U.S. patent application number 15/959966 was filed with the patent office on 2018-10-25 for system and method for controlling three-dimensional (3d) printing using measured processing effects.
The applicant listed for this patent is Desktop Metal, Inc.. Invention is credited to Richard Remo Fontana, Ricardo Fulop, Michael A. Gibson, Anastasios John Hart, Aaron Preston, Jay Tobia, Nihan Tuncer.
Application Number | 20180304540 15/959966 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 62117117 |
Filed Date | 2018-10-25 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180304540 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Tobia; Jay ; et al. |
October 25, 2018 |
System And Method For Controlling Three-Dimensional (3D) Printing
Using Measured Processing Effects
Abstract
Complexity of a geometry of a desired (i.e., target)
three-dimensional (3D) object being produced by an additive
manufacturing system, as well as atypical behavior of the processes
employed by such a system, pose challenges for producing a final
version of the desired 3D object with fidelity relative to the
desired object. An example embodiment enables such challenges to be
overcome as a function of feedback to enable the final version to
be produced with fidelity. The feedback may be at least one value
that is associated with at least one characteristic of a printed
object following processing of the printed object. Such feedback
may be obtained as part of a calibration process of the 3D printing
system or as part of an operational process of the 3D printing
system.
Inventors: |
Tobia; Jay; (Cambridge,
MA) ; Tuncer; Nihan; (Cambridge, MA) ;
Preston; Aaron; (Arlington, MA) ; Fulop; Ricardo;
(Lexington, MA) ; Gibson; Michael A.; (Boston,
MA) ; Fontana; Richard Remo; (Cape Elizabeth, ME)
; Hart; Anastasios John; (Waban, MA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Desktop Metal, Inc. |
Burlington |
MA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
62117117 |
Appl. No.: |
15/959966 |
Filed: |
April 23, 2018 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
62489186 |
Apr 24, 2017 |
|
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|
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B29C 64/393 20170801;
B22F 2203/03 20130101; B29C 64/188 20170801; B22F 3/1021 20130101;
B33Y 10/00 20141201; B22F 2003/1057 20130101; B22F 3/1055 20130101;
B33Y 50/02 20141201; G06F 30/20 20200101; B22F 2301/00 20130101;
B22F 3/008 20130101; B29C 64/35 20170801; Y02P 10/25 20151101 |
International
Class: |
B29C 64/393 20060101
B29C064/393; B29C 64/35 20060101 B29C064/35; G06F 17/50 20060101
G06F017/50; B29C 64/188 20060101 B29C064/188; B33Y 50/02 20060101
B33Y050/02 |
Claims
1. An additive manufacturing method, the method comprising:
processing a three-dimensional (3D) object at a given processing
stage that follows printing or follows a combination of printing
and processing of the 3D object in a 3D printing system to
transform the 3D object into a processed object, the processing
including debinding or sintering of the 3D object; identifying a
discrepancy between a characteristic of the processed object and an
expected characteristic, the discrepancy identified based on a
value associated with the characteristic; and adjusting a parameter
based on the value, the parameter known to influence the
characteristic and stored in a memory accessed by the 3D printing
system, the parameter, in an adjusted state, being employed by the
3D printing system to affect its operating state that, in turn,
produces a subsequent processed object with a corresponding
characteristic closer to the expected characteristic relative to
the characteristic of the processed object, the subsequent
processed object having been processed by the given processing
stage.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising printing the 3D
object, iteratively, in successive layers and wherein the
processing and adjusting are performed following iterations of the
printing.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising de-binding or
sintering the 3D object prior to the processing of the 3D object at
the given processing stage.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the 3D object is a calibration
object for calibrating the 3D printing system and further wherein
the processing and adjusting are performed as part of the
calibrating.
5. The method of claim 1, further comprising obtaining the value by
measuring the processed object.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the measuring is performed via a
contact or non-contact measuring device, or a combination
thereof
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the value is a measurement of a
geometric characteristic.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is a dimension
or geometric feature.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is a location
or geometric attribute associated with a mark or feature printed on
the 3D object for determining a processing effect based on
measurements of the mark or the feature and wherein the value
enables the determining.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the subsequent processed object
is of a higher geometric accuracy than the processed object
relative to a target geometry, the higher geometric accuracy based
on a comparison of differences between the target geometry and
respective geometries of the processed object and the subsequent
processed object.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is mass and
wherein the value is a mass value.
12. The method of claim 1, wherein the subsequent processed object
is of a higher mass accuracy than the processed object relative to
a target mass, the higher mass accuracy based on a comparison of
differences between the target mass and respective masses of the
processed object and the subsequent processed object.
13. The method of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is chemical
composition and wherein the value is a concentration of a chemical
constituent.
14. The method of claim 1, wherein the subsequent processed object
is of a higher chemical composition accuracy than the processed
object relative to a target chemical composition, the higher
chemical composition accuracy based on a comparison of differences
between the target chemical composition and respective chemical
compositions of the processed object and the subsequent processed
object.
15. The method of claim 1, further comprising triggering at least
one action as a function of the value and wherein the at least one
action triggered includes: generating an alert to schedule
maintenance of the 3D printing system; or signaling a malfunction
of the 3D printing system.
16. The method of claim 15, further comprising communicating the
alert or malfunction via an operator interface or transmission of
an electronic message to an electronic device communicatively
coupled to the 3D printing system.
17. The method of claim 15, wherein the alert generated or the
malfunction signaled is based on the value and an expected
value.
18. The method of claim 15, wherein the value is a first value and
wherein the method further comprises: obtaining a second value
associated with the characteristic of the 3D object prior to the
processing of the 3D object at the given post processing stage; and
wherein the alert generated or the malfunction signaled is based on
the first value and the second value.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein the alert generated or the
malfunction signaled is based on the first value, the second value,
and an expected value.
20. The method of claim 18, further comprising obtaining the second
value by measuring the 3D object prior to the processing of the 3D
object at the given processing stage.
21. The method of claim 1, wherein the value is a measured
value.
22. The method of claim 1, further comprising: identifying atypical
deformation in the processed object based on the value; and
adjusting the parameter, automatically, based on the atypical
deformation identified in order to obviate the atypical deformation
in the subsequent processed object.
23. The method of claim 1, wherein the parameter includes at least
one scaling factor associated with an x, y, or z axis direction,
the at least one scaling factor employed by the 3D printing system
to offset shrinkage of the 3D object due to the given processing
stage and wherein the adjusting includes adjusting the at least one
scaling factor to offset shrinkage of the subsequent processed
object in the x, y, or z axis direction.
24. The method of claim 1, wherein the value is a first value and
wherein the method further comprises: obtaining a second value
associated with the characteristic of the 3D object prior to
processing the 3D object at the given processing stage; and wherein
the adjusting includes adjusting as a function of the first value
and the second value.
25. The method of claim 24, wherein the adjusting is further a
function of an expected value.
26. The method of claim 24, wherein obtaining the second value
includes measuring the 3D object prior to the processing of the 3D
object at the given processing stage.
27. The method of claim 26, wherein the measuring is performed via
contact or non-contact measuring device, or a combination
thereof
28. The method of claim 24, wherein obtaining the second value
includes obtaining the second value from (i) a 3D object model
employed by the printing stage, (ii) the 3D object prior to
processing of the 3D object at the given processing stage, (iii),
the processed object or (iv) a combination thereof.
29. The method of claim 24, wherein the adjusting includes:
determining a difference between the first value and the second
value; and adjusting the parameter based on the difference
determined.
30. The method of claim 29, wherein the adjusting further includes:
comparing the difference determined to an expected value; and
adjusting the parameter based on the comparison.
31. The method of claim 29, wherein determining the difference
includes computing a ratio of the first value and the second value
or computing the difference via subtraction.
32. The method of claim 1, wherein: the parameter includes at least
one 3D fabrication parameter employed by the printing; and wherein
the adjusting includes adjusting the at least one 3D fabrication
parameter to cause dilation, contraction, warping, or a combination
thereof, of the corresponding characteristic of the subsequent
processed object relative to the characteristic of the processed
object.
33. The method of claim 1, wherein: the parameter is an extrusion
profile parameter employed by the printing; and wherein the
adjusting adjusts the extrusion profile parameter.
34. The method of claim 1, wherein the parameter includes at least
one debinding process parameter or debinding process cycle
parameter that is applied by the controller to control a debinding
process employed by the given processing stage and wherein the
controller is further configured to adjust the at least one
debinding process or debinding process cycle parameter to
compensate for a specification of the debinding process determined
to be out of range via the value obtained.
35. The method of claim 1, wherein the parameter includes at least
one furnace parameter or furnace cycling parameter that is applied
to control a furnace employed by the given processing stage.
36. The method of claim 35, wherein adjusting the at least one
furnace or furnace cycling parameter compensates for a
specification of the furnace determined to be out of range via the
value.
37. An additive manufacturing system, the system comprising: a
printing stage configured to print a three-dimensional (3D) object;
a plurality of processing stages, a given processing stage of the
plurality of processing stages configured to transform the 3D
object into a processed object, the given processing stage being a
debinding or a sintering stage that follows the printing stage or
follows the printing stage and one or more of the plurality of
processing stages; and a controller configured to identify a
discrepancy between a characteristic of the processed object and an
expected characteristic, the discrepancy identified based on a
value associated with the characteristic, and adjust a parameter
based on the value, the parameter known to influence the
characteristic and stored in a memory accessed by the system, the
parameter, in an adjusted state, being employed by the system to
affect its operating state that, in turn, produces a subsequent
processed object with a corresponding characteristic closer to the
expected characteristic relative to the characteristic of the
processed object, the subsequent processed object having been
processed by the given processing stage.
38. The system of claim 37, further comprising an obtaining device
configured to obtain the value associated with the characteristic
of the processed object and wherein the controller is operatively
coupled to the printing stage, the given processing stage, the
plurality of processing stages, the obtaining device, or a
combination thereof.
39. The system of claim 37, further comprising an obtaining device
configured to obtain the value associated with the characteristic
of the processed object and wherein the printing stage, the given
processing stage, the plurality of processing stages, or a
combination thereof, includes the obtaining device.
40. The system of claim 37, further comprising an obtaining device
configured to obtain the value associated with the characteristic
of the processed object.
41. The system of claim 37, wherein the 3D object is a calibration
object for calibrating the system.
42. The system of claim 37, further comprising an obtaining device
configured to obtain the value associated with the characteristic
of the processed object and wherein, to obtain the value, the
obtaining device is configured to measure the processed object.
43. The system of claim 42, wherein the obtaining device includes a
contact or non-contact measuring device, or a combination thereof,
to measure the processed object.
44. The system of claim 37, wherein the value is a measurement of a
geometric characteristic.
45. The system of claim 37, wherein the characteristic is a
dimension or geometric feature.
46. The system of claim 37, wherein the characteristic is a
location or geometric attribute associated with a mark or feature
printed on the 3D object for determining a processing effect based
on measurements of the mark or the feature.
47. The system of claim 37, wherein the subsequent processed object
is of a higher geometric accuracy than the processed object
relative to a target geometry, the higher geometric accuracy based
on a comparison of differences between the target geometry and
respective geometries of the processed object and the subsequent
processed object.
48. The system of claim 37, wherein the characteristic is mass and
wherein the value is a mass value.
49. The system of claim 37, wherein the subsequent processed object
is of a higher mass accuracy than the processed object relative to
a target mass, the higher mass accuracy based on a comparison of
differences between the target mass and respective masses of the
processed object and the subsequent processed object.
50. The system of claim 37, wherein the characteristic is chemical
composition and wherein the value is a chemical composition
value.
51. The system of claim 37, wherein the subsequent processed object
is of a higher chemical composition accuracy than the processed
object relative to a target chemical composition, the higher
chemical composition accuracy based on a comparison of differences
between the target chemical composition and respective chemical
compositions of the processed object and the subsequent processed
object.
52. The system of claim 37, wherein the controller is further
configured to trigger at least one action as a function of the
value and wherein, to trigger the at least one action, the
controller is further configured to: generate an alert to schedule
maintenance of the system; or signal a malfunction of the
system.
53. The system of claim 52, wherein the controller is further
configured to communicate the alert or malfunction via an operator
interface or transmission of an electronic message to an electronic
device communicatively coupled to the system.
54. The system of claim 52, wherein the alert generated or the
malfunction signaled is based on the value and an expected
value.
55. The system of claim 52, further comprising an obtaining device
configured to obtain the value associated with the characteristic
of the processed object, wherein the value is a first value, and:
wherein the obtaining device is further configured to obtain a
second value associated with the characteristic of the 3D object
prior to processing the 3D object at the given processing stage;
and wherein the controller is further configured to generate the
alert or signal the malfunction based on the first value and the
second value.
56. The system of claim 55, wherein the alert generated or the
malfunction signaled is based on the first value, the second value,
and an expected value.
57. The system of claim 55, wherein, to obtain the second value,
the obtaining device is further configured to measure the 3D object
prior to processing of the 3D object at the given processing
stage.
58. The system of claim 37, wherein the value is a measured
value.
59. The system of claim 37, wherein the controller is further
configured to: identify atypical deformation in the processed
object based on the value; and adjust the parameter, automatically,
based on the atypical deformation identified in order to obviate
the atypical deformation in the subsequent processed object.
60. The system of claim 37, wherein the parameter includes at least
one scaling factor associated with an x, y, or z axis direction,
and wherein the at least one scaling factor is employed by the
system to offset shrinkage of the 3D object due to the given
processing stage and wherein the controller is further configured
to adjust the at least one scaling factor to offset shrinkage of
the subsequent processed object in the x, y, or z axis
direction.
61. The system of claim 37, further comprising an obtaining device
configured to obtain the value associated with the characteristic
of the processed object, wherein the value is a first value and:
wherein the obtaining device is further configured to obtain a
second value associated with the characteristic of the 3D object
prior to processing of the 3D object at the given processing stage;
and the controller is further configured to adjust the parameter as
a function of the first value and the second value.
62. The system of claim 61, wherein the controller is further
configured to adjust the parameter as a function of an expected
value.
63. The system of claim 61, wherein the obtaining device is further
configured to obtain the second value by measuring the 3D object
prior to processing of the 3D object at the given processing
stage.
64. The system of claim 63, wherein the obtaining device is a
contact or non-contact measuring device, or a combination
thereof.
65. The system of claim 61, wherein the obtaining device is further
configured to obtain the second value from (i) a 3D object model
employed by the printing stage, (ii) the 3D object prior to
processing of the 3D object at the given processing stage, (iii)
the processed object, or (iv) a combination thereof.
66. The system of claim 61, wherein the controller is further
configured to: determine a difference between the first value and
the second value; and adjust the parameter based on the difference
determined.
67. The system of claim 66, wherein the controller is further
configured to: compare the difference determined to an expected
value; and adjust the parameter based on the comparison.
68. The system of claim 66, wherein to determine the difference,
the controller is further configured to compute a ratio of the
first value and second value or perform subtraction.
