2 research outputs found
Slicing and contours generation for fabricating heterogeneous objects
A contour sub-division algorithm on each layer arising from slicing a heterogeneous object is proposed. Within each slice, the material grading is decomposed into subcontours according to the different grading variation. A parameter called 'grading step-width' is defined to control the number of sub-contours and resolution of the grading. With such discretization, it is, therefore, possible to build a heterogeneous object on layered manufacturing machines of different fabricating precision specification.published_or_final_versio
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SFF-Oriented Modeling and Process Planning of Functionally Graded Materials Using a Novel Equal Distance Offset Approach
This paper deals with the modeling and process planning of solid freeform fabrication
(SFF) of 3D functionally graded materials (FGMs). A novel approach of representation and
process planning of FGMs, termed as equal distance offset (EDO), is developed. In EDO, a
neutral arbitrary 3D CAD model is adaptively sliced into a series of 2D layers. Within each
layer, 2D material gradients are designed and represented via dividing the 2D shape into
several sub-regions enclosed by iso-composition contours. If needed, the material
composition gradient within each of sub-regions can be further determined by applying the
equal distance offset algorithm to each sub-region. Using this approach, an arbitrary-shaped
3D FGM object with linear or non-linear composition gradients can be represented and
fabricated via suitable SFF machines.Mechanical Engineerin