SYSTEMS AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A POWDER REMOVAL CAP BY ADDITIVE MAKING

Abstract

A method for capturing trapped powder from a part during an additive manufacturing process, comprising: defining parameters for a part, wherein the part forms an inner passage bounded by inner sidewalls; defining parameters for a powder removal cap, wherein the powder removal cap comprises a body section and a thin radial membrane connected to the inner sidewalls of the part; simultaneously producing the part and the powder removal cap by additive manufacturing, wherein the powder removal cap is produced within the inner passage and, upon completion of the production of the part and the powder removal cap, the powder removal cap captures excess powder within the inner passage; and removing the powder removal cap from the inner passage by breaking the radial membrane away from the inner sidewalls.to allow access to the inner passage and to collect the excess powder in the inner passage.

Description

INTRODUCTION

[0001] The information in this section is intended to provide a general context for the disclosure. Work by the presently named inventors, to the extent described in this section, as well as aspects of the description that may not be prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.

[0002] The present disclosure generally relates to systems and methods for manufacturing a powder removal cap by additive manufacturing.

[0003] Additive manufacturing (AM) (e.g., laser powder bed fusion (LPBF)) is expensive, partly due to high material costs. Fortunately, unmelted powder can be reused if kept clean. Thus, the recovery of clean powder can lead to more positive AM business cases.

[0004] For certain die-casting tools, additively manufactured inserts / caps can be used to improve quality and reduce scrap through conformal cooling channels. Such large AM parts are separated from a build plate after printing using electrical discharge machining (EDM). In some implementations, the AM parts can be fully immersed in a fluid, safely containing metal powder that would otherwise be released into the air during the EDM separation of the AM parts from the build plate.

[0005] However, when the insert is immersed in a fluid bath, the conformal line filled with dry metal powder becomes saturated with fluid. The fluid transforms the metal powder into a slurry that is difficult to remove.

[0006] Accordingly, there is room for improvement in powder removal tools for parts produced by additive manufacturing. SUMMARY

[0007] One aspect of the disclosure is a method for capturing trapped powder from a part during an additive manufacturing process. The method includes defining parameters for a part, the part defining an internal passage defined by internal sidewalls; defining parameters for a powder removal cap, the powder removal cap comprising a body portion and a thin radial membrane connected to the internal sidewalls of the part, the body portion forming a bushing; simultaneously creating the part and the powder removal cap by additive manufacturing, the powder removal cap being created within the internal passage, and upon completion of creation of the part and the powder removal cap, the powder removal cap capturing excess powder within the internal passage; removing the powder removal cap from the internal passage;by engaging a tool with the bushing and twisting the powder removal cap until the radial membrane breaks from the inner side walls to allow access to the inner passage and collecting the excess powder in the inner passage.

[0008] Implementations of the disclosure may include one or more of the following optional features. In some implementations, the socket is a hex socket and the tool is a hex wrench.

[0009] The part may be intended for a vehicle. The vehicle may be a passenger car.

[0010] The radial membrane may have a notch and / or a perforation.

[0011] The part and the powder removal cap may be formed from the same material.

[0012] Another aspect of the disclosure provides a method for collecting trapped powder from a part during an additive manufacturing process.The method includes defining parameters for a part, the part defining an internal passageway defined by internal sidewalls, defining parameters for a powder removal cap, the powder removal cap comprising a body portion and a thin radial membrane coupled to the internal sidewalls of the part, simultaneously creating the part and the powder removal cap by additive manufacturing, the powder removal cap being created within the internal passageway, and upon completion of creation of the part and the powder removal cap, the powder removal cap cap trapping excess powder within the internal passageway, removing the powder removal cap from the internal passageway by breaking the radial membrane from the internal sidewalls to allow access to the internal passageway, and trapping the excess powder in the internal passageway.

[0013] Implementations of the disclosure may include one or more of the following optional features. In some implementations, the body portion forms a socket, and an Allen wrench is used to twist the powder removal cap to break the radial membrane from the inner sidewalls.

[0014] The part may be intended for a vehicle. The vehicle may be a passenger car.

[0015] The radial membrane may have a notch and / or a perforation.

[0016] The part and the powder removal cap may be formed from the same material.