69. The system of claim 37, wherein: the parameter includes at
least one 3D fabrication parameter employed by the printing stage;
and wherein the controller is further configured to adjust the at
least one 3D fabrication parameter to cause dilation, contraction,
warping, or a combination thereof, in a corresponding
characteristic of the subsequent processed object relative to the
characteristic of the processed object.
70. The system of claim 37, wherein: the parameter is an extrusion
profile parameter employed by the printing stage; and wherein the
controller is further configured to adjust the extrusion profile
parameter.
71. The system of claim 37, wherein the parameter includes at least
one debinding process parameter or debinding process cycle
parameter that is applied by the controller to control a debinding
process employed by the given processing stage and wherein the
controller is further configured to adjust the at least one
debinding process or debinding process cycle parameter to
compensate for a specification of the debinding process determined
to be out of range via the value obtained.
72. The system of claim 37, wherein the parameter includes at least
one furnace parameter or furnace cycle parameter that is applied by
the controller to control a furnace employed by the given
processing stage.
73. The system of claim 72, wherein the controller is further
configured to adjust the at least one furnace or furnace cycling
parameter to compensate for a specification of the furnace
determined to be out of range via the value obtained.
Description
RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No. 62/489,186, filed on Apr. 24, 2017. The entire
teachings of the above application are incorporated herein by
reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Metal injection molding (MIM) is a metalworking process
useful in creating a variety of metal objects. A mixture of a
powdered metal material and a binder material (e.g., a polymer such
as polypropylene) that may be a single binder or multiple binders
and forms a "feedstock" (also referred to as a build material)
capable of being molded, at a high temperature, into the shape of a
desired object. The initial molded part, also referred to as a
"green part," then undergoes a debinding process to remove the
primary binder, followed by a sintering process. During sintering,
the part is brought to a temperature near a melting point of the
powdered metal material which evaporates any remaining binder
material and forms the metal powder material into a solid mass,
thereby producing the desired object.
[0003] Additive manufacturing, also referred to as
three-dimensional (3D) printing, includes a variety of techniques
for manufacturing a 3D object via an automated process of forming
successive layers of the 3D object. An additive manufacturing
system (also referred to as a 3D printing system) may utilize a
feedstock comparable to that used in MIM, thereby creating the
green part without the need for a mold. In the 3D printing system,
the green part may then undergo debinding or sintering processes,
or a combination thereof, to produce the desired object.
SUMMARY
[0004] According to an example embodiment, an additive
manufacturing system may comprise a printing stage configured to
print a three-dimensional (3D) object; a given processing stage
configured to transform the 3D object into a processed object, the
given processing stage being a debinding or a sintering stage that
follows the printing stage or follows the printing stage and one or
more of a plurality of processing stages; and a controller. The
controller may be configured to identify a discrepancy between a
characteristic of the processed object and an expected
characteristic, the discrepancy identified based on a value
associated with the characteristic, and may adjust a parameter
based on the value. The parameter may be known to influence the
characteristic and may be stored in a memory accessed by the
system. The parameter, in an adjusted state, may be employed by the
system to affect its operating state that, in turn, produces a
subsequent processed object with a corresponding characteristic
closer to the expected characteristic relative to the
characteristic of the processed object, the subsequent processed
object having been processed by the given processing stage.
[0005] The system may further comprise an obtaining device
configured to obtain the value associated with the characteristic
of the processed object.
[0006] The controller may be operatively coupled to the printing
stage, the given processing stage, the plurality of processing
stages, the obtaining device, or a combination thereof
[0007] The printing stage, the given processing stage, the
plurality of processing stages, or a combination thereof, may
include the obtaining device.
[0008] The 3D object may be a calibration object for calibrating
the system.
[0009] To obtain the value, the obtaining device may be configured
to measure the processed object.
[0010] The obtaining device may include a contact or non-contact
measuring device, or a combination thereof, to measure the
processed object.
[0011] The value may be a measurement of a geometric
characteristic.
[0012] The characteristic may be a dimension or geometric
feature.
[0013] The characteristic may be a location or geometric attribute
associated with a mark or feature printed on the 3D object for
determining a processing effect based on measurements of the mark
or the feature.
[0014] The subsequent processed object may be of a higher geometric
accuracy than the processed object relative to a target geometry,
the higher geometric accuracy based on a comparison of differences
between the target geometry and respective geometries of the
processed object and the subsequent processed object.
[0015] The characteristic may be mass and the value may be a mass
value.
[0016] The subsequent processed object may be of a higher mass
accuracy than the processed object relative to a target mass. The
higher mass accuracy may be based on a comparison of differences
between the target mass and respective masses of the processed
object and the subsequent processed object.
[0017] The characteristic may be chemical composition and the value
may be a concentration of a chemical constituent.
[0018] The subsequent processed object may be of a higher chemical
composition accuracy than the processed object relative to a target
chemical composition. The higher chemical composition accuracy may
be based on a comparison of differences between the target chemical
composition and respective chemical compositions of the processed
object and the subsequent processed object.
[0019] The controller may be further configured to trigger at least
one action as a function of the value and wherein, to trigger the
at least one action, the controller may be further configured to:
generate an alert to schedule maintenance of the system; or signal
a malfunction of the system.
[0020] The controller may be further configured to communicate the
alert or malfunction via an operator interface or transmission of
an electronic message to an electronic device communicatively
coupled to the system.
[0021] The alert generated or the malfunction signaled may be based
on the value and an expected value.
[0022] The value may be a first value and the obtaining device may
be further configured to obtain a second value associated with the
characteristic of the 3D object prior to processing the 3D object
at the given processing stage. The controller may be further
configured to generate the alert or signal the malfunction based on
the first value and the second value. The alert generated or the
malfunction signaled may be based on the first value, the second
value, and an expected value.
[0023] To obtain the second value, the obtaining device may be
further configured to measure the 3D object prior to processing of
the 3D object at the given processing stage.
[0024] The value may be a measured value.
[0025] The controller may be further configured to identify
atypical deformation in the processed object based on the value and
adjust the parameter, automatically, based on the atypical
deformation identified in order to obviate the atypical deformation
in the subsequent processed object.
[0026] The parameter may include at least one scaling factor
associated with an x, y, or z axis direction. The at least one
scaling factor may be employed by the system to offset shrinkage of
the 3D object due to the given processing stage. The controller may
be further configured to adjust the at least one scaling factor to
offset shrinkage of the subsequent processed object in the x, y, or
z axis direction.
[0027] The controller may be further configured to adjust the
parameter as a function of the first value, and second value, and
an expected value.
[0028] The obtaining device may be further configured to obtain the
second value by measuring the 3D object prior to processing of the
3D object at the given processing stage. The obtaining device may
be a contact or non-contact measuring device, or a combination
thereof, and the obtaining device may be further configured to
obtain the second value from (i) a 3D object model employed by the
printing stage, (ii) the 3D object prior to processing of the 3D
object at the given processing stage, (iii) the processed object,
or (iv) a combination thereof.
[0029] The controller may be further configured to: determine a
difference between the first value and the second value; adjust the
parameter based on the difference determined; compare the
difference determined to an expected value; and adjust the
parameter based on the comparison, wherein the difference may be
determined by computing a ratio of the first value and second value
or computing the difference via subtraction.
[0030] The parameter may include at least one 3D fabrication
parameter employed by the printing stage. The controller may be
further configured to adjust the at least one 3D fabrication
parameter to cause dilation, contraction, warping, or a combination
thereof, of a corresponding characteristic of the subsequent
processed object relative to the characteristic of the processed
object.
[0031] The parameter may be an extrusion profile parameter employed
by the printing stage and the controller may be further configured
to adjust the extrusion profile parameter.
[0032] The parameter may include at least one temperature value
employed by the given processing stage and the controller may be
further configured to adjust the at least one temperature value
employed.
[0033] The parameter may include at least one furnace parameter or
furnace cycle parameter that is applied by the controller to
control a furnace employed by the given processing stage. The
controller may be further configured to adjust the at least one
furnace or furnace cycling parameter to compensate for a
specification of the furnace determined to be out of range via the
value obtained.
[0034] Alternative method embodiments parallel those described
above in connection with the example system embodiment.
[0035] According to yet another example embodiment, a system may
comprise means for processing a three-dimensional (3D) object at a
given processing stage that follows printing or follows a
combination of printing and processing of the 3D object in a 3D
printing system to transform the 3D object into a processed object.
The processing may include debinding or sintering of the 3D object.
The system may comprise means for identifying a discrepancy between
a characteristic of the processed object and an expected
characteristic, the discrepancy identified based on a value
associated with the characteristic. The system may comprise means
for adjusting a parameter based on the value, the parameter known
to influence the characteristic and stored in a memory accessed by
the 3D printing system. The parameter, in an adjusted state, may be
employed by the 3D printing system to affect its operating state
that, in turn, produces a subsequent processed object with a
corresponding characteristic closer to the expected characteristic
relative to the characteristic of the processed object, the
subsequent processed object having been processed by the given
processing stage.
[0036] It should be understood that example embodiments disclosed
herein can be implemented in the form of a method, apparatus,
system, or computer readable medium with program codes embodied
thereon.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0037] The foregoing will be apparent from the following more
particular description of example embodiments, as illustrated in
the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters refer
to the same parts throughout the different views. The drawings are
not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon
illustrating embodiments.
[0038] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example embodiment of an
additive manufacturing system.
[0039] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of another example embodiment of
an additive manufacturing system.
[0040] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example embodiment of a
printed assembly.
[0041] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of another example embodiment of a
printed assembly.
[0042] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of an example embodiment of an
additive manufacturing method.
[0043] FIG. 6 is a block diagram of yet another example embodiment
of an additive manufacturing system.
[0044] FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of an example embodiment of a
method for printing with composites.
[0045] FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an example embodiment of an
additive manufacturing system for use with metal injection molding
materials.
[0046] FIG. 9 is a block diagram of an example embodiment of a
stereolithography process using a metallic powder and an
ultraviolet-curable binder.
[0047] FIG. 10 is a block diagram of an example embodiment of a
laser binding process for powder metallurgy materials.
[0048] FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an example internal structure
of a computer in which various embodiments of the present
disclosure may be implemented.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0049] Complexity of a geometry of a desired (i.e., target)
three-dimensional (3D) object being produced by an additive
manufacturing system (referred to interchangeably herein as a 3D
printing system), as well as atypical behavior of processes
employed by such a system, pose challenges for producing a final
version of the 3D object with fidelity relative to the desired 3D
object. An example embodiment overcomes such challenges by
employing feedback to enable the final version to be produced with
fidelity. The feedback may be referred to interchangeably herein as
object characteristic feedback and may be associated with at least
one characteristic of a printed object following processing of the
printed object. A 3D object may be referred to interchangeably
herein as a 3D printed object or simply, the printed object.
Processing of the printed object, such as a de-powdering,
debinding, or sintering, or a combination thereof, or any other
suitable processing operation that enables the printed 3D object to
be produced in a final form may be referred to interchangeably
herein as post-processing or simply, processing.
[0050] According to an example embodiment, the feedback may be at
least one value that is associated with at least one characteristic
of a printed object following processing of the printed object.
According to an example embodiment, such feedback may be obtained
as part of a calibration process of the 3D printing system or as
part of an operational process of the 3D printing system. Further,
such feedback may enable closed-loop calibration or run-time
operation of the 3D printing system in which the 3D printing system
may operate in a continuous manner fabricating 3D objects and
improving such fabricated 3D objects on an object-by-object
basis.
[0051] According to an example embodiment, an additive
manufacturing system or method therefore may process a 3D object at
a given processing stage of a plurality of processing stages of a
three-dimensional (3D) printing system to produce a processed
object. The 3D object input to the given processing stage may be a
processed or a unprocessed version of the 3D object that is printed
by a printing stage. The processed version may have been processed
at one or more of a plurality of processing stages following the
printing stage. The given processing stage may be a debinding stage
or a sintering stage. At least one value associated with at least
one characteristic of the processed object may be obtained. At
least one action may be triggered as a function of the at least one
value obtained. The at least one action may be triggered to improve
the at least one characteristic in a subsequent processed object,
the subsequent processed object having been processed by the given
processing stage.
[0052] An example embodiment disclosed herein may improve a
three-dimensional (3D) printing system as a function of feedback,
wherein the feedback may be at least one value that may be
associated with at least one characteristic of a printed object
following processing of the printed object. Such feedback may be
obtained as part of a calibration process of the 3D printing system
or as part of an operational process of the 3D printing system.
Such a 3D printing system may comprise a printing stage and at
least one processing stage.
[0053] The printing stage may be configured to print a 3D object,
such as by extruding a build material onto a build platform (also
referred to interchangeably herein as a bed or build plate), layer
by layer, such as disclosed with reference to FIG. 6, disclosed
further below, or by spreading a powder material across a top
surface of a powder bed and applying a binder material to regions
of the powder material, layer by layer, such as disclosed with
reference to FIG. 10, disclosed further below, or by printing the
3D object via any other suitable manner. The at least one
processing stage may be any suitable processing stage that performs
a processing operation, such as a de-powdering, debinding, or
sintering, or a combination thereof, or any other suitable
processing operation that enables the printed 3D object to be
produced in a final form.
[0054] An example embodiment enables the 3D printing system to
correct for inaccuracies, such as dimensional or mass inaccuracies,
or any other inaccuracies. An example embodiment may identify such
inaccuracies via measuring at least one characteristic of the
object during or after the processing stage, before or after one or
more processing stages, or a combination thereof. Such
measurement(s) may be used to identify a discrepancy between a
characteristic of a processed object and an expected characteristic
and cause a controller to adjust a parameter, automatically, that
is known to influence the characteristic and may also be employed
to alert a user of such inaccuracies, or malfunction(s) of the 3D
printing system resulting in such inaccuracies. By identifying and
resolving such inaccuracies, an example embodiment allows for more
complex geometries of 3D objects and enables such 3D objects to be
fabricated of larger scale and with fidelity.
[0055] FIG. 1 is a block diagram 100 of an example embodiment of an
additive manufacturing system 102. In the example embodiment, the
additive manufacturing system 102 is configured to receive a
representation 104 of a desired (i.e., target) 3D object in order
to fabricate the desired 3D object 106. The system 102 may produce
a processed object 130 with inaccuracy, such as an atypical
deformation 110, relative to the desired 3D object 106. The
atypical deformation 110 may be any deviation from the desired
object, for example, as disclosed in FIG. 1, the processed object
130 has an inaccurate angle relative to the desired 3D object 106.
It should be understood that such a deformation and geometry of the
3D objects disclosed herein are for illustrative purposes and that
the deformation and geometry of such 3D objects may be any
deformation or geometry.
[0056] According to an example embodiment, such inaccuracy may be
corrected, for example, via the object characteristic feedback 112,
that may be employed to adjust the 3D printing system 102 in a
manner that enables the 3D printing system 102 to produce a
subsequent processed object 142 with the inaccuracy corrected. The
object characteristic feedback 112 may include at least one
measurement of an intermediate version (not shown) of the desired
3D object 106, the at least one measurement performed prior to or
after at least one processing stage (not shown), or a combination
thereof, or may include any other suitable feedback that may be
employed to correct the 3D printing system 102 such that the
subsequent processed object 142 is produced with the inaccuracy
corrected.
