Integrating Additive Manufacturing in the Design of Aerospace Components

• In the aerospace industry, Additive Manufacturing (AM) is quickly gaining ground. When optimizing the design of an AM component, all life-cycle aspects need to be considered. It is by no means limited to the classic weight / stiffness optimization of the topology alone. The AM component design must comply with an array of requirements on for example assembly, maintenance and inspection. In addition, there are the manufacturability requirements and constraints of the printing procedure itself, including component orientation and support structures. In this paper, a proposal on how to integrate the AM design of components with the design of the complete engine structure is presented. To find how the current design process is conducted, an interview study involving design and manufacturing experts has been made at an aerospace company, forming a base for the proposal. The result is that a primary design procedure for the AM component must be made as a separate step involving a limited set of design considerations prior to making a multidisciplinary evaluation of the proposed engine structure.

Subject headings

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Maskinteknik -- Produktionsteknik, arbetsvetenskap och ergonomi (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Mechanical Engineering -- Production Engineering, Human Work Science and Ergonomics (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Additive Manufacturing

Product Development

Decision support

Topology optimization

Aerospace

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

kon (subject category)