[0017] Another aspect of the disclosure provides a method for capturing trapped powder from a part during an additive manufacturing process. The method includes defining parameters for a part that forms an internal passageway, defining parameters for a powder removal cap, the powder removal cap comprising a thin radial membrane disposed within the internal passageway of the part, simultaneously manufacturing the part and the powder removal cap by additive manufacturing, wherein upon completion of manufacturing the part and the powder removal cap, the powder removal cap captures excess powder within the internal passageway, removing the powder removal cap from the internal passageway by rupturing the radial membrane to allow access to the internal passageway, and capturing the excess powder within the internal passageway.

[0018] Implementations of the disclosure may include one or more of the following optional features. In some implementations, the powder removal cap includes a body portion forming a hex socket, and an Allen wrench is used to twist the powder removal cap to rupture the radial membrane.

[0019] The part may be intended for a vehicle. The vehicle may be a passenger car.

[0020] The radial membrane may have a notch and / or a perforation.

[0021] Details of one or more implementations of the disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other aspects, features, and advantages will become apparent from the description and drawings, as well as from the claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary powder removal cap disposed in an exemplary part according to the teachings of the present disclosure; Fig. Figure 2A is an enlarged view of the powder removal cap of Fig. 1; Fig. Figure 2B is a perspective cross-sectional view of the powder removal cap taken along lines 2B-2B of Fig. 2A; Fig. 2C is a cross-sectional top view of the powder removal cap of Fig. 2A; Fig. 2D is an enlarged view of a portion of the powder removal cap of Fig. 2B; Fig. Figure 3A is a plan view of the bottom of the powder removal cap with a radial membrane with perforations according to Fig. 1; Fig. Figure 3B is a plan view of the bottom of the powder removal cap with a radial membrane having a notch according to Fig. 1; Fig. 4A is a perspective view of an exemplary part including the powder removal cap; Fig. 4B is an enlarged view of a portion of Fig. 4A; Fig. Figure 4C is a partial cross-sectional view of the exemplary part and powder removal cap taken along lines 4C-4C of Fig. 4B; and Fig. 5 is a flow diagram of a method for manufacturing the exemplary powder removal caps and parts of the Fig. 1 - 4C, according to the teachings of the present disclosure.

[0023] Corresponding reference numbers indicate corresponding parts in the drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] Example configurations will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Example configurations are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and will convey the full scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. Specific details are set forth, such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, in order to provide a thorough understanding of configurations of the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that specific details need not be used, that example configurations may be embodied in many different forms, and that the specific details and example configurations should not be construed to limit the scope of the disclosure.

[0025] In Fig. 1 generally depicts a powder removal cap 100 within an internal passage or conformal cooling line 50 of a part or tool insert 10 on a build plate 20. As can be seen, the part 10 and the powder removal cap 100 are manufactured simultaneously by additive manufacturing (AM). The part 10 and the powder removal cap 100 can be manufactured from any suitable material (e.g., titanium alloys, cobalt-chromium, stainless steel, nickel alloys, aluminum alloys, etc.) and any suitable AM ​​process (e.g., laser powder bed fusion (LPBF)).

[0026] Part 10 may be a part for a vehicle, e.g., an automobile. As can be appreciated, the vehicle may be any one of a number of different vehicle types, such as a sedan, station wagon, truck, or sport utility vehicle (SUV), and it may include two-wheel drive (2WD) (i.e., rear-wheel drive or front-wheel drive), four-wheel drive (4WD), or all-wheel drive (AWD), and / or various other vehicle types in certain configurations. The vehicle may also be a truck, a watercraft, an aircraft, and / or one or more other types of vehicles.

[0027] As in Fig. 2A-2D, the inner passage 50 of the part 10 includes an upper passage 52a and a lower passage 52b. After completion of the AM process, the upper passage 52a contains excess dry powder resulting from the AM process, and the lower passage 52b contains powder slurry resulting from the excess dry powder from the AM process, which mixes with fluid when the part 10 and the powder removal cap 100 are cut from the build plate 20. The inner passage 50 is defined by inner side walls 54, which, as shown in Fig. 1 - 2D, can have a generally cylindrical shape.

[0028] The powder removal cap 100 includes a body portion 102, which may have a generally cylindrical shape or other suitable shape. The powder removal cap 100 includes a thin radial diaphragm 104 connected to the body portion 102 by a flange portion 106. The diameter of the body portion 102 may be less than the diameter of the radial diaphragm 104. The radial diaphragm 104 may be configured to be secured to the inner sidewalls 54 of the inner passageway 50 and may be made of a thin section of material, e.g., between about 0.1 mm and 0.5 mm. The thickness of the radial diaphragm 104 may be adjusted to any suitable thickness to allow the radial member 104 to disengage from the inner sidewalls 54 upon sufficient torsional force.

