# US 12,005,631 B2 · Printhead and method of printing multimaterial filaments including oriented, twisted and/or helical features > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,005,631 B2 - Document ID: US12005631B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/982,877 - Filed: 2022-11-08 - Published: 2023-05-11 - Granted: 2024-06-11 - Earliest claimed: 2021-11-09 - Assignees: President and Fellows of Harvard College - Applicants: President and Fellows of Harvard College - Inventors: Natalie M. Larson; Jochen Mueller; Jennifer A. Lewis - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12005631B2 ## CPC - B29C 64/118: using filamentary material being melted, e.g. fused deposition modelling [FDM] - B33Y 40/00: Auxiliary operations or equipment, e.g. for material handling - B22F 10/18: by mixing binder with metal in filament form, e.g. fused filament fabrication [FFF] - B22F 12/53: Nozzles - B29C 64/106: using only liquids or viscous materials, e.g. depositing a continuous bead of viscous material - B29C 64/209: Heads; Nozzles - B29C 64/241: for rotary motion - B29C 64/255: Enclosures for the building material, e.g. powder containers - B29C 64/264: Arrangements for irradiation - B29C 64/336: of two or more materials - B33Y 70/10: Composites of different types of material, e.g. mixtures of ceramics and polymers or mixtures of metals and biomaterials - B33Y 10/00: Processes of additive manufacturing - B33Y 30/00: Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor - B29C: SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING (making preforms B29B11/00; making laminated products by combining previously unconnected layers which become one product whose layers will remain together B32B37/00 - B32B41/00) - B33Y: 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 - B22F: WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER (making alloys by powder metallurgy C22C); APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER ## Abstract A printhead comprises a plurality of ink cartridges and a nozzle, where the nozzle and the ink cartridges are configured to rotate together about an axis during printing. The nozzle includes a nozzle body comprising an inlet end, an outlet end, and one or more internal passageways extending through the nozzle body from the inlet end to the outlet end. The one or more internal passageways terminate at one or more outlets at or near the outlet end. The nozzle also includes plurality of nozzle inlets at the inlet end for delivery of flowable inks into the internal passageways, where each nozzle inlet is in fluid communication with a dispensing end of one of the ink cartridges. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A printhead comprising: a plurality of ink cartridges; and a nozzle comprising: a nozzle body comprising an inlet end, an outlet end, and one or more internal passageways extending through the nozzle body from the inlet end to the outlet end, the one or more internal passageways terminating at one or more outlets at or near the outlet end; and a plurality of nozzle inlets at the inlet end for delivery of flowable inks into the one or more internal passageways, each nozzle inlet being in fluid communication with a dispensing end of one of the ink cartridges, wherein the nozzle and the ink cartridges are configured to rotate together about an axis during printing. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1, further comprising a rotatable shaft coupled to a motor, wherein the nozzle and the ink cartridges are coupled to the rotatable shaft. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The printhead of claim 2, further comprising a rotary union positioned between the ink cartridges and the motor for delivering pressurized gas to the ink cartridges during printing. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The printhead of claim 3, wherein the rotary union comprises a rotatable inner portion in fluid communication with the ink cartridges and coupled to the rotatable shaft, and a stationary outer portion configured for connection to a gas supply and surrounding the inner portion. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1, wherein the nozzle inlets extend radially away from a centerline of the nozzle body for connection to the dispensing ends of the ink cartridges. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1, comprising from two to 100 ink cartridges. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1, further comprising an ultraviolet (UV) light fixture positioned to impinge UV light on a multimaterial filament extruded from the nozzle body. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1 being mounted on a multi-axis linear motion controller. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1, wherein the nozzle further comprises a tapered sleeve extending from the outlet end of the nozzle body, an upstream portion of the tapered sleeve having a first diameter large enough to encompass the one or more outlets, and a downstream portion of the tapered sleeve having a second diameter smaller than the first diameter. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The printhead of claim 9, wherein the tapered sleeve is removably attached to or integrally formed with an external wall of the outlet end. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1, wherein the one or more outlets are configured such that a multimaterial filament extruded from the nozzle body during translation and rotation thereof includes oriented, twisted and/or helical features. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1, wherein the one or more outlets are circumferentially and/or azimuthally heterogeneous. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The printhead of claim 1, wherein the nozzle body has a beveled or bent tip. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) A method of printing multimaterial filaments including oriented, twisted and/or helical features, the method comprising: providing the printhead of claim 1; delivering flowable inks into the one or more internal passageways of the nozzle; extruding a multimaterial filament from the nozzle body; during the extrusion, rotating the nozzle and the ink cartridges together about an axis, and translating the nozzle with respect to a substrate; and depositing the multimaterial filament on the substrate, wherein the multimaterial filament includes one or more oriented, twisted and/or helical features. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the axis is aligned with a centerline of the nozzle body. ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the axis is not aligned with a centerline of the nozzle body, the nozzle body being angled or tilted. ### Claim 17 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the multimaterial filament is deposited in a 2D or 3D pattern on the substrate, the 2D or 3D pattern being determined by a print path of the nozzle. ### Claim 18 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein a centerline of the nozzle body is oriented vertically and the filament is deposited vertically as the nozzle moves in a normal direction away from the substrate. ### Claim 19 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the substrate comprises a spool, and further comprising rotating the spool to collect the multimaterial filament as it is deposited. ### Claim 20 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, further comprising impinging ultraviolet (UV) light on the multimaterial filament as it is extruded from the nozzle body.