Stock bin and 3D printer

Abstract

The utility model belongs to the technical field of 3D printing equipment, and particularly relates to a stock bin and a 3D printer. The utility model provides a stock bin which comprises a stock bin main body, a cover body, a first discharge port and a second discharge port, the upper surface of the stock bin main body is covered with the cover body, the first discharge port is formed in the lower end of the stock bin main body, and the second discharge port is connected with a discharge hole in the upper surface of the stock bin main body or the cover body; the first discharging port is used for discharging consumables with the hardness larger than 100A in the stock bin body, and the second discharging port is used for discharging consumables with the hardness smaller than 100A in the stock bin body. The utility model further provides a 3D printer comprising the stock bin. According to the technical scheme, the consumables in different hardness intervals are discharged through the first discharging port and the second discharging port, the corresponding discharging pressure and speed are matched according to the different discharging ports, and the problems that due to the fact that the discharging speed of the same discharging port is the same, a discharging pipeline is blocked, and discharging is uneven are solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application belongs to the field of 3D printing equipment technology, and particularly relates to material hoppers and 3D printers. Background Technology

[0002] A 3D printer, also known as a three-dimensional printer or stereo printer, is a rapid prototyping device that constructs three-dimensional objects by printing layer by layer. The 3D printer's refrigeration tank stores 3D printing filament, providing the printing material. Typically, the bottom of the refrigeration tank has several discharge ports for daily use.

[0003] In existing technologies, the hopper needs to be sealed from the external environment to prevent the consumables inside from getting damp. When used with a 3D printer, the hopper also has a loading and unloading mechanism to transport consumables to the 3D printer or return unused consumables to the hopper. However, existing hoppers experience a relatively high failure rate for some consumables when transporting different types of consumables. Utility Model Content

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to research and improve the existing technology regarding the inability of material hoppers to be used for different types of consumables, and to provide material hoppers and 3D printers.

[0005] This application provides a hopper, which includes: a hopper body, a cover, a first discharge port and a second discharge port. The cover is disposed on the upper surface of the hopper body, the first discharge port is disposed at the lower end of the hopper body, and the second discharge port is connected to a discharge opening on the upper surface of the hopper body or the cover.

[0006] The first discharge port is used for discharging consumables with a hardness greater than 100A from the main body of the silo, and the second discharge port is used for discharging consumables with a hardness less than 100A from the main body of the silo.

[0007] In one embodiment, the hopper further includes a loading and unloading mechanism, which is connected to the hopper body and is used for discharging material from the hopper body;

[0008] The loading and unloading mechanism includes a friction wheel and a material tube, and the friction wheel drives the consumable to move in the material tube.

[0009] In one embodiment, the discharge end of the second discharge port is provided with a closed structure, and the second discharge port is provided with a cavity in the axial direction for at least part of the material tube to pass through.

[0010] In one embodiment, the closing structure is an automatic elastic closure, which is in the form of a straight line when closed, and is located inside the cover body.

[0011] In one embodiment, the closing structure includes a sealing portion that blocks the second discharge port, the sealing portion being located on the outside of the cover.

[0012] In one embodiment, the second discharge port is provided with a connecting structure, which connects the second discharge port to the storage box body or cover.

[0013] In one embodiment, the connection gap between the connecting structure and the silo body is provided with a sealing structure.

[0014] In one embodiment, the hopper further includes a fixing part for fixing the material tube.

[0015] In one embodiment, the fixing part is an elastic fixing member, and the material tube is clamped to the inner wall of the fixing part.

[0016] In one embodiment, the diameter of the elastic fastener is 0.5-1 mm smaller than the diameter of the feed tube.

[0017] In one embodiment, the fixing part is located on the outside of the cover.

[0018] This application also provides a 3D printer, which includes the hopper described in any of the above-mentioned claims;

[0019] The 3D printer also includes a feed tube, through which the hopper is connected to the 3D printer.

