An automatic material changing device for a 3D printer capable of uninterrupted printing

Abstract

An automatic material changing device for a 3D printer capable of uninterrupted printing comprises a main mounting seat, on which an extrusion motor, a telescopic motor and a connecting sleeve are respectively installed, an active extrusion wheel is installed on the extrusion motor, a passive friction wheel and a traction arm are installed on the telescopic motor, a consumable guide tube and a consumable conveying tube are respectively installed on the upper and lower ends of the connecting sleeve, a waist-shaped long slot hole is provided at the bottom of the main mounting seat, and the connecting sleeve is installed in the waist-shaped long slot hole at the bottom of the main mounting seat, and under the action of a control unit, the telescopic motor can drive the traction arm and the passive friction wheel installed on the motor shaft to move back and forth repeatedly along the axis direction of the telescopic motor. Compared with the prior art, the present invention can realize automatic material changing under the premise of uninterrupted printing when the consumables are exhausted, which reduces the labor intensity of the operator and ensures the printing success rate and printing quality.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of 3D printing rapid prototyping, and in particular to an automatic material changing device for a 3D printer capable of uninterrupted printing. Background Art

[0002] With the maturity and development of 3D printing technology, 3D printers are being used in more and more occasions. The most popular 3D printers on the market are those based on the fused deposition modeling (FDM) process. This type of printer uses high temperature to melt the linear consumables, and then extrude them through the nozzle according to the predetermined trajectory, and finally cools and solidifies them into shape. The consumables used by 3D printers based on the FDM process are generally roll-wound material trays, and the weight of a single roll is mainly 1kg. When the consumables are running out, the customer needs to manually replace the new material tray in advance. During the use of the operator, it is often encountered that the machine is empty after the consumables are exhausted due to failure to replace the material tray in time, and the model is scrapped; or due to the midway shutdown to change materials, the model has obvious splicing marks at the material change position, which affects the appearance quality and strength of the model. In response to this situation, many patents have proposed various solutions, but these methods are either too complicated in structure, or during the automatic material changing process, the machine needs to pause printing, reverse the extruder, and eject the remaining section of material in the material tube before the new material can be introduced. Therefore, it is impossible to achieve true uninterrupted printing and automatic material changing. Summary of the invention

[0003] In view of the above situation, the present invention proposes an automatic material changing device for a 3D printer that can print uninterruptedly, which aims to realize automatic monitoring and material changing after the consumables are exhausted. Moreover, during the material changing process, the spare consumables can be directly connected to the back of the residual consumables inside the consumable duct, and the wire is continuously fed to the printing nozzle, thereby achieving the effect that the printer can print uninterruptedly throughout the whole process.

[0004] To achieve the above object, the technical solution of the present invention is achieved as follows:

[0005] An automatic material changing device for a 3D printer capable of uninterrupted printing comprises a main mounting seat, on which an extrusion motor, a telescopic motor and a connecting ferrule are respectively mounted, an active extrusion wheel is mounted on the extrusion motor, a passive friction wheel and a traction arm are mounted on the telescopic motor, a consumable guide tube and a consumable conveying tube are respectively mounted on the upper and lower ends of the connecting ferrule, a waist-shaped long slot hole is provided at the bottom of the main mounting seat, and the connecting ferrule is mounted in the waist-shaped long slot hole at the bottom of the main mounting seat, and under the action of a control unit, the telescopic motor can drive the traction arm and the passive friction wheel mounted on the output shaft to move back and forth repeatedly along the axial direction of the telescopic motor.

[0006] Preferably, the active extrusion wheel is fixedly connected to the output shaft of the extrusion motor and can rotate synchronously with the motor shaft, and main grooves and auxiliary grooves are evenly distributed on the active extrusion wheel.

