Flexible Floor Additive Manufacturing Detachment Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current 3D printing technologies face challenges in mass manufacturing due to lack of control over the release of additively manufactured products from build containers, leading to deformation and inconsistent layer thickness, particularly in bottom-projection systems using photo-curable resins, where the elastic nature of the container bottom makes uniform thickness and controlled detachment difficult.
Innovation Solution
An additive manufacturing apparatus with a flexible container floor that maintains a planar configuration and employs a deformation system to create a controlled, localized bend for gradual displacement and release of products, allowing for precise control over the detachment process, independent of product size, shape, and number.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a flexible container bottom is used to enable detachment of solidified layers, then product release is facilitated, but control over detachment force and direction is lost leading to deformation
Solution Approach 1:
The container bottom is segmented into a flexible floor portion and a rigid support structure. The flexible floor portion enables detachment while the rigid support structure provides stable support and control, preventing uncontrolled deformation during the release process.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the physical state and properties of the container bottom by using a selectively deformable design. The flexible floor portion can be temporarily deformed to facilitate release, then returns to its original planar state, allowing controlled adjustment of detachment parameters without permanent deformation.
2Ease of operation
If the container bottom is made elastic to facilitate layer release, then detachment is easier, but uniform layer thickness control deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The container bottom is divided into flexible and rigid portions, allowing the flexible floor to facilitate detachment while the rigid support structure maintains uniform support and thickness control during the manufacturing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The container bottom transitions from a static rigid structure to a dynamically controllable flexible structure. The selective deformability allows the system to adapt its stiffness characteristics - rigid during manufacturing for thickness control, flexible during release for easy detachment.
3Ease of operation
If tension or pressure is applied to container sides to detach layers, then product release is enabled, but control over force magnitude and direction is difficult achieving
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of applying force uniformly to the entire container bottom, the system applies localized force only to the flexible floor portion where needed. This localized action provides precise control over the magnitude and direction of detachment force, affecting only the specific area requiring release.
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible floor portion acts as an intermediary between the rigid support structure and the solidified layer. It mediates the detachment process by providing a controlled interface that can be selectively deformed, allowing precise force application without directly manipulating the product or the entire container structure.
4Ease of operation
If the entire bottom is deformed to stretch or buckle for release, then layer detachment is facilitated, but reproducibility and uniformity of the process deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The container bottom is segmented into a flexible floor portion designed for controlled deformation and a rigid support structure that maintains stability. This segmentation ensures that only the intended flexible portion deforms, providing reproducible and uniform release behavior across multiple manufacturing cycles.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs controlled parameter changes by selectively deforming only the flexible floor portion to specific, predetermined degrees. This controlled deformation, rather than uncontrolled stretching or buckling, ensures reproducible detachment conditions and consistent process outcomes.
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
This approach enables a uniform, reproducible, and controlled release of products, increasing yield by ensuring consistent detachment forces and maintaining manufacturing precision, tailored to the specifications of the radiation-curable liquid and product geometries.
Implementation Method 1
a radiation source for providing hardening radiation to selectively solidify radiation-curable liquid in the container by exposure to form the product
Implementation Method 2
the container comprises an interior floor having a flexible floor part maintainable in a planar configuration
Implementation Method 3
the manufacturing apparatus comprises a deformation system configured to cause a displacement of at least a part of the flexible floor part in a direction having a component normal to and pointing away from the build surface
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2a~2b
Figure 3
AI summary
The invention provides an additive manufacturing apparatus comprising a container (501, 502, 507) for holding a radiation-curable liquid, a build platform (520) having a build surface for holding a product being manufactured during a manufacturing process, the build platform being movable relative to the container in a predetermined direction, and a radiation source (402) for providing hardening radiation to selectively solidify radiation-curable liquid in the container by exposure to form the product, characterized in that the container comprises an interior floor (507) having a flexible floor part maintainable in a planar configuration in which the flexible floor part is planar; radiation-curable liquid in contact with the interior floor is confined by a container wall (501, 502) comprising at least one flexible wall section (501) arranged to move intactly with the flexible floor part; and the manufacturing apparatus comprises a deformation system (503, 505, 903, 1072, 1073, 1171) configured to cause a displacement of at least a part of the flexible floor part in a direction having a component normal to and pointing away from the build surface of the build platform.