Feeding device for 3D printers

Abstract

This invention discloses a feeding device for a 3D printer. The feeding device includes: a base configured to move on the ground; a support column fixedly connected to the base and used to hold a raw material tray; and a feeding column rotatably connected to the base and having a through-hole extending along its axis. One end of the feeding column is configured to connect to the through-hole and the 3D printer's feed inlet, and the other end allows a raw material rod to be inserted into the through-hole. The feeding column also contains a welding plate and two sets of rotatable feed rollers. A portion of the outer contour of each feed roller extends into the through-hole to contact and convey the raw material rod downstream. The welding plate has a feeding section and a welding section. The welding section is arranged with several heating wires and configured to weld two raw material rods together. This feeding device can weld two raw material rods together and remove any scabs generated during the welding process.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of 3D printing technology, and in particular to a feeding device for a 3D printer. Background Technology

[0002] 3D printing (3DP), also known as additive manufacturing, is a rapid prototyping technology. It's a technique that uses digital model files as a basis and employs powdered metals or plastics and other bondable materials to construct objects layer by layer. Existing 3D printers use feed rods, which often have gaps at the joint between the two feed rods. This results in gaps in the printed product, making it aesthetically unappealing or even unusable. While welding the two feed rods together to eliminate the gaps can create scabbing that blocks the printer's feed inlet, preventing further operation and impacting printing efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0003] To address the aforementioned technical problems of gaps at the joint of the two front and rear material rods and the scabbing that easily causes blockage of the 3D printer's feed inlet after the two material rods are fused together, the present invention aims to provide an improved feeding device for a 3D printer that can fuse the two front and rear material rods and remove scabbing.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: a feeding device for a 3D printer, the feeding device being used to provide raw material rods to the 3D printer, the feeding device comprising: a base body configured to move on the ground; a support column fixedly connected to the base body, the support column being used to hold a raw material tray; a feeding column rotatably connected to the base body and having a through hole extending through the feeding column along its axial direction, the feeding column being configured such that one end of its end can connect to the through hole and the feed inlet of the 3D printer and the other end can allow a raw material rod to be inserted into the through hole; wherein, the feeding column is further provided with a welding plate and two sets of rotatable feeding wheels inside, a portion of the outer contour surface of each feeding wheel extending into the through hole to contact and convey the raw material rod downstream; the welding plate having a material passage section and a welding section, the welding section being arranged with a plurality of heating wires and configured to weld two raw material rods together through the plurality of heating wires.

[0005] In the above-described technical solution, preferably, the feeding column is further provided with a cooling section, which is connected to the material penetration hole and located downstream of the welding plate, and a cooling pipe is arranged on the cooling section. More preferably, the feeding column is further provided with a scraping plate, which is located downstream of the cooling section and has several through holes, each of which has a scraping port for removing scabs generated during the dry welding of the two raw materials. Even more preferably, each of the through holes has a guide port opposite to the scraping port, the guide port being located upstream of the scraping port, and the diameter of the guide port being larger than the diameter of the scraping port.

[0006] In the above technical solution, preferably, each group of feeding wheels consists of four wheels, with the two groups of feeding wheels located at the upstream and downstream ends of the feeding column, respectively. More preferably, the feeding column has two sets of grooves corresponding to the two groups of feeding wheels, each set of grooves arranged in a cross shape on the outside of the material through hole and communicating with the material through hole, with the feeding wheels installed in the grooves. Even more preferably, each groove contains a pair of thrust springs, each thrust spring abutting against the corresponding feeding wheel and providing a force towards the material through hole.

[0007] In the above technical solution, preferably, the seat includes a lifting column extending in the vertical direction. The lifting column includes a lifting block, a lifting cylinder abutting against the lower end face of the lifting block, and a crossbar fixedly connected to the upper end face of the lifting block. The feeding column is rotatably connected to the crossbar. The lifting cylinder is configured to drive the lifting block, the crossbar, and the feeding column to move up and down together.

[0008] In the above technical solution, preferably, a control panel is also included. The control panel is disposed on the base and coupled to each energy-consuming component of the feeding device. The control panel is used by the user to control the operation of the feeding device.

[0009] In the above technical solution, preferably, the seat is supported on the ground by a number of movable wheels, and each of the movable wheels is provided with a brake pad, which is used to limit the rotation of the movable wheel.

[0010] Compared to existing technologies, this invention offers the following advantages: 1. By rotatably connecting the feed column to the lifting column, it can feed materials for different types of 3D printers. 2. The welding disc can eliminate the gap between the front and rear material rods. 3. The ejector disc removes the scabs generated during the welding of the front and rear material rods, preventing blockage of the 3D printer's feed inlet. Attached Figure Description

[0011] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of the feeding device provided by the present invention;

[0012] Figure 2 for Figure 1 The cross-sectional view at point AA is shown, in which the base has been moved out of the view;

[0013] Figure 3 for Figure 1 The cross-sectional view at point BB is shown, in which the base has been moved out of the view;

[0014] Figure 4 for Figure 1 The cross-sectional view at point CC is shown.

