By: Luis Avalos, Date: 02/13/2018

Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS) is an additive manufacturing technology developed for fabricating metal parts directly from a computer-aided design (CAD) solid model. A metal powder is injected into a molten pool created by a focused, high-powered laser beam. The process is similar to that of a 3D printer, the main difference being the material used. LENS technology is capable of making fully dense metal components and bypasses the need for metal forging and casting. It is also important to note that LENS could also modify or repair existing metal components which could save a lot of money on having to remake a complete component.

• The Initial development of the LENS technology was an effort between Sandia National Laboratories and Pratt & Whitney.

• In 1997, the LENS technology was licensed to Optomec, Inc., (Albuquerque, N.Mex.) Since that licensing, Optomec has been the sole manufacturer and distributor of LENS systems.

• Presently there are more than 20 systems operating.

• By using the coordinated delivery of metal particles into a focused laser beam, a part is generated.

• The laser beam creates a molten pool of metal on a substrate into which powder is injected.

• Concurrently, the substrate on which the deposition is occurring is moved under the beam/powder interaction zone to fabricate the desired cross-sectional geometry.

• Consecutive layers are deposited, thereby producing a three-dimensional part.

Advantages:

• These products, built with LENS technology, have much better characteristics: thicker material structure, less corrosiveness, less porosity which leads to much smaller possibility of bacterial infection for medical applications.

• This is the reason that thin-walled parts are desired. It is extremely hard (if not impossible) to produce thin-walled implants with conventional technologies; therefore, LENS technology is a much better solution.

Tolerances:

LENS MR-7                                                           LENS 450                                                               LENS 850-R

Positional Accuracy: ±0.015 mm            Positional Accuracy: ±0.25 mm                 Positional Accuracy: ±186 um

Linear Resolution: ±0.009 mm                 Linear Resolution: ±0.025 mm                    Linear Resolution: ±0.5 um

Current Applications:

Optomec LENS MR-7 Cost: >$250,000

Optomec LENS 450 Cost: $299,000

Optomec LENS 850-R Cost: $1.3 Million