Thermal control in laser sintering
AssigneeMaterialise N.V.
InventorsMichele PAVAN, Piet VAN DEN ECKER, Tom CRAEGHS
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Abstract
The present disclosure relates to computer-implemented methods for tuning parameters associated with powder bed fusion processes of additive manufacturing, such as laser sintering. Disclosed herein are methods for determining scanning strategies on the basis of information about the build material, additive manufacturing apparatus, and desired or intended features of the part.
Claims23
A computer-implemented method of preparing a scanning strategy for additive manufacture of a cross-sectional layer of a build, comprising:
- obtaining, in a computing device, thermal properties of a build material;
- deriving from the thermal properties, in the computing device, a range of temperatures suitable for processing the build material for additive manufacturing;
- obtaining, in the computing device, physical specifications of an additive manufacturing apparatus;
- determining, in the computing device, a scanning strategy for the cross-sectional layer of the build,
- wherein the scanning strategy is configured to maintain, for each point of the cross-sectional layer of the build, from the time that the point is first scanned until all points in the cross-sectional layer of the build have been scanned, a maintenance temperature within the range of temperatures suitable for processing the build material, and
- wherein the scanning strategy is determined at least in part based on the physical specifications of the additive manufacturing apparatus, and
- controlling scanning of the build material using the additive manufacturing apparatus according to the scanning strategy in order to build the cross-sectional layer.
A computer-implemented method for laser sintering a cross-sectional layer of build, comprising:
- determining, in a computing device, a first level of power needed for scanning a plurality of points on the cross-sectional layer, wherein the first level of power raises the plurality of points to a first temperature;
- determining, in a computing device, a second level of power for scanning the plurality of points, wherein the second level of power maintains the plurality of points at a second maintenance temperature that is lower than the first temperature;
- determining a scanning strategy based on the first and second levels of power, wherein the scanning strategy is configured to bring each point in the plurality of points to the first temperature and to maintain each point at or above the second maintenance temperature, starting from a time when the point is first scanned until a time when all points in the cross-sectional layer have been scanned;
- and
- controlling scanning of build material using an additive manufacturing apparatus according to the scanning strategy in order to build the cross-sectional layer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.