An apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing, the apparatus comprising: - a process chamber for receiving a bath of powdered material to produce the object; - a support for positioning the object in relation to a surface level of the bath of powdered material; - a solidifying device arranged for emitting a beam of electromagnetic radiation for melting a selective layer-part of the powdered material of the bath of powdered material; - a scanner device arranged for moving the beam of electromagnetic radiation along the surface level of the bath of powdered material; - an emitter unit arranged for emitting further electromagnetic radiation on the surface level of the bath of powdered material or the support; - a detection unit arranged for detecting a position of the further electromagnetic radiation at the surface level of the bath of powdered material or the support via the scanner device or arranged such that an optical path of the further electromagnetic radiation, between the bath of powdered material or the support and the detection unit, bypasses the scanner device for detecting the position of the further electromagnetic radiation. A method of calibrating an apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing.
B33Y 30/00 - ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING - Details thereof or accessories therefor
B33Y 50/02 - Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
2.
An apparatus and method for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing
An apparatus and a method using said apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing layer by layer in a layer sequence, said apparatus comprising: - a process chamber for receiving a bath of powdered material which can be solidified by exposure to electromagnetic radiation; - a support for positioning a part of said object in relation to a surface level of said bath of powdered material; - a solidifying device arranged for generating a beam of electromagnetic radiation for solidifying a selective part of a layer of said powdered material; - a deflection device arranged for moving said beam of electromagnetic radiation along said surface level; and - a control device arranged for controlling said solidifying device and said deflection device, during solidification of said selective part of said layer, taking into account a first section thermal resistance for conducting heat away from a first section of said selective part of said layer and a second section thermal resistance, that is higher than said first section thermal resistance, for conducting heat away from a second section of said selective part of said layer.
B33Y 30/00 - ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING - Details thereof or accessories therefor
B33Y 50/02 - Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
B22F 10/38 - Process control to achieve specific product aspects, e.g. surface smoothness, density, porosity or hollow structures
3.
APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
Apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing, said apparatus comprising: - a process chamber for receiving a bath of powdered material which can be solidified by exposure to electromagnetic radiation; - a support for positioning said object in relation to a surface level of said bath of powdered material; - a solidifying device arranged for emitting a beam of electromagnetic radiation on said surface level for solidifying a selective part of a layer of said powdered material; and - a control device arranged for controlling an energy density of said electromagnetic radiation, during solidification of said selective part of said layer of said powdered material, taking into account a position of said beam of electromagnetic radiation at said surface level. Method for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing.
B29C 64/118 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only liquids or viscous materials, e.g. depositing a continuous bead of viscous material using filamentary material being melted, e.g. fused deposition modelling [FDM]
B29C 64/393 - Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
B29C 64/153 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only solid materials using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
B29C 64/282 - Arrangements for irradiation using multiple radiation means, e.g. micromirrors or multiple light-emitting diodes [LED] of the same type, e.g. using different energy levels
Method (401, 501, 601) comprising the steps of: • - receiving (403, 503, 603), in a process chamber (3), a bath of powdered material (4), wherein a surface level (L) of said bath of powdered material defines an object working area; • - solidifying (405, 505, 605), by a solidifying device (7), a selective layer-part of said bath of powdered material (4) on said surface level (L); • - extracting (407, 507, 607), by an extraction device (27), powdered material originating from said bath of powdered material (4); • - controlling (411, 511, 611), by a controlling device (31), at least one of: • - said extraction device (27) for realising an extraction rate of extracting powdered material originating from said bath of powdered material (4); and • - a separating device for realising a separation rate of filtering and/or sieving said powdered material originating from said bath of powdered material (4).
B29C 64/153 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only solid materials using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
Method for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing comprising the steps of: - determining, by a first determining unit, a characteristic of a beam of electromagnetic radiation at a first position of said beam of electromagnetic radiation and, preferably simultaneously, determining, by a second determining unit, said characteristic of said beam of electromagnetic radiation at a second position; - calibrating, by a control unit, said second determining unit taking into account said characteristic of said beam of electromagnetic radiation, determined by said first determining unit. Apparatus for manufacturing an object by means of additive manufacturing.
B29C 64/393 - Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
6.
SYSTEM COMPRISING AN APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND A METHOD FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING USING AN APPARATUS
System comprising an apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing, the apparatus comprising: - a process chamber for receiving a bath of powdered material; - a support for positioning the object in relation to a surface level of the bath of powdered material; - a solidifying device arranged for solidifying a selective part of said powdered material; the system further comprising: - a status acquisition device arranged for acquiring information related to a status of said apparatus, said information comprising at least one of a calibration status of said apparatus and an expected time to service of said apparatus,; and - a control unit that is arranged for receiving said acquired information related to said status of said apparatus and further is arranged for at least one of: - scheduling a calibration stop and/or a calibration downtime taking into account said determined calibration status and - scheduling a service stop and/or a service downtime taking into account said determined expected time to service.
