A three-dimensional forming method for implantation assistance

The insertion of pre-form elements with vertical positioning holes and channels addresses the inefficiencies of traditional support structures in LPBF, improving scanning efficiency and reducing material waste and production time for complex parts.

CN120023347BActive Publication Date: 2025-07-15AN SHI SHU QING (HANGZHOU) INFORMATION TECH SERVICE CO LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
CN202510514027.0
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Patents(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2025-04-23
Publication Date
2025-07-15
Estimated Expiration
2045-04-23

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

When forming overhang and camber structures, existing LPBF three-dimensional forming equipment requires a large number of support auxiliary structures, resulting in low material utilization, low production efficiency and high cost, and it is difficult for the prior art to effectively reduce the amount of support structures.

Method used

The implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method is adopted to implant preformed elements and positioning auxiliary structures into the powder bed in the intermediate stage of forming, replacing the traditional fully supported structure, and using the vertical positioning holes of the preformed elements and the powder-through process hole group to ensure support and heat dissipation of the overhanging and tilting parts and reduce the support volume.

Benefits of technology

Significantly reduce support volume, improve laser scanning forming efficiency, increase powder utilization, reduce surface damage, and shorten the forming time of complex components. It is suitable for LPBF three-dimensional forming equipment of various sizes and material types.

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Abstract

The present invention relates to an implantation-assisted three-dimensional forming method, which improves the forming ability of the laser powder bed fusion process for overhanging and inclined structures by optimizing the design of preformed components and positioning auxiliary structures. The steps include: screening the areas that need support according to the geometric characteristics of the component and generating a planning space, dynamically determining the height of the implantation layer to reduce the support volume; generating a digital model of the preformed component with a group of vertical positioning holes and a group of powder-passing process holes based on the horizontal cross-section, extending downward to form a digital model of the positioning auxiliary structure, and layer-by-layer forming after slicing in combination with necessary support structures. During the forming process, the robotic arm precisely assembles the preformed component on the implantation layer, fills the powder, and then continues to scan and form. This method replaces the traditional integral support structure with a preformed component, greatly reducing material consumption and laser scanning time. The powder-passing process hole group ensures the uniformity of powder flow and reduces fusion defects; the high-precision alignment of the vertical positioning hole group and the positioning auxiliary structure suppresses warping deformation.
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Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of additive manufacturing, and particularly to an implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method. Background Art

[0002] Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) is one of the important methods in the field of additive manufacturing. Based on laying a thin layer of powder on the surface of the powder bed, a high-power laser beam scans and irradiates a selected area of the thin powder layer to fuse and deposit it on the substrate. Then, through the cyclic execution of the steps of the substrate descending layer by layer, powder spreading, and scanning and irradiating, the deposit grows layer by layer on the substrate until it is completely formed. The micron-level control accuracy of the existing electromagnetic-driven optical actuator for the laser beam, as well as the advantages of low inertia and high-speed response, make LPBF three-dimensional forming equipment play an irreplaceable role in the processing of precision mechanical components, especially high-performance products with complex internal structures and three-dimensional functional surfaces.

[0003] On the other hand, the method of deploying the thin powder layer on the powder bed in the LPBF three-dimensional forming equipment, that is, the powder spreading step, is realized by horizontally scraping a highly fluid powder material in a gravitational field environment. This makes the process of the laser beam scanning and irradiating the thin powder layer to generate a solid deposition layer rely on the support, heat dissipation, and fixing effects of the already formed entity below, that is, the area scanned and irradiated by the laser beam must be directly above or adjacent to the side above the existing entity. Otherwise, when the powder fuses and cools and solidifies, defects such as collapse, warping, and fracture will occur due to the lack of support, heat dissipation, and fixing effects, and accidents such as damage to the powder spreading mechanism due to collision and displacement and falling off of the formed object will occur during subsequent powder spreading; this severely restricts the forming ability of the LPBF three-dimensional forming equipment for overhanging and outward-tilting structures and limits the application scope of LPBF. For this reason, existing LPBF three-dimensional forming equipment generally adds a support auxiliary structure below the overhanging and outward-tilting parts of the three-dimensional component, and synchronously forms the support auxiliary structure when forming the three-dimensional component body layer by layer until it reaches the designed support height, so as to provide important support, heat dissipation, and fixing effects for the subsequent layer-by-layer fusion deposition of the overhanging and outward-tilting parts.

