Dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device of 3D printer

Abstract

The utility model discloses a dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device of a 3D printer, and belongs to the field of 3D printers. Comprising a cuboid printing cavity and a lifting printing platform dividing the printing cavity into a heating cavity and an expansion cavity, and a sealing structure is arranged between the edge of the lifting printing platform and the printing cavity; the printing head is arranged in the heating cavity, and a heating device is arranged in the heating cavity; the 3D printing equipment has the beneficial effects that in existing 3D printing equipment, the whole printing cavity needs to be heated, and energy consumption is extremely high; a lifting printing platform with a sealing structure is arranged in the device, and a printing cavity is divided into a heating cavity and an expansion cavity through the lifting printing platform; in the preheating process, only the minimum heating cavity between the printing platform and the organ heat insulation cloth above is heated, so that the heating cavity quickly reaches the required temperature, and the preheating time and the power consumption are greatly reduced; and along with downward movement of the printing platform, the volume of the heating cavity is continuously increased, printing and cyclic heating are carried out at the same time, and the printing efficiency is greatly improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to a dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device for a 3D printer, belonging to the field of 3D printers. Background Art

[0002] Currently, 3D printers with heat-insulating chambers on the market generally use a fixed-space chamber structure. This chamber structure is easy to implement, has been widely used in the oven industry, and is very mature. Currently, such printers typically place the print platform, moving parts, nozzle assembly, etc. all within the print chamber. For example, the FUNMAT series printers from Shanghai Yuanzhu Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. can achieve a maximum chamber temperature of 120°C. Because components such as motors, guide rails, and timing belts are all placed inside the chamber, the chamber temperature is limited by the heat resistance of these components, making it difficult to further increase the chamber temperature with this solution. Therefore, this method cannot effectively print high-performance materials.

[0003] Another better approach is to place all components except the printing platform and nozzle outside the printing chamber, so that the cavity temperature will not be limited by the temperature limit of other components. For example, the cavity temperature of Stratasys's Fortus series printers can reach a maximum of over 250°C, but because its cavity space is fixed, the entire cavity needs to be heated to 250°C before printing, which requires huge heater power and a very long waiting time. Taking Stratasys's F900 as an example, the effective printing size is 914×610×914mm, and the heater power is as high as 12KW, resulting in a long preheating time for the cavity of this structure, low heating efficiency, and serious waste of heating space. Even printing a very small model requires a huge amount of electricity and a long waiting time for preheating. Utility Model Content

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device for a 3D printer, which can effectively solve the above-mentioned problems.

[0005] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention is achieved through the following technical solutions:

[0006] It includes a rectangular printing cavity and a lifting printing platform that divides the printing cavity into a heating cavity and an expansion cavity, wherein a sealing structure is provided between the edge of the lifting printing platform and the printing cavity; a print head is provided in the heating cavity, and a heating device is provided in the heating cavity.

[0007] Further: the sealing structure includes a sealing strip.

[0008] Furthermore: the heating device includes a fan and an air inlet and an air outlet connected to the fan, and the air inlet of the air inlet and the air outlet of the air outlet are both opened in the heating chamber.

[0009] Further: the air inlet duct includes a lifting air inlet device and an air inlet cavity connected to the lifting air inlet device; the lifting air inlet device includes an air inlet pipe passing through on both sides, the lower end of the air inlet pipe is fixed on the lifting printing platform, and the upper and lower ends of the air inlet pipe are provided with accordion cloth, and the other end of the accordion cloth is fixed on the printing cavity; the air inlet cavity is composed of a rectangular box, one side of the air inlet cavity is connected to the inside of the printing cavity, and the other side is connected to the air inlet of the fan.

[0010] Furthermore: the air outlet duct includes an air outlet box connected to the heating chamber, an electric heating pipe is provided in the air outlet box, and the lower end of the air outlet box is connected to the output end of the fan.