[0029] The body portion 102 includes socket sidewalls 110 defining a socket 108. In some implementations, the socket 108 is hexagonal. In other implementations, the socket 108 may have a thread, a groove, a spline, or other suitable configuration, such as a Philips head, a Robertson head, a flat head, etc. The socket 108 is configured to receive a suitable tool, such as a hex wrench, a Phillips screwdriver, a Robertson screwdriver, a flathead screwdriver, etc. The powder removal cap 100 extends from a lower surface 112 cut from the build plate 20 to an upper surface adjacent the upper passageway 52a of the inner passageway 50.

[0030] As in Fig. 3A, in some implementations, the radial member 104 may include one or more perforations 116 at or near the junction with the inner sidewalls 54. The perforations 116 may be made of thinner layers of material than the radial membrane 104 or may be gaps in the material of the radial membrane 104. The perforations 116 may serve to weaken the radial membrane 104 to reduce the torsional force required to detach the radial membrane 104 from the inner sidewalls 54.

[0031] As in Fig. 3B, in some implementations, the radial diaphragm 104 may include a notch 118 at or near the junction with the inner sidewalls 54. The notch 118 may be formed from a thinner layer of material than the radial diaphragm 104 or may be a gap in the material of the radial diaphragm 104. The notch 118 may serve to weaken the radial diaphragm 104 to reduce the torsional force required to disengage the radial diaphragm 104 from the inner sidewalls 54.

[0032] As in Fig. 4A, in some implementations, the powder removal cap 100 may include a body portion 102 without a bushing 108. Instead, the body portion 102 may be shaped as a hexagon or other suitable shape to accommodate, for example, a hex socket or other suitable tool for twisting or tightening the powder removal cap 100.

[0033] In Fig.5 generally illustrates a method 500 for collecting trapped powder from part 10 during an AM process. Method 500 includes a first step 502 in which a computer system or other suitable machine defines parameters for part 10 and powder removal cap 100. In steps 504 and 506, an AM machine simultaneously prints part 10 and powder removal cap 100 into inner passageway 50. In step 508, part 10 and powder removal cap 100 are removed from build plate 20 by any suitable method, such as electrical discharge machining (EDM). In step 510, any suitable machining operations may be performed, such as removing burrs from part 10 and powder removal cap 100.

[0034] In step 512, the part 10 may be moved to a specific area to collect the powder. For example, the part 10 may be moved to a location with a recycling bin or other suitable collection device below the inner passageway 50. In step 514, the powder removal cap 100 may be separated from the inner sidewalls 54 of the inner passageway 50. For example, a hex wrench may be inserted into the socket 108 and the hex wrench may be rotated until the radial membrane 104 tears from the inner sidewalls 54 due to torsional force. In step 516, the excess powder in the inner passageway 50 may be collected in the recycling bin or other suitable collection device. In some implementations, a vacuum, a blower, or other suitable mechanism may be used to facilitate the removal of powder from the inner passageway 50.In step 518, the powder can be reused for further AM processes.

[0035] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing specific example configurations only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular articles "a," "an," and "the" can also include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms "comprises," "comprising," "containing," and "having" are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of features, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein should not be construed as necessarily being performed in the order discussed or illustrated unless they are expressly identified as being in order of performance.Additional or alternative steps may be applied.

[0036] When an element or layer is described as being "on," "engaging," "connected," "attached to," or "coupled" to another element or layer, it may be directly on, engaging, connected, attached, or coupled to the other element or layer, or there may be intervening elements or layers. Conversely, when an element is described as being "directly on," "directly engaging," "directly connected to," "directly attached to," or "directly coupled to" another element or layer, there may be no intervening elements or layers. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted similarly (e.g., "between" versus "directly between," "adjacent" versus "directly next to," etc.).As used herein, the term “and / or” includes all combinations of one or more of the related listed items.

[0037] The terms "first," "second," "third," etc., may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers, and / or sections. These elements, components, regions, layers, and / or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms may only be used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer, or section from another region, layer, or section, respectively. Terms such as "first," "second," and other numerical terms do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer, or section discussed below could be referred to as a second element, component, region, layer, or section without departing from the teachings of the example configurations.

