Robotics and Computer Integrated Manufacturing 60 (2019) 1–11

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Robotics and Computer Integrated Manufacturing

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rcim

A modular path planning solution for Wire + Arc Additive Manufacturing☆ T

⁎,a b a a a
Florent Michel , Helen Lockett , Jialuo Ding , Filomeno Martina , Gianrocco Marinelli ,
Stewart Williamsa
a
Welding Engineering and Laser Processing Centre, Cranfield University, Cranfield MK43 0AL, UK
b
Open University, Walton Hall, Kents Hill, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Wire + Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) has proven its capability to build medium to large metallic parts
WAAM thanks to its high-rate deposition and its potentially unlimited build volume. Moreover, the low-cost equipment
Wire and Arc Additive Manufacturing and the ability to deposit various metals make WAAM a strong candidate to become a standard industrial
Path planning process. However, like all Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies, the key to manufacturing suitable parts
Toolpath generation
lies in the generation of an optimised path that guarantees a uniform defect-free deposition. Most AM tech-
nologies have been able to use traditional path strategies derived from CNC machining, but the specificities
inherent to the arc deposition make the use of those solutions unreliable across a variety of topologies.
Nevertheless, studies have shown that superior results can be achieved by using a feature-based design approach,
but developing a path strategy for each new geometry would be a very time-consuming task. Therefore, this
paper introduces the Modular Path Planning (MPP) solution that aims to incorporate the modularity of feature-
based design into the traditional layer-by-layer strategy. By dividing each layer into individual deposition sec-
tions, this method allows users to adapt the path planning to the targeted geometry allowing the construction of
a wide variety of complex geometries. This paper also proposes a software implementation that limits user
interventions and reduces user inputs to basic CAD modelling operations. Moreover, the MPP has been compared
to a traditional path planning solution and used to build a complex part for industry.

1. Introduction build volume and a high-rate deposition of various metals, such as steel,
aluminium alloys or titanium alloys [3].
In the past 30 years, Additive Manufacturing (AM) has gradually Post-processing consolidation treatments like Hot Isostatic Pressing
evolved from prototype applications to parts production by improving (HIP), which reduces porosity and lack of fusion, can be difficult to
manufacturability and reducing lead time [1]. Even though AM is al- apply to large components due to the absence of sufficiently-big HIPing
ready used in many commercial processes, its full potential might ap- facilities. For this reason, defect-free deposition is essential to build
pear in the near future, bringing a significant societal impact [2]. primary structures that require high-structural integrity. Ding et al.
Among numerous AM technologies, Wire + Arc Additive [4,5] have shown that, in WAAM, the quality of deposition is funda-
Manufacturing (WAAM) stands out, especially in the field of medium to mentally linked to the tool path strategy used. Therefore, the WAAM
large metallic deposition. Indeed, by combining arc welding tools with technology requires a dedicated software approach to generate opti-
standard robotic manipulators, WAAM provides a potentially unlimited mised paths, thus guaranteeing uniform deposition and ultimately

☆
Declaration of interest statement: We wish to confirm that there are no known conflicts of interest associated with this publication and there has been no
significant financial support for this work that could have influenced its outcome. We confirm that the manuscript has been read and approved by all named authors
and that there are no other persons who satisfied the criteria for authorship but are not listed. We further confirm that the order of authors listed in the manuscript
has been approved by all of us. We confirm that we have given due consideration to the protection of intellectual property associated with this work and that there
are no impediments to publication, including the timing of publication, with respect to intellectual property. In so doing we confirm that we have followed the
regulations of our institutions concerning intellectual property. We understand that the Corresponding Author is the sole contact for the Editorial process (including
Editorial Manager and direct communications with the office). He/she is responsible for communicating with the other authors about progress, submissions of
revisions and final approval of proofs. We confirm that we have provided a current, correct email address which is accessible by the Corresponding Author and which
has been configured to accept email from florent.michel@cranfield.ac.uk.
⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: florent.michel@cranfield.ac.uk (F. Michel).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rcim.2019.05.009
Received 27 July 2018; Received in revised form 21 April 2019; Accepted 11 May 2019
Available online 25 May 2019
0736-5845/ © 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/BY/4.0/).
F. Michel, et al. Robotics and Computer Integrated Manufacturing 60 (2019) 1–11

