Print Head Cutting Unit for Continuous Fiber Composite Filaments
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current additive manufacturing methods face difficulties in efficiently cutting fiber-reinforced continuous filaments due to their high tensile strength and brittleness, leading to material breakage rather than clean cutting, which complicates the printing process and increases computational complexity.
Innovation Solution
The integration of a cutting unit within the heating block of the print head, where the filament is melted, allowing for easier cutting and shearing by reducing the required cutting forces and simplifying the printing process through reduced computational demands.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If cutting is performed outside the heating block on fiber-reinforced continuous filaments, then the filament structure remains intact, but the high tensile strength causes material breakage rather than clean cutting and requires high cutting forces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state parameter of the filament from solid to melted by heating it to processing temperature within the heating block. This parameter change reduces the material strength and enables clean cutting with minimal cutting forces, resolving the contradiction between cutting quality and cutting force requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary heating action to the filament before cutting occurs. By melting the filament within the heating block before the cutting unit acts on it, the material becomes easier to cut, eliminating the need for high cutting forces while maintaining clean cuts.
2Productivity
If cutting is performed outside the heating block, then the filament can be cut before deposition, but the process requires complex computational planning and slower printing speeds
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the cutting function with the heating block by integrating the cutting unit inside the heating block. This combination allows cutting to occur automatically during the heating process without requiring separate computational planning, reducing computational complexity and enabling faster printing speeds.
Solution Approach 2:
The heating block performs the dual function of both heating the filament to processing temperature and facilitating its cutting through the integrated cutting unit. This self-service approach eliminates the need for external computational control of cutting operations, simplifying the overall process and improving productivity.
3Strength
If continuous fiber reinforcement is used to increase tensile strength, then component strength improves, but the filament becomes brittle and difficult to cut
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state of the fiber-reinforced filament from solid to melted by heating it within the heating block. This parameter change transforms the brittle, difficult-to-cut material into a pliable state that can be easily cut by the integrated cutting unit, resolving the contradiction between maintaining high strength and enabling ease of cutting.
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 efficient cutting of fiber-reinforced continuous filaments with reduced force requirements, accelerating the printing process and improving component quality by allowing faster filament movement and easier handling of complex geometries.
Implementation Method 1
The material frequently comprises a thermoplastic polymer, which is heated to a processing temperature, preferably via the melting and/or softening temperature to the thermoplastic material state
Implementation Method 2
heated to a processing temperature, preferably via the melting and/or softening temperature to the thermoplastic material state
Data Source
AI summary
A print head for additively manufacturing fiber-reinforced composite materials includes a feed channel, a heating block, a nozzle and a cutting unit. A filament of the fiber-reinforced material enters an inlet of the nozzle through the feed channel, leaves the nozzle via an outlet of the nozzle, and is deposited on a print bed. The cutting unit is located inside the heating block which has a beneficial effect on the cut and/or the shearing of the material to be printed. The invention also relates to a method in which the filament is cut and/or sheared, wherein the cutting unit performs a linear movement or rotation, or the print head per se performs a linear movement or rotation, as a result of which the filament is cut and/or sheared off.