# US 12,759,237 B2 · Printer for printing a 3D object based on a computer model > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,759,237 B2 - Document ID: US12759237B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/556,590 - Filed: 2022-04-22 - Published: 2024-06-27 - Granted: 2026-10-13 - Earliest claimed: 2021-04-23 - Assignees: Create It Real A/S - Applicants: Create It Real A/S - Inventors: Jeremie Pierre Gay; Zoltan Tamas Vajda; Folmer Gringer Brem - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12759237B2 ## CPC - B29C 64/386: Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing - B29C 64/118: using filamentary material being melted, e.g. fused deposition modelling [FDM] - B29C 64/336: of two or more materials - B33Y 30/00: Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor - B33Y 50/00: Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing - 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 ## Abstract A printer and a method of printing a 3D object are based on a computer model. To allow different engineering properties of the printed object, the printer allows a user input defining at least two portions of the 3D object and a desired engineering property of each portion. The printer is configured to define the lines of an inner structure of the object such that the lines extend continuously across a transition from one of the least two portions into the other portion, and the printer is configured to change the cross-sectional shape of each line in the transition in accordance with the desired engineering properties. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A printer for printing a 3D object based on a computer model, the printer comprising: a stage defining a slicing plane, an extruder configured to extrude material, and a controller configured to define the 3D object with an outer contour determined by the computer model and with an inner structure defined by a pattern of lines extending in a lengthwise direction, wherein the controller is configured to control relative movement between the extruder and the stage in an X-direction, a Y-direction, and a Z-direction, the Zdirection being perpendicular to the slicing plane, the Y-direction being perpendicular to the Z-direction, and the X-direction being perpendicular to the Z-direction and being perpendicular to the Y-direction, to thereby create the defined pattern of lines, the lines having a cross-sectional shape defining a line width perpendicular to the Z-direction and a line height in the Z-direction, wherein the controller is configured: to read a user input defining at least two portions of the 3D object and a desired engineering property of each of the at least two portions, to define the lines of the inner structure such that they extend continuously across a transition from one of the at least two portions into another of the at least two portions, and to change the cross-sectional shape of each line in the transition in accordance with the desired engineering properties wherein the controller is configured to change a path of the line in the transition, wherein the path is changed from a single-pass section in which the line contains only one segment extending in one direction, to a multiple-pass section in which the line contains multiple segments extending back and forth in opposite directions, and wherein the controller is configured to create the multiple-pass section with an uneven number of segments, and to create the multiple-pass section between two single-pass sections to create a continued line structure, of wherein the controller is configured to create the multiple-pass section with an even number of segments, and where the multiple-pass section terminates the line structure. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to define slices of the 3D object, where each slice is defined with a 2D outer slice contour determined by the computer model and an inner 2D slice structure defined by the pattern of the lines, and wherein the controller is configured to control the relative movement between the extruder and the stage to create the defined pattern of lines in layers corresponding to the slices. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The printer according to claim 2, wherein the controller has data defining a maximum extrusion rate, and wherein the controller is configured to define a height of at least a portion of at least one of the slices of the 3D object based on the maximum extrusion rate and the cross-sectional shapes of each line in the at least two portions having different engineering property. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The printer according to claim 2, wherein the controller has data defining a minimum bonding area between lines in one layer and lines in an adjacent layer, and wherein the controller is configured to define a height of at least a portion of at least one of the slices of the 3D object based on the minimum bonding area and the cross-sectional shapes of each line in the at least two portions having different engineering property. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured: to select between a plurality of patterns each being defined by a predefined range of obtainable engineering properties, and to define the inner structure with at least one pattern selected based on the desired engineering properties. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The printer according to claim 5, wherein the controller is configured to change the line width within a predefined line width range, and wherein each pattern is defined within the line width range. ### Claim 7 (depends on 5) The printer according to claim 5, wherein the controller is configured to define the inner structure with the same pattern for all the at least two portions of the 3D object. ### Claim 8 (depends on 5) The printer according to claim 5, wherein the controller is configured to define the inner structure with different patterns for the at least two portions of the 3D object. ### Claim 9 (depends on 5) The printer according to claim 5, wherein the patterns are 2D patterns forming the 3D object in layers. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured: to select between a plurality of materials to be extruded by the extruder, each material being defined by a range of obtainable engineering properties, and to define the inner structure with a material selected based on the desired engineering properties. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The printer according to claim 10, wherein the controller is configured to change the line width within a predefined line width range, and wherein each material is defined within the line width range. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to create the multiple-pass section and the single-pass section with different dimension in a direction perpendicular to the Z-direction and with the same dimension in the Z-direction. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to create the multiple-pass section with a smaller dimension perpendicular to the Z-direction than the single-pass section. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to change the cross-sectional shape of each line in the transition to create a multiple-pass section adjacent to a single-pass section, the multiple-pass section and the single-pass section having identical overall cross-section. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to arrange the line segments of the multiple-pass section in a horizontal row of line segments. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to arrange the line segments of the multiple-pass section in a vertical row of line segments. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to define the lines of the inner structure such that they extend as continuous straight lines across the transition. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The printer according to claim 17, wherein the controller is configured to define the lines of the inner structure such that they extend as straight or sinusoidal lines between walls forming the outer contour of the 3D object. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The printer according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to define the lines of the inner structure such that they extend as continuous sinusoidal lines across the transition. ### Claim 20 A method of controlling a 3D printer for printing a 3D object based on a computer model, the printer comprising: a stage defining a slicing plane, an extruder configured to extrude material, and a controller configured to define the 3D object with an outer contour determined by the computer model and with an inner structure defined by a pattern of lines extending in a lengthwise direction and having a cross-sectional shape and a line width, wherein the controller is configured to control relative movement between the extruder and the stage in an X-direction, a Y-direction, and a Z-direction, the Z-direction being perpendicular to the slicing plane, the Y-direction being perpendicular to the Z-direction, and the X-direction being perpendicular to the Z-direction and being perpendicular to the Y-direction, and wherein the line width is a dimension perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of the line and perpendicular to the Z-direction, the method comprising: defining at least two portions of the 3D object and a desired engineering property of each of the at least two portions, define an inner structure with lines extending continuously in a transition from one of the at least two portions into another of the at least two portions, and defining a change of the cross-section in the transition, wherein the change of cross-section is defined in accordance with the desired engineering properties, and controlling the printer to extrude material and control relative movement between the extruder and the stage to form the 3D object, wherein the controller is configured to change a path of the line in the transition, and changing the path from a single pass section in which the line contains only one segment extending in one direction, to a multiple-pass section in which the line contains multiple segments extending back and forth in opposite directions, and wherein the controller is configured to create the multiple-pass section with an uneven number of segments, and to create the multiple-pass section between two single-pass sections to create a continued line structure, or wherein the controller is configured to create the multiple-pass section with an even number of segments, and where the multiple-pass section terminates the line structure.