CN116189992A

CN116189992A - Photo-curing 3D printing device and method and 3D printing part

Info

Publication number: CN116189992A
Application number: CN202310041444.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 何岷洪; 肖阳; 赵鸿凯
Original assignee: Shanghai Huafeng Longwan Technology Co ltd
Current assignee: Shanghai Huafeng Longwan Technology Co ltd
Priority date: 2023-01-12
Filing date: 2023-01-12
Publication date: 2023-05-30

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of 3D printing, and discloses a photo-curing 3D printing device, a photo-curing 3D printing method and a 3D printing part. The photocuring 3D printing device comprises a containing groove body, a forming platform, a light source generating assembly, a transparent conducting layer and a power supply assembly, wherein the containing groove body can contain photosensitive resin, a transparent window area is formed in the bottom of the containing groove body, the forming platform is made of a conductive material and can move up and down in a vertical mode, the forming platform can be immersed in the photosensitive resin and bear printed parts, the light source generating assembly is arranged below the window area and can emit light beams for curing the photosensitive resin, the transparent conducting layer is made of a conductive material and is attached to one side, facing the containing groove body, of the containing groove body, the power supply assembly can provide electrons for the transparent conducting layer, and the electrons can react with the photosensitive resin after receiving the light beams so that an uncured layer is formed on the surface of the transparent conducting layer. The photo-curing 3D printing device has high printing efficiency, good structural strength, long service life and high shape/size precision of printed parts.

Description

Photo-curing 3D printing device and method and 3D printing part

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of 3D printing, in particular to a photo-curing 3D printing device and method and a 3D printing part.

Background

The 3D printing technology is a technology for constructing an object by using a bondable material such as powdered metal or plastic based on a mathematical model file in a layer-by-layer printing manner. Photo-curing 3D printing is an additive manufacturing process that was developed early and widely used in many fields such as jewelry, aerospace, biomedical, etc. The photosensitive resin is a main material for photo-curing 3D printing, and comprises a photosensitive prepolymer with low molecular weight, a reactive diluent and a photoinitiator. In the 3D printing process, light with proper wavelength is irradiated to the photosensitive resin, and a photoinitiator in the photosensitive resin loses electrons after absorbing light energy and forms active substances such as free radicals or cations, and the like, so that the photosensitive prepolymer and the active diluent are subjected to polymerization curing reaction under the action of the active substances, and 3D printing is realized.

In traditional photocuring 3D printing device, photosensitive resin holds in the photosensitive resin groove, and the bottom in photosensitive resin groove is provided with transparent window district, and the shaping platform is used for bearing the part of printing, and the shaping platform submergence is in the photosensitive resin groove and its surface and window district of bottommost form the clearance of certain thickness. The light source is arranged below the window area, the light source irradiates the photosensitive resin in the gap area through the window area, the photosensitive resin is subjected to curing reaction and is formed on the carrier platform, the photosensitive resin in the gap area is also easily adhered to the window area, in order to continue printing of the next layer, mechanical stripping is usually required by means of moving a photosensitive resin groove and the like, and the yield of 3D printing is severely restricted by the operation of mechanical stripping.

In order to avoid mechanical stripping after each layer of photosensitive resin is cured, a photo-curing 3D printing device is proposed in the prior art, a transparent film with oxygen permeability such as polytetrafluoroethylene is used as a window area at the bottom of a photosensitive resin tank, oxygen can permeate into the photosensitive resin tank from the transparent film and contact with the bottom liquid level of the photosensitive resin to form a layer of dead zone which cannot be cured by a light source, so that the cured photosensitive resin is prevented from adhering to the window area, and the step of mechanical stripping is omitted. However, a transparent film such as polytetrafluoroethylene having oxygen permeability is poor in strength and is easily deformed, and therefore, not only is the service life poor, but also the molding accuracy of the component is affected.

Therefore, a photo-curing 3D printing device, a photo-curing 3D printing method and a 3D printing part are needed to solve the above technical problems.

Disclosure of Invention

The first aim of the invention is to provide a photo-curing 3D printing device which has high printing efficiency, good structural strength and long service life, and can ensure the shape/size precision of 3D printed parts.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a 3D printing part manufactured by using the above photo-curing 3D printing apparatus, which has high shape/size precision and high production efficiency.

A third object of the present invention is to provide a photo-curing 3D printing method, which has high printing efficiency and high shape/size accuracy of the parts by using the photo-curing 3D printing device.

