Methods, systems, and devices for precision locating additively manufactured components for assembly and/or post processing manufacturing are provided for herein. In some embodiments, at least one component can be additively manufactured to include one or more kinematic features on one or more surfaces of the component. The kinematic feature(s) can be configured to engage complementary kinematic feature(s) formed in a second component so the two components can form an assembly. Alternatively, the kinematic feature(s) can be configured to engage complementary kinematic feature(s) associated with a post-processing machine such that the one or more post-processing actions can be performed on the component after the component is precisely located with respect to the machine by way of the kinematic features of the component and associated with the machine. A variety of systems and methods that utilize kinematic features are also provided.

Systems and methods for support structures for additive manufacturing of solid models. A method includes receiving a solid model, for a physical object to be manufactured, that includes a plurality of boundary representation surfaces. The method includes analyzing the b-rep surfaces to generate point samples for potential support locations. The method includes clustering points on the solid model, corresponding to at least some of the point samples, to create support locations. The method includes generating column supports in the solid model that connect to the original solid model at the support locations. The method includes storing the solid model, including the column supports.

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for optimizing material processing. In one aspect, a method includes collecting, from a set of sensors, a set of current manufacturing conditions. Based on the set of current manufacturing conditions collected from the sensors, a set of current qualities of a material currently being processed by manufacturing equipment is determined. A baseline production measure for processing the material according to the set of current qualities is obtained. A candidate set of manufacturing conditions that provide an improved production measure relative to the baseline production measure is determined. A set of candidate qualities for the material produced under the candidate set of manufacturing conditions is determined. A visualization that presents both of the set of candidate qualities of the material and the set of current qualities of the material currently being processed is generated.

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including medium-encoded computer program products, for computer aided design of physical structures using generative design processes, where the 3D models of the physical structures are produced so as to facilitate manufacturing of the physical structures using 2.5-axis subtractive manufacturing systems and techniques, include: obtaining a design space for an object to be manufactured, design criteria, and load case(s); iteratively modifying a generatively designed 3D shape of the modeled object, including generating 2D profile representations (corresponding to discrete layers) of an updated version of the 3D shape, extruding the 2D profile representations along the milling direction, and forming a next version of the 3D shape of the modeled object from a combination of the 3D representations produced by the extruding; and providing the generatively designed 3D shape of the modeled object for use in manufacturing the physical structure using a 2.5-axis subtractive manufacturing process.

A production system for producing products from raw materials by a production process with several steps has a number of production facilities that perform the steps and a control device. The control device determines a control target value by referring to information about group combinations specified in accordance with the relative merits of the manufacturing condition routes followed by respective lots during the production process. The routes are respectively set for a number of groups that are classified on the basis of raw material properties formed of a combination of property items of one or more types of raw materials. The relative merits of the routes are determined on the basis of quality items of the lots, classified for inter-step combinations of groups, which are classified on the basis of manufacturing conditions at the steps.

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including medium-encoded computer program products, for computer aided design of physical structures using generative design processes. A method includes obtaining a design space for a modeled object, one or more design criteria for the modeled object, and one or more in-use load cases; iteratively modifying a generatively designed three dimensional shape of the modeled object in the design space in accordance with the one or more design criteria and the one or more in-use load cases for the physical structure, comprising: performing numerical simulation of the modeled object in accordance the one or more in-use load cases, computing shape change velocities for an implicit surface in a level-set representation of the three dimensional shape, changing the shape change velocities in accordance with a polynomial function, and updating the level-set representation using the shape change velocities to produce an updated version of the three dimensional shape.

A method and an apparatus of a powder bed fusion additive manufacturing system that enables a quick change in the optical beam delivery size and intensity across locations of a print surface for different powdered materials while ensuring high availability of the system. A dynamic optical assembly containing a set of lens assemblies of different magnification ratios and a mechanical assembly may change the magnification ratios as needed. The dynamic optical assembly may include a transitional and rotational position control of the optics to minimize variations of the optical beam sizes across the print surface.

Systems, apparatuses and methods are described for integrating an electronic metrology sensor with precision production equipment such as computer numerically controlled (CNC) machines. For example, a laser distance measuring sensor is used. Measurements are taken at a relatively high sample rate and converted into a format compatible with other data generated or accepted by the CNC machine. Measurements from the sensor are synchronized with the position of the arm of the machine such as through the use of offsets. Processing yields a detailed and highly accurate three-dimensional map of a workpiece in the machine. Applicable metrology instruments include other near continuously reading non-destructive characterization instruments such as contact and non-contact dimensional, eddy current, ultra-sound, and X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) sensors.

The invention proposes a dynamic storage rack unit for providing material in logistics and/or manufacturing processes, having a plurality of storage rack compartments (3) inclined in the longitudinal direction, each storage rack compartment (3) being designed to accommodate a plurality of material containers (4) arranged beside one another in the longitudinal direction, storage rack compartments (3) each having a plurality of sensors (5) for monitoring the filling level of the respective storage rack compartment (3), a distance (A) which corresponds substantially to the length of the material containers (4) to be accommodated in the storage rack compartment (3) being provided in the longitudinal direction between sensors (5) of the respective storage rack compartment (3), storage rack compartments (3) each having at least one state display apparatus (10) for displaying the state and/or filling level of the respective storage rack compartment (3), which unit at least partially improves the disadvantages of the prior art. According to the invention, this is achieved by virtue of the fact that storage rack compartments (3) each comprise at least one compartment checking unit (6) for checking the respective sensors (5) of the respective storage rack compartment (3), the compartment checking units (6) each being in the form of energy and data transmission units (6) for supplying the respective sensors (5) of the respective storage rack compartment (3) with electrical energy and for acquiring, receiving and transmitting sensor data from the respective sensors (5) of the respective storage rack compartment (3), at least one storage rack checking unit (7) for checking a plurality of compartment checking units (6) of the storage rack compartments (3) being provided, the at least one storage rack checking unit (7) being designed to supply the plurality of compartment checking units (6) of the respective storage rack compartments (3) with electrical energy and to acquire, receive and transmit data from the plurality of compartment checking units (6) of the respective storage rack compartments (3), at least one central checking unit (11, 12, 13) for checking the at least one storage rack checking unit (7) being provided, the central checking unit (11, 12, 13) being designed to acquire, receive and transmit data from the at least one storage rack checking unit (7).

Methods and systems for creating a mold for a cast memorialization product are described herein. In a process for creating a mold, a three-dimensional (3D) model of a product design is generated. The product design includes customized features for a memorialization product. A mold design is generated based upon the 3D model of the product design. Printing instructions for creating the mold are generated and accessed by a processing device. The mold is created according to the printing instructions. A product, such as a bronze memorialization product, can be cast using the mold.