3D printer

Abstract

The utility model discloses a 3D printer which comprises a working head used for extruding a printing material out of a nozzle; the printing platform is arranged below the working head and is used for bearing the cured printing material; the camera is arranged above the first plane and used for acquiring image data of the printing platform, and the first plane is a horizontal plane where the upper surface of the printing platform is located; and the line laser transmitter is arranged between the first plane and a second plane, and the second plane is a horizontal plane where the tail end of the nozzle of the working head is located and is used for transmitting a laser plane. The 3D printer disclosed by the utility model can detect whether foreign matters invade or leave a workpiece on a processing plane or not, and accurately identify the position, height and other information of the foreign matters or the workpiece at the same time, so that the situation that a nozzle or a movement mechanism of the printer collides with the workpiece or the foreign matters is prevented, and the machine is prevented from being damaged or the workpiece is prevented from being damaged.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of 3D printers, in particular to a 3D printer. Background Art

[0002] 3D printing technology, also known as additive manufacturing technology, is a technology that uses digital model files as the basis, using powdered metal or plastic and other bondable materials to construct objects by printing layer by layer. It is often used to make models in the fields of mold manufacturing, industrial design, etc., and is gradually used for the direct manufacturing of some products or parts. This technology is used in jewelry, footwear, industrial design, architecture, engineering and construction (Architecture, Engineering & Construction, AEC), automobiles, aerospace, dental and medical industries, education, geographic information systems, civil engineering, firearms and other fields.

[0003] 3D printing is usually achieved by 3D printers. The commonly used 3D printing technology is Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM). The printer nozzle selectively deposits molten material in a predetermined path layer by layer to build an object. The material used is a thermoplastic polymer wire. Before working, this type of equipment often needs to calibrate or prepare the printer nozzle. For example, the work head is close to or collides with the processing panel to obtain the coordinate zero point, and it is moved to different positions for other calibrations and measurements. However, the user may forget to take out the items processed last time, or other foreign objects may invade the processing platform. At this time, when the printer nozzle is leveling or zeroing, the printer nozzle or motion mechanism may collide with the workpiece or foreign objects, causing damage to the machine or destroying the processed parts. Utility Model Content

[0004] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems existing in the prior art, the embodiment of the present application provides a 3D printer, which can accurately detect whether there is foreign matter invading or leftover workpieces on the processing plane, and accurately identify the position, height and other information of the foreign matter or workpiece, to prevent the printer nozzle or motion mechanism from colliding with the workpiece or foreign matter, causing damage to the machine or destroying the processed parts.

[0005] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a 3D printer, the 3D printer comprising:

[0006] Working head, which is used to extrude the printing material from the nozzle;

[0007] A printing platform, which is arranged below the working head and is used to carry the solidified printing material;

[0008] A camera is arranged above a first plane and is used to obtain image data of the printing platform, wherein the first plane is a horizontal plane where the upper surface of the printing platform is located;

[0009] A line laser emitter is arranged between a first plane and a second plane, wherein the second plane is a horizontal plane where the nozzle end of the working head is located, and is used for emitting a laser surface.

[0010] In one possible implementation, the printing platform is a rectangular platform, and the line laser emitter is disposed above the corner of the printing platform so that the projection of the laser surface projected by the laser emitter in the vertical direction covers at least a portion of each of the two sides of the printing platform.

[0011] In a possible implementation, the laser plane emitted by the line laser transmitter is parallel to the first plane;

[0012] The distance between the line laser emitter and the second plane is 1.5-5 mm or 0.5-10 mm.

[0013] In a possible implementation manner, the line laser transmitter and the working head are relatively fixed in a vertical direction.

[0014] In one possible implementation, the camera is disposed above a corner of the printing platform, and the installation position of the line laser transmitter is lower than the camera.

[0015] In a possible implementation, the distance between the line laser emitter and the camera is 20-50 mm or 10-100 mm;

[0016] The line width of the laser generated by the line laser transmitter is 0.5-8mm or 1-12mm;

[0017] The area of ​​the printing platform is less than or equal to 650mm 2 .

[0018] In a possible implementation, the spectrum range of the laser light generated by the line laser transmitter is 400-1850 nm.