[0015] Figure 5 for Figure 1 The cross-sectional view at DD is shown, in which the scraper disc has been removed from the view;

[0016] Figure 6 This is a cross-sectional view of the welding pad provided by the present invention;

[0017] Figure 7 This is a cross-sectional view of the material rejection disc provided by the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0018] To illustrate the technical content, structural features, achieved objectives, and effects of the invention in detail, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. In the following description, for illustrative purposes, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a detailed description of various exemplary embodiments or implementations of the invention. However, various exemplary embodiments may also be implemented without these specific details or in one or more equivalent arrangements. Furthermore, the various exemplary embodiments may differ, but are not necessarily exclusive. For example, the specific shape, construction, and characteristics of the exemplary embodiments may be used or implemented in another exemplary embodiment without departing from the inventive concept.

[0019] In the following description, the terms "first," "second," etc., are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, a feature defined with "first," "second," etc., may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this application, unless otherwise stated, "a plurality of" means two or more.

[0020] In this article, the term "fusion welding" refers to heating two raw material rods together to a molten state, thereby connecting the two rods into one and eliminating the gap between them.

[0021] In this document, the terms "upstream" or "downstream" refer to upstream or downstream in relation to the direction of movement of the material rod. For example, "the guide port is located upstream of the rejection port" means that, in relation to the direction of movement of the material rod, the guide port is located upstream of the rejection port.

[0022] Furthermore, in this application, spatial relative terms such as “below,” “under,” “below,” “down,” “above,” “above,” “higher,” and “side” (e.g., as in a “sidewall”) are used to describe the relationship between one element and another (other) element as shown in the accompanying drawings. Spatial relative terms are intended to include different orientations of the device in use, operation, and / or manufacture other than those depicted in the drawings. For example, if the device in the drawings is flipped, an element described as “below” or “under” another element or feature would then be positioned “above” said other element or feature. Thus, the exemplary term “below” can include both above and below orientations. Furthermore, the device may be otherwise positioned (e.g., rotated 90 degrees or in other orientations), thus interpreting the spatial relative descriptive terms used herein accordingly.

[0023] In this application, unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, the term "connection" shall be interpreted broadly. For example, "connection" may be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; it may be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium.

[0024] Figure 1The present invention illustrates a feeding device 100 for a 3D printer, which is movable on the ground and provides raw material rods to the corresponding 3D printer. The feeding device 100 includes a movable base 1, a support column 2 for placing a material tray, and a feeding column 3 for feeding the raw material rods to the corresponding 3D printer. The feeding device 100 also includes a control panel 4, which is located on the left end face of the column 12 (see below). The control panel 4 includes a display screen (not shown) and control buttons (not shown) located below the display screen. The display screen displays the operating status of the feeding device 100 to the user, and the control buttons allow the user to operate the feeding device 100.

[0025] The base 1 includes a base 11, a column 12 fixedly connected to the base 11, a lifting column 13 also fixedly connected to the base 11, and four casters 15 for moving the feeding device 100 on the ground. The base 11 has an I-shaped structure, and the four casters 15 are respectively fixedly connected to the lower sides of the four ends of the base 11. Each caster 15 is equipped with a brake pad 151, which is used to limit the rotation of the caster 15 to fix the position of the base 1.

[0026] Combination Figure 2 The column 12 is located on the upper side of the base 11 and extends in the vertical direction. A handle groove 121 and a handle (not shown in the figure) located in the handle groove 121 are provided on the left end face of the column 12. The handle is for the user to hold to push the feeding device 100.

[0027] The support column 2 is fixedly connected to the front end face of the column 12 and located on the upper side of the base 11. The support column 2 is configured to extend forward, and a slot (not shown in the figure) is formed inside the front end of the support column 2. A blocking block 21 is movably connected in the slot. The blocking block 21 is configured to be able to rotate back and forth relative to the slot within a certain angle, and both the upper and lower ends of the blocking block 21 extend out of the slot to allow the material tray to be fitted onto the support column 2 and to prevent the material tray from detaching from the support column 2.

[0028] See Figure 1 and Figure 3 The lifting column 13 is located on the upper side of the base 11 and has a lifting seat 131, a lifting cylinder 132 located within the lifting seat 131, a lifting block 133 abutting against the lifting cylinder 132, and a crossbar 134 fixedly connected to the lifting block 133 and located on the upper side of the lifting block 133. The feed column 3 is rotatably connected to the end of the crossbar 134 away from the lifting block 133. The lifting cylinder 132 adjusts the height of the feed column 3 to accommodate different 3D printers. The lifting column 13 is also equipped with a rotary motor 135 for rotating the feed column 3.

