阅读说明：本技术 物品处理 (Article handling ) 是由 D·马蒂尼兹冈萨雷斯 A·托雷斯皮尼罗 X·加索普查尔 于 2019-04-22 设计创作，主要内容包括：描述了一种设备,其包括可气密密封的处理室、泵和分散器。该处理室包括内部,待处理的物品可被设置到该内部中。该泵与该处理室的内部流体连通,以形成闭合回路,被分散的处理剂可绕该闭合回路循环。该分散器被设置在该闭合回路内,并且被布置成将处理剂分散到该处理室的内部中。(An apparatus is described that includes a hermetically sealable process chamber, a pump, and a dispenser. The processing chamber includes an interior into which an article to be processed may be disposed. The pump is in fluid communication with the interior of the processing chamber to form a closed loop around which the dispersed treatment agent can circulate. The disperser is disposed within the closed loop and is arranged to disperse the treatment agent into the interior of the treatment chamber.)

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a hermetically sealable processing chamber comprising an interior into which an item to be processed can be disposed;

a pump in fluid communication with the interior of the processing chamber to form a closed loop around which the dispersed treatment agent can circulate;

a disperser disposed within the closed loop, the disperser arranged to disperse a treatment agent into the interior of the treatment chamber.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the disperser is selected from a gas diffuser plate, an impeller, or a combination thereof.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the gas diffusion plate is connected to an inlet of the process chamber, the inlet being arranged to receive fluid from the pump.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the disperser is disposed entirely within the interior of the treatment chamber.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the pump is a vacuum pump.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising a sealable opening in the processing chamber for inserting items to be processed into the interior of the processing chamber.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising a heater arranged to heat the contents of the closed circuit.

8. An apparatus according to claim 1, comprising a second circuit separate from the closed circuit, the second circuit comprising a pump arranged to draw the contents of the processing chamber.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising a processor for controlling the pump.

10. A system, comprising:

a pump;

a hermetically sealable process chamber having an interior in fluid communication with the pump to form a closed loop around which a process agent can be circulated;

a disperser disposed within the closed loop, the disperser arranged to disperse the treatment agent to ensure coverage of the treatment agent on the articles to be treated;

a sensor for detecting a condition in the closed loop; and

a processor to:

receiving input from the sensor and controlling the condition within the closed loop; and

controlling the pump to circulate the treatment agent around the closed loop.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the disperser (130) is a gas diffusion plate, an impeller, or a combination thereof.

12. The system of claim 10, comprising a heater arranged to heat the contents of the closed circuit.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the sensor comprises a temperature sensor and the processor controls the temperature of the closed loop by operating the heater.

14. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium encoded with instructions executable by a processor, the machine-readable storage medium comprising instructions to:

initiating circulation of a treatment agent around a closed loop, the closed loop comprising:

a pump;

a processing chamber having an interior in fluid communication with the pump; and

at least one disperser disposed entirely within the closed loop;

receiving information related to an internal condition in the closed loop; and

adjusting the internal condition based on the received information.

15. The non-transitory machine-readable storage device of claim 14, wherein the information is a temperature.

Background

Articles such as 3D printed plastic parts may be treated to alter their outer surface. These articles may be processed by: placing them into a treatment chamber and exposing them to a treatment agent. To ensure that the articles are completely treated, the treating agent may be dispersed within the interior of the treatment chamber to ensure that the treating agent is evenly coated on the treated articles.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of one example of a processing device;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of another example of a processing device;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of one example of a diffuser plate;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of one example of an impeller;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the apparatus of FIG. 2 in use;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of one example of a system;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of one example of a system; and

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of exemplary instructions that may be executed by a processor.

Detailed Description

A number of examples will be discussed in detail below. Where the same parts in different figures are discussed, the same reference numerals will be used.

