Machining platform for forming part few-support SLA printing and using method

Abstract

The invention discloses a machining platform for forming part few-support SLA printing and a using method, and relates to the technical field of additive manufacturing, the machining platform comprises a lifting platform, a working platform guide frame, a small linear driver and a small working platform, the working platform guide frame is mounted on the lifting platform, and the small linear driver is mounted on the working platform guide frame; a plurality of small linear drivers are installed on the lifting platform and located in the working platform guide frame, the small linear drivers are distributed in a rectangular array, and the top movable end of each small linear driver is connected with a small working platform. The whole large working platform is dispersed into the small working platform array capable of independently ascending and descending, and the heights of the small working platforms are adjusted to be matched with the lower contour of a formed part, so that supports are greatly reduced, the utilization rate of an expensive photosensitive resin material is increased, the workload of removing the supports is reduced, and the manufacturing period is shortened; the method is particularly suitable for SLA printing of large-size formed parts with non-planar lower contours.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of additive manufacturing, and particularly to a processing platform for SLA printing with less support for formed parts and a usage method thereof. Background Art

[0002] A stereolithography printer is an advanced digital manufacturing device that uses a light source to cure liquid materials layer by layer using stereolithography technology to gradually construct and produce a three-dimensional object. The models produced in this way, with their high precision and delicate surface effects, have been widely popularized and applied in multiple industries. The existing stereolithography 3D printers commonly include three types: SLA (stereolithography), DLP (digital light processing), and LCD (liquid crystal display). Among them, the SLA printer cures photosensitive resin layer by layer using a laser beam. It controls the laser to move back and forth on the resin surface and solidifies the resin layer by layer according to the sliced data. After each layer is completed, the printing platform moves and then prints the next layer until the printing is finished. Among them, the SLA device is usually large in volume and is generally used for printing large parts and models. It has the advantages of high forming accuracy and relatively fast forming speed, but at the same time, it also has disadvantages such as high equipment usage cost, high price of the photosensitive resin forming material, and the need to add supports during the forming process.

[0003] Adding supports during the SLA printing process increases the printing time on the one hand and reduces the utilization rate of the expensive photosensitive resin material. On the other hand, the removal of larger-volume supports requires more time, greatly increasing the processing cycle for obtaining the final formed part. Therefore, a processing platform for SLA printing with less support for formed parts and a usage method thereof are proposed to solve the above problems. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to solve the problems in the prior art, and a processing platform for SLA printing with less support for formed parts and a usage method thereof are proposed.

[0005] A processing platform for SLA with less support for formed parts includes a lifting platform, a working platform guiding frame, small linear drivers, and a small working platform. The working platform guiding frame is installed on the lifting platform. A plurality of small linear drivers are installed on the lifting platform and within the working platform guiding frame. The plurality of small linear drivers are distributed in a rectangular array. The top movable end of each small linear driver is connected to the small working platform.

[0006] Preferably, the number of small working platforms on the lifting platform in the X and Y directions is 10 - 25 respectively. The small working platform is a cuboid, and the cross-sectional dimension in the height Z direction is a square with a side length of 50 - 125 mm.

[0007] Preferably, the maximum telescopic stroke of the small linear driver is 200 - 500 mm.

[0008] A method for using a processing platform for SLA printing with less support for formed parts includes the following steps:

[0009] S1: Optimize the layout of the formed part model position and direction, and calculate the height that needs to be raised in the Z direction of each small working platform in the processing platform to minimize support;

[0010] S2: SLA printing and forming. The initial small working platforms are all at the lowest end. Before starting to print the first support layer on a certain small working platform, adjust the height of this small working platform to the set height, and print layer by layer until all layers are cured.

[0011] Compared with the existing technology, the advantages of the present invention are as follows:

[0012] By discretizing the overall large working platform into an array of small working platforms that can be independently lifted and lowering, and adjusting the height of the small working platforms to match the lower contour of the formed part, the present invention greatly reduces support, which not only improves the utilization rate of expensive photosensitive resin materials, but also reduces the workload of removing support and shortens the manufacturing cycle. It is particularly suitable for SLA printing of large-sized formed parts with non-planar lower contours. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of the present invention.

[0014] Figure 2 It is a cross-sectional view of the structure of the present invention.

