Precise Heating for the Additive Manufacturing Industry

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is a relatively young industrial process that is defined as the production of three-dimensional objects by the addition of material, often layer by layer. While first introduced in the 1980’s, it has gained ground in the past 20 years as technology has advanced. Three-Dimensional (3D) Printing is probably the most well-known area of additive manufacturing because it has grown significantly in commercial popularity and availability recently. As with other industrial applications, heat is often required for additive manufacturing processes.? Below are three unique examples of Tempco heaters being used by the AM industry.

Flexible Heaters Ideal for 3D Printing Beds

Three-dimensional (3D) printing beds commonly need heat applied as the material is deposited and formed. The heat must be applied with a tight tolerance for the printer to work correctly. Thermistors are frequently used in applications where precise heat control is necessary because they are more exact than other sensors and controls. The design features of the heaters designed for this additive manufacturing application include:

• Tempco Silicone rubber heaters with flexible, stain-resistant, smooth material were ideal for this application.
• The heaters were factory-vulcanized to printer bed plates that the customer supplied.
• A thermistor for precise temperature sensing and control was integrated into the heaters.

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Coil Heater for 3D Printer

A customer who builds 3D Printers needed a solution for heating the plastic material in the extruder of the printer. This application required a small heating element with high temperature capabilities. Additionally, integrating a temperature sensor within the heater was requested to reduce costs.? The design features of this assembly include:

• A small coil heater with an Inconel 600 sheath was utilized in the assembly with a housing diameter of 0.69" and a housing width of 0.45".
• An internal Type K Thermocouple was integrated into the assembly.
• The heater and the sensor were housed in a stainless steel cylinder with a 6mm threaded insert.

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Silicone Rubber Heaters for Powder Cart Assembly

A customer utilizing an additive manufacturing process approached Tempco in need of a heating solution for their complicated application. The process involved heating a large amount of nylon powder being deposited onto a print bed while it is lowered into a cart. A crucial part of this application was maintaining a temperature of 150° C. The design features of these heaters include:

• Three unique flexible heaters were designed: one for the top, one for the sides and one for the bottom of the cart.
• Mounting holes were required for the bottom heater, so the heating element was designed to work around all eight of the required mounting holes.
• The heater for the sides was designed to wrap around the outside of the entire cart, making it a long, narrow heater.

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Tempco has been serving manufacturing across multiple industries for over 50 years. As industrial processes change with advancing technology such as additive manufacturing, we have remained a reliable source for heating elements, temperature sensors and control products. Additive manufacturing has proven to be a useful industrial process for many industries such as transportation, medical and dental supplies, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and energy. Because AM requires precision heating control to make high quality parts, Tempco has designed our heating elements, sensors and controls to take this precision into account. The ever-changing demands of the manufacturing world have their challenges, but we have proven time and again that we are up for those challenges.? We look forward to the next 50 years of innovation and can’t wait to see how we can contribute.