A method for sintering objects formed with aluminum powder includes forming a shape of an object with aluminum powder, selecting a sintering atmosphere and sintering the object in the sintering atmosphere. The sintering atmosphere includes Nitrogen and one or more of Argon and partial vacuum. The selection is based on a desired balance of degree of shrinkage and mechanical properties to be achieved.

A tooling assembly and method of aligning a plurality of components for a repair process in an additive manufacturing machine includes positioning the plurality of components such that a repair surface of each of the plurality of components contacts an alignment plate, e.g., under the force of gravity or using biasing members. The method further includes surrounding the alignment plate with containment walls to define a reservoir around the plurality of components and dispensing a fill material, such as wax or a potting material, into the reservoir which is configured for fixing a relative position of the plurality of components when the fill material is solidified.

A method is for manufacturing an ornamental part, for example a watch, jewellery or telephone part, in particular a watch crown. The part includes, at least partially, a hard material with a Vickers hardness exceeding 1,000 HV. The method includes the following main steps: producing a precursor from a mixture of at least one powder material with a binder, producing an insert made of a polymer material, the insert having, at least partially, a negative shape of that desired for at least one portion of the part, overmoulding the precursor onto the insert made of a polymer material by injection into a mould to form a green body, and sintering the green body to form a body of the future part from the hard material.

A system and method are described for post-processing a 3D printed component. For example, support structures for the 3D printed component may be removed during post-processing. In the system and method, a marker is placed on the 3D printed component or on a support structure attached to the 3D printed component. The marker may be printed while the 3D printed component and the support structures are printed by a 3D printer. After printing, the marker may then be sensed to determine one or more cutting paths between the 3D printed component and the support structures. The 3D printed component may then be autonomously separated from the support structures by cutting through the cutting path.

A system and method are described for post-processing a 3D printed component. For example, support structures for the 3D printed component may be removed during post-processing. In the system and method, a marker is placed on the 3D printed component or on a support structure attached to the 3D printed component. The marker may be printed while the 3D printed component and the support structures are printed by a 3D printer. After printing, the marker may then be sensed to determine one or more cutting paths between the 3D printed component and the support structures. The 3D printed component may then be autonomously separated from the support structures by cutting through the cutting path.

A metal object produced by a three-dimensional (3D) metal object manufacturing apparatus is subjected to a high temperature heat treatment to improve bonding of the object layers, especially in the vertical or Z-axis direction. A supporting structure is formed around the metal object to retain the shape and features of the object during the high temperature heat treatment. The supporting structure is formed in a manner that is sufficient to retain the shape of the metal object during the heat treatment but is easily removed once the heat treatment is finished.

A metal object produced by a three-dimensional (3D) metal object manufacturing apparatus is subjected to a high temperature heat treatment to improve bonding of the object layers, especially in the vertical or Z-axis direction. A supporting structure is formed around the metal object to retain the shape and features of the object during the high temperature heat treatment. The supporting structure is formed in a manner that is sufficient to retain the shape of the metal object during the heat treatment but is easily removed once the heat treatment is finished.

An industrial asset item definition data store may contain at least one electronic record defining the industrial asset item. An automated support structure creation platform may include a support structure optimization computer processor. The automated support structure optimization computer processor may be adapted to automatically create support structure geometry data associated with an additive printing process for the industrial asset item. The creation may be performed via an iterative loop between a build process simulation engine and a topology optimization engine.

Techniques for using a pin array to support a 3D printed object during sintering are disclosed. An example method includes adjusting pins of a pin array to provide support for a bottom surface of the 3D printed object, and placing the 3D printed object on the pin array. The method also includes placing the 3D printed object and pin array in a sintering oven, and heating the 3D printed object in the sintering oven to sinter the 3D printed object while being supported by the pin array.

A press sintering process product carrier for carrying at least one product to be sintered in a press sintering process comprises a top side; a product receiving recess defined in the top side, and configured for receiving the product(s) therein and for carrying the product(s) on a recess bottom of the product receiving recess; a top side surface surrounding the product receiving recess; a holding groove provided in the top side surface and surrounding the product receiving recess, and a vacuum connection in fluid connection with the holding groove to allow providing a vacuum in the holding groove for holding a film, foil or sheet of material provided over the product receiving recess and the holding groove; and a recess gas inlet arranged in the product receiving recess for introducing a gas into the product receiving recess, and a recess gas outlet arranged in the product receiving recess for extracting gas from the product receiving recess to allow providing a flow of gas from the recess gas inlet to the recess gas outlet for purging the product receiving recess.