Powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing, it is related to 3D printing or additive manufacturing technical field.It includes actuator, vibrating plate, angle adjusting device and so on.Actuator is fastened and connected on vibrating plate, inner ring gear is arranged in vibrating plate, pipe clamp I is arranged in lower part, adjusting gear is arranged in inner ring gear;Angle adjusting device includes angle adjusting plate, motor and pipe clamp II, the central angle of angle adjusting plate is connected at inner ring gear center axis;The output shaft of motor on angle adjusting plate is connected to the axis of adjusting gear after key connection after passing through angle adjusting plate, three-way micro-pipe includes branch pipe A, branch pipe B and branch pipe C, branch pipe A and B are inlet, branch pipe C is discharge port, and is connected to the top inlet of material drop device of material drop device;Material drop device bottom end discharge port is opposite to X-Y workbench.The application realizes the in-situ proportioning and mixing of double powder, powder proportioning is adjusted conveniently, response speed is fast, transition powder is less, and the uniformity of powder mixing is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of 3D printing or additive manufacturing, in particular to a powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing. BACKGROUND

[0002] Multi-material 3D printing is a very influential and attractive technology that can print products with special performance and special structure in specific areas of a single component by expanding the design space to different materials.

[0003] Multi-material 3D printing can combine different properties such as thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, insulation, corrosion resistance and environmental adaptability into one product, thereby manufacturing products with combined attributes or functions. This provides new solutions for many application fields such as electronics and embedded sensors, biomedical implants, aerospace, automobiles and energy systems.

[0004] Powder is one of the most important material forms for 3D printing, which is often used for printing of metal and ceramic materials. It is of great significance for 3D printing to move from rapid prototyping to actual engineering part manufacturing. Mixing and delivery of materials are key steps and material guarantees for successful multi-material 3D printing. Innovative research has been carried out on the mixing and delivery of powder materials, providing many ingenious solutions for powder material 3D printing application scenarios. Applying ultrasonic vibration to capillary for micro powder delivery is an important method and approach. Shu Ji Matsusaka et al. carried out research on ultrasonic vibration capillary powder delivery, established the relationship between powder delivery flow and pipe diameter, vibration frequency and vibration amplitude, achieved stable delivery of milligrams per second, and elaborated the delivery mechanism. Lehua Qi et al. found the appropriate taper angle and amplitude of the pipeline (critical condition) for stable delivery, and sprayed some patterns, Yang achieved stable delivery of dry powder, and Hong Chen achieved stable delivery of milligrams of viscous powder. The above are all stable delivery of single powder. There is no report on the use of capillary for multi-powder delivery for gradient material printing. Yang et al. developed a computer-controlled micro-feeding system for dry powder micro-feeding using ultrasonic vibration of capillary, thus generating uniform powder dosage in the ultrasonic system. Wang et al. used a capillary with ultrasonic vibration and pulse vibration to achieve stable micro-feeding of fine viscous powder. However, the above research has not reported the use of capillary for multi-powder feeding and printing of gradient materials. Researchers at the University of Manchester reported multi-material selective laser melting technology earlier. Al-Jamal et al. (O. Al-Jamal, S. Hinduja, L. Li, Characteristics of the bond in Cu–H13 tool steel parts fabricated using SLM, CIRP Ann. Manuf. Technol. 57 (1) (2008) 239–242.) completed two-dimensional (2D) multi-metal powder laser melting by using a single ultrasonic vibration actuator to separately dispense copper powder and H13 tool steel powder.

[0005] Powder bed is a widely used feeding method for powder material 3D printing. Zhang Xiaoji et al. successfully printed three-dimensional metal-glass functional gradient material parts by laser powder bed in-situ mixing and fusion. In the study, stable powder delivery was achieved by a double ultrasonic vibration feeding system. However, in-situ powder mixing is not very effective.

