3D Printing Cooling Control for Self-Supporting Structures
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing 3D printing methods struggle to produce quasi-continuous fiber-reinforced structures efficiently and quickly, particularly in complex geometries, due to slow cooling of extruded plastic material, leading to issues like uncured plastic material damaging the structure and inability to print cantilevered structures without external cooling systems.
Innovation Solution
A 3D printing system with a cooling device that varies cooling power and direction using fluid streams to target specific areas of the extruded plastic material, ensuring rapid solidification where needed and preventing damage, allowing for high-speed printing of self-supporting structures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If external cooling systems (such as fans) are used to cool the extruded plastic material, then the cooling time is reduced, but the structure still cannot reliably support vertical printing and the printing speed remains limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by directing cooling fluid streams to specific locations where plastic material is extruded. The cooling is not uniform but targeted at the exact points where material exits the printing head, ensuring rapid solidification precisely where needed to support vertical structures while minimizing cooling time elsewhere in the component.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling action is applied preliminarily and immediately after material extrusion. By cooling the plastic material at the moment of extrusion and at the extrusion location, the system ensures rapid solidification before the material can sag or deform, enabling vertical printing without waiting for general component cooling.
2Productivity
If the printing speed is increased to improve productivity, then the printing process becomes faster, but the extruded plastic material does not cool and harden quickly enough to support the structure
Solution Approach 1:
The system maintains high printing speed by applying localized cooling only at the extrusion points where material is deposited. This targeted approach allows the printed structure to be built rapidly while the specific regions needing support solidify quickly under the cooling fluid streams, preventing sagging or deformation even at increased speeds.
Solution Approach 2:
Cooling is applied preliminarily immediately after extrusion at the printing head location. This preliminary cooling action ensures that each deposited layer solidifies quickly enough to support the next layer, enabling continuous high-speed printing while maintaining structural integrity throughout the build process.
3Device complexity
If uniform cooling is applied to the entire component, then the cooling process is simple, but it cannot provide targeted cooling where needed and cools areas that do not require it
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality cooling by using multiple cooling nozzles positioned to target specific extrusion locations. Each nozzle directs cooling fluid precisely where plastic material is deposited, providing effective cooling only where needed rather than uniformly cooling the entire component. This approach maintains manufacturing precision while avoiding unnecessary cooling of already solidified areas.
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
Enables rapid and efficient production of fiber-reinforced 3D structures with improved component quality by precisely controlling cooling to prevent premature solidification and structural damage, facilitating printing of cantilevered and freestanding designs.
Implementation Method 1
The extruded plastic material is cooled by means of a cooling device by directing at least one fluid stream onto the extruded plastic material
Implementation Method 2
A 3D printer prints a meltable material, such as a thermoplastic, layer by layer, resulting in a three-dimensional component or structure
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for producing a three-dimensional structure from a 3D-printable plastic material using a 3D print head (1), wherein the method comprises the following steps: - feeding the 3D-printable plastic material (4) to the 3D print head (1) and - extruding the plastic material (4) fed to the 3D print head (1) from an outlet opening (3) of the 3D print head (1), - wherein the extruded plastic material (4) is cooled by means of a cooling device (5) by directing at least one fluid flow onto the extruded plastic material, wherein the cooling of the extruded plastic material is varied with respect to the cooling power and/or the cooling direction by means of the cooling device (5).