日本技術情報センター Company Overview

In the automotive and aerospace industries, there is an urgent and critical challenge to improve fuel efficiency, leading to active development of materials and component manufacturing technologies aimed at further weight reduction. Uchida Co., Ltd., which boasts high technical capabilities in the molding and processing of CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastic) with excellent characteristics such as lightweight, high strength, high rigidity, corrosion resistance, and heat resistance, has introduced the first CFRP-compatible large pellet 3D printer "Heron AM" from Caracol, aiming for innovation for the future and energetically working on circular component shaping and manufacturing. In this seminar, COO Junpei Ochiai will practically explain, using videos, the motivation for the introduction, CFRP molding and component shaping technologies, reduction of personnel involved in the molding manufacturing process, examples of achieving low costs through re-resourcing of molds after use, comparisons with conventional methods and case studies, efforts to reduce carbon dioxide through material circulation, initiatives for a circular economy, and commissioned shaping services.

At the beginning of the seminar, we will introduce Canon's latest developments in a groundbreaking high-performance ceramic material that excels in selective laser melting (SLM) for 3D printers, which suppresses "shrinkage" during firing. We will discuss the characteristics of parts that can be created using this method, layer manufacturing technology, target fields, contract manufacturing services, and our collaboration with Metal Research Institute, which has launched a high-precision ceramic parts manufacturing service using metal 3D printers with this material. Following that, we will provide a clear explanation of the development trends of various ceramics 3D printers from world-class companies such as SKEFINE, Lithoz, and Sinto Advanced Ceramics. We will cover the innovative manufacturing technologies that enable complex integrated shapes, hollow, porous, and lattice structures that were previously impossible with conventional processing methods and techniques. This includes the creation of innovative parts, rapid development, prototyping, and manufacturing of parts, a significant reduction in the number of parts, lightweight miniaturization, and a substantial decrease in manufacturing processes and workforce. We will also discuss various application examples and the recent attention on high-speed, large-scale ceramics 3D printers for the short-term, low-cost manufacturing of large parts and products. Thanks to the remarkable advancements in ceramics 3D printing/AM technology, manufacturing ceramic parts with 3D printers will become commonplace in a few years.

With advancements in technology, a variety of ceramics 3D printers have recently been developed and launched into the market, enabling the creation of complex shapes and integrated structures that were impossible with traditional methods and technologies, such as porous and lattice structures, and hollow structures. This has led to the innovative production of ceramic parts, short-term, low-cost, high-quality manufacturing, a significant reduction in the number of parts, and a substantial decrease in production processes and workforce. On the other hand, Canon has developed a high-performance ceramic material that excels in selective laser melting (SLM) using metal 3D printers, which suppresses "shrinkage" during firing. In June of last year, Canon and the Metal Research Institute collaborated to officially launch a contract manufacturing service for high-precision, complex-shaped ceramic parts using Canon's innovative ceramic materials and leveraging the metal 3D printers from 3D Systems. In this seminar, we will provide a practical and easy-to-understand explanation of the development trends of Canon's ceramic materials compatible with metal 3D printers, the molding technology using these materials, the characteristics of the parts that can be produced, the physical properties and features of the molded products, target areas, collaboration with the Metal Research Institute, and future material development and market strategies.