[0057] Such inaccuracies may be a result of anisotropic gravitation
or malfunction of the printing or processing stage(s), such as
motion system (not shown) errors in a motion system used for
printing the desired 3D object 106 or a leaky furnace (not shown),
or any other type of malfunction. Such inaccuracies may include
atypical warping after debinding or sintering, or any other
distortion or any other inaccuracy, such as atypical swelling or
shrinking of the build material (not shown). In some cases, an
inaccuracy, such as warping, slumping, or any other inaccuracy, may
be unexpected because it may be due to a particular geometry of the
desired 3D object 106 or a type of build material employed for
producing same.
[0058] FIG. 2 is a block diagram 200 of another example embodiment
of an additive manufacturing system 202. The additive manufacturing
system comprises a printing stage 220 configured to print a
three-dimensional (3D) object 224, a given processing stage 226
configured to transform the 3D object 224 (also referred to
interchangeably herein as a 3D printed object) into a processed
object 230, and a controller 238. The given processing stage 226
may be a debinding or a sintering stage that follows the printing
stage 220 or follows the printing stage 220 and one or more of a
plurality of processing stages 222. The controller 238 may be
configured to identify a discrepancy, such as the atypical
deformation 210 or any other suitable discrepancy between a
characteristic of the processed object 230 and an expected (i.e.,
target) characteristic. The discrepancy may be identified based on
a value 236 associated with the characteristic, and the controller
238 may adjust a parameter (not shown) based on the value 236. The
parameter 240 may be known to influence the characteristic and may
be stored in a memory 208 accessed by the system. The parameter, in
an adjusted state, may be employed by the system 202 to affect its
operating state that, in turn, produces a subsequent processed
object 242 with a corresponding characteristic closer to the
expected characteristic relative to the characteristic of the
processed object 230, the subsequent processed object 242 having
been processed by the given processing stage 226.
[0059] The parameter 240 may be referred to interchangeably herein
as at least one parameter. The value 236 associated with the
characteristic may be referred to interchangeably herein as at
least one value. Further, the characteristic may be referred to
interchangeably herein as the at least one characteristic.
[0060] The additive manufacturing system 202 may further comprise
an obtaining device 234 that may be configured to obtain the at
least one value 236 associated with at least one characteristic of
the processed object 230. Prior to processing at the given
processing stage 226, the 3D object 224 may be processed,
optionally, at one or more of the plurality of processing stages
222. The controller 238 may be operatively coupled to the printing
stage 220, the given processing stage 226, the plurality of
processing stages 222, the obtaining device 234, or a combination
thereof. The printing stage 220, the given processing stage 226,
the plurality of processing stages 222, or a combination thereof,
may include the obtaining device 234. The controller 238 may be
configured to trigger at least one action as a function of the at
least one value 236 obtained by the obtaining device 234. The at
least one action may be triggered to improve the at least one
characteristic in the subsequent processed object 242, the
subsequent processed object 242 having been processed by the given
processing stage 226.
[0061] The printing stage 220 may be performed by a 3D printer (not
shown). The 3D printer may be a binder-jet printer system or any
other suitable 3D printer system, such as a fused filament
fabrication system, a stereolithography system, a selective laser
sintering system, or any other system that can be usefully adapted
to form a net shape object under computer control using injection
molding build materials. The output of the printing stage 220 may
be the 3D object 224 that is a 3D printed object that may be a
green body including any suitable powder, such as a metal powder,
metal alloy, or ceramic powder, along with a binder that retains
the powder in the net shape produced by the printing stage 220.
[0062] The additive manufacturing system 202 may include,
optionally, a conveyor 241 that may be used to transport the 3D
object 224 from the printing stage 220 to a processing stage of the
plurality of processing stages 222 where de-powdering, debinding,
sintering, or a combination thereof may be performed according to a
specific type of the 3D printing system. According to an example
embodiment, no transport may be needed between printing and
processing stages of the additive manufacturing system 202.
Further, in an event transport is needed, such transport may be
automatic, such as via the conveyor 241, or any other suitable
transport mechanism.
[0063] According to an example embodiment, the conveyor 241 may be
used to transport the 3D object from a processing stage back to the
printing stage 220, for example, to perform a measurement or other
analysis of the 3D object after printing the 3D object or after
processing the 3D object at one or more processing stages. The
conveyor 241 may be any suitable device or combination of devices
suitable for physically transporting the 3D object. Such a conveyor
241 may include robotics (not shown) and a machine vision system
(not shown) or the like on the printer side for detaching the 3D
object from a build platform (not shown) or the like, as well as
robotics and a machine vision system or the like on the processing
side to accurately place the 3D object within the at least one
processing stage (also referred to interchangeably herein as a
station). Alternatively, the 3D object may be manually transported
between the printing stage and a processing stage, such as a
debinding or sintering stage. It should be understood that the
processes of debinding may include a range of processes used to
remove one or more binders from a fabricated 3D object. Further,
the process of sintering may include any process used to form a
bond between powder particles forming the fabricated 3D object.
[0064] Debinding may be performed chemically or thermally to remove
a binder that retains the metal (or ceramic or other) powder in the
net shape. Injection molding materials may be engineered for
thermal debinding, which advantageously permits debinding and
sintering to be performed in a single baking operation, or in two
similar baking operations. In general, the debinding process
functions to remove binder from the net shape green object, thus,
leaving a very dense structure of metal (or ceramic or other)
particles and a secondary binder. The secondary binder may be
removed, for example, in the furnace (not shown) in a thermal
debind process. Debinding can occur as a pure thermal debind--all
polymer may be removed in the furnace, or it can occur in two steps
in which one binder is removed, chemically, and then a second
binder is removed, thermally.
[0065] Sintering may be any process of compacting and forming a
solid mass of material by heating. Such sintering may employ a
liquid phase sintering that may be used on materials, such as
aluminum. During a sintering process, atoms can diffuse across
particle boundaries to fuse into a solid piece. Because sintering
can be performed at temperatures below the melting temperature,
this advantageously permits fabrication with very high melting
point materials, such as tungsten and molybdenum. Numerous
sintering techniques are known in the art, and the selection of a
particular technique may depend upon the build material used and
the desired structural, functional, or aesthetic result for the
fabricated object.
[0066] For example, in solid-state (non-activated) sintering, metal
powder particles are heated to form connections (or "necks") where
they are in contact. Over time, these necks thicken and create a
dense part, leaving small, interstitial voids that can be closed,
for example, by hot isotactic pressing (HIP) or similar processes.
Other techniques may also or instead be employed. For example,
solid state activated sintering uses a film between powder
particles to improve mobility of atoms between particles and
accelerate the formation and thickening of necks. As another
example, liquid phase sintering may be used, in which a liquid
forms around metal particles. This can improve diffusion and
joining between particles, but may also leave a lower-melting phase
within the sintered object that may impair structural
integrity.
[0067] Processing stages, such as debinding and sintering stages
may have a processing effect such as material loss and compaction,
and a resulting object output from such a processing stage may be
significantly smaller than an input object provided to such a
processing stage. Such shrinkage may be generally linear in the
aggregate, and net shape objects may be usefully scaled up when
printing to create a corresponding shape after debinding and
sintering that yields the desired (i.e., target) shape for the 3D
object in final form. For example, a representation of the 3D
object, such as a 3D model of the object, disclosed further below,
may be scaled to account for such altering of shape by a processing
stage. However, it may be that such altering of shape is atypical
and does not match an expected alteration. For example, such
shrinkage may be non-linear in the aggregate due to anisotropic
shrinkage of the object which is a natural occurrence due to high
temperature creep.
[0068] Since injection molding materials may be engineered for
thermal debinding, it may be possible to perform multiple
processing stages, such as debinding and sintering, within a single
device. For example, the single device may be a sintering furnace.
Commercial sintering furnaces for thermal de-bind and sintering of
MIM parts may typically operate with an accuracy of +/-5 degrees
Celsius or better, holding the material at a temperature below its
melting point. It should be understood that any suitable device
configured to de-bind or sinter, or configured to perform a
combination thereof, may be employed to perform a processing stage
of the plurality of processing stages 222. The thermal
specifications or other specifications of such a processing stage
may depend upon the particular powder material, binder material,
loading, or other aspects of the 3D object being processed at the
processing stage.
[0069] The 3D object 224, the processed object 230, and the
subsequent processed object 242 may be 3D objects and may be
referred to interchangeably herein as intermediate (i.e., green) 3D
objects. It should be understood that such intermediate 3D objects
may include a representation of the desired object as well as any
other printed objects coupled thereto, such as the interface layer
356, base plate 352, and support structure(s) 354 disclosed further
below with reference to FIG. 3, or fiducials and marks disclosed
with reference to FIG. 4, further below.
[0070] As such, the 3D object 224 may be composed of a structure
that represents geometry of the final part being constructed as
well as any additional structures that may be removed later during
the manufacturing process. For example, the 3D object 224 may
include printed support structures that are printed for supporting
aspects of such geometry to ensure fidelity of same during the
manufacturing process. The 3D object 224 may include a printed
substrate (also referred to interchangeably herein as a raft or
base plate) that supports an entire mass of the structure that
represents a geometry of the final part as well as any additional
structures added and later removed during the manufacturing
process. The 3D object 224 may include fiducials added to the
printed structure or printed raft, or any other printed structure.
As such, the 3D object 224 may be composed of the printed structure
that represents the geometry of the final part as well as any other
printed structures that are printed and coupled thereto.
[0071] A support structure may be used to provide structural
support to a 3D object, such as the 3D object 346 of FIG. 3,
disclosed below, that may be fabricated according to any one of the
various different additive manufacturing techniques disclosed
herein. For example, a support structure can be useful for
providing structural support to the object as the 3D object
undergoes processing, such as debinding and additionally, or
alternatively, sintering. The 3D object and the support
structure(s) may be fabricated according to any of the various
different manufacturing processes disclosed herein and, for
example, may be fabricated as part of the same additive
manufacturing process.
[0072] An interface layer, also referred to interchangeably herein
as an interface, can be applied between the 3D object and the
support structure to facilitate, for example, removal of the
support structure from the 3D object at an appropriate point in the
formation of the 3D object into the final part. Such support
structure(s) may be printed to obviate deformation, such as
slumping of the 3D object. Since the 3D object may be weakened
during sintering, for example, due to burning of a polymer
resulting in voids, such support structure(s) may be printed to
support the object in order to prevent deformation. However, it may
be that such supports shrink non-uniformly or deform when bearing
the load of supported structures and, thus, such support
structures, as originally defined, for example, by a 3D model or
other file(s) defining such support structures, may not be
adequate. According to an example embodiment, such deformation may
be identified via measurements and may be corrected, for example,
by adjusting the definition(s) of such support structure(s) in the
3D model or other file(s) to correct for such deformation by
adjusting the shape of the support structure(s).
[0073] FIG. 3 is a block diagram 300 of an example embodiment of a
printed assembly 350. The printed assembly 350 includes a printed
3D object 346 with a shape corresponding to a desired shape of a
desired object, and corresponding support structures residing atop
a build plate 348 (e.g., a bed of a 3D printer) to support the
shape of the printed 3D object 346 during processing. Such
processing may be performed by removing the printed 3D object 346
from the build plate (i.e., build platform). Alternatively, the
printed 3D object 346 may not be removed from the build platform
for processing. For example, in a case of binder jet printing, the
3D object may remain in a powder bed (e.g., vat) that may be
employed for both printing and processing stages.
[0074] Turning back to FIG. 3, the block diagram 300 of FIG. 3 is a
lateral (i.e., cross-sectional) view of the printed assembly 350
and build plate 348. The printed assembly 350 may be fabricated and
processed via one or more of the manufacturing processes as
disclosed herein. The printed assembly 350 may be printed by a
printing stage, such as the printing stage 220 of FIG. 2, disclosed
above, that may be implemented by a 3D printer. Prior to or during
printing, geometry of the printed assembly 350 may be defined by a
3D model, such as the 3D model 623 of FIG. 6, disclosed further
below. Following printing, the printed assembly 350 (as a green
part) may undergo further processing as disclosed above, including
debinding and additionally, or alternatively, sintering, to produce
a finished object that may be separated from the support structures
of the printed assembly 350.
[0075] The support structures of the printed assembly 350 may
include a base plate 352 (also referred to interchangeably herein
as a raft or shrink raft) and a vertical support structure 354 that
extends between a top surface of the base plate 352 and a bottom
surface of a raised segment of the printed 3D object 346. An
interface layer 356 may occupy a layer between the build plate 348
and the base plate 352. Alternatively, the interface layer 356 may
not be employed. The interface layer 356 may include an interface
material that is nonreactive relative to the material comprising
the base plate 352, such as a powdered ceramic; thereby
facilitating separation of the printed assembly 350 from the build
plate 348 after the printing process is completed. Further,
additional interface layers (not shown) may be formed between the
3D object 346 and the base plate 352, between the vertical support
structure 354 and the printed 3D object 346, and/or between the
vertical support structure 354 and the base plate 352. The
interface layer 356 may be employed for sintering reasons, for
example, to thermally isolate the part or reduce friction and
bonding to a furnace floor. A polymer in the interface material of
the interface layer 356 may chemically bond to the build plate 348
during printing, to allow adhesion during printing. After printing,
the build plate 347 may be removed from the part and based plate
352. The part and the base plate 352 may then move through
processing stages.
[0076] As such, the material compositions of the 3D printed object
346, the support structure(s) 354, and the interface layer 356 may
facilitate providing structural support to the printed 3D object
346 through the physical and material property changes that occur
during fabrication, debinding, and sintering, while facilitating
removal of the support structure(s) 354 from the printed 3D object
346 with a reduced likelihood of damage and/or deformation to the
final part.
[0077] As disclosed in the lateral view of FIG. 3, the base plate
352 has a thickness 358 indicated by t, and may be sufficient to
support the mass of the 3D printed object 346 and the vertical
support structure(s) 354 during the printing process, including the
processing stages. The 3D model, such as the 3D model 623 disclosed
with reference to FIG. 6 below, may be a representation of the 3D
printed object 346 and may be modified to include the geometry of
the base plate 352, as well as the vertical support structure(s)
354 and/or any interface layers, such as the interface layer 356,
located between the components. With a complete 3D model of the
printed assembly 350, a controller, such as the controller 238 of
FIG. 2, may be configured to control the printing stage 220 to
fabricate the printed assembly 350 that may represent the 3D object
224 of FIG. 2, disclosed above. Following printing, the 3D object
224 (i.e., green part) may undergo debinding and sintering
processes as disclosed above to produce a finished object.
