ABB Robots Print Metal Parts Where They're Needed
How ABB robots went from printing a steel bridge in Amsterdam to powering compact metal 3D printing cells, and why spare parts could soon be printed locally.
INDUSTRIAL ROBOTICS
Chat With Robot
9/23/20261 min read
A replacement metal part used to mean a long wait. A blacksmith forged it, or a foundry cast it and a machinist cut it to size. A ship waiting on a propeller or a mine waiting on a worn bracket could sit idle for weeks until the part arrived.
A blacksmith bends hot steel on an anvil. Photo: Fir0002 / Wikimedia Commons (GFDL 1.2)
Wire-arc additive manufacturing shortened that wait. A robot carries a welding torch and lays down metal bead by bead until the part is built up. Australian firm AML3D, an ABB Robotics Authorised Value Provider, prints large parts this way in any weldable metal, on ABB arms.
AML3D building up a metal part with wire-arc printing. Photo: ABB
One of the best-known printed metal structures came off ABB robots. MX3D used an ABB IRB 2600 and an IRB 6700 to print a stainless steel footbridge for an Amsterdam canal. Six-axis arms can point the print head at almost any angle, so the designers didn't have to shape the bridge around the machine.
MX3D's 3D-printed stainless steel bridge at Dutch Design Week. Photo: IIVQ / Tijmen Stam, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
On September 9, Meltio launched a US-assembled version of its Meltio Robot Cell, which pairs a wire-laser print head with an ABB robot arm inside a laser-safe enclosure. Meltio says the cell needs only power and inert gas to start printing, which makes it easier for an ordinary factory to install.
ABB robots printing the MX3D bridge structure. Photo: ABB
Writing robot paths for a print used to take far longer than the print. ABB's 3D Printing PowerPac for RobotStudio takes a design from standard slicer software and turns it into robot code, and ABB says the setup takes about 30 minutes. It handles plastic granules and concrete as well as metal welding.
An engineer runs a robot 3D print planned in ABB RobotStudio. Photo: ABB
At home, plastic 3D printers already sit on plenty of desks and bookshelves. Metal is harder because of the heat, the fumes and the price. For now I'd bet on the local print shop: a small ABB-based cell there could print a spare bracket for your bike or boiler overnight.
A desktop 3D printer on a home shelf. Photo: RAIL P / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
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