Interchangeable chamber for an apparatus and method for generatively producing a three-dimensional object
阅读说明:本技术 用于设备的可更换腔室和用于生成性制作三维物体的方法 (Interchangeable chamber for an apparatus and method for generatively producing a three-dimensional object ) 是由 S·帕夫利切克 H·迈尔 R·艾希纳 A·克鲁格 于 2017-05-04 设计创作,主要内容包括:本发明涉及一种可更换腔室(4),其用于通过在相应层中与待制作物体的横截面相对应的位置处选择性地逐层固化建造材料来制作三维物体的设备,所述可更换腔室包括用于容纳建造平台(41)的建造空间(40),在该建造平台上可制作三维物体(2),所述建造空间构造成朝向可更换腔室(4)上侧方向暂时敞开的,还包括可选的用于存储建造材料(20)的存储容器(45),并且所述可更换腔室包括侧壁(401)和盖(400),该盖(400)适合于在上侧这样封闭可更换腔室(4),使得建造材料(20)基本上不能通过盖逸出可更换腔室,也不能通过盖进入可更换腔室,并且盖与侧壁连接、尤其是可枢转和/或可移动地连接。(The invention relates to an exchangeable chamber (4) for an apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object by selectively solidifying a building material layer by layer in respective layers at positions corresponding to a cross section of the object to be produced, said exchangeable chamber comprising a building space (40) for accommodating a building platform (41) on which the three-dimensional object (2) can be produced, said building space being configured to be temporarily open towards an upper side of the exchangeable chamber (4), and optionally a storage container (45) for storing the building material (20), and said exchangeable chamber comprising a side wall (401) and a cover (400), the cover (400) being adapted to close the exchangeable chamber (4) at the upper side such that the building material (20) substantially cannot escape from the exchangeable chamber through the cover nor enter the exchangeable chamber through the cover, and the cover being connected to the side wall, In particular pivotably and/or movably connected.)
1. An exchangeable chamber for an apparatus for fabricating a three-dimensional object by selectively solidifying build material (20) layer by layer in respective layers at locations corresponding to a cross-section of an object (2) to be fabricated, the exchangeable chamber (4) comprising:
a build space (40) for accommodating a build platform (41) on which the three-dimensional object (2) can be made, the build space (40) being configured to be temporarily open towards the direction of the upper side of the exchangeable chamber (4);
optionally a storage container (45) for storing the construction material (20), and
the exchangeable chamber (4) comprises a side wall (401) and a cover (400), the cover (400) being adapted to close the exchangeable chamber (4) at the upper side such that the construction material (20) substantially cannot escape from the exchangeable chamber (4) nor enter through the cover (400) and
the cover (400) is connected, in particular pivotably and/or movably connected, to the side wall (401).
2. Exchangeable chamber according to claim 1, wherein the exchangeable chamber (4) is operatively connected at least to a lifting device which interfaces the exchangeable chamber to the process chamber (3) and which can be operated only if the cover (400) does not enclose the exchangeable chamber (4).
3. Exchangeable chamber according to any of claims 1 or 2, wherein, in operation, the three-dimensional object (2) can be made in the exchangeable chamber (4) only if the cover (400) does not enclose the exchangeable chamber.
4. Replaceable chamber according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the lid (400) is adapted to hermetically close the replaceable chamber (4).
5. Exchangeable chamber of any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising a sensor adapted to detect whether the exchangeable chamber (4) is closed or opened by means of a lid (400).
6. Exchangeable chamber according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the exchangeable chamber (4) has a coupling device for coupling to a transport device, which coupling device can preferably be coupled to the transport device only when the exchangeable chamber (4) is closed by a cover (400).
7. Exchangeable chamber according to one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the cover (400) can be brought from the open position into the closed position or vice versa by performing a pivoting and/or translational movement, preferably the cover, when closed, can first be brought from the open position into a position substantially parallel to the upper edge (43) of the side wall (401) by a pivoting movement and subsequently can be brought into the closed position by a translational movement substantially parallel to the upper edge and vice versa.