[0004] The process of the forming support auxiliary structure of the LPBF three-dimensional forming equipment is similar to that of forming the three-dimensional component body. It also consumes corresponding powder materials, laser beam energy, and scanning time, and the required amount is proportional to the volume of the support auxiliary structure. When there are many overhanging and inclined parts in the three-dimensional component and their positions are relatively high, there will also be an unreasonable phenomenon that the volume of the support auxiliary structure is much larger than that of the three-dimensional component body. This not only seriously reduces the powder material utilization rate, laser energy efficiency, and overall productivity of the LPBF three-dimensional forming equipment, but also greatly prolongs the production cycle and increases the process risk. There are publicly reported technical cases of achieving "support-free" and "less support" LPBF three-dimensional forming through fine control of laser energy and optimization of scanning paths. However, it only partially alleviates problems such as collapse, warping, and fracture of the fusion deposits, and cannot fundamentally replace the support, heat dissipation, and fixing effects of the support auxiliary structure on overhanging and inclined parts. Currently, in the field of additive manufacturing technology, there is still a lack of an LPBF three-dimensional forming method that can form overhanging and inclined structures with high quality and effectively reduce the amount of support auxiliary structure used. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to solve the deficiencies in the prior art and provide an implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method that is simple to operate and low in cost. By using a small number of positioning auxiliary structures and implanting preformed elements into the powder bed in the middle stage of forming, it can effectively support overhanging and inclined parts, thereby avoiding directly forming a large number of support auxiliary structures in the LPBF manner and the problems such as low forming efficiency and high cost caused by it.

[0006] To achieve the above purpose, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] An implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method includes the following steps:

[0008] Determine the placement posture of the digital model of the component to be formed on the substrate, screen the areas that need to be supported according to the outer inclination angle conditions, and project them onto the substrate and the digital model body of the component to be formed to form a planning space;

[0009] Insert a horizontal section in the planning space, and determine the height of the horizontal section as the implant layer height with the constraint of minimizing the sum of the volumes of the upper cut-off space and the lower overstepping space;

[0010] Taking the cross-section of the horizontal section as the upper surface, extend downward by a set thickness to generate a digital model of the preformed element, and disperse a group of vertical positioning holes and a group of powder-passing process holes in the digital model of the preformed element;

[0011] Taking the group of vertical positioning holes as the starting point, vertically extend downward in the planning space to the upper surface of the substrate to generate a digital model of the positioning auxiliary structure;

[0012] Add the digital model of the support structure to the upper cutting space and the lower overstep space, remove the digital model of the preformed element, and slice the combined digital models of the part to be formed, the positioning auxiliary structure, and the support structure according to the layer thickness corresponding to the powder spreading height to obtain the overall three-dimensional digital model slice data;

[0013] When layer-by-layer forming reaches the implantation layer, use the robotic arm to implant the preformed element into the positioning auxiliary structure, level the powder, and then continue to scan and form the part body.

[0014] Preferably, the horizontal section divides the planned space into an upper cutting space and a lower overstep space with calculable volumes, and uses an optimization algorithm to solve for the section position that minimizes the sum of the volumes of the two spaces.

[0015] Preferably, when the lower end of the planned space is simultaneously joined to the substrate and the digital model of the part to be formed, the extension end point of the digital model of the positioning auxiliary structure is the geometric interface between the upper surface of the substrate and the digital model of the part to be formed.

