and other
costs—the cost gap between China and the U.S. has nearly disappeared for many products.
Similarly, several Eastern European economies have lost much of their cost competitiveness
compared with the UK, and Brazil is now estimated to be more expensive than much of
Western Europe. (See Made in America, Again: Why Manufacturing Will Return to the U.S.,
BCG Focus, August 2011.) Germany’s strategy to improve its competitiveness through
Industry 4.0 will be explored in an upcoming BCG publication.

 A number of other trends are also having an impact. Rapid advances in information technology,
sensors, and nanomaterials are dramatically lowering the costs of leading-edge manufacturing
processes and improving their performance. Slowly but surely, digitization has begun to
permeate every aspect of the production process, from engineering to management of the
supply chain to the factory floor—making production systems more intelligent and highly
networked. At the same time, companies are under mounting pressure to improve their
productivity and become more responsive to shifting customer needs.

 Advanced-manufacturing technologies could potentially help address a number of these needs.

New processes boost productivity and responsiveness to the market by making it possible for
manufacturers to quickly and easily modify designs and reconfigure production lines according
to customer demands. As a result, manufacturers can generate a greater diversity of products
using a similar set of processes. Factories of the future will combine the efficiency of mass
production with custom manufacturing: each machine will be capable of producing a variety
of bespoke goods that are made specifically for the needs of customers—something that is
difficult, and often prohibitively expensive, to do using conventional manufacturing processes.
They could even make one-off objects without additional capital expenditures.

 Because information technology can enable networks of robots to communicate with one
another, entire production systems and supply chains can also become more efficient. Robots
can relay data on a problem in one part of a production line to robots in other parts of the line,
so they can adjust. Furthermore, by accessing supplier networks through the Industrial Internet,
robots can automatically adjust production flows in line with updated delivery schedules for
parts and materials, thereby reducing waste and inventory costs.

 Several leading manufacturers are already demonstrating the potential of some of these
advanced processes. Ford Motor, for example, is using ICME to reduce the time and cost of
developing aluminum castings for engines. The conventional method is to design an engine
block on a computer, build a physical prototype, test it, and then tweak the design, rebuild the
prototype, and retest it—again and again—until the product is ready to be manufactured. Using
an ICME process, digital models of castings are tested virtually, and a prototype is built only
after engineers are convinced that they have created the best design. Ford invested $15 million
over five years in this ICME experiment, which involved 15 of its own engineers and 10
university researchers. So far, the company estimates that it has generated cost savings of more

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than $120 million—a 700 percent return on investment—while development times have been
cut by 15 to 25 percent.

 General Electric is successfully using additive-manufacturing processes to build fuel nozzles

for LEAP turbofan engines, which are being developed for next-generation single-aisle aircraft.
In the additive-manufacturing process, the nozzles are built by a computer-guided laser from
layers of metal powder. “The new nozzle is 25 percent lighter than the machined component
and is as much as five times more durable than the current nozzle made from 20 different parts,”
GE reports. According to a company press release, GE will spend $32 million to build a new
research-and-education center focused on additive technologies in Pennsylvania.

 We believe that as advanced manufacturing processes improve, become more practical, and
are disseminated through the supply chain, many more manufacturers will realize significant
gains in cost and productivity. According to analysis by BCG, a combination of these tools
could help reduce production costs (excluding raw materials) by 20 to 40 percent.

 The next technological revolution in manufacturing will take time to fully unfold, but the early
stages have already begun. Over the next year, we at BCG will begin to share with you our in-
depth perspectives on several of these technologies and explore their probable impact on
manufacturing industries.

 Manufacturers reassessing their global production networks in light of dramatic shifts in costs
such as labor and energy must embrace advanced-manufacturing technologies. It is too early
to grasp the comprehensive impact of these tools and processes or to see how they will evolve.
But it is clear that they will radically redefine the dynamics of global competition in many
industries. Advanced-manufacturing technologies will enable companies to manufacture goods
faster, better, and cheaper—and lead to quantum leaps in productivity

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Introduction to machining processes:

 In machining, several operations occur in a planned sequence to achieve the best results. We
cover three of the most common operations including turning, drilling, and milling. Machining
is a very common and versatile manufacturing process. Thus, it’s possible to machine various
types of material using these three methods. Metals, plastics, composites, and wood are all
possible workpiece materials.

Machine Tooling:
 Types of Machine Tooling

 Single point tools:

 Turning Process: This type of tool rotates a workpiece while the cutting tool moves in a
linear motion. This process can either be done manually or automatically

 Multi-point tools:
 Drilling Process: Tool creates or refines round holes in a workpiece. This is usually done
through a rotary tool with two or four helical cutting edges
 Milling Process: This type of tool creates designs by removing material from the
working piece by rotating a cutting tool

 Single Point vs Multipoint Tools:

 The desired form of the material will determine what type of tools you’ll need for the job. The
two basic types of cutting tools are single point and multi-point tools. Use single point tools
for turning, boring, and planing. Use multi-point tools for milling and drilling. It is imperative
to properly use and maintain the cutting tools for quality purposes. Unfortunately, proper
upkeep of machinery and tooling is where it can get costly.

 Tooling is available in a variety of materials. The most common are carbide and high-speed
steel. You may choose to use high-speed steel (HSS) for general purpose milling. But, opt for
carbide to machine tougher and harder tool steels.

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 Cutting Speed, Feed Rate, Depth:

 Cutting speed, feed rate, and depth of cut are all parameters to consider when machining. The
workpiece material, tooling material, and dimensions will influence these parameters. Cutting
speed refers to how fast the cutting tool cuts into the workpiece material. It’s measured in
surface feet per minute. Cutting feed refers to how fast the workpiece moves across its axis
toward the cutting tool. It’s measured in inches per minute.

 Speeds and Feeds Calculators:

 Like artistic sculpting, the workpiece first undergoes one or more roughing cuts. Their purpose
is to get as close to the finished shape and dimensions as possible. After the roughing phase, a
finishing cut is applied to achieve final dimensions, tolerances, and surface finish. Finishing
cuts are typically done at low feeds and depth. Applying cutting fluid during both cutting
phases cools and lubricates the cutting tool.

 Machine Turning:
 Turning involves rotation of the work piece while the cutting tool moves in a linear motion.
This results in a cylindrical shape. A lathe is the machine of choice for all turning operations.
 Like most machining operations, turning is either done manually or automatically. The
downside to manual turning is it requires continuous supervision. Automatic turning does not.
With Computer Numerical Control, or CNC, you program all the movements, speeds, and
tooling changes into a computer. These instructions then get sent to the lathe for completion.
CNC allows for consistency and efficiency of high production runs.
 Single point cutting tools used in turning come in various shapes. They’re placed at different
angles for a variety of outcomes.

 Machine Drilling:
 Drilling creates a round hole in a workpiece. A drill press or tapping machine is designed for
drilling, but this process can also be performed using a milling machine. Chips are the bits of
waste metal produced when machining a workpiece. The shape of the drill bit helps chips fall
away from the workpiece, keeping the workpiece free of debris.

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 Placing the drill bit perpendicular to the workpiece reduces drifting or leading-off. For even
more precision, a center drill operation is often added before drilling. Some drilling
operations need angular drilling. Angular drilling requires special work-holding tooling.
Other options include: rotation of the head on a manual machine or use of multiple axes’ on a
CNC machine.

Ways to prevent drifting include:

 Casting/molding/forging a mark
 Centre punching
 Spot drilling/centre drilling
 Spot facing

Like with turning operations, different drill bits exist for specific drilling operations. Below are a few
special drill bits along with their specific uses.
 Spotting Drills – short drills used to create shallow or pilot holes. If using a longer drill
for these shallow holes it could have a tendency to drift.
 Peck Drilling – frequent retracting of the drill helps to clear chips from the workpiece
and prevent drifting.
 Screw Machine Drills – these drills are short and can create straight and accurate holes
without the need for prior spotting.
 Chucking Reamers – used to enlarge previously drilled holes to very precise diameters.

 Milling Process:
 Milling operations involve using multi-point rotary cutters to remove material from a
workpiece.
 There are two main types of milling operations: face milling and peripheral milling. Face
milling cuts flat surfaces into the workpiece and flat-bottomed cavities. The feed can be either
horizontal or vertical. Peripheral milling cuts deep slots, threads, and gear teeth.

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 The workpiece can be fed into the cutting tool in either of two ways. Conventional milling
involves feeding the workpiece against the cutter rotation. This is the recommended method
for manual milling machines. Climb milling, on the other hand, feeds the workpiece in the
same direction as the cutter rotation. This is the preferred method for CNC milling.
 Milling is best applied as a secondary process to an already machined workpiece. It helps to
define features and serves as a “finishing coat”. Use milling as a secondary process to add
features such as holes, slots, pockets, and contours.

 Machining Innovation:
 There’s a lot that goes into machining a perfectly smooth, precise, functional workpiece. It
requires great attention to detail and experience. Turning, drilling, and milling are just a few of
the most common machining processes. They’ve been around for many, many years.
Fortunately, with the development of CNC, machining has improved immensely. While
conventional machining still has its purpose in manufacturing, CNC machining takes the lead.
It helps facilitate large production runs with consistency and efficiency. If you’re interested in
keeping up with the latest innovations and news, American Machinist is a great resource.

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Unconventional Machining Process:

 The unconventional machining is also called non-traditional machining.

 The unconventional machining use for the machine the hard and brittle materials such as
carbides, stainless steel, Hastelloy, nitralloy, waspalloy, and any other that cannot be machined
by a conventional process using the conventional machines such as lathe, milling, shaper,
planer etc.
 These materials are widely used in the field of the nuclear industry, space research, missile
technology and in other industries which requires high strength to weight ratio, heat-resisting
quality, hardness and toughness.
 By using the conventional machining, the time taken for machining is more and the fewer
surface finishes, as well as no accuracy. Therefore, by using unconventional machining the
time taken is less and the surface finish and accuracy are excellent.
 The unconventional machining it uses some form of energy for metal removal there is no
direct contact between the tool and workpiece. his process is also uneconomical, time-
consuming and sometimes impossible to machine complex shapes.

 Advantages of the unconventional machining process:

 It has a high degree of accuracy.
 It provides a great surface finish.
 The complex shapes can be easily machined.
 It has higher tool life.
 The metal removal rate is high.

 Disadvantages of the unconventional machining process:

 This process has the higher cost.
 It requires high operator skills.
 It is complicated in setup.

Types of Unconventional Machining Process

The following are the Types of unconventional machining processes:

1. Mechanical energy based unconventional machining process

1. Abrasive Jet Machining (AJM)
2. Water Jet and Abrasive Water Jet Machining
3. Ultrasonic Machining (USM)
2. Electrical Energy based processes
1. Electric Discharge Machining (EDM)
3. Chemical energy based unconventional machining
1. Chemical machining (CHM)
4. The electrochemical-based unconventional machining process
1. Electro-chemical machining (ECM)
2. Electrochemical grinding (ECG)
5. Thermo-electric energy based unconventional machining
1. Ion-Beam machining (IBM)
2. Plasma ARC machining (PAM)
3. Electron-Beam machining (EBM)
4. Laser-Beam machining (LBM)

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Mechanical energy based unconventional machining process:

1. Abrasive Jet Machining (AJM):

 A high-velocity jet of dry air, nitrogen, or carbon dioxide containing abrasive particles
(typically∼0.025mm) is aimed at the workpiece surface under controlled conditions.

 As particle impact the work surface, they cause small cracks, and the gas stream carries both
the abrasive particles and the fractured (wear) particles away. The gas supply pressure is of the
order of 850kPa and jet velocity can be as high as 300 m/s and is controlled by a valve.
 It consists of a mixing chamber in which abrasive particle such as aluminium oxide, silicon
carbide, diamond powder, glass particles are used. Air or gas may be nitrogen or carbon dioxide
is used to mix with the abrasive particles. From the mixing chamber, the mixture is supplied to
the nozzle which is the high strength of a material i.e., tungsten carbide.
 From the nozzle, the abrasive particles with velocity 150 to 300m/min are made impact the
workpiece due to the high-velocity metal removed from the workpiece with no contact with
the tool.

Advantages of Abrasive Jet Machining:

 It has the ability to cut hard materials such as composites, ceramics, and glass.
 Good for materials that cannot withstand high temperature.
 The complex shape can be produced in the hard and brittle material.
 Ability to cut the heat sensitive materials.
 Low initial cost.
Disadvantages of Abrasive Jet Machining:
 IT is an expensive process.
 Flaring can become large.
 This process not suitable for mass production because of the high maintenance
requirement.
 the metal removal rate is slow.
 The nozzle wear rate is more.
 Additional cleaning is necessary.

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2. Water Jet and Abrasive Water Jet Machining:

 Principle:
 This process works on basic principle of water erosion. In this process, a high speed well
concentrated water jet is used to cut the metal. It uses kinetic energy of water particle to erode
metal at contact surface. The jet speed is almost 600 m/s. It does not generate any
environmental hazards. For cutting hard materials, abrasive particles are used in water jet
These abrasive particles erode metal from contact surface.

 Hydraulic Pump:
 In the water jet machining process, a hydraulic pump is used to pump the water from storage
tank for machining process. It is connected by an electric motor of about 100 Horse power.

 Hydraulic Intensifier:
 As the name implies, it is used to increase the water pressure for further process. Hydraulic
intensifier accept water from pump at a small pressure about 4 bar. The water pressure at outlet
of intensifier is about 3000-4000 bars.

 Hydraulic Accumulator:
 Hydraulic accumulator is used when large amount of pressure energy is required for an instant.
It used to eliminate pressure fluctuation It supplies fluid at high pressure when required.

 Tubing System:
 Tubes are used to supply high pressure water to the nozzle for further cutting process. It
increases the kinetic energy of fluid. It diameter is about 10-14 mm. It provide flexible
movement and does not allow any significant loses.

 Flow regulator:
 Flow regulators are used to regulate the flow according to cutting requirement. For high cutting
load, high pressurized water is supplied at high rate.

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 Abrasive:
 Abrasive particles are used in abrasive water jet machining for machine hard material.
Generally Aluminium oxide, Silicon carbide etc. used as abrasive particles.

 Nozzle:
 As we know, nozzles are used to convert pressure energy into kinetic energy. This nozzle
converts high pressure of water into high velocity jet. This high speed water jet strikes at work
surface which is used for machining. There is possibility of erosion at orifice of the nozzle due
to high pressure water jet. Therefor high wear resistance material is used for nozzle. The size
of nozzle is about 0.2 – 0.4 mm. If abrasive water jet machining is used, abrasive particles
mixed in water stream before entering into nozzle.

 Drain and Catcher:

 The drain and catcher system is used to remove debris and other machined particle form water.
It separate metal particle from water and this water is further send to reservoir. It also used to
reduce noise associate with WJM.

Working:
 The working of water jet machining can be summarizing as follow.

 First water is filled in water reservoir. It provides water for cutting operation.
 A pump sucks water from water reservoir and send it to intensifier.
 Intensifier increases the water pressure from 4 bar to 4000 bars. It sends water to accumulator
which store some pressurize water.
 This high-pressure water now sends through tubing system to nozzle. The water passes
through flow regulator valve which regulate the flow.
 Now this high-pressure water enters into nozzle. Nozzle converts some pressure energy of
water into kinetic energy.
 A high speed high pressurize water jet is available at nozzle exit.
 This water jet send to strike at work surface. It erode metal from the contact surface. Thus
metal removal take place.

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This is whole working process of water jet machining.

Application:

 It is used in aerospace industries.

 Abrasive jet machining is used to cut hard metal like stainless steel, titanium, Inconel etc.
 It is used to machining or cutting reinforced plastic.
 Use to cut stone which reduce dust in environment.
 Used to machining PCB

Advantages:

 It does not change mechanical properties of work piece. It is useful for machining heat
sensitive material.
 It is environment friendly because it does not form any dust particle and used water as cutting
fluid.
 Good surface finish.
 No physical tool is requiring.
 It can cut both soft and hard material. For machining soft materials, water jet machining is
used and for machining hard materials, abrasive water jet machining is used.
 It is ideal process for laser reflective materials where laser beam machining cannot be used.
 Lower cost of machining.

Disadvantages:

 It cannot used for machining material which degrade in presence of water.

 Low metal removal rate.
 High initial cost.
 Thick material cannot be machined easily.

3. Ultrasonic Machining (USM)

 In ultrasonic machining, ultrasonic waves are produced by means of magnetostrictive effects

which is converted into mechanical vibration. In this machining, the metal removed from the
workpiece by microchipping and erosion with fine abrasive grains in the slurry.

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 The tip of the tool vibrates at a frequency of 20kHz and low amplitude (0.0125mm – 0.075mm).
The tool has the same shape as the cavity to be machined.
 It consists of an electromechanical transducer which is connected to an AC supply. The velocity
transformer which holds the tool firmly. An abrasive gun is used to supply an abrasive slurry,
which is a mixture of abrasive grains and the water in between tool and workpiece interface
under a pressure.

Advantages of Ultrasonic Machining:

 Workpiece after machining is free any stress.

 Extremely hard and brittle materials can be easily machined.
 Very good accuracy and surface finish can be obtained.
 The operational cost is low.
 The process is environmentally friendly as it is noiseless without any chemical
reactions and heating.
 This process is economical.
 Better efficiency can be obtained.
 It is suitable for both conducting and non-conducting materials.

Disadvantages of Ultrasonic Machining:

 In this, the metal removal rate is low and cannot be used for large machining cavities.
 Initial cost and cost of the tool is very high, frequency tool replacement is required as
a tool wear takes place in this operation.
 Not for soft and ductile material due to their ductility.
 Power consumption is quite high.
 The slurry may have to be replaced frequently.
 The tool life is low.

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Electrical Energy based processes:

 Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM)

 The electrical discharge machining is also called as electro-discharge or spark erosion
machining based on the erosion of metal by spark discharges. The basic EDM system
consists of the shaped tool (electrode) and the workpiece, connected to a DC supply and
placed in a dielectric (electrically non-conducting) fluid.
 When the potential difference between the tool and workpiece is high, spark discharges
through the fluid, removing a very small amount of metal from the work surface. In this
process the voltage between 50V and 980V and currents from 0.1A to 500A. the workpiece is
fixed in the tank containing the dielectric fluid.

 The gap between the tool and workpiece is important, thus the downward feed of the tool is
controlled by the feed mechanism, which automatically maintains the constant gap. The spark
gap normally varies from 0.005mm to 0.50mm.

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 The most common electric fluid are minerals oil such as kerosene and distilled & deionised
water is used in special applications. The present trend is the use of clear low viscosity fluids.
The EDM process can be used on any materials that are an electrical conductor.

Advantages of Electro Discharge Machining:

 Costlier for machining very hard material.

 Maintain the high degree of dimensional accuracy, so it is recommended for tool and
die making.
 Complex geometries can be produced.
 Highly critical sections and weak materials can also be processed without any risk of
their deformation because in this process applies direct pressure on the workpiece.
 Fine holes can be drilled easily and accurately.
 The adequate form of the high value of MRR can be achieved as compared to other
non-conventional machining processes.

Disadvantages of Electro Discharge Machining

 This process cannot be applied to the large-sized workpiece, as size for the workpiece
is helpless by the size of the setup.
 Electrically non-conducting materials cannot be processed by EDM.
 Due to the use of very high temperature at the machining zone, there are chances of
deformation of the workpiece in case of these sections.
 EDM process is not capable to produce sharp corners.
 MRR achieved in EDM process is enough lower than the MRR in case of the
conventional machining process, so it cannot be taken as an alternative to conventional
machining processes at all.
 Redressing of the tool is required for deep holes.

Chemical and Electrochemical Energy based processes:

 Electro-Chemical Machining (ECM):

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 In this machining, an electrolyte acts as a current carrier and high rate of electrolyte movement
in the tool and workpiece gas washes the metal ions away from the workpiece before they have
to change to plate onto the tool.
 It is the reverse of electroplating. Modification of this process are used for turning, slotting,
trepanning, and profiling operation in which the electrode becomes the cutting tool. The tool
is made up of brass, copper, bronze, or stainless steel. which is used to perform the work on
the workpiece.

 The electrolyte is a highly conductive inorganic salt solution, such as sodium chloride mixed
with water or sodium nitrate. It is pumped at a high rate through the passage in the tool. A
DC power supply in the range of 5 – 25 V maintains densities, which for most of the
application are 1.5 – 8A/mm² of the active machined surface.

Advantages of Electro-Chemical Machining:

 Machining of hard and brittle material is possible with good quality of surface finish
and accuracy.
 Complex shapes can be easily machined.
 There is almost negligible tool wear, so the cost of tool making is an only one-time
investment for mass production.
 There is no use of force, no direct contact between tool and workpiece.
 No use of heat, so mechanical and thermal remaining stresses are absent in the
workpiece.
 Very close tolerances can be obtained.

Disadvantages of Electro-Chemical Machining:

 All non-conducting materials cannot be machined.

 The tool and workpiece should be chemically still with the electrolyte solution.

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 Designing and making tool is difficult but its life is long recommended only for mass
production.
 The accurate feed rate of the tool is required.

Thermal Energy based processes:

1. Electron Beam Machining (EBM):

 The electron beam machining arrangement is made as shown in the figure. The cathode is
made of tungsten or tantalum.
 Cathode filaments are heated to a temperature of around 2500°C, which leads to the thermo-
ionic emission of electrons, which is further increased by maintaining a very low vacuum
within the chamber.

 Just after the cathode, there is a grid. A high negative bias is applied to this grid so that the
electrons generated by this cathode do not diverge and approach the next element. The anode
which is in the form of a beam attracts the electron beam and gradually gets accelerated.

Advantages of Electron Beam Machining:

 EBM provides very high drilling rates when small holes with large aspect ratio are to
be drilled.
 It can machine almost any material irrespective of their mechanical properties.
 Work holding and fixturing cost is very less because of the absence of mechanical
cutting force. So, fragile and brittle materials can also be processed.
 Heat affected zone in EBM is less due to shorter pulse.
 EBM can provide holes of any shape by combining beam deflection using
electromagnetic coils with high accuracy.
 It is a fast process.
 Utilizing the CNC table for the machining.

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Disadvantages of Electron Beam Machining:

 The high cost of the equipment and necessary regular maintenance applicable to any
equipment using the vacuum system.
 A valuable amount of non-productive pump down period for attaining the desired
vacuum.
 Only small cuts are possible.
 A hole shape is affected by the depth of the workpiece.
 It requires a highly skilled operator.

2. Plasma arc machining:

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 Basically, Plasma Arc Machining (PAM) is a metal cutting process where metals are cut with
plasma arc, tungsten-inert-gas arc or a torch. It is mostly used for the metals that cannot be
cut by an oxyacetylene torch. Do you know when the PAM was introduced? Well, PAM was
introduced in the industries in 1964 as a method that would help in the arc welding and that
would require less current supply. Plasma Arc machining is also referred as PAM. In PAM,
different gases are used according to different material. Different material means a
workpiece. Your workpiece may be made up of aluminium, iron or steel. For example, for
aluminium nitrogen is used, for argon hydrogen is used. In most of the cases, nitrogen and
hydrogen are used. Plasma Arc Welding employs a high-velocity jet of high-temperature gas
to melt and displace material in its path.

 Construction
 Plasma arc machining consists of a Plasma gun. Plasma gun has an electrode made up of
tungsten situated in the chamber. Here, this tungsten electrode is connected to the negative
terminal of DC power supply. Thus, the tungsten acts as a cathode. While the positive
terminal of DC power supply is connected to the nozzle. Thus, the nozzle of the plasma gun
acts as an anode.

 Working of Plasma Arc Machining:

 As we give the power supply to the system, an electric arc develops between the cathodic
tungsten electrode and an anodic nozzle. As the gas comes in contact with the plasma, there is
a collision between the atoms of gas and electrons of an electric arc and as a result, we get an
ionised gas. That, means we get the plasma state that we wanted for Plasma Arc machining.

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 Now, this plasma is targeted towards the workpiece with a high velocity and the machining
process starts. One thing to note down is that a high potential difference is applied in order to
get the plasma state.
 In the whole process, high temperature conditions are required. As hot gases come out of
nozzle there are chances of overheating. In order to prevent this overheating, a water jacket is
used.

Following is some of the parameters involved in PAM that you must consider are:
 Current: Up to 500A
 Voltage: 30-250V
 Cutting speed: 0.1-7.5 m/min.
 Plate thickness: Up to 200mm
 Power requires: 2 to 200 KW
 Material removal rate: 150 cm3/min
 Velocity of Plasma: 500m/sec
 Material of workpiece: As previously stated, you can use any metal as material of workpiece.
For instance, aluminium and stainless steel are highly recommended for this process.

Advantages:

Following are the advantages of PAM that you must know:

 In Plasma Arc Machining, hard as well as brittle metals can be easily machined.
 It can be applied to almost all types of metals.
 The best part of this process is that we get high cutting rate.
 We get a better dimensional accuracy in case of machining small cavities.
 It is a simple process to carry out and a very efficient process.
 It takes a big part in automatic repair of jet engine blades.

Disadvantages:

Apart from the advantages of the Plasma Arc machining let us discuss some of the disadvantages of
it:
 PAM involves various equipment but the cost of this equipment is very high.
 This entire machining process consumes a high amount of inert gases.
 Production of narrower surfaces takes place which is unnecessary.
 The most harmful part of PAM is that metallurgical changes takes place on the surface.
 The operator or person handling the whole process must take proper precautions. This
process can affect human eyes so a proper googles or helmet must be worn by an operator.

Applications:

 It is mostly used for cryogenic, high temperature corrosion resistant alloys.

 It is also used in case of titanium plate up to 8mm thickness.
 PAM is used in nuclear submarine pipe system and for welding steel rocket motor case.
 PAM is prominent for the applications related to stainless tube and tube mills.

In this high-tech weld, Plasma Arc Machining has a huge significance. Though, it has some
disadvantage it is highly beneficial in all of its applications.

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3. Laser Beam Machining (LBM):

 A laser is an optical transducer which converts the electrical energy into coherent light. Laser
stands for “light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation”.
 The laser being coherent or consistent in nature a specific property to generate high power
density. The laser is man-made ruby crystal, containing chromium or Aluminium oxide. LBM
uses the light energy of a laser beam to remove material by vaporization and ablation.
 In this process, the coherent or consistent light beam is focused optically for a particular period
of time.

