Systems for updating target maps including consideration of linear position change in electrochemical-additive manufacturing systems

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11945170-B2
Application number	US-202318338113-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 20, 2023
Priority date	Dec 13, 2021
Publication date	Apr 2, 2024
Grant date	Apr 2, 2024

Abstract

Described herein are electrochemical-additive manufacturing methods and systems using such methods. A method comprises depositing a material onto a deposition electrode by flowing a current between that deposition electrode and each of multiple individually-addressable electrodes, forming an electrode array. These currents are independently controlled based on a target map and using deposition control circuits, each coupled to one individually-addressable electrode. The target map is generated by a system controller based on various characteristics of the system (e.g., the performance of each deposition control circuit and/or individually-addressable electrode, electrolyte composition) and the desired characteristics of the deposited material (e.g., deposition location, uniformity, morphology). Furthermore, when the deposition electrode and the electrode array move relative to each other, the system controller dynamically updates the target map based on their relative positions. This movement can provide a fresh electrolyte between the electrodes and enable deposition at new locations.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electrochemical additive manufacturing system comprising:
a deposition power supply;
deposition control circuits, coupled to the deposition power supply;
an electrode array, comprising individually-addressable electrodes such that each of the individually-addressable electrodes is electrically coupled to one of the deposition control circuits;
a deposition electrode;
an electrode-position actuator configured to
(a) position the electrode array and the deposition electrode substantially parallel relative to each other in an initial relative position between the electrode array and the deposition electrode,
(b) using at least a linear translation, spatially translate the electrode array and the deposition electrode from the initial relative position between the electrode array and the deposition electrode to a shifted relative position between the electrode array and the deposition electrode; and

a system controller configured to (a) create an initial target map, comprising individual target currents, based on the initial relative position between the electrode array and the deposition electrode, and (b) create an updated target map by shifting the individual target currents of the initial target map using a spatial reference between the initial relative position and the shifted relative position, wherein each of the individual target currents corresponds to one of the individually-addressable electrodes, where the deposition control circuits are configured to control electric current through each of the individually-addressable electrodes based on a corresponding one of the individual target currents in the initial target map and the updated target map.

2. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein the spatial reference between the initial relative position and the shifted relative position corresponds to a number of the individually-addressable electrodes.

3. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein the electrode-position actuator is configured to spatially translate the electrode array and the deposition electrode relative to each other using a rotational translation from the initial relative position to the shifted relative position.

4. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , further comprising one or more position sensors communicatively coupled to the system controller, wherein the system controller is configured to create the updated target map based on input from the one or more position sensors.

5. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 4 , wherein the individually-addressable electrodes are operable as the one or more position sensors.

6. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 5 , wherein the input from the one or more position sensors comprises one or both of a voltage value and a current value, sensed at each of the individually-addressable electrodes.

7. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein the system controller is further configured to create the updated target map based on desired variations in an additively deposited material in addition to the spatial reference between the initial relative position and the shifted relative position of the electrode array and the deposition electrode.

8. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein each of the initial target map and the updated target map comprises instructions to simultaneously pass different levels of an electrical current through at least two of the individually-addressable electrodes.

9. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 8 , wherein at least one of the different levels of the electrical current corresponds to no current passing.

10. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 9 , wherein the system controller is further configured to determine a subset of the individually-addressable electrodes with no current passing using one of a Bayer matrix, a dispersed dot halftoning, a clustered-dot matrix, or a Jarvis error diffusion.

11. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein the system controller is further configured to determine the individual target currents in the initial target map and the updated target map based on a charge density associated with each of the individually-addressable electrodes.

12. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein the initial target map or the updated target map is generated based on at least one of:
desired deposition rates,
grain sizes with an additive deposited material,
grain orientations within the additive deposited material,
compositions of the additive deposited material,
brightness values of the additive deposited material, or
densities of the additive deposited material.

13. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein the initial target map or the updated target map is generated based on one or more of:
temperature of an electrolyte solution,
conductivity of the electrolyte solution,
flow rate of the electrolyte solution,
composition of the electrolyte solution, or
distance between an additive deposited material and the individually-addressable electrodes.

14. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein the initial target map and the updated target map comprise duty cycles associated with each of the individual target currents.

15. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 14 , wherein the duty cycles vary for different ones of the individual target currents.

16. The electrochemical additive manufacturing system of claim 1 , wherein the electrode-position actuator is coupled to the deposition electrode.

17. An electrochemical additive manufacturing system comprising:
a deposition power supply;
deposition control circuits, coupled to the deposition power supply;
an electrode array, comprising individually-addressable electrodes such that each of the individually-addressable electrodes is electrically coupled to one of the deposition control circuits;
a deposition electrode;
an electrode-position actuator configured to
(a) position the electrode array and the deposition electrode substantially parallel relative to each other in an initial relative position between the electrode array and the deposition electrode, and
(b) spatially translate the electrode array and the deposition electrode from the initial relative position between the electrode array and the deposition electrode to a shifted relative position between the electrode array and the deposition electrode;

a system controller configured to (a) create an initial target map, comprising individual target currents, based on the initial relative position between the electrode array and the deposition electrode, and (b) create an updated target map by shifting the individual target currents of the initial target map using a spatial reference between the initial relative position and the shifted relative position, wherein each of the individual target currents corresponds to one of the individually-addressable electrodes, where the deposition control circuits are configured to control electric current through each of the individually-addressable electrodes based on a corresponding one of the individual target currents in the initial target map and the updated target map; and
a sensor communicatively coupled to the system controller and configured to sense at least one: bubbling in an electrolyte solution provided b

Assignees

• Fabric8Labs Inc

Inventors

• Pain David
• Shaik Kareemullah
• Gillespie Joshua
• Herman Jeffrey

Classifications

• B29C64/393 Primary

  for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes · CPC title

• B29C64/264

  Arrangements for irradiation · CPC title

• C25D1/003

  3D structures, e.g. superposed patterned layers · CPC title

• C25D17/10

  Electrodes {, e.g. composition, counter electrode} · CPC title

• C25D21/12

  Process control or regulation (controlling or regulating in general G05) · CPC title