Fabrication and Assembly
“FDM is taking on increasing importance as an alternative manufacturing method for components made in small numbers”
Günter Schmid, BMW
Günter Schmid, BMW
Manufacture jigs, fixtures and other tools with FDM systems.
BMW - Direct Digital Manufacturing at BMW Manufacturing Jigs and Fixtures with FDM
Diebold - DDM a New Fixture at Diebold
Rapid prototyping has become a standard practice in product development. At the BMW AG plant in Regensburg, Germany, FDM (fused deposition modeling) continues to be an important component in vehicle design prototyping. But moving beyond prototyping, BMW is extending the application of FDM to other areas and functions, including rapid manufacturing.
The plant’s department of jigs and fixtures uses FDM to build hand-tools for automobile assembly and testing. According to engineer Günter Schmid, “BMW has determined that the FDM process can be an alternative to the conventional metal-cutting manufacturing methods like milling, turning, and boring.” Schmid and fellow engineer, Ulrich Eidenschink, have shown that financial advantages include cost reductions in engineering documentation, warehousing, and manufacturing.
For hand-held devices used on the assembly line, engineers have discovered that there are even greater advantages that arise from the design freedom that FDM offers. Capitalizing on the elimination of constraints, Schmid and Eidenschink employ FDM to make ergonomically designed assembly aids that perform better than conventionally made tools.
To improve productivity, worker comfort, ease-of-use, and process repeatability, the plant uses FDM to enhance the ergonomics of its hand-held assembly devices. The freedom of design allows engineers to create configurations that improve handling, reduce weight, and improve balance. According to Schmid, “The tool designs we create often cannot be matched by machined or molded parts.” In one example, BMW reduced the weight of a device by 72 percent with a sparse-fill build technique. Replacing the solid core with internal ribs cut 1.3 kg (2.9 lbs) from the device. “This may not seem like much, but when a worker uses the tool hundreds of times in a shift, it makes a big difference,” says Schmid.
Another advantage of rapid manufacturing is improved functionality. Since the additive process can easily produce organic shapes that sweep and flow, the tool designers can maximize performance while improving ergonomic and handling characteristics. “The layered FDM manufacturing process is well suited for the production of complex bodies that, when using conventional metal-cutting processes, would be very difficult and costly to produce,” says Eidenschink. An example is a tool created for attaching bumper supports, which features a convoluted tube that bends around obstructions and places fixturing magnets exactly where needed.
The jigs and fixtures department has developed a simple flow chart to determine when FDM is a fitting option. The criteria are temperature, chemical exposure, precision, and mechanical load. With FDM’s ABS material, which the engineers find comparable to polyamide (PA 6), many tools for vehicle assembly satisfy the criteria. For those that do, designers can create devices that capitalize on all the advantages of the additive process.
Both Schmid and Eidenschink believe that no enterprise can afford to do without rapid prototyping for product development. Yet, they see so much more possibility. “FDM is taking on increasing importance as an alternative manufacturing method for components made in small numbers,” says Schmid.
The plant’s department of jigs and fixtures uses FDM to build hand-tools for automobile assembly and testing. According to engineer Günter Schmid, “BMW has determined that the FDM process can be an alternative to the conventional metal-cutting manufacturing methods like milling, turning, and boring.” Schmid and fellow engineer, Ulrich Eidenschink, have shown that financial advantages include cost reductions in engineering documentation, warehousing, and manufacturing.
For hand-held devices used on the assembly line, engineers have discovered that there are even greater advantages that arise from the design freedom that FDM offers. Capitalizing on the elimination of constraints, Schmid and Eidenschink employ FDM to make ergonomically designed assembly aids that perform better than conventionally made tools.
To improve productivity, worker comfort, ease-of-use, and process repeatability, the plant uses FDM to enhance the ergonomics of its hand-held assembly devices. The freedom of design allows engineers to create configurations that improve handling, reduce weight, and improve balance. According to Schmid, “The tool designs we create often cannot be matched by machined or molded parts.” In one example, BMW reduced the weight of a device by 72 percent with a sparse-fill build technique. Replacing the solid core with internal ribs cut 1.3 kg (2.9 lbs) from the device. “This may not seem like much, but when a worker uses the tool hundreds of times in a shift, it makes a big difference,” says Schmid.
Another advantage of rapid manufacturing is improved functionality. Since the additive process can easily produce organic shapes that sweep and flow, the tool designers can maximize performance while improving ergonomic and handling characteristics. “The layered FDM manufacturing process is well suited for the production of complex bodies that, when using conventional metal-cutting processes, would be very difficult and costly to produce,” says Eidenschink. An example is a tool created for attaching bumper supports, which features a convoluted tube that bends around obstructions and places fixturing magnets exactly where needed.
