Automating a novel multi-tool additive and subtractive manufacturing platform for micrometre-resolution prototyping across diverse industries

微成型工艺（如注塑成型）支持大批量生产，但不适合快速迭代的设计-测试-原型周期。英国政府最近投资了超过1.68亿英镑用于增材制造（AM），这是一种多功能工具，有可能推动不同行业的工业研发。这包括多材料混合部件，例如携带电荷的聚合物/金属部件。到2025年，3D打印电子产品的交易额将达到150亿英镑，在物联网、工业4.0和智能连接设备的市场拉动下，复合年增长率将超过15%。然而，AM在多台机器上使用复杂的协议，并且还没有人能够正确地整合不同的技术来获得高质量的精密复杂混合材料部件。这些包括生物传感器、一次性诊断和用于多个行业（如汽车行业）的低容量印刷电路板/致动器。支持他们的工业研发和制造符合英国的各种战略政策，包括生命科学战略，交通脱碳计划和零排放任务。AAS控股有限公司，作为混合制造解决方案的交易，已经开发出一种正在申请专利的技术，无缝集成了几个添加剂和减材制造工艺。拟议的公共/私人合作项目旨在实现全数字平台自动化，实现最小的错误和最大的零件产量，远远上级当前的AM流程。该项目是朝着包括集成金属和电子产品的工业处理在内的优先市场迈出的关键一步。通过简化研发和提高生产力，扩大技术规模将累计节省1.44亿英镑，同时到2029年避免超过10，000吨二氧化碳当量排放和35，000吨工业材料浪费。

Micro-forming processes like injection moulding support large-series manufacturing but are ill-suited to rapid iterative design-test-prototype cycles. The UK Government recently invested over £168 million into additive manufacturing (AM), a versatile tool with potential to propel industrial R&D across diverse sectors. This includes multi-material hybrid components such as polymer/metal parts carrying electrical charge. 3D-printed electronics will trade £15 billion in 2025, with over 15% compound annual growth driven by market-pull from the Internet-of-Things, Industry-4.0, and smart-connected devices. However, AM suffers from complex protocols across multiple machines, and nobody has yet managed to properly integrate disparate techniques to obtain high quality precision complex hybrid-material parts. These include biosensors, disposable diagnostics, and low-capacity Printed Circuit Boards/actuators used across multiple sectors such as in the automotive industry. Supporting their industrial R&D and manufacturing aligns with various UK strategic policies, including the Life Sciences Strategy, Transport Decarbonisation Plan, and Zero Emissions Mandate. AAS Holding Limited, trading as Hybrid Manufacturing Solutions, has developed a patent-pending technology that seamlessly integrates several additive and subtractive manufacturing processes. The proposed public/private collaborative project targets full digital platform automation enabling minimal error and maximum parts output, far superior to current AM processes. The project is a pivotal step towards targeting priority markets including industrial handling of integrated metals and electronics. Scaling the technology will unlock £144 million in cumulative industry savings through streamlined R&D and productivity gains, whilst averting over 10,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions and 35,000 tonnes of industrial material waste by 2029\.