[0006] Wei et al. (Chao Wei, Lin Li, Xiaoji Zhang, Yuan-Hui Chueh, 3D printing of multiple metallic materials via modified selective laser melting, CIRP Ann. 67 (1) (2018) 245-248.) combined ultrasonic powder feeding and powder bed spreading to fabricate 316L / In718 and 316L / Cu10Sn multi-material metal parts. Yang et al. (Shoufeng Yang, Julian R.G Evans, A multi-component powder dispensing system for three dimensional functional gradients, Mater. Sci. Eng. A 379 (1-2) (2004) 351-359.) developed a system that can dispense two different proportions of powder by acoustic vibration, however, the powder can only be mixed by a static conical hopper. When using powder bed for multi-material printing, there are many difficulties in multi-material feeding, mixing, recycling, etc. The material feeding, mixing and recycling device is relatively complex, and the printing efficiency is also low.

[0007] In order to solve the problem of in-situ powder mixing and feeding in multi-material 3D printing, a new type of powder mixing and feeding system needs to be developed. SUMMARY

[0008] The present application provides a powder in-situ mixing and feeding system for multi-material 3D printing to solve the problem of in-situ powder mixing and feeding in multi-material 3D printing.

[0009] The application is implemented by the following technical scheme: a powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing, comprising an actuator, a vibrating plate, an angle adjusting device, a three-way micro-pipe, an X-Y workbench and a material dropping device, the actuator and the vibrating plate are arranged on a fixed plate, the actuator is detachably fastened to the vibrating plate and realizes the function of vibrating the vibrating plate, the vibrating plate is internally provided with an inner ring gear, the inner ring gear is internally provided with an adjusting gear meshing with the inner ring gear, and the lower part of the vibrating plate is further fixedly provided with a pipe clamp I; the angle adjusting device comprises an angle adjusting plate, a motor and a pipe clamp II, the angle adjusting plate is fan-shaped or circular, the angle adjusting plate is connected to the inner ring gear central shaft of the vibrating plate at the central angle position through a rolling bearing; the motor is installed on the angle adjusting plate, the output shaft of the motor is key-connected to the axis of the adjusting gear after penetrating through the angle adjusting plate, and the pipe clamp II is fixed to the central angle position of the angle adjusting plate. The three branches of the three-way micro-pipe are respectively a branch pipe A, a branch pipe B and a branch pipe C which are in communication with each other, the branch pipe A and the branch pipe B are two inlet ports at the upper part, the branch pipe C is an outlet port at the lower part, the branch pipe C is installed in the pipe clamp II, and the branch pipe C is connected to the top inlet port of the material dropping device through a hose; the lower part of the material dropping device is installed on the pipe clamp I, and the bottom outlet port of the material dropping device is opposite to the X-Y workbench.

[0010] The application discloses a powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing, which comprises an actuator, a vibrating plate, an angle adjusting device, a three-way micro-pipe, an X-Y workbench and a material dropping device, wherein the actuator and the vibrating plate are arranged on a fixed plate, and the arrangement or connection mode is not limited. The actuator is detachably fastened to the vibrating plate, the actuator applies a high-frequency driving force to the vibrating plate, and the vibrating plate can be vibrated. The vibrating plate is internally provided with an inner ring gear, the inner ring gear is internally provided with an adjusting gear matched with the inner ring gear, and the adjusting gear and the inner ring gear are matched with each other. The lower part of the vibrating plate is further fixedly provided with a pipe clamp I for fixing the material dropping device. The angle adjusting device comprises an angle adjusting plate, a motor and a pipe clamp II, the angle adjusting plate is in a fan shape or a circular shape, the center angle of the angle adjusting plate is connected to the central shaft of the inner ring gear of the vibrating plate through a rolling bearing, the motor is installed on the angle adjusting plate, the output shaft of the motor is connected to the center of the adjusting gear through a key after penetrating through the angle adjusting plate, and when the motor works, the output shaft drives the adjusting gear to rotate, so that the angle adjusting plate moves along an arc line around the axis. The three branches of the three-way micro-pipe are respectively a branch pipe A, a branch pipe B and a branch pipe C which are communicated with each other, the branch pipe A and the branch pipe B are two inlet ports at the upper part, the branch pipe C is an outlet port at the lower part, the branch pipe C is installed in the pipe clamp II, and the pipe clamp II is fixed at the center angle position of the angle adjusting plate. When the angle adjusting plate rotates along the arc line, the three-way micro-pipe also realizes a certain angle change, the driving force direction and size of the branch pipe A and the branch pipe B change, the powder in the branch pipe A and the branch pipe B can be proportioned and mixed and delivered at any ratio, and the powder can be uniformly mixed due to the high-frequency vibration. The branch pipe C is connected to the top inlet port of the material dropping device through a hose, the lower part of the material dropping device is installed on the pipe clamp I, and the bottom outlet port of the material dropping device is opposite to the X-Y workbench, so that the mixed powder falls from the branch pipe C and is deposited on the X-Y workbench.

