SKO is only one of many generative design methods. I see the method, as well as the CAD program as a tool, which allows me to produce products with a certain added value. The appeal to the use of SKO, CAD programs and the 3D printer lies in the fact that it is no longer necessary to produce in large numbers in order to make the production possible. Rather, it is about the small series, which can be quickly renewed and updated, so as always to remain on a current state. Ergonomic requirements (through human interaction with the product) can also be met by CAD and 3D printing. For this, when using a method like SKO, care must always be taken not to leave the human outside. People are not there to buy and use the product, but the product is intended to serve People and assist them in his activity.
Now a method like SKO makes additive manufacturing processes so attractive, since topology-optimized products can weigh as little as possible and consume as little material as possible. These properties are readily achievable in the additive manufacturing process, since it is also possible to work with undercuts and cavities in the volume without producing a lost form. The areas of application are in no way limited to use. From kitchen to high-performance sports, there are always ways to save material that can be used elsewhere.
Today one can already recognize the first approaches of such small-batch production, but the application is still limited. If more companies were to take advantage of the additive manufacturing processes, progress could be accelerated. This would improve the quality of the products produced, the production times, which are still relatively long today, and make it possible to minimize the price of such productions.
Methods such as SKO will always be more in demand as a result of the increasing influence and the increasing relevance of additive manufacturing processes since they can fully exploit the possibilities of this.
What is possible today was difficult to imagine 15 years ago. As a result of technical progress, the possibilities of SKO and similar methods will be fully excitable in the future. This means that more modern, more precise and more efficient machines are introduced to the market, which can produce additive. In addition, an enormous group is dealing with the topic. Both at home as a amateurs, as well as professionally on behalf of companies. This creates a sum of pioneering work, which in our present time can no longer be grasped as a whole.
In conclusion, we are always faced with problems in the present, whether the quality of the products or the duration of their production. As soon as these problems are solved, new problems will arise, which then have to be solved. This condition should be taken as a motivation to continue to participate in the advancement of these technologies.