enabling a complete commercial solution. In fact, many studies have purpose of AM.
focused on this particular topic from which two mains approaches can Furthermore, one must bear in mind the fundamental differences
be distinguished. between powder-bed AM and directed-energy deposition AM. In the
The first approach is to slice a geometry and to generate a path former, the layer height is fixed by the downward movement of the
using the same path planning strategy, for each resulting layer. build platform and the consistency between thickness of the sliced
Although this solution has been successfully used on other AM process layers in pre-processing, and thickness of the layer built is somehow
such as FDM [6], it is not directly applicable to WAAM, which has always ensured. The latter, instead, is closer to micro-casting, and nu-
specific requirements inherent to arc welding deposition. Indeed as merous factors can influence the shape of the deposited bead (width
Ding et al. describe in their research [4,5], several path characteristics and height). One of these factors is the local variation in the part
such as discontinuities, sharp turns and overlaps contribute to an un- geometry. This means that even if the same set of parameters is used,
stable deposition that, layer after layer, can lead to a catastrophic the resulting bead geometry can vary. Imagine a linear deposit; in such
failure. These limits have been understood for a long time, in fact, early a case there is a balance between energy introduced, energy conducted
studies [7,8] have designed path planning strategies for WAAM that away, energy used to melt the wire, and energy used to melt the un-
generate continuous paths. Unfortunately, removing discontinuities derlying material. In this steady state, the resulting geometry does not
increases other factors like sharp turns. For these reasons, Ding et al. change. However, when that linear structure changes into an intersec-
introduced several path planning strategies [4,5,9,10] limiting si- tion, the energy balance is disturbed; more heat is conducted away; the
multaneously all the faulty factors in a path to improve deposition. melt pool would shrink resulting in thinner wall width, and larger layer
Nevertheless, in this approach, all the proposed solutions apply the height, if no compensation is applied to the process parameters.
same path planning strategy regardless of the layer shape. Yet, the Therefore it is absolutely essential that parameters are changed ad hoc
higher the topological complexity of a geometry, the more dis- to compensate for such variation and to ensure that the geometry ob-
continuities and sharp turns are likely to appear. Thus, the resulting tained is the same as that expected per sliced CAD file, and no errors are
quality can vary substantially according to the geometry. accumulated throughout the build. This is also why simple reverse-
The alternative approach is the feature-based design introduced by machining strategies, which fill the sliced layers, cannot be applied.
Kazanas et al. [11]. In their research, they demonstrated WAAM’s To tackle these challenges, this paper introduces a new approach to
ability to build complex parts like enclosed structures by designing a generate paths for WAAM of complex 3D geometries. The proposed
path strategy that fits the requirement of this particular targeted shape. solution, called Modular Path Planning (MPP), integrates the adapt-
This solution has been then followed by the development of cross ability of the feature-based design into a more efficient layer-by-layer
structures [12], T-crossing features [13] and more recently, multi-di- path planning solution. Thus, it will be shown how this solution guar-
rectional pipe joints [14] (Fig. 1). Thus, this approach has shown that antees a uniform layer deposition, leading to high-quality part building,
designing a path strategy ad hoc for a given topology guarantees the and with limited effort in the pre-processing stage.
deposition quality; however, this solution requires a time-consuming The following Section presents the MPP concept and defines the
path design research for each new part, which is incompatible with the rules and the decomposition process to guarantee the uniform

Fig. 1. Structures examples build using a feature-based design approach.

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deposition of a layer. Then, Section 3 describes the MPP implementa- crucial to provide particular attention to the topology of the intersec-
tion that reduces user inputs to basic CAD modelling operations. To tions since poor junctions can create critical defects in the final part. As
describe the entire solution, an application example is presented in it can be seen in Fig. 6, many junction configurations are possible when
Section 4. Section 5 compares the MPP to a traditional path solution using only parallel and oscillated paths. Some of these intersections can
and shows its ability to build complex parts for industry. Finally, in be more complicated to deposit than others as they are more likely to
Section 6, the benefits and limits of the presented solution are dis- produce defects. In any case, an appropriate research study should be
cussed, followed, in Section 7 by the conclusion and the presentation of conducted on each intersection type to determine deposition para-
future work. meters that will assure a defect-free junction.