The jigs and fixtures department has developed a simple flow chart to determine when FDM is a fitting option. The criteria are temperature, chemical exposure, precision, and mechanical load. With FDM’s ABS material, which the engineers find comparable to polyamide (PA 6), many tools for vehicle assembly satisfy the criteria. For those that do, designers can create devices that capitalize on all the advantages of the additive process.
Both Schmid and Eidenschink believe that no enterprise can afford to do without rapid prototyping for product development. Yet, they see so much more possibility. “FDM is taking on increasing importance as an alternative manufacturing method for components made in small numbers,” says Schmid.
Diebold, a manufacturer of automated teller machines (ATMs), electronic-security and voting systems has had early success with rapid manufacturing. Previous applications proved that it could dramatically cut time and cost from component production for these sophisticated systems. This experience led to the discovery that rapid manufacturing could do the same for assembly and machining fixtures.
“Producing the fixtures using conventional machining methods could easily take a week,” says Rich Lute, Diebold senior mechanical engineer. Since production is at a standstill until fixtures are available, this delays a product’s release. “Rapid manufacturing helps us get to market faster by providing a quicker and less expensive method of building the fixturing.”
Having used fused deposition modeling (FDM®) for rapid manufacturing of components and sub-assemblies, Diebold chose the technology to make its fixtures. The company needed accurate fixtures since there are many small components that are machined or assembled to tight tolerances. “FDM makes it possible to build fixtures from durable thermoplastics, such as polycarbonate and ABS. The fixtures can be produced to an accuracy of 0.005 inch, which is more than enough for this application,” says Lute.
For a recently introduced ATM, Diebold rapid manufactured several assembly aid fixtures. One such fixture (images 1 & 2) is used by production workers to precisely position a keypad privacy shield onto the ATM bezel. This ensures proper installation during assembly.
Diebold also rapid manufactures machining fixtures, such as the one shown in image 3 (black). This particular fixture is used to secure production parts during final machining. Image 4 shows a (red) part to be machined, held in the fixture.
Using rapid manufacturing, Diebold has saved as much as 80 percent in both time and cost. Commenting on average savings, Lute says, “FDM enables us to create assembly and machining fixtures in one-quarter the time and at one-half the cost of conventional machining.”
“We purchased an FDM Titan™ because it can produce machining and assembly fixtures in only a day or two,” says Lute. Combined with the time savings for components, Diebold is realizing the benefits of rapid manufacturing in its ATM and security system product lines.
“Producing the fixtures using conventional machining methods could easily take a week,” says Rich Lute, Diebold senior mechanical engineer. Since production is at a standstill until fixtures are available, this delays a product’s release. “Rapid manufacturing helps us get to market faster by providing a quicker and less expensive method of building the fixturing.”
Having used fused deposition modeling (FDM®) for rapid manufacturing of components and sub-assemblies, Diebold chose the technology to make its fixtures. The company needed accurate fixtures since there are many small components that are machined or assembled to tight tolerances. “FDM makes it possible to build fixtures from durable thermoplastics, such as polycarbonate and ABS. The fixtures can be produced to an accuracy of 0.005 inch, which is more than enough for this application,” says Lute.
For a recently introduced ATM, Diebold rapid manufactured several assembly aid fixtures. One such fixture (images 1 & 2) is used by production workers to precisely position a keypad privacy shield onto the ATM bezel. This ensures proper installation during assembly.
Diebold also rapid manufactures machining fixtures, such as the one shown in image 3 (black). This particular fixture is used to secure production parts during final machining. Image 4 shows a (red) part to be machined, held in the fixture.
Using rapid manufacturing, Diebold has saved as much as 80 percent in both time and cost. Commenting on average savings, Lute says, “FDM enables us to create assembly and machining fixtures in one-quarter the time and at one-half the cost of conventional machining.”
“We purchased an FDM Titan™ because it can produce machining and assembly fixtures in only a day or two,” says Lute. Combined with the time savings for components, Diebold is realizing the benefits of rapid manufacturing in its ATM and security system product lines.
Direct Digital Manufacturing Yields 80% Savings on Fixtures
“FDM enables us to create fixtures in one-quarter the time and at one-half the cost of conventional machining.”
Rich Lute, Diebold
“FDM enables us to create fixtures in one-quarter the time and at one-half the cost of conventional machining.”
Rich Lute, Diebold
7940 Cherry Ave., Suite 202, Fontana, CA 92336
Tel: (909) 829.4950
Fax: (909) 829.4969
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