Dimensionics Density introduces automated density testing for Additive Manufacturing

Dimensionics Density, a division of Dimensionics GmbH based in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, has launched a density determination system for use in Additive Manufacturing. The metrological system, which has been developed for the rapid and accurate density determination of components, is expected to contribute to the automation of the AM process chain in the area of part validation, especially for components used in critical end-use applications.

“Our technology plays straight into the need for automation in the area of validation and quality control of AM parts, and we have launched an array of tools focused on the determination of AM part density,” stated Philipp Pruesse, Head of Sales. “For AM to continue to disrupt the manufacturing paradigm, the entire AM process chain needs to move towards automation. Because of this, our density determination solutions are fully automated, and of vital importance, are designed to be used in production settings, not just in the laboratory.”

“As we all know,” Pruesse continued, “AM stimulates design freedom as it is agnostic to part complexity. As geometric complexity increases, density determination of AM parts becomes more difficult using commonly used density determination technologies. Dimensionics Density’s solutions can easily determine the density of freeform parts and highly complex AM parts and can measure density repeatably to 0.001 g/cm³.”

The Dimensionics Density system‘s measuring process takes place fully automatically after the samples have been inserted into the universal component carriers. Numerous environmental factors that can affect the density measurement are monitored by the integrated measurement and control systems, and are taken into account when calculating the density from the measurement data.  This allows accuracies to be achieved in the determination of the density, which can be difficult to realise in an industrial production environment.

The machine uses the Archimedes Principle wherein the density of the test object is determined by weighing it in two different media. The first measurement is usually made in air, the second measurement in a defined liquid medium with a known density. The crucial factor for the accuracy of the result, however, is the positioning on the scale. Deviations from the centre of mass and resulting off-centre measurements of the component will lead to strong deviations. This is why the common manual Archimedes measurement solutions are not viewed favourably across industry.

Pruesse continued, “To counteract this problem and to ensure the repeatability of the measurements, Dimensionics Density offers a universal carrier which can transport most parts, and which can be easily adapted if necessary for more complex geometries. The determined density is compared with the desired specifications, and so qualitatively more accurate assumptions can be made about the density of complex components. With a cycle time of less than two minutes per component and the possibility of inspecting up to eighteen components simultaneously in one inspection process as standard, the Dimensionics Density solution supports the optimisation and efficiency of manufacturing processes.”

Dimensionics Density’s density determination technology is non-destructive and suitable for use when verifying parts that conform to density requirements and those that don’t.

www.dimensionics-density.com/additive

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