Investigating the Use of Augmented Reality Head-Mounted Displays to Teach Design for Additive Manufacturing

Additive manufacturing (AM) is a revolutionary approach to industrial production that enables manufacturing lighter, more significant components and systems by directing hardware to deposit material in precise geometric shapes, layer upon layer, using data from computer-aided design (CAD) software or 3D object scanners. Design for additive manufacturing (DfAM) refers to creating a product design that takes advantage of the unique capabilities of AM. This study investigates the role of Augmented Reality (AR) as a tool for enhancing the learning experience of DfAM using Head-mounted Displays (HMDs). An AR application for Microsoft HoloLens 2 is created to allow the exploration of selected DfAM models and their industrial use cases. We analyse how the design thinking technique is implemented in creating this study, from the stage of understanding and defining the problem to the final solution. Further, we discuss the process of creating the innovative interaction design through the cross-platform game engine Unity and examine the structure of the application AR DfAM Explorer as well as the relevance of DfAM models chosen for the visualization. A questionnaire was prepared, and a real-time hands-on validation of the developed prototype was carried out with experts from the field of AM as well as students learning AM. Moreover, a pilot study assessed the effect of learning using HMD compared to the paper variant on students’ knowledge change in DfAM principles and related AM topics. The results obtained from the validation and pilot study were scrutinized and hence the advantages and limitations of the HMD visualization were discussed. Finally, an outlook for future developments and further extensions of this idea are provided.