To achieve the purpose, the invention adopts the following technical scheme:

a photo-curing 3D printing device, comprising:

the light-sensitive resin accommodating device comprises an accommodating groove body, a light-sensitive resin accommodating groove body and a light-sensitive resin accommodating groove, wherein a transparent window area is arranged at the bottom of the accommodating groove body;

the molding platform is made of conductive materials, can move up and down in a vertical mode, can be immersed in the photosensitive resin and is used for bearing printed parts;

a light source generating assembly disposed under the window region, the light source generating assembly being capable of emitting a light beam for curing the photosensitive resin;

a transparent conductive layer made of a conductive material and attached to a side of the window area facing the inside of the accommodating groove body;

and the power supply component is respectively connected with the transparent conductive layer and the forming platform, can provide electrons for the transparent conductive layer, and can react with the photosensitive resin after receiving the light beam so as to form an uncured layer on the surface of the transparent conductive layer.

As an alternative, the transparent conductive layer is made of AZO or ITO or FTO or graphene.

As an alternative, the transparent conductive layer has a thickness of not more than 1mm.

As an alternative, the transparent conductive layer is formed on the window area by a vacuum plating or magnetron sputtering process.

As an alternative, the window area is made of a transparent glass material.

As an alternative, the accommodating groove body further comprises a groove body, the upper end of the groove body is provided with an accommodating space with an opening, the bottom of the groove body is provided with a through hole, and the window area is used for blocking the through hole.

As an alternative scheme, the photocuring 3D printing device further comprises a driving assembly, the output end of the driving assembly is connected with the forming platform, and the driving assembly can drive the forming platform to move up and down along the vertical direction.

As an alternative, the light source generating assembly is capable of emitting a light beam having a wavelength greater than 300 nm.

A3D printing part is printed by the light-cured 3D printing equipment.

A photocuring 3D printing method adopts the photocuring 3D printing equipment;

the light source generating assembly emits continuously-changing image videos, and meanwhile the forming platform moves in the photosensitive resin along the vertical direction and away from one end of the light source generating assembly.

The invention has the beneficial effects that:

according to the photocuring printing device, when 3D printing is performed, the power supply assembly supplies power to the transparent conductive layer, so that electrons are supplied to the area nearby the transparent conductive layer. After the light source generating component emits the light beam, the light beam passes through the transparent window area and the transparent conductive layer and irradiates the photosensitive resin, the photoinitiator in the photosensitive resin is activated to form free radicals or cations after absorbing the energy of the light beam, at the moment, the free radicals and the cations near the transparent conductive layer are combined with electrons provided by the transparent conductive layer, so that the light beam is deactivated, the photosensitive resin in the area near the transparent conductive layer cannot undergo curing reaction, and a layer of non-curing layer is formed on the surface of the transparent conductive layer; because the transparent conductive layer can provide limited electron quantity, the thickness of the uncured layer is limited, and the photosensitive resin above the uncured layer can be cured and molded on the molding platform after being irradiated by the light beam. According to the photocuring 3D printing device, the non-curing layer is formed by reacting the transparent conductive layer and the photosensitive resin, and the non-curing layer can effectively prevent the part from being bonded with the window area, so that the step of mechanical stripping is omitted, and the forming efficiency of 3D printing is greatly improved; in addition, the transparent conductive layer directly attached to the window area cannot deform, so that the structure strength is good, the service life is long, and the shape/size precision of the 3D printed part can be ensured.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a photo-curing 3D printing device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure:

1-accommodating a groove body; 11-a tank body; 12-window area; 2-a forming platform; 3-a light source generating assembly; 4-a transparent conductive layer; a 5-drive assembly; 6-an uncured layer; 7-a photosensitive resin; 8-parts.

Detailed Description

The invention is described in further detail below with reference to the drawings and examples. It is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. It should be further noted that, for convenience of description, only some, but not all of the structures related to the present invention are shown in the drawings.

In the description of the present invention, unless explicitly stated and limited otherwise, the terms "connected," "connected," and "fixed" are to be construed broadly, and may be, for example, fixedly connected, detachably connected, or integrally formed; can be mechanically or electrically connected; can be directly connected or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, and can be communicated with the inside of two elements or the interaction relationship of the two elements. The specific meaning of the above terms in the present invention will be understood in specific cases by those of ordinary skill in the art.

