Liquid heating method for 3D printer and 3D printed product

Abstract

The present invention proposes a 3D printer and a method for heating liquid of a 3D printed product using the 3D printer. The 3D printer includes a printing component, a liquid storage box, and a driving component. The printing component includes a print head and a printing platform, and the print head is arranged above the printing platform; the liquid storage box is also provided with a heating element for heating liquid, and an opening is arranged at the upper end of the liquid storage box, and the printing platform is arranged corresponding to the opening; the driving component includes a first driving element and a second driving element, and the first driving element is connected to the print head so that the print head manufactures a 3D printed product on the printing platform; the second driving element is used to drive the printing platform to move from the opening toward the bottom of the liquid storage box. In this way, the present invention solves the problems of difficulty in degreasing and low heating efficiency of 3D printers in the prior art.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of 3D printing, and in particular to a 3D printer and a liquid heating method for a 3D printed product. Background Art

[0002] In the existing 3D printing technology based on metal melt extrusion molding, the printed product needs to be degreased in a degreasing furnace and then sintered. Among them, the degreasing process is to place the printed product in a degreasing solution and remove the bonding polymer in the printed product by extraction. At present, both the printing process and the degreasing process face the problems of long time and low efficiency. Secondly, the degreasing process is restricted by the volume and thickness of the printed product, so that the degreasing process cannot effectively degrease products with larger volumes and thicker walls in a short time. In addition, in the existing 3D printing technology, the 3D printed product needs to be heated. The current product heating methods mainly include infrared lamp heating, cavity hot air heating and other heating methods. However, the above heating methods all have various shortcomings and it is difficult to achieve effective heating. That is, in the prior art, 3D printed products have the problem of difficult effective degreasing and poor heating effect. Summary of the invention

[0003] The present invention provides a 3D printer and a liquid heating method for a 3D printed product using the 3D printer, aiming to solve the problem in the prior art that 3D printed products are difficult to effectively degrease and heat.

[0004] To solve the above problems, the present invention proposes a 3D printer, which includes a printing component, a liquid containing box, and a driving component. The printing component includes a print head and a printing platform, and the print head is arranged above the printing platform; the liquid containing box is also provided with a heating element for heating the liquid, and an opening is provided at the upper end of the liquid containing box, and the printing platform is arranged corresponding to the opening; the driving component includes a first driving element and a second driving element, the first driving element is connected to the print head so that the print head manufactures a 3D printed product on the printing platform; the second driving element is used to drive the printing platform to move from the opening toward the bottom of the liquid containing box.

[0005] In one embodiment, the print head is disposed above the printing platform, the second driving member is disposed below the printing platform, and the second driving member drives the printing platform to move downward.

[0006] In one embodiment, the second driving member includes a lifting shaft and a linear module, one end of the lifting shaft is connected to the bottom of the printing platform, and the other end passes through the bottom of the liquid containing box and is connected to the linear module, and the linear module drives the printing platform to move up and down through the lifting shaft.

[0007] In one embodiment, the 3D printer further comprises a first support member, a second support member, and a third support member, wherein the first support member is used to support the liquid containing box, the second support member is used to support the lifting shaft, and the third support member is used to support the linear module.

[0008] In one embodiment, the 3D printer further comprises a flange, a first through hole is provided on the liquid containing box, a second through hole is provided on the flange, the lifting shaft passes through the first through hole, the second through hole and the second support member in sequence, the flange is connected to the liquid containing box, and a first seal is provided at the connection between the flange and the liquid containing box, and a second seal is provided between the inner wall of the second through hole and the lifting shaft.

[0009] In one embodiment, a bubbling interface is further provided on the liquid containing box, and the bubbling interface is used for connecting a bubbling device to make the liquid in the liquid containing box flow.

[0010] In one embodiment, the liquid containing box is further provided with a liquid discharge port.

[0011] In one embodiment, the liquid contained in the liquid containing box is water or oil or a degreasing solution.

