LCD photocuring 3D printer and method for improving resolution ratio of LCD photocuring 3D printer

Abstract

The invention discloses an LCD photocuring 3D printer and a method for improving the resolution of the LCD photocuring 3D printer, the angle of light passing through a pixel opening area of an LCD screen is changed by adjusting the angle of a reflector group, the position of a curing light beam in a printing area (photocuring glue) is further influenced, so that the offset of a pixel image is realized, and when the offset is carried out for n times, the position of the curing light beam in the printing area (photocuring glue) is changed. Compared with the prior art, n times of pixel points are added on the basis of an original image, namely, the resolution ratio of the LCD is expanded in a multiplied mode, the effect of improving the resolution ratio of the LCD photocuring 3D printer in a multiplied mode is achieved, meanwhile, the sufficiency and compactness of an exposure area are improved, and the printing yield is improved.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The invention relates to an LCD light-curing 3D printer and a method for improving the resolution of the LCD light-curing 3D printer. [Background technology]

[0002] Additive manufacturing LCD light-curing 3D printer has the advantages of high resolution and low cost. LCD is a light modulation medium, and the structure and resolution of the hardware itself also determine the accuracy of the final 3D printing.

[0003] However, the black and white LCD screens currently in use have very low light efficiency. The reason is directly derived from the color screen process, which makes most areas opaque. These opaque parts cause the photocuring adhesive to not be fully exposed and cured, and at the same time make it unsuitable for many materials, with insufficient adhesion and low yield.

[0004] For example, Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the display principle of a monochrome LCD pixel. To reduce costs, the original red, green, and blue pixels are simply reduced to one light-transmitting pixel. Fig. 9 It can be seen that the pixel opening areas 51 are not closely arranged together, and there are gaps between the pixels. Most of the black and white LCD screen is opaque, and these opaque parts cause the photocurable adhesive to be unable to be fully exposed and cured, resulting in low yield and complete inability to print on some materials. In order to solve these problems of LCD, the present invention utilizes the gaps between pixels, and changes the angle of the light to offset the position of the light-curable material so that the material is fully cured. At the same time, when the spot position is changed, the LCD pattern is also changed, thereby doubling the LCD resolution. [Summary of the invention]

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide an LCD light-curing 3D printer and a method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer. By adjusting the angle of the reflector group to change the angle at which light passes through the pixel opening area of ​​the LCD screen, the resolution of the LCD light-curing 3D printer is doubled, while the sufficiency and density of the exposure area are increased, thereby improving the printing yield.

[0006] The present invention is achieved through the following technical solutions:

[0007] An LCD light-curing 3D printer comprises a light source 1, a first lens group 2, a reflector group 3, a second lens group 4, and an LCD screen 5 which are arranged in sequence along an emission light path;

[0008] The light source 1 is used to emit light that provides polymerization energy for the photocurable material;

[0009] The first lens group 2 is used to converge the light emitted by the light source 1 onto the reflector group 3;

[0010] The reflector group 3 is used to reflect the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4;

[0011] The second lens group 4 is used to collimate the light reflected by the reflector group 3 into parallel light and then irradiate the parallel light onto the LCD screen 5;

[0012] It also includes an angle adjustment mechanism 6 for adjusting the angle of the reflector group 3 to change the angle of the light passing through the pixel opening area 51 of the LCD screen 5.

[0013] In the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, the angle adjustment mechanism 6 includes a first adjustment component 61 for deflecting and adjusting the pitch and elevation angles of the reflector group 3 and a second adjustment component 62 for deflecting and adjusting the left and right angles of the reflector group 3 .

[0014] In the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3 are relatively fixedly arranged, and the angle adjustment mechanism 6 is configured to adjust the angles of the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3 to change the angle of the light on the LCD screen 5, thereby changing the angle of the light emitted by the light source 1 incident on the reflector group 3.

[0015] In the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, the angle adjustment mechanism 6 includes a third adjustment component 63 for deflecting and adjusting the pitch and elevation angles of the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3, and a fourth adjustment component 64 for deflecting and adjusting the left and right angles of the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3.

[0016] In the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, the light source 1 and the first lens group 2 are both located on the left or right side of the reflector group 3, and the second lens group 4 and the LCD screen 5 are both located on the upper side or the lower side of the reflector group 3 accordingly.

[0017] In the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, the light source 1 is an LED light source.