In the present invention, unless expressly stated or limited otherwise, a first feature "above" or "below" a second feature may include both the first and second features being in direct contact, as well as the first and second features not being in direct contact but being in contact with each other through additional features therebetween. Moreover, a first feature being "above," "over" and "on" a second feature includes the first feature being directly above and obliquely above the second feature, or simply indicating that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. The first feature being "under", "below" and "beneath" the second feature includes the first feature being directly under and obliquely below the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is less level than the second feature.

In the description of the present embodiment, the terms "upper", "lower", "right", etc. orientation or positional relationship are based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and are merely for convenience of description and simplicity of operation, and do not indicate or imply that the apparatus or elements referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and thus should not be construed as limiting the invention. Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," and the like, are used merely for distinguishing between descriptions and not for distinguishing between them.

The present embodiment provides a photo-curing 3D printing apparatus which can process a photosensitive resin 7 into a part 8 of a predetermined shape. Specifically, as shown in fig. 1, the photo-curing 3D printing device includes a housing tank 1, a molding stage 2, a driving assembly 5, a light source generating assembly 3, a transparent conductive layer 4, and a power supply assembly (not shown). The accommodating tank body 1 is used for accommodating the photosensitive resin 7, a transparent window area 12 is arranged at the bottom of the accommodating tank body 1, and the window area 12 is made of conductive materials and is connected with a power supply assembly. The molding table 2 is made of a conductive material and is connected to a power supply assembly. The forming platform 2 can be immersed in the photosensitive resin 7 in the accommodating groove body 1 and is used for bearing 3D printed parts 8, the output end of the driving component 5 is connected with the forming platform 2, the driving component 5 can drive the forming platform 2 and the printed and formed parts 8 on the forming platform to move up and down relative to the accommodating groove body 1, the light source generating component 3 is arranged below the window area 12, the light source generating component 3 can emit light beams, after the light beams irradiate the photosensitive resin 7, the photoinitiator in the photosensitive resin 7 is activated to lose electrons so as to form active substances such as free radicals or cations, the active substances enable the photosensitive prepolymer in the photosensitive resin 7 and the active diluent to undergo curing reaction, the transparent conductive layer 4 is made of conductive materials, the transparent conductive layer 4 is attached to one side, facing the inside of the accommodating groove body 1, of the window area 12, the power supply component is connected with the transparent conductive layer 4, electrons can be provided for the transparent conductive layer 4, and the electrons can be combined with the photoinitiator losing electrons so that the surface of the transparent conductive layer 4 forms an uncured layer 6.

When the photocuring 3D printing device of the present embodiment is used for 3D printing, the power supply assembly supplies power to the transparent conductive layer 4, thereby providing electrons to the area near the transparent conductive layer 4. After the light source generating component 3 emits the light beam, the light beam passes through the transparent window area 12 and the transparent conductive layer 4 and irradiates the photosensitive resin 7, and a photoinitiator in the photosensitive resin 7 loses electrons to be activated after absorbing energy of the light beam and forms free radicals or cations, and at the moment, the free radicals and the cations near the transparent conductive layer 4 are combined with electrons provided by the transparent conductive layer 4 to lose activity, so that the photosensitive resin 7 in the area near the transparent conductive layer 4 cannot undergo curing reaction, and a non-curing layer 6 is formed on the surface of the transparent conductive layer 4; due to the limited number of free electrons that can be provided by the transparent conductive layer 4, the thickness of the uncured layer 6 is limited, and the photosensitive resin 7 above the uncured layer 6 continues to cure and form on the forming table 2 after being irradiated with the light beam. After the photosensitive resin 7 between the uncured layer 6 and the part 8 is cured, the driving assembly 5 drives the molding platform 2 to move upwards for a certain distance, so that the photosensitive resin 7 is refilled between the uncured layer 6 and the part 8, and the curing molding of the next layer is facilitated. The photocuring 3D printing device of this embodiment forms uncured layer 6 through transparent conducting layer 4 and photosensitive resin 7 reaction, and uncured layer 6 can effectively prevent part 8 and window district 12 from taking place to bond to save the step that mechanical stripping was carried out, improve 3D printing's shaping efficiency greatly, in addition, directly attached transparent conducting layer 4 at window district 12 can not take place to warp, not only structural strength is good, longe-lived, and can guarantee the shape/dimensional accuracy of part 8 of 3D printing.