[0016] Preferably, when the robotic arm operates at the implantation layer, it includes the steps of the robotic arm cleaning the powder at the implantation layer to expose the positioning auxiliary structure, grasping the preformed element and assembling it to the positioning auxiliary structure, and leveling the powder around the preformed element to keep the powder spreading plane flat.

[0017] Preferably, the planned space includes multiple independent sub-spaces. Digital models of preformed elements and positioning auxiliary structures are respectively generated within the multiple independent planned sub-spaces. When layer-by-layer forming reaches each implantation layer, the robotic arm sequentially completes the implantation of the corresponding preformed elements.

[0018] Preferably, the powder through-hole group penetrates the digital model of the preformed element, allowing the powder to pass through during the powder spreading process to maintain the fluidity and flatness of the powder bed.

[0019] Preferably, the digital model of the positioning auxiliary structure is generated by a vertical stretching process, and its height direction is strictly aligned with the vertical positioning hole group of the digital model of the preformed element.

[0020] A three-dimensional forming machine tool system is used for an implantation-assisted three-dimensional forming method in the above technical solution, including:

[0021] Forming initialization: The controller controls the robotic arm to move to the standby position outside the operating areas of the powder spreading unit and the laser scanning unit, injects powder into the powder supply unit, places the preformed element on the element bracket, and closes the forming chamber; The controller starts the atmosphere unit to adjust the gas in the forming chamber to an inert state, drives the substrate of the powder bed and the powder spreading unit to return to the zero position, and loads the three-dimensional digital model slice data;

[0022] First - layer forming: The controller controls the substrate to descend to the powder - spreading height. The powder - feeding unit outputs the powder with a single - time powder - spreading amount to the powder - spreading unit. The powder - spreading unit pushes the powder to fill the depression generated by the descent of the substrate and pushes the excess powder into the powder - recycling unit. The laser - scanning unit scans the powder of the first layer to generate a sheet - like solid deposit.

[0023] Cyclic forming to the implantation layer: Repeat the first - layer forming step to accumulate the deposits on the substrate or the formed layer until the implantation - layer height is reached. Implantation - layer operation: The controller triggers the robotic arm to clean the powder on the implantation layer to expose the assembly part of the positioning - auxiliary structure, grabs the pre - formed element and assembles it onto the positioning - auxiliary structure, and fills the powder around the pre - formed element to make the surface of the powder bed flat.

[0024] Continue layer - by - layer forming: Repeat the first - layer forming step to accumulate the subsequent deposits on the formed layer and the pre - formed element until the full - layer scanning forming of the digital model of the part to be formed is completed.

[0025] Preferably, the pre - formed element is a flat porous structure, and its vertical positioning hole group and powder - passing process hole group are through - cylindrical hole arrays. The thickness matches the height of the implantation layer. The material composition of the pre - formed element is the same as the powder material used in laser powder bed fusion. The vertical positioning hole group is used for assembling with the positioning - auxiliary structure.

[0026] Preferably, the pre - formed element is placed obliquely on the element bracket and can be manufactured by laser cutting, wire - cut electrical discharge machining or CNC cutting. Beneficial effects

[0027] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: By replacing the traditional full - support structure with the implantation - assembly scheme of the positioning - auxiliary structure and the pre - formed element, the support volume is significantly reduced, the time for laser - scanning the support area is reduced, and it has the advantages of high laser - scanning forming efficiency, high powder utilization rate, less total support removal amount, and small surface - damage range. It can greatly shorten the forming time of complex parts and is suitable for application in LPBF three - dimensional forming equipment of various sizes and material types.