2. Theoretical approach
2.3. Path planning
2.1. Slicing
Once the layer has been segmented, a path can be generated in each
As introduced previously, the MPP aims to integrate modularity into section. An advantage of the segmentation is that, compared to the
the popular layer-by-layer deposition strategy. Therefore, like the tra- traditional approach, multiple path planning strategies can be used
ditional approach, the first step consists of slicing the 3D Computer across a single layer to best fit the requirement of each section.
Aided Design (CAD) model into layers. However, it should be high- Any path planning strategies can be used to build those individual
lighted that the deposition thickness is not necessarily the same for each paths, however, the oscillated path (Fig. 13a) is the most recommended
layer. For instance, the heat dissipation variation within the first layers since it can handle width variation and slight curve very well, and
has a critical impact on the layer height [15]. The slicing interval could, therefore its deposition is easier to control. Nevertheless, the parallel
thus, compensate for this issue. path (Fig. 13b) can also be an adequate alternative, especially when
The result of this slicing operation is a set of layers represented as used to build narrow shapes since it produces smoother surface wavi-
2D geometries. As it can be seen in Fig. 2, these layers extracted from a ness [16]. Still, interconnections can be more problematic when using
single 3D CAD model can have substantial topology variation. There- parallel paths.
fore, applying the same path planning solution to these diverse topol-
ogies will lead to disparate results. For this reason, the MPP allows the
definition of a path planning strategy for each layer. 2.4. Zoning

2.2. Segmentation As mentioned previously, although path design improves the de-
position uniformity significantly, appropriate deposition parameters are
Segmentation is the fundamental idea of the MPP to integrate essential to control the deposition. Deposition parameters depend on
modularity into the path design process. Indeed, where a traditional the geometry; on the location within a part; on the material being de-
approach would apply a single path planning on the entire layer, the posited and on the chosen WAAM sub-process (MIG, TIG, plasma, etc).
MPP requires users to segment the given layer into sub-parts called For those reasons, the MPP adopts a concept of zones: where a zone,
sections (Fig. 3) to then generate individual paths. identified by a colour, contains a particular set of parameters (Fig. 7a)
The purpose of this segmentation step is to create a set of sections to be specified by the user after the path planning phase.
shaped into basic geometries, usually narrow rectangular shapes, to Thus, as it can be seen in Fig. 7a, a simple straight wall contains
facilitate their deposition. However, the optimum segmentation is de- three zones to accommodate the different thermal conditions in the
termined based on experience and is highly dependent on the part stages of deposition start, steady state, and end. This must be done
geometry. Nevertheless, some basic rules need to be followed. For ex- whichever path is used: single bead, oscillated or parallel. Additionally,
ample, if curved trajectories can be deposited, sharp turns should be if a section contains a notable width variation requiring specific de-
avoided, and instead replaced by corner intersections (Fig. 4). Simi- position parameters, a zone can be defined to account for that change in
larly, if a slight width variation does not alter the deposition (Fig. 5a), width, and to manually adapt the parameters locally (Fig. 7b). How-
an abrupt width variation can create irregular paths (Fig. 5b) leading, ever, this situation could also be solved by using an algorithm that
layer after layer, to significant defects. Therefore, to avoid those irre- would calculate automatically the parameters needed to produce the
gularities, it is preferred to divide this part in multiple sections (Fig. 5c). desired layer width and height. Finally, because the heat dissipation is
The sections shape is fundamental to provide a controlled deposi- drastically different at the intersections, it is crucial to create zones at
tion but, to assure uniform deposition of the entire layer, it is also those locations (Fig. 7c), as explained in the Introduction Section.

Fig. 2. Example of topology variation.

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Fig. 3. Example of a layer segmentation.

Fig. 4. Sharped turn (a) vs corner division (b).

Fig. 6. Path intersection examples.

Fig. 5. Path generation through width variation.