8. Replaceable chamber according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the side wall (401) and/or the lid (400) has at least one guiding means (404, 407) for guiding the lid (400) when opening and closing the lid, preferably the guiding means (404, 407) has at least one first section (405) and one second section (406), and the first section (405) and the second section (406) are arranged at an angle to each other and/or at least one of the two sections has a curvature.
9. Exchangeable chamber of one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the exchangeable chamber (4) has locking means (410) for locking the cover (400) in the closed and/or open position.
10. Exchangeable cartridge of one of claims 1 to 9, which is equipped with and/or connected to an actuator which, when operated, causes an automatic or semi-automatic movement of the cover.
11. An apparatus for fabricating a three-dimensional object by selectively solidifying build material layer by layer in respective layers at locations corresponding to a cross-section of an object (2) to be fabricated, the apparatus comprising:
at least one device for selectively solidifying the building material (20) layer by layer in respective layers at positions corresponding to a cross-section of the object (2) to be produced, and
replaceable chamber (4) according to any of claims 1 to 10.
12. Device according to claim 11, characterized in that the exchangeable chamber (4) can be removed from the device (1) and can be reinserted into the device.
13. Device according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the exchangeable chamber (4) is configured such that the cover (400) can be brought from the open position into the closed position and vice versa when the exchangeable chamber (4) is introduced into the device and/or that the exchangeable chamber (4) can be removed from the device only when the exchangeable chamber (4) is closed by the cover (400).
14. Method for fabricating a three-dimensional object by selectively layer-by-layer solidifying a building material in respective layers at positions corresponding to a cross-section of an object (2) to be fabricated in an apparatus (1) for fabricating a three-dimensional object according to any of claims 11 to 13.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein,
-feeding the exchangeable chamber (4) into the device (1) with the lid (400) closed,
opening a lid (400) of the exchangeable chamber (4) in the device,
the object (2) to be produced is produced in the exchangeable chamber (4) with the cover (400) open,
closing the exchangeable chamber (4) with a cover (400) in the device (1) after completion of the construction process, and
the exchangeable chamber (4) together with the three-dimensional object being produced is removed from the device (1) with the lid (400) closed.
Technical Field
The present invention relates to an exchangeable cavity for an apparatus and a method for generatively fabricating three-dimensional objects by layer-by-layer application and selective solidification of a build material, preferably a powder, as well as to such an apparatus and such a method.
Background
WO 2000/021736 describes an apparatus and a method for generative production of three-dimensional objects, in which an exchangeable holder forming a bounding frame, in which a height-adjustable workpiece platform is integrated as a base, is inserted into a construction space. After sintering the object, the exchangeable holder may be taken out of the building space to be cooled outside the sintering machine. After removal of the replaceable container, a new replaceable container can be inserted into the sintering machine immediately.
Disclosure of Invention
It is an object of the present invention to provide an alternative or improved apparatus or an alternative or improved method for generatively producing a three-dimensional object by applying and selectively curing a build material layer by layer, wherein preferably the operational safety or efficiency is increased.
The object is solved by an exchangeable chamber of an apparatus for producing three-dimensional objects according to
The exchangeable chamber of the apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object according to the invention by selectively solidifying build material layer by layer at locations in the respective layers corresponding to the cross-section of the object to be produced comprises a build space for accommodating a build platform on which the three-dimensional object can be produced, said build space being configured to be temporarily open towards the upper side of the exchangeable chamber, and optionally a storage container for storing build material. The exchangeable chamber comprises a side wall and a cover, which is adapted to close the exchangeable chamber on the upper side such that building material can substantially neither escape from the exchangeable chamber through the cover nor enter the exchangeable chamber through the cover, and which is connected, in particular pivotably and/or movably, to the side wall.
