Manufacturing

Materials and their properties

Material

Types

Properties

Examples

Plastics/

Polymers

Thermoplastics

High degree of plasticity, recyclable

Perspex™, PVC, ABS, Polystyrene

Thermosets

Medium degree of plasticity, non-recyclable

Polycarbonate, Nylon, Teflon™

Timber

Natural - Softwood (Evergreen)

High tensile strength, mid-density, mid-compression

Pine, Cedar

Natural - Hardwood (Deciduous)

 

Temperate

Tropical

High tensile strength, high density, high compression

 

Lighter in color

Darker in color, denser

 

 

Oak, Ash

Mahogany, Teak, Ebony

Man-made timber

Cheaper, greater widths

Plywood, MDF, Chipboard

Metals

Ferrous

Contains iron, therefore rusts, hard

Steel, Stainless Steel Iron, HSS (High-Speed Steel)

Non-ferrous

Does not contain iron, therefore doesn’t rust

Aluminum, Silver, Copper, Gold, Brass, Duralumin

Alloys

Dependant on the ratios and materials

Steel, Brass, Duralumin

Glass

Glass

Low plasticity, high elasticity, low tensile strength, high compressive strength, brittle, has thermal properties

Soda glass, Borosilicate

Ceramic

Porcelain, China

Textiles

Synthetic

Waterproof, high tensile strength, non-absorbent

Acrylic, Nylon, Kevlar

Natural

Not waterproof, high tensile strength, absorbent

Wool, Cotton, Silk

Composites

Carbon Fiber

High strength to weight ratio, multi-purpose, tensile strength, heat resistant

Carbon Fiber, GRP, Acrylic

Thermoset Polymers

FE, Urea Formaldehyde

 

Proprieties

Physical Properties

Definition

Mechanical Properties

Definition

Hardness

The ability to resist scratching and pressure

Toughness

The ability to resist penetration

Elasticity

The ability to stretch under force and return to its original form

Stiffness

The ability to maintain form when under pressure

Plasticity

The ability to stay in the deformed form after the elastic point, permanent

Ductility The ability to be extruded into thin sheets or wires

Density

The mass of a material

Tensile strength

The measure of a material's resistance to strain (deformation)

Electrical resistivity

A measure of resistance to electrical charge

Compressive strength

The measure of a material's resistance to stress (pressure)

Thermal conduction

A measure of thermal conduction

 

Thermal expansivity

A measure of thermal expansion

 

Young’s modulus

The Young's modulus graphs illustrate the mechanical proprieties of materials by showing the relationship between the stress (force per unit area) and the strain (proportional deformation). Stress is the amount of compression material is experiencing. Strain is the deformation due to the stress.

Stress-strain comparison

Brittle materials have high compressive strength and low tensile strength

Flexible materials have high tensile strength and low compressive strength.

Engineering stress-strain

Part Description Diagram
Elastic point The point where the elastic zone ends
Yield point The point where the Plastic zone starts
UTS Ultimate Tensile Strength - the maximum load that a material can sustain
Breaking point The point at which the material fails/breaks
Necking  
Elastic zone The zone in which a material experiences elasticity
Plastic zone The zone in which a material experiences plasticity

 

Types of steel

Low Carbon Steel High Carbon Steel

 

Protecting materials

Metal from rusting/corroding

Wood

From By
Fungi  
Insects  
Weather  

 

Manufacturing

Manufacturing processes

Classification

Definition

Example

Additive

Fusing (gluing) separate pieces of material together

Lamination

3D-printing

Wasting/

subtractive

Subtracting (cutting) from a piece of material

Laser cutting

Drilling

Shaping/

machining

Subtracting (sanding) from the surface of a material

Turning

Milling

Joining

Fixing together two or more components permanently or semi-permanently

Nuts, Bolts, Screws, Glue

 

Manufacturing techniques

Techniques

Type

Factors to consider when using this technique

Diagram

Molding

Injection

Advantages – no finishing required, volume production, use of different molds


Disadvantages – high capital cost, high cost of molds, size limitations

Extrusion

Advantages – no finishing required, volume production, hollow shapes


Disadvantages – high capital cost, size limitation, shape and detail of extruded parts

Compression

Advantages – no finishing required, volume production, shape and detail


Disadvantages – high capital cost, high cost of molds,

Blow

 

Rotational

 

Vacuum

 

Thermoforming

 

Casting

Sand

   

High pressure

   

Textiles

Weaving

   

Knitting

   

Joining

Adhesives

   

Fusing

   

Stitching/

sewing

   

Fasteners

   

 

Materials and Techniques

 

Timber

Metal

Plastic

Composites

Textiles

Casting

Stitching

Weaving

Cutting / Machining

Abrading

Adhesives

 

Robots

Robots fulfill a wide range of industrial and non-industrial roles, such as industrial robots, service robots, personal care robots, and medical robots.

Type of Robot or System Description
Single-Task Robots Robots that perform one specific operation
Multi-Task Robots Due to their complexity, these robots can perform multiple tasks
Team of Robots Multiple coordinated robots work together to create an item
Machine to Machine (M2M) The technology that enables robots to interact with each other and allow the system to operate without human intervention

 

Ways fabrication and assembly robots work

Robots Tasks Description Example
Single robot  -  Single-task One robot performing one task Welding
Single robot  -  Multi-task One robot performing multiple tasks using interchangeable heads or arms Robotic arm with an interchangeable head
Multi robot  -  Single-task Multiple robots working together to create one item Car assembly line

 

Industrial fixed robotic arm

Components Form Diagram
Power source

Electrical, Hydraulic or Pneumatic (Compressed air)

Tooling Fixed, Multiple or Interchangeable
Mechanical Unit Structural arm, Sensors, Joints and Actuators (Controllers)
Control System Computer or Microprocessor driven by a controller

 

Scales of Production

Scales

Definition

Example

Craft/One-off

Small-scale - using tools and manual skill and usually made to a client's specific design specifications.

Tailored clothing

Batch

Medium-scale - using a mixture of manual and mechanical tools to allow individual customization for clients. Birthday cakes

Mass/Volume

Large-scale - using automized and mechanized tools during the many stages of production in order, which reduces the units. Cars

 

Design for Manufacture

Design for

Definition

Material

Taking into account the advantages and limitations of certain materials

Process

 Taking into account the different manufacturing techniques

Assembly

Taking into account the stages of the assembly process

Disassembly

Taking into account the stages of the disassembly or maintenance

 

Editors

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