JP2017185699A - Molding apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To clean air around a heating part while maintaining an atmospheric temperature around the heating part.SOLUTION: A molding apparatus for fabricating a three-dimensional object by stacking layers of a heated molding material has a first housing chamber where a first heating part for heating the molding material is disposed, and an air circulating part for circulating air in the first housing chamber. The air circulating part includes a filter where the circulating air passes through.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a modeling apparatus.

In recent years, three-dimensional modeling techniques called additive manufacturing (AM), three-dimensional printers, rapid prototyping (RP), and the like have attracted attention (in this specification, these techniques are collectively referred to as AM techniques). AM technology slices three-dimensional shape data of a three-dimensional model to generate a plurality of slice data, and builds a three-dimensional object (three-dimensional object) by laminating a modeling material on a stage in sequence based on the slice data. Technology).
In Patent Document 1, using an electrophotographic method, a material layer is formed with a modeling material based on slice data, the formed material layer is heated and melted by a heating means such as a heating roller, and stacked on a stage. A modeling method is disclosed.
In such a system, when the modeling material is heated and melted, odorous gas may be generated from the modeling material.
On the other hand, Patent Document 2 proposes that air flows into the space where odor occurs from the outside of the apparatus to create an air flow, and the odorized air is passed through a deodorizing filter and then discharged outside the apparatus. Yes.

Special table 2014-533210 gazette JP 2013-67035 A

However, in the above-described method, the air temperature from the outside of the apparatus is caused to flow into the heating unit, so that the ambient temperature around the heating unit is lowered, and when the material layer is heated by the heating unit, the heating efficiency is reduced and uneven heating is generated. Is concerned.
This invention is made | formed in view of the above situations, and it aims at purifying the air around a heating part, maintaining the atmospheric temperature around a heating part.

The aspect according to the present invention is:
In a modeling apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object by laminating heated modeling materials,
A first storage chamber in which a first heating unit for heating the modeling material is disposed;
An air circulation unit for circulating air in the first containing chamber;
Have
The air circulation unit includes a filter through which circulated air passes.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to clean the air around the heating unit while maintaining the ambient temperature around the heating unit.

The figure which shows the schematic structure of the modeling apparatus of Example 1 typically. The figure which shows schematic structure of the modeling apparatus of Example 2 typically. The figure which shows typically schematic structure of the modeling apparatus of Example 3.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be exemplarily described with reference to the drawings. However, unless otherwise specified, various control procedures, control parameters, etc., such as dimensions, materials, shapes, and relative arrangements of the members described in the following embodiments are within the scope of the present invention. It is not intended to limit only to them.
The present invention relates to an additive manufacturing technique (AM technique), that is, an apparatus for forming a three-dimensional object (three-dimensional object) by two-dimensionally arranging modeling materials and laminating them in layers.

  As the modeling material, various materials can be selected according to the application, function, purpose, etc. of the three-dimensional object to be produced. In this specification, a material constituting a three-dimensional object for modeling is referred to as “structural material”, and a portion formed of the structural material is referred to as a structure. A material that constitutes a support body (for example, a column that supports the overhang portion from below) for supporting the structure being manufactured is referred to as a “support material”. When it is not necessary to distinguish between the two, the term “modeling material” is simply used. As the structural material, for example, a thermoplastic resin such as PE (polyethylene), PP (polypropylene), ABS, PS (polystyrene) can be used. As the support material, a material having thermoplasticity and water solubility can be preferably used in order to simplify the removal from the structure. Examples of the support material include carbohydrates, polylactic acid (PLA), PVA (polyvinyl alcohol), and PEG (polyethylene glycol).

  Further, in this specification, digital data obtained by slicing three-dimensional shape data of a three-dimensional model intended for modeling into several layers along the stacking direction is referred to as “slice data”. A layer formed of a modeling material based on slice data is referred to as a “material layer”. A three-dimensional model (that is, a three-dimensional object represented by image data (three-dimensional shape data) given to the modeling apparatus) to be manufactured using the modeling apparatus is referred to as a “modeling object”. A three-dimensional object (three-dimensional object) produced (output) by the modeling apparatus is called a “modeled object”. In the case where the modeled object includes the support body, a portion excluding the support body becomes a “structure” constituting the modeled object.