[0015] Figure 3 It is a schematic SLA printing diagram of Example 1 in the present invention.

[0016] Figure 4 It is a schematic SLA printing diagram of Example 2 in the present invention.

[0017] Figure 5 It is a schematic SLA printing diagram of Comparative Example 1 in the present invention.

[0018] Figure 6 It is a schematic SLA printing diagram of Comparative Example 2 in the present invention.

[0019] Figure 7 It is a model diagram of the formed part of Example 1 in the present invention.

[0020] Figure 8 It is a model diagram of the formed part of Comparative Example 1 in the present invention.

[0021] In the figure: 1 lifting platform, 2 working platform guide frame, 3 small linear actuator, 4 small working platform. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] To make the technical means, creative features, achieved purposes and effects of the present invention easily understood, the present invention will be further described below in conjunction with specific embodiments.

[0023] Refer to Figure 1-2 As shown, a processing platform for SLA printing with few supports for formed parts includes a lifting platform 1, a working platform guiding frame 2, a small linear actuator 3 and a small working platform 4. The working platform guiding frame 2 is installed on the lifting platform 1. A plurality of small linear actuators 3 are installed on the lifting platform 1 and within the working platform guiding frame 2. The plurality of small linear actuators 3 are distributed in a rectangular array. The top movable end of each small linear actuator 3 is connected to a small working platform 4.

[0024] The number of small working platforms 4 on the lifting platform 1 in the X and Y directions is 10 - 25 respectively. The small working platform 4 is a cuboid, and the cross-sectional dimension in the height Z direction is a square with a side length of 50 - 125 mm.

[0025] The maximum telescopic stroke of the small linear actuator 3 is 200 - 500 mm.

[0026] The SLA printing forming process parameters are as follows: laser wavelength: 355 - 405 nm, laser power 500 - 2000 mW, spot diameter: 0.12 - 0.80 mm, scanning speed 5 - 20 m / s, layer thickness 0.05 - 0.25 mm.

[0027] The present invention also discloses a usage method of a processing platform for SLA printing with few supports for formed parts, including the following steps:

[0028] S1: Optimize the layout of the formed part model position and direction, calculate the height that each small working platform 4 in the processing platform needs to rise in the Z direction of height, and minimize the support.

[0029] S2: SLA printing and forming. Initially, all the small working platforms 4 are at the lowest end. Before starting to print the first support layer on a certain small working platform 4, adjust the height of this small working platform 4 to the set height, and print layer by layer until all the layer slices are cured.

[0030] Example 1

[0031] The number of small working platforms 4 on the lifting platform 1 in the X and Y directions is 10 respectively. The cross-sectional dimension of the small working platform 4 in the height direction is a square with a side length of 60 mm * 60 mm. The maximum telescopic stroke of the small linear actuator is 240 mm.

[0032] S1: Optimize the layout Figure 3 The position and direction of the formed part model shown, calculate the height that each small working platform 4 in the processing platform needs to rise in the Z direction of height, and minimize the support.

[0033] S2: SLA printing and forming. The initial small working platforms 4 are all at the lowest position. Before a certain small working platform 4 starts printing the first layer of the support layer, adjust the height of this small working platform 4 to the set height, and print layer by layer until all the layer slices are cured. In this way, by stacking layer by layer, a three-dimensional solid formed part with the required shape can be obtained.

[0034] In the above process, the small working platform 4 at the lower end of the center of the formed part is at the lowest height. The small working platforms 4 around it successively extend 60mm, 120mm, and 180mm through controlling their corresponding small linear drivers 3, so that the contour of the working platform during SLA printing and forming matches the outer shape of the printed formed part. The process parameters of SLA printing and forming are as follows: laser wavelength: 355nm, laser power 500mW, spot diameter: 0.12mm, scanning speed 10m / s, layer thickness 0.1mm: minimum support height 5mm.