In this embodiment, the part 8 with a preset shape may be sliced in advance by software calculation, and each slice corresponds to a pattern, and the light source generating assembly 3 may emit a light beam in the shape of the pattern. Of course, when the light source generating assembly 3 emits the pattern light beams, the pattern corresponding to different slices can be emitted at intervals, or the pattern corresponding to a plurality of slices can be emitted continuously, so that continuously-changed image videos can be formed. Preferably, the wavelength of the light beam emitted by the light source generating assembly 3 is greater than 300nm, in particular 405nm, so as to ensure that the photoinitiator in the photosensitive resin 7 can be activated smoothly. It can be understood that the light source generating assembly 3 and the forming platform 2 are mature components in the prior art, and the specific structure and working principle thereof are not described herein.

In this embodiment, the driving assembly 5 may include a motor, a screw rod and a nut that are disposed along a vertical direction, where the screw rod is rotatably supported on a frame, the nut is in threaded engagement with the screw rod, the forming platform 2 is fixedly connected with the nut, and the motor drives the screw rod to rotate, so that the nut can drive the forming platform 2 to move up and down along the vertical direction together, and the amount of movement of the lifting of the nut and the forming platform 2 can be accurately controlled, so as to ensure the precision of the printed part 8. In other embodiments, the specific structure of the driving assembly 5 is not limited, as long as the movement of the forming platform 2 along the vertical direction can be realized.

Alternatively, in the present embodiment, the transparent conductive layer 4 is made of AZO (i.e., aluminum-doped zinc oxide) or ITO (i.e., indium tin oxide) or FTO (i.e., fluorine-doped tin oxide) or graphene. On the one hand, the material is in a transparent state, so that the light source emitted by the light source generating assembly 3 can be ensured to pass smoothly and react with the photosensitive resin 7; on the other hand, the above material is capable of providing electrons upon energization so as to react with radicals/positive ions generated by the photoinitiator to form the uncured layer 6. In other embodiments, the specific material of the transparent conductive layer 4 is not limited, as long as it is transparent and can provide electrons after being electrified.

Alternatively, the transparent conductive layer 4 is formed on the window region 12 by a vacuum plating or magnetron sputtering process. The transparent conductive layer 4 with uniform thickness is conveniently obtained by vacuum plating or magnetron sputtering, and then the uncured layer 6 with uniform thickness is conveniently formed later, so that the shape accuracy of the part 8 is ensured. It should be understood that the manner in which the transparent conductive layer 4 is attached to the window area 12 is only a preferred embodiment, and is not a limitation of the present application.

Preferably, the thickness of the transparent conductive layer 4 is not more than 1mm. Within this size range, the uncured layer 6 can be formed with a sufficient thickness without greatly blocking the light beam, ensuring that the photosensitive resin 7 between the upper side of the uncured layer 6 and the molding stage 2 can be cured smoothly.

As shown in fig. 1, in this embodiment, the accommodating tank body 1 includes a tank body 11, the tank body 11 forms an accommodating space with an opening at the upper end, the molding platform 2 extends into the photosensitive resin 7 from the opening at the upper end of the tank body 11, a through hole is provided at the bottom of the tank body 11, and a window area 12 closes the through hole. The groove body 11 and the window area 12 are arranged to be of a split structure, so that the transparent conductive layer 4 is formed on the window area 12 and then integrally installed at the through hole of the groove body 11, and the manufacturing process of the photo-curing 3D printing device is more convenient.

Preferably, in this embodiment, the window area 12 is made of a transparent glass material, which is not only convenient for the light beam to pass through, but also has high strength and durability.

The embodiment also provides a photo-curing 3D printing method, which is completed by adopting the photo-curing 3D printing device of the embodiment, and specifically comprises the following steps:

step 1, pouring photosensitive resin 7 into a containing groove body 1;

step 2, the driving component 5 drives the molding platform 2 to be immersed in the photosensitive resin 7, and a preset interval is reserved between the bottommost surface of the molding platform 2 and the transparent conductive layer 4;

step 3, the power supply component is connected with the transparent conductive layer 4 to provide electrons for the transparent conductive layer 4;

step 4, the light source generating component 3 emits light beams, so that an uncured layer 6 is formed on the surface of the transparent conductive layer 4;

in step 5, the light source generating assembly 3 emits continuously variable image video, and the driving assembly 5 drives the molding platform 2 to move in the vertical direction in the photosensitive resin 7 and away from one end of the light source generating assembly 3, so that the photosensitive resin 7 is continuously cured to mold the part 8 on the molding platform 2.

