Scaling to Production in Rapid Prototyping This is the final segment in our Rapid Prototyping series and here we will talk about scaling to production. When creating a new product, there are often two sets of designs: One set is for 3D printing prototypes while the other is for producing the part. However, most designers only think in terms of the latter. “When you’re developing a product, at each moment of the design, it is [...]
This article is a reprint from the Formlabs blog. In the last segment of this casting basics, we will discuss sand casting. In the sand casting process, a foundry worker fills containers known as mold boxes or flasks with a mixture of sand and binder, then packs sand around the pattern. The pattern is removed to leave a negative impression of the pattern behind, and molten metal is poured into the cavity. An open-faced mold [...]
There is a new feature inside of the Analyze Entities function in Mastercam 2020 that makes it easier to figure out associations between geometry and toolpath. This new feature makes it easy to check to see how and where geometry is being used. To illustrate, we are going to use a file that has many toolpaths and multiple machines. Most of the work has been programmed for a milling machine, however, there are two features [...]
Last week we discussed the “value of functional prototypes” in rapid prototyping and today we are going to continue with a discussion about the color capabilities of the HP Jet Fusion technology. Color Capabilities of HP Jet Fusion Technology There are many ways to improve the value of a prototype, but one that is often overlooked is the addition of color. With the HP Jet Fusion 580/380 Color 3D Printers, it is now possible to [...]
This article is a reprint from the Formlabs blog. So far we’ve covered some metal casting basics, as well as direct investment casting in our blog series on casting. Today we are moving to indirect investment casting. The process of making patterns from molds or tooling is referred to as indirect investment casting because it requires creating molds for producing the patterns in addition to final investment molds. Rigid molds for wax (often referred to [...]
This article will show you how to add new toolpaths to your defaults file in Mastercam 2020. If you have used the migration utility to update a previous version default file you may have encountered the error message below. This can be fixed easily by following a few simple steps. If you select a new toolpath, for instance, the Surface High-Speed Blend toolpath that same warning message will appear. If you click OK, Mastercam will [...]
The value of functional prototypes Picking up where we left off on our article about “How HP Jet Fusion 3D Printing customers shorten their time to market” today we will discuss the value of functional prototypes. In addition to print speed, the material properties of parts from HP Jet Fusion 3D Printing Solutions are ideal for prototyping and enable customers to make decisions about their final parts. HP Multi Jet Fusion technology allows for the [...]
Last week we covered some metal casting basics and today we are going to pick up where we left off. Today we will talk about direct investment casting. The direct investment casting process moves straight from creating a pattern to surrounding that pattern with investment material. Since the wax injection method of creating a pattern requires multiple steps, it is considered indirect. Direct investment casting is best for short runs of parts or initial testing [...]