[0035] Example 2

[0036] The number of small working platforms 4 on the lifting platform 1 in the X and Y directions is 10 respectively. The cross-sectional dimension of the small working platform 4 in the height direction is a square with a side length of 60mm * 60mm, and the maximum telescopic stroke of the small linear driver is 240mm

[0037] S1: Optimized layout Figure 4 Determine the position and orientation of the shown formed part model, calculate the height that each small working platform 4 in the processing platform needs to rise in the Z direction, so as to minimize the support;

[0038] S2: SLA printing and forming. The initial small working platforms 4 are all at the lowest position. Before a certain small working platform 4 starts printing the first layer of the support layer, adjust the height of this small working platform 4 to the set height, and print layer by layer until all the layer slices are cured. In this way, by stacking layer by layer, a three-dimensional solid formed part with the required shape can be obtained.

[0039] In the above process, the small working platform 4 at the lower end of the center of the formed part is at the lowest height. The small working platforms 4 around it successively extend 2.15mm, 20.26mm, and 63.03mm through controlling their corresponding small linear drivers 3, so that the contour of the working platform during SLA printing and forming matches the outer shape of the printed formed part. The process parameters of SLA printing and forming are as follows: laser wavelength: 405nm, laser power 500mW, spot diameter: 0.12mm, scanning speed 15m / s, layer thickness 0.15mm: minimum support height 5mm.

[0040] Comparative Example 1

[0041] Pair Figure 3 The shown formed part is printed by conventional SLA, and the process parameters of SLA printing and forming are the same as those in Example 1.

[0042] Comparative Example 2

[0043] Pair Figure 4 The shown formed part is printed by conventional SLA printing, and the SLA printing forming process parameters are the same as those in Example 2.

[0044] From Examples 1 - 2 and Comparative Examples 1 - 2, the results are shown in Table 1:

[0045] Table 1 SLA Printing Results

[0046] Example 1 Example 2 Comparative Example 1 Comparative Example 2 <![CDATA[Volume of the formed part / cm 3 > 3.14 16.8 3.14 16.8 <![CDATA[Support position volume / cm 3 > 0.55 8.3 0.785 12.6 Total resin consumption / Kg 4.25 26.35 4.52 30.87 SLA printing time / h 1.21 3.26 1.27 3.61 Support removal time / min <10 <15 >13 >18

[0047] It can be seen from the above results that compared with the traditional SLA printing method, the processing platform of the present invention is based on the differential principle. The overall horizontal working platform on the lifting platform becomes an array of N independently liftable small platforms. By adjusting the height of each small platform, the contour of the entire working platform can follow the shape of the printed specimen, making the two match, thereby reducing the support during the SLA forming process. For the same printed part, the support volume is greatly reduced, the corresponding material consumption is reduced, the printing time is shortened, and the time for removing the support is also shortened, realizing SLA printing with less support for large - sized formed parts.

[0048] It is known by common technical knowledge that the present invention can be implemented by other embodiments that do not depart from its spirit or essential features. Therefore, the above - disclosed embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and not exclusive. All changes within the scope of the present invention or within the scope equivalent to the present invention are encompassed by the present invention.

Claims

1. A processing platform for SLA printing with less support for formed parts, characterized in that: It includes a lifting platform (1), a working platform guide frame (2), a small linear actuator (3) and a small working platform (4). The working platform guide frame (2) is installed on the lifting platform (1). A plurality of small linear actuators (3) are installed on the lifting platform (1) and within the working platform guide frame (2). The plurality of small linear actuators (3) are distributed in a rectangular array. The top movable end of each small linear actuator (3) is connected to a small working platform (4).

2. The processing platform for SLA printing with few supports for formed parts according to claim 1, wherein: The number of small working platforms (4) in the X and Y directions on the lifting platform (1) is 10 - 25 respectively. The small working platform (4) is a cuboid, and the cross-sectional dimension in the height Z direction is a square with a side length of 50 - 125 mm.

3. The processing platform for SLA printing with less support for formed parts according to claim 1, characterized in that: The maximum telescopic stroke of the small linear actuator (3) is 200 - 500 mm.

4. The usage method of a processing platform for SLA printing with less support for molded parts according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, It includes the following steps: S1: Optimize the layout of the formed part model position and direction, calculate the height that each small working platform (4) in the processing platform needs to be raised in the height Z direction to minimize the support. S2: SLA printing and forming. The initial small working platforms (4) are all at the lowest end. Before starting to print the first support layer on a certain small working platform (4), adjust the height of this small working platform (4) to the set height, and print layer by layer until all the layer slices are cured.

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