[0020] This application also provides a 3D printer, which includes the discharge port and / or the storage box described in any of the above-mentioned claims.

[0021] In summary, this application provides a hopper, comprising: a hopper body, a cover, a first discharge port, and a second discharge port. The cover is disposed on the upper surface of the hopper body, the first discharge port is disposed at the lower end of the hopper body, and the second discharge port is connected to a discharge opening on the upper surface of the hopper body or the cover. The first discharge port is used for discharging consumables with a hardness greater than 100A from the hopper body, and the second discharge port is used for discharging consumables with a hardness less than 100A from the hopper body. This application also provides a 3D printer including the above-mentioned hopper. In the technical solution provided by this application, consumables with different hardness ranges are discharged separately through the first and second discharge ports. Corresponding discharge pressure and speed are matched according to different discharge ports, avoiding the problems of blockage in the discharge pipe and uneven discharge caused by the same discharge speed from the same discharge port. Attached Figure Description

[0022] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on the provided drawings without creative effort.

[0023] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of one of the structures of the second discharge port in a silo provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0024] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of another cross-sectional structure of the second discharge port in a silo, provided as an embodiment of this application.

[0025] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of a 3D printer provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0026] The components include a first discharge port 1, a second discharge port 2, a closing structure 21, a connecting structure 22, a sealing structure 23, and a material pipe 32. Detailed Implementation

[0027] This application provides a material hopper and a 3D printer, and studies and improves the problem that the material hopper cannot be used for different types of consumables.

[0028] To make the above-mentioned objectives, features, and advantages of this application more apparent and understandable, the specific embodiments of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Many specific details are set forth in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of this application. However, this application can be implemented in many other ways different from those described herein, and those skilled in the art can make similar modifications without departing from the spirit of this application. Therefore, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed below.

[0029] Extensive testing revealed that when the hardness of the consumables differs, the pressure and speed required for extrusion during the printing process vary. The loading and unloading mechanisms struggle to simultaneously meet the discharge requirements of raw materials with significant hardness differences, which can easily lead to blockages in the discharge pipes and uneven discharge during the process.

[0030] Please see Figures 1 to 3This application provides a hopper, including: a hopper body, a cover, a first discharge port 1, and a second discharge port 2. The cover is disposed on the upper surface of the hopper body, the first discharge port 1 is disposed at the lower end of the hopper body, and the second discharge port 2 is connected to a discharge opening on the upper surface of the hopper body or the cover. The first discharge port 1 is used for discharging consumables with a hardness greater than 100A from the hopper body, and the second discharge port 2 is used for discharging consumables with a hardness less than 100A from the hopper body. The hopper provided by this application solves the technical defects in the prior art, such as easy clogging of the discharge pipe and uneven discharge of 3D printing raw materials with different hardnesses.

[0031] In the technical solution provided in this application embodiment, the main body of the hopper is used to store consumables of different hardness. The consumables of different hardness are discharged from the first discharge port 1 and the second discharge port 2 respectively according to their hardness. The first discharge port 1 is used to discharge consumables with a hardness greater than 100A, such as consumables with a hardness of 150A, such as PLA, PETG, ABS and other consumables. The second discharge port 2 is used to discharge consumables with a hardness less than 100A, such as consumables with a hardness of 95A, 85A, 83A, 80A, such as TPU consumables.

[0032] The material hopper provided in this application embodiment allows consumables of different hardness to be discharged through different discharge ports. After being installed in the printing equipment, the different discharge ports are matched with different discharge pressures and discharge speeds to adapt to the discharge parameters of consumables of different hardness. This effectively avoids the problem of blockage of the material tube 32 or uneven discharge caused by mismatch of discharge parameters (pressure, speed).

