Velo3D, a leader in metal additive manufacturing technology for mission-critical parts, has released the latest version of its Flow 5.0 print preparation software. Using Velo3D’s fully integrated solution, Flow 5.0 unlocks a slew of new capabilities for engineers, including user-selectable core parameter sets that provide enhanced control over builds and the ability to assign different parameters to any part on the build plate.
Customers now have greater control over the final material properties of printed parts, in addition to the ability to apply skin and contour overrides with Flow.
“Through our software, we are able to continually expand our manufacturing capabilities based on customers’ needs and feedback. By enabling selectable core parameters for customers, engineers can modify the material properties of their parts to better suit the need of the application, including more isotropic parts. This even works on builds with multiple types of parts where each requires a different core parameter set.”
– Alexander Varlahanov, VP of Engineering at Velo3D
Flow 5.0 Print Preparation Software
The new Flow 5.0 release also includes checks and messages that identify potential errors before a build even begins, reducing the likelihood of build failures for customers. Engineers can be confident that a part will print successfully before the process even starts. Object labelling is now available in Flow.
To clearly identify and label instances of their parts, customers can easily add alphanumeric characters, such as serial numbers or other unique identifying text, to their builds within the Flow print preparation software. After creating the print file, the characters can be updated using a new Label Updater tool.
The release also includes a faster method for calculating build times for builds with varying part quantities. Users can vary the quantity of a part and see updated build times after it has been prepared for print to better understand the economics of scaled production. This allows contract manufacturers to accelerate their quoting process, as well as OEM planning and scheduling.
Velo3D’s fully integrated metal additive manufacturing solution includes the Flow print preparation software. The software converts traditional CAD files to print files with no specialisation or design for additive manufacturing (DfAM). The Sapphire printer family, Assure quality assurance software, and the underlying Intelligent Fusion manufacturing process ensure consistent, repeatable results across different Sapphire printers from the same print file are also part of the solution.
