A process and method for manufacturing a parallel ordered array of short cut fiber reinforced printing filament

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of short cut fiber reinforced printing silk manufacturing process and method of parallel ordered arrangement, and the application relates to the field of 3D printing technology, specifically comprising the following steps: preparation ordered arrangement short cut fiber silk;Using coating device preparation ordered arrangement long fiber 3D printing silk;Using long fiber 3D printing silk printing reinforced forming part;In step S2, coating device includes melting head, extrusion die, silk mold, vibrating sieve plate and air seat, and the melting head is fixedly installed on the top of extrusion die.The application effectively determines the length of short cut fiber in 0.1cm-0.7cm, and can be ordered according to the tensile direction of printing silk Orderly arrange, without special slicing software Timely cutting process, also not rely on three channels to realize printing part one nozzle, according to conventional melting accumulation forming algorithm, the performance of 3D printing part can be enhanced, especially greatly enhanced for XY axis plane strength.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of 3D printing technology, specifically to a manufacturing process and method for parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filaments. Background Technology

[0002] Currently, there are two main types of fiber-reinforced 3D printing technologies on the market. One type primarily uses chopped fibers (0.1mm-0.6mm in length) blended together to form 3D printing filaments. These chopped fibers are then extruded using screw or twin-screw extruders, significantly reducing the fiber length to 0.01-0.1cm. It is well known that the reinforcing performance of fibers in polymers mainly depends on the fiber's aspect ratio; the higher the aspect ratio, the stronger the reinforcing performance. Secondly, the compatibility and bonding degree or surface area between the fiber material and the polymer also play a role. The other type uses continuous fiber combined with 3D printing slicing technology (commonly known as: algorithm) to enhance the strength of the printed part by using three channels and one nozzle for simultaneous printing.

[0003] However, the first method, chopped fibers, currently widely used in the market, offers very limited performance enhancement for 3D printed parts. The second method, continuous fiber printing, is favored by the market, but the printing equipment is very expensive, and only a very few institutions currently use it. Continuous fibers require specialized slicing software to cut them according to printing requirements and distribute them within the polymer for reinforcement. Compared to these two existing 3D printing filament preparation and printing technologies, this invention provides a parallel, orderly arranged chopped fiber reinforced printing filament manufacturing process and method. This effectively determines the length of the chopped fibers to 0.1cm-0.7cm and arranges them orderly according to the stretching direction of the printing filament. It does not require special algorithms or rely on a three-channel, one-nozzle method to print parts. The conventional fused deposition modeling algorithm can achieve performance enhancement for 3D printed parts, especially significantly enhancing the strength of the XY-axis plane. Due to the orderly arrangement of the chopped fibers, the fibers will not clump together and clog the nozzle during printing; there is also no need for special algorithms for fiber cutting. The chopped fibers are orderly distributed within the polymer according to the direction of nozzle movement, greatly increasing the tensile strength of the polymer. Summary of the Invention

[0004] (a) Technical problems to be solved

[0005] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, this invention provides a manufacturing process and method for parallel and orderly arranged chopped fiber reinforced printing filaments. It effectively determines the length of the chopped fibers to be between 0.1cm and 0.7cm and arranges them in an orderly manner according to the stretching direction of the printing filaments, eliminating the need for special slicing software for timely cutting and improving the material's performance.

[0006] (II) Technical Solution

[0007] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: a manufacturing process for parallel and orderly arranged chopped fibers reinforced printing filaments, specifically including the following steps:

[0008] S1. Prepare ordered short-cut fiber filaments;

[0009] S2. An orderly arrangement of long fiber 3D printing filaments is prepared using a coating device;

[0010] S3. Reinforced molded parts are printed using long-fiber 3D printing filaments;

[0011] The coating device in step S2 includes a melting head, an extrusion die, a wire ejection die, a vibrating screen plate, and an air blowing seat. The melting head is fixedly installed on the top of the extrusion die, the wire ejection die is fixedly located at one end of the extrusion die, the vibrating screen plate is movably located at the end of the wire ejection die away from the extrusion die, and the air blowing seat is movably located at the end of the vibrating screen plate away from the wire ejection die.

[0012] Preferably, a coating die is fixedly provided at the bottom of the melting head, a discharge port is provided at the top of the coating die, a coating port is provided inside the coating die, and the coating port and the discharge port are vertically connected. A conveying screw is rotatably provided inside the coating die, and a conveying screw is movable inside the coating die.

