A methodology for precision additive manufacturing through compensation

Maturation of powder-bed additive manufacturing (AM) is essential for the business benefit the rapid adoption of AM offers to industry. One of the principal challenges in powder-bed AM is the mitigation of distortion due to material shrinkage and residual stresses induced during the build process. In order to address this, a new methodology for distortion compensation is developed and presented in this paper. The novelty of the methodology lies in the use of a mathematical model for pre-distorting the design geometry based on 3D optical scanning measurement data. The methodology has been applied to two industrial Inconel 718 components (a turbine blade and an impeller). It was experimentally demonstrated that distortion compensation is achievable using the proposed methodology. The results showed the compensation methodology reduced distortion from approximately ±300 μm to approximately ±65 μm for both components. In summary, the novel methodology can be used to deliver near-zero distorted parts for industry using powder-bed AM processes.