THREE-DIMENSIONAL OBJECT PRINTING
First Claim
1. A volume element (voxel) printing system for printing a three-dimensional object, the system comprising:
- a series of printhead groups, each printhead group having a plurality of printheads configured to print a voxel layer, a first layer printed by a first printhead group being printed on a substrate and subsequent layers printed by respective printhead groups following the first printhead group, each subsequent layer being printed upon a preceding layer printed by a preceding printhead group, the series of printhead groups also including redundant printhead groups not used during normal operation;
a conveyor to operatively convey the substrate past the printhead groups; and
a control system to control and monitor the printhead groups and the conveyor, and to dynamically reconfigure the printhead groups to remove faulty printhead groups from operation, and utilize one or more of the redundant printhead groups.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A volume element (voxel) printing system for printing a three-dimensional object is provided. The system includes a first printhead group, at least one second printhead group, a conveyor and a control system. The first printhead group includes a plurality of first printheads configured to print a first voxel layer on a substrate. The second printhead group includes a plurality of second printheads located downstream from the first group and configured for printing a subsequent voxel layer on at least part of the first layer. The second printheads are reconfigurable as backup printheads for the first printheads in case of failure. The conveyor is configured to operatively convey the substrate past the printhead groups. The control system controls and monitors the printhead groups and the conveyor, and is configured to dynamically reconfigure the second printheads if failure of a first printhead is detected.
17 Citations
9 Claims
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1. A volume element (voxel) printing system for printing a three-dimensional object, the system comprising:
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a series of printhead groups, each printhead group having a plurality of printheads configured to print a voxel layer, a first layer printed by a first printhead group being printed on a substrate and subsequent layers printed by respective printhead groups following the first printhead group, each subsequent layer being printed upon a preceding layer printed by a preceding printhead group, the series of printhead groups also including redundant printhead groups not used during normal operation; a conveyor to operatively convey the substrate past the printhead groups; and a control system to control and monitor the printhead groups and the conveyor, and to dynamically reconfigure the printhead groups to remove faulty printhead groups from operation, and utilize one or more of the redundant printhead groups. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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Specification