Wire arc additive manufacturing with robotic gmaw
Originally published in WELD Magazine, spring 2022
Wire Arc Additive manufacturing (WAAM) is an alternative to traditional metal manufacturing methods such as casting or the machining of raw billets to produce a desired shape. One option for this ‘3D-printing’ of metallic products using the WAAM process is to apply the metal using the GMAW (gas-metal arc welding) process delivered by a standard 6-axis welding robot.
As part of a 3-rd year capstone project in the Manufacturing Engineering Technology – Welding and Robotics program at Conestoga College in Cambridge, ON, a series of thin-walled blocks, where the thickness is less than 10% of the height, were created using three common steel alloy welding electrode wires as the feedstock. This project builds upon previous studies by students at Conestoga in this area. The ultimate purpose of these walls is for a separate study where their integrity and mechanical properties will be evaluated.