LOM - Laminated Object Manufacturing

For several years now, the Foundry Research Institute in Cracow has been using a LOM 2030E system made by HELISYS USA, which enables manufacture of foundry patterns in packets of maximum dimensions 810 x 560 x 510 mm. When it is necessary to make larger elements, the object created in graphic editor is divided into smaller segments, which are manufactured as individual parts and joined next into one whole by e.g. glueing.

Sometimes, however, it is necessary to make elements of dimensions smaller than the dimensions of the paper sheets available on the market. If this is the case, to avoid discarding of paper, the option of file merging is used.

The LOMSlice 1.5.F software provides such possibility using a „File - merge to file” command. Patterns made by this technique are used in various fields of industry, foundry included. The fields of application are the following:

• a) visual presentation and studies of prototype equipment (Fig. 1),

Fig. 1 Example of LOM patterns application in automotive industry for media prototype visualisation (parts of car body, wheel band, steering wheel).
• b) patterns for moulding in traditional moulding sands,
• c) patterns used in the lost foam process,
• d) patterns for silicone dies,
• e) „Blister” vacuum moulding technology – packages,
• f) Shaw process.