JuggerBot 3D LLC, a specialist in large-format additive manufacturing methods, has introduced its collaboration with Oak Ridge Nationwide Laboratory (ORNL) and Mississippi State College’s Superior Composites Institute (MSU ACI) as a part of a $4 million hybrid additive manufacturing mission funded by the Air Drive Analysis Laboratory (AFRL). This congressional award, introduced in February 2024 and funded by the Workplace of the Beneath Secretary of Protection for Analysis and Engineering Manufacturing Expertise (OSD(R&E)), is aimed toward advancing large-scale hybrid AM to allow the manufacturing of sooner, inexpensive tooling crucial for the Protection and Aerospace industries.
The brand new mission entails the event of a system integrating two-part resin and pellet-fed materials extrusion applied sciences to course of performance-grade thermoplastic polymers and superior thermoset resin inks, together with epoxies and vinyl esters. The system, designed to achieve construct volumes of 360 ft³, will exhibit crucial course of controls synonymous with JuggerBot 3D’s additive applied sciences. Set to be accomplished by December 2025, it can proceed by means of a number of improvement phases, together with system improvement, complete modeling, and superior software path improvement.
Strategic Partnership for Superior Additive Manufacturing
ORNL will apply its experience in Fused Granulate Fabrication (FGF) and Direct Ink Writing (DIW) to reinforce software path technology software program, enabling the simultaneous processing of thermoplastics and thermosets. This collaboration builds on earlier profitable initiatives, together with work on the Bead Characterization System (BCS) and JuggerBot 3D’s Materials Card improvement. MSU ACI will lead system-level validation, conducting rigorous materials testing to make sure the reliability and effectiveness of the developed course of parameters for each thermoplastic and thermoset supplies.
Hunter Watts, Analysis Engineer at MSU ACI, emphasised the mission’s transformative potential: “Transitioning from a mould that takes 12-18 months and a six-figure funding to supply, to 1 that takes just a few weeks at a fraction of the associated fee, is a major enabler throughout the U.S.” Watts additionally praised the collaborative nature of the mission, stating, “We’re excited in regards to the alternative to companion with JuggerBot 3D and everybody concerned to speed up not solely this expertise but additionally the adoption of this groundbreaking manufacturing course of.”
Giant-Format Additive Manufacturing in Focus
Fast Fusion just lately launched the Apollo system. This machine makes use of pellet-based expertise to allow the manufacturing of sizable elements effectively and cost-effectively. Key to its performance is the flexibility to course of a variety of sturdy supplies, equivalent to polypropylene and polycarbonate, making it appropriate for various industrial wants. The Apollo system is about to reinforce manufacturing capacities, streamlining the manufacture of large-scale elements.
Elsewhere, Oak Ridge Nationwide Laboratory (ORNL) is leveraging additive manufacturing to supply large-scale hydropower turbine elements. Funded by the Division of Vitality, this mission underscores the crucial position of superior manufacturing in lowering the time and value related to producing complicated infrastructure elements.
JuggerBot 3D’s collaboration with ORNL and Mississippi State College’s Superior Composites Institute builds on focusing at integrating hybrid AM applied sciences to handle comparable challenges within the Protection and Aerospace sectors. The convergence of those initiatives displays a broader motion inside the trade in the direction of optimizing manufacturing processes for large-scale, high-demand purposes.
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Featured picture reveals the JuggerBot 3D staff and companions from MSU ACI showcasing the Tradesman Sequence P3-44 system at RAPID + TCT 2024. Photograph by way of JuggerBot 3D.
