Short description
This text describes real-life operating conditions in rapid prototyping. It presents a collection of incidents drawn from practice, illustrating the practical issues and problem-solving approaches needed to deal with real situations that engineers are likely to come across in their working lives.
Long description
Time compression technologies such as rapid prototyping and manufacturing offer enormous potential benefits. Dramatic savings can be made when lead times to development of new or modified products are reduced. Swifter development also lends a competitive edge to companies using these techniques. A bewildering number of different systems and processes are available. Ensuring that the most appropriate rapid prototyping and manufacturing technology is applied to a problem is vital to the success of a project. Rapid Prototyping Casebook offers specially commissioned case studies compiled by an experienced team at the Warwick Manufacturing Group of the Unviersity of Warwick in the UK. The studies represent a range of different real experiences drawn from a variety of industries, and using various materials and processes. Each experience clearly demonstrates the advantages and benefits of rapid prototyping and manufacturing as well as the pitfalls and shortcomings to the systems available. Case studies are drawn from: product design and development; utilizing bureau facilities; rapid casting techniques; rapid tooling; reverse engineering; medical applications; sculpture and architecture; and rapid manufacture. Rapid Prototyping Casebook is an ideal information source for all those involved in product development, design, manufacture, time compression technologies, and anyone who is keen to see how new technologies actually work in practice.