Systems and methods for improved 3D printing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10899071-B2
Application number	US-201816017765-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 25, 2018
Priority date	Mar 19, 2014
Publication date	Jan 26, 2021
Grant date	Jan 26, 2021

Abstract

A system for fabricating an object includes an extruder for one or more deposition materials. The extruder has at least one nozzle with a nozzle tip that includes an exit orifice and has a width that is equal to or larger than a width of the exit orifice. The system also includes a controller coupled with the extruder, the controller configured to apply a correction factor that has been calculated for a path of the nozzle based on a slope of a surface of an object to be fabricated. The correction factor for a positive slope is different from that for a negative slope. The extruder is configured to cause movement of the nozzle along the path to deposit material on the slope of the surface of the object, and the correction factor removes differences in thickness of the deposited material caused by the slope in relation to the path.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing software comprising instructions executable by one or more computers, which, upon such execution, cause the one or more computers to perform operations for controlling a 3D printer, the 3D printer comprising an extruder for one or more deposition materials, the extruder comprising at least one nozzle having a nozzle tip that includes an exit orifice, the tip having a width that is equal to or larger than a width of the exit orifice, the operations comprising:
calculating a correction factor based on a first path of the nozzle according to a slope of a surface of an object to be fabricated, wherein the correction factor for a positive slope is different from the correction factor for a negative slope, and the correction factor adjusts a distance between the nozzle and the surface of the object;
calculating a second path by applying the correction factor to the first path to thereby adjust a vertical position of the nozzle relative to the first path by an amount dependent on the slope of the surface; and
causing movement of the nozzle along the second path to deposit a material on the slope of the surface of the object, wherein the correction factor removes differences in thickness of the deposited material caused by the slope.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein applying the correction factor comprises:
based on the slope being negative, applying the correction factor that causes the nozzle to become farther from the surface of the object;
based on the slope being positive, applying the correction factor that causes the nozzle to become closer to the surface of the object; and
applying the correction factor based on the correction factor having been calculated for all path points along the first path.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein based on the slope being negative, applying the correction factor moves the nozzle vertically upward by an amount equal to a half width of the nozzle tip multiplied by the absolute value of the slope.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein based on the slope being positive, applying the correction factor moves the nozzle vertically downward by an amount equal to a half width of the exit orifice multiplied by the absolute value of the slope.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein causing movement of the nozzle along the second path includes:
forming at least a portion of a first layer of the object to be fabricated, the first layer defining a first gap; and
forming a second and a third layer above the first layer, the second layer defining a second gap that overlaps with the first gap, the third layer including a protruded portion that at least partially fills the first and second gaps to thereby interlock the first, second, and third layers.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein causing movement of the nozzle along the second path includes forming at least a portion of a first layer of the object to be fabricated and forming a second layer after the first layer, a portion of the first layer being extended vertically upward past the second layer.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 6 , wherein causing movement of the nozzle along the second path includes connecting the vertically extended portion of the first layer with a vertically extended portion of the second layer.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 6 , the operations further comprising causing the nozzle to bend the vertically extended portion of the first layer on top of the second layer with the nozzle.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8 , wherein causing movement of the nozzle along the second path includes forming a third layer on top of second layer and the bent portion of the first layer.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8 , the operations further comprising causing the nozzle to push and bend the vertically extended portion of the first layer with the nozzle.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein causing movement of the nozzle along the second path includes forming at least a portion of a non-horizontal layer of the object to be fabricated on a separate core.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein causing movement of the nozzle along the second path includes forming at least a portion of a non-planar layer of the object to be fabricated, further comprising dynamically adjusting a flow rate of deposition material while creating the non-planar layer to thereby vary a thickness of the non-planar layer.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein causing movement of the nozzle along the second path includes forming one or more horizontal layers, and then forming one or more non-horizontal layers on the one or more horizontal layers.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13 , wherein forming the one or more non-horizontal layers includes forming a non-horizontal layer that crosses and adheres to adjacent horizontal layers.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13 , wherein forming the one or more non-horizontal layers includes moving the nozzle along three axes.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein causing movement of the nozzle along the second path includes forming an angled surface whose angle matches a side angle of the nozzle, and then forming one or more layers on the angled surface.

17. A computer-implemented method performed using an extruder of a 3D printer, the extruder comprising at least one nozzle having a nozzle tip that includes an exit orifice and has a width that is equal to or larger than a width of the exit orifice, the computer-implemented method comprising:
calculating a correction factor based on a first path of the nozzle according to a slope of a surface of an object to be fabricated, wherein the correction factor for a positive slope is different from the correction factor for a negative slope, and the correction factor adjusts a distance between the nozzle and the surface of the object;
calculating a second path by applying the correction factor to the first path to thereby adjust a vertical position of the nozzle relative to the first path by an amount dependent on the slope of the surface; and
causing movement of the nozzle along the second path to deposit a material on the slope of the surface of the object, wherein the correction factor removes differences in thickness of the deposited material caused by the slope.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 17 , wherein applying the correction factor comprises:
based on the slope being negative, applying the correction factor that causes the nozzle to become farther from the surface of the object;
based on the slope being positive, applying the correction factor that causes the nozzle to become closer to the surface of the object; and
applying the correction factor based on the correction factor having been calculated for all path points along the first path.

Assignees

• Autodesk Inc

Inventors

• Page James Sherwood

Classifications

• B22F10/47

  characterised by structural features · CPC title

• B22F10/28

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

• B22F12/53

  Nozzles · CPC title

• B22F2998/00

  Supplementary information concerning processes or compositions relating to powder metallurgy · CPC title

• B29C64/118 Primary

  using filamentary material being melted, e.g. fused deposition modelling [FDM] · CPC title