[0012] The present invention also proposes a liquid heating method for a 3D printed product. The liquid heating structure of the 3D printed product includes a print head, a printing platform, a liquid containing box provided with a heating element, a first driving element, and a second driving element. The specific steps of the liquid heating method for the 3D printed product are as follows:

[0013] Detect power-on signal;

[0014] Controlling the heating element to heat the liquid in the liquid containing box to a preset temperature;

[0015] Controlling the first driving member to drive the print head to extrude printing material, and printing the 3D printed product layer by layer on the printing platform;

[0016] After a layer of 3D printed product is printed, the second driving member is controlled to drive the printing platform to move downward by one layer height.

[0017] In one embodiment, the liquid containing box is provided with a bubbling interface, and after detecting a power-on signal, the bubbling device is controlled to connect to the bubbling interface so that the liquid in the liquid containing box is in a flowing state.

[0018] Thus, the present invention proposes a 3D printer and a liquid heating method for 3D printed products. Specifically, the method solves the problems in the prior art that 3D printed products are difficult to degrease and the heating effect is poor during 3D printing by heating the liquid while printing. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on the structures shown in these drawings without paying creative work.

[0020] Figure 1 A schematic structural diagram of an embodiment of the 3D printer proposed by the present invention;

[0021] Figure 2 for Figure 1 The enlarged view of point A in the middle;

[0022] Figure 3 for Figure 1 The enlarged view of point B in the middle;

[0023] Figure 4 This is a flow chart of the liquid heating method for 3D printed products proposed by the present invention;

[0024] Figure 5 for Figure 4 A flow chart of another embodiment of a method for heating liquid in a 3D printed product.

[0025] Description of Figure Numbers:

[0026] Label name Label name 100 3D Printer 11 Print Head 12 Printing platform 20 Liquid storage box 21 Heating element 22 Bubble interface 23 drain port 24 Flange 25a First seal 25b Second seal 31a Lifting axis 31b Linear module 32a First support member 32b Second support member 32c The third support

[0027] The realization of the purpose, functional features and advantages of the present invention will be further explained in conjunction with embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0029] It should be noted that if the embodiments of the present invention involve directional indications (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, etc.), the directional indications are only used to explain the relative position relationship, movement status, etc. between the components under a certain specific posture (as shown in the accompanying drawings). If the specific posture changes, the directional indication will also change accordingly.

[0030] In addition, if there are descriptions involving "first", "second", etc. in the embodiments of the present invention, the descriptions of "first", "second", etc. are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying their relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In addition, if the meaning of "and / or" appearing in the full text is to include three parallel schemes, taking "A and / or B" as an example, it includes scheme A, or scheme B, or a scheme that satisfies both A and B. In addition, the technical solutions between the various embodiments can be combined with each other, but it must be based on the ability of ordinary technicians in this field to implement. When the combination of technical solutions is contradictory or cannot be implemented, it should be deemed that such a combination of technical solutions does not exist and is not within the scope of protection required by the present invention.

[0031] In the existing 3D printing technology based on metal melt extrusion molding, the printed product needs to be degreased in a degreasing furnace before sintering. Among them, the degreasing process is to place the printed product in a degreasing solution and remove the bonding polymer in the printed product by extraction. At present, both the printing process and the degreasing process face the problems of long time and low efficiency. Secondly, the degreasing process is restricted by the volume and thickness of the printed product, so that the degreasing process cannot effectively degrease products with larger volumes and thicker walls in a short time.

[0032] In addition, in the 3D printing process, in order to solve problems such as product warping and cracking, many 3D printing technologies require constant temperature heating of the printed product. At present, the fused deposition modeling (FDM) technology, laser selective melting (SLM) technology, metal laser molten deposition (LDMD) technology, etc. in 3D printing all need to heat the product when printing large products and high-temperature materials such as PEEK. The current product heating methods mainly include infrared lamp heating and cavity hot air heating. Among them, infrared lamp heating has the advantages of fast heating speed and high heating temperature, but it has the insurmountable disadvantages of uneven heating and high local temperature. It cannot effectively heat the area that cannot be directly irradiated; cavity hot air heating can solve the problem of uneven temperature in the cavity of small equipment, but when used in the cavity of large equipment, there are still problems such as large temperature difference between the upper and lower parts and high cavity insulation cost.