[Example 1]
Hereinafter, Example 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a schematic configuration of a modeling apparatus according to the present embodiment. First, a schematic configuration of the modeling apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described.
The modeling apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment mainly has three functional units, that is, a material layer forming unit 110, a heating sheet forming unit 1, and a modeling unit 120. Moreover, the modeling apparatus 100 has the conveyance belt 3 as a conveyance body which carries the material layer 2 formed in the material layer formation part 110, and conveys to the heating sheet forming part 1 and the modeling part 120 in order. . The transport belt 3 is an endless belt made of, for example, resin, polyimide, or the like, and is supported by a plurality of rollers (the transport roller 4 and the heating roller 5 in FIG. 1).
Hereinafter, the operation of each process will be described.

The material layer forming unit 110 receives slice data of each layer from an external data processing device (not shown), forms an image based on the slice data, and forms a material layer 2 made of a modeling material. For this image formation, an electrophotographic system, an inkjet system, or the like can be applied. The formed material layer 2 is transferred onto the conveyor belt 3 by a transfer mechanism (not shown).
When the transfer of the material layer 2 is completed, the conveyance belt 3 is rotated by driving the conveyance roller 4 or the heating roller 5, and the material layer 2 is conveyed in the conveyance direction A.
And when the material layer 2 is conveyed to the heating sheet forming part 1, in the heating sheet forming part 1,
The material layer 2 on the conveyor belt 3 is heated and melted by the heat energy applied from the heating roller 5 via the conveyor belt 3. Thereby, the powdery or particulate material layer 2 changes to the material layer 2 integrated in a sheet shape. Details of the heating sheet forming unit 1 will be described later.

Thereafter, the heat-melted material layer 2 is conveyed to the modeling unit 120.
In the modeling unit 120, the material layer 2 moved to the stacking position B is sequentially stacked on the stage 123 (or the modeled object 20 on the stage 123). Here, the stacking position B is a position where the material layers are stacked on the stage 123 (stacked on the modeled object 20 in the process of production), and in the configuration of FIG. The portion to be applied corresponds to the stacking position B.
The three-dimensional structure 20 can be produced by repeatedly performing the formation (transfer), heating, and lamination processes of the material layer described above.

Below, the heating sheeting part 1 which is the characteristic structure of a present Example is demonstrated.
When the material layer 2 carried on the conveyance belt 3 is conveyed to the heating sheet forming unit 1, the material is heated and melted by the heating roller 5 through the conveyance belt 3 in the heating sheet forming unit 1, and is formed into one layer of sheet-like material. Change to layer 2. In this embodiment, a single heating roller 5 is used as a heating unit for heating and melting the material layer 2 on the conveyor belt 3, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a plurality of heating rollers or halogen heaters are used. It may be configured by a radiation heater such as.

Here, when the material layer 2 is heated and melted in the heating sheet forming unit 1, a gas containing a component specific to the material is generated due to the temperature rising depending on the modeling material, or a part of the modeling material is generated. Particles may soar. In addition, particles with weak adhesion to the conveyor belt may rise during the conveyance.
In the present embodiment, in order to prevent specific components and particles contained in such a gas from leaking out of the modeling apparatus 100 and to maintain the ambient temperature around the heating roller 5, the following configuration is adopted. That is, the storage chamber is configured such that the heating roller 5 is housed in a box-shaped heat insulation box 6 formed using a heat insulating material such as PEEK and surrounds the heating roller 5. Here, PEEK is polyetheretherketone.

Further, the modeling apparatus 100 of the present embodiment includes an air circulation unit 7 that circulates while cleaning the air in the heat insulation box 6.
The air circulation unit 7 includes a filter 8 that cleans the air, a circulation path 71 that circulates the air in the heat insulation box 6, and a fan 72 that circulates the air. With such a configuration, it is possible to remove and clean at least one of a specific component of gas and particles generated when the material layer 2 is heated and melted.
An example of the filter 8 is an activated carbon filter, but the filter 8 is not limited to this, and it is preferable that a suitable filter is appropriately selected and installed in accordance with the modeling material.