Different articles may be treated with a range of different treating agents. Examples of disposable items include 3D printed plastic parts. These may be post-processed after printing by exposure to a vaporized solvent, wherein contact of the vaporized solvent polishes and/or smoothes the surface of the 3D printed plastic part. In one example, the metal may be post-treated in the presence of a gas that reacts with the surface of the metal. The metal object to be treated can be produced by a 3D printing method. Other examples of the article to be treated include ceramics and resins. The ceramic and resin articles to be treated can be produced by 3D printing methods. The choice of treatment agent will depend on the nature of the article being treated. There are many other examples of articles that may be treated with a treatment agent that may fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

As shown in fig. 1, the treatment of an article to be treated by a treatment agent may be carried out within a hermetically sealable treatment apparatus generally designated 100. The processing apparatus includes: a process chamber, generally designated 110, having an interior 120; a disperser 130; and a pump 140 in fluid communication with the process chamber 110. The pump 140 is connected to the inlet 150 and the outlet 160 of the process chamber 110 by means of a pipe 170, so that the interior 120 of the process chamber 110 and the pump 140 form a closed loop around which the treating agent can circulate when added. Disperser 130 is connected to inlet 150. An article to be treated may be disposed within the interior 120 of the processing chamber 110 where, in use, the article may be exposed to a treating agent.

The processing chamber 110 can have any size or shape depending on the size or number of articles to be processed. The process chamber 110 may be made of materials such as plastic, metal, or glass, or combinations thereof. The processing chamber 110 may be subjected to a strong negative pressure and exposed to highly reactive processing agents, and thus the design of the processing chamber 110 will need to take these conditions into account. The design of the treatment chamber 110, such as size and shape, may also take into account fluid dynamics because the treatment agent may circulate around the interior 120 of the treatment chamber 110 so as to uniformly cover the outer surface of the article to be treated.

The tubing may have a fluid-tight seal with the process chamber 110 and/or the pump 140 and may be made of a material suitable for the treating agent used. Some solvents and gases that may be used as the treating agent may be highly reactive and/or flammable and/or toxic, and thus suitable non-reactive, fluid-proof, and robust materials may be selected in order to maintain an airtight seal within the processing chamber 110.

The pump 140 may be a vacuum pump, such as a positive displacement pump, examples of which include a peristaltic pump. The pump 140 may include an inlet and an outlet to connect to a conduit 170, the conduit 170 being connected to the process chamber 110.

In the example shown in fig. 2, the hermetically sealable process chamber 110 is provided with two inlets 150a, 150b and one outlet 160, all connected to the pump 140 via a conduit 170, effectively forming two closed circuits. The treatment chamber 110 may have any number of inlets and outlets connected to one or more pumps 140, and the number and arrangement of inlets and outlets may be optimized according to the size and shape of the treatment chamber 110 and the articles to be treated.

One or more dispersers 130 are disposed within the treatment chamber 110. In another example, not shown in fig. 2, the disperser 130 may be disposed in a tube 170 that leads to the interior 120 of the treatment chamber 110. The term "disperser" may encompass any device capable of dispersing a fluid. The disperser 130 is arranged to disperse the treatment agent within the treatment chamber 110 to ensure that the treatment agent is evenly coated on the articles to be treated. One example of a disperser, as schematically illustrated in fig. 1, 2 and 3, is a gas diffusion plate 200. The gas diffusion plate 200 as depicted in fig. 3 has a generally cylindrical hollow body 210 and a generally circular surface plate 220, the surface plate 220 containing a series of evenly spaced holes 230 extending through the surface plate 220. As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the gas diffuser plate 200 is disposed inside and connected to the inner wall of the process chamber 110, and surrounds the inlets 150a, 150 b. The evenly spaced holes 230 are arranged such that any fluid entering the process chamber 110 through the inlets 150a, 150b will be evenly dispersed throughout the interior 120 of the process chamber 110. The size and shape of the gas diffusion plate 200 and the holes 230 may be designed based on desired fluid dynamics and may include baffles or nozzles to direct fluid flow.

