Additive Manufacturing Simulation for Trapped Material Detection

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Solution Overview

Problem

Additive manufacturing (AM) often results in the trapping of unused materials within structures due to limitations in resolution, leading to production errors such as clogged holes or channels, which deviate from the intended digital model.

Innovation Solution

A processing device generates a tool path based on AM resolutions to simulate the manufactured geometry, identifies over-deposited features, and provides options to update production parameters or geometry to avoid trapping unused materials.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of manufacture

If additive manufacturing is used to produce complex structures, then manufacturing capability is improved, but material trapping errors occur

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemanufacturing capabilityVSAvoidmaterial trapping errors

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary simulation of the additive manufacturing process before actual production, computing over-deposition features and identifying potential material trapping issues in advance, allowing corrections to be made before manufacturing begins

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates a simulated manufactured geometry that copies and simulates the actual manufacturing process, using this virtual model to identify potential defects without consuming physical materials or time

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

2Productivity

If production parameters are not optimized, then production speed is maintained, but manufacturing errors increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduction speedVSAvoidmanufacturing errors

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary analysis of production parameters and their potential effects on material trapping, allowing optimization to be done once before production rather than requiring continuous adjustment during manufacturing

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system provides feedback about potential material trapping issues based on simulated geometry analysis, enabling operators to adjust production parameters before errors occur in actual manufacturing

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Device complexity

If resolution limitations are not accounted for, then manufacturing process is simple, but production accuracy decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemanufacturing process complexityVSAvoidproduction accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system accounts for resolution limitations in advance by computing over-deposition features based on known AM resolutions before generating the final tool path, preventing accuracy issues rather than correcting them after production

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS12384116B2Avoiding trapping unused additive manufacturing materials during production

Publication Date: 2025.08.12 XEROX CORP

AI summary

The present disclosure provides techniques for analyzing trapped unused materials during AM. For example, given a geometry or shape to be manufactured using one or more AM materials, a tool path for solidifying the one or more AM materials is generated to turn the geometry into a physical object based on one or more manufacturing parameters related to AM resolutions. A processing device may compute a simulated manufactured geometry (e.g., a realistic representation of the actual shape of the corresponding physical object to be produced) based on the tool path and the one or more manufacturing parameters. The processing device analyzes the simulated manufactured geometry for a portion of removable AM materials trapped inside the simulated manufactured geometry. The processing device then generates a report regarding the portion of the removable AM materials trapped inside the simulated manufactured geometry.