Re: SLS Beam width

From: Timothy J. Gornet (tim.gornet@louisville.edu)
Date: Thu Aug 16 2001 - 22:16:36 EEST


Rick,

There is sort of a two part answer. The effective beam width of an SLS machine is about 0.015" to 0.018". That is the easy part. The hard part is not scanning a thin wall but being able to remove the part from the powder without breaking the wall. The thinnest that we have ever been able to make through the build and the infiltration cycles is 0.020" with some limited success. Building a part with 0.030" - 0.045" walls was quite successful. It really depends on the geometry, size, and location of the wall. Basically the issue is removing the unsintered powder without breaking the feature. It requires a delicate touch and good planning.

Tim

Tim Gornet Computer Aided Engineering Consultant
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>>> "Rick Harrington" <rharrington@harringtonpdc.com> 08/16/01 02:30PM >>>
Hello List,

What is the smallest laser beam width used on the SLS direct to metal
process? In other words, What is the thinnest wall section that can be
built in the direct to metal process?

Thanks in advance.

Rick Harrington

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