Metering Build Material In Three-Dimensional (3D) Printing Using A Tool

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018304302-A1
Application number	US-201815956467-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 18, 2018
Priority date	Apr 21, 2017
Publication date	Oct 25, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A metering apparatus and corresponding method meter a powder material in a three-dimensional (3D) printing system. The metering apparatus comprises a hopper with walls configured to contain a powder material, a metering roller, and a tool. The metering roller is located beneath an opening of the hopper. The metering roller and a given wall of the walls of the hopper are spaced apart by a gap therebetween at the opening; the gap in combination with rotation of the metering roller causes the powder material to flow from under the given wall of the hopper at a substantially predictable rate. The tool is positioned at the given wall where the flow emerges and is configured to force the powder material off of the metering roller to supply the 3D printing system with the powder material for printing a 3D object.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A metering apparatus for metering a powder material in a three-dimensional (3D) printing system, the metering apparatus comprising:
a hopper with walls configured to contain a powder material and defining an opening sized and positioned to enable the powder material to flow therethrough; a metering roller located beneath the opening of the hopper, the metering roller and a given wall of the walls of the hopper spaced apart by a gap therebetween at the opening, the gap in combination with rotation of the metering roller causing a flow of the powder material to flow from under the given wall of the hopper at a substantially predictable rate; and a tool configured to force flow of the powder material off the metering roller at the substantially predictable rate to supply the 3D printing system with the powder material for printing a 3D object, the tool positioned at the given wall where the flow emerges due to the rotation.

2 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a surface of the metering roller is a roughened surface.

3 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the tool is configured to span at least a portion of a length of the metering roller and is arranged in contact with the metering roller, the tool being configured to move in a manner that forces flow of the powder material off the metering roller, and wherein the motion is rotation.

4 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the tool is a brush and wherein the brush is a flexible, spiral, nylon brush.

5 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the tool is a sheet of metal or plastic configured to act as a knife to skive the powder material off of the metering roller.

6 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a support rail, spanning at least a portion of a length of the tool and configured to support the tool.

7 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a motor configured to cause motion of the tool, wherein the motion is rotation, wherein the motor causes the tool to counter-rotate relative to rotation of the metering roller.

8 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the given wall and another wall of the hopper are nonparallel walls and wherein a first distance between the nonparallel walls at an entrance to the hopper for the powder material is wider relative to a second distance between the nonparallel walls at the opening, the opening being an exit from the hopper for the powder material.

9 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the given wall is coupled to a vibratory actuator configured to vibrate the given wall.

10 . The metering apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the vibratory actuator is coupled to a mechanical component mounted to the given wall to cause lateral motion of the given wall via the mechanical component.

11 . The metering apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the mechanical component is a push rod and the vibratory actuator is a linear voice coil.

12 . The metering apparatus of claim 9 , further comprising a lateral motion support coupled to the given wall for support and configured to flex during operation of the vibratory actuator in response to vibration of the given wall, wherein the vibratory actuator is coupled to a mechanical component mounted to the given wall to cause lateral motion of the given wall, the lateral motion support further configured to restrict motion of the given wall, substantially, to the lateral motion.

13 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the tool is configured to contact the given wall.

14 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the given wall includes a chamfer configured to enable the tool to reach the powder material as the powder material emerges from the hopper at the given wall due to the rotation of the metering roller.

15 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising at least two seals located at opposite ends of the given wall, the at least two seals coupled to an interior surface of the given wall and arranged to prevent the powder material from leaking out of the hopper due to lateral motion of the given wall.

16 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the metering roller is located above a leveler configured to traverse a powder bed in a traversal direction and the tool is further configured to force flow of the powder material off the metering roller to deposit a metered amount of the powder material onto the powder bed in front of the leveler in the traversal direction.

17 . The metering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the tool is a wire.

18 . A method for metering a powder material in a three-dimensional (3D) printing system, the method comprising:
containing a powder material with walls of a hopper defining an opening sized and positioned to enable the powder material to flow therethrough; rotating a metering roller located beneath the opening of the hopper, the metering roller and a given wall of the walls of the hopper spaced apart by a gap therebetween at the opening, the gap in combination with the rotating of the metering roller causing a flow of the powder material to flow from under the given wall of the hopper at a substantially predictable rate; and forcing flow of the powder material off of the metering roller via a tool at the substantially predictable rate to supply the 3D printing system with the powder material for printing a 3D object, the tool positioned at the given wall where the flow emerges due to the rotation.

19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the tool spans at least a portion of a length of the metering roller, and the method further comprises moving the tool in a manner that forces flow of the powder material off the metering roller, and wherein the moving includes rotating the tool.

20 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising supporting the tool with a support rail that spans at least a portion of a length of the tool.

21 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising moving the tool via a motor and wherein the movement includes rotating the tool, and wherein the rotating includes counter-rotating the tool relative to the rotating of the metering roller.

22 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising driving the given wall with a vibratory actuator configured to vibrate the given wall.

23 . The method of claim 22 , wherein the vibratory actuator is coupled to a mechanical component mounted to the given wall and wherein the method further comprises activating the vibratory actuator to cause lateral motion of the given wall via the mechanical component, the lateral motion being in a direction parallel to an axis of rotation of the metering roller.

24 . The method of claim 22 , further comprising flexing a lateral motion support, coupled to the given wall, during operation of the vibratory actuator, the lateral motion support configured to restrict motion of the given wall, substantially, to lateral motion in a direction parallel to an axis of rotation of the metering roller.

25 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising contacting the powder material with the tool via a chamfer in the given wall as the powder material emerges from the hopper at the given wall due to the rotation of the metering roller.

26 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising contacting the metering roller with the tool.

27 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising preventing, via at le

Assignees

• Desktop Metal Inc

Inventors

• Sachs Emanuel M
• Zero Midnight

Classifications

• B22F12/63

  Rollers · CPC title

• B22F12/17

  to heat the build chamber or platform · CPC title

• B22F10/14

  by jetting of binder onto a bed of metal powder · CPC title

• B22F12/57

  Metering means · CPC title

• B22F12/222

  for motion along a direction orthogonal to the plane of a layer · CPC title