The heat insulation box 6 is provided with an outlet 61 through which air flows out and an inlet 62 through which air flows. The circulation path 71 is formed so as to connect the outlet 61 and the inlet 62.
By providing such a circulation path 71, the air in the heat insulation box 6 that has flowed out from the outlet 61 can be returned to the heat insulation box 6 from the inlet 62, and the air in the heat insulation box 6 can be circulated. it can.

Further, the air in the heat insulation box 6 flows out from the outlet 61 to the circulation path 71 by the fan 72, and an air flow in which the air in the circulation path returns from the inlet 62 into the heat insulation box 6 can be formed. .
Since the gas generated in the heating sheet forming unit 1 rises with the air heated by the heating roller 5, the outlet 61 of the heat insulating box 6 is arranged above the heating roller 5 in this embodiment. However, the position of the outlet 61 in the heat insulation box 6 is not limited to this, and is suitably arranged at a suitable position in consideration of the shape of the heat insulation box 6 and the specific gravity of the generated gas. Good.

In the present embodiment, as described above, the heating unit that heats the material layer 2 includes the heating roller 5 that is one of the rollers that support the transport belt 3 that carries and transports the material layer 2. The heat insulation box 6 is provided with a passage port 63 through which the transport belt 3 is passed. Further, the heat insulating box 6 is provided with a support portion that rotatably supports the heating roller 5.
For this reason, we are anxious about the gas in the heat insulation box 6 leaking out from such a passage port 63 and a support part.

On the other hand, in this embodiment, a negative pressure part for setting the inside of the heat insulating box 6 to a negative pressure is provided. In the present embodiment, the outflow opening 9 is disposed downstream of the filter 8 in the air flow direction in the circulation path 71 as the negative pressure portion. The outflow opening 9 is an opening for exhausting a part of the air that has passed through the filter 8 out of the circulation path in the air flowing through the circulation path 71.
With such a configuration, the flow rate of air flowing in from the inflow port 62 can be made smaller than the flow rate of air flowing out from the outflow port 61, and the inside of the heat insulating box 6 can be made negative pressure. Therefore, leakage of air from the passage port 63 of the heat insulation box 6 and the support portion of the heating roller 5 can be reduced.

  The negative pressure portion may be configured with only the outflow opening 9, but may be provided with a fan 10 for discharging air from the outflow opening 9 to the outside of the circulation path 71. By providing such a fan 10, the amount of air discharged from the outflow opening 9 to the outside of the circulation path 71 can be adjusted, and the degree of negative pressure in the heat insulation box 6 can be adjusted. The means for adjusting the amount of air discharged from the outflow opening 9 to the outside of the circulation path 71 is not limited to the fan as described above. For example, an adjustment mechanism that adjusts the opening size of the outflow opening 9 and a driving unit such as an actuator that drives the adjustment mechanism may be used.

Here, since the air discharged from the outflow opening 9 for adjusting the negative pressure may become high temperature, it may be discharged outside the modeling apparatus 100 in order to prevent a temperature rise in the modeling apparatus 100. desirable.
Even if the negative pressure in the heat insulating box 6 cannot be maintained due to a device trouble or the like, the gas generated during the operation of the device rises with the air heated by the heating roller 5, and flows out the outlet 61. It is cleaned by the filter 8 through. For this reason, the leaking gas can be minimized.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to clean the air in the heat insulating box 6 while maintaining the atmospheric temperature in the heating sheet forming unit 1. Thereby, it becomes possible to prevent specific components and particles contained in the gas generated when the material layer 2 is heated and melted from leaking out of the modeling apparatus 100. Furthermore, by maintaining the inside of the heating sheet forming unit 1 at a predetermined atmospheric temperature, it is possible to suppress a decrease in heating efficiency and occurrence of heating unevenness.
In this embodiment, the outflow opening 9 is provided as a negative pressure part. Thereby, since the inside of the heat insulation box 6 can be made into a negative pressure, even if it is a case where opening parts, such as the passage port 63 of the conveyance belt 3, are provided in the heat insulation box 6, gas leaks from an opening part. Can be reduced.