 The beam is pulsed so that the released energy results in an impulse against the work surface
that does melting and evaporation. In this process, the metal removing is the same as that of
the EDM process but the method of generation of heat is different. The application of heat is
very focused in case of LBM as compared to EDM.
 The LBM setup consists of a laser tube, a pair of reflectors, one at each end of the tube, a flash
tube or lamp, an amplification source, a power supply unit and a cooling system. This whole
setup is fitted inside an enclosure, which carries good quality reflecting surface inside.

Advantages of Laser Beam Machining:

 Materials which cannot be machined by conventional methods are machined by LBM.

 There is no tool, so no tool wear.
 Application of heat is focused, so rest of the workpiece is latest affected by the heat.
 Precise holes and cavities are obtained.
 Metals and non-metals can be machined.

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 Micro-drilling is possible.
 Rubber and plastics can be machined.
 No tool wears.

Disadvantages of Laser Beam Machining:

 Initial cost and operating cost are high.

 Recommended for some specific operations only, as production rate is very slow.
 Cannot be used for high light reflecting materials.
 A highly skilled operator is required.
 The efficiency is low.
 Used for thin materials only.
 The materials removal rate is slow.

Introduction to metal casting processes:

 Casting manufacturing is a process in which liquefied material, such as molten metal, is poured
into the cavity of a specially designed mold and allowed to harden. After solidification, the
workpiece is removed from the mold to undergo various finishing treatments or for use as a
final product. Casting methods are typically used to create intricate solid and hollow shapes,
and cast products are found in a wide range of applications, including automotive components,
aerospace parts, etc.
 Different Types of Casting and the Casting Process
 Although casting is one of the oldest known manufacturing techniques, modern advances in
casting technology have led to a broad array of specialized casting methods. Hot forming
processes, such as die-casting, investment casting, plaster casting, and sand casting, each
provide their own unique manufacturing benefits. Comparing both the advantages and
disadvantages of the common types of casting processes can help in selecting the method best
suited for a given production run.

 Sand Casting:

 Sand casting typically relies on silica-based materials, such as synthetic or naturally-bonded

sand. Casting sand generally consists of finely ground, spherical grains that can be tightly
packed together into a smooth molding surface. The casting is designed to reduce the potential
for tearing, cracking, or other flaws by allowing a moderate degree of flexibility and shrinkage
during the cooling phase of the process.
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 The sand can also be strengthened with the addition of clay, which helps the particles bond
more closely. Automotive products such as engine blocks are manufactured through sand
casting.
 Sand casting involves several steps, including patternmaking, molding, melting and pouring,
and cleaning. The pattern is the form around which the sand is packed, usually in two parts, the
cope and the drag. After the sand is compacted enough to replicate the pattern, the cope is
removed and the pattern extracted. Then, any additional inserts called core boxes are installed
and the cope is replaced. After the metal has been poured and solidified, the casting is removed,
trimmed of the risers and gates that were used in the pouring process, and cleaned of any
adhered sand and scale.

 Sand casting's main advantages as a casting process include:

 Relatively inexpensive production costs, especially in low-volume runs.

 The ability to fabricate large components.
 A capacity for casting both ferrous and non-ferrous materials.
 A low cost for post-casting tooling.

 Despite its benefits, sand casting yields a lower degree of accuracy than do alternate methods
and it can be difficult to sand cast components with a predetermined size and weight
specifications. Furthermore, this process has a tendency to yield products with a comparatively
rough surface finish.
 You can use the Thomas Supplier Discovery Platform to find Sand Casting Companies for your
needs.

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 Investment Casting:

 Investment, or lost-wax, casting uses a disposable wax pattern for each cast part. The wax is
injected directly into a mold, removed, then coated with refractory material and a binding agent,
usually in several stages to build up a thick shell. Multiple patterns are assembled onto common
sprues. Once the shells have hardened the patterns are inverted and heated in ovens to remove
the wax. Molten metal is then poured into the remaining shells where it hardens into the shape
of the wax patterns. The refractory shell is broken away to reveal the completed casting.
Investment casting is often used to manufacture parts for the automotive, power generation,
and aerospace industries, such as turbine blades. Some of the central advantages and
disadvantages of investment casting include:
 A high degree of accuracy and precise dimensional results.
 The ability to create thin-walled parts with complex geometries.
 The capacity for casting both ferrous and non-ferrous materials.
 Relatively high-quality surface finish and detail in final components.

 Although it is highly precise, investment casting is usually more expensive than other
comparable casting techniques and is typically only cost-efficient when sand or plaster castings
cannot be used. However, the expense can sometimes be compensated for with reduced
machining and tooling costs due to investment castings’ quality surface results.
 You can use the Thomas Supplier Discovery Platform to find Investment Casting Companies
for your needs.

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 Plaster Casting:

 Plaster casting is similar to the sand casting process, using a mixture of gypsum, strengthening
compound, and water in place of the sand. The plaster pattern is typically coated with an anti-
adhesive compound to prevent it from becoming stuck against the mold, and the plaster is
capable of filling in any gaps around the mold. Once the plaster material has been used to cast
the part, it usually cracks or forms defects, requiring it to be replaced with fresh material. The
advantages offered by plaster casting include:
 A very smooth surface finish.
 The ability to cast complex shapes with thin walls.
 The capacity for forming large parts with less expense than other processes, such as
investment casting.
 A higher degree of dimensional accuracy than that of sand casting.

 This process tends to be more expensive than most sand casting operations and may require
frequent replacements of the plaster molding material. It is usually more effective and cost-
efficient when the quality of the surface finish is an important requirement. Its application is
generally limited to casting aluminum and copper-based alloys.

 You can use the Thomas Supplier Discovery Platform to find Plaster Casting Companies for
your needs.

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 Die Casting (Metal Casting Process):

 Die casting is a method of molding materials under high pressure and usually involves non-
ferrous metals and alloys, such as zinc, tin, copper, and aluminium. The reusable mold is coated
with a lubricant to help regulate the die’s temperature and to assist with component ejection.
Molten metal is then injected into the die under high pressure, which remains continuous until
the workpiece solidifies. This pressurized insertion is rapid, preventing any segment of the
material from hardening before being cast. After the process is completed, the component is
taken out of the die and any scrap material is removed. A few of the major advantages provided
by die casting include:

 Close size and shape tolerances.

 High component dimensional consistency and uniform design.
 A reduced need for post-casting machining.

 Despite its advantages, die casting as a metal casting process has relatively high tool
costs, making it more cost-efficient in high-volume product runs. It can also be difficult to
ensure the mechanical properties of a die-cast component, meaning these products usually
do not function as structural parts. As the molds are typically two-piece, die casting is
limited to products that can be removed from the mold without destroying the mold, as is
done in other casting processes.
 For more information on Die Casting, you can review our Types of Die Casting guide,
which goes into depth on the various types, alloys, and considerations for choosing a
specific process/alloy combination.

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 Centrifugal Casting:

 Centrifugal casting is used to produce long, cylindrical parts such as cast iron pipe by relying
on the g-forces developed in a spinning mold. Molten metal introduced into the mold is flung
against the interior surface of the mold, producing a casting that can be free of voids. Originally
invented as the de Lavaud process using water-cooled molds, the method is applied to
symmetrical parts such as soil pipe and large gun barrels and has the advantage of producing
parts using a minimal number of risers.

 For asymmetric parts that cannot be spun around their own axes, a variant of centrifugal
casting, called pressure casting, arranges several parts around a common sprue and spins the
molds around this axis. A similar idea is applied to the casting of very large gear rings, etc.
Depending on the material being cast, metal or sand molds may be used.

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Advanced casting processes:

 Permanent Mold Casting:

 Permanent mold casting shares similarities with die casting and centrifugal casting, notably the
use of reusable molds. These can be made of steel, graphite, etc. and are generally used to cast
materials such as lead, zinc, aluminium and magnesium alloys, certain bronzes, and cast iron.
It is a low-pressure process with pouring usually done by hand using multiple molds on a
turntable. As the molds rotate through the various stations they are successively coated, closed,
filled, opened, and emptied. One such method is known as slush casting, where the mold is
filled but emptied before the metal fully hardens. Molten metal is dumped from the casting to
produce a hollow, cast shell. A similar idea is used in the molding of hollow chocolate products
such as Easter bunnies. The use of metal molds induces faster heat transfer through the mold,
allowing the shell to harden while the core remains liquid.

 Continuous casting

 It is an advanced casting method. Its principle is to continuously pour molten metal into a
special metal mold called a crystalline. The solidified casting is continuously pulled out from
the other end of the mold, and it can obtain any length or specific length of casting.

 Technical characteristics:
 Because the metal is rapidly cooled, the crystals are dense, the structure is uniform, and the
mechanical properties are good.
 Save metal and improve yield.
 Simplified procedures, eliminating modeling and other procedures, thus reducing labour
intensity and greatly reducing the required production area.
 Continous casting production is easy to realize mechanization and automation and improve
production efficiency.

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 Applications:
 Continuous casting can be used to cast steel, iron, copper alloys, aluminium alloys, magnesium
alloys and other long castings with constant cross-sectional shapes, such asa ingots, slabs, rod,
billets, pipes, etc

 Squeeze casting:
 It is a method for solidifying liquid or semi solid metal under high pressure and flowing forming
to directly obtain the product or blank. It has the advantages of high utilization of liquid metal,
simplified process and stable quality. It is energy saving metal forming technology with
potential application prospects.

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 Technological process:
 Direct squeezing die casting: spray paint, cast alloy, mold clamping, pressurization, pressure
holding relief, mold separation, blank demoulding and resetting.
 Indirect squeezing die casting: spray coating, mold clamping, feeding, filling, pressurization,
pressure holding, pressure relief, parting, blank demoulding, resetting.

 Technical characteristics:
 It can eliminate the internal process, shrinkage and other defects.
 Low surface roughness and high dimensional accuracy.
 It can prevent the occurrence of casting cracks.
 Easy to realize mechanization and automation.

 Application:
 It can be used to produce various types of alloys, such as aluminium alloy, zinc alloy, copper
alloy, nodular cast iron, etc.

 Vacuum die casting:

 An advanced die casting process that improves the mechanical properties and the surface
quality of die casting parts by removing or significantly reducing the pores and dissolve gases
in the die casting part by extracting the gas in the die casting mold cavity during the die casting
process.

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 Advantages:
 It can eliminate or reduce the air holes inside the die casting, improve the mechanical properties
and surface quality of the die casting as well as the plating performance.
 To reduce the back pressure of the cavity, lo9wer specific pressure and alloy with poor casting
performance can be used, it is possible to die cast larger castings with small machines.
 It improves filling conditions, can cast thinner castings.

 Disadvantages:
 The mold sealing structure is complicated, making and installing is difficult, so the cost is high.
 If the vacuum die casting method is not properly controlled, the effect will not be very
significant

 Evaporative pattern casting:

 The mold sealing structure is complicated, making and installing is difficult, so the cost is high.
 If the vacuum die casting method is not properly controlled, the effect will not be very
significant.

 What is evaporative pattern casting?

 Evaporative pattern casting is a sand-casting process that uses foam to form a replica of an item
in order to evaporate in a sand mold in replacement of molten metal. This casting process is
also known as consumable or Eva-foam casting. it is similar to investment casting.
 Evaporative pattern casting is of two forms; lost-foam and full mold casting. They are widely
applicable due to complex designs that can be produced with relative ease. Their difference is
that in lost-foam casting, sand is bounded. whilst, in full mold casting the sand is bonded
(greensand). As of 2010, the evaporative casting process is predicted to be used for 29% of
aluminium and 14% of ferrous casting.

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 Applications:
 Evaporative pattern casting is widely used for aluminium casting. It is also used for steel
casting, and for iron parts like a water pipe and pump parts.

 Working principle of evaporative casting:

 The working of evaporative pattern casting is achieved by producing a foam patter, which is
the replica of an item to be cast. This pattern is brushed with refractory substances in order to
add extra life to the pattern when molten metal is poured or to make it resistant to high
temperatures. The pattern is then attached with sprues and gates using adhesives. It is placed
into a mold surrounded and packed by sand. Another way of doing this is by dipping the pattern
into a ceramic slurry, just as investment casting. it forms a shell around it when it drie
 The mold is kept at a specific temperature in order to allow the liquid metal to easily flow and
reach all parts and cuts of the pattern. After this, molten metal is poured into the mold and the
pattern-foaming material vanishes out of the mold as molten metal reaches it. As the pattern
vanishes, the molten metal takes its shape and solidifies. After it solidified, the casting is
removed from the mold.
 The difference between evaporative casting and sand casting methods is that in evaporative
casting the pattern is not removed from the mold. This helps to reduce the need for draft
provision. The evaporative casting method is determined by the grain fineness number, time of
vibration, degree of vacuum, and pouring temperature on surface roughness, etc.

 Advantages:
 Ability to cast lightweight parts
 It is easy to perform when compared with other casting processes
 It offers high dimensional accuracy
 Intricate and complicated shapes can cast without using cores or drafts
 It offers a high surface finish (smoothness) to the casting

 Ceramic shell casting:

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 The ceramic shell casting process starts with wax injection. A die, or tool, is filled with wax,
injected in a liquid or a paste form, so it flows into the detail of the mold. Once cooled, the wax
piece, or pattern, is removed from the die.
 Several wax patterns are attached to a wax pole, or sprue. Each pattern is attached to the sprue
by smaller pieces of wax runners, typically referred to as gates. Gates allow for the eventual
creation of a space where molten metal can flow into the hollow pattern cavity. The complete
assembly is referred to as a tree.
 Next, the wax tree is coated in a slurry, a mixture of liquid binder and flour refractory materials.
Binder and flour materials used vary depending upon the alloy being cast, drying time
requirements and the number of coats desired.
 Once the tree is dipped in the slurry material and excess material is drained from the tree, it is
then coated with sand, or stucco. This can be completed in a variety of methods including
rainfall sanding, use of a fluidized bed or by hand covering (the cat box method).
 After each layer dries, the dipping and stuccoing steps are repeated and continue until the shell
is completed. The number of coats will vary depending in part on the pattern configuration and
the binder used in the slurry.
 Once the dipping sequence is completed and each coat has air dried sufficiently, the wax is
removed from the mold with either an autoclave or a FlashFire dewax system; which will melt
the wax out of the shell leaving a hollow cavity.
 The shell is then placed into an oven where it is fired for a predetermined time period. This
assists in strengthening the shell and removing any remaining wax residue from inside the shell.
 Finally, the fired shell is placed in a bed of sand with the pour cup opening facing up. Molten
metal is poured into the shell. The shell takes on the orange glow of the metal and eventually
turns white as the metal cools. The shell is then removed, the parts are cut off of the tree and
the finishing area takes care of grinding away any sign of metal from the gating.

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Introduction to welding process:

 Welding is a fabrication process whereby two or more parts are fused together by means of
heat, pressure or both forming a join as the parts cool. Welding is usually used on metals and
thermoplastics but can also be used on wood. The completed welded joint may be referred to
as a weldment.
 Some materials require the use of specific processes and techniques. A number are considered
'unweldable,' a term not usually found in dictionaries but useful and descriptive in engineering.
 The parts that are joined are known as a parent material. The material added to help form the
join is called filler or consumable. The form of these materials may see them referred to as
parent plate or pipe, filler wire, consumable electrode (for arc welding), etc.
 Consumables are usually chosen to be similar in composition to the parent material, thus
forming a homogenous weld, but there are occasions, such as when welding brittle cast irons,
when a filler with a very different composition and, therefore, properties is used. These welds
are called heterogeneous.
 The completed welded joint may be referred to as a weldment.

How Does Welding Work?

 Joining Metals:
 As opposed to brazing and soldering, which do not melt the base metal, welding is a high heat
process which melts the base material. Typically, with the addition of a filler material.
 Heat at a high temperature causes a weld pool of molten material which cools to form the join,
which can be stronger than the parent metal. Pressure can also be used to produce a weld, either
alongside the heat or by itself.
 It can also use a shielding gas to protect the melted and filler metals from becoming
contaminated or oxidised.

 Joining Plastics:
 Plastics welding also uses heat to join the materials (although not in the case of solvent welding)
and is achieved in three stages.
 Firstly, the surfaces are prepared before heat and pressure is applied and, finally, the materials
are allowed to cool to create fusion. Joining methods for plastics can be separated into external
or internal heating methods, depending on the exact process used.

 Joining Wood:
 Wood welding uses heat generated from friction to join the materials. The materials to be joined
are subjected to a great deal of pressure before a linear friction movement creates heat to bond
the workpieces together.
 This is a fast process which allows wood to be joined without adhesives or nails in a matter of
seconds.

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Common Joint Configurations:

 Butt Joint:

A connection between the ends or edges of two parts making an angle to one another of 135-
180° inclusive in the region of the joint.

 T Joint:

A connection between the end or edge of one part and the face of the other part, the parts
making an angle to one another of more than 5 up to and including 90° in the region of the
joint.

 Corner Joint:

A connection between the ends or edges of two parts making an angle to one another of more
than 30 but less than 135° in the region of the joint.

 Edge Joint:

A connection between the edges of two parts making an angle to one another of 0 to 30°
inclusive in the region of the joint.

 Cruciform Joint:

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A connection in which two flat plates or two bars are welded to another flat plate at right angles
and on the same axis.

 Lap Joint:

A connection between two overlapping parts making an angle to one another of 0-5° inclusive
in the region of the weld or welds.

 Types of Welding Joints:

 Welds Based on Configuration:

 Slot weld:

Joint between two overlapping components made by depositing a fillet weld around the
periphery of a hole in one component so as to join it to the surface of the other component
exposed through the hole.

 Plug weld:

Weld made by filling a hole in one component of a workpiece with filler metal so as to join it
to the surface of an overlapping component exposed through the hole (the hole can be circular
or oval).

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 Based on Penetration:
 Full penetration weld:

Welded joint where the weld metal fully penetrates the joint with complete root fusion. In US
the preferred term is complete joint penetration weld (CJP, see AWS D1.1).

 Partial penetration weld:

Weld in which the fusion penetration is intentionally less than full penetration. In the US the
preferred term is partial joint penetration weld (PJP).

 Welds Based on Accessibility:

 Features of Completed Welds:

Butt weld

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Fillet weld

 Parent Metal:
 Metal to be joined or surfaced by welding, braze welding or brazing.
 Filler Metal:
 Metal added during welding, braze welding, brazing or surfacing.
 Weld Metal:
 All metal melted during the making of a weld and retained in the weld.

Heat Affected Zone (HAZ):

 The part of the parent metal metallurgically affected by the weld or thermal cutting heat, but
not melted.
 Fusion Line:
 Boundary between the weld metal and the HAZ in a fusion weld. This is a non-standard term
for weld junction.
 Weld Zone:
 Zone containing the weld metal and the HAZ.
 Weld Face:
 The surface of a fusion weld exposed on the side from which the weld has been made.
 Weld Root:
 Zone on the side of the first run furthest from the welder.
 Weld Toe:
 Boundary between a weld face and the parent metal or between runs. This is a very important
feature of a weld since toes are points of high stress concentration and often, they are initiation
points for different types of cracks (eg fatigue cracks, cold cracks).

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 In order to reduce the stress concentration, toes must blend smoothly into the parent metal
surface.

 Excess Weld Metal:

 Weld metal lying outside the plane joining the toes. Other non-standard terms for this feature:
reinforcement, overfill.

Note: the term reinforcement, although commonly used, is inappropriate because any excess weld
metal over and above the surface of the parent metal does not make the joint stronger.
In fact, the thickness considered when designing a welded component is the design throat thickness,
which does not include the excess weld metal.

Run (pass):

 The metal melted or deposited during one passage of an electrode, torch or blowpipe.

 Layer:
 Stratum of weld metal consisting of one or more runs
.
 Energy Sources:
 Different processes are determined by the energy source used, with a variety of different
techniques available.
 Until the end of the 19th century, forge welding was the only method used, but later processes,
such as arc welding, have since been developed. Modern methods use gas flame, electric arc,
lasers, electron beam, friction and even ultrasound to join materials.
 Care needs to be taken with these processes as they can lead to burns, electric shock, damaged
vision, exposure to radiation or inhaling of poisonous welding fumes and gases.

What are the Different Welding Types and What are They Used for?

 There are a variety of different processes with their own techniques and applications for
industry, these include:

Arc Welding:

 This category includes a number of common manual, semi-automatic and automatic processes.
These include metal inert gas (MIG) welding, stick welding, tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding
also know as gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW), gas welding, metal active gas (MAG) welding,
flux cored arc welding (FCAW), gas metal arc welding (GMAW), submerged arc welding
(SAW), shielded metal arc welding (SMAW) and plasma arc welding.

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 These techniques usually use a filler material and are primarily used for joining metals
including stainless steel, aluminium, nickel and copper alloys, cobalt and titanium. Arc welding
processes are widely used across industries such as oil and gas, power, aerospace, automotive,
and more.

Friction welding:

 Friction welding techniques join materials using mechanical friction. This can be performed in
a variety of ways on different welding materials including steel, aluminium or even wood.
 The mechanical friction generates heat which softens the materials which mix to create a bond
as they cool. The manner in which the joining occurs is dependent on the exact process used,
for example, friction stir welding (FSW), friction stir spot welding (FSSW), linear friction
welding (LFW) and rotary friction welding (RFW).
 Friction welding doesn't require the use of filler metals, flux or shielding gas.
 Friction is frequently used in aerospace applications as it is ideal for joining otherwise 'non-
weldable' light-weight aluminium alloys.
 Friction processes are used across industry and are also being explored as a method to bond
wood without the use of adhesives or nails.

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Resistance:

 This is a fast process which is commonly used in the automotive industry. This process can be
split into two types, resistance spot welding and resistance seam welding.
 Spot welding uses heat delivered between two electrodes which is applied to a small area as
the workpieces are clamped together.
 Seam welding is similar to spot welding except it replaces the electrodes with rotating wheels
to deliver a continuous leak-free weld.

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Advanced welding processes:

Electron Beam welding:

 Electron beam (EB) welding is a fusion welding process whereby electrons are generated by
an electron gun and accelerated to high speeds using electrical fields. This high-speed stream
of electrons is tightly focused using magnetic fields and applied to the materials to be joined.
The beam of electrons creates kinetic heat as it impacts with the workpieces, causing them to
melt and bond together.
 Electron beam welding is performed in a vacuum environment as the presence of gas can cause
the beam to scatter. Due it being a vacuum process and because of the high voltages used, this
welding method is heavily automated and computer controlled. As a result, specialised fixtures
and CNC tables are used to move the workpieces inside the welding vacuum chamber.
 There are many common applications for EBW, as can be used to join thick sections. This
means it can be applied across a number of industries from aerospace to nuclear power and
automotive to rail.

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 Recent developments in electron beam welding machine technology have realised a local
method of electron beam welding, whereby the electron beam gun is enclosed in a vacuum box
on the side of the material to be joined, rather than placing the entire workpiece inside a vacuum
chamber.

What are the Disadvantages of Electron Beam Welding?

 The main disadvantage of this process is that the electron beam welder technology is expensive
and requires frequent maintenance to ensure the equipment is functioning correctly. As a result
the support required to maintain this high energy vacuum welding technology can be
demanding.

Laser beam welding:

 Used to join thermoplastics or pieces of metal, this process uses a laser to provide a
concentrated heat ideal for barrow, deep welds and high joining rates. Being easily automated,
the high welding speed at which this process can be performed makes it perfect for high volume
applications, such as within the automotive industry.
 Laser beam welding can be performed in air rather than in a vacuum such as with electron
beam joining.
 Laser welding is a process used to join together metals or thermoplastics using a laser beam to
form a weld. Being such a concentrated heat source, in thin materials laser welding can be
carried out at high welding speeds of metres per minute, and in thicker materials can produce
narrow, deep welds between square-edged parts.
 Laser welding operates in two fundamentally different modes: conduction limited welding and
keyhole welding. The mode in which the laser beam will interact with the material it is welding
will depend on the power density across the beam hitting the workpiece.

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 Conduction limited welding occurs when the power density is typically less than 105W/cm2.
The laser beam is absorbed only at the surface of the material and does not penetrate it.
Conduction limited welds often then exhibit a high width to depth ratio.
 Laser welding is more usually accomplished using higher power densities, by a keyhole
mechanism. When the laser beam is focused to a small enough spot to produce a power density
typically > 106-107 W/cm2, the material in the path of the beam not only melts but also
vaporises, before significant quantities of heat can be removed by conduction. The focused
laser beam then penetrates in to the workpiece forming a cavity called a 'keyhole', filled with
metal vapour (which in some cases can even be ionised, forming a plasma).
 This expanding vapour or plasma contributes to the prevention of the collapse of the molten
walls of the keyhole in to this cavity.
 Furthermore, the coupling of the laser beam in to the workpiece is improved dramatically by
the formation of this keyhole. Deep penetration welding is then achieved by traversing the
keyhole along the joint to be welded or moving the joint with respect to the laser beam. This
results in welds with a high depth to width ratio.
 Under the action of surface tension, some of the molten material at the leading edge of the
keyhole flows around the keyhole cavity to the back, then cooling and solidifying to form the
weld. This leaves the weld cap with a chevron pattern, pointing backwards towards the start
point of the weld.

Ultrasonic welding:

 Ultrasonic welding is a process used to join two plastic parts together to form a strong, finished
assembly. The process relies on high-frequency (ultrasonic) vibrations being generated and
applied to the parts via a horn. Welding occurs as the vibrations are absorbed in the interface
between the two parts, generating friction and causing the plastic to melt. The ultrasonic
vibrations are generated by a series of components, including the power supply, converter,
booster and horn, which ultimately delivers the mechanical vibration to the parts.