[0033] To further optimize the technical solution, while ensuring uniform and stable material discharge from the silo and considering the design requirement of a simple silo structure, the silo provided in this application embodiment also includes: a loading and unloading mechanism, which is connected to the silo body and used for discharging material from the silo body; the loading and unloading mechanism includes a friction wheel and a material tube 32, with the friction wheel driving the consumables to move in the material tube 32. Discharge is achieved by driving the consumables in the material tube 32 to move via the friction wheel, and the discharge parameters (pressure, speed) can be adjusted by adjusting the friction wheel.

[0034] In the technical solution provided in this application embodiment, the discharge end of the second discharge port 2 is provided with a closing structure 21, and the second discharge port 2 has an axial cavity through which the feeding pipe 32 passes at least partially. The second discharge port 2 is used to discharge consumables with a hardness of less than 100A from the main body of the silo. In actual application, the aforementioned consumables are used less frequently. In order to further reduce the moisture absorption of the consumables, the discharge end of the second discharge port 2 is provided with a closing structure 21. When the second discharge port 2 is not needed for discharging, it remains closed to prevent the silo from being connected to the external environment and causing the consumables to become damp due to forgetting to close the second discharge port 2. When it is necessary to discharge through the second discharge port 2, the feeding pipe 32 is inserted into the second discharge port 2, passes through the cavity of the second discharge port 2, and enters the main body of the silo to discharge the material. After the discharge is completed, the feeding pipe 32 is pulled out, and the closing structure 21 of the second discharge port 2 is closed, and the second discharge port 2 is closed. The whole operation process is simple and convenient.

[0035] Compared with existing technologies that rely on the insertion and removal of rubber plugs to complete the material discharge, this method eliminates the need to close the discharge port. The discharge port can automatically close, preventing the material in the discharge device from getting damp due to forgetting to close the discharge port, thus ensuring that the material can maintain good performance.

[0036] To further optimize the technical solution, while ensuring a good closing effect of the closure structure 21, this application embodiment also considers the design requirements of facilitating the passage of the material tube 32 when the closure structure 21 is open, having a simple structure, low cost, and being less prone to damage. In this embodiment, the closure structure 21 is an automatically elastic closure opening, which is in a straight line shape when closed and is located inside the cover. In use, the automatically elastic closure opening is first pinched to open it. Then, the material tube is inserted at least partially into the second discharge port from outside the hopper and held in place. Finally, the consumable material is pushed from inside the hopper into the material tube and then sent to the 3D printer.

[0037] Further optimize the technical solution, such as Figure 3 As shown, the closed structure includes a sealing part that blocks the second discharge port 2, and the sealing part is located on the outside of the cover. When the sealing part is removed, the feed tube 32 can be inserted and locked, and then the consumable is pushed from inside the hopper into the feed tube 32 and sent to the 3D printer. When the second discharge port 2 is not in use, the sealing part can be used to block the second discharge port 2.

[0038] To further optimize the technical solution, in order to facilitate the smooth and convenient pulling out / insertion of the material tube 32 into the second discharge port 2, and to effectively ensure the stability of the hopper structure during the pulling out / insertion of the material tube 32, while also taking into account the need to increase the tightness of the connection between the discharge port and the hopper body, in a hopper provided in this application embodiment, the second discharge port 2 is provided with a connecting structure 22, which connects the second discharge port 2 to the storage box body or cover.

[0039] To further optimize the technical solution and effectively enhance the sealing performance and prevent external air from affecting the internal materials of the discharge device, the technical solution provided in this application embodiment includes a sealing structure 23 in the connection gap between the connecting structure 22 and the main body of the hopper.

[0040] The hopper provided in this embodiment further includes a fixing part for fixing the material tube 32. Fixing the material tube 32 with the fixing part can further optimize the internal structure of the hopper and prevent the material tube 32 from moving during the material dispensing process, thus preventing it from affecting the material dispensing.

[0041] To further optimize the technical solution, while ensuring a good fixing effect of the fixing part on the material tube 32, the fixing part is simple in structure and easy to disassemble and fix the material tube 32. In the technical solution provided in the embodiment of this application, the fixing part is an elastic fixing member, and the material tube 32 is clamped on the inner wall of the fixing part.

