The Rapid Metal Tooling Process Based on Layered Manufacturing

The objective of this research work is to develop a direct metal rapid mould using layered manufacturing process. The approach relate to direct slices of CAD models to generate process planning instructions, incises the metal sheets layer by layer process and bonds them by diffusion weld technology. Instead of slicing the model from STL data, this methodology direct slices of CAD models using a constant layer thickness in EUCLID-IS based CAD system. The cross section contour profiles are then converted to CNC machine instructions for fabrication. Fabricated sample shows that the new process is one of the feasible methods for the layered manufacturing of metal moulds.