Additive Manufacturing Beam Heating for Local Powder Temperature Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current temperature control methods for additive manufacturing using heating elements are limited in pre-drying building materials and lack local temperature control, especially for high-melting materials, and are inefficient in energy usage.
Innovation Solution
A device utilizing multiple irradiation devices with energy beams for selective solidification and thermal pretreatment or post-treatment of building material layers, allowing for targeted and local temperature control through adjustable energy beam properties and movement paths.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If heating elements are used for temperature control of building material layers, then a certain temperature control is achieved, but pre-drying and local tempering are not possible and the temperature threshold is too low for high-melting materials
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional heating elements with an energy beam (laser or electron beam) system to achieve temperature control. The energy beam can be precisely directed to specific locations on the building material layer, enabling local tempering and pre-drying operations. This substitution allows temperature control beyond the limitations of heating elements, including higher temperature thresholds required for high-melting materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The energy beam system enables localized temperature control by directing the beam to specific regions of the building material layer. This allows different areas to receive different thermal treatments simultaneously - for example, pre-drying moisture from powder beds in certain regions while maintaining other regions at lower temperatures, or applying local tempering to reduce hydrogen porosity in specific areas without affecting the entire build chamber.
2Temperature
If heating elements are integrated into the build chamber for temperature control, then thermal energy is introduced to control material temperature, but energy usage is inefficient and thermal load on the chamber is high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the temperature control function from the build chamber environment and relocates it to the energy beam system itself. Instead of heating the entire build chamber and relying on thermal conduction and convection to warm the building material, the energy beam directly delivers thermal energy only to the specific locations where temperature control is needed. This extraction of the heating function from the chamber environment dramatically improves energy efficiency and reduces thermal load on the chamber components.
Solution Approach 2:
The energy beam system performs self-service temperature control by directly heating the building material at the point of application. The beam carries its own energy source and delivers it precisely where needed, eliminating the need for external heating infrastructure and reducing energy losses associated with heating large volumes of air and chamber components.
3Ease of operation
If conventional heating elements are used for tempering, then basic temperature control is achieved, but local tempering and pre-drying capabilities are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The energy beam system serves multiple functions within a single operational framework. It can perform selective solidification of building material layers, local tempering to reduce hydrogen porosity, pre-drying of powder beds to remove moisture, and high-temperature processing of high-melting materials. All these functions are achieved using the same energy beam system with adjustable parameters, providing universal applicability across different processing requirements while maintaining ease of operation through centralized control.
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 precise local temperature control, reduces thermal load on the construction chamber, minimizes energy usage, and prevents undesirable material changes like hydrogen porosity, improving the structural integrity and processing capabilities of high-melting materials.
Implementation Method 1
successive layer-by-layer selective irradiation and the associated successive layer-by-layer selective solidification of building material layers
Implementation Method 2
at least one first irradiation device is operated on the basis of first control information generated by a control device for generating a first energy beam for the successive layer-by-layer selective solidification
Implementation Method 3
at least one second irradiation device is operated on the basis of second control information generated by a control device for generating a second energy beam for thermal pretreatment or post-treatment
Implementation Method 4
tempering can, for example, contribute to reducing gas porosity, particularly hydrogen porosity, in typically pre-dried, hygroscopic building materials
Data Source
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AI summary
Methods for the additive manufacturing of three-dimensional objects (2).