[0028] The present invention sets a vertical positioning hole group and a powder - passing process hole group in the pre - formed element, allowing the powder to flow and fill the gap between the pre - formed element and the powder bed during the powder - spreading process, avoiding insufficient melting caused by uneven powder accumulation, thereby reducing collapse and porosity. The alignment and assembly of the vertical positioning hole group and the positioning - auxiliary structure ensure the position accuracy of the pre - formed element and the formed structure, avoiding poor fusion or stress concentration caused by misalignment, and thus suppressing warping deformation. Description of the drawings

[0029] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of a machine tool for an implantation - assisted three - dimensional forming method proposed by the present invention;

[0030] Figure 2 Schematic structural diagram of the control signal proposed in the present invention;

[0031] FIG. 3 is a set of schematic structural diagrams of S1-S6 in the implant-assisted planning and slicing steps proposed in the present invention;

[0032] Figure 4 FIG. is a set of schematic structural diagrams of A1-A7 in the implant-assisted three-dimensional forming step proposed in the present invention.

[0033] In the figure: 1 frame, 100 controller, 2 forming chamber, 3 powder bed, 31 substrate, 4 powder supply unit, 41 strip powder pile, 5 powder spreading unit, 6 powder returning unit, 7 robotic arm, 8 component bracket, 81 preformed component, 9 atmosphere unit, 91 air inlet, 92 exhaust port, 10 laser scanning unit, 300 digital model of the component to be formed, 400 planning space, 401 upper cutting space, 402 lower overrun space, 500 horizontal section, 600 digital model of the preformed component, 601 vertical positioning hole group, 602 powder passing process hole group, 700 digital model of the positioning auxiliary structure, 800 digital model of the support structure, 1001 component body, 1002 lower support structure, 1003 positioning auxiliary structure, 1004 upper support structure. Detailed implementation manners

[0034] Next, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all the embodiments.

[0035] As Figure 1 shown, a machine tool system applying the implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method, the machine tool system includes a forming chamber 2 on a frame 1, a powder bed 3 in the frame 1, and the upper opening of the powder bed 3 is fitted and connected to the bottom plate of the forming chamber 2; there is a substrate 31 in the powder bed 3, and the powder bed 3 can drive the substrate 31 to move up and down and be positioned. When the substrate 31 is at the zero position, it is flush with the upper edge of the powder bed 3 and the bottom plate of the forming chamber 2; there is a powder supply unit 4 and a powder spreading unit 5 in the forming chamber 2, and a powder returning unit 6 in the frame 1, and the opening of the powder returning unit 6 is connected to the bottom plate of the forming chamber 2; the powder supply unit 4 can quantitatively output powder to the powder spreading unit 5, and the powder spreading unit 5 moves horizontally back and forth on the bottom plate of the forming chamber 2 to spread powder on the upper opening of the powder bed 3 and push the excess powder into the opening of the powder returning unit 6; there are a robotic arm 7 and a component bracket 8 in the forming chamber 2, the operating range of the robotic arm 7 covers the areas of the powder bed 3 and the component bracket 8, and the preformed component 81 on the component bracket 8 is picked up by the robotic arm 7. There are multiple preformed components 81 placed on the component bracket 8, and the preformed components 81 are placed obliquely.

[0036] In the frame 1, there is an atmosphere unit 9. The atmosphere unit 9 is provided with an air inlet 91 and an air outlet 92, which are connected to the two side plates of the forming chamber 2. The atmosphere unit 9 inhales the gas in the forming chamber 2 through the air inlet 91, and after filtration and purification, it is sent back to the forming chamber 2 through the air outlet 92. There is a laser scanning unit 10 at the top of the forming chamber 2, and the scanning range of the laser scanning unit 10 covers the powder bed 3.

