MACHINE AND PROCESS FOR POWDER-BASED ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
A machine, which is usable for additive manufacturing by sintering or melting of powder using an energy beam acting on a powder layer in a working zone, includes a device for producing a layer of the powder. The device includes a storage apparatus for storing the powder, a distributor for distributing the powder, a feeder for transferring the powder from the storage apparatus to the distributor, and a dose controller for controlling a quantity of the powder transferred from the storage apparatus to the distributor. The distributor travels over the working zone in order to distribute the powder in a layer having a final thickness adapted to the additive manufacturing. The storage apparatus is located above the working zone such that the feeder utilizes gravity. The feeder and the dose controller are movable with the distributor.
The invention relates to the machines and processes for powder-based additive manufacturing by sintering or melting granules of said powder using an energy beam such as electromagnetic radiation (for example a laser beam) or a beam of particles (for example an electron beam).
More specifically, the invention relates to the means and to the processes for layering, that is to say for preparation, of the bed of powder prior to sintering or to melting of said layer using the energy beam.
Document EP-1641580-B1 in particular discloses a layering device for sintering of powders (metallic or ceramic) by laser. This device comprises a feed tray permitting the powder to be stored and to be delivered in a controlled quantity to a grooved cylinder capable, on the one hand, of transferring and distributing said quantity of powder on the depositing tray during a first passage of the cylinder on the working zone and, on the other hand, of compacting the powder by a rolling movement of the cylinder during a second passage. The powder is then subjected to the laser beam. One disadvantage of this configuration is the size and the considerable cost of the feed tray. Another disadvantage is derived from the fact that the length of the working zone is limited by the useful perimeter of the cylinder.
Document WO-2011/007087-A2 discloses a layering device for melting powders by laser. This device comprises a feed tray permitting the powder to be stored and to be delivered in a controlled quantity to a scraper system capable of feeding the depositing tray and cylinder(s) capable of distributing and compacting said quantity of powder on the depositing tray. The powder is then subjected to the laser beam. One disadvantage of this configuration is the size and the considerable cost of the feed tray as well as the necessary complexity of the machine because of the large number of tools to be controlled (scraper, distribution and/or compacting cylinder(s), rams for the trays).
Document US-2005/0263934-A1 discloses a layering device for sintering powders by laser. This device comprises feeding and dosing means permitting the powder to be delivered in a controlled quantity in the vicinity of the working zone. Feeding takes place by gravity from a stock of powder situated above. A scraper permits the regulation of the thickness of a mass of powder, which is then subjected to a preheating operation. A rotary cylinder then permits said quantity of preheated powder to be transferred and distributed on the working zone. A quantity of powder may likewise be deposited on the cover of the carriage carrying the cylinder from one side to the other of the working zone and is accordingly only applied during the return of the cylinder. One disadvantage of this configuration is the risk of a part (even a very small part) of the powder being retained on the cover and subsequently falling into the working zone during the passage of the carriage above the bed of powder. This risk is not acceptable in the context of industrial use.
An additional problem that is common to the different proposals of the prior art is the difficulty and sometimes the impossibility of achieving a homogeneous thickness and density for the powder layer over the entire extent (length, width) of the working zone.
The object of the invention is thus to overcome at least one of the disadvantages described above.
The invention proposes for this purpose a machine for additive manufacturing by sintering or melting powder using an energy beam acting on a powder layer in a working zone, said machine comprising a device for producing a layer of said powder, said device comprising:
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- means for storing the powder,
- means for distributing the powder able to travel over the working zone in order to distribute the powder in a layer having a final thickness adapted to additive manufacturing,
- feeding means able to transfer the powder from the storage means to the distributing means,
- dosing means able to control the quantity of powder transferred from the storage means to the distributing means,
said machine being characterised in that: - the storage means are located above the working zone,
- the feeding means utilise gravity, and
- the feeding means and the dosing means are able to move with the distributing means.
Feeding by gravity via the top of the working zone and in a controlled quantity by dosing means integrated with the distributing means ensures significantly improved uniformity of the bed of powder than in the systems that are familiar from the prior art.
The storage means preferably comprise a hopper, said hopper being able to move together with the feeding means, the dosing means and the distributing means.
The dosing means preferably comprise a rotating dosing cylinder provided with at least one cavity, preferably a groove capable of defining a dose of powder during dosing.
The dosing means alternatively comprise a sliding trapdoor.
The distributing means preferably comprise a scraper.
The distributing means alternatively comprise a distribution cylinder, of which the height is preferably adjustable according to its angular position.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the distributing means and the dosing means utilise a common cylinder.
The machine according to the invention preferably in addition comprises a compacting roller, of which the displacement in translation is integral with the displacement of the distributing means.
The invention likewise proposes a process for additive manufacturing by sintering or melting powder using an energy beam acting on a layer of powder in a working zone, said machine comprising a device for layering said powder, said device comprising:
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- means for storing the powder located above the working zone,
- means for distributing the powder able to travel over the working zone in order to distribute the powder in a layer having a final thickness adapted to additive manufacturing,
- feeding means able to transfer the powder from the storage means to the distributing means,
- dosing means able to control the quantity of powder transferred from the storage means to the distributing means,
said process comprising layering stages consisting successively of: - dosing a quantity of powder to be transferred from the storage means,
- feeding the distributing means by gravity,
- distributing said quantity of powder on the working zone using the distributing means,
said process being characterised in that the storage means, the feeding means and the dosing means are integral with the distributing means, while said distributing means travel over the working zone.
The invention will be more readily appreciated from the rest of the description, which is based on the following figures:
In the different figures, identical or similar elements bear the same references. The description of their structure and their function is not repeated systematically, however.
