Additive Manufacturing Parameter Prediction for Surface Roughness Tolerance

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing additive manufacturing processes struggle to consistently achieve desired surface roughness in components, such as aircraft parts, due to variations in layer depth and other manufacturing parameters, often resulting in components outside acceptable tolerances and leading to scrap materials and inefficiencies.

Innovation Solution

A method is developed to determine nominal surface roughness and second-order variations, predicting actual resultant dimensions, and adjusting additive manufacturing parameters iteratively to ensure the surface roughness meets design tolerances, using probabilistic, mechanistic, or physics-based distributions to account for variations.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If additive manufacturing processes apply sequential material layers to create components, then components can be manufactured with complex geometries, but surface roughness increases due to inherent stair step surface configuration

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecomplex geometry manufacturing capabilityVSAvoidsurface roughness

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary computational analysis before manufacturing to predict surface roughness outcomes. By calculating nominal surface roughness and second-order variations in advance, the system determines adjusted layer depths that will compensate for expected deviations, allowing the component to achieve desired surface finish without requiring post-manufacturing adjustments

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically adjusts manufacturing parameters, specifically layer depth, based on predicted surface roughness outcomes. By modifying layer depth parameters in response to predicted actual resultant dimensions, the system optimizes surface roughness while maintaining the ability to manufacture complex geometries

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Productivity

If additive manufacturing processes use fixed layer depth parameters, then manufacturing is simple and efficient, but surface roughness varies outside acceptable tolerances due to process variations

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemanufacturing efficiencyVSAvoidsurface roughness consistency

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements a feedback mechanism where predicted actual surface roughness is compared against desired surface roughness specifications. Based on this feedback, the system automatically adjusts layer depth parameters to compensate for predicted deviations, ensuring surface roughness remains within acceptable tolerances while maintaining manufacturing efficiency

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary prediction of surface roughness outcomes before manufacturing begins. By determining adjusted layer depths in advance based on predicted second-order variations, the system prevents surface roughness deviations rather than correcting them after the fact, maintaining both efficiency and precision

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Manufacturing precision

If multiple prototype iterations are used to achieve desired surface roughness, then surface finish quality improves, but manufacturing time and material waste increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesurface finish qualityVSAvoidmanufacturing cycle time

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs all necessary surface roughness analysis and parameter optimization before manufacturing begins. By determining adjusted layer depths through preliminary computational prediction of second-order variations, the system ensures desired surface finish is achieved in the first production run, eliminating the need for time-consuming prototype iterations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system replaces physical prototype iterations with computational prediction and simulation. Instead of manufacturing multiple physical prototypes to test surface roughness outcomes, the system uses computational models to predict and optimize parameters beforehand, significantly reducing manufacturing cycle time while maintaining surface finish quality

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Data Source

PatentUS11314227B2System and process for evaluating and manufacturing additively manufactured components

Publication Date: 2022.04.26 RTX CORP

AI summary

An exemplary method for determining a set of additive manufacturing parameters includes, a) determining a nominal parameter of at least one surface of a component, b) determining at least a second order variation in the nominal parameter, c) predicting an actual resultant dimension based at least in part on the nominal parameter and the second order variation, and d) adjusting at least one additive manufacturing process parameter in response to the predicted actual resultant dimension.