Fabrication of three dimensional objects with multiple operating modes

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10828826-B2
Application number	US-201916460176-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 2, 2019
Priority date	Mar 5, 2015
Publication date	Nov 10, 2020
Grant date	Nov 10, 2020

Abstract

A method of forming the body portion of a three-dimensional object from a polymerizable liquid by the process of continuous liquid interface printing is described. The body portion has a plurality of contiguous segments, and the process includes advancing a carrier for the object away from a build surface while irradiating a build region between the carrier and build surface in a pattern of advancing and irradiating defined by an operating mode. In the present invention, the operating mode is changed at least once during the formation of the body portion for different contiguous segments of the body portion.

First claim

We claim:

1. In a method of forming a solid polymer body portion of a three-dimensional object from a polymerizable liquid by the process of continuous liquid interface printing, the body portion having a plurality of contiguous segments, and the process including advancing a carrier for the object away from a build surface while irradiating a build region between the carrier and build surface in a pattern of advancing and irradiating defined by an operating mode, the improvement comprising:
changing operating modes at least once during the formation of said body portion for different contiguous segments of said body portion,
wherein one of said operating modes is reciprocal advancing with intermittent exposure,
wherein another one of said operating modes is selected from the group consisting of:
(a) continuous advancing with continuous exposure;
(b) continuous advancing with intermittent exposure; and
(c) step-wise advancing with intermittent exposure,

wherein said build surface is fixed and stationary in the lateral (X and Y) dimensions, and
wherein said build surface is permeable to oxygen.

2. The method of claim 1 , comprising:
providing a carrier and an optically transparent member having a build surface, said carrier and said build surface defining a build region therebetween,
wherein said body portion is formed by: (i) filling said build region with a polymerizable liquid, (ii) continuously or intermittently irradiating said build region with light through said optically transparent member, and (iii) continuously or intermittently advancing said carrier away from said build surface to thereby form from said polymerizable liquid said solid polymer body portion of said object.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein said filling step, said irradiating step, and said advancing step are carried out while also concurrently: (i) continuously maintaining a dead zone of polymerizable liquid in contact with said build surface, and (ii) continuously maintaining a gradient of polymerization zone or active surface between said dead zone and said solid polymer body portion and in contact with each thereof, said gradient of polymerization zone comprising said polymerizable liquid in partially cured form.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein said intermittent exposure is a strobe mode exposure.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein said reciprocal advancing is carried out through carrier motion, or by combination of carrier and build surface motion.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein said step of changing operating modes includes the step of feathering or gradually transitioning from one operating mode to a subsequent operating mode.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein said step of changing operating modes is carried out sequentially at least five or ten times during the formation of said body portion.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising changing at least one parameter of an operating mode at least once during formation of said body portion.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein said at least one parameter is slice thickness, frequency of irradiating, intensity of irradiating, duration of irradiating, duty cycle of irradiating, rate of advancing, lead time prior to irradiating, lag time following irradiating, step height, pump height, step or pump duration, or frequency of step-wise or reciprocal advancing.

10. In a method of forming a solid polymer body portion of a three-dimensional object from a polymerizable liquid by the process of continuous liquid interface printing, the process including advancing a carrier for the object away from a build surface while irradiating a build region between the carrier and build surface in a pattern of advancing and irradiating defined by an operating mode, with the body portion having a plurality of contiguous segments, the improvement comprising:
changing at least one parameter of an operating mode at least once during the formation of said body portion for fabrication of different contiguous segments of said body portion, wherein said operating mode is reciprocal advancing with intermittent exposure,
wherein said build surface is fixed and stationary in the lateral (X and Y) dimensions, and
wherein said build surface is permeable to oxygen.

11. The method of claim 10 , comprising:
providing a carrier and an optically transparent member having said build surface, said carrier and said build surface defining a build region therebetween,
wherein said body portion is formed by: (i) filling said build region with a polymerizable liquid, (ii) continuously or intermittently irradiating said build region with light through said optically transparent member, and (iii) continuously or intermittently advancing said carrier away from said build surface to thereby form from said polymerizable liquid said solid polymer body portion of said object.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein said filling step, said irradiating step, and said advancing step are carried out while also concurrently: (i) continuously maintaining a dead zone of polymerizable liquid in contact with said build surface, and (ii) continuously maintaining a gradient of polymerization zone or active surface between said dead zone and said solid polymer body portion and in contact with each thereof, said gradient of polymerization zone comprising said polymerizable liquid in partially cured form.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein said at least one parameter is slice thickness, frequency of irradiating, intensity of irradiating, duration of irradiating, duty cycle of irradiating, rate of advancing, lead time prior to irradiating, lag time following irradiating, step height, pump height, step or pump duration, or frequency of step-wise or reciprocal advancing.

14. The method of claim 10 , wherein said step of changing at least one parameter comprises concurrently or simultaneously changing at least two or three parameters.

15. The method of claim 10 , wherein said step of changing at least one parameter is carried out sequentially at least five or ten times during the formation of said body portion.

16. The method of claim 10 , wherein said plurality of contiguous segments are geometrically distinct from one another.

17. The method of claim 12 , wherein said optically transparent member comprises a semipermeable member, and said continuously maintaining a dead zone is carried out by feeding an inhibitor of polymerization through said optically transparent member in an amount sufficient to maintain said dead zone and said gradient of polymerization zone.

18. The method of claim 12 , wherein said optically transparent member is comprised of a semipermeable polymer.

19. The method of claim 12 , wherein said gradient of polymerization zone and said dead zone together have a thickness of from 1 to 1000 microns.

20. The method of claim 12 , wherein said gradient of polymerization zone is maintained for a time of between seconds and 2 minutes.

21. The method of claim 17 , wherein:
said polymerizable liquid comprises a free radical polymerizable liquid and said inhibitor comprises oxygen; or
said polymerizable liquid comprises an acid-catalyzed or cationically polymerizable liquid, and said inhibitor comprises a base.

22. The method of claim 10 , wherein:
said polymerizable liquid comprises a mixture of (i) a light polymerizable liquid first component, and (ii) a second solidifiable component that is different from said first component,
said method further comprising:
concurrently with

Assignees

• Carbon Inc

Inventors

• Sutter Prescott
• Gutierrez Clarissa
• Shirvanyants David
• Moore David
• Tumbleston John

Classifications

• B29K2023/00

  Use of polyalkenes {or derivatives thereof} as moulding material · CPC title

• B29C64/124 Primary

  using layers of liquid which are selectively solidified · CPC title

• B29K2105/0091

  IPN, i.e. interpenetrating polymer networks · CPC title

• B29C64/393

  for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes · CPC title

• B29K2075/02

  Polyureas · CPC title