CN111468727B

CN111468727B - Printing apparatus

Info

Publication number: CN111468727B
Application number: CN201910057510.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 曹志强
Original assignee: Beijing Dream Ink Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Beijing Dream Ink Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-01-22
Filing date: 2019-01-22
Publication date: 2023-09-26
Anticipated expiration: 2039-01-22
Also published as: CN111468727A

Abstract

The invention provides printing equipment, and relates to the technical field of additive manufacturing. The printing equipment is provided with a printing workbench, a printing head and a first moving mechanism for driving the printing head to move above the printing workbench, and the printing equipment further comprises: and the sealing piece is assembled on the printing workbench through a second moving mechanism, and moves along the vertical direction through the second moving mechanism, so as to seal the ink outlet end of the printing head when the printing head is in an initial state/standby state. The invention avoids the problem of blocking the pen point easily caused by long-term exposure of the printing head to the air through the use of the sealing element, and ensures the reliability and the stability of the printer.

Description

Printing apparatus

Technical Field

The invention belongs to the technical field of additive manufacturing, and particularly relates to printing equipment.

Background

The liquid metal is used as a novel additive manufacturing metal material, has good conductivity and low melting point, and is very suitable for being used as printing and printing materials.

The existing liquid metal printer mostly adopts a direct-writing type printing head, and the drawing on the surface of a substrate is realized through contacting with a printing substrate, although the direct-writing type printing head solves the problem of liquid metal printing, the liquid metal is extremely easy to oxidize in the air to form metal oxide attached to a pen point, the pen point is often required to be replaced again, and the reliability and the stability of the liquid metal printer are seriously affected.

Disclosure of Invention

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a printing apparatus, which solves the problem that the reliability and stability of the printer are affected by long-term exposure of the printhead to air in the prior art.

In some illustrative embodiments, the printing apparatus has a print table, a print head, and a first movement mechanism that moves the print head over the print table, further comprising: and the sealing piece is assembled on the printing workbench through a second moving mechanism, and moves along the vertical direction through the second moving mechanism, so as to seal the ink outlet end of the printing head when the printing head is in an initial state/standby state.

In some optional embodiments, the second moving mechanism is a linear stepping motor, and a screw rod of the linear stepping motor is fixedly connected with the sealing element to drive the sealing element to move along the vertical direction.

In some alternative embodiments, the seal comprises an open-top container, and a sealing liquid filled in the container; the container is fixedly connected with the linear stepping motor and forms linkage with the screw rod; the seal closes the printhead by immersing the ink outlet end thereof.

In some optional embodiments, the printing workbench is provided with a groove body corresponding to the container in size, the container is arranged in the groove body, the linear stepping motor is positioned below the printing workbench, and a screw rod of the linear stepping motor penetrates through the groove body and is connected with the container.

In some alternative embodiments, the linear stepper motor is secured below the print table by a motor mount.

In some alternative embodiments, the container diametral plane is larger than the ink outlet end of the printhead; the bottom of the container is also provided with a sealing sleeve corresponding to the ink outlet end structure of the printing head, and the top of the sealing sleeve is positioned below the liquid level of the sealing liquid.

In some alternative embodiments, the sealing sleeve is an integral component with the container; and the sealing sleeve and the ink outlet end of the printing head form interference fit and are used for wiping the ink outlet end of the printing head infiltrated by the sealing liquid.

In some alternative embodiments, the sealing liquid is an acid solution or an alkali solution.

In some alternative embodiments, the seal is a cap or plug corresponding to the ink outlet end structure of the printhead.

In some alternative embodiments, the print station is provided with a cleaning member to clean the ink outlet end of the printhead.

Compared with the prior art, the invention has the following advantages:

the invention avoids the problem of blocking the pen point easily caused by long-term exposure of the printing head to the air through the use of the sealing element, and ensures the reliability and the stability of the printer.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printing apparatus in an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printing apparatus in an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3 is a schematic structural view of a seal in an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The following description and the drawings sufficiently illustrate specific embodiments of the invention to enable those skilled in the art to practice them. Other embodiments may involve structural, logical, electrical, process, and other changes. The embodiments represent only possible variations. Individual components and functions are optional unless explicitly required, and the sequence of operations may vary. Portions and features of some embodiments may be included in, or substituted for, those of others. The scope of embodiments of the invention encompasses the full ambit of the claims, as well as all available equivalents of the claims. These embodiments of the invention may be referred to herein, individually or collectively, by the term "invention" merely for convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope of this application to any single invention or inventive concept if more than one is in fact disclosed.

It should be noted that, all the technical features in the embodiments of the present invention may be combined with each other without conflict.