[0029] See Figure 1 and Figure 4 The feeding column 3 includes a column body 31, a material through hole 32 located inside the column body 31, two sets of wheel grooves 33 connected to the material through hole 32, a welding plate 35 located inside the main body 31, a cooling section 36 located downstream of the welding plate 35, and a scraping plate 37 located downstream of the cooling section 36.

[0030] The column 31 is configured such that its downstream end connects to the feed port of the 3D printer via the material insertion hole 32, while its upstream end allows the material rod to be inserted into the material insertion hole 32. The upstream end of the column 31 also has a pair of left-right arranged support wheels 38, which are rotatably connected to the column 31 and contain internal support springs 381. The support springs 381 provide a force to the support wheels 38 towards the axis of the column 31. The support wheels 38 are used to limit the deflection of the material rod upstream of the material insertion hole 32.

[0031] Combination Figure 5 The material through-hole 32 passes through the column 31 along its axis, and two sets of grooves 33 are located at the upstream and downstream ends of the main body 31, respectively. Each set of grooves 33 consists of four grooves arranged in a cross shape on the outside of the material through-hole 32. Each groove 33 contains a rotatable feed wheel 34 and a pair of thrust springs 341. The feed wheel 34 is configured such that a portion of its outer contour extends into the material through-hole 32 to contact the feed rod, and its outer contour can conform to the outer surface of the feed rod. The two ends of the thrust springs 341 abut against the wall of the groove 33 and the feed wheel 34, respectively, providing a force to the feed wheel 34 towards the material through-hole 32.

[0032] See Figure 4 and Figure 6 The welding plate 35 is rotatably disposed inside the column 31 and has a material passage section 351 that can communicate with the material passage hole 32 and a welding section 352. The material passage section 351 and the welding section 352 are not interconnected. Several heating wires 353 are disposed on the wall surface of the welding section 352, which are used to weld the two raw material rods. The feeding column 3 is also provided with a welding motor 354 and a pair of first guide tubes 355. The welding motor 354 is used to drive the welding plate 35 to rotate. The pair of first guide tubes 355 are both located in the material passage hole 32 and are symmetrically arranged upstream and downstream of the welding plate 35. The pair of first guide tubes 355 are used to guide the raw material rod through the welding plate 35.

[0033] The cooling section 36 is located downstream of the first guide pipe 355 and has a cooling pipe 361. The cooling pipe 361 is spirally wrapped around the inner wall of the cooling section 36 and contains coolant. The cooling section 36 is used to cool the welded joint of the two raw material rods.

[0034] Combination Figure 7The scraping disc 37 is rotatably connected to the column 31 and extends beyond the outer contour surface of the column 31. Located downstream of the cooling section 36, the scraping disc 37 has several through holes 372 that communicate with the material penetration holes 32. Each through hole 372 contains a guide opening 373 and a scraping opening 374 facing the guide opening 373. The guide opening 373 is inverted trapezoidal and located upstream of the scraping opening 374. The diameter of the scraping opening 374 is smaller than that of the guide opening 373 and is configured to remove scabs generated during the welding of two raw material rods. Both the scraping opening 374 and the guide opening 373 are designed to be detachable from the through holes 372. A scraping motor 371 is also installed inside the column 31. The scraping motor 371 drives the scraping disc 37 to rotate, exposing part of the through holes to the column 31, facilitating the user to empty the debris inside the through holes 372. A pair of second guide tubes 375 are also provided inside the feeding column 3. Both of the second guide tubes 375 are located inside the material passage hole 32 and are configured to be symmetrically arranged upstream and downstream of the rejection plate 37. The pair of second guide tubes 375 are used to guide the raw material rod through the rejection plate 37.

[0035] Taking the welding of two raw material rods by the feeding device 100 as an example, the working principle of the feeding device 100 is explained as follows: After the user replaces the raw material tray on the support column 2, he pulls out the raw material rod and inserts it into the through hole 32. A set of feeding wheels 34 at the upstream end of the through hole 32 squeezes the raw material rod and presses it against the previous raw material rod. The control panel 4 controls the welding motor 354 to rotate to connect the welding section 352 of the welding tray 35 with the through hole 32. The heating wire on the welding section 352 is powered on to weld the joint of the two raw material rods. The raw material rod moves downstream under the action of the feeding wheels 34. When the weld joint of the two raw material rods passes through the cooling section 36, it is cooled and shaped, and when it passes through the rejection tray 37, the scab produced by the welding is removed. Finally, the raw material rod enters the feed port of the 3D printer through a set of feeding wheels downstream. After confirming that the next raw material rod has entered the 3D printer's inlet, the control panel 4 disconnects the power to the heating wire 353 and stops the cooling water in the cooling pipe 361. The welding motor 354 drives the welding disc to rotate, connecting the material passage section and the material through hole 32 of the welding disc 35. Finally, after the material feeding is completed, the scraping motor 371 drives the scraping disc 37 to rotate, so that the user can easily empty the debris in the scraping disc 37.