[0038] The devices and methods described in this application may be implemented partially or entirely by one or more computer programs executed by one or more processors. The computer programs include processor-executable instructions stored on at least one non-transitory, tangible, computer-readable medium. The computer programs may also include and / or access stored data.

[0039] A software application (i.e., a software resource) may refer to computer software that causes a computing device to perform a task. In some examples, a software application may be referred to as an "application," "app," or "program." Example applications include, but are not limited to, system diagnostic applications, system management applications, system maintenance applications, word processing applications, spreadsheet applications, messaging applications, media streaming applications, social networking applications, and gaming applications.

[0040] Non-transitory memory can be physical devices used to temporarily or permanently store programs (e.g., instruction sequences) or data (e.g., program state information) for use by a computing device. Non-transitory memory can be volatile and / or non-volatile addressable semiconductor memory. Examples of non-volatile memory include flash memory and read-only memory (ROM) / programmable read-only memory (PROM) / erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) / electronically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) (e.g., typically used for firmware such as boot programs). Examples of volatile memory include random-access memory (RAM), dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), static random-access memory (SRAM), phase-change memory (PCM), and floppy disks or tapes.

[0041] These computer programs (also referred to as programs, software, software applications, or code) contain machine instructions for a programmable processor and may be implemented in a procedural and / or object-oriented high-level language and / or assembly / machine language. As used herein, the terms "machine-readable medium" and "computer-readable medium" refer to any computer program product, non-transitory computer-readable medium, apparatus, and / or device (e.g., magnetic disks, optical disks, memory, programmable logic devices (PLDs)) designed to deliver machine instructions and / or data to a programmable processor, including a machine-readable medium that receives machine instructions as a machine-readable signal.The term “machine-readable signal” refers to any signal used to convey machine instructions and / or data to a programmable processor.

[0042] A number of implementations have been described. However, it should be understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other embodiments are also within the scope of the following claims.

[0043] The foregoing description is for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or limiting of the disclosure. Individual elements or features of a particular configuration are generally not limited to that particular configuration, but are optionally interchangeable and may be used in a selected configuration even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many respects. Such variations are not to be considered as departing from the disclosure, and all such changes are intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.

Claims

[1] A method for collecting trapped powder from a part during an additive manufacturing process, the method comprising: Defining parameters for a part, the part forming an internal passageway bounded by internal sidewalls; Defining parameters for a powder removal cap, the powder removal cap comprising a body portion and a thin radial membrane connected to the inner sidewalls of the part, the body portion forming a socket; simultaneously producing the part and the powder removal cap by additive manufacturing, wherein the powder removal cap is produced within the inner passageway and, upon completion of the production of the part and the powder removal cap, the powder removal cap captures excess powder within the inner passageway; Removing the powder removal cap from the inner passage by inserting a tool into the bushing and twisting the powder removal cap until the radial membrane breaks from the inner side walls to allow access to the inner passage; and Collecting excess powder in the inner passage. [2] The method of claim 1, wherein the socket is a hexagon socket and the tool is a hexagon wrench. [3] The method of claim 1, wherein the part is for a vehicle. [4] The method of claim 3, wherein the vehicle is an automobile. [5] The method of claim 1, wherein the radial membrane has a notch. [6] The method of claim 1, wherein the radial membrane has a perforation. [7] The method of claim 1, wherein the part and the powder removal cap are formed of the same material. [8] A method for collecting trapped powder from a part during an additive manufacturing process, the method comprising: Defining parameters for a part, the part forming an internal passageway bounded by internal sidewalls; Defining parameters for a powder removal cap, the powder removal cap comprising a body portion and a thin radial membrane connected to the inner sidewalls of the part; simultaneously producing the part and the powder removal cap by additive manufacturing, wherein the powder removal cap is produced within the inner passageway and, upon completion of the production of the part and the powder removal cap, the powder removal cap captures excess powder within the inner passageway; Removing the powder removal cap from the inner passage by breaking the radial membrane from the inner side walls to allow access to the inner passage; and Collecting excess powder in the inner passage. [9] The method of claim 8, wherein the body portion forms a hexagon socket and an Allen key is used to rotate the powder removal cap to break the radial membrane from the inner side walls. [10] The method of claim 8, wherein the part is intended for a vehicle.

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