Fused deposition modeling (FDM) is an additive manufacturing technology commonly used for modeling, prototyping, and production applications. The technology was developed by S. Scott Crump in the late 1980s and was commercialized in 1990. The FDM technology is marketed commercially by Stratasys, which also holds a trademark on the term.
Like most other additive manufacturing processes (such as 3D printing and stereolithography) FDM works on an "additive" principle by laying down material in layers. A plastic filament or metal wire is unwound from a coil and supplies material to an extrusion nozzle which can turn on and off the flow. The nozzle is heated to melt the material and can be moved in both horizontal and vertical directions by a numerically controlled mechanism, directly controlled by a computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software package. The model or part is produced by extruding small beads of thermoplastic material to form layers as the material hardens immediately after extrusion from the nozzle.
Several materials are available with different trade-offs between strength and temperature properties. As well as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) polymer, the FDM technology can also be used with polycarbonates, polycaprolactone, polyphenylsulfones and waxes. A "water-soluble" material can be used for making temporary supports while manufacturing is in progress. Marketed under the name WaterWorks by Stratasys, this soluble support material is quickly dissolved with specialized mechanical agitation equipment utilizing a precisely heated sodium hydroxide solution.
Contents |
Commercial applications
Most available commercial printers using FDM technology utilize positioning systems employing either stepper motor or servo motors to move the extrusion head.
In 2006, FDM was the best-selling rapid prototyping technology.[1]
FDM systems include two different product lines. The "high-end" FDM systems are sold under the Fortus brand name and include the Fortus 900mc, Fortus 400mc, Fortus 360mc and Fortus 200mc. These systems are the highest performance FDM systems capabale of producing parts from the largest range of thermoplastic materials, feature detail, surface finish, accuracy. FDM uses production-grade thermoplastics, such as ABS, ABSi, polyphenylsulfone (PPSF) and polycarbonate (PC), including PC-ABS. Because of the material properties, FDM parts typically withstand functional testing and have high heat resistance. Some companies have sterilized PPSF for medical applications, however material manufacturer Stratasys does not advertise that PPSF is sterilizable.
Stratasys markets a line of 3D Printers that print 3D models using the same core FDM technology. Called Dimension systems, these 3D Printers don't have the same performance or material options as a "high-end" FDM system, but are much less expensive. In addition to owning Fortus and Dimension Printing, Stratasys is also the parent company of RedEye On Demand, a rapid prototyping service.
See also
References
- ^ "Almost Out of the Woods". Forbes.com. http://stratasys.com/uploadedFiles/North_America/Media/ART%20Forbes.pdf. Retrieved 2007-02-17.
External links
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