[0011] Preferably, the angle adjusting plate is in a 90° fan shape.

[0012] Preferably, the three-way micro-pipe can be additionally arranged to realize complex mixing of multiple powders.

[0013] Compared with the prior art, the present application has the following beneficial effects: the powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing provided by the present application has the following beneficial effects: ① by applying a high-frequency driving force, the tee-shaped micro-pipe is rotated to change the driving force size ratio acting on the tee-shaped branch pipe direction, thereby realizing in-situ proportioning and mixing of double powders; ② the powder proportioning is convenient to adjust, the response speed is fast, and the transition powder is less; ③ the high-frequency vibration improves the uniformity of powder mixing, and reduces the probability of powder blockage of the pipeline due to agglomeration and bridge arch; ④ by increasing the tee-shaped micro-pipe, complex mixing of multiple powders can be realized, which has a reference significance for mixing and spraying of multiple materials, and provides an effective path for powder mixing and spraying in the process of gradient printing and multi-material printing of powder materials. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of an embodiment of the present application.

[0015] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the actuator and vibration plate structure of an embodiment of the present application.

[0016] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the vibration plate and angle adjusting device structure of an embodiment of the present application.

[0017] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the tee-shaped micro-pipe and material falling device structure of an embodiment of the present application.

[0018] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the X-Y workbench structure of an embodiment of the present application.

[0019] The marks in the figure are as follows: 1-actuator, 2-vibration plate, 21-inner ring gear, 22-adjusting gear, 23-pipe clamp I, 3-angle adjusting device, 31-angle adjusting plate, 32-motor, 33-pipe clamp II, 4-tee-shaped micro-pipe, 41-branch pipe A, 42-branch pipe B, 43-branch pipe C, 5-X-Y workbench, 6-fixing plate, 7-material falling device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] The present application will be further described below in combination with specific embodiments.

[0021] A powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing, as shown in Figures 1-5As shown: including actuator 1, vibration plate 2, angle adjusting device 3, three-way micro-pipe 4, X-Y table 5 and material dropping device 7, the actuator 1 and vibration plate 2 are arranged on the fixed plate 6, the actuator 1 is detachably fastened and connected on the vibration plate 2 and realizes the function of vibrating the vibration plate 2, the inside of the vibration plate 2 is provided with an inner ring gear 21, the inner ring gear 21 is provided with an adjusting gear 22 engaged with the inner ring gear 21, the lower part of the vibration plate 2 is further provided with a pipe clamp I 23; the angle adjusting device 3 comprises an angle adjusting plate 31, a motor 32 and a pipe clamp II 33, the angle adjusting plate 31 is fan-shaped or circular, the center angle of the angle adjusting plate 31 is connected to the center shaft of the inner ring gear 21 of the vibration plate 2 through a rolling bearing; the motor 32 is installed on the angle adjusting plate 31, the output shaft of the motor 32 is connected to the axis of the adjusting gear 22 after passing through the angle adjusting plate 31, the pipe clamp II 33 is fixed at the center angle position of the angle adjusting plate 31. The three branches of the three-way micro-pipe 4 are branch pipe A 41, branch pipe B 42 and branch pipe C 43 which are communicated with each other, the branch pipe A 41 and the branch pipe B 42 are two inlet ports at the upper part, the branch pipe C 43 is an outlet port at the lower part, the branch pipe C 43 is installed in the pipe clamp II 33, the branch pipe C 43 is connected to the top inlet port of the material dropping device 7 through a hose; the lower part of the material dropping device 7 is installed on the pipe clamp I 23, the bottom outlet port of the material dropping device 7 is opposite to the X-Y table 5.

