This news article was originally written in Spanish. It has been automatically translated for your convenience. Reasonable efforts have been made to provide an accurate translation, however, no automated translation is perfect nor is it intended to replace a human translator. The original article in Spanish can be viewed at Obtención de piezas con plena capacidad funcional a partir de microgotas de plástico

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Freeformer Allows to manufacture individual pieces and small series with granulated standard without need of mould and using data CAD 3D

Obtaining of pieces with full functional capacity from microgotas of plastic

Editorial Interempresas30/05/2013

This article exposes the case of the additive manufacture developed from a totally oriented prism to the practice. With the integrated resultant premises and materialised in a process of free modelling, was of big importance can use granulated standard without forms of supply preconfiguradas —like dust or madejas, that put up the price of the material, the transformation and, with this, the pieces produced.

Like manufacturer of machinery, Arburg has worked acutely in the subject of the additive manufacture of pieces of plastic. The result is the machine machine Freeformer and a new process patented, the free modelling of Arburg (AKF). Like the own name indicates, in the free modelling do not require moulds neither specific fixed cavities. In this process, the method Freeformer processes directly data CAD three-dimensional, melts the granulated standard plastic of the same way in as it realizar in the moldeo by injection, generates microgotas from the mass melted liquid and creates a component with full functional capacity of additive form, that is to say, layer to layer. This supposes the profitable and individual manufacture of pieces without need of mould from the size of batch one. Freeformer Can work without structures of sustain, what allows to achieve a low consumption of material without producing wastes. This saves resources and does that the production was economic and, of this way, create functional pieces with a high flexibility.

In the free modelling of this system the granulated standard melts firstly. By means of a filter synchronised and a portacomponentes mobile creates a functional piece layer to layer from microgotas of plastic.

Conventional: manufacturing of granulated standard

The new machine uses a conventional manufacturing of the material, already accredited innumerable times, and that works in principle like the one of the moldeo by injection. The granulated standard plastic enters in the machine. A cylinder of plastification heated guarantees a mass melted óptimamente ready in the designated unit of download. His closing of filter patented with piezoelectric technology of high frequency does possible fast opening movements and closing, and produces under pressesure the small drops with which creates aditivamente, that is to say ‘drop to drop', the plastic piece wished.

The principle of fixed components and mobiles of the machine follows a new concept. In the Freeformer, the unit of download with filter remains exactly in his vertical position and is the portacomponentes the one who moves . Apart from the portacomponentes mobile with three axles mounted of series has also of an optional variant with five axles for, for example, create recess without structures of support.

The big advantage of the variant of 5 axles is that, by general rule, does unnecessary the structures of sustain that they require in other a lot of processes of the additive manufacture. After his manufacture, the components are smart to be used without need to realizar retouchings.

Can manufacture components of two materials and/or two colours.

Hard unions-soft additive

One of the most important appearances that have taken into account in the development of the Freeformer has been to achieve a high flexibility in the transformation. By this reason, the Freeformer instrumented with two manufacturings of the mass can transform and combine also two materials or colours. This allows, for example, create aditivamente hard combinations-soft mobiles or pieces of appearance and special touch where join two components of safe form.

Arburg Has applied in the Freeformer the philosophy of his machines of moldeo by injection by means of an own development that does that the handle of this complex technical result simple. Of this way, the additive manufacture results genialmente simple: the control of the Freeformer, of own development, generates the necessary parameters for the structure of the pieces. The system of control receives the data CAD 3D of the components that have to produce in shape of archives STL, prepares them automatically by means of segmentation and the production already can begin. They do not require special knowledges of programming or of transformation neither complex courses. The screen multitáctil controlled by gestures does that the work was even more pleasant. The perfect manufacture and without effort of pieces with the Freeformer is ‘simply' fun.

The system produces pieces without generating absolutely at all of dust or broadcasts.

Clean: without dust neither broadcasts

The Freeformer creates the components from microgotas liquid of plastic without producing absolutely at all of dust or broadcasts. By this reason, the machine is apt to be used in practically any surroundings. Already it was in the production, in the office, in the construction or in some clean surroundings of the area of the medical engineering. It does not require any device of aspiration or filtered.

The Freeformer are mobile and can use universally thanks to his function “plug-and-play”. The machine no only is very compact, but it also is immediately smart for the production: simply it is necessary enchufar the connector and already can begin the production of pieces.