[0011] Furthermore, the lifting printing platform is further provided with a driving assembly, which includes a lifting block and a steel belt mechanism connected to the lifting printing platform; the number of the steel belt mechanisms is two, each of which is composed of two upper and lower fixed pulleys and a steel belt provided on the fixed pulley; the lifting block and the steel belt are connected by a fixed block;

[0012] The steel belt is further provided with a driving plate, on which a driving device is provided; and a through slot for the lifting block to move up and down is provided at the rear end of the printing cavity.

[0013] The beneficial effects are:

[0014] In existing equipment, the entire printing chamber needs to be heated, but the volume of the printing chamber is too large, and heating takes a long time, while consuming a lot of energy. Therefore, the device is equipped with a lifting printing platform with a sealed structure, which divides the printing chamber into a heating chamber and an expansion chamber.

[0015] During use, the lifting printing platform is first positioned close to the print head located at the top of the printing chamber, and then the heating device is used to heat the air in the heating chamber. At this time, the volume of the heating chamber is very small, the heating time is very short, and the energy consumption is relatively low. Then, as the printed product gradually takes shape, the lifting printing platform will gradually descend, the volume of the expansion chamber located in the printing chamber will decrease, and the volume of the heating chamber will increase.

[0016] The advantage of this device is that it trades space for time. Printing can begin by preheating only the smallest cavity between the platform and the accordion insulation cloth above. As printing progresses, the platform gradually descends, and the cavity gradually expands, continuously heating the growing cavity simultaneously. This method significantly reduces preheating time and power consumption, with an estimated 80% reduction. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] For ease of explanation, the present invention is described in detail with reference to the following specific implementations and accompanying drawings.

[0018] Figure 1 It is a structural diagram of the utility model;

[0019] Figure 2 This is a structural diagram of the printing cavity of the present utility model;

[0020] Figure 3 This is a cross-sectional view of the printing cavity of the present utility model;

[0021] Figure 4 This is a parts diagram of the lifting air intake device of the utility model;

[0022] Figure 5 This is a parts diagram of the drive assembly of the present utility model.

[0023] Description of reference numerals:

[0024] 1. Printing chamber; 2. Heating chamber; 4. Expansion chamber; 5. Lifting printing platform; 6. Sealing strip; 7. Heating device; 71. Fan; 72. Air inlet; 73. Air outlet; 74. Lifting air inlet device; 741. Air inlet pipe; 742. Organ cloth; 75. Air inlet chamber; 76. Air outlet box; 77. Electric heating tube; 8. Driving assembly; 81. Through slot; 82. Lifting block; 83. Steel belt mechanism; 831. Fixed pulley; 832. Steel belt; 84. Fixed block; 85. Driving plate. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below, and examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and intended to be used to explain the present invention, but should not be understood as limiting the present invention.

[0026] It should be noted that, in the description of the present invention, unless otherwise specified, “multiple” means two or more; the terms “upper”, “lower”, “left”, “right”, “inside”, “outside”, “front end”, “rear end”, “head”, “tail”, etc., indicating the orientation or position relationship, are based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present invention.

[0027] Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," "third," etc. are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0028] At the same time, in the description of this utility model, unless otherwise specified or limited, the terms "connected" and "connection" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, it can mean fixed connection, detachable connection, or integral connection; it can be mechanical connection or electrical connection; it can be direct connection or indirect connection through an intermediate medium. For those skilled in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in this utility model can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0029] See Figure 1-5 This is an embodiment of a dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device for a 3D printer according to the present utility model.

[0030] It includes a rectangular printing chamber 1 and a lifting printing platform 5 that divides the printing chamber 1 into a heating chamber 2 and an expansion chamber 4, wherein a sealing structure is provided between the edge of the lifting printing platform 5 and the printing chamber 1; the print head is provided in the heating chamber 2, and a heating device 7 is provided in the heating chamber 2.

[0031] The printing chamber 1 of the present device is mainly used for 3D printing. Specifically, during printing, it is necessary to operate the print head to move, and then print the product on the printing platform at the upper end of the lifting printing platform 5. At the same time, the printing environment of this product has high temperature requirements, requiring the temperature to reach between 100°C and 300°C. In existing equipment, the entire printing chamber 1 needs to be heated, but the volume inside the printing chamber 1 is too large, and heating takes a long time and consumes a lot of energy. Therefore, the present device is provided with a lifting printing platform 5 with a sealing structure, which divides the printing chamber 1 into a heating chamber 2 and an expansion chamber 4 through the lifting printing platform 5.

