Formnext 2022: Trumpf prints copper in large format with green laser

15 Nov 2022

Large copper components can for the first time be processed on 3D printers with Truprint 5000.

With its green laser, the TruPrint 5000 Green Edition processes copper parts.

Large copper components can now be processed on 3D printers from Trumpf as easily as common 3D printing materials such as stainless steel. The high-tech company has equipped its largest 3D printer, the TruPrint 5000, with the green laser for the first time for this purpose.

“The green laser is crucial for processing copper. With the TruPrint 5000 Green Edition, we are responding to the demand for systems with larger installation space for the production of copper components such as for electric motors or heat exchangers,” commented Roland Spiegelhalder, product manager at Trumpf.

The system is energy efficient and repeatable. “Therefore, it is suited for series production. Users can produce large copper components faster and in higher quality with the new TruPrint 5000 Green Edition system than with comparable machines using infrared technology,” said Spiegelhalder.

Printing special functions

Hybrid production is now possible with the new TruPrint 5000: a user no longer has to additively-manufacture the entire component. This lowers costs. For example, users of the TruPrint 5000 can use the Preform function to print special functions such as cooling channels onto milled or cast components. In the large installation space of the system, maintenance technicians can also repair turbine blades of engines additively.

“For this, the system has to work precisely,” said Spiegelhalder. “This is made possible by our Preform system, which is based on a sophisticated camera. The Preform Advanced variant has additional sensors and operates automatically, enabling series production of hybrid components.”

A milling cutter design from Paul Horn GmbH.

For a long time, one challenge in additive manufacturing was the wide dispersion of machines. “However, the TruPrint 5000 is so sophisticated that there is no difference between machine A and machine B if they are to produce the same component. We are therefore talking about very good reproducibility here,” said Spiegelhalder.

To achieve this, Trumpf has contributed its entire knowledge of additive manufacturing, mechanical engineering and laser technology. In addition, the high-tech company has done a lot of basic research, for example, on the gas flow within the system and the exposure strategy of the lasers.

Multilaser precision

With its three fiber lasers, the TruPrint 5000 can produce metal components faster. “This multilaser principle can be compared to hand writing not only with one pencil, but with several at the same time,” said Spiegelhalder.

Trumpf has developed the Automatic Multilaser Alignment system, in which lasers automatically measure themselves during the construction job at a freely selectable interval and correct their position independently.