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Minimizing the Number of Transitions of 3D Printing Nozzles Using a Traveling-Salesman-Problem Optimization Model

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Abstract

In nozzle-based three-dimensional printing, transitions are movements of the printing nozzle from a path endpoint to a path start-point. These transitions diminish printing quality by causing strings. A method to minimize the number of transitions based on direction-parallel line segments is presented in this paper. The endpoints of line segments were considered to be “cities” in converting the problem of minimizing the number of transitions into a traveling salesman problem (TSP). A genetic algorithm solver was developed by designing an oriented mutation method for the TSP. Compared with other algorithms for solving the TSP, our algorithm generates paths with fewer transitions. The algorithm was tested using several fused-deposition-modeling and weld arc additive manufacture examples to confirm that the generated paths were reasonable.

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Acknowledgments

This project was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51975281 and 51705183). Metal workpieces were fabricated using the WAAM method by the Jiangsu Jiuyu Machinery Limited Company. Qingdao JointX Intelligent Manufacturing Ltd. produced the WAAM workpiece shown in Fig. 20b.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronatics and Astronatics, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China

    Hao Liu, Rui Liu, Zhoupeng Liu & Shuhao Xu

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  1. Hao Liu
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Correspondence to Hao Liu.

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Liu, H., Liu, R., Liu, Z. et al. Minimizing the Number of Transitions of 3D Printing Nozzles Using a Traveling-Salesman-Problem Optimization Model. Int. J. Precis. Eng. Manuf. 22, 1617–1637 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12541-021-00512-2

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