'The University of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology'
Abstract
Recent advancements in the field of additive manufacturing continue to push its application deeper
into commercial use. However, concerns persist regarding the consistency of part quality,
methodologies for quality assurance, and cyber-physical system security. These concerns are
exacerbated by the closed-system architecture implemented by most commercial powder bed
fusion additive manufacturing (PBFAM) machine manufacturers. Though implementation of
device and process monitoring equipment is often suggested to address these concerns, deployment
is hampered by the inability to extract real-time information from closed systems during the build
process, including scanner position, laser power, sensor data, etc. Here, a framework for an open
and transparent communication protocol for PBFAM systems is developed and implemented on a
3DSystems ProX-200 machine. Real-time measurement of build process parameters and
synchronization with an optical emission sensor is demonstrated. The utility of the protocol and
real-time sensing for PBFAM are discussed.Mechanical Engineerin
