Methods and systems for measuring a pressure distribution between a surface of an object and a pressure sensitive surface during formation of the object
US-2019270242-A1 · Sep 5, 2019 · US
Methods for preventing oxygen inhibition of a light-initiated polymerization reaction in a 3D printing system using inert gas
US11673328B2 · US · B2
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Publication number | US-11673328-B2 |
| Application number | US-202117453292-A |
| Country | US |
| Kind code | B2 |
| Filing date | Nov 2, 2021 |
| Priority date | Dec 11, 2018 |
| Publication date | Jun 13, 2023 |
| Grant date | Jun 13, 2023 |
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- Title
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Abstract
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Methods that prevent oxygen inhibition of a light-initiated polymerization reaction by purging the oxygen from reaction surfaces using inert gas flow. In some embodiments, oxygen is purged using a gas diffusion system that introduces, via a diffuser, an inert gas into a workspace between a UV light source and a UV curable layer of a workpiece. The diffuser may be made of a transparent or diffuse material to allow UV light to pass through it, and includes an array of micro-holes for the gas to pass through towards the workpiece. The inert gas flow may be heated to maintain a desired and uniform reaction temperature.
First claim
Opening claim text (preview).
What is claimed is: 1. A method, comprising: depositing a layer of curable material on a print surface of an object under fabrication; while depositing the layer of curable material on the print surface, initiating a purging of oxygen from a region adjacent to a diffuser; upon finishing the deposition of the layer of curable material on the print surface, transporting the layer of curable material into the oxygen free region adjacent to the diffuser while continuing to purge oxygen from the region adjacent to the diffuser; and curing the curable material while continuing to purge oxygen from the region adjacent to the diffuser. 2. The method of claim 1 , wherein curing the curable material comprises curing the curable material with ultra-violet (UV) light. 3. The method of claim 2 , the diffuser comprises a UV-transparent material, and curing the curable material comprises shining the UV light through the diffuser. 4. The method of claim 1 , wherein purging oxygen from the region adjacent to the diffuser comprises pumping an inert gas through the diffuser. 5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the inert gas is heated prior to being pumped through the diffuser so as to maintain a uniform temperature within a vicinity of the curable material. 6. The method of claim 4 , wherein the inert gas comprises one or more of argon (Ar), carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), helium (He) and neon (Ne). 7. The method of claim 1 , wherein transporting the layer of curable material into the oxygen free region adjacent to the diffuser comprises raising the object under fabrication. 8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising after finishing the curing of the curable layer, transporting the object away from the diffuser.
Assignees
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Classifications
Auxiliary operations or equipment, e.g. for material handling · CPC title
Processes of additive manufacturing · CPC title
- B29C64/264Primary
Arrangements for irradiation · CPC title
- B29C64/364Primary
Conditioning of environment · CPC title
using electromagnetic radiation · CPC title
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- What does patent US11673328B2 cover?
- Methods that prevent oxygen inhibition of a light-initiated polymerization reaction by purging the oxygen from reaction surfaces using inert gas flow. In some embodiments, oxygen is purged using a gas diffusion system that introduces, via a diffuser, an inert gas into a workspace between a UV light source and a UV curable layer of a workpiece. The diffuser may be made of a transparent or diffus…
- Who is the assignee on this patent?
- Io Tech Group Ltd
- What technology area does this patent fall under?
- Primary CPC classification B29C64/264. Mapped technology areas include Operations & Transport.
- When was this patent published?
- Publication date Tue Jun 13 2023 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) (B2). Legal status and post-grant events are not shown on this page.
- What related patents are in patentsdb?
- We list 5 related publications on this page (citations in our corpus or others sharing the same primary CPC).