IC7 - Easy Metal Printer (EMP)

Additive processes offer the possibility of near-net-shape manufacturing of components with locally adapted mechanical properties, which can be optimized by downstream process steps. This leads to a double conservation of resources, on the one hand by minimizing the use of raw materials for component manufacture and on the other hand by ensuring that the component functions in accordance with the load.

Laser cladding with wire is a technology from 3D printing for manufacturing components from various metals. In contrast to other additive laser processes, this new technology has the advantage that the metallic semi-finished product is fed in wire form. This makes the process much cheaper and easier to handle than powder-based processes. In contrast to other wire-based processes, here the metal wire is fed into the melt pool coaxially with the laser beam, which brings decisive advantages in terms of directional independence and collision avoidance.

Aim and approach

The aim of this project is to optimize the complete processing of an additively manufactured, function-integrated component in order to be able to manufacture final-contour-optimized components economically and resource-efficiently. To this end, work is being done on innovative coaxial laser wire buildup welding.

A high level of reliability right from the first component cannot be achieved with the established path planning methods, since the complex interaction of the molten pool with its environment cannot be predicted with reasonable effort. At the same time, productivity is limited by the deposition rate, which is dictated by the physically limited thermal conductivity of the metals and thus the limited heat transfer from the laser-generated molten pool into the wire. The goal of this project is to address these limitations and increase the applicability and productivity of the process.