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US 10,646,963 B2Granted
Use of variable beam parameters to control a melt pool
AssigneenLIGHT, Inc.
InventorsBrian Victor, Robert Martinsen, Lynn Sheehan, Roger Farrow, Dahv A. V. Kliner
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method for forming an article includes: forming a melt pool; exposing the melt pool to an optical beam having at least one beam characteristic; forming a keyhole cavity in the melt pool, the keyhole cavity having at least one keyhole cavity property; and modifying the at least one beam characteristic in response to a change in the keyhole cavity property.
Claims27
A method for forming an article, comprising:
- forming a melt pool;
- exposing the melt pool to an optical beam comprising at least one beam characteristic;
- forming a keyhole cavity in the melt pool, the keyhole cavity comprising at least one keyhole cavity property;
- modifying the at least one beam characteristic in response to a change in the keyhole cavity property;
- generating the optical beam in an optical beam delivery device including an optical fiber having a first length and a second length, the second length having two or more confinement regions, the optical beam delivery device further including a perturbation device configured to alter a bend radius of the first length;
- launching the optical beam into the first length;
- and
- guiding the optical beam into the second length,
- wherein the modifying the at least one beam characteristic comprises:
- activating the perturbation device to modify one or more beam characteristics of the optical beam in one or more of the first length, and the second length, and
- confining at least a portion of the modified one or more beam characteristics of the optical beam within the two or more confinement regions of the second length.
8 more elements
A method for changing an amount of spatter during laser-melting a material, comprising:
- forming a melt pool,
- ejecting a first amount of spatter from the melt pool;
- exposing the melt pool to an optical beam comprising at least one beam characteristic;
- modifying the at least one beam characteristic in response to the ejecting the first amount of spatter;
- generating the optical beam in an optical beam delivery device including an optical fiber having a first length and a second length, the second length having two or more confinement regions, the optical beam delivery device further including a perturbation device configured to alter a bend radius of the first length;
- launching the optical beam into the first length;
- and
- guiding the optical beam into the second length,
- wherein the modifying the at least one beam characteristic comprises:
- activating the perturbation device to modify one or more beam characteristics of the optical beam in one or more of the first length, and the second length, and
- confining at least a portion of the modified one or more beam characteristics of the optical beam within the two or more confinement regions of the second length.
8 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.