Precise thermal management remains a critical challenge in Wire Arc-Direct Energy Deposition (W-DED) processes due to significant temperature fluctuations that can adversely impact part quality, dimensional accuracy, and process reliability. To address these issues, this study introduces a novel Hybrid Interlayer Hysteresis Controller (HIHC) designed specifically for W-DED, which integrates real-time thermal feedback and adaptive dwell time control. The system implements a dual-mode cooling strategy based on a temperature threshold, utilizing optical character recognition-based temperature monitoring and a rolling buffer system for stability. Experimental validation demonstrated improvements in thermal management, with the dynamic control system maintaining an average temperature undershoot of 1.38% while achieving 96.29% optimal temperature window compliance. Surface quality analysis revealed an 8.67% improvement in front face smoothness and a 5.15% enhancement in top surface quality. The dynamic control system also exhibited superior dimensional accuracy, producing thin walls with widths of 61.98 mm versus 66.43 mm in fixed dwell time samples, relative to the intended 60 mm specification. This study advances the field of additive manufacturing by establishing a robust framework for precise thermal management in W-DED processes, contributing to enhanced part quality, reduced post-processing requirements, and improved process reliability. Despite these advances, limitations include the system’s dependence on external optical monitoring hardware, potential scalability constraints for complex geometries, and limited testing across diverse material systems. Future work should focus on integrating multi-axis thermal sensors, extending the framework to multi-material deposition scenarios and implementing machine learning algorithms for predictive thermal modeling.

Thermal simulation is essential in wire-arc-directed energy deposition (W-DED) to accurately estimate temperature distributions, impacting residual stress and distortion in components. Proper calibration of simulation models minimizes inaccuracies caused by varying material properties, machine settings, and environmental conditions. The lack of standardized calibration methods further complicates thermal predictions. This paper introduces a novel calibration method integrating both machine learning, as the high-fidelity (HF) model, and response surface modeling, as the low-fidelity (LF) model, within a multi-fidelity (MF) framework. The approach utilizes Bayesian optimization to effectively explore the search space for optimal solutions. A two-tiered model employs the LF model to identify feasible regions, followed by the HF model to refine calibration parameters, such as thermal efficiency (η), convection coefficient (h), and emissivity (ε), which are difficult to determine experimentally. A three-factor Box–Behnken design (BBD) is applied to explore the design space, requiring only thirteen parameter configurations, conserving resources and enabling robust model training. The efficacy of this MF model is demonstrated in multi-layer W-DED calibration, showing strong alignment between experimental and simulated temperatures, with a mean absolute error (MAE) of 7.47 °C. This method offers a replicable framework for broader additive manufacturing processes.

Wire-directed energy deposition (W-DED) produces steep thermal gradients and rapid heating-cooling cycles due to the moving heat source, where modest variations in process parameters significantly alter heat input per unit length and therefore the full thermal history. This sensitivity makes process tuning by trial-and-error or repeated FE sweeps expensive, motivating inverse analysis. This work proposes an inverse thermal process design framework that couples single-track experiments, a calibrated finite element (FE) thermal model, and a parametric physics-informed neural network (PINN) surrogate. By using experimentally calibrated heat-loss physics to define the training constraints, the PINN learns a parameterized thermal response from physics alone (no temperature data in the PINN loss), enabling inverse design without repeated FE runs. Thermocouple measurements are used to calibrate the convection film coefficient and emissivity in the FE model, and those parameters are used to train a parametric PINN over continuous ranges of arc power (1.5–3.0 kW) and travel speed (0.005–0.015 m/s) without using temperature data in the loss function. The trained PINN model was validated against the calibrated FE model at 3 probe locations with different power and travel speed combinations. Across these benchmark conditions, the mean absolute errors are between 6.5–17.4 °C, with cooling-tail errors ranging from 1.8–12.1 °C. The trained surrogate is then embedded in a sampling-based inverse optimization loop to identify power-speed combinations that achieve prescribed interlayer temperatures at a fixed dwell time. For target interlayer temperatures of 100, 130, and 160 °C with a 10 s dwell time, the optimized solutions remain within 3.3–5.6 °C of the target according to the PINN, while FE verification is within 4.0–6.6 °C. The results demonstrate that a physics-only parametric PINN surrogate enables inverse thermal process design without repeated FE runs while establishing a single-track baseline for extension to multi-track and multi-layer builds.