Method and apparatus for modeling and designing multi-dimensional cellular structures for additive manufacturing

Abstract

Modeling, constructing, and designing conformal cellular structures with spatially variable and graded microstructures that have full geometric continuity is disclosed, which includes defining a global structural domain, where the microstructures are generated for a global mesh, defining a unit structure as a base cell using a level set function, which allows for beams, trusses, shells, and solids, transforming and mapping the base cell into each element of the global mesh using an isoparametric transformation, which creates a conformal cellular structure in accordance with a set of requirements on distribution of material and / or mechanical properties, and applying a global cutting function to guarantee geometric continuity in connections on the common face of any two neighboring cells ofthe structure. As a result, more complex geometric shapes and features can be generated at the cell level, while maintaining the specified geometric connectivity across the cells of the structure.

Description

[0001] Inventors: Michael Wang Yu and Wang Yiqiang [0002] Cross References to Related Applications [0003] This application claims priority to US Provisional Application Serial No. 62 / 606,512, filed September 27, 2017, entitled "Methods for Modeling and Designing Three-Dimensional Cellular Structures for Additive Manufacturing." The entire content of this provisional application is hereby incorporated by reference. technical field [0004] The present disclosure relates generally to structural design and additive manufacturing. For example, a technique is provided for modeling and designing conformal cellular structures consisting of spatially variable gradient distributed and continuously connected microstructures for additive manufacturing. Background technique [0005] Cellular porous structures are generally defined as three-dimensional (3-D) structures composed of low-scale microstructures whose geometric features can span several orders of magnitude from tens of n...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

However, the expressive power of these traditional methods is severely limited in characterizing changes in general microstructures

Therefore, existing methods and devices can only provide limited benefits in terms of mechanical and structural properties as well as realized structural design functions

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