Additive manufacturing has become increasingly popular because it enables the production of complex parts which cannot be manufactured by conventional production methods. Unfortunately, additive manufacturing also has some design limitations, one of which is the overhang limitation. Because additive manufacturing builds a product layer upon layer, there should be sufficient support between the layers.
The objective of this project is to enable high-precision Additive Manufacturing (AM) by addressing both product- and process-related challenges in an integrated solution. The research is focused on developing numerical analysis tools which can predict residual stresses and distortions at the level of an entire AM product and Topology Optimization (TO) techniques which rigorously account for both manufacturability and AM-induced performance aspects. The result will be an integrated tool for topology optimization, where constraints on product geometry and product performance can systematically be taken into account.