It is possible to form a closed space between the heat insulating box that surrounds the heating unit and the circulation path that circulates the air in the heat insulating box, so that the gas in the heat insulating box is not likely to leak out of the box. It is not necessary to provide the negative pressure part as described above.
Further, in this embodiment, the heating unit is surrounded by a heat insulating box 6 formed of a heat insulating material as a storage chamber, thereby suppressing a decrease in the ambient temperature in the heating sheet forming unit 1. The chamber is not limited to one formed of a heat insulating material. In the present embodiment, the air is cleaned while circulating the air in the storage chamber by the air circulation unit without taking outside air into the storage chamber from the outside of the apparatus. At this time, since the warm air in the heating unit is circulated, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the atmospheric temperature in the accommodation chamber.

[Example 2]
Example 2 will be described below. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected about the component similar to Example 1, and the description is abbreviate | omitted.
FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating a schematic configuration of the modeling apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 2, the modeling apparatus including the housing 101 is illustrated.
In this embodiment, the flow of air inside the modeling apparatus 100 will be described in particular.

As shown in FIG. 2, the modeling apparatus 100 of the present embodiment includes a suction fan unit 102 as a suction unit in addition to the three functional units of the material layer forming unit 110, the heating sheet forming unit 1, and the modeling unit 120, It has two functional parts of the discharge fan unit 103 as a discharge part.
The suction fan unit 102 is for taking outside air into the housing of the modeling apparatus 100, and is arranged at the suction side opening 104 of the housing 101 or in the vicinity thereof. The discharge fan unit 103 is for discharging the air in the housing 101 to the outside of the housing 101, and is arranged at the discharge-side opening 105 of the housing 101 or in the vicinity thereof.
By providing such a suction fan unit 102 and a discharge fan unit 103, the inside of the housing 101 can be well ventilated. The above-described filter may be disposed in the discharge fan unit 103, and thereby clean air can be discharged to the outside of the modeling apparatus 100.

Here, if the air discharged from the outflow opening 9 remains in the casing 101 without being discharged to the outside of the casing 101, the temperature in the casing 101 rises, and the electric system or the like There is a concern that it may cause trouble. Further, since the air discharged from the outflow opening 9 is high temperature, it may not be directly discharged to the outside of the housing 101 depending on the installation environment of the modeling apparatus 100.
On the other hand, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the discharge fan unit 103 is arranged in the vicinity of the outflow opening 9, and the high-temperature air discharged from the outflow opening 9 is exchanged with the air in the casing 101. In addition, it is configured to discharge to the outside of the housing 101.
With such a configuration, the high-temperature air discharged from the outflow opening 9 can be mixed with the air in the housing 101, and the temperature of the air discharged from the outflow opening 9 is lowered to an appropriate temperature. Can do. Thereby, the temperature rise inside the modeling apparatus 100 can be suppressed, and the temperature of the air discharged to the outside of the modeling apparatus 100 can be lowered to an appropriate temperature.

In the present embodiment, the suction fan unit 102 is disposed on the wall portion of the housing 101 facing the material layer forming portion 110, and the discharge fan unit is disposed on the wall portion of the housing 101 facing the heating sheet forming portion 1. 103 is arranged.
With such a configuration, the material layer forming unit 110 is positioned upstream and the heating sheet forming unit 1 is positioned downstream with respect to the air flow direction from the suction fan unit 102 to the discharge fan unit 103.

Thereby, it can comprise so that the air in the housing | casing 101 may flow from the material layer formation part 110 side which needs cooling to the heating sheet forming part 1 side which is a raise factor of the internal temperature of the modeling apparatus 100. . Therefore, the temperature rise in the modeling apparatus 100 can be efficiently suppressed while cooling the material layer forming unit 110.
Here, FIG. 2 shows a form in which the suction fan unit 102 and the discharge fan unit 103 are arranged, but the present invention is not limited to this. If suction and discharge vents are respectively provided in the housing 101, it is sufficient that at least one of the suction fan unit 102 and the discharge fan unit 103 is arranged. As long as one of the suction fan unit 102 and the discharge fan unit 103 is arranged, an air flow inside the modeling apparatus 100 can be formed, and the inside of the modeling apparatus 100 is well ventilated. be able to.

