Identification of in-line defects and failures during Additive Manufacturing Powder Bed Fusion processes

Abstract

Additive Manufacturing (AM) processes are enablers of new approaches in the field of production and design engineering, product design and business modelling. Beginning to view additive manufacturing in an industrial environment, reliable statements about the product quality are indispensable. Statements regarding compliance with geometric tolerances and exact quantifiable physical parameters, in terms of product certification are therefore imperative. The quality of the components must not only be sustainably secured but also reproducible at any time. Quality control and quality assurance are the prerequisite for highly customized unique parts, or even batch size 1 product, that can be produced by additive manufacturing as efficiently as conventional mass-produced parts. This paper will discuss an approach for the identification of in-line defects and failures during Additive Manufacturing Powder Bed Fusion processes using the example of the Selective Laser Sintering process.