[0078] According to an example embodiment, the controller 238 may
be operatively and/or communicatively coupled to the printing stage
220, the given processing stage 226, the plurality of processing
stages 222, the obtaining device 234, or a combination thereof. The
at least one value 236 associated with the at least one
characteristic of the processed object 230 may be considered
feedback, such as the object characteristic feedback 112 of FIG. 1,
that may be employed by the controller 238 to identify a
discrepancy between a characteristic of the processed object 230
and an expected characteristic and adjust a parameter known to
influence the characteristic. The parameter, in an adjusted state,
may be employed by the system 202 to affect its operating state
that, in turn, produces the subsequent processed object 242 with a
corresponding characteristic closer to the expected characteristic
relative to the characteristic of the processed object 230, the
subsequent processed object having been processed by the given
processing stage 226. By improving the characteristic in the
subsequent processed object 242, the additive manufacturing system
202 may produce a subsequent finished version 214 of the desired
object with a higher fidelity relative to the desired object than a
finished version 209.
[0079] According to an example embodiment, the controller 238 may
aggregate or monitor the at least one characteristic that may be
obtained at various location(s) along a chain of the plurality of
processing stages 222 and may use such information to tweak or tune
the printing stage 220, one or more processing stages of the
plurality of processing stages 222, a 3D fabrication parameter
employed to print the 3D object 224, or a combination thereof, by
adjusting the parameter 240. According to an example embodiment,
the controller 238 may collect the at least one characteristic
obtained and forward the at least one characteristic along with
information regarding settings of the additive manufacturing system
202 or the build material employed to produce the 3D object 224, or
any other suitable information via a network (not shown) to a
server (not shown). The server may determine new settings for the
additive manufacturing system 202 translating to an adjustment of
the parameter 240, which may be one or more parameters known to
influence the characteristic, and such settings may define
revisions for 3D fabrication parameter(s), such as disclosed,
further below, or any other parameters employed by the additive
manufacturing system 202 to alter operation of the additive
manufacturing system 202 in a manner that results in higher
fidelity 3D objects and, thus, improve the additive manufacturing
system 202.
[0080] The subsequent processed object 242 may be of a higher
geometric accuracy than the processed object 230 relative to a
final target geometry. The higher geometric accuracy may be based
on a comparison of differences between the target geometry and
respective geometries of the processed object 230 and the
subsequent processed object 242. The target geometry may be a final
target geometry desired for a final version of the object or may be
an intermediate geometry determined necessary for achieving such a
final target geometry.
[0081] For example, the intermediate target geometry may be based
on an expected processing effect, such as an amount of shrinkage
expected due to the debinding or sintering stage, or any other
suitable processing effect. The expected processing effect may be
determined based on a specification(s) or setting(s) of the
processing stage. The at least one value obtained 236 may be used
to determine whether the processing effect differs from the
expected processing effect. Such a difference may be due to
atypical behavior of the processing stage that may result from, for
example, a leaky furnace employed to perform sintering, or any
other atypical behavior that results from a malfunctioning device
employed for performing the processing stage.
[0082] Alternatively, or in combination with such atypical behavior
that may result from a malfunctioning device, such a difference may
result from complexity of geometry or other characteristic of the
desired object. For example, an overhang 453 of the object 446
disclosed with reference to FIG. 4, disclosed below, may experience
a higher degree of bending due to the processing than otherwise
expected. It should be understood that an overhang is an example of
complexity of a 3D object's geometry and that any other suitable
complexity may result in such a difference. Further, bending is an
example of a processing effect and it should be understood that any
other suitable processing effect may result in such a
difference.
[0083] According to an example embodiment, the printing stage 220,
the given processing stage 226, and the plurality of processing
stages 222, or a combination thereof, may include the obtaining
device 234. The obtaining device 234 may be configured to obtain
the at least one value 236 by measuring the processed object 230.
According to an example embodiment, the obtaining device 234 may be
a contact or non-contact measuring device, or a combination
thereof. For example the obtaining device may be a coordinate
measuring machine (CMM), 3D laser scanner, computer vision based
system, optical based system, mass measuring device, chemical
composition measuring device, caliper, micrometer, or any other
suitable measuring device, or a combination thereof. According to
an example embodiment, spectroscopy analysis may be used to measure
chemical composition. The obtaining device 234 may be configured to
perform the measuring, automatically, and communicate the at least
one value 236 to the controller 238 via an electronic communication
in response to the measuring.
[0084] According to an example embodiment, the obtaining device 234
may be manually operated by a user (not shown) to obtain the at
least one value 236. The obtaining device 234, that may be manually
operated, may be any of the above-disclosed obtaining devices, a
set of calipers, or any other suitable measuring device that may be
manually operated. According to an example embodiment, the user may
operate the obtaining device 234, manually, and input feedback,
such as the at least one value 236 obtained via the obtaining
device 234, to the controller 238 via a user interface (not shown)
or by communicating such feedback electronically via an electronic
device (not shown) in communication with the controller 238, such a
smart phone (not shown) or any other suitable electronic
device.
[0085] The at least one value obtained 236 may be a measurement of
a geometric characteristic. The measurement may represent any
suitable measured size or geometry. For example, the at least one
characteristic may include a dimension, geometric feature, such as
curvature, angle, parallelism, or any other suitable geometric
feature, positional tolerance or other tolerances, or a combination
thereof. The at least one characteristic may include a location or
geometric attribute associated with a mark or feature, such as the
mark or features disclosed in FIG. 4 below, that may be placed on
the 3D object 224 for determining a processing effect on the mark
or the feature. The at least one value obtained 236 may enable such
a determination.
[0086] FIG. 4 is a block diagram 400 of an example embodiment of a
printed assembly 450. The printed assembly 450 (i.e., 3D printed
assembly) may include an object 446, that is, a 3D printed object,
with an overhang 453 supported by a support structure 454 and a
raft 452 supporting the object 446 and the support structure 454
for the overhang 453. The printed assembly 450 may include a
feature (e.g., fiducial), a mark, or a combination thereof applied
thereto. For example, the printed assembly 450 may include the
fiducial 455a and/or the mark 457a applied to the raft 452 and/or
the object 446 may have the fiducial 455b and/or mark 457b applied
thereto. Such fiducials and marks may be monitored by obtaining at
least one value associated with a characteristic of such fiducials
or marks at various points along the processing chain.
[0087] By monitoring or tracking such characteristics, adjustments
may be made to the additive manufacturing system to improve
fidelity of the desired object 406 being produced by the additive
manufacturing system. According to an example embodiment, disclosed
further below, the object 446 may be a calibration object or the
entire printed assembly 450 may be the calibration object. As such,
the object 446 may include the mark 457b or the fiducial 455b
and/or the printed assembly 450 may include the mark 457a or the
fiducial 455a that may be tracked as part of a calibration method
for determining adjustments to settings of printing or processing
stages, a 3D model representing the 3D object, or a combination
thereof. It should be understood that the fiducials 455a and 455b
and the marks 457a and 457b of FIG. 4 are for illustrative purposes
and that any suitable fiducial or mark may be applied.
[0088] Turning back to FIG. 2, at least one characteristic may be
mass and the at least one value 236 may be at least one mass value.
The subsequent processed object 242 may be of a higher mass
accuracy than the processed object 230 relative to a target mass.
The higher mass accuracy may be based on a comparison of
differences between the target mass and respective masses of the
processed object 230 and the subsequent processed object 242. The
target mass may be a final mass desired for a final version of the
object or may be an intermediate mass expected after the printing
stage 220 or a processing stage of the plurality of processing
stages 222 for achieving the final mass.
[0089] In an event a measured mass of the processed object 230
differs from the target mass, such a mass difference may be
resolved by adjusting a parameter of the printing stage 220 or the
given processing stage 226. For example, the mass difference may be
resolved in the subsequent processed object 242 by adjusting a
printing parameter (not shown), such as an extrusion profile
parameter (not shown), employed by the printing stage 220. Such an
adjustment may obviate voids causing such a mass difference. The
mass difference may be resolved in a subsequent processed object
242 by adjusting the parameter employed by the given processing
stage 226.
[0090] For example, a chemical employed by a debinding stage or a
debinding temperature thereof or schedule related thereto, may be
changed to resolve the mass difference. Further any parameter of a
sintering stage, such as a sintering temperature or schedule
related thereto may be changed to resolve such a mass difference.
It should be understood that a schedule for debinding or sintering
may specify control for temperature over time and time for the
intermediate object to be processed at the debinding or sintering
stage, or may be any other suitable schedule for debinding or
sintering. Changes to a sintering or debinding schedule may include
changes to time, temperature, temperature heating rate, temperature
cooling rate, or a combination thereof. It should be understood
that any suitable action may be triggered as a function of the at
least one value 236 and that such actions, such as a change to an
extrusion profile parameter, change of chemical, change of
temperature, such as elevation of a temperature debind, change in
pressure in sintering, change in atmosphere in a furnace, are
examples of such an action.
[0091] According to an example embodiment, the at least one
characteristic may be chemical composition and the at least one
value 236 may include a concentration of a chemical constituent.
The subsequent processed object 242 may be of a higher chemical
composition accuracy than the processed object 230 relative to a
target chemical composition. The higher chemical composition
accuracy may be based on a comparison of differences between the
target chemical composition and respective chemical compositions of
the processed object 230 and the subsequent processed object 242.
According to an example embodiment, the concentration of the
chemical constituent may be an amount of carbon or any other alloy
element(s) that may be gained or lost during processing. The
chemical composition difference may be resolved in the subsequent
processed object 242 by adjusting the parameter employed by the
given processing stage 226, such as by adjusting a debinding or
sintering parameter.
[0092] The at least one action that is triggered may include
generating an alert to schedule maintenance of the additive
manufacturing system 202 or signaling a malfunction of the additive
printing system 202. The alert generated or the malfunction
signaled may be based on the at least one value and at least one
expected value. The alert or malfunction may be communicated via an
operator (i.e., user) interface (not shown) or via transmission of
an electronic message (not shown) over a network (not shown) to an
electronic device (not shown) that is communicatively coupled to
the additive manufacturing system 202.
[0093] It should be understood that such a network may any suitable
network enabling the electronic message to be communicated to the
electronic device (local or remote), such as a wired or wireless
network. The alert generated or the malfunction signaled may
identify the printing stage 220, the given processing stage 226,
the plurality of processing stages 222, or a combination thereof,
any parameters, profile, or schedule related thereto, or any other
suitable information, such as time of day information, 3D object
information, build material information, information identifying
the particular 3D object, being fabricated, a particular 3D model
employed, or any other suitable information that may be useful for
resolving the inaccuracy.
[0094] According to an example embodiment, the at least one value
236 may be at least one first value and the obtaining device 234
may obtain at least one second value associated with the at least
one characteristic of the object prior to processing the 3D object
224 at the given processing stage 226. For example, the at least
one value 236 may be obtained after printing the 3D object 224 and
after sintering the 3D object 224. The alert generated or the
malfunction signaled may be based on the at least one first value
and the at least one second value. Alternatively, the alert
generated or the malfunction signaled may be based on the at least
one first value, the at least one second value, and at least one
expected value. The obtaining device 234 may be configured to
obtain the at least one second value by measuring the 3D object 224
prior processing the 3D object 224 at the given processing stage
226. It should be understood that the at least one first value may
be obtained during printing of the 3D object 224. For example, in
binder-jet printing, a measurement may be obtained as the 3D object
224 is being printed in the powder bed layer by layer.
[0095] The at least one action that is triggered may include
adjusting at least one parameter employed by the additive
manufacturing system 202. For example, the controller 238 may be
configured to identify an atypical deformation 210 in the processed
object 230 based on the at least one value 236 that is obtained and
may adjust the at least one parameter based on the atypical
deformation 210 that is identified in order to obviate the atypical
deformation 210 from being produced in the subsequent processed
object 242. For example, the atypical deformation 210 may be
atypical slumping of the 3D object 224 that may be corrected by
adjusting a 3D fabrication parameter for printing the 3D object
224.
[0096] According to an example embodiment, the at least one
parameter may include at least one scaling factor associated with
an x, y, or z axis direction. The at least one scaling factor may
be a scaling factor(s) employed by the additive manufacturing
system 202 to offset shrinkage of the 3D object 224 due to the
given processing stage 226. The controller 238 may be configured to
adjust the at least one scaling factor to offset shrinkage of the
subsequent processed object 242 in the x, y, or z axis direction.
As such, an inaccuracy of such shrinkage measured during
fabrication of the finished version 209 may be obviated in the
subsequent finished version 214. According to an example
embodiment, shrinkage may be higher in the z-axis direction
relative to the x or y-axis directions, for example, due to
gravity, higher temperature creep, anisotropy of printed beads, or
a combination thereof
[0097] The at least one value 236 may be at least one first value
and the obtaining device 234 may be configured to obtain at least
one second value associated with the at least one characteristic of
the object prior to processing of the 3D object 224 at the given
processing stage 226. The controller 238 may be configured to
adjust the parameter as a function of the at least one first value
and the at least one second value. The controller 238 may be
configured to adjust the parameter as a function of the at least
one first value, the at least one second value, and at least one
expected value. The obtaining device 234 may be configured to
obtain the at least one second value by measuring the 3D object 224
prior to the processing of the 3D object 224 at the given
processing stage 226.
[0098] The obtaining device 234 may be configured to obtain the at
least one second value from a (i) 3D object model (not shown)
employed by the printing stage 220, (ii) the 3D object 224, (iii) a
processed version of the 3D object 224, or (iv) a combination
thereof.
[0099] The controller 238 may be configured to adjust the at least
one parameter by determining at least one difference between the at
least one first value and the at least one second value and
adjusting the at least one parameter based on the at least one
difference determined. For example, the controller 238 may be
configured to compare the at least one difference determined to at
least one expected value and adjust the at least one parameter
based on the comparison.
[0100] The at least one difference may be at least one ratio of the
at least one first value and the at least one second value. For
example, the at least one first value and the at least one second
value may reflect measurements taken pre- and post- a particular
processing stage and such a ratio may reflect shrinkage attributed
to the particular processing stage or series of processing stages
including the particular processing stage.
[0101] The at least one parameter may include at least one 3D
fabrication parameter employed by the printing stage 220. The
controller may be further configured to adjust the at least one 3D
fabrication parameter to cause dilation, contraction, warping, or a
combination thereof, of a corresponding characteristic of the
subsequent processed object 242 relative to the characteristic of
the processed object 230.
[0102] According to an example embodiment, adjusting the 3D
fabrication parameter may alter a digital representation of the 3D
object (i.e., 3D model), such as a stereolithography (STL) file.
According to another example embodiment, adjusting the 3D
fabrication parameter may alter slicing parameter(s) of the 3D
object, such as slicer parameter(s) of a software slicing tool that
cuts the digital representation into layers and generates toolpath
commands based on same. According to yet another example
embodiment, adjusting the 3D fabrication parameter may alter the
toothpath command(s) themselves, such as by altering g-code
commands generated by the software slicing tool. Further, adjusting
the 3D fabrication may alter a combination of at least two of the
digital representation of the 3D object, slicing parameter(s), and
toolpath command(s).
