Desktop Metal, Inc., a global leader in additive manufacturing technologies for mass production, has announced at IMTS 2022 the launch of the Figur G15. It is the first commercial platform of its kind to shape standard sheet metal on demand directly from a digital design file using all-new, patent-pending Digital Sheet Forming (DSF) technology.
Almost all solutions for rapidly prototyping sheet metal parts require custom-forming tools, molds, or dies. Typically, these solutions have extended lead times and are expensive to produce. This is why thanks to Figur’s breakthrough DSF technology, there will be no stamping tools, molds, dies, or presses required.
How does it work?
The Figur G15 maintains high precision with a flexible, incremental forming approach through a proprietary build box design that reduces force distribution across the sheet during the build. It features a software-driven ceramic tool head on an XY gantry that progressively forms large metal sheets layer by layer with up to 2,000 lb of force. With a forming area of 1450 x 1000 mm (57 x 39 in.) in X and Y, Figur G15 can process positive and negative forms up to 400 mm (16 in.) in the vertical Z direction. In terms of metal types and sheets’ thicknesses, you can process steel, up to 2.0 mm thick and aluminum, up to 2.5 mm.
“After years of development, we’re excited to show our Digital Sheet Forming technology to sheet metal fabricators,” said Ric Fulop, Founder and CEO of Desktop Metal. “Sheet metal forming with the Figur G15 is accessible, flexible, and cost-effective, even at low volumes. Manufacturers in the automotive, aerospace, appliance and other industries can now produce a fully formed part in less than an hour without a major investment of time or money.”