Testing Stress Defects in 3D-printed Metal Parts with an Optical Scanner for Automotive Applications

Year 2025, Volume: 9 Issue: 1st Future of Vehicles Conf., 47 - 51, 17.12.2025

Valentin Endre Szabó István Hatos Zoltán Weltsch

https://doi.org/10.30939/ijastech..1767023

Abstract

Additive manufacturing is becoming increasingly popular in motorsports and the world of limited-edition supercars, as it can be used to produce parts with an excellent strength-to-weight ratio. 3D metal printing is one of the newest and fastest-growing branches of additive manufacturing technologies. One of the biggest challenges of this technology is the formation of residual stresses, especially in the case of direct metal laser sintering (DMLS). These internal stresses often cause deformations and warping, especially when the parts are removed from the base plate. In this study, we examined a twin cantilever geometry using an optical scanner. The optical scanner allows for high-precision examination of the entire surface, so we can evaluate the entire piece based on millions of points rather than just a few points. This allows us to evaluate the test piece more accurately. This also allows us to evaluate areas that cannot be analyzed using traditional point-based testing. We demonstrate the advantages of digital point-based measurement technology, which not only focuses on the accurate measurement of changes, but also compares the differences between the changes in multiple components, providing further evaluation possibilities. The study confirms the advantages of optical measurement technology in complex deformation tests and demonstrates the in-depth analysis possibilities offered by detailed surface scanning.

Keywords

3D scanning Geometric deformation , DMLS (Direct Metal Laser Sintering) , New measurement method , Optical metrology

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