DP Technology Kicks Off Esprit Additive Suite

Designed to simplify the additive manufacturing process from 3D CAD model to printed part, the ESPRIT Additive Suite from DP Technology will feature programming, optimization and simulation for direct metal deposition, 3D powder bed and subtractive manufacturing, the company reports.

The ESPRIT Additive Suite delivers machine-optimized job files and complete control of the additive manufacturing process for direct metal deposition machines and 3D powder bed fusion systems. The software is making its debut at EMO Hannover, September 18-23, with general end-user availability expected in mid-2018.

For hybrid machine tools — CNC machines with additive capabilities — the ESPRIT Additive app for direct metal deposition offers integrated programming and simulation for multi-tasking, multi-function, multi-channel additive and subtractive machine tools, all integrated within the ESPRIT CAM system. Features of the ESPRIT Additive Suite for direct metal deposition tools include

• specialized trajectories for additive processes and full-spectrum toolpaths for subtractive processes;
• simulation and verification for both additive and subtractive processes; and
• universal post processing for any CNC machine tool.

The ESPRIT Additive app for 3D powder bed fusion systems is a printer driver that supports the full process of additive manufacturing, from orienting the part and creating supports, to optimizing the build, slicing and nesting, to generating a job file. Features of the ESPRIT Additive app for 3D powder bed fusion systems include the following: a new Part-to-Build workflow; Knowledge Management; thermal simulation of the build process; and optimized nesting for multi-part builds.

To manufacture a part, a 3D CAD file is combined with manufacturing information and converted into a job file containing all the information necessary to build a part on a specific machine. The ESPRIT Part-to-Build™ workflow — essentially a portable, reusable print driver — allows an intermediary Part-to-Build™ file to be created and reused in other job files without redefining the manufacturing information. This creates traceability, saves time and improves consistency.

An additive process control app allows information sharing among multiple users within a company. The app stores information including original 3D CAD files, Part-to-Build files and job files, as well as post-build information, such as user comments, build results and machine log files.

Both the ESPRIT Additive Suite apps for direct metal deposition machines and 3D powder bed systems feature the ability to work directly with native 3D CAD files.

For more info, visit DP Technology.

Sources: Press materials received from the company.