On May 5, 2019, Sigma Labs, a developer of additive manufacturing software in New Mexico, obtained third-party verification of its printrite3d platform in a study by the US Department of Defense DARPA.
This study discusses the verification process for producing complex metal parts of consistent quality. It is sponsored by DARPA's Open Manufacturing Program and is conducted in partnership with aircraft engine maker Honeywell, which has been working with Sigma Labs since 2014.
As an agency of the Department of Defense (DoD), DARPA is responsible for developing new technologies for use by the military. To achieve this, it has developed an open manufacturing plan to "reduce costs, accelerate the delivery of high-quality finished products, and predict the performance of finished products."
DARPA validated quality assurance and process monitoring
One of the main challenges of metal additive manufacturing today is to verify the quality of the parts during the part production process. Using trial and error is a huge cost for manufacturers.
PRINTRITE3D is a combination of a hardware module and two software modules for quality assurance and process monitoring in additive manufacturing. When used together, they collect and process data in real time that the user can analyze and examine, and implement corrections when necessary.
For high-quality end-use parts, the metal 3D printing process requires on-site monitoring. After manufacturing, these parts should also be inspected for defects such as high porosity, incorrect density, residual stress, cracking, and warping. Therefore, the manufacturer does not know if the part meets the design specifications until printing is complete.
PRINTRITE3D hardware includes three separate modules. SensorPak is a hardware module that includes a set of off-axis and on-axis in-process sensors for collecting real-time data on each individual layer during 3D printing. The data collected by sensorpak is then entered into two software INSPECT and CONTOUR.
Inspect uses sensor data to establish process metrics for each metal or alloy in the process, and provides users with part quality reports.
Contour is a layer-by-layer geometric measurement tool. It gives users the ability to compare printed parts with original digital CAD models during the production process.
Promote large-scale industrialization of metal additive manufacturing
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has been studying the feasibility of 3D printing since the 1990s, and is keen to solve the "cost rise" and delays in the development, prototyping, and testing of defense systems.
Recent research has shown that printrite3d can solve or at least reduce costs and increase first-time success rates when producing high-value end-use parts. This article demonstrates how printrite3d detects and eliminates potential early issues in 3D printing. The rocket nozzle was used as a test piece to study the "porosity, geometric accuracy and mechanical strength" index when using 3D printed parts.
DARPA 3D printed rocket nozzle test piece
Commenting on the findings of Sigma Labs CEO John Rice, he said, "Getting PrintRite3D third-party verification in the metal additive manufacturing industry is one of the company's most important milestones."
In addition, "Our six-year study with Honeywell and the DARPA Open Manufacturing Program clearly demonstrate that the analysis of heat radiation density (Ted) indicators achieved through our technology can be used to ensure the quality of metal parts for additive manufacturing Play a key role. "