[0013] Preferably, the extrusion die has an extrusion port at the end away from the filament die, the covering die head is located in the middle of the interior of the extrusion die, and a long fiber 3D printing filament moves through the interior of the extrusion port.

[0014] Preferably, a heating plate is fixedly provided at the end of the wire-exiting die away from the vibrating screen plate, a long wire hole is opened in the center of the heating plate, a short wire hole is opened inside the heating plate, and several groups of short wire holes are arranged around the long wire hole.

[0015] Preferably, a long filament channel is provided at the center of the filament exiting die, a short filament channel is provided inside the filament exiting die, and several groups of short filament channels are arranged around the long filament channels. A docking groove is provided at the end of the filament exiting die away from the heating plate.

[0016] Preferably, a connecting cylinder is fixedly provided on the side of the vibrating screen plate near the wire exiting die, and a long wire conveying port is opened in the center of the vibrating screen plate.

[0017] Preferably, a short filament conveying head is fixedly provided on one side of the vibrating screen plate corresponding to the docking cylinder, and several sets of short filament conveying heads are arranged around the long filament conveying port, with short chopped fiber filaments moving through the inside of the short filament conveying head.

[0018] Preferably, the air blowing seat has a central hole, and the air blowing seat has air blowing holes inside, with several sets of air blowing holes arranged around the central hole.

[0019] Preferably, the internal movement of the air blowing seat is permeated with fiber filaments, and the fiber filaments sequentially pass through the interior of the vibrating screen plate, the filament extrusion die, the covering die head and the extrusion die.

[0020] The present invention also provides a method for manufacturing parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filaments, specifically including the following steps:

[0021] Step 1: Fiber length selection. The glass fiber or continuous glass fiber is crushed and cut using a crushing and cutting process, and then screened using a sieve to obtain qualified short chopped fiber filaments with a length range of 0.1-0.7cm.

[0022] Step 2: Soak the chopped fiber filaments in KH550 solution for 24 hours, perform surface treatment, and then air dry. Disperse the treated chopped fiber filaments to form individual chopped fiber filaments.

[0023] Step 3: First, the short chopped fibers are arranged in an orderly manner and coated with the first layer of polymer to obtain fiber filaments with a diameter of 0.5-1mm. Then, a second layer of polymer is coated from the outer periphery of the fiber filaments. Finally, the fibers are drawn to obtain 3D printing filaments with a diameter of 1.75mm. The interior of this long fiber 3D printing filament has short chopped fibers arranged in parallel.

[0024] Step 4: Use 3D printing equipment and long-fiber 3D printing filaments to print reinforced 3D printed parts.

[0025] Preferably, the vibrating screen plate primarily uses vibration to guide the processed single chopped fiber filaments accurately and effectively into the filament conveying head. The chopped fiber filaments within the conveying head enter the filament channel according to the conveying head's direction. Uniform air pressure and airflow are added to the air blowing holes. Under the influence of air pressure and airflow, the chopped fiber filaments sliding into the filament channel are tightly adhered to the molten polymer surface of the coating die. The extruder draws out long filaments at high temperature, with the chopped fiber filaments adhering to the outer layer, forming filaments with a diameter of approximately 0.5-1 cm. The filaments are then subjected to a second coating process, with a second layer of polymer coating on the outside, resulting in 3D printing filaments with a diameter of 1.75 mm and a smooth surface.

[0026] Beneficial effects

[0027] This invention provides a manufacturing process and method for parallel, orderly arranged chopped fibers to reinforce printing filaments. Compared with existing technologies, it has the following advantages:

[0028] 1. The manufacturing process and method for parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filaments adopts a novel 3D printing filament preparation method, which effectively determines the length of short-cut fibers to be 0.1cm-0.7cm, and can arrange them in an orderly manner according to the stretching direction of the printing filaments. The 3D printing filaments formed by this technology do not require special algorithms to cut continuous long fibers, nor do they rely on a three-channel one-nozzle method to print parts. The performance enhancement of 3D printed parts can be achieved by using conventional fused deposition modeling algorithms, especially greatly enhancing the strength of the XY axis plane.

