Design and Manufacturing of a Device Made of Additive Manufacturing Machines for Fast and Reliable Measurement of Material Stiffness

Abstract

Additive Manufacturing (AM) technology is constantly expanding to small and large industry over the last 20 years. The vast potential of this technology has been perceived by many companies which invest in research and development for faster and more reliable machines with better capabilities and more quality products. AM expansion in industry has also been helped by a wide variety of materials, such as polymers, whose technology is developing rapidly with better mechanical properties related to stiffness and strength. In this paper we will describe a device which can be fully produced by all AM machines and enables users to measure in a fast and reliable way the stiffness of materials without the need for specialized and expensive methods, large-volume laboratory testing machines, specialized technical personnel and time. The objective is to design a small scaled three-point bending device using design intent through a parametric CAD system and manufacture it using AM technology. The device is designed to calculate the deformation and force applied to specific specimens and the Young’s modulus of the material. The proposed device and its process helps users to estimate the mechanical properties of materials and apply that information on production or in a simulation system to optimize the printing quality of products by selecting the right material and adjusting the related printing parameters of the machines with the mechanical properties of the produced parts.