What is rapid prototyping?
Rapid prototyping (RP) technologies fabricate physical objects directly from CAD data, one layer at a time, by an additive process that bonds the layers together. Other names used for this process include solid freeform fabrication and layered manufacturing. The various systems that are available offer a variety of material, and the ability to directly fabricate very complex geometries that would be impossible with CNC or any other method.
The rapid prototyping process that is used by RapidPro Manufacturing is a layer-additive process. A software program slices a 3-D CAD model into thin cross-sections or layers. A laser beam traces each layer onto the surface of a vat of liquid photopolymeric material which solidifies when exposed to ultraviolet light. The solidified layer is then lowered into the vat so that another layer of liquid is ready to be exposed to the laser. This process is repeated until all the cross-sections have been built up into a solid replica of the original CAD model. The process can be held to tolerances of +/- 0.005/inch. The resulting parts are strong enough to be snapped together, drilled and tapped, finished and painted, and built into assemblies. They can also be used as mold patterns for casting parts in a variety of materials.
Rapid prototyping is a computer program that constructs three-dimensional models of work derived from a Computer Aided Design (CAD) drawing. With the use of rapid prototyping, one can quickly and easily turn product designs into physical samples. The creation of physical samples through rapid prototyping is achieved through Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) and CAD formats, as well as through cross-functional teams and integration. Rapid prototyping was first introduced to the market in 1987, after it was developed with the help of stereo lithography. Today, rapid prototyping is also known as solid freeform fabrication, 3-dimensional printing, freeform fabrication, and additive fabrication. The manufacturing process of rapid prototyping can produce automatic construction of physical models with 3-dimensional printers, stereo-lithography machines, and even laser sintering systems. Using a CAD drawing to create a physical prototype is quite simple for the user. First, the machine read
(expanded) The term Rapid Prototyping (RP) refers to a class of technologies that can automatically construct physical models from Computer-Aided Design (CAD) data. These “three dimensional printers” allow designers to quickly create tangible prototypes of their designs, rather than just two-dimensional pictures. Such models have numerous uses. They make excellent visual aids for communicating ideas with co-workers or customers. In addition, prototypes can be used for design testing. For example, an aerospace engineer might mount a model airfoil in a wind tunnel to measure lift and drag forces. Designers have always utilized prototypes; RP allows them to be made faster and less expensively. In addition to prototypes, RP techniques can also be used to make tooling (referred to as rapid tooling) and even production-quality parts (rapid manufacturing). For small production runs and complicated objects, rapid prototyping is often the best manufacturing process available. Of course, “rapid”