[0103] Adjusting the 3D fabrication parameter may alter printing of
the 3D object in any suitable way that affects a change to the
subsequent processed object relative to the 3D object. According to
an example embodiment, the 3D model may be scaled to account for
atypical shrinkage of the 3D object and adjusting the 3D
fabrication parameter may affect such scaling. Adjusting the 3D
fabrication parameter may cause dilation, contraction, warping, or
a combination thereof, of the digital representation of the 3D
object, to affect such dilation, contraction, warping, or a
combination thereof, of the subsequent processed object relative to
the 3D object. Adjusting the 3D fabrication parameter may alter the
digital representation of the 3D object to adjust for an inaccurate
angle, slumping of the build material, non-uniform shrinkage of the
3D object, or to adjust for any other discrepancy identified.
Adjusting the 3D fabrication parameter may change the digital
representation of the 3D object that is used by a slicer to slice
this digital representation into discrete layers to generate
toolpath commands (e.g., flow rate, trajectory, temperature, etc.)
for printing the 3D object or, alternatively, adjusting the 3D
fabrication parameter may change such toolpath commands (X,Y,Z,E
position vector commands) directly to affect a change in x-y-z
scaling, an amount of material for extrusion, or a combination
thereof. Adjusting the 3D fabrication parameter may also change
slicing parameters including adding or modifying support
structure(s), interface(s), or a raft for support, infill
percentage, print speed, print temperature or heated chamber
temperature, parameters that effect the extrusion profile (e.g.,
location, temperature, cooling rates, flow rate, etc.), etc.
[0104] The at least one parameter may be an extrusion profile
parameter employed by the printing stage 220 and the controller 238
may be configured to adjust the extrusion profile parameter. For
example, the controller 238 may be configured to adjust the
extrusion profile parameter to obviate voids, such as disclosed
above.
[0105] The at least one parameter may include any suitable setting
that effects the printing of the 3D object, such as a chamber
temperature setting, nozzle temperature setting, toolpath setting,
etc.
[0106] The at least one parameter may include at least one
temperature value employed by the given processing stage. The
controller 238 may be configured to adjust the at least one
temperature value employed. The at least one temperature value may
be employed by the debinding stage to control a temperature of a
solvent, or may be employed by the sintering stage, as disclosed
above. The controller 238 may be configured to adjust an agitation
of solvent, for example, by lowering agitation in response to parts
warping in the debind process. As such, the at least one parameter
may be at least one debinding process parameter or debinding
process cycle parameter that is applied by the controller 238 to
control a debinding process. Adjusting the at least one debinding
process or debinding process cycling parameter may compensate for a
specification of a debinding process determined to be out of range
via the value 236 obtained.
[0107] Further, the at least one parameter may be at least one
furnace parameter or furnace cycle parameter that is applied by the
controller 238 to control a furnace, such as temperature, disclosed
above, or any other suitable furnace or furnace cycle parameter.
The furnace may be employed by the given processing stage 226 and
the controller 238 may be configured to adjust the at least one
furnace or furnace cycling parameter. Adjusting the at least one
furnace or furnace cycling parameter may compensate for a
specification of the furnace determined to be out of range via the
value 236 obtained.
[0108] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of an example embodiment of an
additive manufacturing method (500). The method begins (502) and
processes a three-dimensional (3D) object at a given processing
stage that follows printing or follows a combination of printing
and processing of the 3D object in a 3D printing system to
transform the 3D object into a processed object, the processing
including debinding or sintering of the 3D object (504). The method
identifies a discrepancy between a characteristic of the processed
object and an expected characteristic, the discrepancy identified
based on a value associated with the characteristic (506). The
method adjusts a parameter based on the value, the parameter known
to influence the characteristic and stored in a memory accessed by
the 3D printing system, the parameter, in an adjusted state, being
employed by the 3D printing system to affect its operating state
that, in turn, produces a subsequent processed object with a
corresponding characteristic closer to the expected characteristic
relative to the characteristic of the processed object, the
subsequent processed object having been processed by the given
processing stage (508), and the method thereafter ends (510), in
the example embodiment.
[0109] The method may comprise printing the object, iteratively, in
successive layers and the processing, identifying, and adjusting
may be performed during the printing.
[0110] Turning back to FIG. 2, according to an example embodiment,
the 3D object 224 may be a calibration object for calibrating the
3D printing system, that is, the additive manufacturing system 202.
As such, the processing, identifying, and adjusting operations may
be performed as part of the calibrating. According to an example
embodiment, the additive manufacturing system 202 may perform a
closed loop calibration method that includes measuring a 3D object
being produced by the system before and after various processing
stages of the plurality of processing stages 222. The calibration
method may employ such measurements in combination with expected
measurements associated therewith to calibrate the additive
manufacturing system 202 by adjusting at least one parameter
employed by the additive manufacturing system 202. Adjustment of
the at least one parameter may be based on a difference between
such measurement and the expected measurement associated therewith.
By adjusting the at least one parameter, the difference may be
reduced. Such adjustment may be made real-time during production of
the 3D object. Alternatively, such adjusting may be performed as
part of an off-line type calibration for the additive manufacturing
system 202.
[0111] According to an example embodiment, the printing stage 220
may be a 3D printer that may include a laser scanner, camera, or
other suitable device for measuring a 3D object. A scaling
calibration method may be performed that may comprise printing the
3D object to produce the 3D object 224, sintering the 3D object 224
at a processing station, and scanning the 3D object 224 post-sinter
to perform a closed loop scaling calibration so new materials can
be qualified and a customer (i.e., user) can fabricate the 3D
object with accurate shrink based on, for example, gas conditions
of a unique oven at the customer's site. Such a scaling calibration
method may be useful to the user in an event multiple different
feedstocks are being used or in an event the unique oven was leaky
or became leaky over time, resulting in an unexpected shrinkage of
the 3D object. By measuring such shrinkage, the calibration method
may automatically adjust at least one parameter that may be a
furnace parameter to account for such unexpected shrinkage and,
thus, improve tolerances. Unexpected mass loss or deformation from
debind may also occur at a processing station that may be a
debinding station. As such the calibration method may de-bind the
3D printed object and scan the 3D printed object post-de- bind to
perform the closed loop scaling calibration by adjusting at least
one parameter controlling the de-bind process.
[0112] The calibration method may employ a calibration part for the
3D object 224. The calibration part may be based on a 3D model that
may be based on a specific geometry targeted for such calibration.
The 3D model of the calibration part may be specifically designed
to test for specific artifacts of the processing stage that may be
a debinding stage or a sintering stage.
[0113] According to an example embodiment, the raft of the 3D
object, such as the base plate 352 or the raft 452 disclosed in
FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 above, respectively, may be employed for
monitoring and adjusting at least one parameter of the 3D printing
system, such as the additive manufacturing system 202 of FIG. 2,
disclosed above. According to an example embodiment, a feature,
such as a fiducial, may be added to the 3D object or the raft
during printing, such as disclosed above with reference to FIG. 4.
Values associated with characteristics (e.g., data) regarding such
a feature may be collected on a per-object basis for each 3D object
being produced to continuously update scale factors of a
corresponding 3D model or to update other printing parameters,
debinding parameters, sintering parameters, or any other suitable
parameters employed by the 3D printing system for producing the 3D
object in final form.
[0114] Specific designs for a 3D model may be employed that
specifically test for artifacts due to a debinding or sintering
process. For example, the 3D model may represent a 3D object that
includes an array of cubes with different heights and ceramic
interface pattern. The 3D object may be attached to a shrink raft,
and an example embodiment may measure shrinkage versus height that
may have an unexpected value due to creep effects and curvature due
to pinning. Such measurements may be employed to adjust parameters
in the 3D model to overcome such processing effects by determining
the printed geometry needed to give the desired final
dimensions.
[0115] An example embodiment may measure at least one
characteristic, such as a small pattern of a 3D object being
produced by the 3D printing system, measure temperatures,
pressures, and combine such information with a supplier's data on
the build material and data regarding setting of a processing stage
to determine how to scale a 3D model for producing a 3D object of
accurate final size.
[0116] According to an example embodiment, at least one parameter
may be adjusted in real-time to hit a dimensional target. An
optical or physical measurement of the part or a reference feature
may enable adjustment of vacuum, time, gas flow, temperature, or
any other suitable parameter of a processing stage to achieve an
accurate final size.
[0117] According to an example embodiment, the at least one
characteristic may be obtained after printing the object and after
sintering the object to determine a processing effect, such as a
sintering effect in the example embodiment. By monitoring the at
least one characteristic in this way, such as by measuring the at
least one characteristic, the 3D model or a parameter of the
processing stage, such as a parameter of the sintering process in
the example embodiment, may be adjusted in order to produce the 3D
object with fidelity.
[0118] According to an example embodiment, calibration may be
performed in response to a change in feedstock or a change in part
design, such as defined by a change of a 3D model employed for
printing.
[0119] The following discloses various embodiments within which an
example embodiment disclosed above may be implemented. The
following disclosure emphasizes 3D printing using metal as a build
material for forming a three-dimensional object. A variety of
commercially available compositions have been engineered for metal
injection molding ("MIM"). These highly engineered materials can
also be adapted for use as a build material in printing techniques
such as fused filament fabrication ("FFF") or other fabrication
techniques, such as stereolithography or binderjetting. Any
reference to "MIM materials," "powder metallurgy materials," "MIM
feedstocks," or the like shall generally refer to powder and
binder, such as metal powder and/or ceramic powder mixed with one
or more binding materials, e.g., a backbone binder and/or another
binder that is pulled out during the debind process. The debind
process may be a thermal or solvent debind process.
[0120] These materials, or other materials similarly composed of
metal powder and a binder system, may be used to fabricate 3D
objects that can be processed to produce a final 3D object (also
referred to interchangeably herein as a desired part). For example,
the 3D object may be de-bound and sintered into a fully densified
3D object that may include a metal, a metal alloy, a ceramic, or
any other suitable material or combination of materials.
[0121] FIG. 6 is a block diagram 620 of yet another example
embodiment of an additive manufacturing system 602 in which various
embodiments as disclosed above may be implemented. The additive
manufacturing system 602 may include a 3D printer 620 that deposits
metal using fused filament fabrication. Fused filament fabrication
is well known in the art, and may be usefully employed for additive
manufacturing with suitable adaptations to accommodate the forces,
temperatures and other environmental requirements typical of the
metallic injection molding materials disclosed herein. In general,
the printer 620 may include a build material 601 that is propelled
by a drive train 674 and heated to a workable state by a
liquefaction system 678, and then dispensed through one or more
nozzles 679. By concurrently controlling robotic system 673 to
position the nozzle(s) along an extrusion path, an object 624 may
be fabricated on a build plate 648 within a build chamber 671. In
general, a control system 638 manages operation of the printer 620
to fabricate the object 624 according to a three-dimensional model
using a fused filament fabrication process or the like.
[0122] A variety of commercially available compositions have been
engineered for metal injection molding ("MIM"). These highly
engineered materials can also be adapted for use as a build
material 601 in printing techniques such as fused filament
fabrication. For example, MIM feedstock materials, with suitable
polymers and powder size, may be usefully extruded through nozzles
typical of commercially available FFF machines, and are generally
flowable or extrudable within typical operating temperatures (e.g.,
0-600 degrees Celsius) of such machines. An operating range may be
dependent upon polymers in the feedstock. For example, an operating
range may be 150C-290C, or any other suitable range where the
polymers have an appropriate viscosity for printing. This
temperature range may depend on the binder--e.g., some binders
achieve appropriate viscosities at about 205 degrees Celsius, while
others achieve appropriate viscosities at lower or higher
temperatures such as about 660-180 C degrees Celsius. One of
ordinary skill will recognize that these ranges (and all ranges
listed herein) are provided by way of example and not of
limitation. Further, while there are no formal limits on the
dimensions for powder metallurgy materials, parts with dimensions
up to 600 millimeters on each side have been demonstrated to
perform well for FFF fabrication of net shape green bodies. Any
smaller dimensions may be usefully employed, for example, MIM parts
may typically have dimensions below 60 mm on each axis, and larger
dimensions may also be employed provided they are consistent with
processing dimensions such as the print resolution and the
extrusion orifice diameter that may have a target range from 100
.mu.m to 1 mm. For example, implementations may target about a 400
.mu.m diameter extrusion, and the MIM metal powder may typically be
about 1.about.100 .mu.m diameter, although nano sized powders can
be used. The term metal injection molding material, as used herein,
may include any such engineered materials, as well as other fine
powder bases such as ceramics in a similar binder suitable for
injection molding. Thus, where the term metal injection molding or
the commonly used abbreviation, MIM, is used, the term may include
injection molding materials using powders other than, or in
addition to, metals and, thus, may include ceramics. Also, any
reference to "MIM materials," "powder metallurgy materials," "MIM
feedstocks," or the like may generally refer to metal powder and/or
ceramic powder mixed with one or more binding materials. Other
material systems may be suitable for fabricating metal parts using
fabrication techniques such as stereolithography or binder jetting,
some of which are disclosed in greater detail below. Such
fabrication techniques may, in some applications, be identical to
techniques for fabricating parts from ceramic material.
[0123] In general, fabrication of such materials may proceed as
with a conventional FFF process, except that after the net shape is
created, the green part may be optionally machined or finished
while in a more easily workable state, and then de-bound and
sintered into a final, dense object using any of the methods common
in the art for MIM materials. The final object, as disclosed above,
may include a metal, a metal alloy, a ceramic, or another suitable
combination of materials.
[0124] The build material 601 may be fed from a carrier 603
configured to dispense the build material to the three-dimensional
printer either in a continuous (e.g., wire) or discrete (e.g.,
billet) form. The build material 601 may for example be supplied in
discrete units one by one as billets or the like or as a rod into
an intermediate chamber for delivery into the build chamber 638 and
subsequent melt and deposition. In another aspect, the carrier 603
may include a spool or cartridge containing the build material 601
in a wire form. Where a vacuum or other controlled environment is
desired, the wire may be fed through a vacuum gasket into the build
chamber 638 in a continuous fashion, however, typical MIM materials
can be heated to a workable plastic state under normal atmospheric
conditions, except perhaps for filtering or the like to remove
particles from the build chamber 671. Thus in one aspect, there is
disclosed herein an apparatus including a MIM build material formed
into a wire, the build material including an engineered composite
of metal powder and a polymeric binder or the like, wherein the
carrier 603 is configured to dispense the build material in a
continuous feed to a three-dimensional printer. For environmentally
sensitive materials, the carrier 603 may provide a vacuum
environment for the build material 601 that can be directly or
indirectly coupled to the vacuum environment of the build chamber
638. More generally, the build chamber 638 (and the carrier 603)
may maintain any suitably inert environment for handling of the
build material 601, such as a vacuum, and oxygen-depleted
environment, an inert gas environment, or some gas or combination
of gasses that are not reactive with the build material 601 where
such conditions are necessary or beneficial during
three-dimensional fabrication. It should be understood that an
atmosphere for printing is relevant to the processing of the
binders. For example, atmospheric control may not be employed if
the binder or metal/ceramic is not reactive with the environment at
the printing temperature.