[0036] The foregoing has shown and described the basic principles, main features, and advantages of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should understand that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. The embodiments and descriptions in the specification are merely illustrative of the principles of the invention. Various changes and modifications can be made to the invention without departing from its spirit and scope. The scope of protection of the present invention is defined by the appended claims, specification, and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A feeding device for a 3D printer, the feeding device (100) being used to supply a raw material rod to the 3D printer, characterized in that: include: The base (1) is configured to move on the ground; Support column (2), the support column (2) is fixedly connected to the base (1), and the support column (2) is used to place the raw material tray; The feed column (3) is rotatably connected to the base (1) and has a through hole (32) extending through the feed column (3) along the axial direction. The feed column (3) is configured such that one end of it can connect the through hole (32) to the feed port of the 3D printer and the other end can allow the raw material rod to be inserted into the through hole (32). The feed column (3) is further provided with a welding plate (35) and two sets of rotatable feeding wheels (34). Part of the outer contour surface of each feeding wheel (34) extends into the material passage hole (32) to contact and convey the raw material rod downstream. The welding plate (35) has a material passage section (351) and a welding section (352). The welding section (352) is provided with a plurality of heating wires (353) and is configured to weld two raw materials in front and behind through the plurality of heating wires (353). The feed column (3) is also equipped with a welding motor (354) and a pair of first guide tubes (355). The pair of first guide tubes (355) are both located in the material passage hole (32) and are symmetrically arranged upstream and downstream of the welding plate (35). The welding motor (354) is used to drive the welding plate (35) to rotate so as to select the material passage section (351) or the welding section (352) to be connected to the pair of first guide tubes (355). The feed column (3) is also equipped with a cooling section. (36) The cooling section (36) is connected to the material through hole (32) and is located downstream of the welding plate (35). The feed column (3) is also provided with a scraper plate (37). The scraper plate (37) is rotatably connected to the feed column (3) and extends out of the outer contour surface of the feed column (3). The scraper plate (37) is located downstream of the cooling section (36) and has several through holes (372) that can communicate with the material through hole (32). The through holes (372) are provided with guide ports (373). And a scraping port (374) is arranged opposite to the guide port (373), wherein the guide port (373) is in the shape of an inverted trapezoid and is located upstream of the scraping port (374), the diameter of the scraping port (374) is smaller than the diameter of the guide port (373) and is configured to remove the scab generated by the welding of the two raw material rods; a scraping motor (371) is also provided in the feed column (3), the scraping motor (371) is used to drive the scraping disc (37) to rotate so as to expose part of the through hole (372) to the feed column (3).

2. The feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that, Cooling pipes (361) are arranged on the cooling section (36).

3. The feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that, Both the ejector port (374) and the guide port (373) are configured to be removable from the through hole (372).

4. The feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The number of each set of feeding wheels (34) is 4, and the two sets of feeding wheels (34) are located at the upstream end and the downstream end of the feeding column (3), respectively.

5. The feeding device according to claim 4, characterized in that, The feed column (3) is provided with two sets of wheel grooves (33) corresponding to the two sets of feed wheels (34). Each set of wheel grooves (33) is arranged in a cross shape on the outside of the material through hole (32) and connected to the material through hole (32). The feed wheel (34) is installed in the wheel groove (33).

6. The feeding device according to claim 5, characterized in that, Each of the wheel grooves (33) is provided with a pair of thrust springs (341), each of the thrust springs (341) abuts against the corresponding feeding wheel (34) and provides a force to the feeding wheel (34) in the direction of the material through hole (32).

7. The feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The seat (1) includes a lifting column (13) extending in the vertical direction. The lifting column (13) includes a lifting block (133), a lifting cylinder (132) abutting against the lower end face of the lifting block (133), and a crossbar (134) fixedly connected to the upper end face of the lifting block (133). The feeding column (3) is rotatably connected to the crossbar (134). The lifting cylinder (132) is configured to drive the lifting block (133), the crossbar (134), and the feeding column (3) to move up and down together.

8. The feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes a control panel (4), which is mounted on the base (1) and coupled to each energy-consuming component of the feeding device (100). The control panel (4) is used by the user to control the operation of the feeding device (100).

9. The feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The seat (1) is supported on the ground by a number of movable wheels (15), and each of the movable wheels (15) is provided with a brake pad (151), which is used to limit the rotation of the movable wheel (15).

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