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 The role of the power supply is to convert the incoming line voltage (at 50 or 60Hz) into a new
frequency. This electrical energy then is sent to the converter, which as the name implies,
converts the electrical energy into mechanical vibrations. The converter consists of
piezoelectric ceramic discs, which expand and contract at the rate of the supplied electrical
energy. The magnitude of the vibrations is referred to as amplitude, a term that becomes very
important when specifying an ultrasonic system for a given application. The vibrations then
are transmitted through the booster, which typically increases the amplitude by a predetermined
multiple, also known as gain. Finally, the booster’s output amplitude is transmitted through the
horn, where it then can be delivered to the plastic parts. The combination of converter, booster
and horn is commonly referred to as the ultrasonic stack.
 To deliver the vibrations to the parts, the stack is placed in an actuator, a mechanical system
that applies the next critical element of ultrasonic welding: force. The actuator may consist of
a pneumatic cylinder or other means of actuation to drive the stack down to the part. Actuators
often contain other sensors and devices, such as linear encoders or load cells, to provide
feedback during the weld. The actuator drives the horn down to the part and applies force until
a trigger force is met; at this point, ultrasonics is applied. The vibrations then are delivered to
the parts, where they become focused on a triangular bead of material – known as an “energy
director” – which can be considered sacrificial melt material in the weld joint. Once the material
melts, the ultrasonic vibrations are terminated and the actuator continues pressure until the
plastic is solidified and a strong bond is formed. The entire weld process, from start to finish,
typically is completed in one to two seconds.
 As mentioned, one of the most important elements of ultrasonic welding is the amplitude
(vibrations) that the stack provides. The reason for this is that certain plastics require more
amplitude to weld than others. Amorphous polymers (ABS, polycarbonate, polystyrene) tend
to require low amplitude, while semi-crystalline (nylon, polypropylene) require significantly
more amplitude to weld.
 An experienced applications engineer always can work to determine the proper frequency and
tooling selection for a given assembly and material type.
 Ultrasonic welding is a widely accepted assembly method in the plastics industry for a variety
of component assembly applications in all major markets: medical, B&CE, automotive,
appliance, nonwovens, packaging and more. Advantages to ultrasonic welding include short
cycle time, high-strength bonds and the elimination of consumables (i.e., adhesives). When
considering whether ultrasonic welding is right for an application, it is best to consult an
experienced applications engineer to determine the appropriate assembly method.

 Amplitude: The magnitude of the mechanical vibrations, measured as the peak-to-peak

displacement at the face of converter, booster or horn.

 Booster: The booster amplifies the magnitude of the mechanical vibrations from the converter
and delivers the vibration to the horn.

 Converter: Made up of piezoelectric ceramic discs, the converter takes electrical energy and
converts it into mechanical vibrations.

 Fixture (or nest): Supports the plastic parts during the weld.

 Gain: The amount by which amplitude is increased or decreased in a booster or horn. Measured
as the ratio of output amplitude to input amplitude.

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 Horn: The horn transmits the ultrasonic vibrations to the plastic parts themselves. The horn
often is custom-tailored for a specific part and is one of the most crucial elements of an
ultrasonic welding system.

 Power Supply: Converts incoming line power into an ultrasonic signal.

 Trigger Force: The minimum force that must be applied to the parts prior to ultrasonic energy
being applied.

 Ultrasonic Stack: The mechanical structure consisting of the converter, booster and horn in
the ultrasonic welder.

Introduction to metal forming processes:

 Forming processes differ from subtractive processes considering that no material is
removed. Rather, forming processes exploit applicable stresses such as compression,
tension, shear, or a combination of stresses, in order to malleably deform different
materials into pre-defined geometrical shapes. Generally, forming pertains to metals,
however, with the market-driven demand for plastics, plastic forming is also possible.

 Sheet metal:
 Sheet metal is available in flat pieces or coiled strips that originate from many different
metals such as aluminium, brass, copper, steel, tin, nickel, or titanium. It is formed into thin,
flat pieces and is one of the most basic materials used in metalworking thanks to its
malleable properties that enable it to be cut and bent into a multitude of shapes. Decorative
objects are often composed of precious metals such as gold, silver, or platinum.
 Perhaps without realizing it, we are surrounded by a myriad of common objects that are
fabricated from sheet metal: from automotive bodies to aerospace fuselages and wings, up
to medical tables, sinks, roofs of buildings, and machinery. Historically, the first uses of
sheet metal were in the fabrication of swords and cavalry plate Armor while today it
continues to be fabricated for a variety of decorative uses such as horse tack, jewellery, and
sculpture.
 There is a significant variation in the thickness of sheet metal; the thinnest sheets are referred
to as foil or leaf, and pieces with a thickness greater than 6 mm (0.25 in) are considered
plate.
A multitude of possibilities exists for forming sheet metal:
 Bending produces a V-shape, U-shape, or channel shape along the straight axis of a
given section of sheet metal. Careful consideration is necessary in terms of the sheet
metal’s thickness and tolerances. Bending commonly produces parts that are used in
electrical enclosures and rectangular ductwork.

 Curling is a sheet metal forming process used to form the edges into a hollow ring.
Curling can boost the moment of inertia near the curled end and eradicate sharp edges.
Some parts undergo curling for their end-use purposes, such as bearings and hinges.

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 DE cambering is the process of removing horizontal bends, known as cambers, from

strips of sheet metal. Similar to a flattening or levelling process, it differs by deforming
either the left or right material edge rather than the face of the strip. It is possible to
December fixed-length sections as well as continuous coils.

 Deep drawing is a sheet metal forming process that entails stretching the metal over a
form, or die, ultimately making it a shape transformation process with material retention.
“Deep” drawing happens when the depth of the drawn (pulled) part exceeds its diameter.
Deep drawing is used to manufacture cups, caps, nozzles, enclosures, etc. The
mechanical action of a “punch” radially draws a sheet metal blank into a forming die. It
is performed in multiple steps called draw reductions; more reductions are required for
greater depths. Heating the workpiece enables deep drawing with fewer reductions.

 Expanding sheet metal is a forming process that results in a defined mesh-like pattern,
often diamond-shaped, allowing air or water to circulate. It is frequently used for fences,
grates, and laths to bolster plaster. It is produced by cutting or stamping slits in a
workpiece of sheet metal and stretching it so that it becomes stronger and lighter than the
original workpiece.

 Hemming and seaming, as their names imply, involve rolling a sheet metal edge over
onto itself to form a hem or seam. Hemming pertains to rolling an edge so that it is
flushed to itself and seaming fastens the edges of two separate materials. Hems are
useful for enhancing a part’s appearance, hiding burrs and rough edges, as well as
reinforcing an edge. The edges of automobile doors are usually hemmed. The food
industry commonly uses seams to seal canned goods. Seams are also widely adapted to
the automotive industry and on amusement park cars.

 Hydroforming is particularly useful and cost-effective in forming flexible metals such

as aluminium, brass, low alloy and stainless steels into structurally strong, lightweight
parts in a single step. It is particularly beneficial in terms of savings on tools since tools
and punches can be interchanged for different part requirements. For sheet metal, only a
draw ring and punch (metalworking) or male die is required. Its widespread adoption can
be found throughout the automotive industry and is popular among high-end sports cars
manufacturers thanks to its rigid, yet lightweight, structural qualities. It is also a popular
process for shaping aluminium tubes for use as bicycle frames.

 Incremental sheet forming, also known as single point forming, is a sheet metal
forming technique that forms sheet metal with the use of a round tipped tool, typically 5
- 20 mm in diameter, by deforming with a sequence of small incremental indents.
Thanks to its ability to be attached to a CNC (Computer Numerical Control) machine, no
die is required, therefore reducing cost per piece and increasing turnaround time for low
production runs. Nevertheless, the time and cost to produce a die are absorbed by the
higher per-piece speed and lower per-piece cost.

 Ironing, as its name implies, is a sheet metal forming process that thins a specific area
of a workpiece in a uniform manner. When combined with deep drawing, it is very
beneficial in terms of a uniform wall thickness with greater height-to-diameter ratio.
Thickness reduction for an ironing operation is generally between 40 - 60%. Its

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application is found in the production of aluminium cans and cups and ammunition
cartridge cases.

 Laser cutting uses a laser to precision-cut sheet metal by directing the output of a high-
power laser, most commonly through optics. CNC (Computer Numerical Control) has
helped this technology to become broadly adopted in an industrial context as it is used to
direct either the material or the laser beam in the defined direction. A motion control
system is implemented to follow a CNC pattern onto the sheet metal by either melting,
burning, vaporizing, or blowing away by a stream of gas. This ensures a high-quality
finish for edges. Most laser cutting systems use a CO2 based laser source with a
wavelength of around 10 µm; some more recent systems use a YAG based laser with a
wavelength of around 1 µm. See our Laser cutting section for more information.

 Photochemical machining (PCM), also known as photochemical milling or photo

etching, emerged in the 1960’s as a by-product of the printed circuit board industry. It
can accurately and economically produce highly complex parts with very fine details.
Essentially, a tightly controlled corrosion process involves the application of a photo-
sensitive polymer to a raw metal sheet that is then etched with the use of CAD designed
photo-tools as stencils by exposing it to UV light.

 Perforating is a cutting process that punches numerous holes across a piece of sheet
metal. Perforated sheet metal is used to make a wide variety of surface cutting tools,
such as the surform, also known as a grater. The most common method of perforating
uses a rotary pinned perforation roller. Another common method is “die and punch”
perforating, which presses a sheet of needles on a passing piece of sheet metal. Die and
punch is very efficient and can cover a large surface quickly. The most advanced method
is laser perforation. While it is very precise, it is also the most expensive.

 Press brake forming is used for forming long, thin sheet metal parts. During the
process, a piece of sheet metal is formed along a straight axis with the use of a V-, U-, or
channel-shaped punch-and-die set. Despite the simplicity of the process, it can be
difficult to maintain accuracy with factors like the press, tooling, and workpiece material
influencing outcome. Air bending is the most common press braking process and relies
upon three-point bending. In this case, the die has a sharper angle than the required bend
(typically 85 degrees for a 90-degree bend) and the upper tool is precision-controlled
while it pushes the metal down to form the required bend.

 Punching is a sheet metal forming process that uses a punch press, called a punch, to
create a hole in a workpiece through the means of shearing (shear strain deformation). It
is a quick and cost-effective process of creating holes in sheet metal for average-to-high
production volumes and is capable of creating multiple shaped holes. Punching occurs
when a sheet of metal stock is placed between a punch and a die that is mounted in a
press. The punch and die are the same shapes, with the punch being precisely sized to fit
into the die. The press pushes against and into the die with a strong enough force to cut a
hole in the stock.

 Roll forming involves the continuous bending of a long strip of sheet metal (typically
coiled steel) into a desired cross-section. The strip passed through sets of rolls mounted
on consecutive stands, each set performing only an incremental part of the bend, until

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the desired cross-section, or profile, is obtained. Roll forming is ideal for producing open
profiles or welded tubes with long lengths or in large quantities.

 Rolling is a forming process that bends sheet metal with rollers. The stock is inserted
into one or more pairs of rolls to reduce thickness and make it uniform. There are three
different classifications according to temperature: hot, cold, and warm rolling. In hot
rolling, the temperature is above recrystallization temperature; in cold rolling, the
temperature is below recrystallization temperature; and in warm rolling, the temperature
is between hot and cold.

 Spinning is a forming process that involves rotating a disc or tube of metal at a high
speed and forming it into an axially symmetric/tubular part (uniform appearance if
rotated around an axis). A piece of sheet stock is attached to a rotating form and rollers
press the stock against the form, expanding it until it transforms into the desired shape.
Some commonly manufactured parts that use spinning include rocket motor casings,
missile nose cones, satellite dishes, and metal kitchen funnels.

 Stamping, also known as pressing, encompasses a mixture of operations such as

bending, blanking, coining, embossing, and flanging. A flat piece of sheet metal (usually
cold) is placed in either blank or coil form into a stamping press where a tool and die
surface forms the metal into simple or complex shapes at high production rates. It is
possible to complete the desired form with either a single operation or through a series of
stages. While tooling and equipment costs tend to be high, labour costs are low.

 Water jet cutting uses a tool called a water jet cutter to carefully control the erosion of
metal and other materials using a jet of water at a high velocity and pressure; sometimes
an abrasive substance can be mixed with the water. It is a frequently used method in the
fabrication of machine parts. It is particularly beneficial when the material being cut is
sensitive to the high temperatures generated by other methods. Mining and aerospace,
among others, are industries that use water jet cutting for cutting, shaping, and reaming.
See our Water jet cutting section for more information.

 Wheeling is the process of using the English wheel, known in Britain as a wheeling
machine, which is a forming machine that enables a craftsperson to form compound
(double curvature) curves from flat sheet metal. While it is noted to be an expensive
process due to the highly skilled, labour-intensive production method, one of its
fundamental advantages is that it can flexibly produce different panels with the same
machine. It functions by surface stretching and is related to the panel-beating process.
It’s mainly applied to low-volume curved panel industries such as coachbuilding, auto
restoration, specially-regulated spaceframe chassis racing cars (like NASCAR),
automotive prototypes and aircraft skin components. Its production is highest in the low-
volume sports car industry, especially where the malleable aluminum alloy is used.
There are some key limitations such as maximum thickness; fitting the workpiece in the
throat depth; physically manageable size of workpiece; over-stretching/thinning of large,
high crown panels; and disproportionately increased labor intensity with greater sized
panels or sections.

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Stamping – Pressing:
 Stamping, also known as pressing, entails using a stamping press to form a net shape from
either blank or coil form flat sheet metal with the use of a tool and die surface. Similar to
the processes used to form sheet metal, stamping also encompasses punching (with a
machine or stamping press), blanking, embossing, bending, flanging, and coining. It is
possible to carry out a stamping process in either a single operation or by a series of stages.
 Historically, stamped parts were used for bicycles that were mass-produced in the 1890’s.
Stamping replaced die forging and machining, resulting in great cost reduction. Although
weaker than die forged parts, they were good enough for that purpose at the time.

 Embossing is a stamping process used to produce raised or hollowed designs or relief in

sheet metal. It is often performed with a combination of heat and pressure depending on
user requirements. Male and female roller dies are fit with a pattern or design and operate
by drawing in a sheet of metal that embosses the design. The pressure and combination of
heat work like “ironing” while raising the image higher than the substrate in order to make
it smooth. It is possible to emboss metals that are ductile and for use in medium-to-high
production runs. Likewise, it is possible to maintain the same metal thickness before and
after, to produce unlimited patterns (depending on roll dies), and to uniformly produce a
product.

 Coining uses a sufficiently high stress to precision stamp a workpiece by inducing

malleable flow on the surface of a material. It is particularly beneficial for reducing the
surface grain size, and surface hardening, while retaining toughness and ductility in the
material deeper in the part. The term coining originates with the process initially used in
the manufacture of coins.

 In addition, piercing and cutting can also be performed in stamping presses. Progressive
stamping is a combination of the above methods done with a set of dies in a row through
which a strip of the material passes one step at a time.

Forging:
 Forging is a manufacturing process that forms metal with the use of compressive forces
and a hammer, most often a power hammer, or die. The hammer is used to deliver what is
known as a “blow” and the forging process is classified according to temperature such as
cold, warm, or hot forging. When working at increased temperatures, a metal is heated,
usually in a forge.
 Present-day industrial forging is performed with presses or with hammers powered by
compressed air, electricity, hydraulics, or steam. They’re not your ordinary hammer —
featuring reciprocating weights in the thousands of pounds. In art smithies, smaller power
hammers feature reciprocating weight of 500 lbs (230 kg) or less, while hydraulic presses
are common. Steam hammers have mostly become obsolete, although a minimal amount
is still used, with the advancement of more convenient and powerful tools.
 While today forging is a major worldwide industry, it is one of the oldest known
metalworking processes, performed by smiths throughout the millennia. Traditionally,
products such as hand tools, jewellery, kitchenware, hardware, and edged weapons were
manufactured through forging.

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 Since the Industrial Revolution, forging is used wherever a part requires great strength,
usually going on to be machined into a finished part. Although forged parts are generally
stronger than their equivalent cast or machined parts, significant expenditure capital is
required for furnaces, machinery, tooling, facilities, and personnel.
 Temperature plays a crucial role in forging even if the above processes can be performed
at various temperatures. They are classified either as above or below the recrystallization
temperature and in one of three categories: hot, warm, or cold. Hot forging is faster and
more precise while cold forging usually results in work hardening of the piece.

There are three main classes of forging processes:

 Drawn out means the length increases and the cross-section decreases.
 Upset means that the length decreases and the cross-section increases.
 Squeezed in closed compression dies meaning that multidirectional flow is produced.
 Automatic hot forging, cogging, impression-die forging, open-die forging, press forging,
roll forging, swaging, and upsetting are the most common forging processes.
 Automatic hot forging involves feeding mill-length steel bars (typically 7 m (23 ft)
long) into one end of the machine at room temperature and hot forged products emerge
from the other end.
 Cogging is the successive deformation of a bar along its length using an open-die drop
forge. It is commonly used to work a piece of raw material to a desired thickness.
 Open-die and impression-die (also called closed-die) forging are considered drop
forging processes, meaning a hammer is raised and then "dropped" onto the workpiece
to deform it according to the shape of the die. As their names imply, the difference
between the two depends on the shape of the die, with open-die not fully enclosing the
workpiece and closed-die enclosing it.
 Unlike the nearly immediate impact of drop-hammer forging, press forging involves a
slow application of a continuous pressure or force. Press forging can be performed either
hot or cold and the amount of time that the dies are in contact with the workpiece is
measured in seconds in contrast to milliseconds with drop-hammer forging.
 Roll forging is a forging process where round or flat bar stock is reduced in thickness
and increased in length.
 Swaging a forging process in which the dimensions of a workpiece are altered using dies
into which the workpiece is forced. Usually considered a cold working process, swaging
may also be hot worked.
 Upsetting, also called upset forging, increases the diameter of the workpiece by
compressing its length. It is the most widely practiced forging process based on the
number of pieces produced. Engine valves, couplings, bolts, screws, and other fasteners
are some examples of common parts produced using the upset forging process.

Extrusion:
 Objects with fixed cross-sectional profiles are created with the process of extrusion by
pushing a material, most commonly metals, polymers, ceramics, concrete, modeling clay,
and foodstuffs, through a die of the desired cross-section. This is beneficial for creating
very complex cross-sections and with fragile materials because the material is only
exposed to compressive and shear stresses. One key advantage is the excellent surface
finish. Another is the increased strength of metal objects produced with extrusion.

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 Two types of extrusion exist: continuous or semi-continuous. Continuous extrusion

involves the production of an indefinitely long material; semi-continuous involves the
production of many pieces. The material can be either hot or cold. Extrudates is the term
for objects produced with extrusion.
 The first extrusion process for making pipe out of soft metals was patented in 1797 by the
English inventor Joseph Bramah. The metal was preheated and forced through a die via a
hand-driven plunger. Later, in 1820, Thomas Burr implemented this process with lead
pipe and a hydraulic press in what was known as “squirting.” Alexander Dick went on to
expand the extrusion process to copper and brass alloys in 1894.
 The extrusion process also has some drawbacks. They include surface and internal
cracking, surface lines, and a “pipe,” which is a flow pattern that draws surface oxides and
impurities to the centre of a product.

The five different extrusion processes are:

 Hot extrusion is performed above a material's recrystallization temperature to keep the
material from work hardening and to make it easier to push the material through the die.
 Warm extrusion is performed above room temperature, but below the recrystallization
temperature of the material. The temperature can range between 800°F to 1800°F
(424°C to 975°C). It is usually used to achieve the proper balance of required forces,
ductility, and final extrusion properties.
 Cold extrusion is performed at room temperature or near-room-temperature. Lack of
oxidation, higher strength due to cold working, closer tolerances, better surface finish,
and fast extrusion speeds if the material is subject to hot shortness are key advantages to
cold extrusion.
 The Welding Institute in the UK invented friction extrusion and patented it in 1991.
Originally, it was intended primarily as a method for production of homogenous
microstructures and particle distributions in metal matrix composite materials. Friction
extrusion differs from conventional extrusion in that the charge (billet or other
precursor) rotates relative to the extrusion die. An extrusion force is applied so as to
push the charge against the die. In practice, either the die or the charge may rotate or
they may be counter-rotating.
 Micro extrusion is a micro forming extrusion process performed at the submillimetre
range. Like extrusion, metal is pushed through a die opening, but the resulting product's
cross-section can fit through a 1-mm square.

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Advanced metal forming processes:

 High energy rate forming processes:

 High energy rate forming is the forming of sheet metal by a high energy surge, delivered over
a very short time. Since the forming of the metal occurs so quickly, desirable materials for
(HERF) will be ductile at high deformation speeds.

 Explosive Forming:
 Explosives can deliver a huge amount of power. Although most explosive detonations are
destructive, the power from an explosive charge can be used to manufacture parts. An
explosive forming process commonly used for the production of large parts is called a
standoff system.
 Typically, the mold and work piece are submerged in water. The sheet metal is secured over
the mold by a ring clamp. Air is drawn out, creating a vacuum in the die cavity. An explosive
is placed between the die cavity and the work, a certain distance from the work. This distance
is called the standoff distance. Standoff distance depends on the size of the work, for larger
parts it is usually about half the diameter of the blank.
 The explosive itself is also deeply submersed in water. Upon detonation, the shock wave
travels through the water and delivers great energy to the work, forming it to the die cavity
near instantaneously. This high energy rate forming process can be used to form big thick
plates.

 Explosive forming has a long cycle time and is suitable for low quantity production of large,
unique parts. Mechanical properties imparted to the material as a result of the explosive
forming process are similar to mechanical properties imparted to work manufactured by other
forming processes.

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 Molds can be made out of inexpensive or easy to shape materials, or molds can be made more
permanent. Materials for molds include aluminium, wood, concrete, plastic, iron and steel. If a
mold is manufactured from a material such as plastic, the low modulus of elasticity will greatly
reduce spring back in the sheet metal, resulting in higher accuracy.
 The amount of explosive depends upon the type of system used and the amount of pressure
needed to form the part. The shock wave generated by the explosive travels along an expanding
spherical front. Much of the energy from the shock wave is not absorbed by the work piece. A
modified setup of the standoff system uses reflectors to focus the energy surge.
 This provides a more effective use of power and a smaller explosive can be used to form the
same part. Another system called a confined system, uses a canned explosive or cartridge. This
is usually used for relatively smaller parts than the standoff system. All of the energy is directed
into a closed container, the walls of which contain the die cavity.
 The energy from the canned explosive forces the sheet metal into the walls of the mold, forming
the part. Safety is always a consideration when manufacturing by explosive forming,
particularly with the confined system, where die failure is a significant concern.

Electrohydraulic Forming:

 Electrohydraulic forming, also called electric discharge forming, is a unique high energy
forming process for sheet metal. This manufacturing process uses the energy from the
combustion of a thin metal wire. Two electrodes, with a wire connecting them, are submersed
in liquid. The work is set up similar to the standoff system described above, however this
process is applicable to relatively smaller parts.
 A sheet metal blank is secured on top of the mold with a ring clamp and a vacuum is created
in the die cavity under the blank. Electrical energy is stored in a capacitor bank. The
electricity is discharged through the electrodes and the wire, instantly vaporizing the wire,
creating a shock wave that travels through the water. This shock wave forms the sheet metal
to the mold cavity. Electrohydraulic forming produces a shock wave of relatively low
magnitude and is best suited for thinner work. The wire needs to be replaced after every
operation. Electrohydraulic forming may be considered to have a low production rate.

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Electromagnetic Forming:
 Electromagnetic forming is a popular high energy rate forming process that uses a magnetic
surge to form a sheet metal part. In the electromagnetic process, also called magnetic pulse
forming, an electric coil is placed near a metal workpiece. A capacitor bank is charged up and
a large electrical surge is sent through the coil. The current creates a magnetic field. When a
conductive material disrupts a magnetic field it produces a current in that material, this is called
an eddy current. Due to the close proximity of the conductive sheet metal to the coil, the coil's
magnetic field is disrupted and eddy currents are generated in the work piece.
 These currents in the sheet metal produce their own magnetic field that opposes the original
magnetic field of the coil. The opposing forces push these fields apart and form the work. The
coil may be placed inside or over the work, depending upon the desired effect. Many
electromagnetic forming operations are used to bulge tubes, or form tubes over other parts such
as rods and cables. Electromagnetic forming is used for relatively thinner sheet metal parts.

Stretch forming:

 Stretch Forming is a forming process that involves metal wherein a piece of metal is stretched
and bent. This process is usually done on a stretch press wherein the metal is gripped at the
edges so that it cannot break loose. The metal is held together by gripping jaws that are attached
to a carriage. The carriage is held together by either a pneumatic force or hydraulic force which
also helps stretches the metal sheet. When the metal sheet is stretched while tightly secured by
the gripping jaws, it is usually stretched vertically wherein the form rests on a press table and
is raised upwards with the help of a hydraulic ram.

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 As the sheet is raised upwards, it stretches. Once the metal sheet has stretched to its limit, it
begins to deform and takes another shape. This helps customize the metal sheet into anything
that aircraft companies want it to be. The shapes that the stretch forming process can make vary
from one shape to another. It can be formed to a simple curved shape or to a more complex
form with cross sections. All of these can be done through expert use of the method of stretch
forming. Stretch forming is a very complicated process that involves high accuracy.

The four methods of stretch forming are:

1. Stretch draw forming

2. Stretch wrapping, also called rotary stretch forming
3. Compression forming
4. Radial draw forming.

Application Of Stretch Forming:

 Almost any shape that can be produced by other sheet-forming methods can be produced by
stretch forming. Drawn shapes that involve metal flow, particularly straight cylindrical shells,
and details that result from such compression operations as coining and embossing cannot be
made. However, some embossing is done by the mating-die method of stretch draw forming
 Stretch forming is used to form aerospace parts from steel, nickel, aluminum, and titanium
alloys and other heat-resistant and refractory metals. Some of these parts are difficult or
impossible to form by other methods, for example, the titanium alloy gas-turbine ring
 Stretch forming is also used to shape automotive body panels, both inner and outer, and
frame members that could be formed by other
processes but at higher cost.

Advantages Of Stretch Forming:

Stretch forming has the following advantages over conventional press forming methods:

 Approximately 70% less force is needed than that required for conventional press forming.
 Stretch forming can reduce material costs by as much as 15%. Although allowance must be
made on the stock for gripping, it is gripped on two ends only. The allowance for trimming is
usually less than that in conventional press forming.

