Application of the Taguchi Method and New Hatch Styles for Quality Improvement in Stereolithography

AbstractIn recent years, rapid prototyping (RP) technology has been implemented in many spheres of industry, particularly in the area of new product development. Rapid prototyping has the capability to produce a tangible solid part, directly from three-dimensional computer aided design (CAD) data, from a range of materials such as photocurable resin, ceramic and metallic powders and paper. However, in most cases, models built in acrylic-based resin in the stereolithography (SL) process have not yielded the desired quality, which has led to a shift in the use of this resin to more expensive ones that have longer build time. An experimental investigation has been carried out to determine statistically the optimum build parameters with the use of the Taguchi method in order to improve the SL product quality. Two new hatch styles have been developed in this study and a confirmation experiment has shown a significant improvement in part accuracy.