[0037] As Figure 2 shown, the controller 100 is connected to the powder bed 3, the controller 100 is connected to the powder supply unit 4, the controller 100 is connected to the powder spreading unit 5, the controller 100 is connected to the robotic arm 7, the controller 100 is connected to the atmosphere unit 9, and the controller 100 is connected to the laser scanning unit 10; the controller 100 sends an electrical signal to the powder bed 3 to control the powder bed 3 to drive the substrate 31 to move up to the zero position before component forming, and then to lower the powder spreading height before layer-by-layer powder spreading; the controller 100 sends an electrical signal to the powder supply unit 4 to control the powder supply unit 4 to output the powder required for a single powder spreading to the powder spreading unit 5; the controller 100 sends an electrical signal to the powder spreading unit 5 to control the powder spreading unit 5 to drive the scraping bar to perform the powder spreading action from left to right and the return-to-zero action from right to left by the linear module; the controller 100 sends an electrical signal to the robotic arm 7 to control the robotic arm 7 to clean a specified area of the powder bed 3, grab the preformed component 81 from the component bracket 8, implant and assemble it onto the positioning auxiliary structure, and perform powder burial and filling; the controller 100 sends an electrical signal to the atmosphere unit 9 to control the atmosphere unit 9 to adjust the working gas in the forming chamber 2 to an inert state and maintain the cyclic purification of the working gas in the forming chamber 2; the controller 100 sends an electrical signal to the laser scanning unit 10 to control the laser scanning unit 10 to scan and irradiate a selected area of the opening of the powder bed 3 according to set parameters such as laser power, linear velocity, and spot diameter.

[0038] As shown in Figure 3, an implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method first loads the digital model 300 of the component to be formed into the computer 3D working environment. The steps of implant-assisted planning and slicing are as follows:

[0039] S1: Determine the placement posture of the digital model 300 of the component to be formed on the substrate 31. Taking the outer inclination angle as a condition, screen the area that needs to support the lower surface, and project this area onto the substrate 31 and the body of the digital model 300 of the component to be formed to form a planning space 400;

[0040] It should be specifically noted that the outer inclination angle is any inclination angle in the range of 0 - 90°.

[0041] S2: Insert a horizontal section 500 at an arbitrary height in the planning space 400. Taking the minimum sum of the volumes of the upper cut-off space 401 and the lower over-boundary space 402 as a constraint, determine the height of the horizontal section 500, that is, the implant layer height;

[0042] S3: Using the cross-section of the horizontal section 500 in the planning space 400 as the upper surface, stretch it downward by a set thickness, and dispersedly add a vertical positioning hole group 601 and a powder-through process hole group 602 to generate a preformed component digital model 600;

[0043] It should be particularly noted that the powder-through process hole group 602 and the vertical positioning hole group 601 are cylindrical hole arrays that penetrate the preformed component digital model 600.

[0044] S4: Starting from the vertical positioning hole group 601, stretch it downward in the planning space 400 to the upper surface of the substrate 31 to generate a positioning auxiliary structure digital model 700;

[0045] It should be particularly noted that when the substrate 31 and the to-be-formed component digital model 300 are simultaneously joined at the lower end of the planning space 400, starting from the vertical positioning hole group 601, stretch it downward in the planning space 400 to the upper surface of the substrate 31 and the geometric interface of the to-be-formed component digital model 300 to generate a positioning auxiliary structure digital model 700.

[0046] S5: Add a support structure digital model 800 in the upper cutting space 401 and the lower overrun space 402, and then remove the preformed component digital model 600. The removed preformed component digital model 600 is used for cutting the preformed component 81;

[0047] S6: The combined body of the remaining to-be-formed component digital model 300, the positioning auxiliary structure digital model 700, and the support structure digital model 800 is sliced according to the layer thickness corresponding to the powder spreading height to obtain the overall three-dimensional digital model slice data;

[0048] As Figure 4 shown, the machine tool system scans layer by layer to the implant layer, and the steps of implanting the preformed component 81 and subsequent layer-by-layer forming are as follows:

[0049] A1: The robotic arm 7 clears the local powder on the powder bed 3 to fully expose the assembly part of the positioning auxiliary structure 1003;

[0050] A2: The robotic arm 7 grabs the preformed component 81 on the component bracket 8, moves, positions, and assembles it onto the positioning auxiliary structure 1003;

[0051] A3: The robotic arm 7 buries and fills the powder around the preformed component 81, and then returns to the standby station;

[0052] A4: The powder bed 3 drives the substrate 31 to descend by the powder spreading height, and the powder supply unit 4 outputs the powder with a single powder spreading amount to the powder spreading unit 5. The supplied powder forms a strip-shaped powder pile 41 on the right side of the doctor blade;

[0053] A5: The powder spreading unit 5 drives the doctor blade to push the strip-shaped powder pile 41 to perform a powder spreading action to fill the depression of the powder bed 3 generated by the descent of the substrate 31 and generate a new powder layer;

[0054] A6: The laser scanning unit 10 receives the current layer slice data and scans and irradiates the newly spread powder layer. After the scanning and irradiation are completed, the powder spreading unit 5 returns to the zero point, and the forming of the current layer is completed.

