Robot supported wire arc additive manufacturing and milling of steel columns

Abstract

Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) is a robot-controlled welding process used to build up three-dimensional structures in steel, which may be unfeasible to manufacture using conventional methods. This article presents the design-to-manufacturing process of a steel column node with a varying cross section and high complexity using partial parametric robot programming and multiple process-control checks. To achieve the desired geometries and high level of dimensional accuracies, the printed structure will undergo post processing by means of machining. Therefore the milling of printed structure’s areas which are over-printed as planned is presented.