[0032] With this arrangement, when in use, the lifting printing platform 5 is first positioned close to the print head located at the top of the printing chamber 1, and then the air in the heating chamber 2 is heated by the heating device 7. At this time, the volume of the heating chamber 2 is very small, the heating time is very short, and the energy consumption is relatively low. Then, as the printed product is gradually formed, the lifting printing platform 5 will gradually descend, the volume of the expansion chamber 4 located in the printing chamber 1 will decrease, and the volume of the heating chamber 2 will increase.

[0033] Compared with the prior art that directly heats the entire printing cavity 1, the present device can greatly reduce the heating time and reduce energy consumption, thereby reducing printing costs.

[0034] The specific sealing structure includes a sealing strip 6; the sealing strip 6 contacts the inner wall of the printing chamber 1. As the lifting printing platform 5 rises and falls, the sealing strip 6 will also perform dynamic friction on the inner wall of the printing chamber 1 to continue to seal the entire heating chamber 2.

[0035] The heating device 7 of the present device includes a fan 71 and an air inlet and an air outlet communicated with the fan 71 . The air inlet 72 of the air inlet and the air outlet 73 of the air outlet are both provided in the heating chamber 2 .

[0036] In this way, the air inlet 72 and the air outlet 73 are both arranged in the heating chamber 2, which can achieve cyclic heating. The hot air in the heating chamber 2 is drawn out through the air inlet 72 by the fan 71, and then replenished into the heating chamber 2 through the air outlet 73 after being heated; cyclic heating can reduce energy consumption.

[0037] However, considering that the heating chamber 2 of the present device is gradually expanded and the hot air will gather upwards, in order to enable the fan 71 to draw out air with lower temperature, the position of the air inlet 72 is bound to the lifting printing platform 5, that is, when the lifting printing platform 5 is raised or lowered, the position of the air inlet 72 will also be raised or lowered accordingly; in this way, air with lower temperature can be drawn in for heating, and the temperature in the heating chamber 2 can be quickly and evenly increased by introducing hot air.

[0038] The specific air inlet duct includes a lifting air inlet device 74 and an air inlet cavity 75 connected to the lifting air inlet device 74; the lifting air inlet device 74 includes an air inlet pipe 741 passing through on both sides, the lower end of the air inlet pipe 741 is fixed on the lifting printing platform 5, and the upper and lower ends of the air inlet pipe 741 are provided with accordion cloth 742, and the other end of the accordion cloth 742 is fixed on the printing cavity 1; the air inlet cavity 75 is composed of a rectangular box, one side of the air inlet cavity 75 is connected to the inside of the printing cavity 1, and the other side is connected to the air inlet of the fan 71.

[0039] When the lifting printing platform 5 descends, part of the expansion chamber 4 expands into the heating chamber 2. At this time, the air inlet pipe 741 located on the lifting printing platform 5 begins to extract the gas that has just expanded into the space of the heating chamber 2. The gas enters the air inlet chamber 75 through the air inlet pipe 741; then the air is extracted through the fan 71; the extracted air is heated and then blown into the heating chamber 2 from the air outlet 73.

[0040] The air inlet cavity 75 is very large and is shaped like a rectangular box. The reason for this arrangement is to facilitate the communication between the air inlet pipes 741 of different heights and the air inlet cavity 75 .

[0041] In order to prevent the cold air in the air inlet cavity 75 from entering the heating cavity 2, the device adopts the design of accordion cloth 742, which can achieve a certain sealing effect of the heating cavity 2.

[0042] The air outlet duct of this device is provided with a heating structure; the air outlet duct includes an air outlet box 76 connected to the heating chamber 2, an electric heating pipe 77 is provided in the air outlet box 76, and the lower end of the air outlet box 76 is connected to the output end of the fan 71.

[0043] The gas drawn by the fan 71 is blown out from the air outlet box 76, and at this time needs to pass through the electric heating tube 77, which can heat the air. After heating, the air enters the heating chamber 2 from the air outlet 73.