[0022] The preferred scheme adopted in the embodiment is that the shape of the angle adjusting plate 31 is 90° fan-shaped; the system can realize in-situ proportioning and mixing of double powders.

[0023] The specific operation of the embodiment is that the actuator 1 applies high-frequency driving force to the vibration plate 2; under the action of the high-frequency driving force, the powders in the branch pipe A 41 and the branch pipe B 42 of the three-way micro-pipe 4 are fully and uniformly mixed and converged into the branch pipe C 43 for further mixing and conveying, then enter the material dropping device 7 from the top inlet port of the material dropping device 7, and finally are sprayed out from the bottom outlet port of the material dropping device 7; the motor 32 is started, the output shaft of the motor 32 drives the adjusting gear 22 to rotate, then the adjusting gear 22 moves along the inner ring gear 21, thereby driving the angle adjusting plate 31 to move along the circular arc line, so that the three-way micro-pipe 4 realizes certain angle change, the driving force direction and size acting on the branch pipe A 41 and the branch pipe B 42 change, and the powders in the branch pipe A 41 and the branch pipe B 42 can realize arbitrary proportioning and mixing conveying.

[0024] On the basis of the embodiment, the three-way micro-pipe 4 can be further added to realize complex proportioning and mixing of multiple powders.

[0025] The scope of the present application is not limited to the above specific embodiments, and the application can have various modifications and alterations, and any modifications, improvements and equivalent replacements made within the concept and principle of the present application should be included in the scope of protection of the present application.

Claims

1. A powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing, characterized in that: The device includes an actuator (1), a vibrating plate (2), an angle adjustment device (3), a three-way micro-channel (4), an XY worktable (5), and a feeder (7). The actuator (1) and the vibrating plate (2) are both mounted on a fixed plate (6). The actuator (1) is detachably and securely connected to the vibrating plate (2) and performs the function of vibrating the vibrating plate (2). The vibrating plate (2) has an internal gear ring (21) inside, and an adjusting gear (22) meshing with the internal gear ring (21) is provided inside the internal gear ring (21). The lower part of the vibrating plate (2) is also fixedly provided with a pipe clamp I ( 23); The angle adjustment device (3) includes an angle adjustment plate (31), a motor (32) and a pipe clamp II (33). The angle adjustment plate (31) is fan-shaped or circular. The central angle of the angle adjustment plate (31) is connected to the central shaft of the internal gear ring (21) of the vibrating plate (2) through a rolling bearing. The motor (32) is mounted on the angle adjustment plate (31). The output shaft of the motor (32) passes through the angle adjustment plate (31) and is keyed to the axis of the adjustment gear (22). The pipe clamp II (33) is fixed at the central angle position of the angle adjustment plate (31). The three branches of the three-way micro-channel (4) are interconnected branch pipe A (41), branch pipe B (42) and branch pipe C (43). Branch pipe A (41) and branch pipe B (42) are the two upper inlets, and branch pipe C (43) is the lower outlet. Branch pipe C (43) is installed in pipe clamp II (33) and is connected to the top inlet of the feeder (7) through a hose. The lower part of the feeder (7) is installed on pipe clamp I (23), and the bottom outlet of the feeder (7) is directly opposite the XY worktable (5).

2. The powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing according to claim 1, characterized in that: If the angle adjustment plate (31) is fan-shaped, its shape is a 90° fan shape.

3. The powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The system can achieve in-situ proportioning and mixing of two powders in any ratio.

4. The powder in-situ proportioning and mixing system for multi-material 3D printing according to claim 1, characterized in that: A three-way microchannel (4) can also be added to achieve complex mixing of multiple powders.

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