[0019] In a possible implementation, the 3D printer further includes a main body shell, and the main body shell has an internal space;

[0020] The working head and the printing platform are arranged in the main shell, the camera and the line laser transmitter are arranged on the inner wall of the main shell, and the laser surface projected by the laser transmitter is projected on the inner wall.

[0021] In a possible implementation, the flatness of the inner wall surface of the first side wall of the main housing satisfies a threshold range, the first side wall is a side wall opposite to the side wall where the camera is located, and the threshold range is 0-15%.

[0022] In a possible implementation manner, the glossiness of the first inner wall is in the range of 70-90.

[0023] The implementation of the present application has the following beneficial effects:

[0024] In the implementation mode of the present application, a camera is set in the 3D printer to obtain the image data of the printing platform to determine whether the printing platform has foreign objects invading or workpieces left behind. At the same time, a laser emitter is set to emit a laser surface below the working head and above the working platform to detect foreign objects or workpieces whose height exceeds the laser surface. At the same time, the image of the laser surface is obtained by the camera, and the image of the laser surface when it is irradiated on the foreign object or workpiece in the image data is further analyzed to determine the precise position and height of the foreign object or workpiece. In this way, it is detected whether there are foreign objects invading or workpieces left behind on the processing plane, and the position, height and other information of the foreign object or workpiece are accurately identified to prevent the printer nozzle or motion mechanism from colliding with the workpiece or foreign object, thereby avoiding damage to the machine or destruction of the processed parts. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the implementation modes of the present application, the drawings required for use in the description of the implementation modes will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some implementation modes of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0026] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a 3D printer provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 2 A three-dimensional diagram of a 3D printer provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of another 3D printer provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] Figure 4 A right side view of another 3D printer provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] Figure 5 A cross-sectional view of another 3D printer provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the implementation mode of the present application clearer, the technical solution of the implementation mode of the present application is clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings of the implementation mode of the present application. Obviously, the described implementation mode is only a part of the implementation mode of the present application, not all the implementation modes. Based on the implementation mode in the present application, all other implementation modes obtained by ordinary technicians in the field without making creative work should fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0032] Unless otherwise defined, the technical or scientific terms used herein shall have the usual meaning as understood by a person of ordinary skill in the field to which this application belongs. The words "one", "an" or "the" and the like used in this application do not indicate a quantitative limitation, but are only used to indicate the presence of at least one. The words "include" or "comprise" and the like mean that the elements or objects appearing before the word include the elements or objects listed after the word and their equivalents, without excluding other elements or objects. The words "connect" or "connected" and the like are not limited to physical or mechanical connections, but may include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect.

[0033] Reference to "embodiment" herein means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of the present application. The appearance of the phrase in various locations in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is it an independent or alternative embodiment that is mutually exclusive with other embodiments. It is explicitly and implicitly understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein may be combined with other embodiments.

[0034] First of all, it should be noted that the structure disclosed in this application can be applied to any device that realizes the function of the device based on the reciprocating motion of the working head in a certain plane, such as: 3D printers, laser cutting machines, laser engraving machines and other equipment. Specifically, this type of equipment usually has a working head and a working platform. The working head can move back and forth on a certain plane under the action of structures such as slide rails to process objects carried on the working platform. Below, the structure disclosed in this application will be described in detail by taking a 3D printer as an example. The setting of this structure in other devices is similar to that in a 3D printer, and will not be repeated here.

[0035] See also Figure 1 ,in, Figure 1A schematic diagram of a 3D printer provided for an embodiment of the present application. In this embodiment, the 3D printer includes: a work head 110, the work head 110 is used to extrude the printing material from the nozzle. Exemplarily, for an FDM 3D printer, the work head 110 is a printer nozzle, which is used to heat the printing material and extrude the heated and melted printing material. A printing platform 120, the printing platform 120 is arranged below the work head 110, and is used to carry the solidified printing material. A camera 130, the camera 130 is arranged above a first plane 121, and is used to obtain image data of the printing platform, and the first plane 121 is a horizontal plane where the upper surface of the printing platform is located. A line laser emitter 140, the line laser emitter 140 is arranged between the first plane 121 and the second plane 111, and is used to emit a laser surface, and the second plane 111 is a horizontal plane where the end nozzle of the work head is located.