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 Because stretch forming is done on the entire area of the workpiece, there is little likelihood
of buckles and wrinkles. Tensile strength is increased uniformly by approximately 10%.
 Hardness is increased by approximately 2%.
 Springback is greatly reduced. There is some springback, but it is easily controlled by over
forming.
 Residual stresses are low in stretch-formed parts.
 Form blocks are made of inexpensive materials, such as wood, plastic, cast iron, or low
carbon steel, and are approximately one-third the cost of conventional forming dies. If the
workpiece is formed hot, the dies must be able to withstand the forming temperature.
However, most stretch forming is done at room temperature.

Limitations:

 It is seldom suited to progressive or transfer operations.

 It is limited in its ability to form sharp contours and re-entrant angles. It is at its best in
forming shallow or nearly flat contours.
 If the piece is not pinched between mating dies, there is no opportunity to coin out or iron out
slight irregularities in the surface of the
metal.
 In some applications, especially in stretch wrapping, the process is slower than competitive
processes, and it is not suited to high volume production. However, stretch draw forming
with mating dies can be done as rapidly and automatically as conventional
press operations. In fact, punch presses are used with dies incorporating draw beads or other
means of gripping the blank in order to
perform some stretch-forming operations.
 Metals with yield strength and tensile strength very nearly the same, such as titanium,
necessitate the use of automatic equipment for
determining the amount of strain for uniform results,

Contour roll forming:

 ROLL FORMING (CONTOUR ROLL FORMING) (also known as roll forming or cold roll
forming) is a continuous process for forming metal from sheet, strip, or coiled stock into
desired shapes by feeding the stock through a series of roll stations equipped with contoured
rolls called roller dies. Most contour roll forming is done by working the stock progressively
in two or more stations until the finished shape is produced.

 AUXILIARY OPERATIONS such as: Notching Slotting Punching Embossing Curving

Coiling can easily be combined with contour roll forming.

 Contour roll forming is used in many diverse industries to produce a variety of shapes and
products. Industries that use roll-formed products include: automotive building office
furniture home appliance and home product medical railcar Aircraft ventilation air
conditioning industries

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 Contour roll forming requires less force and offers the ADVANTAGE of theoretically
unlimited length as the material need only pass through the rollers. However, they still
employ the basic principle of bending the metal beyond its elastic limits. As a result, contour
roll forming machines strengthen the metal just like stretch forming machines.

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Fundamental of Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM):

 In straightforward terms, CIM is the technique of using computers to control an entire
production process. It’s commonly used by factories to automate functions such as analysis,
cost accounting, design, distribution, inventory control, planning and purchasing.

 These functions are often linked to a central, computer-controlled station to enable efficient
materials handling and management, while delivering direct control and monitoring of all
operations simultaneously. Essentially, every individual piece of a manufacturing process
including engineering, production and marketing is organized.

 10 key functions of CIM:

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CIM Wheel:

The outer ring:

 The common business administrative tasks related to CIM are located on the outer ring of the
wheel.
 They mainly form the connection of the company to the outside world in general. Data
processing applications can be found in the most diverse areas. Most software systems
applied in these areas were originally self-styled developments, which are increasingly being
replaced with commercial standard software packages. Currently this software is installed
primarily on mainframes. Overlaps of its functionality exist mainly with the software of the
production planning and control.
The inner ring:
 On the inner ring of the wheel, the functions closely related to the operational performance of
the company are situated. Data processing applications of the development and design area
are computer aided design (CAD), simulations, analysis programs such as the finite element
method (FEM) as well as drawing storage and management, for instance with the help of
group technology (GT).
 The types of data found in this area are diverse: drawings, technical specifications, and bills
of material. In manufacturing companies, the data itself are often in considerable disorder.
Frequently there are several types of part numbers, more than one group technology system,
many kinds of bills of material, a number of different CAD systems each having its own sort
of computer internal representation of geometric data, etc. The applied software rarely runs
on the same hardware, resulting also in a large number of different hardware systems.

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 The second group of applications on the inner ring of the wheel is attributed to process
planning and production planning and control. It comprises tasks such as routing generation,
resource planning, material requirements planning, capacity planning, order distribution and
supervision, but also the planning of quality assurance (quality process and resource
planning). In the USA, software in the production planning and control area mostly runs on
large client/servers, although the software itself is more often than not supplied by sundry
software houses and not by the computer vendor. As in the common business administrative
area, the software packages—which at least are integrated within themselves—have a
modular structure and their single components can also be bought and applied. Therefore, a
company rarely has purchased and installed all modules of such a package, which in turn
frequently results in functional overlaps and data redundancy (one example: material
requirements planning and purchasing systems).
 The third group on the inner ring includes the automation of the manufacturing installations.
Examples are robots, numerically controlled machines, flexible manufacturing systems and
computer-aided measuring and testing methods. This area is characterized by the extreme
heterogeneity of the systems involved, the diversity of which being much more pronounced
than in the previously mentioned groups of functions. Another view is the CIM Hierarchy, as
seen in Figure 2.
The hub:
 The statements made above have already shown that at present within these groups of
applications there are serious impediments with regard to integration. There are few suppliers
covering all three sectors. Therefore, little or nothing has been done by the suppliers with
regard to interfaces, not to mention the integration of the various groups of applications.
Information and communication management, represented by the hub of the wheel which
links everything, is intended to serve as the information management and communication
control function between the single areas. It operates on a common, integrated database.

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Benefits of CIM:

 Responsiveness to shorter product life cycles

 Better process control emphasizes product quality and uniformity.
 Supports and co-ordinates exchange of information
 Designs components for machines.
 Decreases the cost of production and maintenance

 The sole objective of computer-integrated manufacturing is to streamline production

processes, delivering the following benefits:
o Reduced costs – i.e., the cost of direct and indirect labour
o Improved scheduling flexibility
o Reduced downtime
o Maintaining correct inventory levels

 Ultimately, the goal is to achieve maximum efficiency, closing those gaps that obstruct
productivity and result in the bottom-line taking a hit. Additionally, CIM plays a key role in
gathering relevant, real-time data from the production floor. For instance, to optimize
efficiency, CIM can monitor the operational performance of vital equipment.
 Arguably the biggest benefit of CIM is the increase in output capacity it brings.
Manufacturing enterprises can go from concept to completion in rapid time, meaning they
can produce more in shorter timeframes, which has a positive impact on profitability,
customer retention and attracting new customers.

Disadvantages:

 Unfamiliar technologies used.

 Requires major change in corporate culture.
 Reduction in short term profit.
 Perceived risk is high.
 High maintenance cost and expensive implementation.

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Challenges for CIM:

Key Challenges:

 Three major challenges of computer integrated manufacturing are defined in Wikipedia:

o Integration of components from different suppliers: When different machines, such as

CNC, conveyors and robots, are using different communication protocols (in the case
of AGVs, even differing lengths of time for charging the batteries) may cause
problems.
o Data integrity: The higher the degree of automation, the more critical is the integrity
of the data used to control the machines (see Figure 3). While the CIM system saves
on labour of operating the machines, it requires extra human labor in ensuring that
there are proper safeguards for the data signals that are used to control the machines.
o Process control: Computers may be used to assist the human operators of the
manufacturing facility, but there must always be a competent engineer on hand to
handle circumstances which could not be foreseen by the designers of the control
software.
 Computers are prone to damage, especially in an industrial setting. The knock-on effects of
computer failure, for an enterprise that relies solely on computers remaining operational, can
be catastrophic and result in:

o Extended periods of downtime

o Idle staff
o Reduced production
o Increased lead times
o Customer dissatisfaction
o Reputational damage
o Loss of market share

 When integrated, CIM is responsible for the complete production process. With so much
riding on its performance, it’s baffling that many manufacturing firms fail to invest in
adequate protection for what is undoubtedly a capital asset.

 For instance, specially designed environmental computer enclosures are readily available and
exist to protect CIM processes. They are a safe-haven for computers, shielding against
external elements such as dust, dirt and liquids and even forklift trucks, just in case ‘Dave’
accidentally reverses into a computer that’s critical to a production operation.

 Another key challenge facing CIM is a skills shortage. Many manufacturing firms are lacking
skilled-technicians able to operate those systems crucial to CIM. In some quarters, CIM has
been slammed for causing jobs losses. In fact, it creates more jobs, but there’s a lack of skills
among the current manufacturing workforce, which makes things slightly complicated.

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 That said, CIM represents an opportunity to upskill the current manufacturing workforce.
Ultimately, CIM can benefit manufacturing facilities two-fold:

1. By improving the overall production process.

2. By improving the skillset of the current workforce.

Subsystems in computer-integrated manufacturing:

 A computer-integrated manufacturing system is not the same as a “lights-out-factory,” which
would run completely independent of human intervention, although it is a big step in that
direction. Part of the system involves flexible manufacturing, where the factory can be
quickly modified to produce different products, or where the volume of products can be
changed quickly with the aid of computers (as seen in Figure).

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CIM Architecture for Manufacturing:

 The CIM data architecture that will be covered in the next column on computer aided
manufacturing (CAM) is seen in below Figure. There are standards of computer interfacing
and control available in industry. Some are designed specifically for automation and
particularly for electronics manufacturing, fabrication and assembly.

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Applications:
 Material Handling
o Assembly
o Loading
o Dispensing
o Picking / Packing / Palletizing
o Transfer
o Tending
 Painting
 Finishing
 Inspecting

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Group Technology:
Definition of Group Technology:

 Group technology is the realization that many problems are similar and that, by grouping
similar problems, single solution can be found to a set of problems, thus saving time and
effort.
 Group technology is an approach to organising manufacture which can be applied in any
industry (machining, welding, foundry, press work, forging, plastic moulding, etc.) where
small-batch variety production is used.

 The basic approach enables all aspects of manufacturing, from design, through estimating and
planning, to production, to be rationalised. It forms the basis for the development of
computer-aided procedures and flexible automation.

 Group technology is a manufacturing philosophy or principle whose basic concept is to

identify and bring together related or similar parts and processes, to take advantage of the
similarities which exist, during all stages of design and manufacture.

 If parts can be classified into families, and machines arranged into groups, then the handling
of parts during manufacture can be easily done by robot.

 It must be understood that there exists relationship between finished products and the parts
from which they are made. While assemblies may bear little relation to each other, the
subassemblies from which they are constructed will exhibit some like features.

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 By exploiting the similarities which exist among such a population of parts, group technology
sets out to reduce the time and cost of manufacture.

 The main theme is thus to identify somehow from the large variety of parts those families
which require similar manufacturing operations. Cells are created to manufacture defined
types and size ranges of parts.

 Groups of machines, chosen for each family are situated together in a group layout, in such a
way that parts flow from one machine to the next in sequence of operation. It is not-necessary
for every part to visit each machine, but the machines in a cell should ideally be capable of
carrying out all the operations required in the family.

 It may be remembered that in a functional layout, all like machines are grouped at one place
and thus a product has to move a lot of distance in a zig-zag manner. But in a cell layout,
various machines are arranged so that product flows from one machine to the next in
sequence.

Advantages of Group Technology:

 Better lead times result in fast response and more reliable delivery.
 Material handling is reduced considerably.
 Robots can be easily used for material handling.
 Better space utilisation.
 Smaller variety of tools, jigs and fixtures.
 Improved quality and less scrap.
 Output is improved due to improved resource utilisation.
 Work in progress and finished stock levels are reduced.
 Simplified estimating, accounting and work management.
 Improved plant replacement decisions.
 Improved job satisfaction, morale and communication.
 Reduced product design variety.

Disadvantages of Group Technology:

 Additional cost of implementation of this system.

 Rate of change in product range and mix.
 Difficulties with out-of-cell operations.
 Coexistence with non-cellular systems.

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Uses of Group Technology:

 Group technology technique can be conveniently followed using a classification system. In

any assembly, a variety of parts exist. These varieties of parts can be-segregate in three broad
areas, viz.

1. Standard and proprietary parts (like nuts, bolts, screws, keys, washers, etc.)
2. Similar parts (like shafts, gears, bearings, levers, etc.)
3. Product specific parts (like gear box, bed, saddle, etc.)

 It may be noted that the group technology is not concerned with categories (i) and (iii) but
relates to category (ii). The aim thus is to group the range of parts under category (ii) in some
way, for the purpose of manufacture.

 Several types of classification systems have been devised and one has to carefully consider
the system based on his needs. An organisation with a wide range of products needs a
complex detailed system but same is not good for the one dealing with limited range.
Provision should always be made for future likely growth and classification system chosen
must keep this requirement in view.

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CAPP (Computer Aided Process Planning):

 There are basically two approaches to process planning which are as follows:
1. Manual experience-based process planning, and
2. Computer-aided process planning method.

Manual Experience-based Process Planning:

 Following difficulties are associated with manual experienced based process planning
method:
o It is time consuming and over a period of time, plan developed are not consistent.
o Feasibility of process planning is dependent on many upstream factors (design and
availability of machine tools). Downstream manufacturing activities such as
scheduling and machine tool allocation are also influenced by such process plan.

 Therefore, in order to generate a proper process plan, the process planner must have sufficient
knowledge and experience. Hence, it is very difficult to develop the skill of the successful
process planner and also a time-consuming issue.

Computer-Aided Process Planning (CAPP):

 Computer-aided process planning helps determine the processing steps required to make a
part after CAP has been used to define what is to be made. CAPP programs develop a process
plan or route sheet by following either a variant or a generative approach.
 The variant approach uses a file of standard process plans to retrieve the best plan in the file
after reviewing the design. The plan can then be revised manually if it is not totally
appropriate. The generative approach to CAPP starts with the product design specifications
and can generate a detailed process plan complete with machine settings. CAPP systems use
design algorithms, a file of machine characteristics, and decision logic to build the plans.
 Expert systems are based on decision rules and have been used in some generative CAPP
systems. CAPP has recently emerged as the most critical link to integrated CAD/CAM
system into inter-organizational flow. Main focus is to optimize the system performance in a
global context.
 The essentiality of computer can easily be understood by taking an example, e.g., if we
change the design, we must be able to fall back on a module of CAPP to generate cost
estimates for these design changes.
 Similarly for the case of the breakdown of machines on shop floor. In this case, alternative
process plan must be in hand so that the most economical solution for the situation can be
adopted. Figure is one such representation, where setting of multitude of interaction among
various functions of an organization and dynamic changes that takes place in these sub
functional areas have been shown. Hence, the use of computer in process planning is
essential.

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 Figure, Framework for Computer Aided Process Planning CAPP is the application of
computer to assist the human process planer in the process planning function. In its lowest
form it will reduce the time and effort required to prepare process plans and provide more
consistent process plan. In its most advanced state, it will provide the automated interface
between CAD and CAM and in the process achieve the complete integration with in
CAD/CAM.

Advantages Over Manual Experience-based Process:

 Planning the uses of computers in process plan have following advantages over
manual experience-based process planning:
o It can systematically produce accurate and consistent process plans.
o It leads to the reduction of cost and lead times of process plan.
o Skill requirement of process planer are reduced to develop feasible process
plan.
o Interfacing of software for cost, manufacturing lead time estimation, and work
standards can easily be done.
o Leads to the increased productivity of process planar.

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 With the emergence of CIM as predominate thrust area in discrete part industries
process planning has received significant attention, because it is the link between
CAD and CAM. Hence, computer aided process planning (CAPP) has become a
necessary and vital objective of CIM system.

Steps Involved in CAPP:

 Now-a-days, rapid progress is being made in the automation of actual production
process and also the product design element. However, the interface between design
and production presents the greatest difficulty in accomplishing integration. CAPP
has the potential to achieve this integration. In general, a complete CAPP system has
following steps:
o Design input
o Material selection
o Process selection
o Process sequencing
o Machine and tool selection
o Intermediate surface determination
o Fixture selection
o Machining parameter selection
o Cost/time estimation
o Plan preparation
o Mc tape image generation.

CAPP Classifications:
These systems can broadly be clarified into two categories:
1. Variant computer aided process planning method.
2. Generative computer aided process planning method. The details of these are explained in
next subsections.

Variant Process Planning, Advantages and Disadvantages:

 Variant process planning approach is sometimes referred as a data retrieval method.
In this approach, process plan for a new part is generated by recalling, identifying and
retrieving an existing plan for a similar part and making necessary modifications for
new part. As name suggests a set of standard plans is established and maintained for
each part family in a preparatory stage. Such parts are called master part. The
similarity in design attributes and manufacturing methods are exploited for the
purpose of formation of part families.

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 Using coding and classification schemes of group technology (GT), a number of

methods such as coefficient-based algorithm and mathematical programming models
have been developed for part family formation and plan retrieval. After identifying a
new part with a family, the task of developing process plan is simple.
 It involves retrieving and modifying the process plan of master part of the family. The
general steps for data retrieval modification are as follows:

 Establishing the Coding Scheme:

A variant system usually begins with building a classification and coding scheme.
Because, classification and coding provide a relatively easy way to identify similarity
among existing and new parts. Today, several classification and coding systems are
commercially available. In some extreme cases, a new coding scheme may be
developed. If variant CAPP is preferred than it is useful for a company to look into
several commercially available coding and classification systems (e.g. DCLASS, JD-
CAPP etc.). Now, it is compared with companies before developing their own coding
and classification system. Because using an existing system can save tremendous
development time and manpower.
o Form the Part Families by Grouping Parts
The whole idea of GT lies into group numerous parts into a manageable
number of part families. One of the key issues in forming part families is that
all parts in the same family should have common and easily identifiable
machined features. As a standard process plan are attached with each part
family, thereby reducing the total number of standard process plans.
o Develop Standard Process Plans:
After formation of part families, standard process plan is developed for each
part families based on common part features. The standard plan should be as
simple as possible but detailed enough to distinguish it from other.
o Retrieve and modify the Standard Plans for New Parts:
 Step1 to step 3 are often referred as preparatory work. Each time when
a new part enters the systems, it is designed and coded based on its
feature, using the coding and classification scheme, and then assigned
to a part family. The part should be similar to its fellow parts in the
same family. Also, family’s standard plan should represent the basic set
of processes that the part has to go through.
 In order to generate detailed process routes and operation sheets to this
part, the standard plan is retrieved from the data base and modified.
Modification is done by human process planar. After this stage parts are
ready for release to the shop.
 The success of aforementioned process planning system is dependent
on selection of coding scheme, the standard process plan and the
modification process, because the system is generally application

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oriented. It may be possible that one coding scheme is preferable for

one company and same is not for other company.
 Due to use and advancement of computers, the information
management capability of variant process planning is much superior.
Otherwise, it is quite similar to manual experience-based planning

Advantages of Variant Process Planning Approach:

 Following advantages are associated with variant process planning approach:
1. Processing and evaluation of complicated activities and managerial issues are done in an
efficient manner. Hence lead to the reduction of time and labour requirement.
2. Structuring manufacturing knowledge of the process plans to company’s needs through
standardized procedures.
3. Reduced development and hardware cost and shorter development time. This is an essential
issue for small and medium scale companies, where product variety is not so high and
process planner are interested in establishing their own process planning research activities.

Disadvantages of Variant Process Planning Approach:

 Following disadvantages are associated with variant process planning approach:
1. It is difficult to maintain consistency during editing.
2. Proper accommodation of various combinations of attributes such as material, geometry, size,
precision, quality, alternate processing sequence and machine loading among many other
factors are difficult.
3. The quality of the final process plan largely depends on the knowledge and experience of
process planner. The dependency on process planner is one of the major shortcomings of
variant process planning.

Generative Process Planning, Advantages and Disadvantages

 In generative process planning, process plans are generated by means of decision logic,
formulas, technology algorithms, and geometry-based data to perform uniquely processing
decisions. Main aim is to convert a part form raw material to finished state. Hence, generative
process plan may be defined as a system that synthesizes process information in order to create
a process plan for a new component automatically.

 Generative process plan mainly consists of two major components:

o Geometry based coding scheme.
o Proportional knowledge in the form of decision logic and data.

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 Geometry-based Coding Scheme

o All the geometric features for all process such as related surfaces, feature dimension,
locations, on the features are defined by geometry-based coding scheme. The level of
detail is much greater in generative system than a variant system.
o For example, various details such as rough and finished state of the part are provided
to transform into desired state.

 Proportional Knowledge in the Form of Decision Logic and Data:

o Process knowledge in the form of decision logic and data are used for matching of part
geometry requirement with the manufacturing capabilities. All the methods mentioned
above is performed automatically.
o Operation instruction sets are automatically generated to help the operators to run the
machines in case of manual operation. NC codes are automatically generated, when
numerically controlled machines are used.
o Manufacturing knowledge plays a vital role in process planning. The process of
acquisition and documentation of manufacturing knowledge is a recurring dynamic
phenomenon. In addition, there are various sources of manufacturing knowledge such
experience of manufacturing personnel, handbooks, supplier of machine tools, tools,
jigs and fixtures materials, inspection equipment and customers etc.
o Hence, in order to understand manufacturing information, ensuring its clarity and
providing a framework for future modification, it is not only necessary but also
inevitable to develop a good knowledge structure from wide spectrum of knowledge.
Flowchart, decision trees, decision tables, algorithms, concepts of unit machined
surfaces, pattern recognition techniques, and artificial intelligent based tools are used
to serve the purpose.

Advantages of Generative Process Plan:

 Generative process plans have a number of advantages. Among the major ones are the
following:
o They rely less on group technology code numbers since the process, usually uses
decision tree to categorize parts into families.
o Maintenance and updating of stored process plans are largely unnecessary. Since, any
plan may be quickly regenerated by processing through the tree. Indeed, many argue
that with generable systems, process plans should not be stored since if the process is
changed, and out-of-dated process plan might find its way back into the system.
o The process logic rules however must be maintained up to dated and ready for use.
This provides the process planner with an assurance

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Flexible Manufacturing System:

 A flexible manufacturing system (FMS) is a group of numerically-controlled machine tools,
interconnected by a central control system. The various machining cells are interconnected,
via loading and unloading stations, by an automated transport system. Operational flexibility
is enhanced by the ability to execute all manufacturing tasks on numerous product designs in
small quantities and with faster delivery. It has been described as an automated job shop and
as a miniature automated factory. Simply stated, it is an automated production system that
produces one or more families of parts in a flexible manner. Today, this prospect of
automation and flexibility presents the possibility of producing nonstandard parts to create a
competitive advantage.
 The concept of flexible manufacturing systems evolved during the 1960s when robots,
programmable controllers, and computerized numerical controls brought a controlled
environment to the factory floor in the form of numerically-controlled and direct-
numerically-controlled machines.
 For the most part, FMS is limited to firms involved in batch production or job shop
environments. Normally, batch producers have two kinds of equipment from which to
choose: dedicated machinery or unautomated, general-purpose tools. Dedicated machinery
results in cost savings but lacks flexibility. General purpose machines such as lathes, milling
machines, or drill presses are all costly, and may not reach full capacity. Flexible
manufacturing systems provide the batch manufacturer with another option-one that can
make batch manufacturing just as efficient and productive as mass production.

Objectives of FMS:
Stated formally, the general objectives of an FMS are to approach the efficiencies and economies of
scale normally associated with mass production, and to maintain the flexibility required for small-
and medium-lot-size production of a variety of parts.
Two kinds of manufacturing systems fall within the FMS spectrum. These are assembly systems,
which assemble components into final products and forming systems, which actually form
components or final products. A generic FMS is said to consist of the following components:

1. A set of work stations containing machine tools that do not require significant set-up time or
change-over between successive jobs. Typically, these machines perform milling, boring,
drilling, tapping, reaming, turning, and grooving operations.
2. A material-handling system that is automated and flexible in that it permits jobs to move
between any pair of machines so that any job routing can be followed.
3. A network of supervisory computers and microprocessors that perform some or all of the
following tasks: (a) directs the routing of jobs through the system; (b) tracks the status of all
jobs in progress so it is known where each job is to go next; (c) passes the instructions for the
processing of each operation to each station and ensures that the right tools are available for
the job; and (d) provides essential monitoring of the correct performance of operations and
signals problems requiring attention.
4. Storage, locally at the work stations, and/or centrally at the system level.

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5. The jobs to be processed by the system. In operating an FMS, the worker enters the job to be
run at the supervisory computer, which then downloads the part programs to the cell control
or NC controller.

Benefits of FMS:

 The potential benefits from the implementation and utilization of a flexible manufacturing
system have been detailed by numerous researchers on the subject. A review of the literature
reveals many tangible and intangible benefits that FMS users extol. These benefits include:

 less waste
 fewer workstations
 quicker changes of tools, dies, and stamping machinery
 reduced downtime
 better control over quality
 reduced labour
 more efficient use of machinery
 work-in-process inventory reduced
 increased capacity
 increased production flexibility

The savings from these benefits can be sizable. Enough so that Ford has poured $4,400,000 into
overhauling its Torrance Avenue plant in Chicago, giving it flexible manufacturing capability. This
will allow the factory to add new models in as little as two weeks instead of two months or longer.
Richard Truett reports, in Automotive News, that the flexible manufacturing systems used in five of
Ford Motor Company's plants will yield a $2.5 billion savings. Truett also reports that, by the year
2010, Ford will have converted 80 percent of its plants to flexible manufacturing.

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Limitations of FMS:

 Despite these benefits, FMS does have certain limitations. In particular, this type of system
can only handle a relatively-narrow range of part varieties, so it must be used for similar parts
(family of parts) that require similar processing. Due to increased complexity and cost, an
FMS also requires a longer planning and development period than traditional manufacturing
equipment.
 Equipment utilization for the FMS sometimes is not as high as one would expect. Japanese
firms tend to have a much higher equipment utilization rate than U.S. manufacturers utilizing
FMS. This is probably a result of U.S. users' attempt to utilize FMS for high-volume
production of a few parts rather than for a high-variety production of many parts at a low cost
per unit. U.S. firms average ten types of parts per machine, compared to ninety-three types of
parts per machine in Japan.
 Other problems can result from a lack of technical literacy, management incompetence, and
poor implementation of the FMS process. If the firm misidentifies its objectives and
manufacturing mission, and does not maintain a manufacturing strategy that is consistent
with the firm's overall strategy, problems are inevitable. It is crucial that a firm's technology
acquisition decisions be consistent with its manufacturing strategy.
 If a firm chooses to compete on the basis of flexibility rather than cost or quality, it may be a
candidate for flexible manufacturing, especially if it is suited for low- to mid-volume
production. This is particularly true if the firm is in an industry where products change
rapidly, and the ability to introduce new products may be more important than minimizing
cost. In this scenario, scale is no longer the main concern and size is no longer a barrier to
entry.
 However, an FMS may not be appropriate for some firms. Since new technology is costly and
requires several years to install and become productive, it requires a supportive infrastructure
and the allocation of scarce resources for implementation. Frankly, many firms do not
possess the necessary resources. Economically justifying an FMS can be a difficult task—
especially since cost accounting tends to be designed for mass production of a mature
product, with known characteristics, and a stable technology. Therefore, it is difficult to give
an accurate indication of whether flexible manufacturing is justified. The question remains of
how to quantify the benefits of flexibility. In addition, rapidly-changing technology and
shortened product life cycles can cause capital equipment to quickly become obsolete.
 For other firms, their products may not require processes at the technological level of an
FMS. IBM found that a redesigned printer was simple enough for high-quality manual
assembly and that the manual assembly could be achieved at a lower cost than automated
assembly. Potential FMS users should also consider that some of the costs traditionally
incurred in manufacturing may actually be higher in a flexible automated system than in
conventional manufacturing. Although the system is continually self-monitoring,
maintenance costs are expected to be higher. Energy costs are likely to be higher despite
more efficient use of energy. Increased machine utilization can result in faster deterioration of
equipment, providing a shorter than average economic life. Finally, personnel training costs
may prove to be relatively high.

