CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY. Paul J. Wolcott Ph.D. Body SMT Innovation

Transcription

1 CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY Paul J. Wolcott Ph.D. Body SMT Innovation

2 Agenda 1. Additive Manufacturing in Industry 2. Opportunities in Automotive 3. Challenges and Needs Moving Forward 23-Feb

3 Background: What is Additive Manufacturing (AM)? Additive Manufacturing, 3D printing, Rapid Prototyping, Freeform Fabrication, etc.. A field of manufacturing processes that create three dimensional objects directly from digital data through successive addition of layers of material 23-Feb

4 AM Technologies: Overview Standard Terminology for AM Processes (ASTM F a) a. Binder jetting > Liquid bonding agent selectively deposited to join powder material > Powder bed and inkjet head (PBIH), plaster-based 3D printing (PP) b. Directed energy deposition > Focused thermal energy fuses material by melting while depositing > Laser metal deposition (LMD) c. Material extrusion > Material selectively dispensed through a [heated] nozzle/orifice > Fused deposition modelling (FDM) d. Material jetting > Droplets of photopolymer + wax selectively deposited and UV cured > Multi-jet modeling (MJM) e. Powder bed fusion > Thermal energy source selectively fuses regions of powder bed > Electron beam melting (EBM), selective laser sintering (SLS), and direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) f. Sheet lamination > Thin sheets of material (plastic, metal) bonded together (glue, USW) > Laminated object manufacturing (LOM), ultrasonic consolidation (UC) g. Vat polymerization > Liquid photopolymer selectively cured by light-active polymerization > Stereolithography (SLA), digital light processing (DLP) 23-Feb

5 Past Commercial Uses of AM Stereolithography (SLA) prototypes Fit, form Limited functionality Plastics Limited metals capabilities Desktop printing Toys, trinkets 23-Feb

6 Gartner Hype Cycle 23-Feb

7 Additive Industry AM industry including all AM products and services is $5.2 bn Growth of 26% from 2015 Patents issued on AM has more than tripled since Feb

8 AM Acquisitions 23-Feb

9 Applications of AM Technology in Production 23-Feb

10 GE Fuel Nozzle Part Consolidation Combined 20 individual pieces into one print Eliminates need to weld/braze multiple pieces Improved functionality Novel flow design not possible in conventional methods Improved durability over previous design 25% lighter 30% lower cost Improved cost due to part consolidation, many fewer steps Reportedly pursuing 100 k units annually by 2020 ~20 units / engine 23-Feb

11 Airbus A350 XWB program with over 2,700 AM plastic parts Significant lightweighting advantages Less expensive over the lifetime of the program than conventional components 23-Feb

12 Hearing Aids More than 15M 3D printed hearing aids in circulation worldwide Entire industry converted to 100% AM production within 500 days Those who did not, did not survive The U.S. hearing aid industry converted to 100% additive manufacturing in less than 500 days, and not one company that stuck to traditional manufacturing methods survived - Harvard Business Review 23-Feb

13 Automotive Components Rolls Royce Approx. 10,000 parts on Phantom Includes plastic holders, center lock buttons, sockets, etc. BMW Over 500 water pumps used lifetime in racing applications Vehicle custom trim plates 23-Feb

14 Additive Automobiles Local Motors ORNL Divergent3D EDAG 23-Feb

15 New Technology Developments Carbon 3D CLIP technology up to 100x faster than stereolithography (SLA) Properties equal to or better than injection molding Big Area Additive Manufacturing (Cincinnati Inc.) Large scale technology World record largest 3D printed part HP Multi-jet fusion technology 23-Feb

16 Opportunities in Automotive Industry 23-Feb

17 Advantages of Additive Manufacturing Innovative design Complexity is free Creative freedom for innovation, customization Light weighting, lattice structures, internal fluid channels Limited design for manufacturing limitations Integration of structures and functionality Reduced development times Speed from design to part No tooling required, significantly improves lead times Decentralized manufacturing Reduction in supply chain costs, shipping Lower lead time risk 23-Feb

18 Innovative Design Lightweighting Lattice structures Topological designs Tunable stiffness Fluid dynamics / conformal cooling 23-Feb

19 Advantages in Tooling Conformal cooling tools for injection molding Improved cycle times o Saving seconds/part in cooling can lead to significant $ savings Improved quality Lower lead times Ergonomic customization Printed tools/inserts can lead to significant time/$ savings 23-Feb

20 Design Iterations and Customization No Tooling Allows fast redesign Custom vehicles 23-Feb

21 Reduced Development Times Design iterations without generating prototype tooling Test functional parts without 6+ month lead time Recall mitigation $$ Costs of Change Time 23-Feb

22 Decentralized Manufacturing Manufacturing directly at assembly plant Service parts Dealers After-market sales Reduce inventory costs Eliminate shipping costs 23-Feb

23 Challenges and Needs 23-Feb

24 Machine and Material Costs Both remain high, though the trajectory is improving rapidly, especially for metal components Decreases driven by: Increased volumes Improved competition Material costs a major driver for high piece costs Capital investment for machines remains high $/cm Material Labor, Overhead, etc. 23-Feb

25 Machine Development Current machines developed for aerospace and biomedical applications Build volumes and process times too small for many automotive applications Machine speeds continue to increase but require further developments for high volume applications Speed leads to fewer machines required for volumes and lower costs Key improvements: Faster, high number of lasers Less post-processing CM3/HR Speed of SLM Feb

26 Material Development Limited available materials Generally focused on higher cost materials Titanium, Nickel, etc. Need automotive grade materials aluminum, steels Technologies specifically tailored to these materials Processing parameters Material characterization for automotive conditions Tensile, fatigue, corrosion, durability, etc. Current materials qualified for flight by FAA Relative Strength % Traditional AM X Y Z Carbon CLIP 23-Feb

27 AM Understanding / Training Plenty of knowledge designing for more conventional processes: injection molding, stamping, casting, etc. Need to fully understanding the technology to leverage it On-site training University and developmental school programs 23-Feb

28 Summary Recent developments exhibit the benefits of Additive Manufacturing Moving from hype to reality Continued work required to fully realize automotive benefits Paul J. Wolcott Ph.D 23-Feb