Selective material dispensing in additive manufacturing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10875093-B2
Application number	US-201615212075-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 15, 2016
Priority date	Jul 17, 2015
Publication date	Dec 29, 2020
Grant date	Dec 29, 2020

Abstract

Additive manufacturing includes successively forming a plurality of layers on a support. Depositing a layer from the plurality of layers includes dispensing first particles, selectively dispensing second particles in selected regions corresponding to a surface of the object, and fusing at least a portion of the layer. The layer has the first particles throughout and the second particles in the selected regions. Alternatively or in addition, forming the plurality of layers includes depositing multiple groups of layers. Depositing a group of layers includes, for each layer in the group of layers dispensing a feed material to provide the layer, and after dispensing the feed material and before dispensing a subsequent layer fusing a selected portion of the layer. After all layers in the group of layers are dispensed, a volume of the group of layers that extends through all the layers in the group of layers is fused.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of additive manufacturing of an object, comprising:
successively forming a plurality of layers on a support, wherein depositing a layer from the plurality of layers comprises
dispensing first particles on a support or an underlying layer, the first particles having a first mean diameter;
selectively dispensing second particles on the support or the underlying layer in selected regions corresponding to an exterior surface of the object, such that the layer has the first particles throughout and the second particles in the selected regions, the second particles having a second mean diameter at least two times smaller than the first mean diameter; and
fusing at least a portion of the layer including the selected regions corresponding to an exterior surface of the object and a second portion outside the selected regions corresponding to an interior portion of the object and including the first particles.

2. The method of claim 1 , comprising dispensing the second particles after dispensing the first particles so that the second particles infiltrate into a layer of first particles.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein dispensing the first particles comprises pushing the first particles from a reservoir across the support or underlying layer.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein dispensing the second particles comprises ejecting the second particles from a nozzle.

5. The method of claim 1 , comprising mixing the first particles and the second particles to provide a mixture of particles and selectively dispensing the mixture of particles in the selected regions.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein dispensing the first particles and selectively dispensing the second particles comprises ejecting the mixture of particles from a nozzle.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second mean diameter is about 100 nm to 2 μm.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the first mean diameter is about 5 μm to 10 μm.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein fusing the portion of the layer comprises applying a laser beam to the layer of the first particles and second particles.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first particles and the second particles have the same material composition.

Assignees

• Applied Materials Inc

Inventors

• Ng Hou T
• Patibandla Nag B
• Joshi Ajey M
• Swaminathan Bharath
• Kumar Ashavani
• Ng Eric
• Frey Bernard
• Krishnan Kasiraman

Classifications

• B22F1/052 Primary

  characterised by a mixture of particles of different sizes or by the particle size distribution · CPC title

• B22F1/10

  Metallic powder containing lubricating or binding agents; Metallic powder containing organic material · CPC title

• B22F12/63

  Rollers · CPC title

• B22F12/53

  Nozzles · CPC title

• B22F12/222

  for motion along a direction orthogonal to the plane of a layer · CPC title