Three-dimensional shaping device and three-dimensional shaping method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9744692-B2
Application number	US-201313867271-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 22, 2013
Priority date	Nov 1, 2010
Publication date	Aug 29, 2017
Grant date	Aug 29, 2017

Abstract

Control means performs control such that a head section 20 is caused to perform reciprocating scanning in one direction, a model material MA and a supporting material SA are ejected onto a shaping plate 40 , and the model material MA and/or the supporting material SA are cured in at least any one of forward and backward paths of the reciprocating scanning, to form slices, and relative positions of the shaping plate 40 and the head section 20 are moved in a height direction to repeat lamination of the slices, thereby performing shaping, and on a line where the model material MA and the supporting material SA are located in a scanning direction of a shaped object, the model material MA and the supporting material SA are not simultaneously ejected during the same reciprocating scanning, but only one shaping material can be ejected and cured.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A three-dimensional shaping device, which repeats an operation of ejecting, onto a shaping plate, a model material (MA) that forms a final shaped object and a supporting material (SA) that supports an overhang portion of the model material (MA) and is finally removed, as shaping materials while scanning in at least one direction, and curing the shaping materials, to form slices having a predetermined thickness in a height direction, and laminates the slices in the height direction, thereby performing shaping, the device comprising:
the shaping plate for placing a shaped object thereon;
shaping material ejecting device, in which a plurality of model material ejection nozzles for ejecting the model material (MA) and a plurality of supporting material ejection nozzles for ejecting the supporting material (SA) are arranged in one direction,
curing device for curing the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA);
a roller section comprising a roller body for pressing the shaping material, which has been ejected onto the shaping plate, in an uncured state;
a head section provided with the shaping material ejecting device, the roller section, and the curing device in this sequence, wherein the roller section is arranged in front of the curing device with respect to a traveling direction of the head section, wherein the roller body is rotatable in a reverse direction to the traveling direction of the head section;
horizontal driving device for causing the head section perform reciprocating scanning in a horizontal direction;
vertical driving device for moving relative positions in the height direction of the head section and the shaping plate;
control device which controls driving of the horizontal driving device and the vertical driving device and controls ejection of the shaping material by the shaping material ejecting device and curing by the curing device, wherein
the control device is configured to perform control such that the head section is operable to perform reciprocating scanning in one direction having a forward path and a backward path by the horizontal driving device, wherein the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA) are ejectable onto the shaping plate by the shaping material ejecting device in the forward path of the one reciprocating scanning, and excessive ejected model material (MA) and/or the supporting material (SA) are pressable by the roller section in a backward path or a forward path which is different from the forward path in which the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA) are ejected for pressing the surfaces thereof in an uncured state so as to smooth the shaping material surface, and the model material (MA) and/or the supporting material (SA) are curable by the curing device in at least one of forward and backward paths of the reciprocating scanning, to form the slices, and relative positions of the shaping plate and the head section are movable in the height direction to repeat lamination of the slices, thereby performing shaping, and
on a line having a boundary portion where the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA) come into contact with each other and on the line where the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA) are located in a scanning direction of the shaped object, the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA) are not simultaneously ejected during the same reciprocating scanning, but only one shaping material is ejected and cured, and wherein
the control device is further configured to control the shaping material ejecting device, the horizontal driving device, the vertical driving device, and the curing device such that the supporting material (SA) is ejected in an amount larger than the amount of the model material (MA) which is ejected, and the supporting material (SA) is shaped with a resolution lower than a resolution for the model material (MA).

2. The three-dimensional shaping device according to claim 1 , wherein one shaping material of the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA), which is ejected and cured in one reciprocating scanning of the head section, and the other shaping material which is formed on the same line are ejected and cured in a subsequent reciprocating scanning.

3. The three-dimensional shaping device according to claim 1 , wherein the head section ejects and cures one shaping material of the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA) in a successive reciprocating scanning, and thereafter ejects and cures the other shaping material in a next reciprocating scanning.

4. The three-dimensional shaping device according to claim 1 , wherein
the curing device performs curing in the backward path of the one reciprocating scanning.

5. The three-dimensional shaping device according to claim 1 , wherein
the roller section is configured to scan the slice including the cured model material (MA) and the uncured supporting material (SA), and
the uncured supporting material (SA) is ejected from the shaping material ejecting device so as to have a height larger than the cured model material (MA) by an amount corresponding to a predetermined offset amount.

6. The three-dimensional shaping device according to claim 5 , wherein the predetermined offset amount is set in consideration of a distribution of positional displacement in a height direction of the roller section.

7. The three-dimensional shaping device according to claim 5 , wherein the amount corresponding to the offset amount is added to the supporting material (SA) located on a bottom level at each position on XY-planes of the slices successively formed on the shaping plate, and is ejected from the shaping material ejecting device.

8. The three-dimensional shaping device according to claim 1 , wherein
the model material (MA) is a photo-curing resin, and
the curing device is light irradiation device for performing irradiation with light.

9. The three-dimensional shaping device according to claim 1 , wherein the shaping material ejecting device ejects the model material (MA) and the supporting material (SA) such that the materials are spaced from each other.

Assignees

• Keyence Co Ltd

Inventors

• Ikeda Shigeki
• Suzaki Ryohei

Classifications

• B33Y10/00

  Processes of additive manufacturing · CPC title

• B33Y30/00

  Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor · CPC title

• B29C67/0059

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B29C67/0092

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B29C31/042 Primary

  using dispensing heads, e.g. extruders, placed over or apart from the moulds (positioning extruded preforms on conveyors B29C31/085) · CPC title