An approach to Reverse Engineering Methodology for Part Reconstruction with Additive Manufacturing. Issue 1 (October 2021) - López, J
Abstract: In diverse sectors such as aerospace, transport or energy, equipment is several decades old. Due to their extended lifespan, technical and manufacturing documentation might be inaccessible or inexistent. Manufacturing process problems, wear occurring during a part life cycle, or even the unavailability of digital data (redesign of obsolete parts produced in pre-digital era, legal restriction, or trade secrecy) are some examples to outline the lack of reliable 3D data for manufacturing purposes. The manufacturing and subsequent replacement of these components can turn into a significant problem. Lack of knowledge about system's functioning, unknown operating conditions and limited technical information hamper the design development and manufacturing of these components. Classical Reverse Engineering (RE) approaches are commonly used to facilitate the understanding of a system's functioning and ease the design recovery to create a more accurate and suitable model for engineered components. Combining these approaches with modern digitalisation technologies and new customized fabrication techniques, such additive manufacturing, can help to reconstruct obsolete, old or legacy components lacking manufacturing data. This paper contributes with a structured method aimed to design for additive manufacturing.