Rapid Prototyping — 3D Part Creation Directly from Cad Files. The Top Three Technologies Are FDM (Fused DEPOSITION MODELELING), SLA (STEREOLITHOGRAPHY), and SLS (SELECTIVEIVEININENININENININENERELELELELELELELARARARAAAAEAAOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAationationationationationationationEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Ebhe111111111E1angangangangangangangangangangangangangangangangangangeet1E1E1E1E1E intoet his
Handmade/fabricated
CNC Machine
Casting – Polyurethane, Epoxy, or Silicone
Injecting Molding – Tempory Tooling
Vacuum Forming
Composites
Selecting the best option should be base on your requirers.
Purpose of prototype
Aesthetic Requirements
Lead time – turnaround time
Plastic ManuFacturing Process
Tolerances
Level of detail
Material Properties
Quantity of prototypes required
Size of parts
Cost
Degree of class/color
Parameters to be tested or Verify
Then, then
Hand fabricated or, in some cases, CNC Machined.
Unil the parts we molded.
Will lead you to a different prototyping option.
Like The One Shown Below Would Require The Follow Parts:
Single, Hollow Fine Build FDM or SLA PART for The Main Body
Red and Green Tinted Acrylic Window
Front bezel with holes
Inner Front Bezel Ring
Separat Blue Decorative Oval Ring
Elastomeric Blue Trim Around Display
BLACK PAINTED CLEAR Acrylic Insert for Display
Separate blue Button
Michael Paloian
CNC-Machined Ren Shape, FDM, and Hand-Fabricated Sheet.
Independent Prototyping Facilities Will Typically Convert 3D CAD FILES Into Parts Based on the Follow General Turn-Avand Times:
Process
Turn-eround time
Rapid prototyping
Two days to one week
Handmade/fabricated
ONE to Three Weeks
CNC Machine
ONE to TWO Weeks
Cast
Two Weeks to One Month
Injecting molding
ONE Week to One Month
Vacuum Forming
ONE to Three Weeks
Composites
ONE to Three Weeks
Although injection molding is the most popular plastic molding process, there are many other processes available for manufacturing plastic products. Most 3D rapid prototyping is optimized for injection-molded parts, since the tooling investment and part complexity are the most extreme for this process. Other processes like blow molding, vacuum forming, rotational molding, and extrusion are also specified for processing plastic parts. Each process has its own set of unique design criteria, choice of materials, and type of part geometry.
Blow-molded bottles, for example, are typically manufactured in polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or polypropylene (PP). Prototyping a PE blow-molded bottle in a 1-mm wall utilizing any of the rapid prototyping methods is not available today. However, a blow-molded PE bottle can be prototyped by creating an SLS or FDM blow mold and molding a few samples. There are several vendors offering this type of service. The same is true for other plastic molding processes, where the mold is either 3D printed or CNC machined, and a small quantity of parts are molded in the actual material. Prototyping plastic parts based on the actual material and molding process provides you with the most accurate representation of the final production part. Injection-molded prototype parts in the actual material will be almost identical to the production parts. They can be tested and evaluated based on the performance of the specified resin, molded-in stresses, as well as the part tolerances. Large structural foam molded parts are best suited for CNC fabrication or FDM, with a 70% to 80% part density. Since structural foam molded parts are typically large, you may be required to split them into smaller pieces that are printed and assembled into one larger piece.
+/- 0.007 in. SLS parts are like this of sla.
+/- 0.01 to as much as +/- 0.06 in. Depending on all the variables previously.
Prototyping Method
Material
Equipment
Part features
3D Printing – Ratio Between Material Deposit and Feature
A BRIEF Review of Resolution and Accurate Replication of Design Features IS Provided Below for Each of the Prototyping Options.
Machines are theReface IDEAL for Resolutions No Greater than 100 Microns. Typical Extruder Bead Diameters Are 200 Micner or2 mm, Which Limits Details to This Resolution.
This process is preferred for product very fine defaled parts.
Selective Laser Sintering (SLS). Part Resolution Lies Somewhere Between FDM and SLA. Typical Layer Resolution is 75 Micner.
Level. This option is therefore at the bottom of the list for account for acclication of design features.
Michael Paloian
Example of a handmade prototype.
Michael Paloian
CNC Machined Prototypes.
Replicate Details As Fine as a FingerPrint, The High Labor Content inherent in this Process Typically Results in Very Incensisistenton.
Time.
With mounting features bonded to the rear size after molding. Parts Molded in the Processes typically do have done dyils.
The second part of this two-experience service, which has now ben public, covers the size remaining considations.
If you have any questions, please feel free to control me at 516-482-2181 or via email,.
About the author
Conferences. He has attributten Hundreds of Design-Related Articles for Many Publications. Molded Case PARTS Be reacked by 516/482-2181 or Via E-MAIL,.