[0055] A7: Repeat the above steps A4, A5, and A6 until all the layer slice data is scanned and irradiated, the component body 1001 grows to a complete form, and an upper support structure 1004 is formed above the preformed element 81, and the implant-assisted three-dimensional forming is completed.

[0056] A machine tool system applying the implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method includes a layer-by-layer forming method, and the specific steps are as follows:

[0057] Before starting the forming, the controller 100 first sends a standby instruction to the robotic arm 7 to control the robotic arm 7 to run to the standby station outside the operating areas of the powder spreading unit 5 and the laser scanning unit 10. Then, a sufficient amount of powder is injected into the powder supply unit 4, the preformed element 81 is placed on the element bracket 8, and the forming chamber is closed. The controller 100 sends an operation instruction to the atmosphere unit 9 to control the atmosphere unit 9 to adjust the working gas in the forming chamber to an inert state, thereby maintaining cyclic purification. The controller 100 sends a zeroing instruction to the powder bed 3 to control the powder bed 3 to drive the substrate 31 to run to the zero position. The controller 100 sends a zeroing instruction to the powder spreading unit 5 to control the powder spreading unit 5 to run to the zero position. Subsequently, the controller 100 loads the three-dimensional digital model slice data.

[0058] For the first layer forming, the controller 100 first sends a lowering instruction to the powder bed 3 and a powder supply instruction to the powder supply unit 4 to drive the substrate 31 to lower by the powder spreading height and drive the powder supply unit 4 to output the powder material with a single powder spreading amount to the powder spreading unit 5. Subsequently, the controller 100 sends a powder spreading instruction to the powder spreading unit 5 to control the powder spreading unit 5 to horizontally push the powder material to fill the depression in the powder bed generated by the lowering of the substrate 31 and push the excess powder material into the powder return unit 6. Then, the controller 100 sequentially reads each vector block of the first layer slice data, generates a scanning instruction sequence, and sends it to the laser scanning unit 10 to control the laser scanning unit 10 to perform laser scanning and irradiation. The free powder particles in the scanned and irradiated area of the powder spreading layer are melted, polymerized, cooled and solidified to form a sheet-like solid deposit and tightly bond to the substrate 31. The free powder state in the area of the powder spreading layer that is not scanned and irradiated remains unchanged. After all the first layer slice data is read, sent, and executed, the controller 100 controls the powder spreading unit 5 to return to the zero position, and the forming of the first layer is completed.

[0059] Repeat the operations of the first layer until the implant layer. The newly formed sheet-like solid deposits are tightly bonded to the previously formed cumulative objects of the previous layers until the slice data is executed to the implant layer.

[0060] For implant layer forming, the controller 100 sends a powder cleaning instruction to the robotic arm 7 to control the robotic arm 7 to move the implant layer powder to the adjacent area, so that the assembly part on the top of the positioning auxiliary structure 1003 is completely exposed. Subsequently, the controller 100 issues an implant instruction to the robotic arm 7 to control the robotic arm 7 to grasp the preformed element 81 on the element carrier 8, move it, position it, and assemble it onto the positioning auxiliary structure. After assembly, the upper surface of the preformed element 81 is at the same height as the surface of the powder bed. The controller 100 issues a landfill instruction to the robotic arm 7 to control the robotic arm 7 to move the powder in the adjacent area of the implant layer and fill the gap between the preformed element 81 and the powder bed 3, so that the surface of the powder bed 3 is overall flat, and then returns to the standby station.

