Introduction to Additive Manufacturing

Although additive manufacturing is a relatively young discipline, the effects that can be achieved with the various additive technologies in terms of efficient product and manufacturing process optimization are of outstanding importance. These processes offer innovative and versatile opportunities for accelerated product design and advanced design and manufacturing process optimization. In addition, the use of nature-based technologies also makes it possible to manufacture components with extreme complexity and internal structures that were very difficult or impossible to produce using conventional methods. Lightweight design and energy savings, also in the product life cycle, can thus be realized with the same stability and load-bearing capacity. This book describes how the potential of additive manufacturing can be used specifically in product development to design highly efficient products. For this purpose, the contents are linked holistically in the sense of development processes of product creation.