ASTM International’s additive manufacturing technologies committee (F42) is developing a proposed standard that will help with data registration in additive manufacturing processes.

W. CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., Sept. 17, 2020 - ASTM International's additive manufacturing technologies committee (F42) is developing a proposed standard that will help with data registration in additive manufacturing processes.

"Industrial additive manufacturers need data registration to extract and characterize process signatures that are used to control variations in powder spreading, melt-pool geometry, thermal stability, layer integrity, and part quality," says ASTM International member Shaw C. Feng. "Registration of these datasets covers metadata, data cleansing, correction, and identification."

Feng, a mechanical engineer in life cycle engineering at the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology, says that industrial additive manufacturing users have just begun to understand the importance of multi-sensor, dataset registration in control processes and qualifying parts.

"This proposed standard comprises action that users need to take to register those datasets and store them in a repository," says Feng. "In general, each dataset is associated with specific functions in the product lifecycle. This standard focuses on two of those functions: build and inspect." Datasets
associated with build and inspect functions include, but are not limited to, sensor data, scan commands, photographic images, and thermal images.

According to Feng, benefits of registering data include:
• Accessing validated data with known time, locations, and approvals,
• Data alignment and fusion for process monitoring and control,
• Detecting defects traceable to process, material, equipment parameters,
• AM part qualification, and
• Understanding AM process for developing predictive models.

"There are three potential impacts of the proposed standard," says Feng. "First, more software tools for data analytics and AM product lifecycle engineering can be used easily. Second, more robust validation and certification processes for aerospace and medical industries will be available. Third, cost savings in data management, curation, and access will increase."

The additive manufacturing committee invites all interested parties to join in the development of this proposed standard (WK73978) and others under development.

For more information on ASTM International standards for additive manufacturing, please watch this video.

ASTM welcomes participation in the development of its standards. Become a member at www.astm.org/JOIN.

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