The invention discloses a printing device, in particular to a printing device with a structure shown in figures 1-2, wherein figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the printing device in the embodiment of the invention; fig. 2 is a schematic structural view of a printing apparatus in an embodiment of the present invention. The printing apparatus includes: a print table 100, a print head 200, a first moving mechanism 300, a seal 400, a second moving mechanism 500; the first moving mechanism 300 is mounted on the printing table 100, the printhead 200 is mounted on the first moving mechanism 300, and the first moving mechanism 300 drives the printhead to move above the printing table 100. The seal 400 is mounted on the printing table 100 by the second moving mechanism 500. Preferably, the sealing member 400 is disposed in a region of the printing table 100 where the printing substrate is not disposed, for example, directly below a position of the printhead 200 in the printing apparatus in an initial state and/or a standby state, when the printhead 200 ends its printing job or triggers its standby state, the printhead 200 is driven directly above the sealing member 400 by the first moving mechanism 300, then the second moving mechanism 500 is driven to drive the sealing member 400 to lift, so that the sealing member 400 seals an ink outlet end of the printhead 200, and when the printhead 200 executes the printing job, the second moving mechanism 500 is driven to drive the sealing member 400 to drop, so that the sealing member 400 is separated from the ink outlet end of the printhead 200, so as to avoid affecting the first moving mechanism 300 to drive the printhead 200 into the printing job area.

The printhead 200 of the present embodiment may be a direct write printhead (contact substrate printing), an inkjet printhead, or any other printhead that emits ink. Preferably, the printhead 200 may be a direct write printhead, which is more suitable for printing liquid metal inks.

The first movement mechanism 300 in the embodiments of the present invention may be a robotic arm, a rail structure that supports the movement of the printhead 200 thereon, or other movement mechanisms. The printhead 200 may be supported for movement in at least one of the X-axis Y-axis Z-axis directions. Preferably, the first moving mechanism 300 adopts a guide rail structure to support the printhead 200 to move in the X-axis direction, and the Y-axis direction can be used to drive the printing substrate along the Y-axis direction to meet the printing requirements of the printing apparatus in the X-axis and Y-axis directions.

The seal 400 in the embodiment of the present invention may be a seal made of a hard material, an elastic/flexible material, or a fluid material, and may specifically be a seal cap, a seal plug, a sealing liquid, or the like, for sealing the ink outlet structure of the printhead 200. Preferably, when the ink outlet end of the printhead 200 is sealed by using the sealing liquid, a container for containing the sealing liquid is further included, and the upper opening of the container is driven by the second moving mechanism 500 to submerge the ink outlet end of the printhead 200 in the sealing liquid, so as to seal the ink outlet end of the printhead 200. The sealing liquid is a solution which does not react with the ink and reacts with the ink impurities, and for the liquid metal ink, the sealing liquid is preferably an acid solution (such as dilute hydrochloric acid with any proportion) or an alkali solution (such as sodium hydroxide solution with any proportion), so that metal oxide generated by exposing the ink outlet end of the printing head 200 to the air can be eliminated. Besides, the sealing liquid can be ethanol solution, and can provide better oxygen isolation effect.

The second moving mechanism 500 in the embodiment of the present invention may employ a motor driving, an electromagnetic driving, a driving force provided by an elastic telescopic body, and a moving mechanism converted into a linear displacement by other driving means.

With continued reference to fig. 2, in some embodiments, the sealing member 400 that forms an oxygen-blocking fit with the printhead 200 in the printing apparatus selects the sealing liquid 401, and compared with other sealing structures, the sealing liquid 401 has better sealing effect, and the sealing liquid 401 can eliminate ink impurities (such as liquid metal oxide), so that the quality and printing effect of the ink can be effectively ensured. Based on this, a container 402 containing the sealing liquid 401 is also included in the printing apparatus.

When the sealing liquid 401 is used as the sealing piece 400, the second moving mechanism 500 can drive the container 402 to move along the vertical direction in a motor driving mode, compared with other modes, the acceleration of the motor driving mode is easier to control, the speed change is easier to be stable, the sealing liquid 401 in the container 402 cannot generate larger shaking, and the sealing stability of the sealing liquid 401 is prevented from being influenced by liquid overflow. Preferably, the second moving mechanism 500 includes a linear stepping motor 501, a screw 502 of the linear stepping motor 501 is displaced in a vertical direction, one end of the screw 502 is connected to the container 402, and drives the container 402 to move in the vertical direction, so as to achieve the effect of driving the sealing liquid 401 to move vertically. The screw 502 and the container 402 may be coupled and combined by means of adhesive, screw connection, snap connection, etc. Further, the stepper motor 501 may be fixed below the printing table 100 by a motor mount 503.

In some embodiments, the container 402 is embedded in a slot 101 formed in the print table 100, the slot 101 corresponding to the shape of the container 402, allowing the container 402 to move up and down within the slot 101. Wherein the top surface opening of the container 402 may be located within the slot 101, or flush with the notch of the slot 101, or higher than the notch of the slot 101, when the container 402 is in the lowest position under the control of the linear stepper motor 501. When the container 402 is at the highest position under the control of the linear stepping motor 501, the ink outlet end of the printhead 200 can be immersed in the sealing liquid 401 in the container 402. Wherein, the linear stepper motor 501 is positioned below the printing workbench 100, and a screw 502 penetrates through the tank 101 and is connected with the container 402.