[0125] A drive train 674 may include any suitable gears,
compression pistons, or the like for continuous or indexed feeding
of the build material 601 into the liquefaction system 678. In one
aspect, the drive train 674 may include gear shaped to mesh with
corresponding features in the build material such as ridges,
notches, or other positive or negative detents. In another aspect,
the drive train 674 may use heated gears or screw mechanisms to
deform and engage with the build material. Thus there is disclosed
in one aspect a printer for a fused filament fabrication process
that heats a build material to a working temperature, and that
heats a gear that engages with, deforms, and drives the composite
in a feed path. A screw feed may also or instead be used.
[0126] For more brittle MIM materials, a fine-toothed drive gear of
a material such as a hard resin or plastic may be used to grip the
material without excessive cutting or stress concentrations that
might otherwise crack, strip, or otherwise compromise the build
material.
[0127] In another aspect, the drive train 674 may use bellows, or
any other collapsible or telescoping press to drive rods, billets,
or similar units of build material into the liquefaction system
678. Similarly, a piezoelectric or linear stepper drive may be used
to advance a unit of build media in a non-continuous, stepped
method with discrete, high-powered mechanical increments. In
another aspect, the drive train 674 may include multiple stages. In
a first stage, the drive train 674 may heat the composite material
and form threads or other features that can supply positive
gripping traction into the material. In the next stage, a gear or
the like matching these features can be used to advance the build
material along the feed path. A collet feed may be used (e.g.,
similar to those on a mechanical pencil). A soft wheel or belt
drive may also or instead be used. In an aspect, a shape forming
wheel drive may be used to ensure accuracy of size and thus the
build. More generally, the drive train 674 may include any
mechanism or combination of mechanisms used to advance build
material 601 for deposition in a three-dimensional fabrication
process.
[0128] The liquefaction system 678 may be any liquefaction system
configured to heat the composite to a working temperature in a
range suitable for extrusion in a fused filament fabrication
process. Any number of heating techniques may be used. In one
aspect, electrical techniques such as inductive or resistive
heating may be usefully applied to liquefy the build material 601.
This may, for example include inductively or resistively heating a
chamber around the build material 601 to a temperature at or near
the glass transition temperature of the build material 601, or some
other temperature where the binder or other matrix becomes
workable, extrudable, or flowable for deposition as disclosed
herein. Where the contemplated build materials are sufficiently
conductive, they may be directly heated through contact methods
(e.g., resistive heating with applied current) or non-contact
methods (e.g., induction heating using an external electromagnet to
drive eddy currents within the material). The choice of additives
may further be advantageously selected to provide bulk electrical
characteristics (e.g., conductance/resistivity) to improve heating.
When directly heating the build material 601, it may be useful to
model the shape and size of the build material 601 in order to
better control electrically-induced heating. This may include
estimates or actual measurements of shape, size, mass, etc.
[0129] In the above context, "liquefaction" does not require
complete liquefaction. That is, the media to be used in printing
may be in a multi-phase state, and/or form a paste or the like
having highly viscous and/or non-Newtonian fluid properties. Thus
the liquefaction system 678 disclosed herein may include, more
generally, any system that places a build material 601 in condition
for use in fabrication as disclosed herein.
[0130] In order to facilitate resistive heating of the build
material 601, one or more contact pads, probes or the like may be
positioned within the feed path for the material in order to
provide locations for forming a circuit through the material at the
appropriate location(s). In order to facilitate induction heating,
one or more electromagnets may be positioned at suitable locations
adjacent to the feed path and operated, e.g., by the control system
638, to heat the build material internally through the creation of
eddy currents. In one aspect, both of these techniques may be used
concurrently to achieve a more tightly controlled or more evenly
distributed electrical heating within the build material. The
printer 620 may also be instrumented to monitor the resulting
heating in a variety of ways. For example, the printer 620 may
monitor power delivered to the inductive or resistive circuits. The
printer 620 may also or instead measure temperature of the build
material 601 or surrounding environment at any number of locations.
In another aspect, the temperature of the build material 601 may be
inferred by measuring, e.g., the amount of force required to drive
the build material 601 through a nozzle 679 or other portion of the
feed path, which may be used as a proxy for the viscosity of the
build material 601. More generally, any techniques suitable for
measuring temperature or viscosity of the build material 601 and
responsively controlling applied electrical energy may be used to
control liquefaction for a fabrication process using composites as
disclosed herein.
[0131] The liquefaction system 678 may also or instead include any
other heating systems suitable for applying heat to the build
material 601 to a suitable temperature for extrusion. This may, for
example include techniques for locally or globally augmenting
heating using, e.g., chemical heating, combustion, ultrasound
heating, laser heating, electron beam heating or other optical or
mechanical heating techniques and so forth.
[0132] The liquefaction system 678 may include a shearing engine.
The shearing engine may create shear within the composite as it is
heated in order to maintain a mixture of the metallic base and a
binder or other matrix, or to maintain a mixture of various
materials in a paste or other build material. A variety of
techniques may be employed by the shearing engine. In one aspect,
the bulk media may be axially rotated as it is fed along the feed
path into the liquefaction system 678. In another aspect, one or
more ultrasonic transducers may be used to introduce shear within
the heated material. Similarly, a screw, post, arm, or other
physical element may be placed within the heated media and rotated
or otherwise actuated to mix the heated material. In an aspect,
bulk build material may include individual pellets, rods, or coils
(e.g., of consistent size) and fed into a screw, a plunger, a rod
extruder, or the like. For example, a coiled build material can be
uncoiled with a heater system including a heated box, heated tube,
or heater from the printer head. Also, a direct feed with no heat
that feeds right into the print head is also possible.
[0133] The robotic system 673 may include a robotic system
configured to three-dimensionally position the nozzle 679 within
the working volume 615 of the build chamber 671. This may, for
example, include any robotic components or systems suitable for
positioning the nozzle 679 relative to the build plate 648 while
depositing the composite in a pattern to fabricate the object 624.
A variety of robotics systems are known in the art and suitable for
use as the robotic system 673 disclosed herein. For example, the
robotics may include a Cartesian or xy-z robotics system employing
a number of linear controls to move independently in the x-axis,
the y-axis, and the z-axis within the build chamber 671. Delta
robots may also or instead be usefully employed, which can, if
properly configured, provide significant advantages in terms of
speed and stiffness, as well as offering the design convenience of
fixed motors or drive elements. Other configurations such as double
or triple delta robots can increase range of motion using multiple
linkages. More generally, any robotics suitable for controlled
positioning of the nozzle 679 relative to the build plate 648,
especially within a vacuum or similar environment, may be usefully
employed including any mechanism or combination of mechanisms
suitable for actuation, manipulation, locomotion and the like
within the build chamber 671.
[0134] The nozzle(s) 679 may include one or more nozzles for
dispensing the build material 601 that has been propelled with the
drive train 674 and heated with the liquefaction system 678 to a
suitable working temperature. In a multiphase extrusion this may
include a working temperature above the melting temperature of the
metallic base of the composite, or more specifically between a
first temperature at which the metallic base melts and the second
temperature (above the first temperature) at which a second phase
of the composite remains inert.
[0135] The nozzles 679 may, for example, be used to dispense
different types of material so that, for example, one nozzle 679
dispenses a composite build material while another nozzle 679
dispenses a support material in order to support bridges,
overhangs, and other structural features of the object 624 that
would otherwise violate design rules for fabrication with the
composite build material. In another aspect, one of the nozzles 679
may deposit a different type of material, such as a thermally
compatible polymer or a metal or polymer loaded with fibers of one
or more materials to increase tensile strength or otherwise improve
mechanical properties of the resulting object 624. In an aspect,
two types of supports may be used--(1) build supports and (2)
sinter supports--e.g., using different materials printed into the
same part to achieve these supports, or to create a distinguishing
junction between these supports and the part.
[0136] The nozzle 679 may preferably be formed of a material or
combination of materials with suitable mechanical and thermal
properties. For example, the nozzle 679 will preferably not degrade
at the temperatures wherein the composite material is to be
dispensed, or due to the passage of metallic particles through a
dispensing orifice therein. While nozzles for traditional
polymer-based fused filament fabrication may be made from brass or
aluminum alloys, a nozzle that dispenses metal particles may be
formed of harder materials, or materials compatible with more
elevated working temperatures such as a high carbon steel that is
hardened and tempered. Other materials such as a refractory metal
(e.g. molybdenum, tungsten) or refractory ceramic (e.g., mullite,
corundum, magnesia) may also or instead be employed. In some
instances, aluminum nozzles may instead be used for MIM extrusion
of certain MIM materials. In another aspect, a softer thermally
conductive material with a hard, wear-resistant coating may be
used, such as copper with a hard nickel plating.
[0137] In one aspect, the nozzle 679 may include one or more
ultrasound transducers 670 as disclosed herein. Ultrasound may be
usefully applied for a variety of purposes in this context. In one
aspect, the ultrasound energy may facilitate extrusion by
mitigating clogging by reducing adhesion of a build material to an
interior surface of the nozzle 679. A variety of energy director
techniques may be used to improve this general approach. For
example, a deposited layer may include one or more ridges, which
may be imposed by an exit shape of the nozzle 679, to present a
focused area to receive ultrasound energy introduced into the
interface between the deposited layer and an adjacent layer.
[0138] In another aspect, the nozzle 679 may include an induction
heating element, resistive heating element, or similar components
to directly control the temperature of the nozzle 679. This may be
used to augment a more general liquefaction process along the feed
path through the printer 620, e.g., to maintain a temperature of
the build material 601 during fabrication, or this may be used for
more specific functions, such as de-clogging a print head by
heating the build material 601 substantially above the working
range, e.g., to a temperature where the composite is liquid. While
it may be difficult or impossible to control deposition in this
liquid state, the heating can provide a convenient technique to
reset the nozzle 679 without more severe physical intervention such
as removing vacuum to disassemble, clean, and replace the affected
components.
[0139] In another aspect, the nozzle 679 may include an inlet gas
or fan, e.g., an inert gas, to cool media at the moment it exits
the nozzle 679. The resulting gas jet may, for example, immediately
stiffen the dispensed material to facilitate extended bridging,
larger overhangs, or other structures that might otherwise require
support structures underneath.
[0140] The object 624 may be any object suitable for fabrication
using the techniques disclosed herein. This may include functional
objects such as machine parts, aesthetic objects such as
sculptures, or any other type of objects, as well as combinations
of objects that can be fit within the physical constraints of the
build chamber 671 and build plate 648. Some structures such as
large bridges and overhangs cannot be fabricated directly using
fused filament fabrication or the like because there is no
underlying physical surface onto which a material can be deposited.
In these instances, a support structure 654 may be fabricated,
preferably of a soluble or otherwise readily removable material, in
order to support the corresponding feature.
[0141] Where multiple nozzles 679 are provided, a second nozzle may
usefully provide any of a variety of additional build materials.
This may, for example, include other composites, alloys, bulk
metallic glass's, thermally matched polymers and so forth to
support fabrication of suitable support structures. In one aspect,
one of the nozzles 679 may dispense a bulk metallic glass that is
deposited at one temperature to fabricate a support structure 654,
and a second, higher temperature at an interface 675 to a printed
object 624 where the bulk metallic glass can be crystallized at the
interface to become more brittle and facilitate mechanical removal
of the support structure 654 from the object 624. Conveniently, the
bulk form of the support structure 654 can be left in the
super-cooled state so that it can retain its bulk structure and be
removed in a single piece. Thus in one aspect there is disclosed
herein a printer that fabricates a portion of a support structure
654 with a bulk metallic glass in a super-cooled liquid region, and
fabricates a layer of the support structure adjacent to a printed
object at a greater temperature in order to crystalize the build
material 601 into a non-amorphous alloy. The bulk metallic glass
particles may thus be loaded into a MIM feedstock binder system and
may provide a support. Pure binding or polymer materials (e.g.,
without any loading) may also or instead provide a support. A
similar metal MIM feedstock may be used for multi-material part
creation. Ceramic or dissimilar metal MIM feedstock may be used for
a support interface material.
Support Materials
[0142] In general, the MIM media includes a binder and a metal
powder (or other material as disclosed herein, such as ceramic
powder). A support material may also be provided from a second
nozzle consisting of, e.g., the binder used for the injection
molding material, without the structural material that sinters into
the final object. In another aspect, the support material may be
formed of a wax, or some other thermoplastic or other polymer that
can be removed during processing of a printed green body. This
support material may, for example, be used for vertical supports,
as well as for top or side supports, or any other suitable support
structures to provide a physical support during printing and
subsequent sintering. Printing and sintering may impose different
support requirements. As such, different support materials and or
different support rules may be employed for each type of required
support. Additionally, the print supports may be removed after a
print and before sintering, while sintering supports would be left
attached to the green object until sintering is completed (or
sufficiently completed to eliminate the need for the sintering
support structures).
[0143] In another aspect, the second nozzle (or a third nozzle) may
be used to provide an interface material that is different from the
support material, such as the corresponding binder, along with a
ceramic or some other material that will not sinter under the time
and temperature conditions used to sinter the injection molding
material. This may also or instead include a metal or the like that
forms a brittle interface with the sintered part so that it can
break away from the final object easily after sintering. Where this
interface material does not sinter, it may be used in combination
with a sinterable support structure that can continue to provide
structural support during a sintering process.
[0144] The support material(s) may usefully integrate other
functional substances. For example, titanium may be added to the
support material as an oxygen getter to improve the build
environment without introducing any titanium into the fabricated
object. Other types of additives may also or instead be used to
remove contaminants. For example, a zirconium powder (or other
strong carbide former) may be added to the support material in
order to extract carbon contamination during sintering.
Nested Parts
[0145] In one aspect, the use of non-structural support at the
interface, e.g. A pure binder that does not sinter into a
structural object, may be used to facilitate the additive
manufacture of nested parts. For example, a complete gear box or
the like may be fabricated within an enclosure, with the surfaces
between gear teeth fabricated with a non-sintering binder or other
material. In one aspect, critical mechanical interfaces for such
mechanical parts may be oriented to the fabrication process, e.g.,
by orienting mating surfaces vertically so that smaller resolutions
can be used. More generally, the capability to print adjacent,
non-coupled parts may be used to fabricate multiple physically
related parts in a single print job. This may, for example, include
hinges, gears, captive bearings or other nested or interrelated
parts. Non-sintering support material may be extracted, e.g., using
an ultrasonicator, fluid cleaning, or other techniques after the
object is sintered to a final form. In an aspect, the binder is
loaded with a non-sintering additive such as ceramic or dissimilar,
higher sintering temp metal.
[0146] This general approach may also affect the design of the
part. For example, axles may employ various anti-backlash
techniques so that the sintered part is more securely retained
during movement and use. Similarly, fluid paths may be provided for
fluid cleaning, and removal paths may be created for interior
support structures. This technique may also be used to address
other printing challenges. For example, support structures within
partially enclosed spaces may be fabricated for removal through
some removal path after the object is completed. If the support
structures are weakly connected, or unconnected, to the fabricated
object, they can be physically manipulated for extraction through
the removal path. In an aspect, parts may be "glued" together with
an appropriate (e.g., the same) MIM material to make larger parts
that essentially have no joints once sintered.
