Assessment of surface quality on textured FDM prototypes

Purpose – Test the detail resolution of fused deposition modeling (FDM) in the direct manufacture of rapid prototypes with textured surfaces.Design/methodology/approach – A benchmark part carrying regular surface patterns with different feature sizes and aspect ratios has been manufactured on a FDM system with different build orientations. Layered parts have been inspected to detect the occurrence of quality defects on textured surfaces.Findings – The experiments reveal the ability of currently available FDM systems to enhance prototype surfaces with form details on a millimeter scale. Results assist in identifying conditions which need to be satisfied in order to successfully reproduce generic texture geometries.Research limitations/implications – Although the testing method can be applied to any layered manufacturing technique, results are limited to a specific process, and may be influenced by technical improvements of commercial fabrication systems.Practical implications – A first contribution is give...