[0044] The drive assembly 8 for driving the elevating printing platform 5 of this device is not disposed in the printing chamber 1, so the structure of the drive assembly 8 also affects the sealing of the heating chamber 2. Specifically, the drive assembly 8 includes a lifting block 82 connected to the elevating printing platform 5 and a steel belt mechanism 83. There are two steel belt mechanisms 83, each of which is composed of two upper and lower fixed pulleys 831 and a steel belt 832 disposed on the fixed pulley 831. The lifting block 82 and the steel belt 832 are connected by a fixed block 84.

[0045] A driving plate 85 is also provided on the steel belt 832 , and a driving device is provided on the driving plate 85 ; and a through slot 81 for the lifting block 82 to move up and down is provided at the rear end of the printing chamber 1 .

[0046] The through-slot 81 is provided to facilitate the lifting block 82 to drive the lifting printing platform 5 located in the printing chamber 1 to move up and down. At this time, in order to prevent heat from flowing out of the printing chamber 1 through the through-slot 81, the present device adopts a steel belt mechanism 83. The steel belt 832 in the steel belt mechanism 83 can cover the entire through-slot 81 to prevent heat from flowing out of the through-slot 81.

[0047] The driving device of this device can drive the driving plate 85 to move up and down, and the driving plate 85 can drive the steel belt 832 to move on the fixed pulley 831. At the same time, the lifting and lowering of the lifting printing platform 5 can be realized through the fixed block 84 and the lifting block 82.

[0048] Obviously, the above embodiments are merely examples for clarity of explanation and are not intended to limit the implementation methods. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that other variations or modifications based on the above descriptions are possible. It is not necessary and impossible to enumerate all implementation methods here. Obvious variations or modifications arising therefrom remain within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A 3D printer dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device, characterized by: The invention comprises a rectangular printing chamber (1) and a lifting printing platform (5) for dividing the printing chamber (1) into a heating chamber (2) and an expansion chamber (4), wherein a sealing structure is provided between the edge of the lifting printing platform (5) and the printing chamber (1); a printing head is provided in the heating chamber (2), and a heating device (7) is provided in the heating chamber (2).

2. The 3D printer dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The sealing structure comprises a sealing strip (6).

3. The 3D printer dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The heating device (7) comprises a fan (71) and an air inlet and an air outlet communicated with the fan (71), wherein the air inlet (72) of the air inlet and the air outlet (73) of the air outlet are both provided in the heating chamber (2).

4. The 3D printer dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The air inlet duct includes a lifting air inlet device (74) and an air inlet cavity (75) connected to the lifting air inlet device (74); the lifting air inlet device (74) includes an air inlet pipe (741) passing through on both sides, the lower end of the air inlet pipe (741) is fixed on the lifting printing platform (5), and the upper and lower ends of the air inlet pipe (741) are both provided with an accordion cloth (742), and the other end of the accordion cloth (742) is fixed on the printing cavity (1); the air inlet cavity (75) is composed of a rectangular box, one side of the air inlet cavity (75) is connected to the interior of the printing cavity (1), and the other side is connected to the air inlet of the fan (71).

5. The 3D printer dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The air outlet duct comprises an air outlet box (76) in communication with the heating chamber (2), an electric heating pipe (77) is provided in the air outlet box (76), and the lower end of the air outlet box (76) is in communication with the output end of the fan (71).

6. The 3D printer dynamic high-temperature cavity heating device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The lifting printing platform (5) is also provided with a driving assembly (8), and the driving assembly (8) includes a lifting block (82) and a steel belt mechanism (83) connected to the lifting printing platform (5); the number of the steel belt mechanisms (83) is two, and each of the steel belt mechanisms (83) is composed of two upper and lower fixed pulleys (831) and a steel belt (832) arranged on the fixed pulley (831); the lifting block (82) and the steel belt (832) are connected by a fixed block (84); a driving plate (85) is also provided on the steel belt (832), and a driving device is provided on the driving plate (85); and a through slot (81) for the lifting block (82) to move up and down is opened at the rear end of the printing chamber (1).

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