Earlier this week, German automaker大众was confirmed as an early-access customer of the生命值Metal Jet3D printer. Now, comments from Dr. Martin Goede, Volkswagen’s Head of Technology Planning and Development, reveal further details about the company’s plans for this new metal binder jet technology, and the prospective future ofmass customizedvehicles.
“汽车生产面临着重大挑战：我们的客户越来越期待更多的个性化选择。同时，随着新模型的数量，复杂性正在增加。” Goede博士说。“这就是为什么我们依靠最先进的技术来确保流畅而快速的生产”
“3D printing plays a particularly important role in manufacturing of individual parts.”
大众汽车的3D打印
In the highly competitive automotive industry, the application of additive manufacturing simply makes sense. Volkswagen in particular has been experimenting with the technology for several years now, though the use cases are only just coming to light.
该公司在2017年透露了飞行员的详细信息3D printed spare parts initiative. In the same year, the company’s luxury car brandsAudi and Porschedemonstrated their drive towards 3D printed “reproduction on demand.” Furthermore, the Volkswagen Autoeuropa factory in Portugal released a case study of汽车组件的3D打印工具，这将继续赢得荣誉2018 3D印刷行业奖.
Competitors, of course, are also taking note. In April 2018,BMW Group向专家投资了1000万欧元（约1,230万美元）Additive Manufacturing Campus. And, alongside EOS and Premium AEROTEC,戴姆勒是NextGenAM project用于自动化和集成的添加剂制造。雷电竞充值
100,000 3D printed units per year
The first step of implementing the HP Metal Jet at Volkswagen has been a small production series of individualized gear knobs.
With this application, the car manufacturer, working with GKN Powder Metallurgy, has been able to save on lead times by cutting out the need to build custom tooling for the new parts.
The gear knobs can be personalized with lettering requested by the customer, and are expected to be commercially rolled out as soon as possible. Custom lettering for tailgates may also be possible in the future.
Though, Dr. Goede asserts “A complete vehicle will probably not be manufactured by a 3D printer any time soon,” the goal at Volkswagen is “to integrate printed structural parts into the next generation of vehicles as quickly as possible,”
“In the long term,” adds Dr. Goede:
“we expect a continuous increase in unit numbers, part sizes and technical requirements – right up to soccer-size parts of over 100,000 units per year.”
The proof of concept delivered by the personalized components will help develop 3D printed structural parts for Volkswagen cars, which are expected within two to three years. From 2019, GKN Powder Metallurgy is scheduled to establish an automotive process chain for Volkswagen incorporating its additive manufacturing systems.
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特色图片显示大众工程师和个性化的3D打印齿轮旋钮 - 即将开始的开始。通过Volkswagen的照片