2.5. Layer path

Once a path has been generated for all sections, they are combined
into a single layer path. However, it is important to highlight that the
deposition is not continuous along the entire layer. Instead, when
reaching the end of a section, the deposition is stopped and the torch
moves to the starting point of the following section with the arc off and
without feeding any material (Fig. 8).
Sorting algorithms [17] can be used to reduce downtime by defining
a better order of deposition. Yet, a particular deposition order can
benefit some intersections. Indeed, in the case of the perpendicular
intersection of oscillated paths (Fig. 6b), depositing section 2 after
section 1 helps to melt the waving border at the junction reducing risk
of voids. Moreover, the deposition sequence has a significant impact on
distortion [18,19] and should, then, be taken into consideration to
minimise buckling risk.
Finally, once the path of the first layer is made, the same metho-
dology can be applied to each following layer, generating a set of layers Fig. 7. Zones definition.

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complexity to basic CAD inputs and really minimises user’s interven-

tions.

3. Practical approach

3.1. Slicing

The central operation in the slicing stage is to extract the boundaries

of the geometry at a given height. Actually, most 3D CAD frameworks
contain a function that is able to compute the intersections between
geometry and a plane. Therefore, to build the layers, a list of planes is
first generated following the deposition direction from bottom to top.
As explained previously, the gap between each plane is not necessarily
constant but instead defined by user input. Then, by using the inter-
section function, a layer is extracted for each plane, resulting in a stack
of layers.

3.2. Building Strategy (BS)

Fig. 8. Layer path. The MPP solution aims to build a part by individually generating the
path of each layer. However, as explained previously, the path planning
of a layer can be laborious since it consists of partitioning the layer into
simple sections (Segmentation); generating the appropriate paths for
each section (Path planning) and integrating zones into each section
(Zoning). Therefore, to avoid complex CAD modelling operations, the
following Sections introduce a three-step process called Building
Strategy (BS) (Fig. 10). This process offers users the ability to outline
the desired layer path configuration with basic CAD inputs while, in the
background, the application processes the technical CAD operations to
generate the actual path.

3.2.1. Segmentation
For their first intervention, users are asked to identify each section
of an extracted layer by following the rules defined in the theoretical
approach (Section 2). Firstly, the active layer is shown in the back-
Fig. 9. Full part path.
ground (Fig. 11a). Secondly, the user overlays planar closed-curves on
the targeted sections (Fig. 11b). Thirdly, following the user’s input, the
that can be combined to build the entire part (Fig. 9). software extracts automatically and instantaneously the sections
As shown, building complex geometries of various topologies can be (Fig. 11c) by applying a boolean intersection function (Fig. 12).
achieved thanks to the presented MPP. However, applying the proposed The result of this operation is multiple empty sections represented
solution can be challenging in practice. Indeed, the path planning of a by their boundaries as planar closed curves (Fig. 10). However, no path
single layer can already be a complex and time-consuming process: can be generated yet since it requires an additional user intervention as
partitioning on its own involves many highly-technical CAD modelling described in the following Section.
operations. Therefore, repeating this operation for each layer of a
standard-size part, which can contain hundreds of layers, multiplies the 3.2.2. Path planning
effort required to build the entire part by as much. The next Section Once the layer is divided into sections, a path planning strategy
proposes an implementation of the MPP that reduces the operational needs to be applied to each section to generate paths. As mentioned

Fig. 10. Building Strategy flowchart.

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travel by drawing a guide. As can be seen in Fig. 13, a guide is a planar

curve that specifies the deposition direction. If the oscillated path has
been selected, it will be produced by generating an oscillation per-
pendicular to the guide-line, and with constant step-advancement. If
the parallel path has been selected, a series of equidistant paths parallel
to the guide will be produced. Moreover, intersections between the
guide and the section boundary will represent the start and stop of the
deposition. In fact, the guide must intersect the section’s boundary
exactly twice.
The result of this operation is an automatically generated path for
each section (Fig. 10). It is essential to understand that these paths are
not interconnected; meaning that during the deposition stage the ma-
nipulator will go from a path to another by stopping the deposition and
retracting the end-effector.
However, as stated previously, using a single set of deposition
parameters within a section will most likely lead to a poor deposition
quality. Therefore, it is crucial to give the path the ability to change its
deposition parameter along the path thanks to the zoning step described
in the next Section.

