Ring Laser Beam Shaping for Uniform Melt Pools in Fine AM Features
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing laser powder bed fusion systems face challenges in creating uniform melt pools during additive manufacturing, particularly when focusing the laser beam, which can lead to non-uniform melting and excessive vaporization of materials.
Innovation Solution
Employing a ring laser with a unique power distribution and optical systems to narrow the beam size, creating a more uniform melt pool by focusing energy at the edges rather than the center, using a reverse zoom optic or offset scanner to achieve a desired beam size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a conventional laser beam is focused to create fine features, then the beam size is reduced, but the melt pool becomes non-uniform and material vaporization increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating a ring-shaped laser beam intensity distribution where the energy is concentrated at the periphery rather than uniformly distributed. This ring-shaped intensity profile ensures that the edges of the melt pool receive higher energy density, creating a more uniform overall melt pool morphology while preventing excessive vaporization that would occur with conventional focused Gaussian beams.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent inverts the conventional approach to laser focusing. Instead of concentrating energy at the center (Gaussian distribution), the system inverts the intensity distribution to concentrate energy at the ring perimeter. This inversion resolves the contradiction by achieving fine feature resolution through the ring geometry while maintaining melt pool uniformity through the distributed energy pattern.
2Productivity
If laser energy is concentrated to melt powder particles, then melting efficiency improves, but material vaporization increases
Solution Approach 1:
The ring-shaped laser beam creates local quality variations in energy distribution, concentrating intensity at the ring perimeter while maintaining lower intensity in the center. This localized energy distribution melts powder particles efficiently at the melt pool edges while preventing excessive energy concentration that would cause vaporization, thus resolving the contradiction between melting efficiency and material loss.
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 results in a more uniform melt pool formation, enhancing the precision and consistency of additive manufacturing processes, particularly for metals and ceramics, by reducing material vaporization and improving the quality of the finished components.
Implementation Method 1
an energy source, wherein the energy source is a ring laser having a beam size
Implementation Method 2
repeatedly applying energy from the ring laser to successively applied incremental quantities of a powder particles to fuse the powder particles
Implementation Method 3
Applying the energy includes passing the energy from the ring laser through an optical system to narrowing a width of the beam size to create a smaller beam size
Data Source
AI summary
A method for making an article includes inputting a digital model of the article into an additive manufacturing apparatus or system comprising an energy source, wherein the energy source is a ring laser having a beam size and repeatedly applying energy from the ring laser to successively applied incremental quantities of a powder particles to fuse the powder particles to form the article corresponding to the digital model. Applying the energy includes passing the energy from the ring laser through an optical system to narrowing a width of the beam size to create a smaller beam size before the energy reaches the powder particles.