[0147] The build plate 648 within the working volume 615 of the
build chamber 671 may include a rigid and substantially planar
surface formed of any substance suitable for receiving deposited
composite or other material(s)s from the nozzles 679. In one
aspect, the build plate 648 may be heated, e.g., resistively or
inductively, to control a temperature of the build chamber 671 or
the surface upon which the object 624 is being fabricated. This
may, for example, improve adhesion, prevent thermally induced
deformation or failure, and facilitate relaxation of stresses
within the fabricated object. In another aspect, the build plate
648 may be a deformable build plate that can bend or otherwise
physical deform in order to detach from the rigid object 624 formed
thereon.
[0148] The build chamber 671 may be any chamber suitable for
containing the build plate 648, an object 624, and any other
components of the printer 620 used within the build chamber 671 to
fabricate the object 624. In one aspect, the build chamber 671 may
be an environmentally sealed chamber that can be evacuated with a
vacuum pump 624 or similar device in order to provide a vacuum
environment for fabrication. This may be particularly useful where
oxygen causes a passivation layer that might weaken layer-to-layer
bonds in a fused filament fabrication process as disclosed herein,
or where particles in the atmosphere might otherwise interfere with
the integrity of a fabricated object, or where the build chamber
671 is the same as the sintering chamber. In another aspect, only
oxygen is removed from the build chamber 671.
[0149] Similarly, one or more passive or active oxygen getters 625
or other similar oxygen absorbing material or system may usefully
be employed within the build chamber 671 to take up free oxygen
within the build chamber 671. The oxygen getter 625 may, for
example, include a deposit of a reactive material coating an inside
surface of the build chamber 671 or a separate object placed
therein that completes and maintains the vacuum by combining with
or absorbing residual gas molecules. The oxygen getters 625, or
more generally, gas getters, may be deposited as a support material
using one of the nozzles 679, which facilitates replacement of the
gas getter with each new fabrication run and can advantageously
position the gas getter(s) near printed media in order to more
locally remove passivating gasses where new material is being
deposited onto the fabricated object. In one aspect, the oxygen
getters 625 may include any of a variety of materials that
preferentially react with oxygen including, e.g., materials based
on titanium, aluminum, and so forth. In another aspect, the oxygen
getters 625 may include a chemical energy source such as a
combustible gas, gas torch, catalytic heater, Bunsen burner, or
other chemical and/or combustion source that reacts to extract
oxygen from the environment. There are a variety of low-CO and NOx
catalytic burners that may be suitably employed for this purpose
without CO.
[0150] In one aspect, the oxygen getter 625 may be deposited as a
separate material during a build process. Thus in one aspect there
is disclosed herein a process for fabricating a three-dimensional
object from a metallic composite including co-fabricating a
physically adjacent structure (which may or may not directly
contact the three-dimensional object) containing an agent to remove
passivating gasses around the three-dimensional object. Other
techniques may be similarly employed to control reactivity of the
environment within the build chamber 671, or within processing
chambers or the like as disclosed below. For example, the build
chamber 671 may be filled with an inert gas or the like to prevent
oxidation.
[0151] The control system 638 may include a processor and memory,
as well as any other co-processors, signal processors, inputs and
outputs, digital-to-analog or analog-to-digital converters and
other processing circuitry useful for monitoring and controlling a
fabrication process executing on the printer 620. The control
system 638 may be coupled in a communicating relationship with a
supply of the build material 601, the drive train 674, the
liquefaction system 678, the nozzles 679, the build plate 648, the
robotic system 673, and any other instrumentation or control
components associated with the build process such as temperature
sensors, pressure sensors, oxygen sensors, vacuum pumps, and so
forth. The control system 638 may be operable to control the
robotic system 673, the liquefaction system 678 and other
components to fabricate an object 624 from the build material 601
in three dimensions within the working volume 615 of the build
chamber 671.
[0152] The control system 638 may generate machine ready code for
execution by the printer 620 to fabricate the object 624 from the
three-dimensional model 623. The control system 638 may deploy a
number of strategies to improve the resulting physical object
structurally or aesthetically. For example, the control system 638
may use plowing, ironing, planing, or similar techniques where the
nozzle 679 runs over existing layers of deposited material, e.g.,
to level the material, remove passivation layers, apply an energy
director topography of peaks or ridges to improve layer-to-layer
bonding, or otherwise prepare the current layer for a next layer of
material. The nozzle 679 may include a low-friction or non-stick
surface such as Teflon, TiN or the like to facilitate this plowing
process, and the nozzle 679 may be heated and/or vibrated (e.g.,
using an ultrasound transducer) to improve the smoothing effect. In
one aspect, this surface preparation may be incorporated into the
initially-generated machine ready code. In another aspect, the
printer 620 may dynamically monitor deposited layers and determine,
on a layer-by-layer basis, whether additional surface preparation
is necessary or helpful for successful completion of the
object.
[0153] In general, a three-dimensional model 623 of the object may
be stored in a database 120 such as a local memory of a computer
used as the control system 638, or a remote database accessible
through a server or other remote resource, or in any other
computer-readable medium accessible to the control system 638. The
control system 638 may retrieve a particular three-dimensional
model 623 in response to user input, and generate machine-ready
instructions for execution by the printer 620 to fabricate the
corresponding object 624. This may include the creation of
intermediate models, such as where a CAD model is converted into an
STL model or other polygonal mesh or other intermediate
representation, which can in turn be processed to generate machine
instructions for fabrication of the object 624 by the printer
620.
[0154] In another aspect, the nozzle 679 may include one or more
mechanisms to flatten a layer of deposited material and apply
pressure to bond the layer to an underlying layer. For example, a
heated nip roller, caster, or the like may follow the nozzle 679 in
its path through an x-y plane of the build chamber to flatten the
deposited (and still pliable) layer. The nozzle 679 may also or
instead integrate a forming wall, planar surface or the like to
additionally shape or constrain a build material 601 as it is
deposited by the nozzle 679. The nozzle 679 may usefully be coated
with a non-stick material (which may vary according to the build
material being used) in order to facilitate more consistent shaping
and smoothing by this tool.
[0155] In another aspect, a layer fusion system 672 may be used to
encourage good mechanical bonding between adjacent layers of
deposited build material within the object 624. This may include
the ultrasound transducers disclosed above, which may be used to
facilitate bonding between layers by applying ultrasound energy to
an interface between layers during deposition. In another aspect,
current may be passed through an interface between adjacent layers
in order to Joule heat the interface and liquefy or soften the
materials for improved bonding. Thus in one aspect, the layer
fusion system 672 may include a joule heating system configured to
apply a current between a first layer of the build material and a
second layer of the build material in the working volume 615 while
the first layer is being deposited on the second layer. In another
aspect, the layer fusion system 672 may include an ultrasound
system for applying ultrasound energy to a first layer of the build
material while the first layer is being deposited onto a second
layer of the build material in the working volume 615. In another
aspect, the layer fusion system 672 may include a rake, ridge(s),
notch(es) or the like formed into the end of the nozzle 679, or a
fixture or the like adjacent to the nozzle, in order to form energy
directors on a top surface of a deposited material. Other
techniques may also or instead be used to improve layer-to-layer
bonding, such as plasma cleaning or other depassivation before or
during formation of the interlayer bond. The use of injection
molding materials can alleviate many of the difficulties of forming
layer-to-layer bonds with deposited metals, but these and other
techniques may nonetheless be useful in improving interlayer bonds
and/or shaping a fabricated object as disclosed herein.
[0156] During fabrication, detailed data may be gathered for
subsequent use and analysis. This may, for example, include a
camera and computer vision system that identifies errors,
variations, or the like that occur in each layer of an object.
Similarly, tomography or other imaging techniques may be used to
detect and measure layer-to-layer interfaces, aggregate part
dimensions, diagnostic information (e.g., defects, voids) and so
forth. This data may be gathered and delivered with the object to
an end user as a digital twin 640 of the object 624 so that the end
user can evaluate whether and how variations and defects might
affect use of the object 624. In addition to spatial/geometric
analysis, the digital twin 640 may log process parameters
including, for example, aggregate statistics such as mass of
material used, time of print, variance of build chamber
temperature, and so forth, as well as chronological logs of any
process parameters of interest such as volumetric deposition rate,
material temperature, environment temperature, and so forth.
[0157] The printer 620 may include a camera 651 or other optical
device. In one aspect, the camera 651 may be used to create the
digital twin 640 disclosed above, or to more generally facilitate
machine vision functions or facilitate remote monitoring of a
fabrication process. Video or still images from the camera 651 may
also or instead be used to dynamically correct a print process, or
to visualize where and how automated or manual adjustments should
be made, e.g., where an actual printer output is deviating from an
expected output.
[0158] The printer 620 may also usefully integrate a subtractive
fabrication tool 660 such as a drill, milling bit, or other
multi-axis controllable tool for removing material from the object
624 that deviates from an expected physical output based on the 3D
model 623 used to fabricate the object 624. While combinations of
additive and subtractive technologies have been disclosed, the use
of MIM materials provides a unique advantage when subtractive
shaping is performed on a green object after net shape forming but
before sintering (or debinding), when the object 624 is relatively
soft and workable. This permits quick and easy removal of
physically observable defects and printing artifacts before the
object 624 is sintered into a metal object. An aspect may instead
include tapping threads or otherwise adding features as opposed to
subtracting parts. Similarly, an aspect may include combining
multiple single green parts into one larger fully solid sintered
part.
[0159] Other useful features may be integrated into the printer 620
disclosed above. For example, a solvent or other material may be
usefully applied a surface of the object 624 during fabrication to
modify its properties. This may, for example intentionally oxidize
or otherwise modify the surface at a particular location or over a
particular area in order to provide a desired electrical, thermal
optical, or mechanical property. This capability may be used to
provide aesthetic features such as text or graphics, or to provide
functional features such as a window for admitting RF signals.
[0160] In general, a fabrication process such as fused filament
fabrication implies, or expressly includes, a set of design rules
to accommodate physical limitations of a fabrication device and a
build material. For example, a horizontal shelf cannot be
fabricated without positioning a support structure underneath.
While the design rules for FFF may apply to fabrication of a green
body using FFF techniques as disclosed herein, the green body may
also be subject to various MIM design rules. This may, for example,
include a structure to prevent or minimize drag on a floor while a
part shrinks during sintering which may be 20% or more depending on
the composition of the green body. Similarly, certain supports are
required during sintering that are different than the supports
required during fused filament fabrication. As another example,
injection molding typically aims for uniform wall thickness to
reduce variability in debinding and/or sintering behaviors, with
thinner walls being preferred. The system disclosed herein may
apply to disparate sets of design rules--those for the rapid
prototyping system (e.g., fused filament fabrication) and those for
the sintering process (e.g., MIM design rules)--to a CAD model that
is being prepared for fabrication.
[0161] These rules may also be combined under certain conditions.
For example, the support structures for a horizontal shelf during
fabrication must resist the force of an extrusion/deposition
process used to fabricate the horizontal shelf, whereas the support
structure during sintering only needs to resist the forces of
gravity during the baking process. Thus there may be two separate
supports that are removed at different times during a fabrication
process: the fabrication supports that are configured to resist the
force of a fabrication process and may be breakaway supports that
are loosely mechanically coupled to a green body, along with
sintering supports that may be less extensive, and only need to
resist the gravitation forces on a body during sintering. These
latter supports are preferably coupled to the object through a
nonsinterable layer to permit easy removal from the densified final
object. In another aspect, the fabrication supports may be
fabricated from binder without a powder or other fill so that they
completely disappear during a sintering process.
[0162] FIG. 7 is a flow diagram 700 of an example embodiment of a
method (710) for printing with composites, e.g., metal injection
molding materials. The method may begin (701) and provide a build
material including an injection molding material (702), or where a
support interface is being fabricated, a MIM binder (e.g., a MIM
binder with similar thermal characteristics). The material may
include, for example, any of the MIM materials disclosed herein.
The material may be provided as a build material in a billet, a
wire, or any other cast, drawn, extruded or otherwise shaped bulk
form. As disclosed above, the build material may be further
packaged in a cartridge, spool, or other suitable carrier that can
be attached to an additive manufacturing system for use.
[0163] The method may fabricate a layer of an object (704). This
may include any techniques that can be adapted for use with MIM
materials. For example, this may include fused filament
fabrication, jet printing, selective laser sintering, or any other
techniques for forming a net shape from a MIM material (and more
specifically for techniques used for forming a net shape from a
polymeric material loaded with a second phase powder).
[0164] The method may check for whether the object is complete
(711) and if not, may be continued and repeated as necessary to
fabricate an object within the working volume. While the method may
vary according to the underlying fabrication technology, an object
can generally be fabricated layer by layer based on a
three-dimensional model of the desired object. The method may shape
the net shape object after the additive process is complete (712).
Before debinding or sintering, the green body form of the object is
usefully in a soft, workable state where defects and printing
artifacts can be easily removed, either manually or automatically.
Thus, the method may take advantage of this workable, intermediate
state to facilitate quality control or other process-related steps,
such as removal of supports that are required for previous printing
steps, but not for debinding or sintering.
[0165] The method may debind the printed object (714). In general,
debinding may be performed chemically or thermally to remove a
binder that retains a metal (or ceramic or other) powder in a net
shape. Contemporary injection molding materials are often
engineered for thermal debinding, which advantageously permits
debinding and sintering to be performed in a single baking
operation, or in two similar baking operations. In general, the
debinding process functions to remove binder from the net shape
green object, thus leaving a very dense structure of metal (or
ceramic or other) particles that can be sintered into the final
form.
[0166] The method may sinter the printed and debound object into a
final form (716), and the method thereafter ends (717) in the
example embodiment. In general, sintering may be any process of
compacting and forming a solid mass of material by heating without
liquefaction. During a sintering process, atoms can diffuse across
particle boundaries to fuse into a solid piece. Because sintering
can be performed at temperatures below the melting temperature,
this advantageously permits fabrication with very high melting
point materials such as tungsten and molybdenum.
[0167] Numerous sintering techniques are known in the art, and the
selection of a particular technique may depend upon the build
material used, and the desired structural, functional or aesthetic
result for the fabricated object. For example, in solid-state
(non-activated) sintering, metal powder particles are heated to
form connections (or "necks") where they are in contact. Over time,
these necks thicken and create a dense part, leaving small,
interstitial voids that can be closed, e.g., by hot isostatic
pressing (HIP) or similar processes. Other techniques may also or
instead be employed. For example, solid state activated sintering
uses a film between powder particles to improve mobility of atoms
between particles and accelerate the formation and thickening of
necks. As another example, liquid phase sintering may be used, in
which a liquid forms around metal particles. This can improve
diffusion and joining between particles, but also may leave
lower-melting phase within the sintered object that impairs
structural integrity. Other advanced techniques such as nano-phase
separation sintering may be used, for example to form a
high-diffusivity solid at the necks to improve the transport of
metal atoms at the contact point
[0168] Debinding and sintering may result in material loss and
compaction, and the resulting object may be significantly smaller
than the printed object. However, these effects are generally
linear in the aggregate, and net shape objects can be usefully
scaled up when printing to create a corresponding shape after
debinding and sintering.