[0018] The present invention also provides an LCD light-curing 3D printer, comprising a light source 1, a first lens group 2, a reflector group 3, a second lens group 4, and an LCD screen 5 arranged in sequence along an emission light path;

[0019] The light source 1 is used to emit light that provides polymerization energy for the photocurable material;

[0020] The first lens group 2 is used to converge the light emitted by the light source 1 onto the reflector group 3;

[0021] The reflector group 3 is used to reflect the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4;

[0022] The second lens group 4 is used to collimate the light reflected by the reflector group 3 into parallel light and then irradiate the parallel light onto the LCD screen 5;

[0023] It also includes a movement adjustment mechanism for adjusting the LCD screen 5 to move accordingly in the plane where it is located to achieve the offset of the pixel point image position.

[0024] The present invention also provides a method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer, the method using the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, comprising the following steps:

[0025] S1, control the light source 1 to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group 2 and converges to the reflector group 3, then the reflector group 3 reflects the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4, the reflected light passes through the second lens group 4 to be collimated into parallel light and irradiates the LCD screen 5, and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area 51 and is emitted to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer;

[0026] S2. When the angle adjustment mechanism 6 controls the deflection adjustment of the reflector group 3, the LCD screen 5 switches the corresponding pixels according to the image information sent by the host computer to generate light modulated images corresponding to different positions, forming high-resolution graphics in the printing area.

[0027] The present invention also provides a method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer, the method using the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, comprising the following steps:

[0028] S1, control the light source 1 to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group 2 and converges to the reflector group 3, then the reflector group 3 reflects the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4, the reflected light passes through the second lens group 4 to be collimated into parallel light and irradiates the LCD screen 5, and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area 51 and is emitted to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer;

[0029] S2. When the angle adjustment mechanism 6 controls the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3 to deflect and adjust simultaneously, the LCD screen 5 switches the corresponding pixel points according to the image information sent by the host computer to generate light modulated images corresponding to different positions, forming high-resolution graphics in the printing area.

[0030] The present invention also provides a method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer, the method using the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, comprising the following steps:

[0031] S1, control the light source 1 to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group 2 and converges to the reflector group 3, then the reflector group 3 reflects the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4, the reflected light passes through the second lens group 4 to be collimated into parallel light and irradiates the LCD screen 5, and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area 51 and is emitted to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer;

[0032] S2. The mobile adjustment mechanism controls the LCD screen 5 to move accordingly in the plane where it is located, thereby achieving the displacement of the pixel point image position.

[0033] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following advantages:

[0034] 1. The present invention adjusts the angle of the reflector group to change the angle of the light passing through the pixel opening area of ​​the LCD screen, further affecting the position of the curing light beam in the printing area (photocuring glue), thereby achieving the offset of the pixel image. When offset n times, it is equivalent to adding n times of pixels on the basis of the original image, that is, the resolution of the LCD is expanded exponentially, achieving the effect of doubling the resolution of the LCD photocuring 3D printer, while increasing the sufficiency and density of the exposure area, and improving the printing yield.

[0035] 2. The present invention simultaneously adjusts the angles of the light source, the first lens group and the reflector group to change the angle of the light on the LCD screen, thereby changing the angle of the light emitted by the light source incident on the reflector group, and then changing the position of the exposure point, thereby achieving the expansion of resolution and uniform and complete curing of the curing material, thereby improving the printing quality.

[0036] 3. The present invention adjusts the LCD screen to move accordingly on the plane where it is located to achieve the offset of the pixel image position, thereby effectively improving the printing yield.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0037] The specific embodiments of the present invention are further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0038] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of Example 1 of the present invention.

[0039] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of single pixel image offset in Example 1 of the present invention.

[0040] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the effect of changing the exposure surface of a single pixel image at five angles in the horizontal direction in Example 1 of the present invention.

[0041] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the effect when the exposure surface of a single pixel image in Example 1 of the present invention is at two angles in the vertical direction.

[0042] Figure 5It is a schematic structural diagram of the deflection of the reflector assembly in Example 1 of the present invention.

[0043] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of Example 2 of the present invention.

[0044] Figure 7 Schematic diagram of the display principle of a single pixel of a color LCD screen.

[0045] Figure 8 One of the schematic diagrams of the display principle of a monochrome LCD pixel.

[0046] Fig. 9 This is the second schematic diagram of the display principle of a monochrome LCD pixel. [Specific implementation method]

[0047] The following is combined with Figure 1-9 Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail.