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 For some firms, worker resistance is a problem. Workers tend to perceive automation as an
effort to replace them with a tireless piece of metal that does not eat, take breaks, or go to the
bathroom. To combat this perception, many firms stress that workers are upgraded as a result
of FMS installation, and that no loss of jobs ensues. Despite any problems, use of flexible
manufacturing systems should continue to grow as more firms are forced to compete on a
flexibility basis and as technology advances. It has shown many advantages in low- to mid-
volume, high-mix production applications. Future systems will probably see lower and lower
quantities per batch. FMS can somewhat shift emphasis in manufacturing from large-scale,
repetitive production of standard products to highly-automated job shops featuring the
manufacture of items in small batches for specific customers. The increased availability of
flexible manufacturing technology will also give multi-product firms more choices of how to
design production facilities, how to assign products to facilities, and how to share capacity
among products.

Working of FMP:
 The concept of flexible manufacturing was developed by Jerome H. Lemelson (1923-97), an
American industrial engineer and inventor who filed a number of related patents in the early
1950s. His original design was a robot-based system that could weld, rivet, convey, and
inspect manufactured goods.
 Systems based on Lemelson's FMS inventions debuted on factory floors in the U.S. and
Europe in the late 1960s and proliferated in the 1970s.
 A flexible manufacturing system may include a configuration of interconnected processing
workstations with computer terminals that process the end-to-end creation of a product, from
loading/unloading functions to machining and assembly to storing to quality testing and data
processing. The system can be programmed to run a batch of one set of products in a
particular quantity and then automatically switch over to another set of products in another
quantity.
 A make-to-order production process that allows customers to customize their products would
also be an example of flexible manufacturing.

Pros and Cons of a Flexible Manufacturing System:

 The main benefit is the enhancement of production efficiency. Downtime is reduced because
the production line does not have to be shut down to set up for a different product.
 Flexible manufacturing can be a key component of a make-to-order strategy that allows
customers to customize the products they want.
 Disadvantages of FMS include its higher upfront costs and the greater time required to design
the system specifications for a variety of future needs.
 There also is a cost associated with the need for specialized technicians to run, monitor, and
maintain the FMS. Advocates of FMS maintain that the increase in automation typically
results in a net reduction in labour costs.

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What is CNC?
 CNC programming (Computer Numerical Control Programming) is utilized by manufacturers
to create program instructions for computers to control a machine tool. CNC is highly
involved in the manufacturing process and improves automation as well as flexibility.
 CNC programmers write instructions for CNC machines, where a computer is connected to
the mill, along with electrical drives and sensors for a complete system. This computer
controls the movement of the machine axis.

 Working on CNC:

o CNC routers
CNC routers are commonly used in woodworking and can range in size and style
from a desktop 3-axis to a room-sized 5-axis configuration.
o Plasma cutters
CNC plasma cutters are used to cut conductive metals using a jet of hot plasma. These
CNC machines offer high precision at low cost.
o Laser cutters
Laser cutters can be used to cut a variety of types and thicknesses of materials, even
metal, depending on the power of the laser.
o CNC lathes
CNC lathes rotate the workpiece and apply a variety of cutting tools to create parts
with a revolved profile. These are often programmed by hand.
o Mill/turn machines
Mill/turn machines combine milling and turning into a single machining center. These
machines can create spun profiles like lathes.
o Milling machines
Milling machines are extremely versatile and come in a variety of configurations from
2- to 5-axis milling configurations.
o Multi-axis milling
Multi-axis milling is the addition of up to two rotational axes to a 3-axis milling
configuration. This allows access to more of the part.

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Types of CNC Based on Axis:

 CNC programmers write instructions for CNC machines, where a computer is connected to
the mill, along with electrical drives and sensors for a complete system. This computer
controls the movement of the machine axis.

o 3-axis machining:
The most common CNC machines produced commercially. Used for simple prismatic
parts – to complex moulds, medical or aerospace parts.

o 4-axis simultaneous:
This type of machining is necessary when part geometry wraps around a part,
common in the aerospace and other industries.

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o 5-axis machining:
Popular in parts where complex shapes and small clearances, are the parts – to as
impellers, turbines, intake ports and more.

o Lathe and mill turn:

Lathes and mill turn machines are capable of turning a part and drilling, cutting or
carving out the shape that is needed.

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 CNC Language and Structure:

o CNC programs list instructions to be performed in the order they are written. They
read like a book, left to right and top-down. Each sentence in a CNC program is
written on a separate line, called a Block. Blocks are arranged in a specific sequence
that promotes safety, predictability and readability, so it is important to adhere to a
standard program structure.
o Typically, blocks are arranged in the following order:
 Program Start
 Load Tool
 Spindle On
 Coolant On
 Rapid to position above part
 Machining operation
 Coolant Off
 Spindle Off
 Move to safe position
 End program
o The steps listed above represent the simplest type of CNC program, where only one
tool is used and one operation performed. Programs that use multiple tools repeat
steps two through nine for each.
o Table shows the most common G and M codes that should be memorized if possible.
Like any language, the G-code language has rules. For example, some codes are
modal, meaning they do not have to be repeated if they do not change between blocks.
Some codes have different meanings depending on how and where there are used.
o While these rules are covered in this chapter, do not concern yourself with learning
every nuance of the language. It is the job of the job of the CAD/CAM software Post
Processor to properly format and write the CNC program.

 Alphabetic & Special Character Address Codes:

o Every letter of the alphabet is used as a machine address code. In fact, some are used
more than once, and their meaning changes based on which G-code appears in the same
block.
o Codes are either modal, which means they remain in effect until cancelled or changed, or
non-modal, which means they are effective only in the current block.
o The table below lists the most common address codes. A complete list is included in
Appendix B, G-M Code Reference.

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 Alphabetic Address Code Definitions:

 Here are the most common alphabetic address code definitions, examples and restrictions of
use. Most modern machines use these codes.

 A, B, C 4th/5th Axis Rotary Motion:

Rotation about the X, Y or Z-axis respectively. The angle is in degrees and up to three decimal
places precision.
G1 A30.513 B90.

 D Tool Diameter Register:

Used to compensate for tool diameter wear and deflection. D is accompanied by an integer that is the
same as the tool number (T1 uses D1, etc). No decimal point is used. It is always used in conjunction
with G41 or G42 and a XY move (never an arc). When called, the control reads the register and
offsets the tool path left (G41) or right (G42) by the value in the register.
G1 G41 X1. D1

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 F Feed Rate:
Sets the feed rate when machining lines, arcs or drill cycles. Feed rate can be in Inches per Minute
(G94 mode) or Inverse Time (G93 mode). Feed rates can be up to three decimal places accuracy (for
tap cycles) and require a decimal point.
G1 X1. Y0. F18.

 G Preparatory Code:
Always accompanied by an integer that determines its meaning. Most G-codes are modal. Expanded
definitions of G-codes appear in the next section of this chapter.
G2 X1. Y1. I.25 J0.

 H Tool Length Compensation Register:

This code calls a tool length offset (TLO) register on the control. The control combines the TLO and
Fixture Offset Z values to know where the tool is in relation to the part datum. It is always
accompanied by an integer (H1, H2, etc), G43, and Z coordinate.
G43 H1 Z1.

 I Arc Centre or Drill Cycle Data:

For arc moves (G2/G3), this is the incremental X-distance from the arc start point to the arc centre.
Certain drill cycles also use I as an optional parameter.
G2 X.1 Y2.025 I0. J0.125

 J Arc Centre or Drill Cycle Data:

For arc moves (G2/G3), this is the incremental Y-distance from the arc start point to the arc centre.
Certain drill cycles also use J as an optional parameter.
G2 X.1 Y2.025 I0. J0.125

 K Arc Centre or Drill Cycle Data:

For an arc move (G2/G3) this is the incremental Z-distance from the arc start point to the arc centre.
In the G17 plane, this is the incremental Z-distance for helical moves. Certain drill cycles also use J
as an optional parameter.
G18 G3 X.1 Z2.025 I0. K0.125

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 M Preparatory Code:
Always accompanied by an integer that determines its meaning. Only one M-code is allowed in each
block of code. Expanded definitions of M-codes appear later in this chapter.
M8

 N Block Number:
Block numbers can make the CNC program easier to read. They are seldom required for CAD/CAM
generated programs with no subprograms. Because they take up control memory most 3D programs
do not use block numbers. Block numbers are integers up to five characters long with no decimal
point. They cannot appear before the tape start/end character (%) and usually do not appear before a
comment only block.
N100 T2 M6

 O Program Number:
Programs are stored on the control by their program number. This is an integer that is preceded by
the letter O and has no decimal places. O0002 (PROJECT 1) P Delay Dwell (delay) in seconds.
Accompanied by G4 unless used within certain drill cycles.
G4 P.1

 Q Drill Cycle Optional Data:

The incremental feed distance per pass in a peck drill cycle.
G83 X1. Y1. Z-.5 F12. R.1 Q.1 P5.

 R Arc Radius or Drill Cycle Optional Data:

Arcs can be defined using the arc radius R or I, J, K vectors. IJK’s are more reliable than R’s so it is
recommended to use them instead. R is also used by drill cycles as the return plane Z value.
G83 Z-.5 F12. R.1 Q.1 P5.

 S Spindle Speed:
Spindle speed in revolutions per minute (RPM). It is an integer value with no decimal, and always
used in conjunction with M3 (Spindle on CW) or M4 (Spindle on CCW).
S3820 M3.

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 T Tool number:
Selects tool. It is an integer value always accompanied by M6 (tool change code).
T1 M6

 X X-Coordinate:
Coordinate data for the X-axis. Up to four places after the decimal are allowed and trailing zeros are
not used. Coordinates are modal, so there is no need to repeat them in subsequent blocks if they do
not change.
G1 X1.1252

 Y Y-Coordinate:
Coordinate data for the Y-axis.
G1 Y1.

 Z Z-Coordinate:
Coordinate data for the Z-axis.
G1 Z-.125

 Special Character Code Definitions:

The following is a list of commonly used special characters, their meaning, use, and restrictions.
 % Program Start or End:
All programs begin and end with % on a block by itself. This code is called tape
rewind character (a holdover from the days when programs were loaded using paper
tapes).
 () Comments:
Comments to the operator must be all caps and enclosed within brackets. The
maximum length of a comment is 40 characters and all characters are capitalized.
(T2: .375 END MILL)
 / Block:
Delete Codes after this character are ignored if the Block Delete switch on the control
is on.
/ M0

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 ; End of Block:
This character is not visible when the CNC program is read in a text editor (carriage
return), but does appear at the end of every block of code when the program is
displayed on the machine control.
N8 Z0.1;

 G&M Codes:
 G&M Codes make up the most of the contents of the CNC program. The definition of each
class of code and specific meanings of the most important codes are covered next.

 G-Codes:

 Codes that begin with G are called preparatory words because they prepare the machine for a
certain type of motion. The most common G-codes are shown in Table 1 and a complete list
and their meaning is included in Appendix, G-M Code Reference.

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 M-Codes:
 Codes that begin with M are called miscellaneous words. They control machine auxiliary
options like coolant and spindle direction. Only one M-code can appear in each block of
code.
 The table below lists the most common M codes and their meaning. A complete list of M-
codes is included in Appendix B, G-M Code Reference.

Overview of CNC Setup and Operation:

 CNC machine setup and operation follows the process shown in Figure.

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1. Pre-Start:
Before starting the machine, check to ensure oil and coolant levels are full. Check the machine
maintenance manual if you are unsure about how to service it. Ensure the work area is clear of any
loose tools or equipment. If the machine requires an air supply, ensure the compressor is on and
pressure meets the machine requirements.
2. Start/Home:
Turn power on the machine and control. The main breaker is located at the back of the machine. The
machine power button is located in the upper-left corner on the control face.
3. Load Tools:
Load tools into the tool carousel in the order listed in the CNC program tool list.
4. Set Tool Length Offsets:
For each tool used, jog the machine to find and then set the TLO.
5. Set Fixture Offset XY:
Once the vice or other fixture is properly installed and aligned on the machine, set the fixture offset
to locate the part XY datum.
6. Set Fixture Offset Z:
Use a dial indicator and 1-2-3 block to find and set the fixture offset Z.
7. Load CNC Program:
Download the CNC program from your computer to the machine control using RS-232
communications, USB flash memory, or floppy disk.
8. Run Program:
Run the program, using extra caution until the program is proven to be error-free.
9. Adjust Offsets as Required:
Check the part features and adjust the CDC or TLO registers as needed to ensure the part is within
design specifications.
10. Shut Down:
Remove tools from the spindle, clean the work area, and properly shut down the machine. Be sure to
clean the work area and leave the machine and tools in the location and condition you found them.

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Automation robotics:
 Automation describes a wide range of technologies that reduce human intervention in
processes. Human intervention is reduced by predetermining decision criteria, subprocess
relationships, and related actions and embodying those predeterminations in machines.
 Automation, includes the use of various control systems for operating equipment such as
machinery, processes in factories, boilers, and heat-treating ovens, switching on telephone
networks, steering, and stabilization of ships, aircraft, and other applications and vehicles
with reduced human intervention.

 Automation covers applications ranging from a household thermostat controlling a boiler,

to a large industrial control system with tens of thousands of input measurements and
output control signals. Automation has also found space in the banking sector. In control
complexity, it can range from simple on-off control to multi-variable high-level
algorithms.

Types of Automation in Manufacturing Operations:

 Automation can be thought of as the mechanization of processes in such a way that
procedures can be followed and products can be created without human involvement.

 There are several types of automation used on the factory floor. The type of automation
utilized by a manufacturing operation will be implemented considering the products being
produced, the machines required, and the resources available.

 In the case of industrial automation, control systems, like computers or robots, and
information technologies are utilized to handle different processes and pieces of machinery to
complete a task. It can be applied most readily to data collection, data processing, and
performing predictable physical work. This includes tasks like welding, soldering, painting,
food prep, packaging.

Fixed (Hard) Automation:

 In this example, the application is usually simple and will involve a process or assembly that
is dictated by programmed commands. It is relatively difficult to accommodate changes in the
product design in a fixed automation process, which is set up with one purpose or process per
application in mind.

 Examples include:
o Mechanized assembly
o Machining transfer lines
o Automated material handling

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 Advantages:
o High production rates
o Low unit cost

 Disadvantages:
o Relatively inflexible in accommodating product variety
o High initial investment for custom-engineered equipment
o High vulnerability to failure
o Obsolescence

Programmable Automation:
 Programmable automation is used most often when manufacturing products in batches. It
allows for customization and frequent changes throughout the manufacturing process.
 In this case, the operation is controlled by a program of instructions that are read and
interpreted by the system. New programs can be prepared and entered into the hardware to
produce new products at any time.

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 Examples include:
o Computer Numerical controlled (CNC) machine tools
o Industrial robots
o Programmable logic controllers (PLC)

 Advantages:
o Flexible and able to deal with design variations
o Suitable for batch production

 Disadvantages:
o High investment in general purpose equipment
o Lower production rate than fixed automation

Flexible (Soft) Automation:

 Utilizing multiple tools that are linked by a material handling system, A flexible automation
system is capable of producing a variety of parts with virtually no time lost for changeovers
from any one-part style to the next.
 The same is true when reprogramming the system or altering the physical set up.

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 Examples Include:
o Robot arms that can be programmed to assume multiple tasks, such as insert screws, drill
holes, sand, weld, insert rivets, and spray paint objects on an assembly line.

 Advantages:
o Continuous production of variable mixtures of products
o Flexible to deal with product design variation
o Offers Medium production rate

 Disadvantages:
o Requires High amount of investment
o High unit cost relative to fixed automation

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Totally-Integrated Automation (TIA):

 More of a philosophy pioneered by Siemens Automation and Drives, TIA includes three
core concepts:

o A common software environment

o A common data management system
o A common communication method

 TIA implementation is ideal for many industries, including:

o Automotive
o General machine construction
o Special-purpose machine manufacturing
o Standard mechanical equipment manufacture, OEMs
o Plastics processing
o The packaging industry
o Food, beverages and tobacco industries

 Defining Characteristics:

o Facilitates shorter time-to-market

o Higher productivity
o Lower life-cycle costs
o Reduced complexity
o Greater security of investment

Preventative Maintenance (PM) Versus Predictive Maintenance (PdM):

 In Preventive Maintenance, tasks are completed when the machines are shut down. Predictive
Maintenance activities are carried out as the machines are running in their normal production
modes. Both are essential in saving manufacturers money and maintaining production
quality. More recently, special focus has been placed on Predictive Maintenance. Qualities
like real-time condition monitoring allow longer periods of operation between preventative
maintenance tasks, resulting in less downtime for essential machinery.

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Mobile Control of Automation in Manufacturing:

 Mobility is the future of your workforce.
 This is visible in the increased interconnectivity between applications and hardware we use in
our daily lives. Mobile control is flexible, intuitive, and powerful. The concept has taken a
prominent focus within manufacturing and a call for new industry-wide standards to be
adopted has come from automation’s research and engineering professionals all over the
world.

 Mobile apps are already being relied on as fast and user-friendly means of accessing plant
information with a tap of the finger or swipe of the hand. Mobile-access can save
substantially on costs, time, labour, and maintenance. The practice also enables operational
problems to be identified and addressed remotely.

Automation in daily life:

 In addition to the manufacturing applications of automation technology, there have been
significant achievements in such areas as communications, transportation, service industries,
and consumer products. Some of the more significant applications are described in this
section.

 Communications:
o One of the earliest practical applications of automation was in telephone switching. The first
switching machines, invented near the end of the 19th century, were simple mechanical
switches that were remotely controlled by the telephone user pushing buttons or turning a dial
on the phone.
o Modern electronic telephone switching systems are based on highly sophisticated digital
computers that perform functions such as monitoring thousands of telephone lines,
determining which lines require service, storing the digits of each telephone number as it is
being dialled, setting up the required connections, sending electrical signals to ring the
receiver’s phone, monitoring the call during its progress, and disconnecting the phone when
the call is completed.
o These systems also are used to time and bill toll calls and to transmit billing information and
other data relative to the business operations of the phone company. In addition to the various
functions mentioned, the newest electronic systems automatically transfer calls to alternate
numbers, call back the user when busy lines become free, and perform other customer
services in response to dialled codes. These systems also perform function tests on their own
operations, diagnose problems when they arise, and print out detailed instructions for repairs.
o Other applications of automation in communications systems include local area networks,
communications satellites, and automated mail-sorting machines.

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o A local area network (LAN) operates like an automated telephone company within a single
building or group of buildings. Local area networks are generally capable of transmitting not
only voice but also digital data between terminals in the system.
o Communications satellites have become essential for communicating telephone or video
signals across great distances. Such communications would not be possible without the
automated guidance systems that place and retain the satellites in predetermined orbits.
Automatic mail-sorting machines have been developed for use in many post offices
throughout the world to read codes on envelopes and sort the envelopes according to
destination.

 Transportation:
o Automation has been applied in various ways in the transportation industries. Applications
include airline reservation systems, automatic pilots in aircraft and locomotives, and urban
mass-transit systems. The airlines use computerized reservation systems to continuously
monitor the status of all flights.
o With these systems, ticket agents at widely dispersed locations can obtain information about
the availability of seats on any flight in a matter of seconds. The reservation systems compare
requests for space with the status of each flight, grant space when available, and
automatically update the reservation status files. Passengers can even receive their seat
assignments well in advance of flight departures.
o Nearly all commercial aircraft are equipped with instruments called automatic pilots. Under
normal flying conditions, these systems guide an airplane over a predetermined route by
detecting changes in the aircraft’s orientation and heading from gyroscopes and similar
instruments and by providing appropriate control signals to the plane’s steering mechanism.
Automatic navigation systems and instrument landing systems operate by using radio signals
from ground beacons that provide the aircraft with course directions for guidance. When an
airplane is within the traffic pattern for ground control, its human pilot normally assumes
control.
o Examples of automated rail transportation include American urban mass-transit systems such
as BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) in San Francisco; MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid
Transit Authority) in Atlanta, Georgia; and the Metrorail in Washington, D.C. The BART
system serves as a useful example; it consists of more than 75 miles (120 kilometres) of
track, with about 100 trains operating at peak hours between roughly 30 stations. The trains
sometimes attain speeds of 80 miles per hour with intervals between trains of as little as 90
seconds. In each train there is one operator whose role is that of an observer and
communicator and who can override the automatic system in case of emergency. The
automatic system protects the trains by assuring a safe distance between them and by
controlling their speed. Another function of the system is to control train routings and make
adjustments in the operation of each train to keep the entire system operating on schedule.
o As a train enters the station, it automatically transmits its identification, destination, and
length, thus lighting up a display board for passenger information and transmitting
information to the control centres. Signals are automatically returned to the train to regulate

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its time in the station and its running time to the next station. At the beginning of the day, an
ideal schedule is determined; as the day progresses, the performance of each train is
compared with the schedule, and adjustments are made to each train’s operation as required.
The entire system is controlled by two identical computers, so that if one malfunctions, the
other assumes complete control. In the event of a complete failure of the computer control
system, the system reverts to manual control.

 Service industries:
o Automation of service industries includes an assortment of applications as diverse as the
services themselves, which include health care, banking and other financial services,
government, and retail trade.
o In health care the use of automation in the form of computer systems has increased
dramatically to improve services and relieve the burden on medical staffs. In hospitals
computer terminals on each nursing care floor record data on patient status, medications
administered, and other relevant information. Some of these systems are used to perform
additional functions such as ordering drugs from the hospital pharmacy and calling for
orderlies.
o The system provides an official record of the nursing care given to patients and is used by the
nursing staff to give a report at shift-change time. The computer system is connected to the
hospital’s business office so that proper charges can be made to each patient’s account for
services rendered and medicines provided.
o Robotics is likely to play a role in future health care delivery systems. The work that is done
in hospitals by nurses, orderlies, and similar staff personnel includes some tasks that are
routine and repetitive. Duties that might be automated using robots include making beds,
delivering linens, and moving supplies between locations in the hospital. Robots might even
become involved in certain aspects of patient care such as transporting patients to services in
the hospital, passing food trays, and similar functions in which it is not critical that a hospital
staff member be present. Research is currently under way to develop robots that would be
capable of providing assistance to paraplegics and other physically handicapped persons.
These robots would respond to voice commands and would be able to interpret statements in
natural language (e.g., everyday English) from patients requesting service.
o Banking and financial institutions have embraced automation in their operations—principally
through computer technology—to facilitate the processing of large volumes of documents
and financial transactions. The sorting of checks is done by optical character-recognition
systems utilizing the special alphanumeric characters at the bottom of checks. Bank balances
are computed and recorded using computer systems installed by virtually all financial
institutions. Major banks have established electronic banking systems, including automatic
teller machines. Located in places convenient for their customers, these automatic tellers
permit users to complete basic transactions without requiring the assistance of bank
personnel.

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o The stock exchanges rely on computer-automated systems to report transactions by ticker

tape or closed-circuit television. Brokerage houses use a computerized record-keeping system
to track their customers’ accounts. Monthly statements indicating the status of each account
are automatically prepared and mailed to customers. Account executives employ video
monitors in their offices, backed by a massive database, to retrieve current information on
each stock almost instantaneously while they discuss possible purchases with their clients.
Stock certificates are typically issued with machine-readable identifications to facilitate
record keeping in sales and exchanges.
o Credit card transactions have also become highly automated. Restaurants, retailers, and other
organizations are using systems that automatically check the validity of a credit card and the
credit standing of the cardholder in a matter of seconds as the customer waits for the
transaction to be finalized. Some credit card transactions trigger immediate transfer of funds
equal to the amount of the sale from the cardholder’s account into the merchant’s account.
o Many government services are automated by means of computers and computerized
databases. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of the U.S. government must review and
approve the tax returns of millions of taxpayers each year. The detailed checking of returns is
a task that has traditionally been done by large staffs of professional auditors on a sampled
basis. In 1985 the IRS began using a computerized system to automate the auditing procedure
for the 1984 returns. This system is programmed to perform the complex tax calculations on
each return being audited. As tax laws change, the system is reprogrammed to do the
calculations for the year. The computerized auditing system has permitted a substantial
increase in the work load of the IRS auditing department without a corresponding increase in
staffing.
o Retail trade has seen a number of changes in its operations as a result of automation. Selling
merchandise has typically been a very labour-intensive activity, with sales associates needed
to assist customers with their selections and then finalize transactions at the cash register.
Each transaction depletes the store’s inventory, so the item purchased must be identified for
reorder. Much clerical effort is expended by the store when inventory is managed by strictly
manual procedures.
o Computerized systems have been installed in most modern retail stores to speed sales
transactions and automatically update inventory records as the stock of each item is reduced.
The systems are based on the Universal Product Code (UPC), originally adopted by the
grocery industry in 1973, which uses optical bar-code technology. A bar code is an
identification symbol consisting of a series of wide and narrow bars attached to each product
that can be scanned and recognized by a bar-code reader. At the cash registers, these readers
quickly identify the items being purchased. As the sales associate scans across the symbol
using a laser beam reader, the product is properly identified and its price is entered into the
sales transaction. Simultaneously, a record of the sale is made in the inventory files so that
the item can be reordered.

