The TUM.Additive initiative networks researchers in the field of additive manufacturing and creates synergies beyond subject-specific domains. The aim is to optimize the process chains of additive manufacturing and thus make industrial use more sustainable in the core areas of materials, process technologies and digitization. Energy and resource savings subsequently make an important contribution to climate protection.
By means of new materials, innovative materials and intelligent process technologies based on digital 3D designs, complex components can be designed load- and function-oriented and created layer-by-layer - additively - in line with the motto of a Human-Centered Engineering of the School of Engineering and Design (ED).
Examples from Research
The research activities of Prof. Katrin Wudy's Chair of Laser-based Additive Manufacturing cover a broad spectrum along the entire process chain of powder- and beam-based additive manufacturing methods. A unique feature here is the parallel focus on plastics and metals. How can energy input be optimized in space and time to enable first-time-right manufacturing? How can the quality of the parts be predicted with process monitoring systems? How can different technologies and materials be combined in hybrid additive manufacturing? From material development to automation solutions and quality control, this holistic approach helps to implement innovative technologies in the industrial environment.
The Chair of Medical Engineering Materials and Implants headed by Prof. Petra Mela is working, among other things, on complex, silicone-based structures for the creation of biomimetic organ models. In such model systems, the implants of the future can then be examined and optimized under physiological conditions before they are used in humans. Mela is also investigating microstructured topology architectures that can be used to study the responses of human cells to different cultivation conditions, such as a biomimetic heart valve.
Prof. Michael Zäh at the Institute for Machine Tools and Industrial Management, for instance, manufactures an aircraft engine that was produced completely additively. In addition to powder bed-based processes, direct energy deposition processes and machining post-processing were also used (AdDEDValue).
The Chair of Carbon Composites of Prof. Klaus Drechsler, in cooperation with the partners from TUM.Additive, is researching additive manufacturing technologies with which considerable lightweight construction potentials - such as individual fiber composite components - can be realized in robot-assisted rapid prototyping. For stroke patients, for example, a customized exoskeleton of the lower extremities is to be produced in less than 24 hours in a fully automated process.
The core of research at the Chair of Materials Engineering under Prof. Peter Mayr is formed by structure-property relationships of metallic materials. How can materials and processes, materials and process parameters of additive manufacturing be optimized? Researchers at the chair are working on large-scale additive manufacturing up to 20 kg per hour, advanced metal manufacturing such as metal matrix composites, bulk metallic glasses, high entropy alloys or in-situ alloying with more than four powders, among others.
TUM Venture Labs: successful Start-ups in the field of additive Manufacturing
The research activities at TUM and the expertise of the UnternehmerTUM start-up center bring together science, industry and entrepreneurship to fully exploit the potential of the digital technology of the future. With the TUM Venture Lab Additive Manufacturing, TUM supports entrepreneurial spin-offs in the transfer of excellent research to companies.
Numerous spin-off companies are proof of the quality of TUM's training programs and innovative strength: Voxeljet's industrial printing systems for plastics and sand are used in a variety of industries - from medical technology to the automotive industry to film studios. Vectoflow uses 3D printing to manufacture individually designed flow probes for turbomachinery measurements in aviation. Kumovis develops 3D printers for high-performance plastics that are specially tailored to medical technology requirements and produce, for example, skull plate or spinal implants.
The research cluster TUM.Additive will be present at Formnext, the international trade fair for additive manufacturing and industrial 3D printing, in Frankfurt from November 15 to 18, 2022. Visit the booth C71 in hall 12.1.