Flexible Pressure Media for Uniform Layer Bonding in Additive Manufacturing

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing additive manufacturing methods face challenges in ensuring uniform bonding across entire surfaces of non-cured and cured layers due to non-flat surfaces, particularly with powdered particle layers, leading to non-uniform contact and bonding issues.

Innovation Solution

A method and apparatus that involve mounting a non-cured layer on a transparent substrate, aligning it with a cured layer on a build platform, applying energy through the substrate for simultaneous curing and bonding, and using a flexible compliant pressure conveyance media to apply uniform pressure, ensuring optimal contact and bonding across the entire surface.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Shape

If a flat pressure plate is used to apply uniform pressure, then the coating uniformity is improved, but the bonding uniformity across the entire surface deteriorates due to non-flat surfaces

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecoating uniformityVSAvoidbonding uniformity

Core Design Contradiction:

ShapeVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces the rigid flat pressure plate with a flexible compliant pressure conveyance media (such as a flexible membrane or thin film). This flexible media can deform and conform to the non-flat surfaces of the powder-based layers, ensuring uniform contact and pressure distribution across the entire bonding interface while maintaining coating uniformity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes the physical parameter of the pressure conveyance media from rigid to flexible/compliant. This parameter change allows the pressure application system to adapt to surface irregularities in the powder-based layers, enabling simultaneous achievement of coating uniformity and bonding uniformity across the entire surface.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Speed

If radiation curing is used to bond polymerizable liquid layers, then the bonding speed is improved, but the bonding effectiveness deteriorates due to non-flat surfaces causing non-uniform contact

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebonding speedVSAvoidbonding effectiveness

Core Design Contradiction:

SpeedVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The flexible compliant pressure conveyance media ensures uniform contact between layers across the entire surface area, eliminating gaps and voids that would otherwise prevent effective bonding. This maintains high bonding effectiveness while preserving the fast bonding speed advantage of radiation curing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies pressure through the flexible media before or during the radiation curing process to pre-establish uniform contact between the non-cured and cured layers. This preliminary action ensures that when radiation curing occurs, the layers are already in optimal contact, maximizing bonding effectiveness.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Device complexity

If a flat substrate is used for layer transfer, then the transfer process is simplified, but the bonding uniformity deteriorates due to inability to accommodate surface irregularities

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetransfer process complexityVSAvoidbonding uniformity

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The substrate incorporates a flexible compliant pressure conveyance media that can deform to match the topography of powder-based layers. This maintains the simplicity of the transfer process while enabling uniform bonding across irregular surfaces through the compliant nature of the flexible media.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

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 secure and uniform bonding of non-cured layers to cured layers, minimizing gaps and optimizing mating between surfaces, thereby improving the quality and consistency of the 3D printing process.

Implementation Method 1

applying energy to the non-cured layer from an energy source through the substrate to simultaneously cure the non-cured layer and bond the non-cured layer to the cured layer

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectEnergy transmission through transparent substrate: Absorption (EM radiation)

Implementation Method 2

moving a flexible compliant pressure conveyance media into contact with the substrate, on a second side of the substrate opposite the first side which the non-cured layer is mounted on, after the cured layer and the non-cured layer have been moved into contact with one another, to apply pressure to the non-cured layer while the energy is being applied

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectPressure application: Compression

Data Source

PatentUS20240351269A1Method and apparatus to process and bond layers in an additive manufacturing system

Publication Date: 2024.10.24 KERACEL INC

AI summary

An improved method and apparatus for adding a new layer to a stack of previously processed layers. In an example, a method is provided for mounting the previously processed layer on a build platform, mounting the new layer on a substrate, aligning the new layer with the previously processed layer, moving the new layer and the previously processed into contact with one another, and applying energy to the new layer from an energy source through the substrate to simultaneously process the new layer and bond the new layer to the previously processed layer to form a bonded processed multilayer stack on the build platform. A flexible compliant pressure conveyance media is moved into contact with the substrate to apply pressure to the new layer while the energy is being applied.