[0048] like Figure 1-6 As shown, an LCD light-curing 3D printer of the present invention comprises a light source 1, a first lens group 2, a reflector group 3, a second lens group 4, and an LCD screen 5 arranged in sequence along an emission light path;

[0049] The light source 1 is used to emit light that provides polymerization energy for the photocurable material;

[0050] The first lens group 2 is used to converge the light emitted by the light source 1 onto the reflector group 3;

[0051] The reflector group 3 is used to reflect the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4;

[0052] The second lens group 4 is used to collimate the light reflected by the reflector group 3 into parallel light and then irradiate the parallel light onto the LCD screen 5;

[0053] It also includes an angle adjustment mechanism 6 for adjusting the angle of the reflector group 3 to change the angle of the light passing through the pixel opening area 51 of the LCD screen 5. The present invention adjusts the angle of the reflector group to change the angle of the light passing through the pixel opening area of ​​the LCD screen, further affecting the position of the curing light beam at the printing area (photocuring glue), thereby achieving the offset of the pixel image. When the offset is n times, it is equivalent to adding n times of pixel points on the basis of the original image, that is, the resolution of the LCD is expanded exponentially, achieving the effect of doubling the resolution of the LCD photocuring 3D printer, while increasing the sufficiency and density of the exposure area, and improving the printing yield.

[0054] like Figure 2As shown, 0 is the original position of the light when the reflection is not deflected and the curing light beam is incident vertically on the LCD screen; 1 is the position of the curing light beam on the exposed curing surface after passing through the LCD screen after the reflection is deflected by a certain angle; 2 is a further shift in the pixel image relative to 1; the 5 positions from -2, -1, 0, 1, and 2 are equivalent to an additional 5 times pixel image on the exposure screen, and there is no gap between the pixels.

[0055] Figure 3 The diagram shows the effect of changing the exposure surface of the cured adhesive on the upper surface of the release film at five angles in the horizontal direction.

[0056] Figure 4 The exposure effect formed at two vertical angles (100, 100a; 200, 200a) is shown. It can be seen that there is no gap between the pixels, ensuring the complete exposure and curing of the curing glue while doubling the fineness of the product. The original pixels are 100 and 200. These two pixels are in the X-axis direction ( Figure 4 ) 5 times, in the Y-axis direction ( Figure 4 The entire area is completely exposed, and the image on the LCD is also changed to enhance the accuracy and fineness of the 3D printed product.

[0057] like Figure 5 As shown, in order to adjust accurately, the angle adjustment mechanism 6 includes a first adjustment component 61 for deflecting and adjusting the pitch and elevation angles of the reflector group 3 and a second adjustment component 62 for deflecting and adjusting the left and right angles of the reflector group 3. Wherein, the first adjustment component 61 includes but is not limited to a first rotating shaft located between the reflector group 3 and the reflector frame, the first rotating shaft is rotatably connected to the reflector frame, the reflector group 3 is relatively fixedly connected to the first rotating shaft, and the first rotating shaft is directly or indirectly driven to rotate by the first driving motor. The second adjustment component 62 includes but is not limited to a second rotating shaft arranged on the printer frame, the second rotating shaft is relatively fixedly connected to the reflector frame, and the second rotating shaft is directly or indirectly driven to rotate by the second driving motor.

[0058] like Figure 6 As shown, the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3 are relatively fixedly arranged, and the angle adjustment mechanism 6 is configured to adjust the angles of the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3 to change the angle of the light on the LCD screen 5, thereby changing the angle at which the light emitted by the light source 1 is incident on the reflector group 3, changing the position of the exposure point, achieving the expansion of the resolution and the uniform and complete curing of the curing material, and improving the printing quality.

[0059] like Figure 6As shown, for accurate adjustment, the angle adjustment mechanism 6 includes a third adjustment component 63 for deflecting and adjusting the pitch and elevation angles of the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3, and a fourth adjustment component 64 for deflecting and adjusting the left and right angles of the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3. The structures of the third adjustment component 63 and the fourth adjustment component 64 in the present invention can be the same as the structures of the first adjustment component 61 or the second adjustment component 62, and will not be described here.

[0060] like Figure 1 , 6 As shown, the light source 1 and the first lens group 2 are both located on the left side or the right side of the reflector group 3 , and the second lens group 4 and the LCD screen 5 are both located on the upper side or the lower side of the reflector group 3 , respectively.

[0061] Preferably, the light source 1 is an LED light source.

