Applications of a hybrid manufacturing process for fabrication of metallic structures

TLDR

Rapid prototyping technologies are sought by many industries to build parts directly from CAD models quickly, and direct laser deposition is one of the few processes that can produce fully dense metal parts without intermediate steps. This paper reviews research, development, and system integration of a hybrid high‑temperature metal fabrication process, aiming to address challenges such as overhang construction, precision surface generation, and complex geometry production. The authors employ simulation, modeling, process development, automated planning, and actual part building to integrate additive and subtractive operations into a single hybrid workstation. The integrated hybrid process yields metal parts with machining‑grade accuracy and surface finish, demonstrating competitive performance for fabricating metallic structures.

Abstract

Purpose This paper sets out to summarize the current research, development, and integration of a hybrid process to produce high‐temperature metallic materials. It seeks to present the issues and solutions, including the understanding of the direct laser deposition process, and automated process planning. Design/methodology/approach Research in simulation and modeling, process development, integration, and actual part building for hybrid processing are discussed. Findings Coupling additive and subtractive processes into a single workstation, the integrated process, or hybrid process, can produce metal parts with machining accuracy and surface finish. Therefore, the hybrid process is potentially a very competitive process to fabricate metallic structures. Originality/value Rapid prototyping technology has been of interest to various industries that are looking for a process to produce/build a part directly from a CAD model in a short time. Among them, the direct laser deposition process is one of the few processes which directly manufacture a fully dense metal part without intermediate steps. Presented in this paper is the research, development, and system integration to resolve the challenges of the direct metal deposition process including building overhang structures, producing precision surfaces, and making parts with complex structures.