FIT Introduces In-House CT Scanning for Advanced Quality Assurance in AM

FIT has added a state-of-the-art computer tomography (CT) system to its growing inventory of advanced manufacturing technology. A pioneer in industrial additive manufacturing, FIT is now also the first AM manufacturer to establish an in-house QA department. At formnext (Frankfurt am Main, November 15–18), FIT is presenting these advanced measuring and testing techniques at booth 3.1 H74.
Having in-house CT scanning allows for high-precision measuring and visualization of inner and outer structures, providing customers with an even greater level of confidence in the AM parts produced by FIT.

FIT Group, a trendsetting pioneer in AM
The strategic use of CT in AM is to increase product quality and to optimize the production processes. Due to this non-contact and nondestructive measurement and analysis of inner structures, FIT is able to increase process stability for FIT’s manufacturing systems – more than 40, after all. The CT system allows FIT to identify or verify the existence of pores, cavities, fissures, form deflection, displacement, shape distortion etc. Evaluations such as design vs. part comparison or analysis of wall thickness are visualized in color and serve as proof of specified product requirements.

Additional benefit of advanced metrology
Real applications for additively manufactured metal parts are broad and demanding. To ensure adherence to technical part requirements, FIT has added this reliable technology for efficient and high quality component analysis – from the interior to the exterior of the part. As an example, color analysis can illustrate geometric flaws when comparing the scan data of the produced part to the original CAD model, and dimensional tolerances can be reliably verified even for complex and bionic structures. “The adoption of in-house CT scanning allows for high precision quality control in-line with our manufacturing processes, increasing efficiency and reducing lead time for our customers. At the same time, production processes can be improved continuously and significantly through this same data evaluation”, explains Carl Fruth, Founder and CEO of FIT.

Technical highlights
Optimal results of cross sectional views are achieved using high resolution (up to 5 µm) at a maximum acceleration voltage of 240kV. A 3K detector provides a 1/3 higher resolution when compared to standard detectors. 3D analysis is compliant to VDI 2630. The CT scanner is equipped with a reflection radiation and target power of 300 Watt. Maximum size of the parts is O 550 mm x 700 mm.

CT Scan

Semitransparent CT representation of inner structures of a topology optimized cylinder head:
Cross section and 3D positioning