Design and Development of Layer by Layer Deposition Mechanism for Selective Laser Melting Processs

Abstract

Selective Laser Melting is a process which comes under the field of additive manufacturing in which a high-power density laser is used to melt and fuse the metallic powders together. This project is about modifying a laser marking machine’s design application from its two-dimensional marking application to a three-dimensional layer by layer additive manufacturing application. An experimental scale lab setup was developed which makes the 3D metallic parts from the powder. Process starts by the deposition of the layer of powder onto the surface which is followed by the melting of powder done by the laser machine on the specified area. Again, the powder layer will be deposited, and the powder will be melted. This process is repeated until the 3D part is built up completely. Product finish will be dependent upon the powder size being used and the size of the layer deposited. Layer deposition is controlled by the designed z-axis mechanism which is controlled with the help of stepper motors according to the required layer size.