Digital Twin Manufacturing of Aerospace Tooling in Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing
A. S. Yildıiz, Y. Yamaner, B. Damgaci, N. Bol, O. Yilmaz, E. R. Ecmel
This paper was presented at AMC Türkiye 2024.
Abstract
Invar, alternatively referred to as FeNi36, holds significant intrigue due to its distinctive characteristics, positioning it as a valuable substitute in sectors like aeronautics and aerospace, particularly for tooling applications due to its’ low coefficient of thermal expansion and its’ suitability on usage at moderate temperature applications. The utilization of wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) technology holds the potential to broaden its practicality. The aim of this research work is to plan and assess an aerospace composite tool part production process with WAAM. The study began with optimizing the WAAM process parameters and process development just before performing the deposition path planning. The wire feed speed, torch travel speed, overlapping distance, and dwell time have been determined as follows: 6 m/min, 4.5 m/min, 6.5 mm, and 120 seconds, respectively. Three adjacent layers was planned to deposit to reach the desired thickness. Additionally, the distance of the torch from the workpiece has been determined as 3.5 mm and torch has been incremented in +Z direction with this value. The part was sliced and manufactured as 74 layers in 18,5 hours with a 3,2 kg/h deposition rate. Whole WAAM process was monitored via MetalWorm software and the main parameter data such as wire feed speed, voltage, current and travel torch speed were recorded during the production. These parameters were used to create the digital twin of the WAAM process by combining the parameters with the robotic tool path coordinates. After production, the built part was analysed via reverse engineering with a laser scanner and the point cloud data which was matched with the CAD data and deviations were extracted to be used in post-processing (machining) in order to net-shaped part.
Keywords: WAAM, process planning, offline programming, digital twin, reverse engineering
Link: https://amctr.org/