| Abstract Scope |
Planar material extrusion (ME) processes are insufficient for load-bearing applications due to the poor mechanical performance of inter- and intra-layer bonds. However, the deposition process inherently aligns fibers in the polymer matrix (e.g., composites) to the extrusion direction, presenting the opportunity to optimize part performance through toolpath customization. Whereas planar processes restrict this optimization to the XY-plane, recent advances in multi-axis ME enable toolpath optimization in full 3D. Previously, the authors presented a topology and toolpath optimization (TTO) workflow that optimizes material distribution and orientation for arbitrary 3D loading conditions, aligns deposition paths to those orientations, and orders them for collision-free deposition. In this presentation, the authors evaluate the results of the TTO workflow through the fabrication and mechanical evaluation of case study geometries. Relative to geometrically similar specimens fabricated using planar deposition, the multi-axis TTO specimens demonstrate increased mechanical performance due to improved deposition alignment to the load paths. |