布加迪近日发布了首个大规模量产3D打印刹车卡钳，车厂宣称这是通过增材制造方法生产的最大功能性钛金属组件。布加迪Chiron的制动系统据说比其他任何量产车的都更大，它的前轮采用八活塞卡钳，后轮为六活塞卡钳。卡钳采用铝制单体锻造工艺，为使单个卡钳重量降至5公斤以下，采用了仿生设计原理。而3D打印钛金属卡钳看起来也采用了仿生设计，对传统工艺构成了挑战。高度优化的设计和钛铝钒合金据说每毫米能够承受1250牛顿的压力，大大高于目前Chiron采用的铝制卡钳，而它仅重2.9公斤。位于汉堡的合作伙伴LaserZentrumNord在生产卡钳过程中利用四个400瓦激光束用于融化钛合金粉末并形成涂层。最后一道工艺是在摄氏700度的高温下进行烧结，然后将支承结构拿掉，整个部件进行表面处理。整个卡钳还需要利用五轴机进行传统的机械加工以便对表面进行功能化处理，诸如活塞接触室，还需要11个小时的加工。
Bugatti builds massive 3D-printed titanium brake caliper
Bugatti has revealed a massive 3D-printed brake caliper, claimed to be the largest functional titanium component produced via additive manufacturing.
The Chiron's brakes are said to be the largest of any production vehicle, with eight-piston calipers up front and six-piston units in the rear. They are forged from a block of aluminum, using bionic design principles to keep weight below five kilograms each.
The 3D-printed titanium calipers also appear to utilize bionic design elements that are particularly challenging to manufacture using traditional methods. The highly optimized design and titanium-aluminum-vanadium alloy are said to achieve a tensile strength of 1,250 newtons per square millimeter, much higher than the Chiron's aluminum calipers despite dropping overall weight to just 2.9 kilograms.
Hamburg-based manufacturing partner Laser Zentrum Nord handled the actual printing, creating the caliper using four 400-watt lasers to help fuse layers of titanium alloy powder. The final part is then sintered at temperatures up to 700°C before a supporting structure is removed and the component is ready for surface treatment.
The caliper still requires traditional machining on a five-axis mill to complete contours of the functional surfaces, such as the piston contact chamber, requiring an additional 11 hours of work.