WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY · Jianna Shao · 2026

Curves in 3D Printing Steel

Predictive modeling how robotic toolpath curvature influences metal deposition and bead geometry in Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM)

Presenting research at Wesleyan University Summer Science

01 — THE QUESTION

How does the shape of a robot's path change what it produces?

My research is done at Wesleyan University's Chang-Davidson Lab, which focuses on steel additive manufacturing using a MIG welding setup.

This project explored the relationship between programmed toolpaths and physical results, examining how changes in curvature and process parameters influence the final bead; a critical manufacturing consideration when translating design into physical objects.

02 — THE EXPERIMENT

Programming the path and welding the samples.

I designed and tested curved robotic deposition paths across multiple combinations of curvature, wire feed rate, and travel speed.

The resulting deposits were measured and analyzed to understand how toolpath geometry affected bead width and height.

Robotic welding setup

03 — THE WORK

Photograph of welding
A screenshot from a video of the robotic arm at work welding the shapes onto a steel plate.
Example of plate
One of the many samples that were welded and then measured. 346 curves were measured in total.

04 — WHAT I FOUND

Curvature matters.

The study showed that toolpath curvature can substantially influence deposited bead geometry, particularly as curvature becomes smaller relative to the characteristic bead width.

Quantitative results are complete but being prepared for publication and are not included here.

05 — SUMMER SCIENCE SYMPOSIUM

Sharing the Research

I presented this research at the Wesleyan University Summer Symposium where my oral presentation received third place in the Spark Prize competition.

Presenting research at a symposium

RESEARCH & RECOGNITION

Wesleyan Research in Science 2026 Summer Fellowship

Wesleyan University · 2026

$5000 research Fellowship

Spark Prize — 3rd Place

Wesleyan University Summer Symposium · 2026

Award

Research Paper

Currently in preparation

Coming Soon