3.2.3. Zoning
In the theorical approach (Section 2.4), a concept of zones has been
Fig. 11. Segmentation process.
presented to facilitate the integration of various deposition parameters
across sections assuring a uniform deposition. The zoning method,
presented here, allows users to define zones intuitively within a section.
By default, the path generated in a section is automatically asso-
ciated with a zone (Fig. 14a), meaning that all movements in this newly
generated path are sharing the same deposition parameters. From this
state, the user can split the main zone in two by simply locating a point
on the path (Fig. 14b). Thus, knowing the location of the point, the
software regenerates a new path and changes the parameters dataset
reference whenever it passes over a splitting point. This process can
then be repeated to generate the necessary number of zones (Fig. 14c).
Alternatively, users can zone the path by defining a length at the
beginning and/or at the end of this path (Fig. 14d). The benefits of this
solution are detailed in Section 3.3 but are mainly related to the fact
that arc-based deposition requires particular parameters at the ignition
and termination stages for a limited length.
Finally, it is important to notice that both of these alternatives can
be used simultaneously (Fig. 14f), giving substantially more flexibility
to the user throughout the process.
At this stage, all required inputs for building a layer are completed,
and the software can, therefore, combine all the generated section paths
into a single layer path (Fig. 10). However, although this process is fast
and straightforward to produce a single layer, repeating it over hun-
dreds of layers can still be tedious.
Fig. 12. Boolean intersection function.
3.3. Mask and 3D zoning
previously, any path planning solution could potentially be im-
plemented, however, in this paper only the oscillated and parallel de- All the inputs needed to generate the path of a layer can be grouped
position strategies are presented (Fig. 13). In general, at this point, into one entity, the mask (Fig. 15). The advantage of this approach is
users pick the best deposition strategies between those available, to best that the same mask can be used over multiple layers. In fact, as can be
meet the requirements of the targeted geometry. seen in Fig. 16, even when each extracted layer is slightly different
However, given that sections are mere planar closed surfaces, other (Fig. 16a), applying a unique mask to all layers (Fig. 16b) results in a
information is needed. Firstly, the user must specify the direction of path accommodating layer boundaries and users’ instructions, for each

Fig. 13. Guides definition and path strategy examples.

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Fig. 14. Zoning.

layer (Fig. 16c). 3.4. Deposition parameters

In fact, this mask property is at the core of the MPP to reduce user’s
interventions. Indeed, once users have defined the first layer mask, the Deposition parameters are deliberately omitted throughout the MPP
software solution can automatically apply this mask to the following process, so the user can focus entirely on the path architecture. Indeed,
layers. However, if the input geometry contains various layer topologies users are only asked to describe when those parameters need to be
as can be seen in Fig. 17, the program may fail to generate a path: for changed using the zoning method (Section 2.4).
instance, when a single segmentation curve would produce two in- To facilitate their implementation, in parallel to the path genera-
dependent closed sections. In this situation, the software raises an ex- tion, the software generates an empty XML file that is structured to
ception, stops the path generation and asks users to create a new reflect the path architecture.
Building Strategy (BS) mask for the failed layer. This new mask is then As shown in Fig. 19, the XML file is structured consistently to the
used to generate automatically the current and following layers until a MPP process. It contains a node for each layer; within each node, there
new exception is raised or the last layer is reached. Please note that are sections; within each section, there are the different zones, also
users have the opportunity to integrate a new BS mask at any layer. identified by their colour; and inside the zones, the user then inputs the
Indeed, in some situations, although the software correctly generates a various deposition parameters (f.i. Current, Wire Feed Speed (WFS),
path using the previous mask, users can consider having a better al- Travel Speed (TS), etc).
ternative for the current and following layers. Using an XML file enables users to fill parameters directly in the file,
The mask concept also enables 3D zoning. Indeed, the zoning pro- making it a simple and fast interface for experimental purposes.
cess described in Section 3.2.3 provides two alternatives to define a However, using the XML solution also facilitates the development of
zone using zoning points or zoning lengths. If this can seem redundant graphical interfaces enabling a commercial product, potentially.
in 2D, this combination gives the user better control over the zoning Moreover, having structured data storage will allow, in future, to au-
definition of a 3D CAD model. Indeed, having the ability to mix points tomatically fill parameters by developing dedicated algorithms.
and lengths enables the user to define which zones can vary when the
boundaries are changing across layers. To clarify the 3D zoning control,
4. Application
a simple example is shown in Fig. 18. In this example, zoning lengths
are applied to the section to accommodate the arc welding behaviour at
In this Section, a complete step-by-step example of the MPP solution
the ignition and termination of the deposition (Green and Red). Ad-
is presented using the geometry seen in Fig. 2. To generate this ex-
ditionally, zoning points are located in the middle of the section to
ample, the MPP method has been implemented into the Rhinoceros 3D
define a particular zone (Yellow zone) as an intersection. The result of
software and its extension Grasshopper. This extension facilitates the
this combination is that the green, yellow and red zones keep a constant
development of innovative solutions thanks to its intuitive and pow-
length over the different layers, while the blue and purple zones adapt
erful interface.
their length. In such a way, users can easily control the zones config-
The first step is to slice the input geometry into layers: to achieve it,
uration across multiple layers.
users define the various layer heights (Section 2.1) and the slicing

