System for operating extruder heads in three-dimensional object printers

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11104118-B2
Application number	US-201916545568-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 20, 2019
Priority date	Oct 26, 2016
Publication date	Aug 31, 2021
Grant date	Aug 31, 2021

Abstract

An apparatus changes the temperature of thermoplastic material in an extruder head to reduce the time for producing an object. The apparatus includes a cooling device located near the one or more nozzles of the extruder head to change the temperature of the thermoplastic material extruded by the extruder head. The apparatus cools the thermoplastic material to enhance the formation of exterior object features. A heater can also be positioned near the nozzle zone to heat the thermoplastic material to reduce the time for raising the viscosity of the thermoplastic material for forming interior regions of the object.

First claim

What is claimed:

1. An apparatus comprising:
an extruder head having a manifold configured to store thermoplastic material and at least one nozzle through which the thermoplastic material from the manifold can be extruded;
a mechanical mover configured to move extrusion material from a supply of the extrusion material along a path;
a first heater having a heating element and a channel positioned along the path of the extrusion material to receive the extrusion material, the first heater being configured to melt the extrusion material in the channel to form the thermoplastic material and direct the thermoplastic material into the manifold of the extruder head; and
a cooling device positioned near the at least one nozzle to cool the thermoplastic material in the at least one nozzle to a temperature different than a temperature of the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a sensor positioned near the at least one nozzle, the sensor being configured to generate a signal indicative of the temperature of the thermoplastic material in the at least one nozzle; and
a controller operatively connected to the sensor and the cooling device near the at least one nozzle, the controller being configured to operate the cooling device using the signal generated by the sensor.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , the controller being further configured to:
operate the cooling device with reference to a position of a portion of an object being formed by the thermoplastic material being extruded by the at least one nozzle of the extruder head.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , further comprising:
an user interface operatively connected to the controller, the user interface being configured to receive data identifying a quality level for the object being formed; and
the controller being further configured to operate the cooling device using the data received by the user interface that identifies the quality level for the object being formed.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising:
a memory configured with data identifying the temperature for the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head; and
the controller being further configured to operate the cooling device using the data stored in the memory that identifies the temperature for the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 , the controller being further configured to:
close the at least one nozzle so the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head reaches the temperature identified by the data in the memory.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , the controller being further configured to:
stop movement between the extruder head and the object being formed with the thermoplastic material extruded from the extruder head so the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head reaches the temperature identified by the data in the memory.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a second heater positioned near the at least one nozzle to heat the thermoplastic material in the at least one nozzle to the temperature different than the temperature of the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the second heater positioned near the at least one nozzle and the cooling device are implemented with a single Peltier device.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the cooling device is a source of moving air configured to direct air toward the at least one nozzle of the extruder head.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , the controller being further configured to:
detect a transition from forming a first portion of an object to forming a second portion of the object, the first portion of the object being formed with the thermoplastic material having a first viscosity extruded from the extruder head and the second portion of the object being formed with the thermoplastic material having a second viscosity extruded from the extruder head, the first viscosity being different than the second viscosity; and
change a temperature of the thermoplastic material in a nozzle region of the extruder head from a first temperature to a second temperature to change the viscosity of the thermoplastic material from the first viscosity to the second viscosity.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , the controller being further configured to:
change the temperature of the thermoplastic material in the nozzle region by operating the cooling device to cool the thermoplastic material in the nozzle region.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising:
a sensor configured to generate a signal indicative of the temperature of the thermoplastic material in the nozzle region of the extruder head; and
the controller is further configured to:
operate the cooling device to change the temperature of the thermoplastic material in the nozzle region of the extruder head using the generated signal.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 , the controller being further configured to:
operate the cooling device with reference to a position of a portion of the object being formed to change the temperature of the thermoplastic material at the position using the generated signal.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 , the controller being further configured to:
operate the cooling device using data stored in a memory that identifies the temperature for the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 , the controller being further configured to:
close at least one nozzle in the nozzle region of the extruder head for a predetermined period of time so the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head reaches the temperature identified by the data stored in the memory.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 , the controller being further configured to:
stop movement between the extruder head and the object being formed with the thermoplastic material extruded from the extruder head so the thermoplastic material in the manifold of the extruder head reaches the temperature identified by the data in the memory.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein the cooling device is an air moving source configured to direct aft to the nozzle region of the extruder head.

Assignees

• Xerox Corp

Inventors

• Mantell David A
• Nystrom Peter J
• Lynn Christopher G

Classifications

• B29C48/87 Primary

  Cooling · CPC title

• B05C5/001

  incorporating means for heating or cooling the liquid or other fluent material (B05C11/1042 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B29C2948/92209

  Temperature · CPC title

• B29C64/106

  using only liquids or viscous materials, e.g. depositing a continuous bead of viscous material · CPC title

• B29C48/92

  Measuring, controlling or regulating · CPC title