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 Consumer products:
o Consumer products ranging from automobiles to small appliances have been automated for
the benefit of the user. Microwave ovens, washing machines, dryers, refrigerators, video
recorders, and other modern household appliances typically contain a microprocessor that
works as the computer controller for the device. The consumer operates the appliance by
programming the controller to perform the required functions, including timing (ovens,
dryers), power levels (microwave ovens), input channels (video recorders), and other cycle
options (washing machines). The programming of the device is done simply by pressing a
series of buttons in the proper sequence, so the user does not think of the procedure as
programming a computer.
o The automobile is an example of a highly automated consumer product. The modern
automobile is typically equipped with several microprocessors that operate a variety of
functions, including engine control (fuel-air ratio, for example), the clock, the radio, and
cruise control.

 Automation and society:

o Over the years, the social merits of automation have been argued by labour leaders, business
executives, government officials, and college professors. The biggest controversy has focused
on how automation affects employment. There are other important aspects of automation,
including its effect on productivity, economic competition, education, and quality of life.
These issues are explored here.

 Impact on the individual:

o Nearly all industrial installations of automation, and in particular robotics, involve a
replacement of human labour by an automated system. Therefore, one of the direct effects of
automation in factory operations is the dislocation of human labour from the workplace. The
long-term effects of automation on employment and unemployment rates are debatable. Most
studies in this area have been controversial and inconclusive.
o Workers have indeed lost jobs through automation, but population increases and consumer
demand for the products of automation have compensated for these losses. Labour unions
have argued, and many companies have adopted the policy, that workers displaced by
automation should be retrained for other positions, perhaps increasing their skill levels in the
process. This argument succeeds so long as the company and the economy in general are
growing at a rate fast enough to create new positions as the jobs replaced by automation are
lost.
o Of particular concern for many labour specialists is the impact of industrial robots on the
work force, since robot installations involve a direct substitution of machines for humans,
sometimes at a ratio of two to three humans per robot. The opposing argument within the
United States is that robots can increase productivity in American factories, thereby making
these firms more competitive and ensuring that jobs are not lost to overseas companies. The

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effect of robotics on labour has been relatively minor, because the number of robots in the
United States is small compared with the number of human workers. As of the early 1990s,
there were fewer than 100,000 robots installed in American factories, compared with a total
work force of more than 100 million persons, about 20 million of whom work in factories.
o Automation affects not only the number of workers in factories but also the type of work that
is done. The automated factory is oriented toward the use of computer systems and
sophisticated programmable machines rather than manual labour. Greater emphasis is placed
on knowledge-based work and technical skill rather than physical work. The types of jobs
found in modern factories include more machine maintenance, improved scheduling and
process optimization, systems analysis, and computer programming and operation.
Consequently, workers in automated facilities must be technologically proficient to perform
these jobs. Professional and semi-professional positions, as well as traditional labour jobs, are
affected by this shift in emphasis toward factory automation.

 Impact on society:
o Besides affecting individual workers, automation has an impact on society in general.
Productivity is a fundamental economic issue that is influenced by automation. The
productivity of a process is traditionally defined as the ratio of output units to the units of
labour input. A properly justified automation project will increase productivity owing to
increases in production rate and reductions in labour content. Over the years, productivity
gains have led to reduced prices for products and increased prosperity for society.
o A number of issues related to education and training have been raised by the increased use of
automation, robotics, computer systems, and related technologies. As automation has
increased, there has developed a shortage of technically trained personnel to implement these
technologies competently.
o This shortage has had a direct influence on the rate at which automated systems can be
introduced. The shortage of skilled staffing in automation technologies raises the need for
vocational and technical training to develop the required work-force skills. Unfortunately the
educational system is also in need of technically qualified instructors to teach these subjects,
and the laboratory equipment available in schools does not always represent the state-of-the-
art technology typically used in industry.

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Advantages and disadvantages of automation:

 Advantages:
o Increased throughput or productivity
o Improved quality
o Increased predictability
o Improved robustness (consistency), of processes or product
o Increased consistency of output
o Reduced direct human labour costs and expenses
o Reduced cycle time
o Increased accuracy
o Relieving humans of monotonously repetitive work [51]
o Required work in development, deployment, maintenance, and operation of automated
processes — often structured as “jobs”
o Increased human freedom to do other things
o Automation primarily describes machines replacing human action, but it is also loosely
associated with mechanization, machines replacing human labour. Coupled with
mechanization, extending human capabilities in terms of size, strength, speed, endurance,
visual range & acuity, hearing frequency & precision, electromagnetic sensing & effecting,
etc., advantages include.
o Relieving humans of dangerous work stresses and occupational injuries (e.g., fewer strained
backs from lifting heavy objects)
o Removing humans from dangerous environments (e.g., fire, space, volcanoes, nuclear
facilities, underwater, etc.)
o Advantages commonly attributed to automation include higher production rates and increased
productivity, more efficient use of materials, better product quality, improved safety, shorter
workweeks for labour, and reduced factory lead times. Higher output and increased
productivity have been two of the biggest reasons in justifying the use of automation. Despite
the claims of high quality from good workmanship by humans, automated systems typically
perform the manufacturing process with less variability than human workers, resulting in
greater control and consistency of product quality. Also, increased process control makes
more efficient use of materials, resulting in less scrap.
o Worker safety is an important reason for automating an industrial operation. Automated
systems often remove workers from the workplace, thus safeguarding them against the
hazards of the factory environment. In the United States the Occupational Safety and Health
Act of 1970 (OSHA) was enacted with the national objective of making work safer and
protecting the physical well-being of the worker. OSHA has had the effect of promoting the
use of automation and robotics in the factory.

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o Another benefit of automation is the reduction in the number of hours worked on average per
week by factory workers. About 1900 the average workweek was approximately 70 hours.
This has gradually been reduced to a standard workweek in the United States of about 40
hours. Mechanization and automation have played a significant role in this reduction. Finally,
the time required to process a typical production order through the factory is generally
reduced with automation.

 Disadvantages:
o High initial cost
o Faster production without human intervention can mean faster unchecked production of
defects where automated processes are defective.
o Scaled-up capacities can mean scaled-up problems when systems fail — releasing dangerous
toxins, forces, energies, etc., at scaled-up rates.
o Human adaptiveness is often poorly understood by automation initiators. It is often difficult
to anticipate every contingency and develop fully preplanner automated responses for every
situation. The discoveries inherent in automating processes can require unanticipated
iterations to resolve, causing unanticipated costs and delays.
o People anticipating employment income may be seriously disrupted by others deploying
automation where no similar income is readily available.
o A main disadvantage often associated with automation, worker displacement, has been
discussed above. Despite the social benefits that might result from retraining displaced
workers for other jobs, in almost all cases the worker whose job has been taken over by a
machine undergoes a period of emotional stress. In addition to displacement from work, the
worker may be displaced geographically. In order to find other work, an individual may have
to relocate, which is another source of stress.
o Other disadvantages of automated equipment include the high capital expenditure required to
invest in automation (an automated system can cost millions of dollars to design, fabricate,
and install), a higher level of maintenance needed than with a manually operated machine,
and a generally lower degree of flexibility in terms of the possible products as compared with
a manual system (even flexible automation is less flexible than humans, the most versatile
machines of all).
o Also, there are potential risks that automation technology will ultimately subjugate rather
than serve humankind. The risks include the possibility that workers will become slaves to
automated machines, that the privacy of humans will be invaded by vast computer data
networks, that human error in the management of technology will somehow endanger
civilization, and that society will become dependent on automation for its economic well-
being.
o These dangers aside, automation technology, if used wisely and effectively, can yield
substantial opportunities for the future. There is an opportunity to relieve humans from
repetitive, hazardous, and unpleasant labour in all forms. And there is an opportunity for
future automation technologies to provide a growing social and economic environment in
which humans can enjoy a higher standard of living and a better way of life.

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Basics of Rapid Prototype:

 Rapid prototyping is the fast fabrication of a physical part, model or assembly using 3D
computer aided design (CAD). The creation of the part, model or assembly is usually
completed using additive manufacturing, or more commonly known as 3D printing

Classifications of RP:

 Liquid Phase:

 SLA (Stereolithography Apparatus): SLA uses the photosensitive resin as raw materials,
controlled the laser via computer to do the point-by-point scanning in the liquid
photosensitive resin surface according to the various layers of parts’ cross-section
information. The thin resin layers of the scanning area will generate photopolymerization and
solidify to form a thin layer of a part. After solidified a layer, the table will move down and
coat a new layer of liquid resin on the surface of the solidified resin, until the 3D solid model
completed. SLA has the advantages of high speed of modeling, high degree of automation,
high accuracy of dimension, and can be formed into any complex shape. It is mainly applied
for the rapid prototyping of complex and high precision fine parts.

 FDM (Fused Deposition Modelling): FDM is to heat and melt filamentous hot-melt
materials; meanwhile, according to the section profile information, the 3D nozzle under the
control of the computer selectively coats the materials on the working table which will form a
layer of cross-section after rapid cooling. When a layer of molding is finished, the machine
table will descend and form the next layer, until the entire solid model completed. As the type
of molding materials is various, strength and precision of molding pieces are high, FDM is
mainly used for forming small plastic parts.

 Ballistic Particle Manufacturing utilizes ink jet or droplet-based manufacturing techniques,

where it builds the models by firing micro-droplets of molten wax material from a moving
nozzle or jet onto a stationary platform, the platform then lowers and the process is repeated
for each layer of the model. Bill Masters (the BPM inventor) first described BPM as a spit
wad. “When you shoot a lot of wads,” he said, “they begin to take shape, and if you can
control the direction of the wads and the motion of the device that's shooting them, you can
produce any desired shape.”

 Poly-Jet or Multi-jet modelling (PJM/ MJM): In PJM & MJM liquid acrylic polymers are
layered onto a build platform with a printhead with one or more nozzles and cured by
exposure to UV lamps. The printhead moves across the platform in paths pre-defined by a
CAD model during the process until a layer is completely printed. The UV lamps are located
directly on the printhead and cure the plastic as soon as it has been applied. The intensity of
the UV light is adjusted so that the uppermost layer does not cure completely, which achieves
a stable connection between the superimposed layers. Once the last level has been printed, the
UV lamps travel over the entire component several times to complete curing.

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Advantages:

 Very large variety of materials (from solid to rubbery)

 Transparent components
 Composite materials producible
 High precision and surface quality
 Fast process, since no heating and cooling times are needed
 Production of 3D-printed plastic injection moulding cavities
 Good finishing possibilities

Limitations:

 Lower temperature resistance

 Materials slightly brittle
 Materials not UV-resistant (embrittlement and discoloration possible)
 Restrictions in the geometric freedom, since support material must be removable with water
jet (accessibility, risk of damage)

Applications:

 Due to the high dimensional stability and material durability of the produced components,3D
printing using the Poly-Jet or MultiJet process is regarded as a high-end solution in the field
of additive manufacturing processes. In addition, the method stands out because of the large
variety of materials that can be efficiently integrated into a single object. While Poly-jet
Modelling applies substances layer by layer across multiple printheads, in MultiJet modelling
different materials can be processed simultaneously in one printing.

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 Shape Deposition Manufacturing (SDM): SDM is a solid freeform fabrication process

which means it is built from start to finish rather than by removing excess materials from a

given object. It does this by layering support material and the desired finished material.

These graphics show the blue support material and the yellow final products.
o Support material is laid down as a base for the final material.
o Final material is laid on top of the support material.
o CNC mills the part to the desired shape.
o Surface is washed clean and prepared for the next layer of support and final material.
o This process is repeated until the final layer is reached
o Support material is removed.

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Advantages:

 An advantage of SDM is the ability to embed objects into the part as it is being
manufactured. This could include electronic equipment that needs precise placement in the
object. It is also possible to use different materials within the same part. This process is
illustrated in the figure to the right.
 SDM is also extremely precise; accurate within 5 microns. There is a lot of flexibility with
the shape being made and the materials being used.

Disadvantages:
 Relatively expensive compared to other rapid prototyping processes.
 Also, the process is relatively time consuming.
 The machine is not widely available.

 Powder Phase:

o 3DP Technology: the 3D printer with 3DP is applying the standard inkjet technology, by
placing the liquid junction in the thin layer of powder to create the various components and
3D solid model in the way of printing cross-section data layer by layer. The sample model
manufactured by 3DP has the same colour as the actual product, and the colour analysis result
can be directly drawn on the model.

o SLS (Selective Laser Sintering): SLS is to pre-laid a layer of powder material (metal or
non-metallic powder) on the table, and let the laser under the computer control sinter the solid
part of the powder in accordance with the interface profile information. Mold layer by layer,
over and over. SLS has simple manufacturing process, wide range of material selection, low
cost and fast molding speed, and is mainly used for directly making rapid molds in the
foundry industry.

o Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS) : It was developed in Sandia National Laboratories,
USA, to fabricate metal components directly from CAD solid models and reduce the lead
times for metal part fabrication. The system consists of an Nd: YAG laser, a controlled
atmosphere glove box, a three-axis computer-controlled positioning system, and a powder
feed unit. The positioning stages are mounted inside a controlled atmosphere glove box,
backfilled with argon, operating at a nominal oxygen level of 2–3 parts per million. The beam
is brought into the glove box through a window mounted on the top of the glove box and
directed to the deposition region using a plano-convex lens. The powder delivery nozzle is
designed to inject the powder stream directly into the focused laser beam, and the lens and
powder nozzle move as an integral unit. Tool path patterns to build each layer are obtained by
electronically slicing the previously built CAD solid model into a sequence of layers.
Physically each layer is fabricated by first generating an outline of the key component
features and then filling the cross-section using a rastering technique. The desired component
is built one layer at a time, starting from the bottom of the part. A solid substrate is used as a
base for building the LENS object. The laser beam is focused onto the substrate to create a

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weld pool in which powder particles are simultaneously injected to build up each layer. The
substrate is moved beneath the laser beam to deposit a thin cross-section, thereby creating the
desired geometry for each layer. After deposition of each layer, the powder delivery nozzle
and focusing lens assembly are incremented in the positive Z direction, building a 3D
component layer additively.

 Sheet Form:

o Layer Object Manufacturing (LOM): A manufacturing process that uses a carbon-dioxide

laser to create successive cross-sections of a three-dimensional object from layers of paper
with a polyethylene coating on the backside. A sheet of paper is fed through with the aid of
small rollers. As the paper is fed through, a heated roller is used to melt the coating on the
paper so that each new layer will adhere to the previous layer.

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 DLP (Digital Light Procession): DLP is relatively similar to SLA. However, it uses high-
resolution digital light processor projector to cure liquid photopolymers, light cures layer by
layer. As it solidifies each layer via a slide-like sheet curing, the speed is faster than the same
type of SLA technology. DLP has high precision of molding, the molds’ material properties,
details and surface finish can match the durable plastic parts by injection molding.

 UV Technology: UV technology is also similar to SLA. The difference is that it uses

ultraviolet light irradiate the liquid photosensitive resin, do the stack forming layer by layer,
from bottom to top. There is no noise produced during the forming process. UV technology
has the highest precision molding in the same type of molding technology, and it is usually
used in high precision jewellery and mobile phone casing industries.

 Gas Phase:
o Selective Area laser Deposition (SLAD): The manufacturing technique of Selective Area
Laser Deposition (SALD) is a localized chemical vapor deposition process. A focused laser
heat source is used to thermally decompose a mixture of reactive gasses on a substrate within
a pressure and composition-controlled reaction chamber. The product of the chemical
reaction is a solid ceramic and a residual waste gas. A computer control of an optic
positioning stage in conjunction with the modulation of laser power allows for the deposition
of arbitrary patterns. Selective Area Laser Deposition and Vapor Infiltration (SALDVI) is a
modification of the above deposition process where decomposition occurs on the surface of,
and around existing powder within a powder bed. The laser heats the powder and the reactive
gasses diffuse into the powder bed. Thermal decomposition of the gasses occurs at the
surface of the powder particles causing the growth of a ceramic matrix. Powder of a like
composition can be used to make a monolithic material. Powder of a different composition
can be used to create a composite effect. Subsequent layer by layer addition of powder allows
complex geometries to be produced. This study explores the process of utilizing SALD and
SALDVI approaches to form silicon nitride joints of silicon nitride substrates. The
experimental parameters that can be manipulated, and the experimental setup used, are
discussed. The resulting ceramic depositions and joints are characterized.

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Glass Science:
The Glass and Glassy State:
1. THE GLASSY STATE:
 Glass is a state of matter.
 Glasses combine some properties of crystals and some of liquids but are distinctly different
from both.
 Glasses have the mechanical rigidity of crystals, but the random disordered arrangement of
molecules that characterizes liquids.
 Glasses are usually formed by melting crystalline materials at very high temperatures. When
the melt cools, the atoms are locked into a random (disordered) state before they can form
into a perfect crystal arrangement.
2. COMPOSITION:
 Glass can do most anything. From bottles to spacecraft windows, glass products include three
types of materials:
 FORMERS are the basic ingredients. Any chemical compound that can be melted and cooled
into a glass is a FORMER. (With enough heat, 100% of the earth's crust could be made into
glass.)
 FLUXES help FORMERS to melt at lower, more practical to achieve temperatures.
 STABILIZERS combine with FORMERS and FLUXES to keep the finished glass from
dissolving, crumbling, or falling apart.
 Chemical composition determines what a glass can do. There are already tens of thousands of
workable glass compositions and new ones are being developed every day.
 Most commercial glass is made with sand that contains the most common FORMER, Silica.
Other FORMERS include:
 Anhydrous Boric Acid
 Anhydrous Phosphoric Acid But melting sand by itself is too expensive because of the high
temperatures required (about 1850°C, or 3360°F).
 FLUXES are added which let the FORMER melt more readily and at lower temperatures
(1300°C, or 2370°). These include:
 Soda Ash
 Potash
 Lithium Carbonate
 But FLUXES also make the glass chemically unstable, liable to dissolve in water or form
unwanted crystals. THEREFORE...

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 STABILIZERS are added to make the glass uniform and keep its special structure intact.
These include:
 Limestone
 Litharge
 Alumina
 Magnesia
 Barium Carbonate
 Strontium Carbonate
 Zinc Oxide
 Zirconia
3. PROPERTIES:
 MECHANICALY STRONG
 Has great inherent strength. Weakened only by surface imperfections, which give everyday
glass its fragile reputation. Special tempering can minimize surface flaws.
 HARD Surface resists scratches and abrasions.
 ELASTIC Gives under stress - up to a breaking point - but rebounds exactly to its original
shape.
 CHEMICAL CORROSION- RESISTANT Affected by few chemicals. Resists most
industrial and food acids.
 THERMAL SHOCK- RESISTANT Withstands intense heat or cold as well as sudden
temperature changes.
 HEAT – ABSORBENT Retains heat, rather than conducts it. Absorbs heat better than metal.
 OPTICAL
 REFLECTS
 BENDS
 RANSMITS
 ABSORBS light with great accuracy.
 ELECTRICAL INSULATING
o Strongly resists electric current. Store’s electricity very efficiently.
o Silica: Silicon dioxide, a mineral that is one of the essential ingredients of glass. The most
common form of silica used in glassmaking has always been sand.

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GLASS MELTING FURNACES AND FURNACE TYPES:

 The type of furnace for melting glass typically depends on the type and quantity of glass
being produced, and the local fuel and utility costs. While there are exceptions, the following
discussion describes the primary furnace types and the glass segments that most commonly
use each style.
 There are two types of glass melting furnaces: Pot furnaces and Tank furnaces.

POT FURNACES:
 Pot Furnaces are structures built of refractory materials in which there is no contact between
the furnace and the glass. Glass is melted in several pots made of refractory materials which
are resistant to glass attack at high temperatures. The pots are charged with a batch, which is
melted over a number of hours and worked on a 24- or 18-hour cycle. An average pot can hold
600-700 kg of glass. Pot furnaces are used where the glass is formed by hand and mouth
blowing. One of the main advantages of this system is that several types of glasses can be
melted at the same time. A pot can be used for about 30 melting cycles and thus produce
between 18 and 21 tonnes of glass.
 Fuel economy is normally achieved by recuperation, i.e., the pre-heating of combustion air by
waste heat from the furnace exhaust gases. In this system the pre-heating of the combustion
air is done by passing the air through metal tubes on the outside of which the exhaust gases
flow towards the chimney. Thus, the heat exchange is continuous. Electricity can also be used
for melting.

TANK FURNACES:
 Tank Furnaces are used where continuous flow of glass is needed to feed automatic glass
forming machines. They are more economical in their use of fuel and are used mainly for the
large-scale production of containers, flat glass, electric bulbs, tubing and domestic machine-
made tableware. A large float glass furnace can have a capacity of 2,000 tonnes.

 A tank furnace consists of a bath, built of a very special high refractory material, which can
resist chemical attack of molten glass at temperatures in excess of 1500°C and a
superstructure where combustion takes place. The quality of refractory materials, used for
building the bath, has improved to such an extent that whereas some 30 years ago, the life of
a furnace was well below 2 years, it is now over 9 years.
 In order to achieve high melting temperatures and fuel economy, a regenerative or
recuperative system is used. Both these systems utilise the waste heat of combustion for pre-
heating the incoming combustion air.
 While in the recuperative system the heat exchange between the combustion air and waste
gases is continuous, in the regenerative system the waste gases are passed through a large
chamber packed with refractory bricks arranged in a pattern which permits free flow of the
gases. The brickwork is heated by the waste gases and after having been heated for some
minutes, the direction of firing is reversed. Combustion air is passed through the chamber and
the heat thus collected in the brickwork is used for pre-heating the combustion air. The firing

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is thus from right to left, during which time the right-hand generator is heated and so there is a
reversal of firing every x minutes. The cycle time can be changed for best heat exchange
results and modern furnaces have computer managed control systems, which adjust the time
of firing in each direction to achieve the best heat exchange conditions.
 Heavy fuel oil or natural gas is normally used for firing tank furnaces. Glass, being an
electrical conductor at high temperature, can also be melted by electricity. However,
electricity is far too expensive and is normally used to boost the output from a gas or oil fired
furnace. Nevertheless, technological progress in electric melting has enabled the use of all
electric glass melting furnaces even at the high cost of electricity.

UNIT MELTER:
 The term unit Melter is generally given to any fuel-fired glass-melting furnace that has no
heat recovery device. Generally, one is referring to an air/fuel-fired furnace when using this
furnace term. However, most full oxy/fuel furnaces have no heat recovery system and are
therefore, technically unit melters. Typically, the air/fuel unit melters are relatively small in
size and are fired with 2 to 16 burners. Furnaces range in production from as large as 36 t of
glass per day to as small as 230 kg of glass per day. Larger air/fuel unit melters are found in
areas where fuel is extremely cheap. Frit, tableware, opthamalic glass, fiberglass, and
specialty glasses with highly volatile and corrosive components are produced in unit melters.
Due to the very low energy efficiency and the use of individual burners, the air/fuel unit
melters are very amenable to oxygen-enhanced combustion techniques, including
supplemental oxy/fuel boosting, premixed oxygen enrichment, and full oxy/fuel combustion.
Oxy/fuel unit melters have been built as large as 320 t per day of glass to as small as 230 kg
of glass per day.

RECUPERATIVE MELTER:
 A recuperative melter is a unit melter equipped with a recuperator. Typically, the recuperator
is a metallic shell-and-tube-style heat exchanger that preheats the combustion air to 540 to
760°C. The furnace is fired with 4 to 20 individual burners. These furnaces range in size from
as large as 250 t per day of glass to as small as 18 t per day of glass. These furnaces are
common in fiberglass production but can also be used to produce frit. Some recuperative
furnaces are used in the container industry, though this is not common. Furnace life is a
function of glass type being produced. For example, a 6-year furnace life is typical for wool
fiberglass. A typical recuperative melter is shown in the following figure.

 The recuperative melter is amenable to supplemental oxy/fuel technique or the premixed

oxygen enrichment technique. Oxygen lancing is typically not used. In the supplemental
oxy/fuel technique, an air/fuel burner is simply replaced by an oxy/fuel burner. When premix
is applied, oxygen injection into the air main typically occurs downstream of the recuperator
to avoid problems associated with air leaks in the recuperator. Care should be taken in
locating the oxygen diffuser.

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 These furnaces are good candidates for full oxy/fuel. Recuperative heat exchanger
efficiencies are much lower than with regenerative furnaces, and therefore fuel savings can
help to drive the conversion. Also, recuperative furnaces operate in a continuous and steady
firing mode of operation similar to oxy/fuel furnaces.

ALL-ELECTRIC MELTER:
 As the name implies, all-electric melters receive all of the energy for glass melting through
electrical heating. Electric current is passed through the glass by means of electrodes.
Because of the electrical resistance of the glass, the glass is heated by Joulean heating.
Electrodes are typically made of molybdenum; however, tin oxide, platinum, graphite, and
iron have also been used. The electrodes are usually rod-or plate-type and can be located in
the melter side walls or bottom.

 The refractory tends to degrade much faster in these furnaces, resulting in very short furnace
campaigns, typically less than 2 years. Most of these furnaces are less than 36 t of glass per
day; however, furnaces as large as 180 t per day have been built. A typical electric melter is
shown in figure below.

 Due to the design of these furnaces, there is typically no fit for oxygen-enriched combustion.
One exception is “hot top” melters which provide some heat via burners located above the
bath. In this latter case, supplemental oxy/fuel or premixed oxygen enrichment has been
practiced.

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REGENERATIVE OR SIEMENS FURNACE:

 The regenerative furnace was patented in the U.S. by Siemens Corporation in the late 19th
century. While some design evolution has occurred, the basic concept has remained
unchanged. In a regenerative furnace, air for combustion is preheated by being passed over
hot regenerator bricks, typically called checkers. This heated air then enters an inlet port to
the furnace. By using one or more burners, fuel is injected at the port opening, mixes with the
air, and burns over the surface of the glass. Products of combustion exhaust out of the furnace
through a nonfiring port and pass through a second set of checkers, thereby heating them.
After a period of 15 to 30 min, a reversing valve changes the flow and the combustion air is
passed over the hot checkers that were previously on the exhaust side of the process. The fuel
injection system also reverses. After reversing, the exhaust gases pass through and heat the
checkers that had previously heated the combustion air.

