Infill Density in Additive Manufacturing and Application to the DFMA of an Iron Man Helmet

Rajan Vraitch, Mark Prince, Jean-Baptiste R. G. Souppez

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

    Abstract

    Additive manufacturing has become increasinglypopular for rapid prototyping and industrial applications, particularlyin the context of Industry 4.0. However, given thevast design parameter space, there remains a lack of characterisationof the mechanical properties for varying designparameters. Consequently, flexural tests are undertaken followingthe ISO 178:2019 for fused deposition modelling (FDM) samples,with three infill patterns (lines, gyroid and triangles), fourthermoplastic materials, namely acrylonitrile butadiene styrene(ABS), polylactic acid (PLA and PLA+), and polyethylene terephthalateglycol (PETG), and infill densities (print material to partvolume ratio) ranging from 0.10 to 1.00. Here we show that (i) themodulus and strength are independent of the tested infill types;(ii) the mechanical properties increase linearly with infill density;and (iii) considering mechanical properties, mass and cost, PLA+appears as the most suitable overall material choice, with PETGappropriate for strength-driven, low-cost applications. Ultimately,PLA+ is applied to the design for manufacturing and assembly(DFMA) case study of an Iron Man helmet. These findingsprovide novel insights into the variations of mechanical propertieswith infill type, density and material for 3D printing applicationsand may contribute to future development in lightweight andcost-effective additive manufacturing.
    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationThe 28th International Conference on Automation and Computing (ICAC2023)
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished (VoR) - 30 Aug 2023

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Infill Density in Additive Manufacturing and Application to the DFMA of an Iron Man Helmet'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this