Method and apparatus for identifying surface features associated with selected lamina of a three-dimensional object being stereolithographically formed

An apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object from a plurality of adhered laminae formed from a material capable of selective physical transformation upon exposure to prescribed stimulation, comprising:

• a memory to store data representing the object to be formed;
• a coating device to form a layer of material over any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• a source of prescribed stimulation;
• a scanner to selectively direct the prescribed stimulation onto the layer of the material in accordance with the data to form a next lamina of the object and to adhere said next lamina to any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• a processor to provide automated processing of the data to identify which laminae are identified with a desired geometric feature;
• and
• wherein the coating device includes at least one adjustable parameter and wherein the at least one adjustable parameter is set to a first value when the adjacent lamina includes the desired geometric feature and is set to a second value, which is different from the first value when the adjacent lamina does not include the desired geometric feature.

A method of producing a three-dimensional object from a plurality of adhered laminae formed from a material capable of selective physical transformation upon exposure to prescribed stimulation, comprising:

• supplying data representing the object to be formed;
• forming a layer of material over any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• selectively exposing the layer of the material to prescribed stimulation in accordance with the data to form a next lamina of the object and to adhere said next lamina to any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• repeating forming a layer and exposing the layer a plurality of times to form the three-dimensional object;
• and
• automated processing of the data to identify which laminae include a trapped volume,
• wherein forming, for at least some layers, comprises utilization of a first recoating style when the adjacent lamina has an associated trapped volume and comprises utilization of a second recoating style when the adjacent lamina does not include a trapped volume.

An apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object from a plurality of adhered laminae formed from a material capable of selective physical transformation upon exposure to prescribed stimulation, comprising:

• a memory to store data representing the object to be formed;
• a coating device to form a layer of material over any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• a source of prescribed stimulation;
• a scanner to selectively direct the prescribed stimulation onto the layer of the material in accordance with the data to form a next lamina of the object and to adhere said next lamina to any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• a processor to provide automated processing of the data to identify which laminae are identified with a trapped volume feature;
• and
• wherein the coating device includes at least one adjustable parameter and wherein the at least one adjustable parameter is set to a first value when the adjacent lamina includes the trapped volume feature and is set to a second value, which is different from the first value when the adjacent lamina does not include the trapped volume feature.

A method of producing a three-dimensional object from a plurality of adhered laminae formed from a material capable of selective physical transformation upon exposure to prescribed stimulation, comprising:

• supplying data representing the object to be formed;
• forming a layer of material over any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• selectively exposing the layer of the material to prescribed stimulation in accordance with the data to form a next lamina of the object and to adhere said next lamina to any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• repeating forming the layer and exposing the layer a plurality of times to form the three-dimensional object;
• and
• processing the data to identify which laminae are identified with a desired geometric feature comprising a trapped volume region;
• wherein forming, for at least some layers, comprises utilization of a first recoating style when the adjacent lamina includes the desired geometric feature and comprises utilization of a second recoating style when the adjacent lamina does not include the desired geometric feature;
• and
• wherein the processing of the data comprises:
• deriving the potential trapped volume region associated with lamina N including unioning any up-facing regions associated with lamina N-1 and any trapped volume regions associated with lamina N-1;
• identifying individual holes associated with lamina N;
• comparing the individual holes associated with lamina N to the potential trapped volume region associated with lamina N;
• and
• identifying a trapped volume as being associated with lamina N if at least one individual hole for lamina N has an overlap with the potential trapped volume region associated with lamina N which is greater than a predetermined criteria.

An apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object from a plurality of adhered laminae formed from a material capable of selective physical transformation upon exposure to prescribed stimulation, comprising:

• a memory for storing data representing the object to be formed;
• a coating device for forming a layer of material over any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• a source of prescribed stimulation;
• a scanner for selectively directing the prescribed stimulation onto the layer of the material in accordance with the data to form a next lamina of the object and to adhere said next lamina to any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• a processor for processing the data to identify which laminae are identified with a desired geometric feature comprising a trapped volume region;
• and
• wherein the coating device includes at least one adjustable parameter and wherein the at least one adjustable parameter is set to a first value when the adjacent lamina includes the desired geometric feature and is set to a second value, which is different from the first value when the adjacent lamina does not include the desired geometric feature;
• wherein the processor is programmed to:
• (1) derive the potential trapped volume region associated with lamina N including unioning any up-facing regions associated with lamina N-1 and any trapped volume regions associated with lamina N-1;
• (2) identify individual holes associated with lamina N;
• (3) compare the individual holes associated with lamina N to the potential trapped volume region associated with lamina N;
• and
• (4) identify a trapped volume as being associated with lamina N if at least one individual hole for lamina N has an overlap with the potential trapped volume region associated with lamina N which is greater than a predetermined criteria.

An apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object from a plurality of adhered laminae formed from a material capable of selective physical transformation upon exposure to prescribed stimulation, comprising:

• means for storing data representing the object to be formed;
• means for forming a layer of material over any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• means for supplying prescribed stimulation;
• means for selectively directing the prescribed stimulation onto the layer of the material in accordance with the data to form a next lamina of the object and to adhere said next lamina to any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• means for providing automated processing of the data to identify which laminae are identified with a desired geometric feature;
• and
• wherein the means for forming includes at least one adjustable parameter and wherein the at least one adjustable parameter is set to a first value when the adjacent lamina includes the desired geometric feature and is set to a second value, which is different from the first value when the adjacent lamina does not include the desired geometric feature.

An apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object from a plurality of adjered laminae formed from a material capable of selective physical transformation upon exposure to prescribed stimulation, comprising:

• means for storing data representing the object to be formed;
• means for forming a layer of material over any previously formed adjacent lamina,
• means for supplying prescribed stimulation;
• means for selectively directing the prescribed stimulation onto the layer of the material in accordance with the data to form a next lamina of the object and to adhere said next lamina to any previously formed adjacent lamina;
• means for providing automated processing of the data to identify which laminae are identified with a trapped volume feature;
• and
• wherein the means for forming includes at least one adjustable parameter and wherein the at least one adjustable parameter is set to a first value when the adjacent lamina includes the trapped volume feature and is set to a second value, which is different from the first value when the adjacent lamina does not include the trapped volume feature.