3D printing is one of those technologies that just finds its way into everything. I believe that 3D printing technology is going to converge with subtractive (machining) and all the automated laminating technologies (ATL, AFP) to provide automated composites manufacturing. This is already starting. The levels of scale, speed and detail will be mind blowing compared to our current expectations, and the evolution of this technology will make composites more and more viable for an increasing range of projects.
Another interesting convergence will be the metal additive market supplying equipment that can rival composites for engineering density/detail and performance for a given weight. Metal honeycombs, lattice structures and an increasing degree of automated engineering (or “generative design”) will make this a more competitive technology to composites, but also a more readily integrated one. Bonding additive manufactured metal parts to fiber/resin composites will allow for parts that have the benefits of isotropic and anisotropic components. It’s already cool – but it’s getting awesome!
Topics:
- Long-fiber Composites 3D Printing in 2019
- Markforged Mark 2: My Impressions
- My Big 3D Printer Experiment
- 3D Printing One-off Tooling
- Printing Soluble Mandrels
- Fusion3 F410: My Impressions
- Large Scale 3D Printed Tooling
This is an area I’m excited to learn more about in the next few years. I’ll be sure to share what I learn!