Through the steps, the photocuring 3D printing device realizes continuous printing, so that the forming speed of the part 8 is greatly increased, and is 20-100 times of the traditional 3D printing speed; in addition, obvious layering can not appear on the surface of the formed part 8, and the surface quality of the formed part 8 is good.

In other embodiments, in step 5, it may also be:

step 51, the driving assembly 5 drives the molding platform 2 to move so that the lower surface of the molding platform 2 has a preset distance from the uncured layer 6;

step 52, the light source generating component 3 emits light beams with the image corresponding to the first slice of the part 8, so that the photosensitive resin 7 cures the first layer of the molded part 8 on the molding platform 2;

step 53, the driving assembly 5 drives the molding platform 2 and the first layer of the part 8 to move upwards by a preset distance of a layer thickness, and stops for a certain time at this time, so that the photosensitive resin 7 is fully filled between the first layer of the part 8 and the uncured layer 6;

step 54, the light source generating component 3 emits light beams according to the image corresponding to the second slice of the part 8, so that the photosensitive resin 7 is continuously cured on the first layer of the part 8 to form a second layer;

step 55, repeating steps 52-54 until the printing of the part 8 is completed after the curing of all the slices of the part 8 is completed.

The embodiment also provides a 3D printing part printed by using the photo-curing 3D printing apparatus of the embodiment. The shape/size precision of the part is high, and the production efficiency is high.

It is to be understood that the foregoing examples of the invention are provided for the purpose of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention, which is defined by the claims, since modifications in both the detailed description and the application scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the teachings of the invention. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. which come within the spirit and principles of the invention are desired to be protected by the following claims.

Claims

1. A photo-curing 3D printing device, comprising:

the light-sensitive resin accommodating device comprises an accommodating groove body (1) for accommodating the light-sensitive resin (7), wherein a transparent window area (12) is arranged at the bottom of the accommodating groove body (1);

a molding platform (2) made of conductive material and capable of moving up and down in a vertical manner, wherein the molding platform (2) can be immersed in the photosensitive resin (7) and is used for bearing printed parts (8);

a light source generating assembly (3) disposed below the window region (12), the light source generating assembly (3) being capable of emitting a light beam for curing the photosensitive resin (7);

a transparent conductive layer (4) made of a conductive material and attached to the window area (12) on the side facing the inside of the accommodation groove body (1);

the power supply component is respectively connected with the transparent conductive layer (4) and the forming platform (2), and can provide electrons for the transparent conductive layer (4), and the electrons can react with the photosensitive resin (7) after receiving light beams so as to enable the surface of the transparent conductive layer (4) to form an uncured layer (6).

2. The photo-cured 3D printing device according to claim 1, wherein the transparent conductive layer (4) is made of AZO or ITO or FTO or graphene.

3. The photocuring 3D printing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the thickness of the transparent conductive layer (4) is not more than 1mm.

4. The photocuring 3D printing device according to claim 1, wherein the transparent conductive layer (4) is formed on the window area (12) by a vacuum plating or magnetron sputtering process.

5. The light-curable 3D printing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the window area (12) is made of a transparent glass material.

6. The photocuring 3D printing device according to claim 1, wherein the accommodating groove body (1) further comprises a groove body (11), the groove body (11) forms an accommodating space with an opening at an upper end, a through hole is arranged at the bottom of the groove body (11), and the window area (12) is used for blocking the through hole.

7. The light-cured 3D printing device according to any one of claims 1-6, further comprising a driving assembly (5), wherein an output end of the driving assembly (5) is connected with the forming platform (2), and the driving assembly (5) can drive the forming platform (2) to move up and down along a vertical direction.

8. A photo-curing 3D printing device as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that the light source generating assembly (3) is capable of emitting a light beam having a wavelength of more than 300 nm.

9. A 3D printed part, characterized in that it is printed by the photo-curing 3D printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1-8.

10. A photo-curing 3D printing method, characterized in that the photo-curing 3D printing device according to any one of claims 1-8 is used;

the light source generating assembly (3) emits continuously-changing image videos, and meanwhile the forming platform (2) moves in the photosensitive resin (7) along the vertical direction and away from one end of the light source generating assembly (3).