[0033] See also Figure 1The present invention proposes a 3D printer 100, which includes a printing component, a liquid containing tank 20, and a driving component. The printing component includes a print head 11 and a printing platform 12, and the print head 11 is arranged above the printing platform 12; the liquid containing tank 20 is also provided with a heating element 21 for heating the liquid, and an opening is provided at the upper end of the liquid containing tank 20, and the printing platform 12 is arranged corresponding to the opening; the driving component includes a first driving element and a second driving element, the first driving element is connected to the print head 11, so that the print head 11 manufactures a 3D printed product on the printing platform 12; the second driving element is used to drive the printing platform 12 to move from the opening toward the bottom of the liquid containing tank 20.

[0034] See also Figure 1 The present invention proposes a 3D printer 100 with a special structure, so that during the 3D printing process, the 3D printed product can be heated by liquid or soaked in a degreasing solution, that is, printing and heating or printing and degreasing. Specifically, a bubbling interface 22 is also provided on the liquid containing box 20. The specific working process of the 3D printer 100 is as follows: according to different needs, the liquid containing box 20 is filled with degreasing liquid or heated liquid, the heating element 21 is controlled to heat the liquid in the box to a preset temperature, the first driving element is controlled to drive the print head 11 to extrude the printing material, and the 3D printed product is printed layer by layer on the printing platform 12; after a layer of 3D printed product is printed, the second driving element is controlled to drive the printing platform 12 to move downward by one layer height, and the printed layer of 3D printed product is immersed in the liquid in the liquid containing box 20 for liquid heating or soaking in a degreasing solution. In addition, the bubbling interface 22 is used for the connection of the bubbling device to make the liquid in the liquid containing box 20 in a flowing state, thereby improving the uniformity of the temperature in each area.

[0035] Compared with infrared lamp heating, this example has higher temperature uniformity; compared with hot air heating, this example can meet larger equipment size requirements and simplify the equipment cavity structure while having higher temperature uniformity, reducing equipment sealing and insulation costs. At the same time, the 3D printer 100 also solves the problems of long process time and low efficiency in 3D printing technology based on metal melt extrusion molding. This example shortens the process time by integrating the printing process and the degreasing process, and avoids the problem of not being able to quickly and effectively degrease large-volume and thick-walled products during the degreasing process by degreasing while printing, greatly reducing the process time and improving the degreasing effect and degreasing efficiency.

[0036] See also Figure 1In one embodiment, the print head 11 is disposed above the printing platform 12, the second driving member is disposed below the printing platform 12, and the second driving member drives the printing platform 12 to move downward. Specifically, the first driving member is used to drive the movement of the print head 11 in each printing layer according to preset data. After a printing layer is printed, the second driving member drives the printing platform 12 to move downward, immerses the printed layer in liquid, and the first driving member drives the print head 11 to start printing a new printing layer, and repeats the above process after printing is completed. In addition, the relative positions of the print head 11 and the printing platform 12 can also be changed according to actual needs. The above is only an optional embodiment of the relative positions of the print head 11 and the printing platform 12, and does not limit their specific positions.

[0037] See also Figure 1 In one embodiment, the second driving member includes a lifting shaft 31a and a linear module 31b, one end of the lifting shaft 31a is connected to the bottom of the printing platform 12, and the other end passes through the bottom of the liquid containing box 20 and is connected to the linear module 31b, and the linear module 31b drives the printing platform 12 to move up and down through the lifting shaft 31a. In one embodiment, the linear module 31b is a servo motor module. The servo system (servomechanism), also known as the follow-up system, is a feedback control system used to accurately follow or reproduce a process. The servo system is an automatic control system that enables the output controlled quantities such as the position, orientation, and state of an object to follow any changes in the input target (or given value). Its main task is to amplify, transform, and regulate the power according to the requirements of the control command, so that the torque, speed, and position control output by the drive device are very flexible and convenient. In many cases, the servo system specifically refers to a feedback control system in which the controlled quantity (output of the system) is a mechanical displacement or displacement speed or acceleration, and its function is to make the output mechanical displacement (or rotation angle) accurately track the input displacement (or rotation angle), and its structural composition is no different in principle from other forms of feedback control systems. In this way, it is more conducive to achieving accurate control of the movement stroke of the lifting shaft 31a, thereby ensuring that the liquid in the liquid containing box 20 will not affect the printing layer being printed while soaking the printed layer that has been printed.