[0036] Specifically, the distance between the line laser emitter 140 and the second plane 111 can be 1.5-5mm or 0.5-10mm, and then the line laser emitter is set slightly lower than the end nozzle of the working head 110, and emits a laser plane parallel to the printing platform 120 at its setting height. The setting of the above distance can control the alarm distance within a reasonable range while ensuring the safety of the working head 110, so as to prevent the alarm from occurring even when the distance is large. At the same time, the installation position of the line laser emitter 140 is lower than the camera 130, and the distance between the line laser emitter 140 and the camera 130 can be 20-50mm or 10-100mm. As a result, the camera 130 is located higher than the line laser emitter 140, which can form a bird's-eye view and parallax, and then detect the distance between the foreign object and the camera and the size of the foreign object through algorithms such as triangulation, so as to achieve more accurate foreign object recognition.

[0037] In this embodiment, the line laser emitter 140 can be a monochrome laser emitter or a multi-color laser emitter, and this application does not limit this. At the same time, the line laser emitter 140 is a straight laser emitter, or a circular laser emitter to which a slit, a filter or a lens is added so that the emitted laser forms a laser surface, and this application does not limit this. In addition, the laser surface emitted by the line laser emitter 140 may not be parallel to the upper surface of the printing platform 120, that is, the first plane. For example: the laser surface emitted by it can be parallel to the plane determined by the shooting direction of the camera 130, or other settings, and this application does not limit this.

[0038] In this embodiment, the line laser emitter and the work head are relatively fixed in the vertical direction, so that the distance between the work head 110 and the laser emitter 140 in the vertical direction can be relatively determined, and then no additional error is introduced due to machine movement, thereby complicating the image recognition algorithm. For example, Figure 2 As shown, the working head 110, the camera 130 and the line laser emitter 140 are arranged on the first slide rail 112, and the first slide rail 112 is arranged horizontally, so that the working head 110 can move along a preset path in the horizontal plane through the first slide rail 112 to print the object. At the same time, the above arrangement also ensures that the working head 110 and the laser emitter 140 are relatively fixed in the vertical direction. The camera 130 and the line laser emitter 140 can also be adjusted in the horizontal direction through the slide rail 112, or can be fixed at a certain position on the slide rail 112. At the same time, the printing platform 120 is arranged on the second slide rail 122, and the second slide rail 122 is arranged vertically, so that the printing platform 120 can move up and down in the vertical direction through the second slide rail 122.

[0039] In an optional embodiment, the printing platform 120 may be fixedly arranged, and the first slide rail 112 is horizontally arranged and slidably connected to the second slide rail 122. The working head 110 is arranged on the first slide rail 112 to move along a preset path in a horizontal plane through the first slide rail 112, and may move up and down in a vertical direction through the second slide rail 122. In this case, the line laser emitter 140 may be arranged on the first slide rail 112 to ensure that the working head 110 and the laser emitter 140 are relatively fixedly arranged in the vertical direction.

[0040] In an optional embodiment, the camera 130 and the line laser emitter 140 may also be arranged in the 3D printer through an independent support structure, or the camera 130 and the line laser emitter 140 may also be arranged in the 3D printer through other methods in the prior art, and the present application does not limit this. In this embodiment, the printing platform 120 may be a rectangular platform, and the camera 130 and the line laser emitter 140 are arranged above the corner of the printing platform 120. In simple terms, the camera 130 and the line laser emitter 140 are arranged toward a diagonal of the printing platform 120, so that the image of the entire printing platform 120 area can be obtained using a camera with a smaller field of view, which reduces the cost of the camera and ensures the coverage effect of the image on the printing platform 120 area. Similarly, by setting the line laser emitter 140 above the corner of the printing platform 120, a laser emitter with a smaller width can be used to emit a laser surface covering the entire printing platform 120 area, and the projection of the laser surface projected by the laser emitter 140 in the vertical direction can at least cover a portion of each of the two sides of the printing platform 120, thereby reducing the cost of the laser emitter and ensuring the coverage effect of the laser surface on the printing platform 120 area.