[0029] 2. This parallel and orderly arranged chopped fiber reinforced printing filament manufacturing process involves placing chopped fiber filaments into air holes, using a vibrating motor to vibrate the vibrating screen plate, and simultaneously increasing uniform air pressure and airflow into the air holes. This vibration, combined with the effects of air pressure and airflow, ensures that each chopped fiber filament accurately and effectively enters the filament conveyor head. One end of the filament conveyor head is located inside the corresponding filament channel. Each chopped fiber filament enters the filament channel according to the direction of the conveyor head. Heating the heating plate further strengthens the filaments that have slid out of the filament holes, causing them to adhere tightly. The polymer is adhered to the inside of the molten polymer in the coating die. The polymer is conveyed to the discharge port and the coating port by the conveying screw. The polymer flowing inside the coating port can coat the long fiber filaments and chopped fiber filaments inside. At high temperature, the long fiber 3D printing filament is drawn out through the extrusion port. The outer layer of the long fiber 3D printing filament with chopped fiber filaments is adhered. After cooling, the long fiber 3D printing filament with chopped fiber filaments is formed into a filament with a diameter of about 0.5-1cm. The chopped fiber filament is embedded in the polymer. Its fiber length is suitable for conventional printing and does not require special slicing procedures for cutting, which greatly improves the printing efficiency of the equipment.

[0030] 3. The parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filament manufacturing process can print reinforced 3D printed parts by using long fiber 3D printing filaments and 3D printing equipment. By embedding the fibers, the fiber length-to-diameter ratio is increased, thereby improving the strength and performance of the printed parts. Attached Figure Description

[0031] Figure 1 This is a schematic cross-sectional view of the coating device of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the covering mold head structure of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the wire ejection die of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the heating plate structure of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the end structure of the wire ejector die of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the vibrating screen plate structure of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the air-blowing seat structure of the present invention;

[0038] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the long fiber 3D printing filament structure of the present invention.

[0039] In the diagram: 1. Melting head; 11. Coating die head; 111. Discharge port; 112. Coating port; 12. Conveying screw; 13. Polymer; 2. Extrusion die; 21. Extrusion port; 3. Filament die; 31. Heating plate; 311. Filament hole; 312. Short filament hole; 32. Filament channel; 33. Short filament channel; 34. Docking groove; 4. Vibrating screen plate; 41. Docking cylinder; 42. Filament conveying port; 43. Short filament conveying head; 5. Air blowing seat; 51. Central hole; 52. Air blowing hole; 6. Fiber filament; 61. Long fiber 3D printing filament; 7. Chopped fiber filament. Detailed Implementation

[0040] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention have been clearly and completely described. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0041] Please see Figure 1-8 This invention provides a technical solution: a manufacturing process for parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filaments, specifically including the following steps:

[0042] S1. Prepare ordered short-cut fiber filaments;

[0043] S2. An orderly arrangement of long fiber 3D printing filaments is prepared using a coating device;

[0044] S3. Reinforced molded parts are printed using long-fiber 3D printing filaments;

[0045] The coating device in step S2 includes a melting head 1, an extrusion die 2, a wire ejection die 3, a vibrating screen plate 4, and an air blowing seat 5. The melting head 1 is fixedly installed on the top of the extrusion die 2, the wire ejection die 3 is fixedly located at one end of the extrusion die 2, the vibrating screen plate 4 is movably located at the end of the wire ejection die 3 away from the extrusion die 2, and the air blowing seat 5 is movably located at the end of the vibrating screen plate 4 away from the wire ejection die 3.

[0046] A coating die head 11 is fixedly provided at the bottom of the melting head 1. A discharge port 111 is provided at the top of the coating die head 11. A coating port 112 is provided inside the coating die head 11, and the coating port 112 is vertically connected to the discharge port 111. A conveying screw 12 is rotatably provided inside the coating die head 11, and a conveying screw 12 is movably provided inside the coating die head 11.

[0047] The extrusion die 2 has an extrusion port 21 at the end away from the filament die 3. The covering die head 11 is located in the middle of the interior of the extrusion die 2. Long fiber 3D printing filament 61 moves through the interior of the extrusion port 21.

[0048] A heating plate 31 is fixedly provided at one end of the wire-exiting die 3 away from the vibrating screen plate 4. A long wire hole 311 is opened in the center of the heating plate 31, and a short wire hole 312 is opened inside the heating plate 31. Several sets of short wire holes 312 are arranged around the long wire hole 311.