[0038] See also Figure 1In one embodiment, the 3D printer 100 further includes a first support member 31a, a second support member 31b, and a third support member 31c. The first support member 31a is used to support the liquid storage box 20, the second support member 31b is used to support the lifting shaft 31a, and the third support member 31c is used to support the linear module 31b. The first support member 31a, the second support member 31b, and the third support member 31c are provided to increase the stability of the 3D printer 100 during operation. Further, the 3D printer 100 includes two symmetrically arranged first support members 31a, so that the two first support members 31a and the lifting shaft 31a jointly support the bottom of the liquid storage box 20. Further, the first support member 31a is a support column, and the second support member 31b is a support plate, which is used to support the bottom end of the lifting shaft 31a, and the support plate is provided with a through hole for the first support member 31a to pass through. And the two ends of the support plate are respectively fixed to the two linear modules 31b. The third support member 31c is a support guard plate disposed on the side of the linear module 31b and used to increase the stability of the linear module 31b.

[0039] See also Figure 3 In one embodiment, the 3D printer 100 further includes a flange 24, a first through hole is provided on the liquid containing box 20, a second through hole is provided on the flange 24, the lifting shaft 31a passes through the first through hole, the second through hole and the second support member 31b in sequence, the flange 24 is connected to the liquid containing box 20, and a first sealing member 25a is provided at the connection between the flange 24 and the liquid containing box 20, and a second sealing member 25b is provided between the inner wall of the second through hole and the lifting shaft 31a. It is worth noting that the lifting shaft 31a passes through the bottom end of the box body and is connected to the printing platform 12, and when the 3D printer 100 is working, the liquid containing box 20 is filled with liquid. In order to prevent liquid leakage, the sealing of the liquid containing box 20 is particularly important. We also provide a flange 24 that has both sealing and strengthening support functions. A first sealing member 25a is provided between the flange 24 and the liquid containing box 20, and a second sealing member 25b is provided between the flange 24 and the lifting shaft 31a. Optionally, the second sealing member 25b is a plurality of O-rings.

[0040] See also Figure 2 In one embodiment, the liquid containing box 20 is further provided with a bubbling interface 22, and the bubbling interface 22 is used for connecting a bubbling device to make the liquid in the liquid containing box 20 flow. When the liquid in the liquid containing box 20 is in the containing state, the temperature of each area inside the liquid is more uniform, which can achieve a better liquid heating effect or degreasing effect.

[0041] See also Figure 2 In one embodiment, the heating element 21 and the bubbling interface 22 are both arranged near the bottom of the liquid containing box 20. Such an arrangement is to heat as much liquid in the box as possible or to make as much liquid in the box as possible flow. Thus, the liquid in the box is fully heated and the temperature distribution is relatively uniform. In an optional embodiment, the liquid containing box 20 includes two symmetrically arranged bubbling structures and two symmetrically arranged heating elements 21.

[0042] In one embodiment, the liquid storage box 20 is further provided with a liquid discharge port 23. However, due to the large volume of the liquid storage box 20, it is difficult to discharge the liquid in the liquid storage box 20 by pouring. Therefore, we provide a liquid discharge port 23 on the liquid storage box 20. When the 3D printer 100 is working, the liquid storage box 20 is filled with liquid, and the liquid discharge port 23 is in a sealed state. When it is necessary to discharge the liquid in the box, it is only necessary to open the liquid discharge port 23 to discharge the liquid in the box. Optionally, the liquid discharge port 23 is provided at the bottom of the liquid storage box 20.

[0043] In one embodiment, the liquid contained in the liquid container 20 is water or oil or degreasing solution. The degreasing solution is used for degreasing 3D printed products, and in the degreasing process, the degreasing solution needs to be heated to a certain extent for better degreasing effect. Oil or water has good thermal conductivity and is suitable for layer-by-layer liquid heating of 3D printed products.