[0041] In this embodiment, the spectrum range of the laser generated by the line laser emitter 140 can be 400-1850nm, the line width can be 0.5-8mm or 1-12mm, and the single-side size of the printing platform is not greater than 650mm. Specifically, limiting the laser to the range of the visible light spectrum can ensure that the reflection of the laser is captured by the camera 130 to improve the recognition rate of the image of the camera 130. When a multi-color laser emitter is used, the color of the laser can be adjusted according to the color of the foreign matter to ensure the reflection effect of the laser on the foreign matter. For example, when the print is red or black, the reflection effect of the laser may be reduced. At this time, changing the laser color or using a laser within a specific spectrum range can ensure the reflection effect. At the same time, setting a thinner line width can improve the accuracy of measuring the distance of the foreign matter. When the single-side size of the printing platform is not greater than 650mm, the appropriate line width can take into account the accuracy of visual recognition and meet the brightness requirements and minimum line width requirements of camera recognition, thereby further ensuring the reliability of recognition and the safety of the working head 110.

[0042] The working mode of the above 3D printer will be described below:

[0043] In this embodiment, the work head 110 moves on the XY plane according to the 3D modeling of the object to be printed. After the printing material is melted, it is squeezed out by the work head 110 and adheres to the printing platform 120. As the printing progresses, the hot bed descends and the product grows in the Z direction. During the printing process, when foreign objects invade the working platform or there are leftover workpieces on the working platform, the image data captured by the camera 130 can be used for timely identification.

[0044] However, the camera 130 can only identify whether there are intruding objects or leftover workpieces, but cannot identify the height of the object or workpiece. When the height of the object or workpiece does not reach the XY plane where the work head 110 works, that is, the second plane, the object or workpiece is actually unable to affect the work head 110. Based on this, in the present embodiment, a laser emitter 140 is provided between the first plane and the second plane. Thus, a laser surface is emitted under the second plane by the laser emitter 140, and when the height of the object or workpiece reaches or exceeds the laser surface, the object or workpiece will intersect with the laser surface, and the intersection will be illuminated by the laser and reflect the irradiated laser, and this phenomenon will be captured by the camera 130 above the laser emitter 140.

[0045] In this embodiment, since the camera 130 and the laser emitter 140 are set at different heights, the image of the laser surface in the camera 130 will change before and after the laser surface intersects with the object or workpiece, such as up and down movement, light and dark changes, and discontinuous lines. By comparing the changes in the laser surface in the image, it can be detected whether an object or workpiece has invaded the plane where the laser surface is located, and then the height and position of the object or workpiece are determined according to the distance between the current laser surface and the first plane, and whether the object or workpiece will affect the working head 110. When the height and position of the object or workpiece will affect the working head 110, an abnormal event is issued to stop the machine from moving or execute some preset safety measures to prevent damage to the machine, object or foreign matter.

[0046] See also Figure 3-Figure 5 ,in, Figure 3 A schematic diagram of another 3D printer provided in an embodiment of the present application, Figure 4 for Figure 3 The right side view of the 3D printer is shown to better show the internal components. Figure 5 for Figure 4 The 3D printer shown in FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the cross section A-A of the 3D printer. In this embodiment, the 3D printer includes: a main housing 150, a working head 110, a printing platform 120, a camera 130 and a laser emitter 140. The main housing 150 has an internal space for accommodating the working head 110, the printing platform 120, the camera 130 and the laser emitter 140 to protect them. The relevant structures and setting positions of the working head 110, the printing platform 120, the camera 130 and the laser emitter 140 can refer to the relevant description of the above-mentioned embodiment, and can solve the same technical problems and achieve the same technical effects, which will not be repeated here.

