Glossary of Terms
| Acronym | Title | Description |
| 3DP | Three Dimensional Printing | 3D printing was developed by MIT and then licensed to 6 companies, for products like the Z402 Z-Corp machine.
http://www.zcorp.com |
| CAM-LEM | Computer Aided Manufacturing Layer of Laminated Engineering Materials | The CAM - LEM process, like other rapid prototyping methods, originates in a CAD model decomposed into boundary contours of thin slices. The component is developed in a layered manner, then post-processed to yield optimum mechanical and surface properties.
http://www.camlem.com/camlemprocess.html |
| CC | Contour Crafting | The use of a set of plates to model a flow of extruded plastic into a shell.
http://www-rcf.usc.edu/~khoshnev/us-tech.htm |
| CLOM | Curved Laminated Object Manufacturing | Working on the same principal as LOM , but using a forming board to make the layers curved to produce different geometries. |
| DMLS | Direct Metal Laser Sintering | A thin layer of metallic powder is spread over a building platform and locally sintered by a laser beam, controlled by a computer which reads the shape data from a CAD system. Layer by layer the three-dimensional geometry is reconstructed in every detail, enabling even highly complex parts and tools to be built up quickly and fully automatically.
http://www.eos-gmbh.de |
| DMD | Direct Metal Deposition | The Commercial name for LENS, marketed by Optomec.
http://www.optomec.com |
| EDSSM | Extrusion and Deposition of
Semi-Solid Metals |
A process in its infancy, the extrusion of semi solid metals to create prototypes in metal in short leadtimes. |
| FDC | Fused Deposition of Ceramics | The process works as per FDM but using filaments combined with ceramics. |
| FDM | Fused Deposition Modelling | The FDM process forms three-dimensional objects from CAD-generated solid or surface models. A temperature-controlled head extrudes thermoplastic material layer by layer. The designed object emerges as a solid three-dimensional part without the need for tooling.
http://www.stratasys.com |
| FDMet | Fused Deposition of Metals | The process works as per FDM but using filaments combined with metals. |
| LCVD | Laser Chemical Vapour Deposition | The process of heating a vapour to a state where a deposit is left on a substrate This can be used to build up a geometry with the deposit. |
| LENS | Laser Engineered Net Shape | A high powered laser is used to melt metal powder supplied to the focus of a laser beam by a deposition head.The build up of this powder on top of a substrate can be used to produce a solid part whose properties are as as good as if not better than the constituent parts. Created by Sandia LABS under the name LENS but marketed commercially as DMD, through Optomec.
http://www.optomec.com |
| LOM | Laminated Object Manufacturing | Profiles of object cross sections are cut from butcher paper using a laser. The paper is unwound from a feed roll onto the stack and bonded to the previous layer using a heated roller. The process is marketed commercially by Helisys who have currently ceased trading. |
| PLD | Pulsed Laser Deposition | Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) is an efficient method to deposit thin films by utilizing a technique called laser ablation. This invention relies on a free-space magnetic field in a pulsed laser deposition chamber for forming high-quality thin films made from diverted ions from a plume evaporated from an ablated target illuminated by a pulsed laser beam.
http://www.hut.fi/Units/AES/projects/prlaser/pld.htm |
| RFP | Rapid Freeze Prototyping | A Developing Process of freezing water into a 3D model. |
| SALD | Selective Area Laser Deposition | The method of decomposing a gas pyrolitically or photolittically to produce a deposit in order to create a 3D shape. |
| SALDVI | Selective Area Laser Deposition and Vapour Infiltration | The same as SALD but the substrate used in SALD is now part of the end product and the gas is used merely to fill the gaps in the substrate. |
| SLA | Stereolithography | A method of photocuring a resin with a laser to produce a 3d geometry. One of the most commonly used RP techniques, developed by 3D Systems.
http://www.3dsystems.com |
| SLS | Selective Laser Sintering | A Process of sintering together layers of powder (e.g. nylon or glass filled nylon) into a 3d model with a laser. A very commonly used RP technique, developed by DTM and EOS.
http://www.eos-gmbh.de |
| N/A | Laser Caving | Use of a fine laser to machine metal to a high accuracy
http://www.gildemeister.com |
What's New
Local MP nominates 3T for ‘Made by Britain’ award – 2 Feb 12
Lisa Harouni presents 'A Primer on 3D Printing' - 24 Jan 12
3T to present at the Association of Laser Users event - 23 Jan 12
Giant kite made up of 6,000 plastic AM pieces - 9 Jan 12
