3D Printer Nozzle With Heat Break for Precise Filament Heating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional 3D printer nozzles lack compactness, configurability, and effective temperature control, which limits their performance in efficiently receiving and dispensing 3D filament materials for building structures.
Innovation Solution
A nozzle design featuring a barrel with a heat break, a heating element wrapped around the exterior surface, and a retaining cap to secure the end tip, allowing for precise temperature control and improved heat transfer, along with a bifilar coil heating element and temperature sensors for enhanced thermal management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If traditional 3D printer nozzles use a simple barrel structure with external cooling fins, then the cooling function is provided, but the temperature control precision is insufficient and the structure is not compact
Solution Approach 1:
The heating element is nested within the barrel structure, with the heating wire wrapped around the interior surface of the barrel. The temperature sensor is nested within a recess in the barrel, allowing both components to be integrated into the barrel rather than attached externally, improving temperature control precision while maintaining a compact structure
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling fins are merged with the barrel structure itself rather than being separate attachments. The barrel incorporates internal cooling channels that work with the external fins to provide efficient cooling, combining multiple thermal management functions into a single integrated component
2Use of energy by moving object
If the nozzle uses a longer barrel to improve filament heating, then the heating effectiveness increases, but the nozzle length increases and compactness decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The heating function is concentrated in the barrel region where the filament travels, with the heating wire wrapped around the interior surface of the barrel. The heating is localized to where it is most needed - along the filament path in the barrel - rather than requiring a longer overall nozzle structure
Solution Approach 2:
The heating approach transitions from extending the nozzle length in one dimension to wrapping the heating wire around the barrel in a circular dimension. This provides extended heating coverage along the filament path without increasing the overall nozzle length, achieving effective heating through a different geometric dimension
3Strength
If the nozzle tip is securely attached to the barrel, then the structural integrity is improved, but the configurability and ease of replacement decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The nozzle is segmented into distinct components - the barrel, the tip, and the heating element - that can be separately manufactured and assembled. The tip can be detached and replaced independently from the barrel, maintaining structural integrity during operation while enabling easy reconfiguration and replacement when needed
Solution Approach 2:
The connection between the tip and barrel transitions from a fixed rigid joint to a dynamic assembly that can be easily connected and disconnected. This allows the nozzle to be reconfigured for different tip types or replaced entirely, providing adaptability while maintaining structural strength during the printing process
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a more compact, easily configurable, and thermally controllable nozzle structure that enables efficient heating and dispensing of 3D filaments, extending the nozzle's operational life and improving the quality of 3D structures by maintaining precise temperature profiles.
Implementation Method 1
The heating element includes a heating wire wrapped around the exterior surface of the barrel
Implementation Method 2
The heat break is defined in the exterior surface of the barrel
Data Source
Figure 1A~1C
Figure 2~3B
Figure 4A~4B
AI summary
A nozzle is configured for receiving and dispensing a 3D printer filament. The nozzle includes a barrel, a heating element, and an end tip. The barrel has an internal bore and an exterior surface. The internal bore has a filament receiving end and a filament discharge end. A heat break is defined in the exterior surface of the barrel. The heating element is proximate the filament discharge end. The heating element includes a heating wire wrapped around the exterior surface of the barrel. The end tip is proximate the filament discharge end. The 3D filament is received in the filament receiving end heated by the heating element and dispensed through end tip proximate the filament discharge end.