[0007] Preferably, the passive friction is fixed on the output shaft of the telescopic motor in the axial direction and can rotate freely around the axis of the telescopic motor in the circumferential direction. A sensor for monitoring the rotation speed of the passive friction wheel itself is installed in the passive friction wheel. The surface of the passive friction wheel is designed with a toothed structure for increasing the friction of the consumables, and the toothed structure has bevel angles for guidance at both ends.

[0008] Preferably, one end of the traction arm is fixedly connected to the output shaft of the telescopic motor, and the other end is fixedly connected to the consumable guide tube.

[0009] Preferably, the upper end of the consumable guide tube is designed to be a guiding trumpet-shaped tube to facilitate the entry of consumables.

[0010] Preferably, the consumable guide tube and the consumable delivery tube are respectively inserted into the upper and lower ends of the connecting sleeve, and the axes of the consumable guide tube and the consumable delivery tube coincide with each other.

[0011] The beneficial effect of the present invention lies in that, through the use of the present invention, the printer can automatically monitor the use of consumables during operation by using a special passive friction wheel, and automatically switch to a spare material roll for printing when the consumables are exhausted. In addition, during the switching process, the 3D printer does not need to stop and wait, nor does it need to reversely withdraw the remaining consumables in the nozzle, thereby achieving truly uninterrupted automatic material replacement, which reduces the labor intensity of the operator and ensures the printing success rate and printing quality.

[0012] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the main groove consumable of the present invention when it is working.

[0014] Figure 2 It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of the main groove consumable of the present invention when working.

[0015] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the auxiliary groove consumable of the present invention when it is working.

[0016] Figure 4 It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of the auxiliary groove consumable of the present invention when working.

[0017] Description of Figure Numbers.

[0018] 1-main mounting seat; 2-extrusion motor; 3-telescopic motor; 4-connecting sleeve; 5-active extrusion wheel; 6-passive friction wheel; 7-traction arm; 101-waist-shaped long slot hole; 401-filament guide tube; 402-filament conveying tube; 501-main groove; 502-auxiliary groove. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments, but they are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0020] As shown in the figure, an automatic material changing device for a 3D printer capable of uninterrupted printing comprises a main mounting seat 1, on which an extrusion motor 2, a telescopic motor 3 and a connecting sleeve 4 are respectively mounted, an active extrusion wheel 5 is mounted on the extrusion motor 2, a passive friction wheel 6 and a traction arm 7 are mounted on the telescopic motor, a consumable guide tube 401 and a consumable conveying tube 402 are respectively mounted on the upper and lower ends of the connecting sleeve 4, a waist-shaped long slot hole 101 is opened at the bottom of the main mounting seat, and the connecting sleeve 4 is mounted in the waist-shaped long slot hole 101 at the bottom of the main mounting seat 1, and under the action of a control signal, the telescopic motor 3 can drive the traction arm 7 and the passive friction wheel 6 mounted on the output shaft to move back and forth repeatedly along the axial direction of the telescopic motor 3.

[0021] Preferably, the active extrusion wheel 5 is fixedly connected to the output shaft of the extrusion motor 2 and can rotate synchronously with the motor shaft, and the active extrusion wheel 5 is evenly distributed with main grooves 501 and auxiliary grooves 502 .

[0022] Preferably, the passive friction wheel 6 is fixed on the output shaft of the telescopic motor 3 in the axial direction, and can rotate freely around the axis of the telescopic motor 3 in the circumferential direction. A sensor for monitoring the rotation speed of the passive friction wheel 6 is installed in the passive friction wheel 6. The surface of the passive friction wheel 6 is designed with a toothed structure for increasing the friction of the consumables, and the toothed structure has bevel angles at both ends for guidance.

[0023] Preferably, one end of the traction arm 7 is fixedly connected to the output shaft of the telescopic motor 3 , and the other end is fixedly connected to the consumable guide tube 401 .

[0024] Preferably, the upper end of the consumable guide tube 401 is designed to be a guiding trumpet shape to facilitate the entry of consumables.