Another example of a disperser, as shown for example in fig. 2 and 4, is a fan blade impeller 300. The impeller 300 is rotatably mounted to a shaft 310. The impeller 300 includes a plurality of fan blades 320 mounted on a wheel 330. The impeller may be rotatable upon contact with a fluid, such as a treatment agent within the interior 120 of the treatment chamber 110, and rotation of the impeller 300 may cause uniform dispersion of the treatment agent. Other designs of impellers, such as those having various numbers and sizes of blades 320, may be used to optimize fluid dispersion. In addition, the number and location of the impellers 300 within the process chamber 110 may also be selected to optimize fluid dispersion.

The processing tool 100 may include a gas diffuser plate 200 or an impeller 300, or a combination of both. Other examples of dispersers 130 that can be disposed within the processing chamber 110 to disrupt fluid flow and disperse the treatment agent uniformly around the processing chamber 110 may be used in addition to or instead of the gas diffuser plate 200 and/or the impeller 300.

As shown in fig. 2, an article to be processed, in this example a 3D printed plastic part 400, may be located in the interior 120 of the processing chamber 110. The plastic part 400 may be mounted on a rack or support 410 or may be suspended or otherwise supported from the top of the processing chamber 110 to ensure that as much surface area of the article as possible is exposed to the treating agent.

The walls of the processing chamber 110 may be provided with a sealable door 420, but in some examples it may be provided with a sealable lid or other sealable aperture through which items to be processed may be disposed into the processing chamber 110 and subsequently removed from the processing chamber 110.

The processing equipment may include a heater 430. One example is shown in fig. 2, in which a heater 430 is disposed below the process chamber 110. One or more heaters 430 of any type may be placed at any point around the treatment apparatus 100 in order to heat the treatment agent. The heater may take any known form, such as an electrically heated coil, a water bath, recirculated hot air, etc. The walls of the process chamber 110 may also be heated so that vaporized treatment agent does not condense on the walls of the process chamber 110, as used in some examples.

The pump 140 may be arranged to circulate the treating agent within the treatment chamber 110 and also to create a vacuum within the treatment chamber 110. Although not shown, the pump 140 may be configured to evacuate fluid from the processing chamber 110, for example, through a valve system. This action may alternatively be performed by a second pump 140 in fluid communication with the process chamber 110. The pump 140 may evacuate any fluid, e.g. air, originally present in the treatment apparatus prior to treatment agent addition to create a vacuum, and may additionally or alternatively be used to flush treatment agent out of the system after the article 400 to be treated has been treated.

The treatment device 100 may also include a fluid inlet so that a treatment agent may be added to the system. As shown in fig. 2, a sealable inlet, represented by arrow 440, is provided in pump 140, and a treatment agent may be injected into inlet 400 or withdrawn from a treatment agent source. In one example, a series of pipes and valves may connect a source of treating agent to the apparatus 100, allowing treating agent to be added to the closed loop.

As shown in fig. 2, the apparatus may also include a processor 450 to control the operation of the apparatus 100. Processor 450 may be a Personal Computer (PC), Programmable Logic Controller (PLC), etc., and may be integrated with device 100 or remote from and in wired or wireless communication with device 100. A sensor 460 may also be provided in the apparatus, for example within or adjacent to the process chamber 110, to detect conditions within the process chamber. For example, the conditions may include the temperature and/or pressure within the process chamber 110.