[0062] like Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides a method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer, the method using the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, comprising the following steps:

[0063] S1, control the light source 1 to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group 2 and converges to the reflector group 3, then the reflector group 3 reflects the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4, the reflected light passes through the second lens group 4 to collimate into parallel light and irradiate the LCD screen 5, and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area 51 and then is emitted through the ITO glass 7 to the release film 8 to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer (the printing area can be the glue-cured base plate or the glue that was cured last time);

[0064] S2. When the angle adjustment mechanism 6 controls the deflection adjustment of the reflector group 3, the LCD screen 5 switches the corresponding pixels according to the image information sent by the host computer to generate light modulated images corresponding to different positions, forming high-resolution graphics in the printing area.

[0065] like Figure 6 As shown, the present invention provides a method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer, the method using the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, comprising the following steps:

[0066] S1, control the light source 1 to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group 2 and converges to the reflector group 3, then the reflector group 3 reflects the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4, the reflected light passes through the second lens group 4 to be collimated into parallel light and irradiates the LCD screen 5, and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area 51 and is emitted to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer;

[0067] S2. When the angle adjustment mechanism 6 controls the light source 1, the first lens group 2 and the reflector group 3 to deflect and adjust simultaneously, the LCD screen 5 switches the corresponding pixel points according to the image information sent by the host computer to generate light modulated images corresponding to different positions, forming high-resolution graphics in the printing area.

[0068] The present invention discloses an LCD light-curing 3D printer, comprising a light source 1, a first lens group 2, a reflector group 3, a second lens group 4, and an LCD screen 5, which are arranged in sequence along an emission light path;

[0069] The light source 1 is used to emit light that provides polymerization energy for the photocurable material;

[0070] The first lens group 2 is used to converge the light emitted by the light source 1 onto the reflector group 3;

[0071] The reflector group 3 is used to reflect the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4;

[0072] The second lens group 4 is used to collimate the light reflected by the reflector group 3 into parallel light and then irradiate the parallel light onto the LCD screen 5;

[0073] The present invention also includes a movement adjustment mechanism for adjusting the LCD screen 5 to move in the plane to achieve the offset of the pixel image position. The present invention effectively improves the printing yield by adjusting the LCD screen to move in the plane to achieve the offset of the pixel image position. The difference between this embodiment and embodiment 1 is that this embodiment adjusts the LCD screen 5 to move in the plane to achieve the offset of the pixel image position; embodiment 1 adjusts the angle of the reflector group 3 to change the angle of the pixel opening area 51 of the LCD screen 5 through which the light passes.

[0074] The movable adjustment mechanism is configured to adjust the LCD screen 5 to move in the up, down, left, and right directions on the plane where it is located. The movable adjustment mechanism includes but is not limited to the cooperation of a screw rod and a nut mechanism.

[0075] The present invention provides a method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer. The method uses the LCD light-curing 3D printer as described above, and comprises the following steps:

[0076] S1, control the light source 1 to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group 2 and converges to the reflector group 3, then the reflector group 3 reflects the light converged by the first lens group 2 to the second lens group 4, the reflected light passes through the second lens group 4 to be collimated into parallel light and irradiates the LCD screen 5, and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area 51 and is emitted to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer;

[0077] S2. The mobile adjustment mechanism controls the LCD screen 5 to move accordingly in the plane where it is located, thereby achieving the displacement of the pixel point image position.

[0078] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of the display principle of a single pixel of a color liquid crystal screen, including three pixel opening areas 51, which are usually red, green and blue, respectively, so as to generate an image of a single color pixel.

[0079] The present invention utilizes the gaps between pixels and changes the angle of light to offset the position of the light-curing material so that the material is fully cured. Meanwhile, the LCD pattern is also changed when the light spot position is changed, thereby doubling the LCD resolution.

Claims

1. An LCD light-curing 3D printer, characterized in that The invention comprises a light source (1), a first lens group (2), a reflector group (3), a second lens group (4), and an LCD screen (5) which are arranged in sequence along the emission light path; The light source (1) is used to emit light that provides polymerization energy for the photocurable material; The first lens group (2) is used to converge the light emitted by the light source (1) onto the reflector group (3); The reflector group (3) is used to reflect the light converged by the first lens group (2) to the second lens group (4); The second lens group (4) is used to collimate the light reflected by the reflector group (3) into parallel light and then irradiate the light onto the LCD screen (5); The light source (1) and the first lens group (2) are both located on the left side or the right side of the reflector group (3), and the second lens group (4) and the LCD screen (5) are both located on the upper side or the lower side of the reflector group (3) respectively; It also includes an angle adjustment mechanism (6) for adjusting the angle of the reflector group (3) to change the angle of light passing through the pixel opening area (51) of the LCD screen (5).