[0025] Preferably, the consumable guide tube 401 and the consumable delivery tube 402 are respectively inserted into the upper and lower ends of the connecting sleeve 4, and the axes of the consumable guide tube 401 and the consumable delivery tube 402 coincide with each other.

[0026] When the embodiment of the present invention is working, the main and auxiliary grooves of the active extrusion wheel are pre-loaded with printing consumables. Assuming that the consumables in the main groove are used for printing first, the telescopic motor is in an extended state at this time, and the passive friction wheel is in a position matching the main groove. Through the joint action of the main groove and the passive friction wheel, the consumables in the main groove are transported downward, through the consumable guide tube and the consumable transport tube, and finally reach the printing position of the nozzle; when the consumables in the main groove are used up, the sensor inside the passive friction wheel detects that the passive friction wheel stops rotating, and the control unit issues an action command, and the telescopic motor is instantly switched from the extended state to the contracted state, and drives the telescopic motor to move from the extended state to the contracted state. The passive friction wheel and the traction arm installed on the telescopic motor shaft move synchronously (the traction arm drives the filament guide tube and the connecting card slot and the filament delivery tube connected to the filament guide tube to move along the waist-shaped long slot hole on the main mounting seat), and the passive friction wheel switches to a position that matches the auxiliary groove on the active extrusion wheel. Under the joint action of the auxiliary groove and the passive friction wheel, the pre-installed filament in the auxiliary groove moves downward and automatically docks with the end of the main groove filament that has been exhausted before, continuously supplying the filament to the print nozzle. During this process, the 3D printer has been maintaining a normal and uninterrupted printing state without stopping to wait, nor does it need to reverse the extrusion motor or return the material.

[0027] The embodiment of the present invention has a simple structure and a reasonable design. It can automatically detect when the consumables are exhausted and automatically switch to new consumables without stopping for waiting or manual operation, thereby reducing the labor intensity of the operator and ensuring the success rate and printing quality of the model.

[0028] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and does not limit the implementation mode and protection scope of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, it should be aware that all solutions obtained by equivalent substitutions and obvious changes made using the description and illustrations of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An automatic material changing device for a 3D printer capable of uninterrupted printing, characterized in that: It comprises a main mounting seat, on which an extrusion motor, a telescopic motor and a connecting sleeve are respectively mounted, an active extrusion wheel is mounted on the extrusion motor, the active extrusion wheel is fixedly connected to the output shaft of the extrusion motor, the active extrusion wheel and the output shaft of the extrusion motor rotate synchronously, and main grooves and auxiliary grooves are evenly distributed on the active extrusion wheel, a passive friction wheel and a traction arm are mounted on the telescopic motor, the passive friction wheel is fixed to the output shaft of the telescopic motor in the axial direction, and rotates freely around the axis of the telescopic motor in the circumferential direction, and a device for monitoring the speed of the passive friction wheel itself is installed in the passive friction wheel The sensor of the passive friction wheel is designed with a toothed structure for increasing the friction of the consumables, and the toothed structure is provided with guiding bevels at both ends. One end of the traction arm is fixedly connected to the output shaft of the telescopic motor, and the upper and lower ends of the connecting sleeve are respectively provided with a consumable guide tube and a consumable conveying tube, and the other end of the traction arm is fixedly connected to the consumable guide tube. A waist-shaped long slot hole is provided at the bottom of the main mounting seat, and the connecting sleeve is installed in the waist-shaped long slot hole at the bottom of the main mounting seat. Under the action of the control unit, the telescopic motor drives the traction arm and the passive friction wheel to move back and forth repeatedly along the axial direction of the telescopic motor.

2. The automatic material changing device for a 3D printer capable of uninterrupted printing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The upper end of the consumable guide tube is designed to be in a guiding trumpet shape to facilitate the entry of consumables.

3. The automatic material changing device for a 3D printer capable of uninterrupted printing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The axes of the consumable guide tube and the consumable conveying tube coincide with each other.

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