As shown in fig. 5, in an example of use of the apparatus as shown in fig. 2, a user may place an item to be processed, such as a 3D printed plastic part 400, into the interior 120 of the processing chamber 110. To do so, a user may open a door 420 (shown in fig. 2, but not shown in fig. 5) of the process chamber 110 and place the component 400 onto the rack 410, and then close the door 420. Closing the door 420 hermetically seals the process chamber 110, the pump 140, and the conduit 170 in a closed loop. The pump 140 may then be activated to evacuate any fluid contents, such as air, that may be in a closed circuit to create a vacuum of a desired pressure. A treatment agent, the flow of which is indicated by arrow 500 in fig. 5, is then introduced into the pump 140 through the inlet 440, the treatment agent being in one example a solvent selected as the solvent for the plastic part 400 for 3D printing. The heater 430 then heats the interior 120 of the process chamber 110 to a desired temperature. In the example of a solvent, the temperature and pressure may be suitable to vaporize the solvent. The pump 140 is then activated to circulate the vaporized solvent 500 around the closed loop. The vaporized solvent 500 is pumped from the pump 140 through the tube 170 at the two outlets 190a, 190b of the pump 140 and to the two inlets 150a, 150b at the top and bottom surfaces of the process chamber 110. The vaporized solvent then enters the interior 120 of the process chamber 110 through the holes 220 of the gas diffusion plate 200. The vaporized solvent 500 is uniformly dispersed within the interior 120 of the process chamber 110 by the gas diffusion plate 200 and uniformly contacts the outer surface of the 3D printed plastic part 400. The contact of the vaporized solvent 500 on the 3D printed plastic part 400 partially dissolves its outer surface and polishes it.

Movement of the vaporized solvent 400 within the interior 120 causes rotation of the impeller 300, which impeller 300 further functions to disperse and homogenize the vaporized solvent 500.

Vaporized solvent 500 may also be drawn from the interior 120 of the process chamber 110 back to the pump 140 through the outlet 160. This vaporized solvent surrounds the closed loop and is homogenized by the constant recirculation of the gas diffusion plate 200 and/or the impeller 300 and enables uniform processing of the 3D printed parts.

Once the 3D printed part is processed, the pump 140 (or another pump 140 in one example) may then draw the treatment agent out of the processing chamber 110. The used treatment agent may then be collected for recovery or disposal.

In one example, a system may be provided that may include, for example, a processing device 100 as previously described and illustrated, for example, in fig. 2. As also shown in fig. 6 and 7, the system includes: a pump 140; a sensor 460 to detect a condition in the process chamber; and a processor 450 to control the operation of the apparatus 100. Processor 450 may be arranged to receive input from sensor 460 and control conditions within processing chamber 110 to a desired level, and to control pump 140 to circulate the treating agent around the closed loop.

Multiple sensors 460 may be provided that detect a range of different conditions such as temperature and pressure.

Referring to fig. 7, a sensor 460 may be provided, for example, to detect the temperature within the process chamber 110. The sensor 460 may feed this temperature back to the processor 450, which processor 450 may be used to adjust the temperature. For example, the system may include a heater 430, and the processor 450 may be used to control the heater 430 to regulate the temperature. Alternatively, the system may include a thermostat to control the temperature within the process chamber 110. In examples where the item to be treated is a 3D printed plastic part and/or the treating agent is a solvent, the temperature of the solvent may be maintained at the dew point such that the solvent vaporizes in the treatment chamber 110 and condenses on the 3D printed part for treatment thereof.

The sensor may also detect pressure. In some examples, including examples where the article to be treated is a 3D printed plastic part and the treating agent is a solvent, the treatment chamber 110 may be maintained at a negative pressure in order to vaporize the solvent. The pressure sensor will be able to detect changes in pressure. The sensor may feed the change in pressure to a processor, which may be used to control the pressure.

The processor 450 may also activate the pump 140 to circulate the treatment agent. Further, the processor 450 may be programmed to stop the pump 140 when a predetermined processing time is reached.

A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium may also be provided that may be encoded with instructions that are executable by processor 450. As shown in fig. 8, the machine-readable storage medium includes instructions to: initiating circulation of the treatment agent around a closed loop comprising a pump 140, a treatment chamber 110 having an interior 120 in fluid communication with the pump 140, and at least one disperser 130 disposed entirely within the closed loop; receiving information related to an internal condition in the closed loop; and adjusting the internal condition based on the received information. The information may be temperature. The machine-readable storage device may be any electronic, magnetic, optical, or other physical storage device that stores executable instructions. Thus, for example, a machine-readable storage medium may be Random Access Memory (RAM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a storage drive, an optical disk, and so forth.