Dynamic additive manufacturing system

• US 10,471,666 B2
• Filed: 10/03/2014
• Issued: 11/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kanawha Automation, LLC
• Original Assignee: Kanawha Automation, LLC
• Inventors: Griffin, Eric, Buckley, Charles
• Primary Examiner(s): Minskey, Jacob T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tsui, Melody
• Application Number:
  US15/027,112
• Publication Number:
  US 20160236419A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,866 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/106 using only liquids or viscous materials, e.g. depositing a continuous bead of viscous material
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/118 using filamentary material being melted, e.g. fused deposition modelling [FDM]
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/124 using layers of liquid which are selectively solidified
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/141 using only solid materials
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/147 using sheet material, e.g. laminated object manufacturing [LOM] or laminating sheet material precut to local cross sections of the 3D object
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/232 for motion along the axis orthogonal to the plane of a layer
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/393 for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2105/0067 Melt
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2105/251 Particles, powder or granules expandable particles B29K2105/046
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 41/00 Arrangements for controlling or monitoring lamination processes; Safety arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 30/00 Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 50/02 for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes

Abstract

A dynamic manufacturing system such as for the additive manufacture of a fabrication item with multiformative capabilities presents a processor (29) that can refine movement, instructions, or data to achieve greater manufacturing efficiency and substantially uninterruptive change between formative process elements (24) or capabilities with simple user input (28) or indications. Optimization of movements, deposition of material, positioning, variant repositioning for next item layers during fabrication are provided in manners where the functions can be self contained such as in a 3D printer or the like and can be accomplished without significant interruptions to traditional processing times or even in shorter times through the improved transformations.

Claims

1. A dynamic additive manufacturing system from which a fabrication item can be formed comprising:

a fabrication support upon which an item can be formed;

an additive material source;

a formative process element;

a layup movement system configured to effect positioning of said formative process element relative to said fabrication support;

a movement control to which said layup movement system is responsive;

a fabrication movement input from which fabrication movement information is provided; and

a movement transformation processor transformatively responsive to said fabrication movement input that transforms movement of said layup movement system from an initially determined series of left-right, fore-aft step motions that were determined to make the desired item to an altered series of better such movements that are determined to achieve a better end resulting fabricated item.

2. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 1 wherein said movement transformation processor transformatively responsive to said fabrication movement input comprises a command transformation processor transformationally responsive to fabrication instructions.

3. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 2 wherein said command transformation processor transformationally responsive to fabrication instructions comprises a proactive control processor evaluatively responsive to as yet unaccomplished item formative data.

4. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 1 wherein said movement transformation processor transformatively responsive to said fabrication movement input comprises a transformant instruction generator.

5. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 1 wherein said fabrication movement input from which fabrication movement information is provided comprises initial movement instructions and wherein said movement transformation processor transformatively responsive to said fabrication movement input comprises altered movement instructions to control said movement system.

6. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 5 wherein said altered movement instructions to control said movement system comprise approximate movement instructions.

7. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 6 wherein said approximate movement instructions comprise positionally variant movement instructions.

8. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 7 wherein said approximate movement instructions comprise deviation tolerance movement instructions.

9. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 5 wherein said altered movement instructions to control said movement system comprise velocity configured movement instructions.

10. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in any of claims 5, 6, or 8, wherein said altered movement instructions to control said movement system comprise curvilinear movement instructions.

11. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 4 wherein said transformant instruction generator comprises a velocity optimized movement generator.

12. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 11 wherein said velocity optimized movement generator comprises a constant tangential velocity generator.

13. A dynamic additive manufacturing system as in claim 1 wherein said movement transformation processor transformatively responsive to said fabrication movement input comprises a specialized layup movement transformation processor.