Powered removal for element formed by powder bed fusion additive manufacturing processes

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10259045-B2
Application number	US-201514859916-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 21, 2015
Priority date	Sep 21, 2015
Publication date	Apr 16, 2019
Grant date	Apr 16, 2019

Abstract

A method for forming a part includes: forming a first portion of the part at a first level; forming a second portion of the part at a second level; wherein forming the first and second portions includes exposing the first and second levels to a sintering process and portions of the first and second levels to an electron beam; causing a magnetorheological (MR) fluid to move into a passage inside the first and second portions; exposing the first and second portions to a magnetic field causing motion of particles in the MR fluid to move and break up sintered material in the passage; and removing some or all of the sintered material in the passage.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for forming a part, the method comprising:
forming a first portion of the part at a first level;
forming a second portion of the part at a second level;
wherein forming the first and second portions includes exposing the first and second levels to a sintering process and portions of the first and second levels to an electron beam;
forming a wire in a passage formed inside the first and second portions by exposing sintered metallic powder in the passage to the electron beam;
causing a magnetorheological (MR) fluid to move into the passage inside the first and second portions; and
applying a current to the wire which creates a magnetic field causing motion of particles in the MR fluid to move and break up sintered material in the passage; and
removing some or all of the sintered material in the passage.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first and second levels are formed from a sintered metallic powder.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein forming the at least one wire includes forming a section of the wire such that it has a larger cross-section than other portions of the wire.

4. The method of claim 1 , further, comprising:
forming a secondary wire;
applying a signal to the secondary wire; and
removing the secondary wire.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the wire passes at least partially through a secondary cleaning element.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the current is an alternating current.

Assignees

• Hamilton Sundstrand Corp

Inventors

• Karlen Eric
• Mironets Sergey
• Giulietti Diana
• Versluys Kiley James
• Fennessy Colette O
• Wentland William Louis

Classifications

• B22F10/28

  Powder bed fusion, e.g. selective laser melting [SLM] or electron beam melting [EBM] · CPC title

• B22F10/73

  of powder · CPC title

• B22F2003/247

  Removing material: carving, cleaning, grinding, hobbing, honing, lapping, polishing, milling, shaving, skiving, turning the surface · CPC title

• B22F2003/1059

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B33Y10/00

  Processes of additive manufacturing · CPC title