Additive manufacturing processes can be classified into seven categories:
Sheet Lamination
Sheet lamination is an additive manufacturing process in which sheets of material are bonded together to form a part.
In the lamination process, a piece is formed by bonding layers of material together. The sheet materials can be almost anything, such as plastics, paper, composites, and also metals.
The metal lamination process involves placing metal sheets on top of each other, cutting the sheets into shape, and joining them together. The cutting is typically done with a laser or a knife, and the joining is done by gluing or, for example, ultrasonic welding. The sequence of the process between material cutting, placement, and joining can vary.
Ultrasonic joining is carried out by moving a shaft vibrating at an ultrasonic frequency over the surfaces of the plates. The vibrations turn into heat between the plates, causing them to weld together. Ultrasonic welding lamination machines do not require an enclosed environment because the joining takes place within the piece, unlike in other additive manufacturing processes. Ultrasonic joining (Ultrasonic Consolidation) is used as a synonym for ultrasonic welding (Ultrasonic Welding).
A consumer-familiar application of the lamination process is the use of paper as a 3D printing material. The paper to be fed can be pre-cut sheets, such as A4 paper, or for example roll material, from which the printer cuts out the parts to be retained in the process while the excess is wound onto a waste roll on the other side of the printing area. Paper 3D printing using the lamination process is one of the few 3D printing processes capable of full-color printing.
Although paper prints have plenty of potential applications in themselves (in addition to marketing, users have included, for example, architectural firms and hospitals), the rapid development of 3D printing in other methods has, however, pushed paper prints into a marginal role. The use of lamination processes for metals, on the other hand, has largely remained in the hands of specialized companies mainly serving the aerospace and aviation industries.
The most well-known device manufacturer for paper 3D printing was Mcor Technologies (2014-2019). The company developed its own version of the lamination process, which used ready-made A4 sheets instead of rolls. Currently, devices based on the lamination process are no longer available for consumers.