Build Plate Clamping Assembly for Precise Multi-Workpiece Printing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current additive manufacturing methods for repairing and upgrading components like compressor blades in turbomachines are labor-intensive and inefficient, requiring tedious post-processing and being unsuitable for batch processing, which leads to high costs and reduced productivity.
Innovation Solution
The development of build plate-clamping assemblies with lock-pins and detents that allow for precise alignment and secure engagement of build plates within additive manufacturing systems, enabling simultaneous printing on multiple workpieces with high accuracy and efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional welding/cladding techniques are used for repairing compressor blades, then repair material can be bonded to the blade surface, but the process requires tedious post-processing including heavy machining and polishing to achieve target geometry and surface finish
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical welding/cladding processes with additive manufacturing technology. The additive manufacturing system deposits material layer-by-layer to build up the blade geometry directly, eliminating the need for subsequent heavy machining and polishing operations. This substitution of manufacturing methodology reduces both repair time and labor intensity while maintaining repair quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the fundamental parameters of the repair process by transitioning from subtractive (machining) and additive (welding/cladding) hybrid methods to purely additive manufacturing. This parameter change allows material to be deposited in precise layers that match the target geometry from the outset, eliminating the need for post-processing machining and polishing to achieve the desired surface finish and dimensional accuracy.
2Ease of repair
If traditional repair processes are used for compressor blades, then individual blades can be repaired, but the process is labor intensive and time consuming with high overall labor costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple individual blade repairs into a single batch processing operation. Multiple compressor blades are secured to a common build plate and processed simultaneously through the additive manufacturing system. This combining of previously sequential individual repair operations into a parallel batch process dramatically increases productivity and reduces overall labor costs while maintaining the ability to repair complex blade geometries.
Solution Approach 2:
The build plate design provides universal functionality by accommodating multiple different blade types and configurations on the same platform. The build plate includes multiple sockets that can secure various blades simultaneously, making the repair system versatile and adaptable to different blade geometries and repair requirements while maintaining high throughput.
3Productivity
If additive manufacturing is used to print on pre-existing workpieces, then near net shape components can be produced with reduced labor, but precise alignment of the build plate with system coordinates is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary alignment actions by incorporating precision alignment features directly into the build plate design. The build plate includes sockets with specific geometric features that pre-establish accurate spatial relationships with the additive manufacturing system coordinates before the printing process begins. This preliminary alignment ensures that when multiple blades are secured to the build plate, they are automatically positioned with the required precision for near net shape printing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces complex mechanical alignment procedures with a precision-engineered build plate structure. Instead of using traditional mechanical measurement and adjustment methods to align each blade individually, the system uses the build plate's pre-manufactured sockets and alignment features to automatically establish accurate positions. This mechanical substitution simplifies the alignment process while maintaining high manufacturing precision.
4Productivity
If multiple workpieces are processed simultaneously on a build plate, then productivity increases, but secure engagement and precise positioning of each workpiece is more challenging
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the build plate into multiple independent socket locations, each capable of securing an individual blade. This segmentation allows each blade to be positioned and secured independently while maintaining overall system coherence. The modular socket design enables flexible configuration to accommodate different numbers and types of blades, simplifying the process of securing multiple workpieces simultaneously without increasing overall device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A build plate-clamping assembly may include a work station having a build plate-receiving surface and a lock-pin extending from the build plate-receiving surface of the work station. The lock-pin may include a hollow pin body, a piston disposed within the hollow pin body, with the piston axially movable from a retracted position to an actuated position, and a plurality of detents, with the plurality of detents radially extensible through respective ones of a plurality of detent-apertures in the hollow pin body responsive to the piston having been axially moved to the actuated position. A methods of working on workpieces may include lockingly engaging a build plate at a first work station, performing a first work-step, releasing the build plate from the first work station, lockingly engaging the build plate at a second work station, and performing a second work-step. An additive manufacturing system may include a vision system with a first build plate-receiving surface and an additive manufacturing machine with a second build plate-receiving surface.