[0061] Continue to loop and execute the first layer operation; the controller 100 continues to loop and execute the steps of lowering the substrate 31, powder feeding, powder spreading, laser scanning and irradiation, and the powder spreading unit 5 returning to the zero point. The newly generated sheet-like solid deposits continue to accumulate on the previous layer's accumulated formed object and the preformed element 81 until all the layer slice data of the three-dimensional digital model of the part to be formed is read, sent, and scanned and executed.

[0062] The way of planning the positioning auxiliary structure 1003 and the preformed element 81 in the present invention can be any number of implant layer heights in addition to only a single implant layer height in this embodiment. In addition to in a single planned space in this embodiment, it can also be carried out separately in multiple independent planned sub-spaces according to the dispersion of the area to be supported and assisted. Correspondingly, during the forming process, when the robotic arm 7 reaches each implant layer height layer by layer, it needs to complete the implantation operation of the corresponding preformed element 81 in sequence. Multiple implantations of the preformed element 81 can further reduce the total volume of the directly formed support and auxiliary structure.

[0063] The preformed element 81 of the present invention is a flat plate with porous structure, and a flat plate with the same thickness as the preformed element 81 and the same type of powder material used in LPBF can be used, and it can be efficiently and low-cost processed by processing means such as laser cutting, wire electrical discharge machining, diamond wire cutting, and CNC cutting. After the preformed element 81 completes the implantation operation, it plays a role in supporting the outwardly inclined and overhanging lower surface above its height in the powder bed 3.

[0064] After the preformed element 81 of the present invention plays an implantation role, forming support and auxiliary structures can also be added as needed in the upper cut-off space 401 and the lower overrun space 402 of the planned space 400. The forming support and auxiliary structures and the body of the part to be formed are combined and sliced to form the overall three-dimensional digital model slice data for laser scanning and irradiation control of LPBF layer-by-layer forming.

[0065] The above are only the preferred specific embodiments of the present invention, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed by the present invention, according to the technical solution and inventive concept of the present invention, making equivalent substitutions or changes, shall be covered by the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A three-dimensional forming method for implantation assistance, characterized in that, Including the following steps, Determine the placement attitude of the digital model (300) of the component to be formed on the substrate (31), screen the area to be supported according to the camber condition, and project it onto the substrate (31) and the body of the digital model (300) of the component to be formed to form a planning space (400); Insert a horizontal section (500) into the planning space (400), and determine the height of the horizontal section (500) as the implant layer height with the constraint of minimizing the sum of the volumes of the upper cut-off space (401) and the lower overrun space (402); Using the section of the horizontal section (500) as the upper surface, extend downward by a set thickness to generate a digital model (600) of the preformed element, and disperse a vertical positioning hole group (601) and a powder-passing process hole group (602) in the digital model (600) of the preformed element. The powder-passing process hole group (602) penetrates the digital model (600) of the preformed element to allow the powder to pass through during the powder spreading process to maintain the fluidity and flatness of the powder bed (3); Starting from the vertical positioning hole group (601), vertically extend downward into the planning space (400) to the upper surface of the substrate (31) to generate a digital model (700) of the positioning auxiliary structure; Add a digital model (800) of the support structure to the upper cut-off space (401) and the lower overrun space (402), remove the digital model (600) of the preformed element, and slice the combination of the digital model (300) of the component to be formed, the digital model (700) of the positioning auxiliary structure, and the digital model (800) of the support structure according to the layer thickness corresponding to the powder spreading height to obtain the overall three-dimensional digital model slice data. The digital model (600) of the preformed element is used for cutting and processing the preformed element (81) of the flat porous structure; When forming layer by layer to the implant layer, the preformed element (81) is implanted into the positioning auxiliary structure (1003) through the robotic arm (7), and after filling the powder, the forming of the component body (1001) is continued by scanning; 2. The implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method according to claim 1, characterized in that The horizontal section (500) divides the planning space (400) into an upper cut-off space (401) and a lower overrun space (402) with calculable volumes, and the cross-section position that minimizes the sum of the volumes of the two spaces is solved through an optimization algorithm; 3. The implantation-assisted three-dimensional forming method according to claim 1, characterized in that, When the lower end of the planning space (400) is simultaneously joined to the substrate (31) and the digital model (300) of the component to be formed, the extension end point of the digital model (700) of the positioning auxiliary structure is the geometric interface between the upper surface of the substrate (31) and the digital model (300) of the component to be formed; 4. The implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method according to claim 1, characterized in that, When the robotic arm (7) operates at the implant layer, it includes steps of the robotic arm (7) cleaning the powder at the implant layer to expose the positioning auxiliary structure (1003), grasping the preformed element (81) and assembling it to the positioning auxiliary structure (1003), and filling the powder around the preformed element (81) to keep the powder spreading plane flat; 5. A three-dimensional forming method for implantation assistance according to claim 1, characterized in that, The planning space (400) contains multiple independent sub-spaces. Digital models (600) of preformed elements and digital models (700) of positioning auxiliary structures are respectively generated in the multiple independent planning sub-spaces. When forming layer by layer to each implant layer, the robotic arm (7) sequentially completes the implantation of the corresponding preformed elements (81).