 The Siemens furnace is the workhorse of the glass industry. Most flat glass and container
glass are produced in this furnace type. Regenerative furnaces are also used in the production
of TV products, tableware, lighting products, and sodium silicates. There are two common
variants of the Siemens furnace: the side-port regenerative melter, and the end-port
regenerative melter.

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END-PORT REGENERATIVE FURNACE:

 End-port regenerative furnaces are typically used for producing less than 230 t of glass per
day. In an end-port furnace, the ports are located on the furnace back wall. Batch is charged
into the furnace near the back wall on one or both of the side walls. The following figure
shows the layout of a typical end port furnace. These furnaces are commonly used for
producing container glass, but are also used for producing tableware and sodium silicates. For
container production, a furnace campaign typically lasts 8 years.

 Undershot of oxygen through lances and supplemental oxy/fuel have been used successfully
on this type of furnace. Oxygen enrichment of the preheated combustion air has also been
used on furnaces with damaged checkers.

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SIDE-PORT REGENERATIVE FURNACE:

 Side-port regenerative furnaces have ports located on the furnace side walls. Batch is charged
into the furnace from the back wall. The next figure shows the layout of a typical side-port
furnace. Side-port regenerative furnaces are typically used for producing greater than 230 t of
glass per day. A side-port furnace for float glass commonly produces 460 to 630 t of glass per
day. For container glass, side-port furnaces ordinarily produce between 230 to 320 t of glass
per day. These furnaces are commonly used in container and float glass production, but are
also used for the production of tableware and sodium silicates. For container production, a
furnace campaign typically lasts 8 years and for float glass production can last as long as 12
years.

 Undershot and supplemental oxy/fuel oxygen enrichment have been successfully used on this
type of furnace. Premix enrichment has also been used on furnaces with damaged checkers.
These furnaces have also been converted to full oxy/fuel.

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Glass Forming Processes:

 Differences in individual glass melting practices are driven by the scale and scope of the
manufacturing, the glass composition needed, the downstream processes involved, and the
ultimate product quality required. In this article, we’ll review two common glass
manufacturing methods: continuous and batch melting.
 As with any manufacturing process, glass melting can be broadly subdivided into batch and
continuous processes. Both of these processes can be used to manufacture common glass
compositions, such as borosilicate and soda lime silicate glasses. The best glass melting
process for your product depends on many factors, such as volume, speed, flexibility in
design, and costs. We’ll take a look at these two manufacturing processes, and discuss when
each should be considered.

Continuous Glass Melting Process:

 A continuous process has a “beginning” and an “end;” raw materials are fed into the front of
the furnace, and molten glass is removed from the end. As the glass passes through different
zones within the furnace, specific steps in the melting process are performed.
Advantages:
 High throughput: glass is always being made, and finished product is always coming out of
the furnace.

 Conducive to automation: this can translate into lower costs when large numbers of product
are required.

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Best for:
 Long runs and high volumes (100-500 tons/day) of the same or very similar formulations of
glass.
 Limited number of colour or compositional changes between products.
Types of Products Typically Produced by Continuous Melting:
 Food and beverage containers.
 Architectural glass.
 Insulation and reinforcing fiberglass.
 Consumer products, such as TV and smartphone screens.

Batch Glass Melting Process:

 In a batch process, all raw materials are added at one time, as opposed to being continually
fed into a furnace. The glass is melted in a single vessel or furnace, which is sometimes
called a “day tank.” Once the glass is melted, a portion of the glass is removed from the
melting vessel and is formed into a product. This step is performed multiple times until the
vessel is empty, which marks the end of that batch.
Advantages:
 Nimble manufacturing process: easy to scale up and down to customer demand.
 Flexibility: multiple formulations can be melted with the ability to minimize cross-
contamination between different glass compositions.

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Best for:
 New product development due to simpler process control and smaller scale. Melting
parameters can be customized and adjusted easily to shorten the new product development
cycle.
 Short runs of a wide variety of glass formulations and colours.
 Short lead times for uncommon or custom glasses.
 Small - medium volumes (0.5 – 2000 pounds).
Types of Products Typically Produced by Batch Melting:
 Aircraft lighting lenses.
 Moulded filter glasses.
 Custom moulded lenses for industrial and signal applications.

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Glass Processing:
 Define: Glass is known for its fragility as well as firmness that makes it typical of a solid. At
the same time, it can be qualified as a liquid, owing to its somewhat fluid nature. But
scientifically, glass is what is called an amorphous solid – a state between two states of
matter. In terms of conductivity, glass has neither thermal nor electrical, since it has no
reaction with the commonly known chemical compounds.
 Raw Materials: The primary raw materials in glass are sand, soda, limestone, clarifying
agents, colouring and glistening glass. Glass sand is about ¾th of the entire glass
composition.

Float Glass:
 Float glass, commonly known as flat glass, is made by floating molten glass on a bed of
molten tin. The molten glass spreads onto the surface of the metal and produces a high
quality, consistently level sheet of glass that is later cut into required sizes. This method gives
the glass uniform thickness and a very flat surface. The glass manufactured thus is devoid of
waves or distortion. This technique can continuously produce glass 24/7. It is therefore a river
of glass that exits the furnace before being cooled as it progresses along its path of around
300 meters and is then cut into very large sheets, which most frequently measure 3.21x2.25
meters. The float glass production process can be divided into five universal steps:
1.Batching of raw materials:
 The main components, comprising silica sand, calcium oxide, soda & magnesium are
weighed and mixed into batches to which recycled glass (cullet) is added. The use of ‘cullet’
reduces the consumption of energy. The materials are tested and stored for mixing later under
computerized control.

 The superior clarity offered by Saint-Gobain Clear Glass, is a result of purity in raw
materials, precision in composition and strict adherence to high quality standards in the
manufacturing process. The company has a dedicated sand beneficiation plant in Tada where
silica sand (to be used in manufacturing) is purified, and excess iron content is removed from
the material.

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2.Melting of raw materials in the furnace:

 The batched raw materials pass from a mixing silo to a five-chambered furnace where they
become molten. Temperatures in the furnace reach up to 1600°C.

3.Drawing the molten glass onto the tin bath:

 The molten glass is then "floated" onto a bath of molten tin at a temperature of about 1000°C.
It forms a “ribbon” which is normally between 5 and 6 mm. By suitably drawing the glass
through a complex process involving top roll machines, ribbon thickness in the range of
1.9mm to 19mm can be achieved. The glass, which is highly viscous, and the tin, which is
very fluid, do not mix and the contact surface between these two materials is perfectly flat,
giving the term “flat” glass to the final product.

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4. Cooling of the molten glass in the annealing lehr:

 On leaving the bath of molten tin, the glass - now at a temperature of 600°C - has cooled
down sufficiently to pass to an annealing chamber called a lehr. The glass is now hard
enough to pass over rollers and is annealed, which modifies the internal stresses, enabling it
to be cut and worked in a predictable way and ensuring flatness of the glass. As both surfaces
are fire finished, they need no grinding or polishing.

5. Quality checks, automatic cutting, and storage:

 After cooling, the glass undergoes rigorous quality checks. It is then cut into sheets of sizes
varying up to a maximum of 6000mm x 3660 mm which are, in turn, automatically stacked,
stored and ready for transport.

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Applications:
 Float glass is used for glazing wherever full transparency is required in buildings.
 It is used as a base material for safety glass, reflective glass and self-cleaning glass, among
others.
 It can be used in precision mechanics, especially where extreme surface flatness is required.
E.g., for visual displays.

Classification of Composite Materials | Fibers:

 Composite material is a material system composed of two or more dissimilar constituents,
differing in forms, insoluble in each other, physically distinct and chemically
inhomogeneous. The resulting product possesses properties much different from the
properties of constituent materials.
Classification of Composite Materials:
 Composite materials, also referred as composites, are broadly classified as.
o Agglomerated composite materials,
o Laminated composite materials, and
o Reinforced composite materials.

Laminated composite:
 Lamina and Laminate: Laminated materials also referred as laminates are layered
composites made-up of many laminae. A lamina also known as a ply or a layer is very thin,
about 0.1 mm to 1 mm thick. A single lamina is unsuitable for any purposeful application.
They are, therefore, joined or glued together to form a laminate of desired thickness. Thus a
laminate is made up of an arbitrary number of lamina.
 Number of lamina, in a laminate, can be few to many tens. A few examples of common
laminates are the following.

1. Plywood
2. Metal to metal laminate viz. cladded metals
3. Sheet moulding compounds (SMC)
4. Bulk moulding compounds (BMC)
5. Linoleum etc.
6. Teflon
Now we shall discuss main among them, one by one.

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 Laminate and delamination: A laminate is a stack of lamina with various orientations of the
directions of the principal materials in the lamina. Laminates can be built up with plates or
plies of different materials or of the same material, such as glass fibers.
 Shear stresses are always present between the layers of a laminate because each layer tends to
deform independently of its neighboring layers due to each layer having different properties.
These shear stresses, including the transverse normal stresses, are a cause of delamination.

 Bulk molding compounds (BMCs) are a premixed material of short fibers (chopped-glass
strands) pre-impregnated with resin and various additives. A dough molding compound
(DMC) is an alternative term for a BMC. Some thermoset resins are quite thick and are called
moulding doughs. Parts made by BMCs are limited to about 400 mm in their longest
dimension due to problems with separation of the components of moulding compound during
molding.

 Sheet moulding compounds (SMC) are non-metallic plastic-rein-forced-composite

laminates made-up by pressing together many unidirectional (U/D) laminae one over the
other. Laminate of desired properties may be prepared by placing U/D laminae in different
orientations. Generally, a prepreg is used for that.

 Prepreg SMC is an intermediate compound between raw material and the final product. Its
pot life is 3 to 4 days, and cannot be used after that. SMC is a blend of resin, hardener, fibers,
catalyst and accelerator. Its curing time can be further decreased by adding more than
specified quantity of hardener.

Reinforced Composite Materials:

 Reinforced composites are made-up of two basic constituents viz.
1. Matrix or body constituent, and
2. Reinforcing constituent.
The matrix constituent comprises of the following materials.
o Metals,
o Ceramics,
o Polymers,
o Concrete,
o Elastomers, and
o Cements.

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Commonly used reinforcing agents are the following.

o Metals such as steel in cement concrete.
o Organic fibers such as carbon, graphite, kevlar etc.
o Inorganic fibers such as glass, ceramic etc.

Classification of Reinforced Composite Materials:

 Based on various considerations, the reinforced composites are classified as follows.

Based on the nature:

 Organic Composites e.g. polymeric based
 Inorganic Composites e.g. reinforced cement concrete (RCC)

Based on the matrix material used:

 Polymer Matrix Composites (PMC)
 Metal Matrix Composites (MMC)
 Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMC)
 Cement Matrix Composites.

Based on the type of reinforcing material used:

 Particulate Composites
 Fiber Reinforced Composites (FRC)
 Flake Reinforced Composites or Flake Composites
 Whisker Reinforced Composites
 Hybrid Composites
 Sandwich Composites.

Based on the existence of fiber:

 Natural Fibers Composites
 Synthetic Fibers Composites

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Based on the aspect ratio of fiber:

 Continuous Fiber Composites
 Short Fiber Composites

Based on specialized material system:

 Fiber-Fiber Composites
 Toughened Composites, such as rubber-toughened-plastics
 Fiber Reinforced Glass (FRG)
 Glass Ceramic Matrix (GCM) Composites
 Polymer Concretes (PCs)
 Fiber Reinforced Concrete (FRC)
 Polymer Cement Concrete (PCC)
 Asbestos Reinforced Plastics (ARP)
 Nylon Reinforced Elastomers (NRE)
 Fiber Reinforced Metals (FRM)
 Wood-Plastics Composite

Based on the arrangement of fiber lay:

 Unidirectional (U/D) Composites
 Bidirectional or Cross-plied Composites
 Angle-plied Composites
 Off-axis Composites
 Randomly Oriented Composites
We shall now discuss some main composites out of the above classification.

Particulate Composites:
 Particulate composites have one or two dimensional macroscopic additive constituents
randomly embedded in the matrix. The size, nature and function of these particles vary
widely. The particles are 1µm or more in size and having volume concentrations of 20 to 40
percent.

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 Small particles of uniform size with proper orientation exhibit a more strengthening effect.
Elastic modulus of a particulate composite may be obtained by simple rule of mixture.

 Applications: Particulate composites are made by sintering which is a powder metallurgy

technique. The W-Ni-Fe and W-Ni-Cu systems are the examples of particulate composites.
Cermets described below are similar to particulate composites.

 Cermets: Cermet is made of cer and met. Here ‘cer’ stands for ceramic and `met’ for metal.
Cermet is a combination of ceramic and metal. A cermet consists of ceramic matrix and the
reinforcing metal particles. They are generally made by powder metallurgy technique.

 We know from that the refractories (a type of ceramics) are high temperature resisting, brittle
materials. Contrary to this, metals are ductile and have melting points varying from low to
very high. They also have higher mechanical strengths.

 A composition of ceramics and metals in different proportions gives desired thermal and
mechanical properties in cermets. They are very good wear and abrasion resistant materials,
and possess high hardness.

 Applications: Some notable applications of cermets are the following.

o Rotary drills in mining industries.
o Cutting tools in metal cutting industries.
o Shaping tools for refractories.
o Cemented carbide in high-speed cutting.
o Components in satellites and space-going vehicles.

Flake Composites:
 These are composites of two-dimensional nature, and are preferred when planer isotropy is
also desired in components of structures and machines. It should be noted that the composites
generally possess orthotropy; or anisotropy and not isotropy. Moreover, flakes of two-
dimensional geometry can be more closely packed than the fibers.
 These qualities make them suitable for various applications. Mica flakes-glass matrix
composites are easily machinable, and are used in heat and electrical insulating applications.
Silver flakes are used where good conductivity is desired.

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Whisker Reinforced Composites:

 Whiskers are a form of materials possessing extremely high strength and moduli. Strength
and moduli of whiskers are much superior than the bulk and fiber form of the same material.

 Hence their reinforcement in composites will impart too higher strengths and moduli.
Whisker reinforced composites are in the initial stage of development. It is a likely material
to be used in the near future.

Hybrid Composites:
 Fiber composites are made up of only a single type of fiber such as glass, carbon or kevlar
etc. Each type of fiber has its own limitations in terms of strength, cost and other material
properties. These limitations can be eliminated by using a combination of two or more types
of fibers in the same matrix.
 Mixing of two or more different-types of continuous fibers in the same matrix is called
hybridization and the resulting product is called hybrid composite. Improvement in properties
of such composites is due to the hybrid effect.

 Characteristics: Above Figure shows an idealized stress-strain characteristic curve of two

fiber system. The initial slope OA gives initial modulus and slope BC gives the final
modulus. The fall AB in the curve is due to failure of first fiber system at strain LA. The
second fiber system continues to take the load until final fracture occurs at strain Ec. In a
typical case, the first and second fiber systems may be those of glass and carbon.

 Types of Hybrid Composites: Hybrid composites are subdivided into following four types:
o Interply hybrid composites
o Intraply hybrid composites
o Inter-Intraply composites
o Super hybrid.

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 The interply hybrid composite consists of alternate lamina (layer or ply) of the same matrix
but different fibers. Intraply hybrid composite contains each lamina having two or more kinds
of fibers system. The inter-intraply composite is a combination of the above two types.

 Applications: Practical utilization of hybrid composites have been widely made. Out of these
some important applications are given below.
o Antenna dishes of CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastics) and aluminium honeycomb.
o CFRP and CRP leaf springs and drive shafts for automobiles.
o Busbars of aluminium, reinforced by CFRP.
o Squash racquets and golf clubs with shafts of CFRP/GRP/wood hybrid.
o Helicopter rotors and thin-walled tubes of CFRP and GRP.
o Coil springs of glass, aramid and carbon fiber hybrid.
o Artificial limbs and external bracing systems having CFRP base.

Sandwich Composites:
 A sandwich composite is constructed by sandwiching foam core between two skins of FRP
laminates as shown in Figure given below. The thickness of the skin is ts kept up to 3 mm,
and the thickness of core tc, is kept deeper.

 The core is either foamed or made of honeycomb material so that its density is very less. As
tc is deep (tc>> ts), the area moment of inertia of the cross-section is enhanced too much; due
to which the flexural rigidity of sandwich beam becomes more. This higher flexural rigidity
construction along with very lightweight makes the sandwich composite most suitable as a
beam.

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 Honeycomb Materials: Sandwich constructions are widely employed as beam component of

structures in airplanes, spacecrafts, satellites etc. A non-sandwiched, FRP composite beam
will be much heavier than a sandwiched beam of same dimensions.

Advantages and of Composites:

 They possess combination of excellent mechanical, chemical, structural, electrical, optical
and other desired properties.

 They are lightweight materials possessing higher specific strength and specific modulus than
the conventional materials.

 Power by weight ratio in aeroplanes is approximately 5 with the conventional materials while
it is about 16 with composites. This will require prime mover of reduced power resulting in
fuel economy, or more pay-load carrying capacity. Alternately it helps in weight reduction.
 Composites can be moulded to any shape and size and according to any desired specification.
 They possess excellent anti-chemical and anti-corrosion properties.
 Making, repairing and fabricating of composites are easier than the metals and RCC.
 Assembling and de-assembling of components is easy and quick. Efficient utilization of
material may be done. The fibers may be oriented in such a way so as to provide greatest
strength and stiffness in the desired direction.

 Seepage and weathering problems are negligible.

 Composites may be designed to obtain aesthetic appearance.

Disadvantages of Composites:
 They have low flash and fire points.
 They may develop undesired biological effects seen in polymers.
 Polymeric composites are not suitable for high temperature applications.
 Cost of composites is still higher than many conventional materials.
 On prolonged exposure to sunlight, the colors of composites generally fade-out.

Types of Fibers:
The fibers can be classified as under:

 Natural and synthetic fibers.

 Organic and inorganic fibers.
 Continuous and short fibers.

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 Natural fibers are obtained from natural sources such as plants, animals and minerals. For
example, fibers of jute, cotton and silk.

 Synthetic fibers are produced in industries. They are cheaper and more uniform in cross
section than the natural fibers. For example, fibres of glass, boron and carbon.
 Organic fibers such as carbon and graphite fibers are light in weight, flexible, elastic, and
heat senstive. Commericial carbon fibers are available by the trade names such as Hyfil,
Grafil, PAN etc.

 Inorganic fibers, have high strength, low fatigue resistance and good heat resistance. Their
examples are glass, tungsten, ceramic.

 Continuous and short fibers: The strength of composite increases when it is made of long
continuous fibers. A smaller diameter of fibers also enhances the overall strength of
composite. Fibers of various cross-sections such as square, rectangular, circular, hollow
circular, hexagonal, irregular cross-section are employed in composite constructions.

 Advanced fibers and composites: Composites using kevlar, graphite and boron fibers are
termed as advanced composites.

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Manufacturing Methods:
Spray Lay-up:
 The spray lay-up technique can be said to be an extension of the hand lay-up method. In this
technique, a spray gun is used to spray pressurized resin and reinforcement which is in the
form of chopped fibers.
 Generally, glass roving is used as a reinforcement which passes through spray gun where it is
chopped with a chopper gun.
 Matrix material and reinforcement may be sprayed simultaneously or separately one after
one.

 Spray release gel is applied on to the mold surface to facilitate the easy removal of
component from the mold.
 A roller is rolled over the sprayed material to remove air trapped into the lay-ups. After
spraying fiber and resin to required thickness, curing of the product is done either at room
temperature or at elevated temperature.
 After curing, mold is opened and the developed composite part is taken out and further
processed further. The time of curing depends on type of polymer used for composite
processing.
 The schematic of the spray lay-up process is shown below:

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Wet/Hand Lay-up:

 Simple, low cost, open mold fabrication process using liquid epoxy resin to position layers of
laminations in a mold until desired shape/thickness is achieved. Woven such as plain, twill,
plain basket waves, knitted, stitched bonded fabric layers are impregnated with an appropriate
epoxy resin system by brush or roller to ensure high quality composite components/parts
meet specific end use requirements. Vacuum bagging can be placed over the lay-up to assure
no air entrapment or voids during polymerization.

 Room temperature, heat (oven) and autoclave curing products are available for processing
low, medium, high production needs. Heat cure systems should be deliberately ramped up
and down in temperature to prevent distortions/warpage from uneven expansion/contraction.
Secondary posture process will enhance/maximize composite performance capability. Usage
extends from wind turbine blades, auto/bus parts, aircraft components, structural panels, air
handling equipment, housing, marine systems.

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Vacuum Bagging:

 Description: This is basically an extension of the wet lay-up process described above where
pressure is applied to the laminate once laid-up in order to improve its consolidation. This is
achieved by sealing a plastic film over the wet laid-up laminate and onto the tool. The air
under the bag is extracted by a vacuum pump and thus up to one atmosphere of pressure can
be applied to the laminate to consolidate it.
 Materials Options: Resins: Primarily epoxy and phenolic. Polyesters and vinyl esters may
have problems due to excessive extraction of styrene from the resin by the vacuum pump.
Fibres: The consolidation pressures mean that a variety of heavy fabrics can be wet-out.
Cores: Any.

Main Advantages:

 Higher fibre content laminates can usually be achieved than with standard wet lay-up
techniques.
 Lower void contents are achieved than with wet lay-up.
 Better fibre wet-out due to pressure and resin flow throughout structural fibres, with excess
into bagging materials.
 Health and safety: The vacuum bag reduces the amount of volatiles emitted during cure.

Main Disadvantages:

 The extra process adds cost both in labour and in disposable bagging materials
 A higher level of skill is required by the operators
 Mixing and control of resin content still largely determined by operator skill

Typical Applications:

 Large, one-off cruising boats, race car components, core-bonding in production boats.

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Filament Winding:
 Filament winding is a fabrication technique mainly used for manufacturing open (cylinders)
or closed end structures (pressure vessels or tanks). The process involves winding filaments
under tension over a male mandrel. The mandrel rotates while a wind eye on a carriage
moves horizontally, laying down in the desired pattern and then coated with synthetic resin as
they are wound.

 Once the mandrel is completely covered to the desired thickness, the resin is cured, often the
mandrel is placed in an oven to achieve this, though sometimes radiant heaters are used with
the mandrel still turning in the machine. Once the resin has cured, the mandrel is removed,
leaving the hollow final product. For some products such as gas bottles the 'mandrel' is a
permanent part of the finished product forming a liner to prevent gas leakage or as a barrier to
protect the composite from the fluid to be stored.

 1 Direct Roving’s are positioned in a support, another reinforcing materials can be used to
achieve the desired final product.
 2 A Fiber Guide separate the filaments to reduce the tension from the roving and aligning the
filament to receive the desired tension.
 3 Tensioning System will ensure that filament is stretched to its maximum to receive the
resin.
 4 Carriage and Platform with directional axis along the mandrel length.
 5 Resin Impregnation impregnates the in the platform by a hose into the fiber bundles. 6
Rotating Mandrel receive the impregnated fiber at certain tension to absorb the resin and
mould to the roll format.

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Applications:

 Golf clubs;
 Pipes;
 Oars;
 Bicycle forks;
 Bicycle rims;
 Power and transmission poles;
 Pressure vessels;
 Missile casings;
 Aircraft fuselages;
 Lamp posts;
 Yacht masts;

Pultrusion:
 The Pultrusion process is a highly automated continuous fibre laminating process producing
high fibre volume profiles with a constant cross section.

 The Process:
 Pultrusion is a manufacturing process for producing continuous lengths of reinforced polymer
structural shapes with constant cross-sections. Raw materials are a liquid resin mixture
(containing resin, fillers and specialized additives) and flexible textile reinforcing fibers. The
process involves pulling these raw materials (rather than pushing, as is the case in extrusion)
through a heated steel forming die using a continuous pulling device.

 The reinforcement materials are in continuous forms such as rolls of fiberglass mat and doffs
of fiberglass roving. As the reinforcements are saturated with the resin mixture ("wet-out") in
the resin bath and pulled through the die, the gelation, or hardening, of the resin is initiated by
the heat from the die and a rigid, cured profile is formed that corresponds to the shape of the
die.

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 While pultrusion machine design varies with part geometry, the basic pultrusion process
concept is described in the schematic shown below.

Resin Transfer Moulding (RTM):

 BFG International uses a variety of methods to produce FRP parts. Our experienced
engineers will select the best method for your project based on factors such as production
volume, parts dimensions, budget, and other requirements.

 Our extensive experience with Resin Transfer Moulding (RTM) enables us to produce
innovative and cost-effective parts for our OEM customers, including Alstom and
Bombardier Transportation.
 The process is best suited for high precision parts where a two-sided finish is required, and
for moderate production quantities, ranging from 100 to 7,000 parts per year.

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Process:
 A layer of glass fibre reinforcement is placed in a closed mould, whose edges are sealed and
clamped. The mould cavity is then set under vacuum and resin is injected under pressure to
fill the mould completely, making sure that no air is trapped in the finished product. The cure
cycle then starts by applying heat to the mould, and the resin forms a polymer to become a
rigid, lightweight plastic. Gel coats can also be applied to the surface to deliver a durable,
high quality finish.

Advantages:
 Suitable for mass production processes
 Works with a range of fibre reinforcements
 High surface quality on both sides
 Low environmental impact
 Less material wastage
 Capable of producing large, complex structures and hollow shapes
 Supports inserts and reinforcements for greater strength
 Zero air entrapment
 Laminate thickness - 0.5mm to 90mm

Limitations:
 The process is generally limited to smaller components
 Not suitable for parts with negative draft
 Part thickness is fixed at the time of mould construction
 Glass-resin ratios of less than 35%

Applications:
We use RTM processes to create a range of high-quality components including:
 Industrial furniture
 Boat hulls
 Wind turbine components
 Aerospace, rail and automotive parts
 Medical composites

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Resin Film Infusion (RFI):

 Description: Dry fabrics are laid up interleaved with layers of semi-solid resin film supplied
on a release paper. The lay-up is vacuum bagged to remove air through the dry fabrics, and
then heated to allow the resin to first melt and flow into the air-free fabrics, and then after a
certain time, to cure.
 Materials Options:
 Resins: Generally, epoxy only.
Fibres: Any.
Cores: Most, although PVC foam needs special procedures due to the elevated temperatures
involved in the process.

