US 10,252,335 B2Granted

Accurate three-dimensional printing

AssigneeVel03D, Inc.

InventorsBenyamin Buller, Tasso Lappas, Sergey Korepanov, Alan Rick Lappen

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

The present disclosure provides three-dimensional (3D) printing methods, apparatuses, and systems using, inter alia, a controller that regulates formation of at least one 3D object (e.g., in real time during the 3D printing); and a non-transitory computer-readable medium facilitating the same. For example, a controller that regulates a deformation of at least a portion of the 3D object. The control may be in situ control. The control may be real-time control during the 3D printing process. For example, the control may be during a physical-attribute pulse. The present disclosure provides various methods, apparatuses, systems and software for estimating the fundamental length scale of a melt pool, and for various tools that increase the accuracy of the 3D printing.

Claims32

Dependent claims

A system for printing at least one three-dimensional object, comprising:

a platform disposed in an enclosure;
an energy source including a first power connector for supplying power to generate an energy beam directed towards the platform, which energy beam is sufficient to transform a pre-transformed material to a transformed material;
a detector including a second power connector for supplying power to detect a physical property of the pre-transformed material or of the transformed material;
and
at least one controller comprising circuitry operatively coupled to the energy source and the detector, wherein the at least one controller is programmed to (i) direct the energy beam to transform at least a portion of the pre-transformed material to the transformed material to form a portion of the at least one three-dimensional object;
(ii) direct the detector to measure the physical property at a position that is at or adjacent to the portion of the at least one three-dimensional object;
(iii) evaluate a deviation of a measured value of the physical property from a target value to provide an input;
(iv) use the input in a physical model corresponding to printing the at least one three-dimensional object to provide an output, which physical model comprises an electrical circuit model;
and (v) use the output to control at least one characteristic of the energy beam, wherein the electrical circuit model is configured to simulate (1) one or more physical properties of printing the at least one three-dimensional object, and/or (2) one or more components of the system for printing the at least one three-dimensional object, which one or more components are other than the at least one controller.

6 more elements

A method for printing at least one three-dimensional object, comprising:

(a) providing (i) a platform disposed in an enclosure, (ii) an energy source including a first power connector for supplying power to generate an energy beam directed towards the platform, which energy beam is sufficient to transform a pre-transformed material to a transformed material, (iii) a detector including a second power connector for supplying power to detect a physical property of the pre-transformed material or of the transformed material, and (iv) at least one controller comprising circuitry operatively coupled to the energy source and the detector;
and
(b) using the at least one controller to:
(i) direct the energy beam to transform at least a portion of the pre-transformed material to the transformed material to form a portion of the at least one three-dimensional object;
(ii) direct the detector to measure the physical property at a position that is at or adjacent to the portion of the at least one three-dimensional object;
(iii) evaluate a deviation of a measured value of the physical property from a target value to provide an input;
(iv) use the input in a physical model corresponding to printing the at least one three-dimensional object to provide an output, which physical model comprises an electrical circuit model;
and
(v) use the output to control at least one characteristic of the energy beam, wherein the electrical circuit model is configured to simulate (1) one or more physical properties of printing the at least one three-dimensional object, and/or (2) one or more components of a system for printing the at least one three-dimensional object, which one or more components are other than the at least one controller.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 15/435,110Filed 16 Feb 2017 · us provisional application
Priority: 18 Feb 2016
Published: US 2017/0239752 A124 Aug 2017
Granted: 9 Apr 2019
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification47 codes

B29C 64/393
Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing: for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
B22F 10/28
Direct sintering or melting: powder bed fusion, e.g. selective laser melting [SLM] or electron beam melting [EBM]
B22F 10/36
Process control: of energy beam parameters
B22F 12/49
Radiation means: scanners

Family

Application62/297,067Us provisional application · filed 18 Feb 2016
Application62/320,334Us provisional application · filed 8 Apr 2016
Application62/325,402Us provisional application · filed 20 Apr 2016
Application62/401,534Us provisional application · filed 29 Sep 2016
Application62/444,069Us provisional application · filed 9 Jan 2017
US 2017/0239752 A1Pre-grant publication · published 24 Aug 2017
US 10,252,335 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.