6. A method for implant-assisted three-dimensional forming according to claim 1, wherein the digital model (700) of the positioning auxiliary structure is generated by a vertical stretching process, and its height direction is strictly aligned with the vertical positioning hole group (601) of the preformed element digital model (600).

7. A three-dimensional forming machine tool system for performing the implant-assisted three-dimensional forming method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, It includes: Forming initialization: The controller (100) controls the robotic arm (7) to move to the standby station outside the operating areas of the powder spreading unit (5) and the laser scanning unit (10), injects powder into the powder supply unit (4), places the preformed element (81) on the element bracket (8), and closes the forming chamber (2); the controller (100) starts the atmosphere unit (9) to adjust the gas in the forming chamber (2) to an inert state, drives the substrate (31) of the powder bed (3) and the powder spreading unit (5) to return to the zero position, and loads the three-dimensional digital model slice data. First layer forming: The controller (100) controls the substrate (31) to descend to the powder spreading height, the powder supply unit (4) outputs the powder for a single powder spreading amount to the powder spreading unit (5), the powder spreading unit (5) pushes the powder to fill the depression generated by the descent of the substrate (31), and pushes the excess powder into the powder recycling unit (6); the laser scanning unit (10) scans the powder of the first layer to generate a sheet-like solid deposit. Cyclic forming to the implant layer: The first layer forming step is repeatedly executed to accumulate the deposits on the formed layer until the implant layer height is reached. The controller (100) triggers the robotic arm (7) to clean the powder of the implant layer to expose the assembly part of the positioning auxiliary structure (1003), grabs the preformed element (81) and assembles it onto the positioning auxiliary structure (1003), and fills the powder around the preformed element (81) to make the surface of the powder bed (3) flat. Continue layer-by-layer forming: The first layer forming step is repeatedly executed to accumulate the subsequent deposits on the formed layer and the preformed element (81) until the full-layer scanning forming of the digital model (300) of the part to be formed is completed.

8. A three-dimensional forming machine tool system according to claim 7, characterized in that, The preformed element (81) is a flat plate porous structure, and its vertical positioning hole group (601) and powder-passing process hole group (602) are through cylindrical hole arrays, and the thickness matches the implant layer height. The material composition of the preformed element (81) is the same as the powder material used in laser powder bed fusion, and the vertical positioning hole group (601) is used for assembling with the positioning auxiliary structure (1003).

9. A three-dimensional forming machine tool system according to claim 8, characterized in that, The preformed element (81) is placed obliquely on the element bracket (8) and can be manufactured by laser cutting, wire electrical discharge machining or CNC cutting.

Citation Information

Patent Citations

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    CN110421164A