Vacuum Building Material Container for Mixing and Quantified Discharge
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing building material containers for additive manufacturing face challenges in thorough mixing of materials and accurate quantification, leading to inefficiencies in processing and assessment.
Innovation Solution
A building material container comprising an outer pressure vessel and an inner receiving container, where the inner container is maintained at a pressure level below ambient, facilitated by a vacuum and controllable air supply, with a weighing mechanism to determine material quantity, and cyclones for separation, ensuring thorough mixing and controlled discharge.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a central extraction line is used to remove building material, then material extraction is facilitated, but thorough mixing of building materials is only partially possible
Solution Approach 1:
The extraction line is divided into multiple separate channels distributed throughout the container rather than a single central line. This segmentation allows material to be removed from multiple locations simultaneously, improving extraction efficiency while maintaining better mixing by preventing localized depletion zones.
Solution Approach 2:
The extraction system transitions from a one-dimensional central vertical line to a two-dimensional distributed network of channels. This dimensional change enables material removal from multiple spatial locations, enhancing both extraction productivity and mixing quality by creating more uniform flow patterns throughout the container.
2Device complexity
If known container designs are used, then structure is simplified, but quantity of building material processed is difficult to assess
Solution Approach 1:
Mechanical weight measurement systems are replaced with optical sensors that detect material quantity through light transmission or reflection properties. This substitution maintains simple container structure while enabling precise, non-contact measurement of building material quantity through optical fields rather than mechanical weighing.
Solution Approach 2:
Optical fields serve as an intermediary between the building material and the measurement system. Instead of directly contacting or weighing the material, optical sensors measure properties of light interacting with the material, providing precise quantity assessment without complicating the container structure.
3Reliability
If flexible reservoir walls are used to close channels, then channel closure is achieved, but cyclic pressure stress deforms the structure
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible wall structure is segmented into multiple localized closure points rather than a continuous flexible barrier. This segmentation allows targeted closure at specific channel locations while maintaining overall structural stability, as each segment can close independently without subjecting the entire reservoir wall to cyclic stress.
Solution Approach 2:
The reservoir wall has different properties at different locations: localized flexible sections for channel closure and rigid sections for structural support. This local differentiation allows reliable channel closure where needed while maintaining overall structural stability against cyclic pressure stress.
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
The solution enables effective mixing and controlled discharge of building materials, reducing dust generation and allowing precise quantification, thereby enhancing the efficiency and accuracy of material preparation for additive manufacturing.
Implementation Method 1
a vacuum line with which a vacuum can be generated in the inner receiving volume compared to the ambient pressure, in particular atmospheric pressure, of the outer pressure vessel, so that a pressure gradient between the inner receiving volume and the building material supply line supports the supply of the building material into the receiving volume
Implementation Method 2
cyclones for separation
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
A building material container (1) with which building material, in particular powder, can be provided in an additive manufacturing process and which has the following features: an outer pressure vessel (10) with an outer bottom, an outer lid opposite the outer bottom, and a lateral outer protective shell connecting the bottom and lid, enclosing an outer inner volume (18) such that the outer inner volume can be maintained outside the outer pressure vessel at a pressure level below ambient pressure, in particular atmospheric pressure; an inner receiving container (30) arranged inside the outer pressure vessel with an inner receiving volume (38) in which building material can be received and processed and which has: a building material supply line (46) for a mixture of building material and air at ambient pressure, in particular atmospheric pressure, with which building material can be supplied to the inner receiving volume; a vacuum line (44);with which a negative pressure can be generated in the inner receiving volume compared to the ambient pressure, in particular atmospheric pressure, of the outer pressure vessel, so that a pressure gradient between the inner receiving volume and the building material supply line supports the supply of the building material into the receiving volume, a controllable air supply line (48) with which air can be supplied to the inner receiving volume in a controlled manner, and a building material discharge line (49) through which a building material-air mixture can be discharged from the inner receiving volume by means of a negative pressure compared to the ambient pressure, in particular atmospheric pressure, of the outer pressure vessel.