Removable image-capture apparatus, kit and method for calibrating an additive manufacturing apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12528124-B2
Application number	US-202118009497-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 7, 2021
Priority date	Jun 11, 2020
Publication date	Jan 20, 2026
Grant date	Jan 20, 2026

Abstract

A removable image-capture apparatus ( 200 ) comprises an opening ( 202 ) intended to receive a calibration plate ( 10 ) bearing a reference marking ( 30 ) and possibly a test marking ( 40 ). The apparatus ( 200 ) comprises a source ( 204 ) of backlighting visible light situated beneath the opening ( 202 ), a sensor ( 205 ) for acquiring an image, in the backlighting visible light, of the plate ( 10 ), a guiding and supporting device ( 206 ) for positioning the sensor ( 205 ) above the opening ( 202 ) relative to the surround ( 201 ), a calculation device ( 207 ) configured to analyze the image, recognize the marking ( 30 ) and possibly the marking ( 40 ) in the image, and calculate aiming-command corrections intended for a firing system firing a powerful incident-radiation beam, which system belongs to an additive manufacturing apparatus, distinct and separate from the apparatus ( 200 ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1 . A removable image-capture apparatus for capturing at least one image, the image-capture apparatus comprising:
a casing comprising a surround delimiting an opening intended to receive a removable calibration plate bearing at least one reference marking and possibly at least one test marking; retaining members for holding the removable calibration plate in the opening; at least one source of backlighting visible light situated beneath the opening; a sensor for acquiring the at least one image, in the backlighting visible light, of the removable calibration plate; a guiding and supporting device for positioning the sensor above the opening relative to the surround; and a calculator configured to analyze the at least one image acquired by the sensor, recognize the at least one reference marking and the possible at least one test marking in the at least one image acquired by the sensor, and calculate aiming-command corrections intended for a firing system for firing at least one power incident-radiation beam, which firing system belongs to an additive manufacturing apparatus, distinct and separate from the image-capture apparatus, the image-capture apparatus and/or the calculator comprising a first memory in which there have been pre-recorded, in association with a determined unique identification of the removable calibration plate, absolute coordinates of the at least one reference marking, which absolute coordinates have been determined beforehand, the calculator being configured to calculate the aiming-command corrections for the aiming of the firing system for firing the at least one power incident-radiation beam, which firing system belongs to the additive manufacturing apparatus, as a function of coordinates of the at least one test marking, that were calculated for the at least one reference marking, and as a function of the absolute coordinates of the at least one reference marking.

2 . A portable calibration kit comprising the image-capture apparatus for capturing at least one image according to claim 1 and at least a removable calibration plate,
the removable calibration plate being able to be positioned in a field of a firing system for firing at least one power incident-radiation beam, which firing system belongs to an additive manufacturing apparatus,
the removable calibration plate comprising a sheet,
the sheet comprising an upper face intended to face toward the at least one power incident-radiation beam, the sheet bearing the at least one reference marking and being intended to receive at least one test marking, and a lower face, which is distant from the upper face in a thickness direction of the sheet,
the removable calibration plate comprising at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam,
the at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam being secured to the upper face of the sheet and being opaque to visible light,
the at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam being able to be destroyed locally by the at least one power incident-radiation beam in order to optionally form the at least one test marking,
the sheet being transparent to visible light, and
the lower face of the sheet being depolished.

3 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein the lower face of the sheet is transparent to backlighting visible light.

4 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein the at least one reference marking is created by locally destroying the at least one etching layer using the at least one power incident-radiation beam.

5 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein, in the at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam, there is at least one positioning sighting mark of dimensions greater than dimensions of the at least one reference marking and/or than dimensions of the at least one test marking.

6 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein the at least one etching layer is to be etched by the at least one power beam of incident radiation being laser.

7 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein the sheet contains glass or is made of glass.

8 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein the removable calibration plate comprises the at least one test marking created by locally destroying the at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam.

9 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein, in the at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam, there are the at least one reference marking created by locally destroying the at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam and the at least one test marking created by locally destroying the at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam.

10 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 8 , wherein the at least one test marking present in the etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam comprises an identification of the test marking.

11 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein the kit further comprises a removable storage medium, distinct from the first memory and on which are stored the determined unique identification of the removable calibration plate and the absolute coordinates of the at least one reference marking, which absolute coordinates are associated with the determined unique identification of the removable calibration plate, the image-capture apparatus and/or the calculator comprising an interface allowing the determined unique identification of the removable calibration plate and/or the absolute coordinates of the at least one reference marking, which absolute coordinates are associated with the determined unique identification of the removable calibration plate, to be recovered from the removable storage medium in order to record them in the first memory.

12 . The removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , wherein the removable calibration plate comprises at least one second non-volatile memory in which there are recorded the unique identification of the removable calibration plate and the absolute coordinates of the at least one reference marking, which absolute coordinates are associated with the unique identification of the removable calibration plate,
the at least one second non-volatile memory of the removable calibration plate is in the form of an NFC and/or RFID chip fixed to the removable calibration plate, the image-capture apparatus and/or the calculator and/or the sensor comprises an NFC and/or RFID reader able to read from the NFC and/or RFID chip the unique identification of the removable calibration plate and/or the absolute coordinates of the at least one reference marking, in order to record them in the first memory.

13 . A calibration method for calibrating a firing system for firing at least one power incident-radiation beam, which firing system belongs to an additive manufacturing apparatus, using the removable calibration kit according to claim 2 , the calibration method comprising the following steps:
positioning the removable calibration plate in the additive manufacturing apparatus, the at least one etching layer to be etched by the at least one power incident-radiation beam and that belongs to the removable calibration plate being oriented toward an emission side of the add

Assignees

• Addup

Inventors

• Anneton Antoine
• Vernet Raphael
• Lauwers Olivier
• Homman Ahmed-Amine

Classifications

• B22F10/366

  Scanning parameters, e.g. hatch distance or scanning strategy · CPC title

• B22F10/28

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

• B22F12/30

  Platforms or substrates · CPC title

• B22F12/90

  Means for process control, e.g. cameras or sensors · CPC title

• B22F10/85

  for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes · CPC title