2. According to claim 1, an LCD light-curing 3D printer, characterized in that The angle adjustment mechanism (6) comprises a first adjustment component (61) for deflecting and adjusting the pitch and elevation angles of the reflector group (3) and a second adjustment component (62) for deflecting and adjusting the left and right angles of the reflector group (3).

3. According to claim 1, an LCD light-curing 3D printer is characterized in that The light source (1), the first lens group (2) and the reflector group (3) are relatively fixedly arranged, and the angle adjustment mechanism (6) is configured to adjust the angles of the light source (1), the first lens group (2) and the reflector group (3) to change the angle of the light on the LCD screen (5), thereby changing the angle at which the light emitted by the light source (1) enters the reflector group (3).

4. The LCD light-curing 3D printer according to claim 3, characterized in that The angle adjustment mechanism (6) comprises a third adjustment component (63) for deflecting and adjusting the pitch and elevation angles of the light source (1), the first lens group (2) and the reflector group (3), and a fourth adjustment component (64) for deflecting and adjusting the left and right angles of the light source (1), the first lens group (2) and the reflector group (3).

5. An LCD light-curing 3D printer according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that The light source (1) is an LED light source.

6. An LCD light-curing 3D printer, characterized in that The invention comprises a light source (1), a first lens group (2), a reflector group (3), a second lens group (4), and an LCD screen (5) which are arranged in sequence along the emission light path; The light source (1) is used to emit light that provides polymerization energy for the photocurable material; The first lens group (2) is used to converge the light emitted by the light source (1) onto the reflector group (3); The reflector group (3) is used to reflect the light converged by the first lens group (2) to the second lens group (4); The second lens group (4) is used to collimate the light reflected by the reflector group (3) into parallel light and then irradiate the light onto the LCD screen (5); The light source (1) and the first lens group (2) are both located on the left side or the right side of the reflector group (3), and the second lens group (4) and the LCD screen (5) are both located on the upper side or the lower side of the reflector group (3) respectively; It also comprises a movement adjustment mechanism for adjusting the LCD screen (5) to move accordingly on the plane where it is located so as to achieve the offset of the pixel point image position.

7. A method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer, the method using an LCD light-curing 3D printer as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that The steps include: S1, controlling the light source (1) to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group (2) and converges to the reflector group (3), then the reflector group (3) reflects the light converged by the first lens group (2) to the second lens group (4), the reflected light passes through the second lens group (4) and is collimated into parallel light and irradiates the LCD screen (5), and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area (51) and is emitted to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer; S2. When the angle adjustment mechanism (6) controls the deflection adjustment of the reflector group (3), the LCD screen (5) switches corresponding pixels according to the image information sent by the host computer to generate light modulated images corresponding to different positions, thereby forming high-resolution graphics in the printing area.

8. A method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer, the method using an LCD light-curing 3D printer as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that The steps include: S1, controlling the light source (1) to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group (2) and converges to the reflector group (3), then the reflector group (3) reflects the light converged by the first lens group (2) to the second lens group (4), the reflected light passes through the second lens group (4) and is collimated into parallel light and irradiates the LCD screen (5), and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area (51) and is emitted to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer; S2, when the angle adjustment mechanism (6) controls the light source (1), the first lens group (2) and the reflector group (3) to deflect and adjust simultaneously, the LCD screen (5) switches corresponding pixels according to the image information sent by the host computer to generate light modulated images corresponding to different positions, thereby forming high-resolution graphics in the printing area.

9. A method for improving the resolution of an LCD light-curing 3D printer, the method using an LCD light-curing 3D printer as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that The steps include: S1, controlling the light source (1) to emit light, the light passes through the first lens group (2) and converges to the reflector group (3), then the reflector group (3) reflects the light converged by the first lens group (2) to the second lens group (4), the reflected light passes through the second lens group (4) and is collimated into parallel light and irradiates the LCD screen (5), and finally the parallel light passes through the pixel opening area (51) and is emitted to the printing area of ​​the 3D printer; S2, the moving adjustment mechanism controls the LCD screen (5) to move accordingly on the plane where it is located, thereby achieving the displacement of the pixel point image position.

Images