NEW CHALLENGES IN COMPUTER-AIDED SOLID MODEL DESIGN FOR RAPID PROTOTYPING OF VEHICLE COMPONENTS

Rapid Prototyping or Solid Freeform Fabrication (SFF) is an emerging f abrication process for production of physical objects directly from CA D models. It has been increasingly used in automotive industries for r apid Fabrication of prototypes to verify new or modified designs. Comp uter modelling and interfaces have nor become issues until recent year s when research on the SFF of multiple material components and high pr ecision functional prototypes has been initiated. This paper will summ arize a number of these issues and the research directions on these is sues will be also discussed.