Fig. 15. Definition of the Building Strategy mask.

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Fig. 16. Application of a single mask across multiple layers.

Fig. 17. Example of a failing mask application.

orientation. The resulting layers are then automatically aligned on the

top view (Fig. 20), waiting for the user to start the next step.
From this stage, users are asked to define the mask of the first layer
by following the three-step BS process described previously
(Section 3.2). By drawing segmentation curves, guides and zoning
points over the layer, the software generates the first path automatically
(Fig. 20). Users can then verify the result and modify their inputs if
required.
The first mask is applied automatically to the following layers until
an exception is raised (Section 3.3). In this example, the program fails
to generate the layer 25 since this layer topology is drastically different
from layer 24. Therefore, users are asked to draw a second mask (BS 2)
that fits the requirement of layer 25. Using the second mask, the pro-
gram resumes the path generation from layer 25 until the last one.
When all layers are successfully processed, all the paths are auto-
matically grouped into a single path as seen previously in Fig. 9
(Section 2.5). At this stage, users can inspect the resulting path of the
entire geometry and, if needed, can modify an input mask. Any mod-
ification would then be applied to all the layers impacted by this mask. Fig. 19. XML structure of the deposition parameters.
Before starting the actual deposition process, users have to define
the deposition parameters by filling the XML file generated auto- 5. Validation
matically with the path (Section 3.4). Once all the parameters are set,
the path can be processed by a robotic software solution to generate the A test-piece, shown in Fig. 21, was designed to validate the MPP
appropriate machine code, which will be used to finally start manu- approach. For comparison, the test-piece was also built using a path
facturing. planning strategy available in the academic literature. The deposition
parameters for the Ti-6Al-4V alloy were chosen based on the target

Fig. 18. Example of the 3D Zoning application.

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Fig. 20. Description of the Modular Path Planning process.

deposit is certainly more stable (Fig. 22e).