The advantages of the replaceable chamber are for example: it can be inserted into the device for generatively producing three-dimensional objects and can be removed from the device immediately after the production of the object, since the exchangeable chamber can be closed by means of a cover for removal. The waiting time after the end of the building process is greatly reduced or no longer required. Another similar exchangeable compartment can thus be inserted immediately after the object is finished and thus reduce machine downtime and increase the productivity of the apparatus. Furthermore, the exchangeable cavity may for example be safely brought to other locations for subsequent steps in the production chain, such as cooling steps, in order to facilitate the execution of other steps.
When the exchangeable chamber is removed from the device and, if necessary, transported to another location, the powder is in particular prevented by the cover of the exchangeable chamber from escaping from the exchangeable chamber, in particular from the upper side thereof, and thus contamination of the environment and/or the operator with powder is prevented. Thus, in the case of powdered build material, dust reactions can be avoided during storage and transport of the replaceable chamber with the objects and build material located therein. Furthermore, the operator can be protected, for example, from the danger of burns caused by too hot construction materials and/or steam.
Various types of powder, in particular metal powder, plastic powder, ceramic powder, sand, in particular plastic-coated sand, filler powder or mixed powder, can be used as building material. Preferably, the exchangeable chamber can be closed so tightly by the cover that powder particles of the building material with the smallest existing size cannot enter or escape the exchangeable chamber. Instead of powder other suitable materials may be used as building material.
Preferably, the exchangeable chamber is connected to the lifting device during operation and the lifting device can be operated only when the exchangeable chamber is open on its upper side, i.e. the cover does not close the upper side. The lifting device may be both a lifting device for lifting or lowering the entire exchangeable chamber and/or a lifting device for lifting or lowering a platform in the construction and/or storage container.
This can, for example, further increase the operational safety of the device, since it is absolutely necessary that the cover does not enclose the exchangeable chamber during the construction process. In other words, there is a locking mechanism that prevents the movement of the lifting device when the cover closes the upper side of the replaceable chamber.
Preferably, in operation, a three-dimensional object can be produced in the exchangeable cavity only when the exchangeable cavity is open on its upper side, i.e. the cover does not close its upper side. For example, operating errors can be avoided and the operational safety of the device can be further increased. This is similar to that mentioned in the previous paragraph.
Furthermore, it is preferred that the lid is adapted to hermetically close the exchangeable chamber at an upper side of the exchangeable chamber. The inner region of the exchangeable chamber together with the powder located therein is thereby protected from the ingress of gases, such as oxygen. In particular, it is avoided that the uncured powder in the storage container, after removal from the device, comes into contact with ambient air or other gases and is damaged or altered by reactions, such as oxidation or (in particular, oxygen) enrichment. This is particularly advantageous if the object and the uncured building material have an elevated temperature, especially after the object has been manufactured.
The air-tight closure of the exchangeable chamber on its upper side by the cover is preferably achieved by means of a circumferential seal, such as a sealing ring, e.g. a silicone ring, which is mounted in a groove.
Furthermore, the entire exchangeable chamber is preferably designed to be gas-tight or can be closed in a gas-tight manner. Thus, for example, the exchangeable chamber can be removed from the apparatus together with the building material or three-dimensional object which is still hot from the building process, without the risk of ignition and/or explosion and/or undesired chemical reactions.
In one embodiment, the cover of the exchangeable cavity can be provided with a thermally protective material. Thereby the removal and further transport of the exchangeable chamber can be made safer.
In a further embodiment, the exchangeable chamber can be thermally insulated as a whole.
Furthermore, the cover can also consist of one plate or of a plurality of individual segments in order to minimize installation space or to enable automation for opening and closing the cover within the device, for example under an inert gas atmosphere. The use of segmentation has for example the following advantages: they have smaller dimensions than one-piece plates, so they are easier to store or accommodate in the device.
Furthermore, it is preferred that the exchangeable chamber comprises a sensor adapted to detect whether the exchangeable chamber is closed or opened by means of the lid. For example, the operation of the device can be further simplified and safety increased, since the sensor signal can be used to lock or specifically release the operation of the device.
The exchangeable chamber preferably has a coupling device for coupling to the transport device, which coupling device can preferably be coupled to the transport device only when the exchangeable chamber is closed by the cover. Thus reducing the risk of erroneous operation and simplifying the operation. Here too, a locking mechanism, i.e. an automatic mechanism, is used which only allows the transport of the exchangeable chamber in the closed state.
