Lamination molding apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10471509-B2
Application number	US-201715603470-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 24, 2017
Priority date	Jul 13, 2016
Publication date	Nov 12, 2019
Grant date	Nov 12, 2019

Abstract

A fume collector can be operated continuously for a long time, and an influence on a three-dimensional article is minimized.
Provided is a lamination molding apparatus ( 1 ) in which an inert gas supply/discharge apparatus ( 4 ) includes an inert gas supply apparatus ( 43 ) configured to supply an inert gas into a chamber ( 10 ), and a fume collector ( 6 ) including a charging section ( 63 ) having a charging electrode ( 631 ) configured to positively or negatively charge fumes, a charging electrode cleaner ( 71 ) configured to remove fumes adhered to the charging electrode ( 631 ) and a dust collecting section ( 65 ) configured to collect the charged fumes, wherein the charging electrode cleaner ( 71 ) removes the fumes when formation of the sintered layers by a laser radiation apparatus ( 2 ) is not being performed in operation.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A lamination molding apparatus comprising:
a chamber that is closed;
a laser radiation apparatus configured to radiate a laser beam to a predetermined irradiation region on a powder material layer formed by uniformly spreading a powder material in the chamber and form a sintered layer; and
an inert gas supply/discharge apparatus configured to supply an inert gas into the chamber such that the chamber is always filled with the inert gas to a predetermined concentration or more and discharge fumes to the outside of the chamber,
wherein the inert gas supply/discharge apparatus includes:
an inert gas supply apparatus configured to supply the inert gas into the chamber; and
a fume collector including a charging section having a charging electrode configured to positively or negatively charge the fumes, a charging electrode cleaner configured to remove the fumes adhered to the charging electrode, and a dust collecting section configured to collect the charged fumes,

wherein the charging electrode cleaner removes the fumes when formation of the sintered layer is not being performed by the laser radiation apparatus in operation.

2. The lamination molding apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a control device configured to output a cleaning start signal at a predetermined timing when a radiation process of radiating the laser beam to form the sintered layer is not being performed in operation,
wherein the fume collector starts cleaning of the charging electrode using the charging electrode cleaner when the cleaning start signal is input and terminates the cleaning before the next radiation process starts.

3. The lamination molding apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the charging electrode cleaner comprises a nozzle configured to eject the inert gas to the charging electrode.

4. The lamination molding apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the charging electrode cleaner further comprises an intermittent ejection control unit configured to control intermittent ejection of the inert gas from the nozzle.

5. The lamination molding apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the inert gas supply/discharge apparatus further comprises a branch pipe configured to split a supply destination for the inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply apparatus into the chamber and the nozzle.

6. The lamination molding apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the inert gas supply/discharge apparatus further comprises a switching valve configured to switch the supply destination for the inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply apparatus to either the chamber or the nozzle.

Assignees

• Sodick Co Ltd

Inventors

• Muranaka Katsutaka

Classifications

• B29C64/371 Primary

  using an environment other than air, e.g. inert gas · CPC title

• B22F10/77

  of gas · CPC title

• B22F10/322

  of the gas flow, e.g. rate or direction · CPC title

• B22F12/41

  characterised by the type, e.g. laser or electron beam · CPC title

• B22F12/22

  Driving means · CPC title