Controlled fiber orientation in additive manufactured parts
AssigneeGM Global Technology Operations LLC
InventorsAndrew T. Cunningham, Ali Shabbir, Zachary P. Steffes, Paul J. Wolcott
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Abstract
A method of forming an additive manufactured component comprises depositing a first layer of build material on a build platform within an additive manufacturing machine, depositing reinforcement fibers into the first layer of build material, orienting the reinforcement fibers within the first layer of build material, lowering the build platform, depositing a second layer of build material on top of the first layer of build material, depositing reinforcement fibers into the second layer of build material, and orienting the reinforcement fibers within the second layer of build material.
Claims20
A method of forming an additive manufactured component, comprising:
- depositing a first layer of build material on a build platform within an additive manufacturing machine;
- depositing reinforcement fibers into the first layer of build material;
- orienting the reinforcement fibers within the first layer of build material;
- lowering the build platform;
- depositing a second layer of build material on top of the first layer of build material;
- depositing reinforcement fibers into the second layer of build material;
- and
- orienting the reinforcement fibers within the second layer of build material.
A method of forming an additive manufactured component, comprising:
- depositing a first layer of powder on a build platform within an additive manufacturing machine;
- flocking reinforcement fibers that are one of made from a ferromagnetic material and coated in a ferromagnetic material into the first layer of powder in a desired shape with one of gravity and electromagnetic charge;
- controlling the orientation of the reinforcement fibers while the reinforcement fibers are being flocked into the first layer of powder with mechanical straighteners;
- actuating an electromagnetic field to re-orient the reinforcement fibers within the first layer of powder;
- tuning the electromagnetic field to precisely control the re-orientation of the reinforcement fibers within the first layer of powder;
- forming a first layer of the additive manufactured component;
- lowering the build platform;
- depositing a second layer of powder on top of the first layer of powder and the first layer of the additive manufactured component;
- flocking reinforcement fibers that are one of made from a ferromagnetic material and coated in a ferromagnetic material into the second layer of powder in a desired shape with one of gravity and electromagnetic charge;
- controlling the orientation of the reinforcement fibers while the reinforcement fibers are being flocked into the second layer of powder with mechanical straighteners;
- actuating an electromagnetic field to re-orient the reinforcement fibers within the second layer of powder and to pull reinforcement fibers that are partially embedded within the first layer of the additive manufactured component upward into the second layer of powder;
- tuning the electromagnetic field to precisely control the re-orientation of the reinforcement fibers within the second layer of powder;
- and
- forming a second layer of the additive manufactured component.
An additive manufacturing machine, comprising:
- a build platform adapted to support an additive manufactured component as the additive manufactured component is created, the build platform adapted to lower as successive layers of an additive manufactured component are formed;
- a bin for containing a volume of powder from which the additive manufactured component is to be formed;
- a re-coater adapted to push powder from the bin onto the build platform to deposit a layer of powder onto the build platform;
- a flocking unit adapted to deposit reinforcement fibers into a layer of powder on the build platform;
- an orientation unit adapted to re-orient reinforcement fibers that have been flocked into a layer of powder on the build platform;
- and
- a fusing mechanism adapted to fuse the powder in a desired shape to form a layer of the additive manufactured component from a layer of powder on the build platform.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.