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US 2021/0173592 A1Published application
Networked three-dimensional printing
AssigneeMakerBot Industries, LLC
InventorNathaniel B. Pettis
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Three-dimensional fabrication resources are improved by adding networking capabilities to three-dimensional printers and providing a variety of tools for networked use of three-dimensional printers. Web-based servers or the like can provide a single point of access for remote users to manage access to distributed content on one hand, and to manage use of distributed fabrication resources on the other.
Claims20
A method, comprising:
- receiving a video feed of a build volume of a three-dimensional printer from a video camera;
- analyzing, with a machine vision system, image content to obtain information about a status of a print job on the three-dimensional printer by comparing actual three-dimensional results within the build volume to expected three-dimensional results from a three-dimensional model for the print job;
- analyzing, with the machine vision system, the comparison to detect one or more errors for the print job prior to completion of the print job;
- hosting, via a web server, a web page that displays the video feed of the build volume;
- providing, on the web page, a user interface for a remote user of the three-dimensional printer;
- and
- when the one or more errors are detected by the machine vision system based on the comparison, providing an alert to the remote user on the user interface prior to completion of the print job.
4 more elements
A device, comprising:
- a three-dimensional printer including a build volume;
- a network interface coupled to a data network;
- a video camera positioned to capture video of the build volume;
- and
- a processor configured to receive a three-dimensional model through the network interface, and to control operation of the three-dimensional printer to fabricate the three-dimensional model as an object within the build volume of the three-dimensional printer, the processor further configured to provide a user interface to a remote user accessing the device through the network interface, and to present in the user interface an image of the build volume from the video camera and a two-dimensional projection of the three-dimensional model.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.