Three dimensional object-forming method

• US 5,500,069 A
• Filed: 04/14/1994
• Issued: 03/19/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kuyama, Takahiro, Kaino, Kazuyuki, Ogue, Yousuke
• Primary Examiner(s): Barry, Chester T.
• Application Number:
  US08/227,330
• Time in Patent Office: 705 Days
• Field of Search: 156/275.5, 156/272.8, 264/22, 425/174.4, 364/468, 364/476, 365/106, 365/107
• US Class Current: 264/401
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/135 the energy source being concentrated, e.g. scanning lasers or focused light sources

Abstract

A three-dimensional object-forming method for forming an object of a three-dimensional shape with photosetting resin, includes the following steps. The desired three-dimensional shape is represented by a set of data related to sectional shapes of the three-dimensional shape cut at predetermined intervals distance of. The laser light is scanned, from above a tank containing liquid of photosetting resin not yet hardened, outward around a predetermined point of each sectional shape in a manner to trace similar figures to an arbitrary shape, to thereby to set a surface of a resin layer in a shape corresponding to one sectional shape. The set resin layer is sunk into the liquid of the photosetting resin not yet hardened by a distance of a cross section. A plurality of the set resin layers of the photosetting resin is laminated by repeating the scanning and sinking steps on the basis of the set of data. The laser light can be scanned at predetermined intervals of distance and in parallel to a direction of each sectional shape and then the desired number of the set resin layers are rotated so that the scanning directions of the resin layers are different from each other.

Claims

1. A three-dimensional object-forming method for forming an object of a three-dimensional shape with photosetting resin, comprising the steps of:

representing the desired three-dimensional shape by a set of data related to sectional shapes of the three-dimensional shape cut at predetermined intervals of distance;

scanning laser light, from above a tank containing liquid of photosetting resin not yet hardened, outward around a predetermined point of each sectional shape in a manner to trace similar figures to an arbitrary shape, to thereby set a surface of a resin layer in a shape corresponding to one sectional shape;

sinking the set resin layer into the liquid of the photosetting resin not yet hardened by a distance of a cross section;

laminating a plurality of the set resin layers of the photosetting resin by repeating the scanning and sinking steps on the basis of the set of data; and

wherein the points between the adjacently-laminated resin layers are different from each other.

2. The three-dimensional object-forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the arbitrary shape is concentric circles.

3. The three-dimensional object-forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the arbitrary shape is concentric polygons.

4. The three-dimensional object-forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the arbitrary shape is a contour shape of each sectional shape.

5. The three-dimensional object-forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein adjacent scanning directions of the laser light at each resin layer are different from each other.

6. The three-dimensional object-forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein scanning directions of the laser light at adjacently-laminated resin layers are different from each other.

7. A three-dimensional object-forming method for forming an object of a three-dimensional shape with photosetting resin, comprising the steps of:

representing the desired three-dimensional shape by a set of data related to sectional shapes of the three-dimensional shape cut at predetermined intervals of distance;

scanning laser light, from above a tank containing liquid of photosetting resin not yet hardened, outward around a predetermined point of each sectional shape in a manner to trace similar figures to an arbitrary shape, to thereby set a surface of a resin layer in a shape corresponding to one sectional shape;

sinking the set resin layer into the liquid of the photosetting resin not yet hardened by a distance of a cross section;

laminating a plurality of the set resin layers of the photosetting resin by repeating the scanning and sinking steps on the basis of the set of data; and

wherein the point is the center of gravity of each sectional shape.

8. A three-dimensional object-forming method for forming an object of a three-dimensional shape with photosetting resin, comprising the steps of:

representing the desired three-dimensional shape by a set of data related to sectional shapes of the three-dimensional shape cut at predetermined intervals of distance;

scanning laser light, from above a tank containing liquid of photosetting resin not yet hardened, at predetermined intervals of distance and in parallel to a direction of each sectional shape, to thereby set a surface of a resin layer in a shape corresponding to one sectional shape;

sinking the set resin layer into the liquid of the photosetting resin not yet hardened by a distance of a cross section; and

laminating a plurality of the set resin layers of the photosetting resin by repeating the scanning and sinking steps on the basis of the set of data, while rotating the set resin layer or layers so that a subsequent scanning direction is different from a scanning direction of the last set resin layer.

9. The three-dimensional object-forming method as claimed in claim 8, wherein a rotating angle is from 45 to 15 degrees.

10. The three-dimensional object-forming method as claimed in claim 8, wherein a rotating angle is from 30 to 15 degrees.