[0169] FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an example embodiment of an
additive manufacturing system for use with metal injection molding
materials in which an example embodiment disclosed above may be
implemented. The system 800 may include a printing stage 820, a
conveyor 841, and a processing station (also referred to
interchangeably herein as a processing stage) 826. In general, the
printing stage 820 may be any of the printers disclosed above
including, for example a fused filament fabrication system, a
stereolithography system, a selective laser sintering system, or
any other system that can be usefully adapted to form a net shape
object under computer control using injection molding build
materials. The output of the printing stage 820 may be an 3D object
824 that is a green body including any suitable powder (e.g.,
metal, metal alloy, ceramic, and so forth, as well as combinations
of the foregoing), along with a binder that retains the powder in a
net shape produced by the printing stage 820.
[0170] The conveyor 841 may be used to transport the 3D object 824
from the printing stage 820 to a processing stage 826 where
debinding and sintering can be performed. The conveyor 841 may be
any suitable device or combination of devices suitable for
physically transporting the 3D object 824. This may, for example,
include robotics and a machine vision system or the like on the
printer side for detaching the 3D object 824 from a build platform
or the like, as well as robotics and a machine vision system or the
like on the processing side to accurately place the 3D object 824
within the processing stage 826. In another aspect, the processing
stage 826 may serve multiple printers so that a number of objects
can be debound and sintered concurrently, and the conveyor 841 may
interconnect the printers and processing station so that multiple
print jobs can be coordinated and automatically completed in
parallel. In another aspect, the 3D object 824 may be manually
transported between the two corresponding stations.
[0171] The processing stage 826 may be any system or combination of
systems useful for converting a green part formed into a desired
net shape from a metal injection molding build material by the
printing stage 820 into a final object. The processing stage 826
may, for example, include a chemical debinding station and a
thermal sintering station that can be used in sequence to produce a
final object. Some contemporary injection molding materials are
engineered for thermal debinding, which makes it possible to
perform a combination of debinding and sintering steps with a
single oven or similar device. While the thermal specifications of
a sintering furnace may depend upon the powder to be sintered, the
binder system, the loading, and other aspects of the green object
and the materials used to manufacture same, commercial sintering
furnaces for thermally debound and sintered MIM parts may typically
operate with an accuracy of +/-5 degrees Celsius or better, and
temperatures of at least 620 degrees C., or from about 700 degrees
C. to about 1900 degrees C. for extended times. Any such furnace or
similar heating device may be usefully employed as the processing
stage 826 as disclosed herein. Vacuum or pressure treatment may
also or instead be used. In an aspect, identical or similar
material beads with a non-binding coating may be used for a furnace
support--e.g., packing in a bed of this material that shrinks
similar to the part, except that it will not bond to the part.
[0172] Embodiments may be implemented with a wide range of other
debinding and sintering processes. For example, the binder may be
removed in a chemical debind, thermal debind, or some combination
of these. Other debinding processes are also known in the art (such
as supercritical or catalytic debinding), any of which may also or
instead be employed by the processing stage 826 as disclosed
herein. For example, in a common process, a green part is first
debound using a chemical debind, which is following by a thermal
debind at a moderately high temperature (in this context, around
700-800 C) to remove organic binder and create enough necks among a
powdered material to permit handling. From this stage, the object
may be moved to a sintering furnace to remove any remaining
components of a binder system densify the object. In another
aspect, a pure thermal debind may be used to remove the organic
binder. More general, any technique or combination of techniques
may be usefully employed to debind an object as disclosed
herein.
[0173] Similarly, a wide range of sintering techniques may be
usefully employed by the processing station. In one aspect, an
object may be consolidated in a furnace to a high theoretical
density using vacuum sintering. In another aspect, the furnace may
use a combination of flowing gas (e.g., at below atmosphere,
slightly above atmosphere, or some other suitable pressure) and
vacuum sintering. More generally, any sintering or other process
suitable for improving object density may be used, preferably where
the process yields a near-theoretical density part with little or
no porosity. Hot-isostatic pressing ("HIP") may also (e.g., as a
post-sinter finishing step) or instead be employed, e.g., by
applying elevated temperatures and pressures of 10-50 ksi, or
between about 15 and 30 ksi. In another aspect, the object may be
processed using any of the foregoing, followed by a moderate
overpressure (greater than the sintering pressure, but lower than
HIP pressures). In this latter process, gas may be pressurized at
620-6510 psi and maintained at elevated temperatures within the
furnace or some other supplemental chamber. In another aspect, the
object may be separately heated in one furnace, and then immersed
in a hot granular media inside a die, with pressure applied to the
media so that it can be transmitted to the object to drive more
rapid consolidation to near full density. More generally, any
technique or combination of techniques suitable for removing binder
systems and driving a powdered material toward consolidation and
densification may be used by the processing stage 826 to process a
fabricated green part as disclosed herein.
[0174] In one aspect, the processing stage 826 may be incorporated
into the printing stage 820, thus removing a need for a conveyor
841 to physically transport the 3D object 824. The build volume of
the printing stage 820 and components therein may be fabricated to
withstand the elevated debinding/sintering temperatures. In another
aspect, the printing stage 820 may provide movable walls, barriers,
or other enclosure(s) within the build volume so that the
debind/sinter can be performed while the 3D object 824 is on a
build platform within the printing stage 820, but thermally
isolated from any thermally sensitive components or materials.
[0175] The processing stage 826 may be optimized in a variety of
ways for use in an office environment. In one aspect, the
processing stage 826 may include an inert gas source 888. The inert
gas source 888 may, for example, include argon or other inert gas
(or other gas that is inert to the sintered material), and may be
housed in a removable and replaceable cartridge that can be coupled
to the processing stage 826 for discharge into the interior of the
processing stage 826, and then removed and replaced when the
contents are exhausted. The processing stage 826 may also or
instead include a filter 810 such as a charcoal filter or the like
for exhausting gasses that can be outgassed into an office
environment in an unfiltered form. For other gasses, an exterior
exhaust, or a gas container or the like may be provided to permit
use in unventilated areas. For reclaimable materials, a closed
system may also or instead be used, particularly where the
environmental materials are expensive or dangerous.
[0176] In one aspect, the processing stage 826 may be coupled to
other system components. For example, the processing stage 826 may
include information from the printing stage 820, or from a
controller for the printer, about the geometry, size, mass and
other physical characteristics of the 3D object 824 in order to
generate a suitable debinding and sintering profile. In another
aspect, the profile may be independently created by the controller
or other resource and transmitted to the processing stage 826 when
the 3D object 824 is conveyed. In another aspect, the processing
stage 826 may monitor the debinding and sintering process and
provide feedback, e.g., to a smart phone or other remote device
887, about a status of the object, a time to completion, and other
processing metrics and information. The processing stage 826 may
include a camera 851 or other monitoring device to provide feedback
to the remote device 887, and may provide time lapse animation or
the like to graphically show sintering on a compressed time scale.
Processing may also or instead include finishing with heat, a hot
knife, tools, or similar, and may include applying a finish
coat.
[0177] In one aspect, the processing stage 826 may employ microwave
sintering to accelerate processing. Powdered metals in particular
are very good absorbers of microwave energy and can be efficiently
heated using microwave techniques. Ceramics can also be sintered in
this manner, where microwave heating is linked to the dielectric
loss of the material and other factors. Any other configuration
suitable for microwave heating in an amount and for a duration
suitable for sintering of MIM materials may also or instead be
employed. Where the binder system of the build material is also
engineered for thermal debinding, the method may include debinding
the green object by applying microwave energy, e.g., using the
processing stage 826 disclosed above.
[0178] FIG. 9 is a block diagram 900 of an example embodiment of aa
stereolithography process using a metallic powder and an
ultraviolet-curable binder in which an example embodiment disclosed
above may be implemented. In general, a build material may be
formed using an injection molding powder, such as any of those
disclosed herein, along with an ultraviolet-curable binder such as
any suitable photopolymer resin 993 that can be cured using
stereolithography. This build material may be cured on a
layer-by-layer basis with a laser source 991 that may be an
ultraviolet laser using known stereolithography techniques to form
a UV-cured green body having a shape of the desired object. MIM
powders may generally be opaque, and adaptations to the laser light
source may be used to improve the structural integrity of the
fabricated green object, such as using a layer size equal to or
less than an average powder diameter, or providing laser light from
multiple sources/directions in order to reduce or minimize
occlusion of the UV resin at each layer. In another aspect, there
is disclosed herein a sinterable, net shape green body object based
formed according to a computer model and including a base material
in powder form and an ultraviolet curable (or ultraviolet-cured)
resin that can be debound and/or sintered into a final object, as
well as a process for sintering an object comprising a base
material in powder form and an ultraviolet-cured resin. The
metallic powder may be suspended within an ultraviolet-curable
binder, creating a slurry or suspension. The mass and surface area
of the particles versus the specific rheology of the binder may
dictate whether or not the powder will float indefinitely or settle
due to gravity. Using nano sized particles may optimize the powders
ability to form a stable suspension that does not settle (over
reasonable timescales).
[0179] In order to reduce binder char and subsequent carbon
contamination and increase shape retention, the binder may usefully
be composed of two parts--a UV curable resin and a second component
that may be removed (e.g., debound) prior to insertion into the
furnace. Similar multicomponent binder formulations have been shown
to reduce carbon pickup from the burnout process and reduce part
failures by buildup of gases inside the part. Many possible binder
combinations exist, including poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) as a
solvent-soluble component that may be removed prior to insertion
into the furnace, along with a backbone based on poly(ethylene
glycol) diacrylate (PEG-DA), or any number of other UV curable
resins.
[0180] The ultraviolet-curable resin may, for example include a
commercially available investment casting resin engineered for
stereolithography fabrication, or any other suitable UV curable
resin or the like. The UV curable resin may usefully incorporate an
increased concentration of an activating die (at least 50% greater
than typical commercially available UV curable resins) to
compensate for optical interference of opaque particles.
[0181] In another aspect, the process may be modified to address
particle opacity in other ways. For example, the current layer may
be coated with polymer (e.g., by moving the object along the z-axis
within a bath, either up or down according to the species of
stereolithography being employed), and then a powder may be
introduced, after which the layer may be cured in a desired cross
section using UV exposure. In another aspect, the layer may be
cured, powdered, and then coated with another layer of powder, so
that the resin is fully exposed to the UV stimulus before coating
with an additional powder layer.
[0182] In another aspect, the mixture of a MIM powder and a
UV-curable resin may be dispensed and cured on the fly in order to
remove or reduce the need for a resin holding tank. More generally,
any technique for local thermal activation of a binder may be used
in combination with a powder bed of MIM material (and binder) as
disclosed herein to form a green body. For example, targeted
thermal activation may be achieved with a thermal print head, an IR
heating mask and/or lamp, focused microwave energy, selective
thermal sintering, steering of an activation beam 992 with a
digital light processing chip, a heated roller, or any other
technique or combination of techniques.
[0183] FIG. 10 is a block diagram 1000 of an example embodiment of
a laser binding process for powder metallurgy materials in which an
example embodiment disclosed herein may be implemented. The laser
binding process may serve as a printing stage or a combination of
the printing stage with a processing stage. In a process comparable
to selective laser sintering, a powder/binder mixture may be fed
from a powder delivery system 1061 to a fabrication powder bed 1063
via a powder delivery piston 1065 and a roller 1064. The binder
1067 may be activated on a layer-by-layer basis using a laser 1062
or other activation source and/or a scanner system 1068 to create a
low strength bond within the powder for each cross section of a
target shape. This activation may form a sufficient bond to retain
the powder and binder in a net shape green body, that is, an object
being fabricated 1066 and supported by a fabrication piston 1069.
The object being fabricated 1066 can be removed and sintered using
the sintering processes disclosed herein. Suitable binders are
available that can be activated using relatively inexpensive,
low-power, fast laser processes or masked IR or UV. This
significantly improves upon existing direct metal laser sintering
processes that would otherwise require special atmospheric controls
and high-power lasers.
[0184] Higher energy lasers may be usefully employed, for example,
to more fully melt and/or remove binder material and improve the
density of the green body before sintering, or to initiate
sintering of the metal within the green body. In another aspect,
the MIM materials disclosed herein may be adapted for use in a
selective laser melting process where the binder melts, rather than
sinters, to form a net-shape green body which is then debound and
sintered according to the methods disclosed herein.
[0185] FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an example of the internal
structure of a computer 1100 in which various embodiments of the
present disclosure may be implemented. The computer 1100 contains a
system bus 1102, where a bus is a set of hardware lines used for
data transfer among the components of a computer or processing
system. The system bus 1102 is essentially a shared conduit that
connects different elements of a computer system (e.g., processor,
disk storage, memory, input/output ports, network ports, etc.) that
enables the transfer of information between the elements. Coupled
to the system bus 1102 is an I/O device interface 1104 for
connecting various input and output devices (e.g., keyboard, mouse,
displays, printers, speakers, etc.) to the computer 1100. A network
interface 1106 allows the computer 1100 to connect to various other
devices attached to a network. Memory 1108 provides volatile
storage for computer software instructions 1110 and data 1112 that
may be used to implement embodiments of the present disclosure.
Disk storage 1114 provides non-volatile storage for computer
software instructions 1110 and data 1112 that may be used to
implement embodiments of the present disclosure. A central
processor unit 1118 is also coupled to the system bus 1102 and
provides for the execution of computer instructions.
[0186] Further example embodiments disclosed herein may be
configured using a computer program product; for example, controls
may be programmed in software for implementing example embodiments.
Further example embodiments may include a non-transitory
computer-readable medium containing instructions that may be
executed by a processor, and, when loaded and executed, cause the
processor to complete methods disclosed herein. It should be
understood that elements of the block and flow diagrams may be
implemented in software or hardware, such as via one or more
arrangements of circuitry, disclosed above, or equivalents thereof,
firmware, a combination thereof, or other similar implementation
determined in the future. In addition, the elements of the block
and flow diagrams disclosed herein may be combined or divided in
any manner in software, hardware, or firmware. If implemented in
software, the software may be written in any language that can
support the example embodiments disclosed herein. The software may
be stored in any form of computer readable medium, such as random
access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), compact disk read-only
memory (CD-ROM), and so forth. In operation, a general purpose or
application-specific processor or processing core loads and
executes software in a manner well understood in the art. It should
be understood further that the block and flow diagrams may include
more or fewer elements, be arranged or oriented differently, or be
represented differently. It should be understood that
implementation may dictate the block, flow, and/or network diagrams
and the number of block and flow diagrams illustrating the
execution of embodiments disclosed herein. Further, example
embodiments and elements thereof may be combined in a manner not
explicitly disclosed herein.
[0187] While example embodiments have been particularly shown and
described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that
various changes in form and details may be made therein without
departing from the scope of the embodiments encompassed by the
appended claims.
* * * * *