NPD Network

In many cases the inception of a new product idea begins with identifying the need for a product device or process that makes certain tasks easier. Some products are clearly more necessary than others for example, the scraper used to de-ice a car windshield is a very useful product, during the winter months and in parts of the world that experience freezing conditions. The point is that even great products can have only limited market potential. Before considering the development of a product for commercialization, the technology should be evaluated for its feasibility.



CadModels.Biz

Cadmodels.biz offers a variety of services in the field of product development. Our services range from initial design, clean up and repair of existing data files and 2d to 3d conversion to prototype fabrication, preparing patent literature and performing the manufacturing processes necessary to bring your product to market. We can take your idea from concept art to finished production engineering, providing 3D CAD services for complete product engineering and design for the consumer product market. Have your concept designed, built, tested and manufactured through Cadmodels.biz.



Software used in Engineering

As with all modern scientific and technological endeavors, computers, software and internet tools play an increasingly important role. As well as the typical business application software there are a number of computer aided applications specifically for engineering. Computers can be used to generate models of fundamental physical processes, which can be solved using numerical methods.

2D versus 3D CAD

Summary

Rapid prototyping quickly verifies designs and reduces development time and cost. In today's rapidly changing marketplace, product development cycles have been compressed into weeks for what may have taken months or years in the past. Computer-Aided Design, or CAD, has revolutionized the way products are developed, and offers the designer a wide range of options to physically build parts and assemblies to validate form, fit and function. This article will discuss the use of CAD models in rapid prototyping to verify designs as it pertains to injection molding and die casting.

Since the earliest days of rapid prototyping, experts have envisioned the application of the technology in the manufacturing process, and the focus of this vision has been on the initial cost and time savings that are realized when tooling is eliminated. However, the relative impact pales in comparison to the wide ranging advantages that exist when rapid manufacturing is implemented.

Rapid Manufacturing (RM) is the name given to the production of series or end-use component parts made using additive Layer Manufacturing (ALM) processes. ALM processes take three dimensional Computer aided Design (3D-CAD) data and directly print or grow parts in a variety of materials.

Although RM remains in its infancy, with up-take restricted almost exclusively to large scale OEM's and technology focused research firms, the technology has been cited as leading towards a second industrial revolution for the digital age, where it could have a significant impact on business, society, the economy and the environment.

Because RM has the potential to change the paradigm of global manufacturing, it is undoubtedly of increasing importance in both further and higher education. To-date however, RM focused learning tools have been restricted to printed materials, static web based resources and on-line multimedia content produced by technology vendors to stimulate sales.

The prime concerns of manufacturing engineers are productivity and quality. The daily challenge is to ensure maximum production quantity while adhering to the specified quality standards. Jigs & fixtures are essential tools to achieve these aims.

SLS, or "Selective Laser Sintering," is one of many additive fabrication techniques used in rapid prototyping today. SLS shows a lot of promise as it provides us with an opportunity to, not only, exceed in rapid prototyping, but also make advances in technology toward rapid manufacturing. The process uses a laser to fuse small particles into parts ideal for functional applications directly from 3D CAD data. The parts are created layer by layer using a wide scope of nylon, metal, and polymer powders. SLS shares many similarities with other additive technologies such as SLA, FDM and DMLS. The machine first reads the provided 3D CAD and then scans each cross-section before creating the first layer. After the first layer has been created, the tray, on which the parts are sintered, is lowered by one layer. The next layer of material is then added and the process is repeated layer by layer until the part is created.

Stereolithography, or STL, is an additive technology which uses a UV laser to create parts from a UV curable liquid within an SLA, or Stereolithography Apparatus, system.

For a part to be created using STL, a 3D model of the desired part must first be created, after which the 3D data is seperated into a group of 2d layers of the entire part. These layers typically range from 0.10mm to 0.050mm in thickness (although a resolution of 0.050mm in thickness is usually used) and this group layers is called called "slice data." The slice data is then fed into the SLA system and the actual fabrication process begins. The platform is first lowered into the vat of clear, liquid plastic photopolymer. The polymer used is sensitive to ultraviolet light, allowing the polymer to solidify when it is exposed to the light provided by the UV laser and the materials used in this process range from soft durable plastic to hard plastics. The ultraviolet laser traces and selectively solidifies the first layer within the resin onto the platform, which is currently submerged one layer under the resin.

After the first layer has been created, the following layers are added to the first layer while adhering to the previous layer. A resin-filled "re-coater" blade is swept across the top the previous layer removing the uncured polymer while re-coating it with fresh material. The platform is then lowered gradually submerging the platform along with the base of the part (and the part itself, or rather the section of the part, which has been already created layer by layer) deeper under the resin. This process repeats itself until the last layer has been created and the part is completed. This is a relatively quick process. Up to about two minutes is needed for each layer to be created whereas an entire run might take six to 12 hours.