In
All of the parts of the machine permitting the application of a new powder layer on the working zone are generally referred to as the “layering device”. The layering device that is familiar from the prior art comprises storage means 5 and distributing means 6 for distributing the powder 2 on the working zone 4. As described above, the storage means familiar from the prior art generally make use of a vertically mobile tray 51 similar to the working tray 60. The purpose of the distributing means 6 (not illustrated in detail in
The storage means 5 have the form of a hopper 52 located above the plane of the working zone 4. The distributing means 6 use a scraper 61. The scraper is integral with the hopper. The feeding means 7 simply use a lower opening 71 in the hopper in order to transfer the powder towards the distributing means 6 by gravity. Dosing means, in the form of a rotating dosing cylinder 81 comprising at least one cavity, permit the quantity of powder transferred to be controlled. Said cavity, preferably a groove 82, defines a reproducible dose of powder. The one or more grooves 82 extend substantially for the whole of the useful length of the dosing cylinder 81, that is to say substantially for the whole of the width of the working zone 4. The dimensions and the form of the cross section of the grooves 82 may vary along the length of the cylinder 81 in order to further improve the distribution of the powder on the whole of the working zone.
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As depicted in
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The operation of this embodiment is illustrated in detail in
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Alternatively, the powder depositing phase may be performed several times in succession in the absence of any smoothing movement in order to create, in the configuration in
It should be noted (as explained above) that the thicknesses of the layers, the volumes of the masses, the grooves or the swelling 66 are not represented on a consistent scale and, quite the reverse, are deliberately distorted for the purpose of making the figures legible.
Of course, as described above for the other embodiments of the invention (see, for example, the embodiment in
Alternatively, the smoothing section 65 of the common cylinder 64 may exhibit a reduction in radius at the point of the increase in the radius (swelling 66) illustrated and described with reference to
It will be appreciated that a layer may be produced according to the invention in a single pass, that is to say in a single passage over the working zone. The quantity of powder stored in the hopper is preferably sufficient to produce hundreds, and even thousands, of layers, that is to say that the machine could achieve additive manufacturing of a single complete component, or even of a plurality of complete components, without recharging the hopper. Recharging of the hopper preferably takes place at the moment when the manufacturing of a component is completed, and the finished component is preferably removed before new manufacturing commences.
The powder used is preferably a metallic or ceramic powder. Depending on the types of energy beams that are used and depending on the thickness of the final layer referred to here, the average diameter of the particles of the powder may vary from a few microns (for example 5 μm) to 300 or 400 μm.
A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the different embodiments described and illustrated here are specific examples of combinations of means according to the invention. Other obvious combinations or substitutions of the different means are likewise part of the invention, for example the replacement in the third embodiment (
Claims
1-10. (canceled)
11: A machine for additive manufacturing by sintering or melting powder using an energy beam acting on a powder layer in a working zone, the machine comprising a device for producing a layer of the powder,
- wherein the device includes: a storage apparatus, which stores the powder, a distributor, which distributes the powder in a layer having a final thickness adapted to the additive manufacturing, the distributor being movable to travel over the working zone, a feeder, which transfers the powder from the storage apparatus to the distributor, and a dose controller, which controls a quantity of the powder transferred from the storage apparatus to the distributor,
- wherein the storage apparatus is located above the working zone,
- wherein the feeder utilizes gravity, and
- wherein the feeder and the dose controller are movable with the distributor.
12: The machine according to claim 11, wherein the storage apparatus includes a hopper, which is movable with the feeder, the dose controller, and the distributor.
13: The machine according to claim 11, wherein the dose controller includes a rotating dosing cylinder provided with at least one cavity, each cavity defining a dose of the powder during a dosing operation.
14: The machine according to claim 13, wherein the at least one cavity is or are formed of at least one groove, each groove defining the dose of the powder during the dosing operation.
15: The machine according to claim 11, wherein the dose controller includes a sliding trapdoor.
16: The machine according to claim 11, wherein the distributor includes a scraper.
17: The machine according to claim 11, wherein the distributor includes a distribution cylinder.
18: The machine according to claim 17, wherein a height of the distribution cylinder is adjustable according to an angular position of the distribution cylinder.
19: The machine according to claim 11, wherein the distributor and the dose controller utilize a common cylinder.
20: The machine according to claim 13, wherein the distributor and the dose controller utilize a common cylinder.
21: The machine according to claim 17, wherein the distributor and the dose controller utilize a common cylinder.
22: The machine according to claim 11,
- wherein the device further includes a compacting roller, and
- wherein a displacement in translation of the compacting roller is integral with a displacement of the distributor.
23: A process for additive manufacturing by sintering or melting powder using an energy beam acting on a powder layer in a working zone, the process comprising steps of:
- dosing, using a dose controller, a quantity of the powder to be transferred from a storage apparatus to a feeder;
- feeding, using the feeder, the quantity of the powder from the storage apparatus to a distributor by gravity; and
- distributing, using the distributor, the quantity of the powder on the working zone,
- wherein the storage apparatus, the feeder, and the dose controller move integrally with the distributor while the distributor travels over the working zone, and
- wherein the dosing step, the feeding step, and the distributing step are repeated successively in a plurality of layering stages.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 19, 2012
Publication Date: Dec 11, 2014
Inventors: Frédéric Pialot (Clermont-Ferrand), Gilles Walrand (Clermont-Ferrand), Pierre Wiel (Clermont-Ferrand)
Application Number: 14/366,130
International Classification: B22F 7/02 (20060101); B22F 3/105 (20060101); B05D 3/14 (20060101); B05C 19/04 (20060101); B05D 3/00 (20060101);