[0044] See also Figure 4 The present invention also proposes a liquid heating method for a 3D printed product. The liquid heating structure of the 3D printed product includes a print head 11, a printing platform 12, a liquid containing box 20 provided with a heating element 21, a first driving element, and a second driving element. The specific steps of the liquid heating method for the 3D printed product are as follows:

[0045] Step S10, detecting a power-on signal;

[0046] Step S20, controlling the heating element 21 to heat the liquid in the liquid containing tank 20 to a preset temperature;

[0047] Step S30, controlling the first driving member to drive the print head 11 to extrude the printing material, and printing the 3D printed product layer by layer on the printing platform 12;

[0048] Step S40, after a layer of 3D printed product is printed, the second driving member is controlled to drive the printing platform 12 to move downward by one layer height.

[0049] In this way, the method realizes liquid heating or degreasing of the product during 3D printing, thereby improving the production efficiency of 3D printed products.

[0050] See also Figure 5 In one embodiment, the liquid containing box 20 is provided with a bubbling interface 22, and the liquid heating method of the 3D product further comprises step S50, that is, after detecting the power-on signal, controlling the bubbling device to connect to the bubbling interface 22, so that the liquid in the liquid containing box 20 is in a flowing state. When the liquid in the box is in a flowing state, the temperature distribution of the liquid in the liquid containing box 20 is more uniform, and a better liquid heating effect can be obtained.

[0051] The above descriptions are only optional embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the patent scope of the present invention. All equivalent structural changes made using the contents of the present invention's specification and drawings, or directly / indirectly applied in other related technical fields, are included in the patent protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A 3D printer, characterized in that: include: A printing assembly, comprising a printing head and a printing platform, wherein the printing head is arranged above the printing platform; A liquid containing box, wherein the liquid containing box is further provided with a heating element for heating the liquid, an opening is provided at the upper end of the liquid containing box, and the printing platform is provided corresponding to the opening; A driving assembly, comprising a first driving member and a second driving member, wherein the first driving member is connected to the print head so that the print head manufactures a 3D printed product on the printing platform; and the second driving member is used to drive the printing platform to move from the opening toward the bottom of the liquid containing box; The second driving member includes a lifting shaft and a linear module, one end of the lifting shaft is connected to the bottom of the printing platform, and the other end passes through the bottom of the liquid containing box and is connected to the linear module, and the linear module drives the printing platform to move up and down through the lifting shaft; The 3D printer further comprises a first support member, a second support member and a third support member, wherein the first support member is used to support the liquid containing box, the second support member is used to support the lifting shaft, and the third support member is used to support the linear module; The 3D printer further comprises a flange, a first through hole is provided on the liquid containing box, a second through hole is provided on the flange, the lifting shaft passes through the first through hole, the second through hole and the second supporting member in sequence, the flange is connected to the liquid containing box, and a first sealing member is provided at the connection between the flange and the liquid containing box, and a second sealing member is provided between the inner wall of the second through hole and the lifting shaft; The liquid containing box is also provided with a bubbling interface, and the bubbling interface is used for connecting a bubbling device so that the liquid in the liquid containing box is in a flowing state.

2. The 3D printer according to claim 1, characterized in that: The print head is arranged above the printing platform, the second driving member is arranged below the printing platform, and the second driving member drives the printing platform to move downward.

3. The 3D printer according to claim 1, wherein: The liquid containing box is also provided with a liquid discharge port.

4. The 3D printer according to claim 1, wherein: The liquid contained in the liquid containing box is water, oil or degreasing solution.

5. A method for heating liquid of a 3D printed product using a 3D printer as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The specific steps of the liquid heating method of the 3D printed product are as follows: Detect power-on signal; Controlling the heating element to heat the liquid in the liquid containing box to a preset temperature; Controlling the first driving member to drive the print head to extrude printing material, and printing the 3D printed product layer by layer on the printing platform; After a layer of 3D printed product is printed, controlling the second driving member to drive the printing platform to move downward by one layer height; The liquid containing box is provided with a bubbling interface. After detecting a power-on signal, the bubbling device is controlled to be connected to the bubbling interface so that the liquid in the liquid containing box is in a flowing state.

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