Fabrisonic, Ohio, has developed a unique Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing (UAM) process that uses ultrasonic waves to fuse metal foil layers together in a solid state. Its hybrid 3D printing process is installed on traditional CNC equipment, so once the layers are merged, the machine can cut out the final shape.
Its UAM process is known for its ability to create unique features and complex internal geometries, in addition to embedding sensors in solid metal parts and combining dissimilar metals. Now Fabrisonic takes things a step further by combining these three functions and then adding organic geometric shapes created by metal powder bed fusion (PBF) printing.
According to SmarTech Analysis, regarding its "Metal Powder Additive Manufacturing in 2020" report, powder bed fusion technology is "permeating into the real manufacturing field, and this initial acceptance just improves the common standard of the technology's performance and capabilities." In the PBF process, a layer of metal powder is deposited on the build plate, usually a laser, and then the cross-section of the material is melted, and then new powder is added layer by layer until the part is completed.
Although Fabrisonic’s UAM technology is a good choice for printing large components with complex internal structures, embedded sensors, and multiple metals, it is not a good choice for fine organic structures, because the creation of such components requires Great force bond. On the other hand, although PBF can print organic fine patterns, most of it is not its advantage. Therefore, Fabrisonic combines the two to achieve the best results.
The Fabrisonic customer, who asked not to be named, wanted to provide three things for this particular project: organic stainless steel geometry, dissimilar metal transitions, and embedded sensors completely encapsulated in metal. Fabrisonic sees that by combining PBF and UAM, it will be able to obtain the necessary organic patterns that can be embedded in large metal structures and provide customers with exactly what they want.
The PBF component is fed into Fabrisonic as a blank, and then placed in a jig so that the welding can be restrained-this is a necessary step to prevent the substrate from moving during the vibration caused by the UAM process. The company worked with EWI to manufacture the infrastructure for the components.
Fabrisonic President Mark Norfolk wrote in the post: "Most of the fusion-based additive manufacturing processes will have trouble printing dissimilar metals on powder bed parts." "However, UAM is different. Because it can adapt to various external conditions. If you have a smooth metal substrate, you can use UAM."
UAM's subtraction technology is used to mill the top of the organic PBF printed part into a flat plane, and then print a copper sheet and aluminum layer on the top.
After Fabrisonic printed the dissimilar metal to the correct height, it milled the part into a pocket for a custom sensor. After putting the sensor inside, UAM is again used to print more copper and aluminum layers on the pocket to wrap it up. The airtight seal formed by bonding these excess layers to the existing metal can extend the sensor’s Life span and protect the sensor to provide more accurate readings. Finally, Fabrisonic grinds all the excess foil into the final shape.
"The part and process shown is the first of many parts that include both UAM and AM alternative forms," Norfolk concluded. "As Fabrisonic gains more opportunities to integrate this unique technology into new applications, the manufactured products will only continue to evolve. By combining the advantages of other forms of additives with the many advantages of UAM, different processes will begin Complement each other.