Main Advantages:

 High fibre volumes can be accurately achieved with low void contents.
 Good health and safety and a clean lay-up, like prepreg.
 High resin mechanical properties due to solid state of initial polymer material and elevated
temperature cure.
 Potentially lower cost than prepreg, with most of the advantages.

Main Disadvantages:

 Not widely proven outside the aerospace industry.

 An oven and vacuum bagging system is required to cure the component as for prepreg,
although the autoclave systems used by the aerospace industry are not always required.
 Tooling needs to be able to withstand the process temperatures of the resin film ( which if
using similar resin to those in low-temperature curing prepregs, is typically 60-100°C).
 Core materials need to be able to withstand the process temperatures and pressures.

Typical Applications:

 Aircraft radomes and submarine sonar domes.

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Advantages of Advance Manufacturing Processes:

 Reduction of lead time to satisfy consumers
 Getting new products to market more quickly
 Flexibility to adapt to changes in the market
 Improvement of product quality
 Cost reduction
 Increased consumer services as the most
 Important issues to address

 INCREASED LEVEL OF QUALITY:

o One of the main advantages of advanced manufacturing technology is quality
enhancement. When robotics and automation play a substantial role in the
manufacturing process, there’s less chance of human error. This is one of the main
reasons why facilities have switched from hiring a larger workforce to robots,
resulting in reduced mishaps, defects and other costly inefficiencies.
o Switching to automation also enables workers to focus on high-level, strategic tasks
that require decision-making. Tedious manual labour is then simply left for the
machines. Manufacturing personnel can improve floor efficiency, expand the
product’s capabilities, and do other engaging tasks.

 BOOST PRODUCTIVITY:

o Advanced manufacturing technologies help boost operational productivity in various

ways. They remarkably increase flexibility by giving manufacturers the option to
“have it their way”. They can make products in small batches for targeted customers,
adjust the production line as a result of design changes, and even increase the time to
market by generating prototypes quickly.
 GIVES WAY TO INNOVATION:
o Manufacturers can create new and improved products in a cost-effective manner with
advanced manufacturing technologies. In contrast, doing so with a conventional
manufacturing process can be quite expensive. The use of these technologies also
enables manufacturers to produce high-quality goods that are made specifically to
buyers’ requirements.
o Moreover, these processes are environmentally-friendly, consuming fewer raw
materials and generating far less waste. They further improve worker safety by
limiting exposure to hazardous materials.

 REDUCED PRODUCTION TIME WITH DIGITAL MANUFACTURING:

o Digital manufacturing uses virtualisation to generate digital factories that can simulate
the production process. The digital simulation allows engineers to save money and
time by optimising the factory’s layout, identifying flaws in the production steps and
modelling product output and quality. At a relatively lower cost, it allows
manufacturers to replicate entire assembly lines in different locations.

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Limitations of Advance Manufacturing Processes:

 The technology’s most glaring limitation is throughput, which falls far short of typical, high-
volume manufacturing processes. AM output, for example, could not meet the demands of
medical professionals for face shields and ventilators. Compounding this limitation is the lack
of automation for the complete workflow, especially for post-processing and quality
assurance.
 In times of need, cost takes a backseat to delivery. During the pandemic, AM’s high per-unit
cost for protective gear was not a significant factor in purchasing decisions. When less costly
alternatives appeared, however, their lower unit cost often trumped any advantages AM
offered.
 Business also faces an AM integration challenge: AM software solutions for planning,
scheduling, and monitoring do not play nice with the established management execution
systems that run factories. Lack of seamless integration makes AM operations an island in a
sea of manufacturing processes.
 The final challenge illuminated by the pandemic is lack of guidance, such as standards,
certifications, protocols, and best practices. For example, in their rush to make nasal swabs
and ventilator splitters, AM practitioners had no playbook from FDA and other regulatory
agencies. This issue goes beyond medical compliance. For the most part, additive
manufacturers are left to their own devices to characterize and qualify parts and establish best
practices.
 Considering both strengths and weaknesses, AM proved a viable stopgap solution for needed
supplies during the pandemic. Yet its performance is not a watershed moment that alters the
future of manufacturing. Instead, the pandemic reignited interest and curiosity in AM as a
supply chain alternative, which will give it a bit of momentum going forward.

 Manual labour is less necessary which means that jobs are lost.
 Smaller businesses likely cannot afford advanced technology, meaning that many cannot
compete and will go out of business.

Applications:
 Initially seen as a process for concept modelling and rapid prototyping, AM has expanded
over the last five years or so to include applications in many areas of our lives. From
prototyping and tooling to direct part manufacturing in industrial sectors such as
architectural, medical, dental, aerospace, automotive, furniture and jewellery, new and
innovative applications are constantly being developed.
 It can be said that AM belongs to the class of disruptive technologies, revolutionising the way
we think about design and manufacturing. From consumer goods produced in small batches
to large scale manufacture, the applications of AM are vast.
 The number of users of these technologies has been growing constantly, from artists,
designers and individuals to large companies and enterprises using AM to manufacture a
wide range of final products.

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 Typical applications for metal AM processes are summarised in the table above. Currently,
metal AM is not a process suitable for the mass production of millions of identical simple
parts. However, as systems and technologies advance and processing time is reduced, the use
of AM for producing large quantities of parts will become a viable option.

 Aerospace applications offer huge potential for AM. There are 19 of these AM fuel nozzles
in each of GE’s new LEAP passenger jet engines (Courtesy GE Aviation)

 The advantages of AM derive from its high flexibility due to the product being produced
directly from a CAD model without the need for tooling. This also allows the AM process to
produce almost any geometry that can be designed.
 There are some applications, for example dental restorations, that really tap the full potential
of AM. In this highly individualised production process, it is economically viable to use AM
technologies, speeding up the production time without inflating the costs per part.
 Applications in aerospace, for example the fuel nozzles for the GE LEAP engine, highlight
the possibilities of AM in this demanding sector. Additive Manufacturing allowed engineers
to design a fuel nozzle which is 25% lighter and five times more durable than the previous
part.
 Additive Manufacturing complements the vast group of production processes, allowing
designers and engineers to improve existing process chains, as well as offering new
opportunities for production.
 It is difficult to state exactly when AM production becomes the first choice for an enterprise,
but, for small series production (depending on the part, some thousands parts per year for
example), functional prototypes and individual parts, AM is a good option.
 Changing the paradigm of “design for manufacturing” to “design for function” will change
the way we experience improvements of future components and will improve the
performance of the system.

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Case Studies:
Validating ion engines for interplanetary travel
 Curiosity led exploration of space has driven the development of over 2000 technologies
including integrated circuits, lightweight insulation and automated credit card transactions.
However, overcoming this harsh environment requires state-of-the art technology which
presents its own new measurement challenges. This is especially true for interplanetary travel
where high vehicle fuel efficiency is required for the long distances involved, maximizing
mission payloads and the amount of science that can be performed

 Challenge:
 Space exploration has provided insights into the formation of the solar system and processes
underway on Earth. Missions to Venus, for example, have informed us on the greenhouse
effect and the dangers of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). Ion engines, a form of electric
propulsion, may be preferable to chemical rockets for such missions. Being more efficient
they require less fuel thus smaller, lower-cost launch vehicles can be used, and payloads
maximized. One common form of ion engine employs ‘gridded’ thrusters in which propellant
atoms are bombarded by electrons to generate positively charged ions. The potential
difference between two plates at the rear of the engine, the screen and accelerator grids, focus
these particles and accelerate them to extremely high velocities to provide thrust. Key to
efficiency is the separation (< 1 mm) between these plates, but pre-launch measurement of
this parameter has proven challenging. During operation grid plates can exceed 400 ºC and
only mathematical models existed to inform on effects such as thermal expansion on plate
separation. In addition, engines are tested in vacuum chambers which are large to minimise
interactions between the thruster being tested and the walls of the chamber in order to
reproduce as closely as possible the conditions in space. No practical methodology existed to
accurately measure changes in grid plate separation down to the required resolution, in vacuo
and from outside of the vacuum chamber, over 6 m from the thruster

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 Solution:
 The EMRP project Large Volume Metrology in Industry successfully tackled the most
critical needs expressed by a range of users of Large Volume Metrology, including novel
ways of measurement compensation for thermal and refractive index distortions. During the
project’s lifetime a system based on ‘divergent beam frequency scanning interferometry’
(FSI) was developed. FSI uses a tenable laser to provide highly accurate distance
measurements with the potential to track multiple targets with an accuracy in the μm range.
After successfully demonstrating an accuracy of FSI of 50 μm over small (1 m3 ) volumes it
was then developed further into a longer-range system. This demonstrated an accuracy of 100
μm over a range of 10 m. As well as improving the measuring range using spatial light
modulators, which also allowed beam shaping and steering, a novel dual-wavelength
technique allowed the system to compensate for the presence of vibration

 Impact:
 QinetiQ is a world leader in defence, technology and security and, since development of their
ground-breaking T1 ion thruster in the sixties, it is also a world leader in electric propulsion
systems. Using a modified FSI system NPL, who developed the method in the EMRP project,
was able to measure the alignment of the grid plates in QinetiQ’s innovative, 22 cm-diameter,
T6 ion engine with < 100 µm uncertainty, validating QinetiQ’s mathematical models. These
engines are now in use in ESA and JAXA’s 2018 BepiColombo mission to Mercury. NPL’s
contribution has been instrumental in giving ESA the confidence required to use these
engines and it is the first-time electric propulsion has been used to travel to one of the inner
planets. QinetiQ’s thrusters will minimise fuel consumption and hence help address key
challenge such as the enormous amount of energy required to brake the craft at its destination
whilst maximising the quantity of scientific equipment being transported. Once the
BepiColombo mission arrives at the planet in late 2025 it will help reveal information on the
composition and history of Mercury and about the formation of the inner planets in general,
including Earth. 11326/0920 - IND53

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ADVANCE MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGIES 337

 New low-cost, large volume measurements for industry:

 The EMRP Large Volume Metrology in Industry (Luminar) developed three approaches to
compensate for measurement errors associated with industrial conditions, including refractive
index effects in optical measurements caused by environmental variations. Prototypes and
novel systems based on optical technologies capable of measuring distances covering 10
metre and 50 metre ranges with micrometre precision were built and validated. These were
assessed at a 50-metre tape bench facility which was upgraded with additional temperature,
pressure and humidity sensors to enable provision of conditions similar to industrial
environments. Performance of the new techniques were then assessed under industrial
conditions. As well as submitting five patents a new calibration service using tracking
interferometry was established for large component measuring machines. A novel multi-
target measuring system also developed will help solve problems in large science (CERN,
ESRF) facilities where the performance of existing large volume metrology tools is
insufficient for next generation accelerators.

Industrial self-validating thermocouples:

 Temperature sensors are commonly used to maintain optimal thermal conditions for high-
value manufacturing processes, such as heat treatment of aircraft components. Unavoidable
calibration drift reduces measurement accuracy over time, so conventional thermocouples
require frequent replacement, which interrupts production and adds significant labour costs.
Calibration systems used in laboratories could provide confidence and extended lifetimes but
were too large to be integrated into industrial processes.

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 Challenge:
 For optimal efficiency and product quality, high-value manufacturing processes are required
to operate at very specific temperatures. Turbine blade heat-treatment, for example, is
performed at temperatures above 1300 °C and held within narrow tolerances and temperature
ranges, requiring furnaces to be controlled by several precious-metal thermocouples.
 A characteristic of thermocouples is calibration drift. Exposed to such high temperatures,
thermocouple voltage outputs deviate from calibrated values, resulting in increasingly
inaccurate temperature measurements. As it can be extremely difficult to recalibrate in these
conditions, the remedy is frequent thermocouple replacement, resulting in production
downtimes and additional labour costs.
 Calibration systems traceable to the current International Temperature Scale of ITS90
applying a fixed-point method of temperature calibration might enable in situ calibration of
industrial high-temperature thermocouples. Fixed point calibration uses pure metals that melt
at fixed temperatures, so enabling voltage readings to be calibrated and real-time correction,
for measurement confidence and extended lifetimes. However, industrial use was not feasible
as these laboratory calibration systems were physically too large to be integrated into existing
industrial processes.
 Previous research developed the technology for some nonlaboratory uses. In-situ self-
validating thermocouples were successfully miniaturised by the National Physical Laboratory
(NPL) for space applications, and further in the EMRP project High temperature metrology
for industrial applications. Strong interest resulted, but prototypes remained oversized. As
metals were externally exposed, it was also unclear whether these designs would contaminate
heat-treatment processes.

 Solution:
 The EMPIR project Enhancing process efficiency through improved temperature
measurement developed and trialled self-validating thermocouples with external dimensions
no larger than existing process sensors. This enabled periodic in situ recalibration traceable to
ITS-90, temperature measurement uncertainty of less than 1 °C at temperatures above 1300
°C, plus demonstrated suitability for industrial use.
 The new design used a thinner graphite wall and an inert barrier to reduce chemical
interactions, enabling it to be packaged inside a 7 mm, standard-sized, outer diameter sheath.
With the same exterior dimensions and appearance as conventional thermocouples, the
slimline design offered practical in situ calibration and was robust and stable enough to be
used in real-world applications. One 400- day industry trial demonstrated excellent
robustness and the ability to perform self-validation on a consistent basis.

 Impact:
 CCPI Europe, a subsidiary of The Marmon Group - a Berkshire Hathaway Company, that
offers temperature measurement solutions, was an unfunded partner in the project, as well as
in the earlier EMRP project.
 Having seen potential cost savings for its customers in the heat treatment market, it decided
to commercialise the slimline self-validating thermocouple. As the project concluded, a
licensing agreement was signed with NPL to exploit the design.

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 CCPI Europe since combined self-validating thermocouples with its sensor assembly and
typical industrial measurement instrumentation, and developed analysis software to further
reduce technical and cost barriers. Extensive testing followed, including for system accuracy
and to destruction at above operational conditions.
 A marketing plan anticipates a likely 2020 product launch targeting high-value manufacturers
keen to invest in significant reductions in downtime costs and improved confidence in
temperature measurements. Further developments may also present opportunities for
automation, in line with ‘Industry 4.0’ concepts. I
 mproved temperature measurement will result in tighter process control, leading to better,
higher-quality products, and will further enhance the competitiveness of European industries.

Improved temperature measurement:

 The project developed and evaluated more stable thermocouples: including self-validating
thermocouples; a Platinum-Rhodium thermocouple optimised for minimal calibration drift
for use up to 1800 °C; a sapphire tube-based blackbody sensor for use in silicon processing
up to 1600 °C; and a carbon thermocouple for use above 2000 °C.
 To implement in-situ traceability of temperature measurement in industry, ultra-low drift
sensors were developed and assessed. A mineral-insulated, metal-sheathed, double-walled
thermocouple exhibited stability ten times better than equivalent conventional thermocouples,
and a self-validating thermocouple with a traceably calibrated fixedpoint cell provided in-situ
self-calibration.
 A suite of thermometry techniques was also developed based on phosphor thermometry, as
well as a contact probe capable of automatically compensating for heat flow; a key output
being a surface probe calibrator.
 Finally, a portable standard flame was commissioned and characterised, for use as an artefact
to traceably calibrate flame and combustion thermometry instrumentation.
 Improving nuclear reactor safety:

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 Few instruments and sensors will survive inside a 2000 ºC furnace. Yet such high
temperatures must be measured accurately, if we are to keep improving the materials which
are manufactured at or submitted to such temperatures - materials which are key to industries
like aerospace and energy. New methods are needed to provide reliable measurement of the
extremely high temperatures which underpin vital industrial processes.

 Challenge:
 Many industrial processes, such as steelmaking, glass and ceramics manufacture, and
materials research are done in industrial furnaces operating at very high temperatures.
Reaching the required temperature is important for producing the right material properties
and reliable temperature measurement is key to demonstrating such temperatures have been
attained.
 Accurately measuring these high temperatures is challenging and is frequently carried out
using non-contact thermometers performing measurements through protective windows.
These thermometers suffer from measurement inaccuracies caused by the harsh environments
produced by the industrial processes. Reliability is further reduced as the windows become
covered with a contaminant film of vaporised material from the furnace, depressing the
measured temperature by an unknown amount.
 Overcoming these measurement problems requires new measurement approaches which can
provide traceable, in-situ calibration of optical thermometers, without being compromised by
the harsh, hot environments.

 Solution:
 The EMRP project High temperature metrology for industrial applications (>1000 °C)
(HiTeMS) developed and tested new calibration standards for the high temperatures within
industrial furnaces.
 Small high-temperature fixed-point blackbody cells were developed containing a
combination of metal carbon eutectic alloys – cobalt-carbon, ruthenium-carbon and rhenium-
carbon - which melt at precise temperatures. Such high temperature fixed points, with very
reliable melting temperatures above 1100 °C, have only become available for industrial use
through the work of the HiTeMS project. Rigorous laboratory testing was undertaken to
ensure they would withstand hostile industrial environments, including very rapid
temperature excursions likely to be encountered in industry.
 These cells are placed directly in the industrial furnace. For in-situ calibration the control
non-contact thermometer views the fixed point blackbody. The fixed point melts at a known
temperature, against which the thermometers can be calibrated. This in-situ calibration
against traceable temperature standards creates more accurate and reliable measurements,
automatically compensating for the changing window transmission and so allowing industrial
processes to be run at optimal temperatures

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 Impact:
 The Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), a key player in nuclear
power and safety research, is the first user of the temperature cells developed by the project.
 The CEA is investigating the properties of materials formed at the very high temperatures in
the event of a nuclear reactor accident. Reliable property data for these materials is essential
for reliable nuclear power plant safety modelling. Such reliable data can only be obtained if
precise material temperatures are known, this demands accurate temperature measurement.
However, up to now it has not been possible to perform in-situ non-contact thermometer
calibrations, leading to potentially significant errors in the furnace operating temperature. The
CEA is now using the project’s temperature cells to regularly recalibrate their noncontact
temperature sensors

 The CEA has greatly increased precision of high temperature measurement using the in-situ
standards developed by this project, reducing measurement uncertainties and in particular
improving assurance of the furnace operating temperature. The CEA now has increased
confidence that materials have been formed at the specified temperatures and reliable test
results will improve models used for severe nuclear accident prevention and management.
They are also promoting the use of the project’s temperature cells to other members of the
EURATOM FP7 Framework project SAFEST, which is researching the control of accidents
in nuclear power plants.
 Projects such as these should ensure that, in the extreme event of an accident in a nuclear
power plant, damage is contained and the consequences minimized.

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High-temperature metrology for industry:

 The EMRP project High temperature metrology for industrial applications (>1000 °C)
developed and extended accurate temperature measurements at high temperatures to support
a wide range of manufacturing processes. It addressed specific problems associated with both
contact and noncontact thermometry techniques and calibration methods in hostile high-
temperature environments with a focus on practical in-situ measurement techniques. By
enabling effective control of temperature-dependent processes the research supports
improved safety, product quality, reduced waste and reduced energy use.
 Under pressure: sensors for new engines:
 Accurately measuring pressure shocks generated by contained explosions is challenging.
European automotive, aerospace and defence industries rely on measuring these types of
dynamic pressure changes in developing new products. There is currently no traceable
calibration method for dynamic pressure, and existing static sensor calibrations may not
represent performance in dynamic pressure applications. Companies require reliable
information on sensor performance in dynamically changing pressure extremes.

 Challenge:
 Dynamic pressure changes involving a near instantaneous shock wave are generated in many
applications. For example, during the fuel ignition sequence of an internal combustion engine
a rapid increase in pressure occurs from atmospheric to several hundreds of atmospheres.
Even more extreme conditions arise when airbags inflate during rapid decelerations or when
guns are fired and momentary pressure excursions of tens of thousands of atmospheres are
possible. The safe operation of all of these relies on testing during design and production.
 Sensors calibrated using static or very slowly increasing pressures may not have the same
response to such rapidly fluctuating and extreme short-lived pressure excursions. New
pressure calibration facilities are needed that are capable of producing shock pressures with
greater similarity to in-service conditions to address growing industrial demand for more
relevant traceability.

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 Solution:
 The EMRP project Dynamic: Traceable Dynamic Measurement of Mechanical Quantities
validated a facility to provide accurate dynamic calibrations for pressure sensors based on
shock tubes. This system generates a near instantaneous shock wave by increasing pressure at
one end of the tube, until a separating diaphragm rupture. The sensor under test is mounted at
the other end of the tube, and experiences this well-characterised sudden pressure change.
The standardised, controlled pressure increases in the shock tube underpin this traceable
measurement, allowing a characterised and accurate calibration of the sensor under test, and
recreating conditions more reflective of those in-services.

 Impact:
 Kistler Instrumented AG, a global market leader in dynamic measurement technology,
develop measuring systems and sensors that push the physical limits. As a manufacturer of
dynamic pressure sensors, Kistler was keen to be one of the first users of the new calibration
facility. The validated sensor performance data the calibration system provided to Kistler is
supporting them in the extreme challenges posed by the applications of their sensors.
 Accurate dynamic pressure measurement is key in the design of more fuel efficient and less
polluting engines which will operate at higher pressures and temperatures than current
models. Kistler is proposing to use the facility to characterise new prototype sensors during
the design process, reassuring them that they perform to specification. Their sensor
technology aims to support engine research and development aimed at enhancing efficiency
and power, improving comfort, and reducing emissions. A key component in achieving these
goals will be the assessment and comparison of measured engine parameters such as cylinder
pressure for combustion analysis.
 The shock tube calibration system provides improved confidence in sensor performance
during rapid dynamic pressure excursions allowing companies to demonstrate that sensors
meet their stated specification. More realistic calibration conditions particularly benefit
customers in the gas turbine and combustion engine industries, where improved engines as a
result of dynamic pressure sensor testing contribute to competitiveness.

 Traceable Dynamic Measurement of Mechanical Quantities:

 The EMRP project Traceable Dynamic Measurement of Mechanical Quantities developed
validated calibration devices to provide traceable dynamic measurements of force, torque and
pressure. Traceable dynamic measurements help the automotive, aerospace and defence
industries to design and operate safety critical ballistic systems more reliably and ensure the
efficiency of dynamic systems such as car engines. The methods and devices developed by
the project enable calibration under dynamic conditions closer to those experienced during
operation, and provide important estimations of accuracy and uncertainty.

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REFRENCE LINKS

YASH:
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2 04-06-2021 Additive Manufacturing Blog Intro of AM
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3 04-06-2021 Manufacturing Article Working of AM
Working of Additive
4 04-06-2021 Manufacturing Article Working of AM
Research
5 04-06-2021 Need of AM Paper Additive manufacturing
6 05-06-2021 SLS Video SLS
7 05-06-2021 VIM atomization Video VIM automation
8 05-06-2021 Polyjet & Multijet Research paper Polyjet & Multijet
9 05-06-2021 Materials in AM Blog Types of Material
Research
10 05-06-2021 Applications of Am Paper Fields of Applcations
11 05-06-2021 Case Studies Research Case Study on machine part
Research
12 05-06-2021 Future Functioning of AM Paper Future of AM
13 05-06-2021 Case Study of ISRO Case Study Case Study of Component
14 06-06-2021 Rapid Prototype Blog Intro of Rapid Prototype
15 06-06-2021 Virtual prototyping WIkipedia Intro About VP
16 06-06-2021 CNC Rapid prototyping Blog CNC
17 06-06-2021 Rapid tooling Video Injection Maulding
18 07-06-2021 Hot/Cold compacting Blog Compacting
19 08-06-2021 Shearing of metal sheets Blog Sheet metal Cutting
20 08-06-2021 Shearing of metal sheets Blog Sheet metal Cutting
Research
21 09-06-2021 Steal Rules Paper Steal rules
22 09-06-2021 Nibbling Blog Nibbling Process
23 09-06-2021 Press Back Forming Blog Bending
24 09-06-2021 Tube Banding and Forming Blog Tube Bending
25 09-06-2021 Sheet Metal cutting Blog Laser beam cutting
26 09-06-2021 Sheet Metal cutting Article Water jet removing
27 10-06-2021 Sheet Metal cutting Article Water jet removing
28 10-06-2021 Sheet Metal cutting PPT Band-Saw
29 10-06-2021 Sheet Metal cutting Blog Flame cutting
30 10-06-2021 Sheet Metal cutting Blog Deep Drawing
31 10-06-2021 Sheet Metal cutting Article Rubber-Hydro Forming
32 10-06-2021 Sheet Metal cutting Article Spinning
Computer Integrated
33 11-06-2021 Fundamental of CAM Blog Manufacturing

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34 11-06-2021 Fundamental of CAM Blog Group Technology

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39 12-06-2021 Rapid prototyping Blog Types
40 13-06-2021 Rapid prototyping Article SDM
41 13-06-2021 Glass Science Blog Glass State
42 13-06-2021 Glass Science Blog Process
43 13-06-2021 Composite Material Article Composite
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SOMEN:
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1 4th June 2021 history blog history of additive manufacturing
2 4th June 2021 history blog history challenges benefits
3 4th June 2021 history blog history
importance of additive research importance of additive
4 4th June 2021 manufacturing paper manufacturing
additive manufacturing
5 4th June 2021 materials blog materials used
6 4th June 2021 dmls article dmls
7 4th June, 2021 dmls video dmls
additive manufacturing additive manufacturing
8 5th June, 2021 technologies blog technologies
9 5th June, 2021 dmlm video dmlm
10 5th June, 2021 limitations of am article challenges associated with am
11 6th June, 2021 history of metal magazine history of metal
12 6th June, 2021 metal rolling process website metal rolling
13 6th June, 2021 rotary tube piercing video rotary tube piercing
14 6th June, 2021 tube piercing gif tube piercing
15 6th June, 2021 tube rolling video tube rolling
16 6th June, 2021 hot and cold rolling website hold and cold rolling
17 6th June, 2021 temper rolling video temper rolling
18 8th June, 2021 rolling types website all types of rolling
cogging a process of open die
19 8th June, 2021 cogging website process
20 9th June, 2021 direct and indirect extrusion website direct and indirect extrusion
21 11th June, 2021 metal forming case studies website metal forming case studies
22 11th June, 2021 metal forming case studies website metal forming case studies

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USED BOOKS AND PHOTOS:

Google Drive Link:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1IaZUxdFhIMgN0T06QLa_98i5anR3UYnE

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