Automated depowdering is a comparatively new self-discipline in additive manufacturing and nonetheless: since Solukon was based and the world’s first depowdering system, the SFM-AT800-S, was launched in 2015, a variety of profitable rules have turn into established available on the market. An important of those embody:
- Depowdering should happen in a protected environment – Well being dangers from effective mud and the hazard of explosions are successfully managed solely when utilizing a sealed course of chamber. For reactive supplies, the method chamber is inerted with a protecting gasoline.
- Depowdering have to be reproducible – This implies reaching constant cleansing outcomes for equivalent elements (i.e., repeatability). What could sound apparent or like a no brainer is definitely a normal that may solely actually be maintained with automated powder elimination utilizing Solukon.
- The very best cleansing result’s achieved by the mixture of rotation and vibration excitation – Infinite rotation round two axes and focused vibration excitation make the adhering powder flowable inside inner channels. The excitation depth of the vibrator may be adjusted in Solukon’s powder elimination techniques. Nevertheless, how the pneumatically generated vibrations truly act on the half is extremely particular person and will depend on the geometry of the part. What issues is the outcome: the powder behaves like a liquid and flows out of inner channels. Powder clumps are damaged up by a high-frequency knocker, which will also be activated when wanted.
Till lately, the mixture of a pneumatic vibrator and a knocker to stimulate vibration would have been on this listing of fundamental rules for depowdering. It is because pneumatic vibrators are dependable, cost-effective and extremely environment friendly. Nevertheless, they eat giant quantities of compressed air and are tough to regulate, which may result in issues with delicate elements. It is because exceeding the resonance frequency might harm the elements in delicate buildings.
With the introduction of the E model of the SFM-AT350 depowdering system, Solukon has due to this fact expanded the toolbox of excitations and introduced a system with ultrasonic excitation onto the market. The SFM-AT350-E depowders elements up to 400 x 400 x 400 mm and 100 kg absolutely mechanically with programmable 2-axis rotation and frequency excitation within the ultrasonic vary.
What can ultrasonic excitation do, and what are its key benefits?
Within the SFM-AT350-E, the part is worked up at ultrasonic frequencies utilizing a piezoelectric system. The excitation is utilized straight on the turntable of the automated depowdering system, permitting the part to be introduced effortlessly and exactly into an optimum vibration state.
What makes this strategy distinctive is that as an alternative of utilizing a hard and fast frequency, the system constantly and quickly sweeps by a particular frequency vary through which cleansing is especially efficient. This sweeping ensures extremely dependable cleansing by using well-defined frequencies inside the ultrasonic vary.
The ultra-high frequencies used for electrical excitation are nicely above the part’s probably damaging pure resonance frequency. This prevents the part from resonating and eliminates the chance of structural harm. In consequence, ultrasonic depowdering is an particularly mild type of cleansing.
One other benefit: ultrasonic excitation is totally silent. This permits the SFM-AT350-E to be put in even outdoors noisy, high-throughput manufacturing environments.
When is ultrasound the suitable type of excitation?
As with many challenges associated to powder elimination, selecting between pneumatic and ultrasonic excitation largely will depend on the precise software and the geometry of the part. Each strategies can ship efficient cleansing outcomes. Nevertheless, ultrasound is commonly the popular possibility for elements with extraordinarily delicate options or fragile assist buildings, because it avoids the oscillations sometimes related to pneumatic excitation—vastly lowering the chance of part harm from vibrational stress. Even very effective buildings (sometimes lower than 0.5 mm in diameter) reply exceptionally nicely to high-frequency ultrasonic excitation.
As well as, powder can turn into clogged in slender and deep channels if the excitation shouldn’t be utilized accurately. Ultrasonic excitation is able to reliably cleansing such channels and may even dislodge current blockages.
The next comparative check performed by a Solukon buyer highlights the benefits of ultrasonic expertise in cleansing slender and lengthy channels:
What particular use circumstances are there?
Swiss m4m: Depowdering of medical elements
The SFM-AT350-E has confirmed to be a super system for the medical business specifically. Typical purposes listed below are hip cups, which have a grid-like construction on the floor. Such acetabular cups, along with spinal inserts and dental instruments, have been a part of a construct job on the Swiss m4m Middle, a expertise switch heart for the medical and dental business.
It took simply 7.5 minutes to wash the stainless steel medical elements within the SFM-AT350-E with ultrasonic excitation.
The Exploration Firm: Depowdering of a Thruster Combustion Chamber of a rocket engine
The ultrasonic expertise of the SFM-AT350-E has additionally already confirmed itself within the aerospace business, the place significantly excessive calls for are positioned on industrial depowdering. The worldwide aerospace firm “The Exploration Firm” depends on ultrasonic excitation with the SFM-AT350-E from Solukon for the depowdering of rocket elements.
This combustion chamber fabricated from Inconel (IN718) weighs round 15 kg, is round 370 mm excessive and has a extremely complicated inside: the intricate channels are as much as 400 mm lengthy, and the smallest diameter of those channels is 1.5 mm.
With the SFM-AT350-E, the group led by Senior Additive Manufacturing Engineer Maxi Strixner was capable of clear the part comfortably, gently and silently. For the focused cleansing of the rocket combustion chamber, the group ran a cleansing program specifically written for the part. After half-hour, the part was efficiently cleaned.
For the Exploration Firm, the silent cleansing and the dependable cleansing high quality are the principle explanation why they selected the SFM-AT350-E from Solukon:
“The Solukon ultrasonic depowdering system has been a game-changer for our small workshop. Its quiet design means we will run it proper subsequent to our workspace with none disruption — which is an enormous plus. When used with a program, the system drastically cuts down on guide labor, and delivers constant, clear outcomes. All of this interprets into actual time and price financial savings, making the funding completely worthwhile,” says Boris Schaff, Additive Manufacturing Engineer at The Exploration Firm.
Ultrasonic expertise as a brand new device within the powder elimination toolbox
Because the examples present, the ultrasonic expertise of the SFM-AT350-E has already confirmed itself available on the market. And nonetheless: the E-version is certainly not a substitute for the SFM-AT350’s normal depowdering expertise with pneumatic excitation. Ultrasonic excitation is fairly a further device within the toolbox of automated depowdering.
SFM-AT350-E Fast Details
– Depowdering system with ultrasonic excitation
– For elements as much as 400 x 400 x 400 mm and 100 kg
– Noiseless depowdering
– Low compressed air consumption
– Mild cleansing
Head to the Solukon web site for extra info.