The third test used the MPP approach, albeit with segmentation
only, and no zoning (Fig. 22f). Fig. 22g shows the resulting component.
A small keyhole defect could still be found, but the height of the deposit
was very stable (Fig. 22h). However, please note the lower height at the
ends of the part.
Finally, the fourth test used the MPP approach with both segmen-
tation and zoning applied (Fig. 22i). Fig. 22j shows the resulting com-
ponent. No defects can be seen, and the height of the deposit is stable
(Fig. 22k); the part ends are less steep as well.
Taking the validation one step further, an Airbus A320 aft pylon
bracket mount was built. The tool path plan is shown in Fig. 23a, while
Fig. 21. Test piece designed to validate the MPP approach. All dimensions in the resulting component is shown in Fig. 23b. Please note this part was
mm. also in-process cold-worked, as described by Martina et al. [20]; the
tool-path-planning for the in-process cold-work was performed with the
baseline bead width and height of 6 mm and 1.5 mm, respectively. same MPP software used for the deposition. Unfortunately, the finish-
Regardless of the approach, eight layers were deposited to attempt machined component cannot be shown due to confidentiality issues.
reaching the desired height of 12 mm. The machined component showed no defects.
Four different tests were performed. The first test used the adaptive
path planning method described by Ding et al. [9], which can be seen as
6. Discussion
a contour method when applied to this cross shape example (Fig. 22a).
The process parameters were kept constant throughout the deposition.
The proposed MPP solution has been shown to be highly flexible as
Fig. 22d shows the resulting component. Extensive presence of keyhole
it can integrate a variety of parameters to fit material and deposition
defects can be appreciated throughout. Fig. 22c shows a side view of the
technology requirements. It can also integrate new path planning so-
same component; the irregular height of the deposit can be seen.
lutions to increase its ability to build new topologies. Moreover, be-
The second test used the same method as the first attempt (Fig. 22a),
cause the MPP solution is a layer-by-layer deposition strategy, it can
although parameters were different from the baseline ones, to try and
integrate and plan the path of post-deposition-treatments such as
avoid the defects seen previously. Fig. 22d shows the resulting com-
rolling [21,22], peening [23] or even machining [24,25]. Therefore,
ponent. Keyhole defects could still be found, although the height of the
this presented solution has a strong expansion potential as it can easily

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Fig. 22. Validation study. The circles indicate keyhole defects; the bounding boxes indicate the profile of the target geometry.

be adapted to new materials and processes. its entirety. In traditional CAM software, a part is divided into a number
However, to successfully build a part, it is also essential that the part of manufacturing features each of which may have different process
design complies to the rules explained by Lockett et al. [26]. Moreover, parameters, tools, etc. The CAM software then creates a toolpath for
to build parts containing overhang components, subdivision solutions each of these manufacturing features and then stitches the different
[27–29] should be used beforehand to divide the geometry into paths together into longer larger path that is encoded into the NC
buildable sub-features. Finally, in some cases, especially regarding program. Previously-published tool-path-planning approaches treat a
simple building like cones, it can be more appropriate to use path sliced layer as if it were a single manufacturing feature, which they try
strategies that take advantages of 5 axis depositions to follow the curve to fill with a path, according to a certain desirability criterion and do
of the part, as shown by Hascoet et al. [30]. not consider the need for local changes to process parameters de-
It should be noted that the definition of process parameters is be- pending on the feature geometry. This approach works well for powder-
yond the scope of this paper. Instead, the software provides dedicated based additive manufacturing and FDM using polymers, but is too
inputs so users can define those parameters. Indeed, such parameters limited for complex WAAM deposition.
depend on the process and the material used and, as such, would re- Our approach proposes that the ”traditional” feature-based ma-
quire extensive studies on their own [31,32]. Similarly, parameters chining tool-path planning approach should be taken also in the case of
related to the path construction, such as stepover or bead-overlap, AM, and a layer should be subdivided into simpler building blocks
should be determined through experiments that define the deposition whose paths are then merged in an overall piece of code. This enables
profile [10,33–35]. the definition of feature-specific tool paths, which on the one hand
Finally, as previously stated, the MPP approach differs substantially requires a certain amount of manual work, but on the other hand it
from the other tool-path-planning approaches published so far within ensures the level of control needed to program whatever geometry with
the world of AM; however, the MPP is actually quite similar to what is the right focus on structural integrity.
done, in general, when planning the machining paths of a component in

Fig. 23. A320 aft pylon bracket mount built for Airbus.

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The authors are appreciative of EPSRC’s NEWAM grant (EP/ 3-319-48127-2_55.
R027218/1). The support of David Steer, Andy Henstridge and Stephen [24] S. Akula, K. Karunakaran, Hybrid adaptive layer manufacturing: an intelligent art of
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dustry partners (www.waammat.com) for also supporting this research Integr. Manuf. 26 (5) (2010) 490–499, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rcim.2010.03.
financially. No new data was created for this paper. 008.
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