SBIR-STTR Award

The DLA requires a set of procedures for acceptance of repairs and replacement parts made with additive manufacturing (AM). A critical component of that acceptance procedure will be tools for monitoring and control of AM processes. Vibrant Corporation provides process monitoring and control and nondestructive evaluation (NDE) services based on its Process Compensated Resonance Testing (PCRT) technology. Vibrant proposes to develop an integrated approach to AM process monitoring centered on PCRT and X-ray diffraction (XRD), with other sensors included to provide build process data. During the Phase I project, Vibrant will identify complementary sensors and develop a plan for an integrated multi-sensor approach. Vibrant will also conduct technology demonstrations highlighting PCRT and XRD capabilities for AM process monitoring. The technology demonstrations will show the correlations of AM process variations to PCRT and XRD results. Vibrants PCRT services perform process monitoring and control and NDE for many manufacturing processes, including AM, for a wide range of commercial customers. Vibrant will use that experience to develop its integrated approach and implement it within the DoD and commercial markets.

The DLA and Air Force Sustainment Center (AFSC) require procedures for acceptance of repairs and replacement parts made with additive manufacturing (AM). Tools for monitoring and control of AM processes are vital to that acceptance procedure. Vibrant Corporation provides process monitoring and control and nondestructive evaluation (NDE) services with its Process Compensated Resonance Testing (PCRT) technology. In Phase I of this program, Vibrant developed and demonstrated a PCRT Process Monitoring and Control approach for AM. In Phase II, Vibrant will work with the AFSC, OEMs, and suppliers to evaluate AM specimens and end-use components for variation between builds, machines, and suppliers using PCRT. Vibrant will develop and demonstrate an automated, reconfigurable PCRT system that accommodates a wide range of component geometries. Vibrant will add the capabilities developed and demonstrated in this program to its suite of commercial testing services for AM customers, building upon its already considerable commercialization success in the AM supply chain. The DLA and AFSC have also identified a need for rapid NDE of material states in gas turbine engine components. Vibrant will work with the AFSC to gather data on these components and demonstrate PCRT NDE for material state variation and monitoring of component repair processes.