[0047] In this embodiment, if the work head 110 is arranged on the first slide rail 112, the first slide rail 112 is arranged horizontally, so that the work head 110 can move in a horizontal plane according to a preset path through the first slide rail 112 to print the object. At the same time, the printing platform 120 is arranged on the second slide rail 122, and the second slide rail 122 is arranged vertically, so that the printing platform 120 can move up and down in the vertical direction through the second slide rail 122. Then the camera 130 and the laser emitter 140 can be arranged on the inner wall of one side of the main shell to ensure that the work head 110 and the laser emitter 140 are relatively fixed in the vertical direction. At the same time, the laser surface projected by the laser emitter will be projected on the inner wall. Therefore, in this embodiment, the flatness of the surface of at least one inner wall on the main shell opposite to the inner wall where the camera 130 is located, such as the first inner wall, meets the preset threshold range. Specifically, the flatness is the ratio of the area of ​​the largest plane area of ​​the first inner wall to the area of ​​the area protruding or recessed from the plane area, and the ratio is between 0-15%. At the same time, the glossiness of the surface of the first inner wall is between 70-90. Therefore, when the laser surface irradiates the first inner wall, the first inner wall can reflect a clearer image, which is captured by the camera 130, thereby improving the accuracy of foreign body recognition.

[0048] In an optional embodiment, the printing platform 120 may be fixedly arranged, and the first slide rail 112 is horizontally arranged and slidably connected to the second slide rail 122. The working head 110 is arranged on the first slide rail 112 to move along a preset path in a horizontal plane through the first slide rail 112, and may move up and down in a vertical direction through the second slide rail 122. In this case, the line laser emitter 140 may be arranged on the first slide rail 112 to ensure that the working head 110 and the laser emitter 140 are relatively fixedly arranged in the vertical direction.

[0049] The above describes in detail the structure, features and effects of the present invention based on the embodiments shown in the drawings. The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention, but the scope of implementation of the present invention is not limited to what is shown in the drawings. Any changes made in accordance with the concept of the present invention, or modifications to equivalent embodiments with equivalent changes, which do not exceed the spirit covered by the description and drawings, should be within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0050] In the above-mentioned embodiments, the description of each embodiment has its own emphasis. For parts that are not described in detail in a certain embodiment, reference can be made to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments.

Claims

1. A 3D printer, characterized in that: The 3D printer comprises: A working head, wherein the working head is used to extrude the printing material from the nozzle; A printing platform, which is arranged below the working head and is used to carry the solidified printing material; A camera, the camera being arranged above a first plane and being used to obtain image data of the printing platform, wherein the first plane is a horizontal plane where an upper surface of the printing platform is located; A line laser emitter is arranged between the first plane and a second plane, wherein the second plane is a horizontal plane where the nozzle end of the working head is located, and is used for emitting a laser plane.

2. The 3D printer according to claim 1, characterized in that: The printing platform is a rectangular platform, and the line laser emitter is arranged above the corner of the printing platform so that the projection of the laser surface projected by the laser emitter in the vertical direction at least covers a part of each of the two sides of the printing platform.

3. The 3D printer according to claim 1, characterized in that: The laser plane emitted by the line laser emitter is parallel to the first plane; The distance between the line laser emitter and the second plane is 1.5-5 mm or 0.5-10 mm.

4. The 3D printer according to claim 1, characterized in that: The line laser emitter and the working head are relatively fixed in the vertical direction.

5. The 3D printer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The camera is arranged above the corner of the printing platform, and the installation position of the line laser transmitter is lower than the camera arrangement.

6. The 3D printer according to claim 5, characterized in that: The distance between the line laser emitter and the camera is 20-50 mm or 10-100 mm; The line width of the laser generated by the line laser emitter is 0.5-8mm or 1-12mm; The size of one side of the printing platform is less than or equal to 650 mm.

7. The 3D printer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The spectrum range of the laser emitted by the line laser transmitter is 400-1850nm.

8. The 3D printer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The 3D printer further comprises a main body shell, wherein the main body shell has an internal space; The working head and the printing platform are arranged in the main shell, the camera and the line laser emitter are arranged on the inner wall of the main shell, and the laser surface projected by the laser emitter is projected on the inner wall.

9. The 3D printer according to claim 8, characterized in that: The flatness of the surface of the first inner wall of the main housing satisfies a threshold range, the first inner wall is an inner wall opposite to the inner wall where the camera is located, and the threshold range is 0-15%.

10. The 3D printer according to claim 9, characterized in that: The glossiness of the first inner wall is in the range of 70-90.

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