In one embodiment, a securing device is provided to ensure that the exchangeable space is not lost during transport, i.e. the exchangeable space is connected to the transport device sufficiently firmly (in particular positively).
Preferably, the cover can be moved from the open position into the closed position or vice versa by performing a pivoting and/or translational movement, preferably the cover, when closed, is first moved from the open position into a position which is placed substantially parallel to the upper edge of the side wall by a rotational movement and then can be moved into the closed position by a translational movement substantially parallel to the upper edge and vice versa. Thereby, for example, optimally utilizing the space in the device. Furthermore, operability is simplified, for example.
Furthermore, it is preferred that the cover extends substantially parallel to a section of the side wall in the open position. Thereby, for example, better utilizing the space in the device.
Furthermore, it is preferred that the side wall and/or the cover have at least one guide for guiding the cover when opening and closing the cover, preferably that the guide has at least one first section and one second section and that the first section and the second section are arranged at an angle to one another and/or that at least one of the two sections has a curvature. The exchangeable chamber comprising the lid thus has a simple and easy to handle structure.
Furthermore, the exchangeable chamber preferably has a locking device for locking the cover in the closed and/or open position. This further increases the operational safety, since the locking device ensures that the cover cannot be moved out of its current position in an uncontrolled manner.
Furthermore, the exchangeable chamber is preferably equipped with and/or connected to an actuator which, when operated, causes an automatic or semi-automatic movement of the cover. This can, for example, further simplify the operation, since the user does not have to perform the movement himself, but rather the movement is controlled or assisted by the actuator.
In an additional embodiment, the cover or the chamber wall can be equipped with a sensor device, which can monitor, for example, the oxygen content and/or the temperature in the exchangeable chamber. The sensor signal can be monitored in the external station, into which the exchangeable chamber is fed, and the conditions in the exchangeable chamber adjusted accordingly.
An apparatus according to the present invention for fabricating a three-dimensional object by selectively solidifying build material layer by layer at locations in respective layers corresponding to a cross-section of an object to be fabricated comprises at least one device for selectively solidifying build material layer by layer at locations in respective layers corresponding to a cross-section of an object to be fabricated and an exchangeable chamber as described above. Thus, an efficient and operationally safe apparatus for producing three-dimensional objects is provided, which apparatus has for example the same advantages as the above-described exchangeable chamber. In addition, since the exchangeable chamber is removable, the apparatus allows, for example, filling of the storage container and emptying of the overflow container outside the apparatus, which is also advantageous for the reason of keeping the apparatus clean.
Preferably the replaceable chamber is removable from the apparatus and is re-insertable into the apparatus. Thus, for example, a new cycle for making a three-dimensional object can be started immediately after the removal of the exchangeable cavity.
Furthermore, the exchangeable chamber is preferably configured such that the cover can be brought from the open position into the closed position and vice versa when the exchangeable chamber is introduced into the device and/or that the exchangeable chamber can be removed from the device only when it is closed by the cover. For example, the safety of operation of the device is increased again in the sense of a locking function, since the covers or the exchangeable chambers can only be moved in each case when they are in the position or in the state provided for this purpose.
In one embodiment, the device has a housing with an opening through which the exchangeable chamber can be introduced or removed and the cover faces the opening in the open position. Furthermore, it is preferred that the lid in the open position blocks the coupling means and/or the handle on the exchangeable chamber, so that the exchangeable chamber cannot be removed from the housing when the lid is in the open position. This can additionally also contribute to operational safety and function like a locking mechanism.
The method according to the invention for producing a three-dimensional object in an apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object by selectively solidifying build material layer by layer in respective layers at locations corresponding to a cross-section of the object to be produced operates by means of the above-mentioned exchangeable chamber.