[0042] To facilitate the fixing of the material tube 32, in the technical solution provided in this application embodiment, the fixing part is located on the outside of the cover.

[0043] In the hopper provided in this application embodiment, the ease of disassembly and good fixing effect of the fastener on the material tube 32 are further optimized, and the diameter of the elastic fastener is 0.5-1mm smaller than the diameter of the material tube 32.

[0044] This application also provides a 3D printer, including the aforementioned hopper and feed tube, with the hopper connected to the 3D printer via the feed tube. During the operation of the 3D printer, various consumables from the hopper are dispensed and used for printing.

[0045] In summary, this application provides a hopper, comprising: a hopper body, a cover, a first discharge port, and a second discharge port. The cover is disposed on the upper surface of the hopper body, the first discharge port is disposed at the lower end of the hopper body, and the second discharge port is connected to a discharge opening on the upper surface of the hopper body or the cover. The first discharge port is used for discharging consumables with a hardness greater than 100A from the hopper body, and the second discharge port is used for discharging consumables with a hardness less than 100A from the hopper body. This application also provides a 3D printer including the above-mentioned hopper. In the technical solution provided by this application, consumables with different hardness ranges are discharged separately through the first and second discharge ports. Corresponding discharge pressure and speed are matched according to different discharge ports, avoiding the problems of blockage in the discharge pipe and uneven discharge caused by the same discharge speed from the same discharge port.

[0046] The technical features of the embodiments described above can be combined arbitrarily. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as the combination of these technical features does not contradict each other, it should be considered within the scope of this specification. Furthermore, other implementation methods can be derived from the above embodiments, allowing for structural and logical substitutions and changes without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[0047] The embodiments described above are merely illustrative of several implementation methods of this application, and while the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the patent application. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of this application, and these all fall within the protection scope of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of this patent application should be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A hopper for 3D printing filament storage and delivery, characterized in that, The hopper includes: a hopper body, a cover, a first discharge port and a second discharge port. The hopper also includes: a loading and unloading mechanism, which is connected to the hopper body and is used for discharging material from the hopper body. The cover is placed on the upper surface of the silo body, the first discharge port is located at the lower end of the silo body and connected to the loading and unloading mechanism, and the second discharge port is connected to the discharge opening on the upper surface of the silo body or the cover. The first discharge port is used for discharging consumables with a hardness greater than 100A from the main body of the silo, and the second discharge port is used for discharging consumables with a hardness less than 100A from the main body of the silo. The loading and unloading mechanism includes a friction wheel and a material tube, and the friction wheel drives the consumable to move in the material tube.

2. The bin of claim 1, wherein, The discharge end of the second discharge port is provided with a closed structure, and the second discharge port is provided with a cavity through which the feeding pipe passes at least partially in the axial direction.

3. The bin of claim 2, wherein, The closing structure is an automatic elastic closure, which is in the form of a straight line when closed, and is located inside the cover body.

4. The bin of claim 2, wherein, The closing structure includes a sealing part that blocks the second discharge port, and the sealing part is located on the outside of the cover.

5. The bin of claim 1, wherein, The second discharge port is provided with a connecting structure, which connects the second discharge port to the hopper body or cover, and the connection gap between the connecting structure and the hopper body is provided with a sealing structure.

6. The silo of claim 1, wherein, The second discharge port further includes a fixing part for fixing the material tube. The fixing part is an elastic fixing member, and the material tube is clamped to the inner wall of the fixing part.

7. The bin of claim 6, wherein, The diameter of the inner wall of the elastic fixing part is 0.5-1mm smaller than the diameter of the material tube.

8. The bin of claim 6, wherein, The fixing part is located on the outside of the cover.

9. A 3D printer characterized by, The 3D printer includes the hopper as described in any one of claims 1 to 8; The 3D printer also includes a feed tube, through which the hopper is connected to the 3D printer.

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