[0049] The center of the filament exiting die 3 is provided with a long filament channel 32, and the inside of the filament exiting die 3 is provided with a short filament channel 33. Several sets of short filament channels 33 are arranged around the long filament channel 32. The end of the filament exiting die 3 away from the heating plate 31 is provided with a docking groove 34.

[0050] A connecting cylinder 41 is fixedly provided on the side of the vibrating screen plate 4 near the wire output die 3, and a long wire conveying port 42 is opened in the center of the vibrating screen plate 4.

[0051] A short filament conveying head 43 is fixedly provided on one side of the vibrating screen plate 4 corresponding to the docking cylinder 41, and several sets of short filament conveying heads 43 are arranged around the long filament conveying port 42. Short chopped fiber filaments 7 are movably passed through the inside of the short filament conveying head 43.

[0052] The air blowing seat 5 has a central hole 51, and the air blowing seat 5 has an air blowing hole 52 inside, with several sets of air blowing holes 52 arranged around the central hole 51.

[0053] The air blowing seat 5 has a fiber filament 6 that runs through its interior, and the fiber filament 6 passes through the vibrating screen plate 4, the filament extrusion die 3, the covering die head 11 and the extrusion die 2 in sequence.

[0054] The present invention also provides a method for manufacturing parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filaments, specifically including the following steps:

[0055] Step 1: Fiber length selection. Glass fibers or continuous glass fibers are crushed and cut using a crushing and cutting process. The fibers are then screened using a sieve to obtain qualified short chopped fiber filaments with a length range of 0.1-0.7cm.

[0056] Step 2: Soak the chopped fiber 7 in KH550 solution for 24 hours, perform surface treatment and then air dry. Disperse the treated chopped fiber 7 to form individual chopped fiber 7.

[0057] Step 3: The short chopped fiber filaments 7 are first arranged in an orderly manner and coated with the first layer of polymer 13 using a coating device to obtain fiber filaments 6 with a diameter of 0.5-1mm. Then, a second layer of polymer 13 is coated from the outer periphery of the fiber filaments 6. Finally, the fibers are drawn to obtain 3D printing filaments 61 with a diameter of 1.75mm. The interior of the long fiber 3D printing filaments 61 has short chopped fiber filaments 7 arranged in parallel.

[0058] Step 4: Use 3D printing equipment and long fiber 3D printing filament 61 to print reinforced 3D printed parts.

[0059] The docking cylinder 41 is placed inside the docking groove 34. The air blowing seat 5 and the vibrating screen plate 4 are fixed. Short chopped fiber 7 is put in through the air blowing hole 52. The vibrating screen plate 4 is vibrated by a vibrating motor. At the same time, uniform air pressure and wind are added into the air blowing hole 52. By using vibration and coordinating the effects of air pressure and wind direction, the single short chopped fiber 7 can accurately and effectively enter the short fiber conveying head 43. One end of the short fiber conveying head 43 is inside the corresponding short fiber channel 33. The single short chopped fiber 7 can enter the short fiber channel 33 according to the direction of the short fiber conveying head 43. The heating plate 3 is used to control the flow of the short fiber 7. 1. Heating causes a single chopped fiber 7 to slide out from the filament hole 312. The polymer 13 is then conveyed to the outlet 111 and the coating port 112 via the conveying screw 12. The chopped fiber 7, having slid out of the filament channel 33, adheres tightly to the surface of the molten polymer 13 in the coating die 11. The extrusion port 21 draws out a long fiber filament 6 at high temperature, with the chopped fiber 7 adhering to its outer layer. The long fiber filament 6 undergoes a second coating process, this time without the need for additional chopped fiber 7. A second layer of polymer 13 is then applied to the outside of the long fiber filament 6, resulting in a 3D printing filament 61 with a diameter of 1.75 mm. The fiber length within this filament is suitable for conventional printing, eliminating the need for special slicing software for timely cutting. This enhances the material's performance and significantly improves the printing efficiency of the equipment. Using the long fiber 3D printing filament 61 and 3D printing equipment, reinforced 3D printed parts can be printed. By embedding the fiber, the strength and performance of the printed parts are improved.