As shown in fig. 3, in some embodiments, a sealing sleeve 403 corresponding to the ink outlet end structure of the printhead 200 is disposed at the bottom (e.g., the bottom center) of the container 402, and the sealing sleeve 403 is located below the liquid level of the sealing liquid 401, so that the reliability of the ink outlet end of the printhead 200 is further ensured by double-layer oxygen-isolation protection. When the printhead 200 is a direct writing type printhead, the sealing sleeve 403 has a needle groove corresponding to the pen tip of the direct writing pen, and the sealing sleeve 403 and the pen tip of the direct writing pen form a sleeve joint seal. In the case of an inkjet printhead 200, the sealing sleeve 403 has an annular groove corresponding to the nozzle, so that a sleeve-type seal is formed between the nozzle and the sealing sleeve.

In some embodiments, the sealing sleeve 403 is made of an elastic material and forms a certain interference fit with the ink outlet end of the printhead, so as to wipe the ink outlet end of the printhead 200 immersed by the sealing liquid 401. Particularly for liquid metal ink, the sealing liquid 401 is a solution that reacts with the liquid metal oxide, when the sealing member 400 approaches the ink outlet end of the printhead 200 gradually, the ink outlet end of the printhead 200 will first contact the sealing liquid 401, the sealing liquid 401 can dissolve the liquid metal oxide attached to the ink outlet end of the printhead 200, reduce the adhesion of the metal oxide on the ink outlet end of the printhead 200, and then, when the ink outlet end of the printhead 200 enters the sealing sleeve 403, the interference fit between the two forms a wiping effect on the ink outlet end, so as to further remove the metal oxide attached to the ink outlet end of the printhead 200.

Further, the sealing boot 403 and the container 402 may be an integral component; preferably, the plastic material can be made of elastic material, and is easier to integrally process and manufacture; in other embodiments, it may be made of polytetrafluoroethylene, which is not easily adhered to liquid metal.

Referring again to fig. 2, in some illustrative embodiments, for the case where the print head 200 is a direct-writing print head, a cleaning member 600, such as an elastic pad, for cleaning the ink outlet end of the print head 200 is provided on the print table 100, and after the ink outlet end of the print head 200 is separated from the seal 400, the print head 200 can be controlled to write on the elastic pad by a program, so that a small amount of sealing liquid and impurities on the ink outlet end of the print head 200 are removed, and writing quality of the direct-writing print head is further ensured. In other embodiments, the cleaning member 600 may be configured to be similar to the seal cartridge 401 and be rotated by another motor, and the stylus tip is cleaned by rotating the cleaning member 600 after the cleaning member 600 is coupled to the stylus tip. This structural approach can achieve better cleaning effect.

The printhead 200 in the embodiment of the present invention implements the pen-down and pen-up actions thereof by an electromagnetic drive and a return spring, and implements the horizontal movement on the printing table 100 by the movement mechanism 300.

Those of skill would further appreciate that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A printing apparatus having a printing table, a printing head, and a first moving mechanism that drives the printing head to move over the printing table, characterized by further comprising: a seal member mounted on the print table by a second moving mechanism, the seal member being moved in a vertical direction by the second moving mechanism to close an ink outlet end of the print head in an initial state/standby state of the print head;

the second moving mechanism adopts a linear stepping motor, and a screw rod of the linear stepping motor is fixedly connected with the sealing element to drive the sealing element to move along the vertical direction; the sealing member comprises a container with an upper opening, and sealing liquid filled in the container; the container is fixedly connected with the linear stepping motor and forms linkage with the screw rod; the container diameter surface is larger than the ink outlet end of the printing head; the bottom of the container is also provided with a sealing sleeve corresponding to the ink outlet end structure of the printing head, and the top of the sealing sleeve is positioned below the liquid level of the sealing liquid; the sealing liquid seals the ink outlet end of the printing head by immersing the ink outlet end; the seal sleeve is in interference fit with the ink outlet end of the printing head, and is used for wiping the ink outlet end of the printing head infiltrated by the sealing liquid; the sealing liquid is an acid solution or an alkali solution;

the printing workbench is provided with a cleaning component for cleaning the ink outlet end of the printing head and used for removing sealing liquid and impurities on the ink outlet end of the printing head.

2. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the printing workbench is provided with a groove body corresponding to the container in size, the container is arranged in the groove body, the linear stepping motor is positioned below the printing workbench, and a screw rod penetrates through the groove body and is connected with the container.

3. The printing apparatus of claim 2 wherein said linear stepper motor is secured below said print table by a motor mount.

4. The printing apparatus of claim 1, wherein said sealing sleeve is an integral component with said container.

5. The printing apparatus of claim 1, wherein said seal is a cap or plug corresponding to an ink outlet end configuration of said printhead.