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
B29C 64/153 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only solid materials using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
B29C 64/371 - Conditioning of environment using an environment other than air, e.g. inert gas
B29C 64/393 - Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
7.
METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
Method for producing an object (2) by means of additive manufacturing, wherein said method comprises the steps of: receiving, in a process chamber (3), a bath of material (4), wherein a surface level (L) of said bath of material (4) defines an object working area; solidifying, by a solidifying device (7), a selective layer-part of said material (4) on said surface level (L); controlled oxidisation, of waste particles originating from said solidifying of said material (4), by controlling an oxygen level, such that oxidised waste particles are obtained and ignition of said waste particles is avoided. Apparatus (1) for producing an object (2) by means of additive manufacturing.
The invention relates to an apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing, comprising a process chamber for receiving a bath of material which can be solidified by exposure to electromagnetic radiation; a support for positioning the object in relation to the surface level of the bath of material; and a solidifying device for solidifying a selective layer-part of the material on the surface level by means of electromagnetic radiation. Furthermore optical control device is provided with a focus unit in an optical pathway of the electromagnetic radiation of the solidifying device, and arranged for controlling at least the focus of the electromagnetic radiation emitted by the solidifying device on the surface level. According to the invention, the optical control device comprises a sensor element arranged for detecting a measure for the accuracy of the focus of the electromagnetic radiation and a focus correction lens element that is arranged to be movable. By moving said focus correction lens element, focus may be corrected, for example due to thermal behaviour of the optical system.
B29C 64/153 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only solid materials using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
9.
METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING USING A PLURALITY OF SOLIDIFYING DEVICES
The invention relates to a method for manufacturing an object from a material by means of additive manufacturing using a plurality of solidifying devices for solidifying said material in stacked layers by means of electromagnetic radiation. Said method comprises the step of defining, by a data processing unit, at least two solidifying device allocations. In each of said solidifying device allocations said plurality of solidifying devices are allocated to respective parts of said layer such that said parts cover said layer. The method further comprises calculating, by said data processing unit, for each of said at least two solidifying device allocations, respective allocated part manufacturing times representing times for each of said plurality of solidifying devices for solidifying said respective allocated part of said layer, wherein said calculating takes into account an expected disturbance area from solidifying said material by one of said plurality of solidifying devices, wherein said disturbance area relates to at least an expected fume above said layer. The data processing unit then determines the manufacturing throughput time, and selects a definite allocation.
B29C 64/153 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only solid materials using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
B33Y 30/00 - ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING - Details thereof or accessories therefor
B29C 64/393 - Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
B29C 64/282 - Arrangements for irradiation using multiple radiation means, e.g. micromirrors or multiple light-emitting diodes [LED] of the same type, e.g. using different energy levels
10.
METHOD FOR CALIBRATING AN APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
The invention relates to a method for calibrating an apparatus (1) for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing. The apparatus comprises a process chamber (3), as well as a support (5) for positioning the object (2) in relation to a surface level of a bath of material (4) to be solidified. A solidifying device (7) is arranged for emitting a beam of radiation (71) on the surface level for solidifying a selective part of said material. The solidifying device (7) comprises a focus member (76) for adjusting a focus setting. The method according to the invention comprises the steps of controlling the solidifying device for making test patterns (a - i) at different focus settings. A calibration system (8) with a sensor unit (81) is used for determining characteristics of test patterns, and a calibrated focus setting is determined based on the characteristics.
B29C 64/153 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only solid materials using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
B29C 64/393 - Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
11.
APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND METHOD OF USING THE APPARATUS
Apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing, comprising: a process chamber for receiving on a build surface of a build plate a bath of powdered material which can be solidified; a support for supporting on a supporting surface thereof said build plate in relation to a surface level of said bath of powdered material, wherein said build plate is removably connectable to said supporting surface; a solidifying device for solidifying a selective part of said material by emitting electromagnetic radiation; and a build plate takeover device comprising an actuating element for placing said build plate onto said supporting surface of said support for producing said object and removing said build plate from said supporting surface of said support. Method for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing.
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
B29C 64/153 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only solid materials using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
The application relates to a system (1) for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing. The system has an apparatus (19), comprising a storage container (61) for storing powdered material that can be solidified, and a process chamber (3) fluidly connected to the storage container and arranged for receiving at least a part of the powdered material for forming a bath of material (4) within the process chamber. Furthermore, a structure is provided for positioning the object in relation to the surface level of the bath of material. The apparatus also comprises a solidifying device (7) for solidifying a layer of the bath of material. A supply device (8) is provided, having a supply container (18) for storing a supply of powdered material that can be solidified, wherein the supply device is fluidly connected, or at least connectable, to the storage container, and wherein the apparatus is arranged for transferring powdered material between the supply container and the storage container.