[0060] Furthermore, any content not described in detail in this specification is existing technology known to those skilled in the art.

[0061] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

[0062] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A manufacturing process for parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filaments, characterized in that: Specifically, the following steps are included: S1. Prepare ordered short-cut fiber filaments; S2. An orderly arrangement of long fiber 3D printing filaments is prepared using a coating device; S3. Reinforced molded parts are printed using long-fiber 3D printing filaments; The coating device described in step S2 includes a melting head (1), an extrusion die (2), a wire ejection die (3), a vibrating screen plate (4), and an air blowing seat (5). The melting head (1) is fixedly installed on the top of the extrusion die (2), the wire ejection die (3) is fixedly installed at one end of the extrusion die (2), the vibrating screen plate (4) is movably installed at the end of the wire ejection die (3) away from the extrusion die (2), and the air blowing seat (5) is movably installed at the end of the vibrating screen plate (4) away from the wire ejection die (3). The bottom of the melting head (1) is fixedly provided with a coating die (11), the top of the coating die (11) is provided with a discharge port (111), the inside of the coating die (11) is provided with a coating port (112), and the coating port (112) and the discharge port (111) are vertically connected. The inside of the coating die (11) is provided with a conveying screw (12) that rotates, and the inside of the coating die (11) is provided with a moving conveying screw (12). The extrusion die (2) has an extrusion port (21) at one end away from the filament die (3), and the covering die head (11) is located in the middle of the interior of the extrusion die (2). Long fiber 3D printing filament (61) moves through the interior of the extrusion port (21). The end of the filament die (3) away from the vibrating screen plate (4) is fixedly provided with a heating plate (31). The center of the heating plate (31) is provided with a long filament hole (311), and the interior of the heating plate (31) is provided with a short filament hole (312). Several groups of short filament holes (312) are arranged around the long filament hole (311). The center of the filament delivery die (3) is provided with a long filament channel (32), and the inside of the filament delivery die (3) is provided with a short filament channel (33). Several groups of short filament channels (33) are arranged around the long filament channel (32). The end of the filament delivery die (3) away from the heating plate (31) is provided with a docking groove (34). The vibrating screen plate (4) is fixedly provided with a docking cylinder (41) on the side near the wire output die (3), and a long wire conveying port (42) is opened in the center of the vibrating screen plate (4). The vibrating screen plate (4) is fixedly provided with a short filament conveying head (43) on one side of the docking cylinder (41), and several sets of short filament conveying heads (43) are arranged around the long filament conveying port (42). Short chopped fiber filaments (7) are movably passed through the inside of the short filament conveying head (43).

2. The manufacturing process for parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filaments according to claim 1, characterized in that: The air blowing seat (5) has a central hole (51) and an air blowing hole (52) inside the air blowing seat (5). Several sets of air blowing holes (52) are arranged around the central hole (51).

3. The manufacturing process for parallel and orderly arranged short-cut fiber reinforced printing filaments according to claim 1, characterized in that: The air blowing seat (5) has a fiber filament (6) that moves through its interior, and the fiber filament (6) passes through the vibrating screen plate (4), the filament extrusion die (3), the covering die head (11) and the extrusion die (2) in sequence.

4. The manufacturing process for parallel and orderly arranged chopped fiber reinforced printing filaments according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, The specific steps include the following: Step 1: Fiber length selection. The glass fiber or continuous glass fiber is crushed and cut using a crushing and cutting process. The fiber is then screened using a sieve to obtain qualified short chopped fiber filaments with a length range of 0.1-0.7cm (7). Step 2: Soak the chopped fiber filaments (7) in KH550 solution for 24 hours, perform surface treatment and then air dry. Disperse the treated chopped fiber filaments (7) to form single chopped fiber filaments (7). Step 3: The short chopped fiber filaments (7) are first arranged in an orderly manner and coated with a first layer of polymer using a coating device to obtain a fiber filament (6) with a diameter of 0.5-1mm. Then, a second layer of polymer is coated from the outer periphery of the fiber filament (6). Finally, the fiber is drawn to obtain a 3D printing filament (61) with a diameter of 1.75mm. The long fiber 3D printing filament (61) has parallel arranged short chopped fiber filaments (7) inside. Step 4: Use 3D printing equipment and long fiber 3D printing filament (61) to print reinforced 3D printed parts.

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