# US 2022/0274331 A1 · Equipment and method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2022/0274331 A1 - Document ID: US20220274331A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 17/753,190 - Filed: 2020-08-28 - Published: 2022-09-01 - Earliest claimed: 2019-08-30 - Assignees: Moi Composites S.R.L. - Applicants: MOI Composites S.R.L. - Inventors: Gabriele Natale; Michele Tonizzo - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20220274331A1 ## CPC - B29C 64/165: using a combination of solid and fluid materials, e.g. a powder selectively bound by a liquid binder, catalyst, inhibitor or energy absorber - B29C 70/384: {Fiber placement heads, e.g. component parts, details or accessories} - B29B 15/12: of reinforcements of indefinite length - B29C 64/209: Heads; Nozzles - B29C 64/336: of two or more materials - B33Y 10/00: Processes of additive manufacturing - B33Y 30/00: Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor - B33Y 40/00: Auxiliary operations or equipment, e.g. for material handling - B33Y 70/00: Materials specially adapted 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) - B29B: PREPARATION OR PRETREATMENT OF THE MATERIAL TO BE SHAPED; MAKING GRANULES OR PREFORMS; RECOVERY OF PLASTICS OR OTHER CONSTITUENTS OF WASTE MATERIAL CONTAINING PLASTICS - 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 Equipment and a method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials are described, and the equipment comprises:—a supplying head (1) to supply at least one filiform element of continuous fiber (4) comprising at least one fiber;—a movement assembly for the relative movement between the supplying head (1) and the three-dimensional object (20) so as to exert traction of the continuous filiform element (4);—a coupling unit to couple a quantity of material powder onto said filiform element (4); said coupling unit (2) being configured to deposit a determined quantity of powder on the continuous filiform element so as to form a prepreg filiform element (4′);—an energy source (6) configured to induce a phase change to the prepreg filiform element (4) from the solid state to the liquid state; said energy source (6) being positioned downstream of said coupling unit (2). ## Claims ### Claim 1 Equipment (100) for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials, comprising: a supplying head (1) to supply at least one filiform element of continuous fibers (4) comprising at least one fiber; a movement assembly for the relative movement between the supplying head (1) and the three-dimensional object to be printed (20) so as to exert traction of the continuous filiform element (4); a coupling unit (2) to couple a quantity of material powder for a composite material matrix on said filiform element (4); said coupling unit (2) being configured to deposit a determined quantity of powder on the continuous filiform element (4) so as to form a prepreg filiform element (4′); an energy source (6) configured to induce a phase change to the prepreg filiform element (4′) from the solid state to the liquid state; said energy source (6) being positioned downstream of said coupling unit (2). ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) Equipment (100) for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 1, characterized in that said coupling unit (2) is housed at least partially inside the supplying head (1) so that the coupling between the determined quantity of powder and said continuous filiform element (4) occurs inside the supplying head (1). ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) Equipment (100) for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 1, characterized in that said energy source (6) is configured to subject said quantity of powder to a quantity of energy so that to lead said quantity of powder to a melting temperature or greater than 0.7 Tg, Tg being the glass transition temperature of the powder material, so that to at least partially embed the continuous filiform element (4). ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) Equipment (100) for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 1, characterized in that said coupling unit (2) is configured to combine said quantity of powder with said continuous filiform element (4) by spraying. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) Equipment (100) for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 1, characterized in that said coupling unit (2) is configured to combine said quantity of powder with said continuous filiform element (4) by dispersion. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) Equipment (100) for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 1, characterized in that the coupling unit (2) is housed in a dedicated station placed upstream of the supplying head (1) so that the coupling between said determined quantity of powder and said continuous filiform element (4) occurs in a lapse of time such as to allow said quantity of powder to be deposited on the filiform element so as to also affect the most inner fibers. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) Equipment (100) for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 1, characterized in that said energy source (6) is housed at least partially inside the supplying head (1). ### Claim 8 Method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials, comprising the steps of: supplying at least one continuous filiform element (4) comprising at least one continuous fiber to a supplying head (1); combining a determined quantity of material powder for a matrix for composite materials with said continuous filiform element (4) so as to transform said continuous filiform element (4) into a prepreg filiform element (4′); subjecting said prepreg filiform element (4′) to a quantity of thermal energy such as to induce a phase change to the prepreg filiform element (4′) from the solid state to the liquid state; depositing said filiform element on a supporting surface (22) and inducing a phase change from the liquid state to the solid state. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) Method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 8, characterized in that the powder of said quantity of material powder for a matrix for composite materials is selected from thermoplastic materials or thermosetting materials. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) Method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 8, characterized by having the steps of: creating a three-dimensional model of the object to be printed; generating the deposition paths of a supplying head (1); making the supplying head (1) follow the paths generated by delivering the continuous filiform element (4) onto a supporting surface (22). ### Claim 11 (depends on 8) Method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 8, characterized in that said supplying and depositing steps are implemented by exerting a traction force on the continuous filiform element (4) by means of relative movement between a respective supplying head (1) and a supporting surface (22) or said three-dimensional object (20). ### Claim 12 (depends on 8) Method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 8, characterized by having the steps of: spreading at least one end of the continuous filiform element (4) or of its derivative onto a respective supporting surface (22); inducing at least one state change by melting and cooling or polymerizing the continuous filiform element (4) or a derivative thereof onto the supporting surface (22) so that to define a fixing point to fix said continuous filiform element (4) or a derivative thereof onto said surface (22); displacing said supplying head (1) with respect to the fixing point according to a predetermined path that defines the object to be printed; and suddenly melting and cooling and/or polymerizing the prepreg filiform element (4′) during the step of displacing the supplying head (1) so that to stabilize the composite material (4″) in a solid state. ### Claim 13 (depends on 8) Method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite materials according to claim 8, characterized in that said filiform composite material (4″) is made discontinuously, said method comprising a first process wherein the filiform element (4) is transformed into a prepreg filiform element (4′) upstream of the supplying head (1) and a second process wherein the prepreg filiform element (4′) is sent to the suppling head (1) to be deposited. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) Method for the three-dimensional printing of continuous fiber composite material according to claim 13, characterized in that said first and second processes occur at two different moment in time.