Preferably, in the method, the exchangeable cavity is introduced into the apparatus with the cover closed, the cover of the exchangeable cavity is opened in the apparatus and the object to be produced is produced in the exchangeable cavity with the cover open. After the completion of the building process, the exchangeable chamber is closed in the device with the lid and is removed from the device with the three-dimensional object being produced with the lid closed. Thereby preventing contamination of the environment and/or the operator with powder, for example. Furthermore, in particular, contact of the powder with the surrounding gas and machine down-time caused by waiting time before removing the replaceable chamber are avoided. The method can thus be implemented, for example, efficiently and safely.
Drawings
Further features and advantages of the invention are explained in detail in the description of the embodiments with reference to the drawings.
The attached drawings are as follows:
FIG. 1 shows a schematic partial cross-sectional view of an apparatus for generatively fabricating a three-dimensional object, according to one embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 shows a schematic perspective view of an apparatus for fabricating a three-dimensional object with an inserted replaceable chamber according to one embodiment of the invention, with the lid in an open state;
FIG. 3 shows a schematic perspective view of the replaceable chamber of FIG. 2 with the lid closed;
figure 4 shows a schematic perspective view of the same replaceable chamber with the lid open;
FIG. 5 shows a schematic perspective view of the same replaceable chamber with the side walls and cover omitted;
FIG. 6 shows a schematic view of a detail of FIG. 3;
fig. 7 shows a schematic representation of an embodiment of the method according to the invention.
Detailed Description
An embodiment of the present invention is described below with reference to fig. 1. The apparatus shown in fig. 1 is a laser sintering or
A
The
A work plane E is defined by the upper edge of the
Furthermore, the
The
Furthermore, the
Fig. 2 shows another schematic view of the
The
Furthermore, the
In order to correctly position the
The
The
The
To allow an operator to manipulate the opening and closing of the
The
Furthermore, the
An actuator (not shown) is preferably provided which, when operated, causes automatic or semi-automatic movement of the lid.
Optionally, the
As shown in fig. 2, a sensor (not shown) can be provided in the
When the
With reference to fig. 7, in operation the
The
The lid is then moved from the closed position to the open position (step S2). For this reason, if the
The
A layer of
After the completion of the building process, the
Preferably, another
The
cooling the manufactured
Removing the
-removing uncured building material around the
-removing the
-removing
Cleaning the
In a modified embodiment, the
In another embodiment, the replaceable chamber may be thermally isolated. Thereby keeping the outer surface at a lower temperature than the inner surface of the wall of the exchangeable chamber, which facilitates the removal of the exchangeable chamber immediately after the construction process and prevents the risk of burning the operator.
The invention is not limited to the form of laser sintering apparatus specifically described, but may be implemented in any laser sintering apparatus that can be inserted into a replaceable chamber.
Although the present invention is described with reference to laser sintering or laser melting equipment, the present invention is not limited to laser sintering or laser melting. The present invention is applicable to any method of generatively fabricating a three-dimensional object by the layer-by-layer application and selective curing of a build material.
The irradiation means may for example comprise one or more gas or solid state lasers or any other kind of laser, such as a laser diode, in particular a VCSEL (vertical cavity surface emitting laser) or VECSEL (vertical external cavity surface emitting laser) or a line of these lasers. In general, any device that can selectively apply energy as wave radiation or particle radiation to a layer of build material can be used as the irradiation device. Instead of a laser, for example, other light sources, electron beams, or any other energy source or radiation source suitable for curing build material may be used. Instead of deflecting the light beam, irradiation may also be performed using a movable array irradiation apparatus. The invention is also applicable to selective mask sintering using extended light sources and masks, or to High Speed Sintering (HSS), where a material is selectively applied over the build material that increases (absorption sintering) or decreases (suppression sintering) absorption of radiation at corresponding locations, and then irradiated over a large area, non-selectively, or with a movable array irradiation apparatus.
Instead of introducing energy, selective curing of the applied building material may also be achieved by means of 3D printing, for example by applying an adhesive. In general, the present invention relates to methods of generatively fabricating objects by applying and selectively curing a build material layer by layer, regardless of the manner in which the build material is cured.
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