B29C 64/153 - Processes of additive manufacturing using only solid materials using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
B29C 64/20 - Additive manufacturing, i.e. manufacturing of three-dimensional [3D] objects by additive deposition, additive agglomeration or additive layering, e.g. by 3D printing, stereolithography or selective laser sintering - Details thereof or accessories therefor
B33Y 30/00 - ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING - Details thereof or accessories therefor
B33Y 40/00 - Auxiliary operations or equipment, e.g. for material handling
13.
APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND METHOD OF USING THE APPARATUS
Apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing, comprising: a process chamber for receiving on a build surface of a build plate a bath of powdered material which can be solidified; a support for positioning said build plate in relation to a surface level of said bath of powdered material in said process chamber; a solidifying device for solidifying a selective part of said material; and a homing device for moving said build surface, by said support, to a home position. Method of producing an object by means of additive manufacturing on a build surface of a build plate.
B33Y 30/00 - ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING - Details thereof or accessories therefor
B29C 67/00 - Shaping techniques not covered by groups , or
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
B29C 64/20 - Additive manufacturing, i.e. manufacturing of three-dimensional [3D] objects by additive deposition, additive agglomeration or additive layering, e.g. by 3D printing, stereolithography or selective laser sintering - Details thereof or accessories therefor
14.
APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND METHOD OF USING THE APPARATUS
Apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing, comprising: a process chamber for receiving on a build surface of a build plate a bath of powdered material which can be solidified; a support for positioning said build plate in relation to a surface level of said bath of powdered material; a solidifying device for solidifying a selective part of said material; and a homing device for moving said build surface, by said support, to a home position such that said object can be build on said build surface of said build plate, wherein said homing device comprises a homing member which can be displaced along said build surface of said build plate, wherein said homing device is designed for moving said build surface to said home position until a measured force for displacing said homing member is within a pre-determined range. Method for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing.
B33Y 30/00 - ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING - Details thereof or accessories therefor
B29C 67/00 - Shaping techniques not covered by groups , or
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
B29C 64/20 - Additive manufacturing, i.e. manufacturing of three-dimensional [3D] objects by additive deposition, additive agglomeration or additive layering, e.g. by 3D printing, stereolithography or selective laser sintering - Details thereof or accessories therefor
15.
APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND METHOD OF USING THE APPARATUS
Apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing,comprising: -a process chamber for receiving on a build surface of a build plate a bath of powdered material which can be solidified; -a support for positioning the build plate in relation to a surface level of the bath of material; -a solidifying device for solidifying a selective part of the material; and -a build plate preparation means for preparation of the build surface of the build plate such that the object can be build on the build surface of the build plate. Method of producing an object by means of additive manufacturing on a build surface of a build plate using such an apparatus.
B29C 67/00 - Shaping techniques not covered by groups , or
B22F 3/105 - Sintering only by using electric current, laser radiation or plasma
B29C 64/20 - Additive manufacturing, i.e. manufacturing of three-dimensional [3D] objects by additive deposition, additive agglomeration or additive layering, e.g. by 3D printing, stereolithography or selective laser sintering - Details thereof or accessories therefor
The invention relates to an apparatus for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing, comprising a frame unit and a process unit connected to said frame unit. The process unit comprises a process chamber for receiving a bath of powdered material which can be solidified, and a support for positioning the object in relation to a surface level of the bath of material. The apparatus further comprises a solidifying device connected to the frame unit for solidifying a selective part of the powdered material. The apparatus according to the invention comprises a plurality of build plate elements connected to the support.
B29C 67/00 - Shaping techniques not covered by groups , or
B33Y 30/00 - ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING - Details thereof or accessories therefor
17.
APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN OBJECT BY MEANS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND METHOD FOR CALIBRATING AN APPARATUS
The invention relates to an apparatus and method for producing an object by means of additive manufacturing. The apparatus comprises a process chamber for receiving a bath of material which can be solidified by exposure to electromagnetic radiation; a support for positioning the object in relation to the surface level of the bath of material; and a solidifying device for solidifying a layer of the material on the surface level by means of electromagnetic radiation. According to the invention, a registering device is provided for registering a characteristic of a calibration area related to the surface level of the bath of material. Furthermore, a control unit connected to the registering device is provided. The control unit is arranged for using the characteristic of the calibration area obtained by the registering device for controlling the position of the electromagnetic radiation emitted by the solidifying device.
patents