[Example 3]
Example 3 will be described below. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected about the component similar to Example 1, 2, and the description is abbreviate | omitted.
FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a schematic configuration of the modeling apparatus according to the present embodiment.
Depending on the type of gas generated, it may be necessary to use a filter 8 having a low heat-resistant temperature. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, in the air circulation portion 7, an inflow opening portion 11 for taking in air is installed in a circulation path 71 upstream of the filter 8 in the air flow direction. Thus, before the air passes through the filter 8 in the circulation path 71 of the air circulation unit 7, the temperature of the air can be lowered to a temperature that the filter 8 can withstand (a temperature not higher than the heat resistance temperature of the filter).

At this time, the air circulation unit 7 may be configured to adjust the amount of air taken into the circulation path 71 based on the temperature of the air flowing into the filter 8. In other words, a temperature sensor (temperature detection unit) 14 is attached downstream of the inflow opening 11 in the air flow direction and upstream of the filter 8, and the detection result is inserted into the circulation path 71 from the inflow opening 11. You may provide the control part 15 which controls the inflow amount of the air to take in.
For example, the control unit may include an adjustment mechanism that adjusts the size of the inflow opening 11 and a driving unit such as an actuator that drives the adjustment mechanism. Alternatively, the fan 12 may be attached to the inflow opening 11 so that air is actively taken into the circulation path 71 by the fan 12.

In addition, if the temperature of the air after passing through the filter 8 is too low, the air flows into the heat insulating box 6 through the circulation path 71, so that the atmospheric temperature in the heat insulating box 6 may decrease. Concerned.
Therefore, it is preferable to control the inside of the heat insulating box 6 to be maintained at a predetermined atmospheric temperature by disposing a heating unit 13 such as a heater at or near the inflow port 62. Here, the installation position of the heating unit 13 is not limited to the inlet 62 or the vicinity thereof, and may be any one as long as it is installed in the circulation path 71 downstream from the filter 8.
Thereby, even when the temperature of the air after passing through the filter 8 is too low, the inside of the heat insulating box 6 can be kept at a predetermined atmospheric temperature.
Therefore, according to the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment described above, the life of the filter 8 can be extended. As a result, it is possible to extend the life of the modeling apparatus 100.

Here, in the above-described first embodiment, the configuration in which the heating unit is disposed only in the heating sheet forming unit 1 is illustrated. However, in FIG. 3 of the present example, the stacked heating unit 121 is also disposed in the modeling unit 120. The configuration is shown.
In the configuration illustrated in FIG. 3, the material layer 2 may be heated and melted in the modeling unit 120 as well, which may cause odor. For this reason, in this embodiment, the heat insulation box 122 is installed so as to surround the modeling part 120. And as shown in FIG. 3, the heat insulation box 122 and the heat insulation box 6 are connected so that the inside of the heat insulation box 122 and the inside of the heat insulation box 6 may communicate via the communicating port 16. FIG.
As a result, a flow path for air in which the air in the heat insulation box 122 flows into the air circulation unit 7 through the heat insulation box 6 is formed. Thereby, the gas generated in the modeling unit 120 can be cleaned by the filter 8 in the air circulation unit 7.

Further, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the air circulation unit 7 is connected to the outlet 61 and the inlet 62 of the heat insulating box 6 on the heating sheet forming unit 1 side, but this is not restrictive. Absent.
The air circulation part 7 may be connected to the heat insulation box 122 on the modeling part 120 side, and the inlet and outlet to which the air circulation part 7 is connected are provided in different heat insulation boxes. Good.
Each example described above is intended to exemplify the embodiment of the present invention, and can be combined and modified as much as possible within the scope of the present invention. For example, the present invention is also applied to an apparatus using a hot melt laminating method (FDM method) in which melted modeling material is ejected from a nozzle and laminated like a single stroke.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 5 ... Heating roller, 6 ... Thermal insulation box, 7 ... Air circulation part, 8 ... Filter, 100 ... Modeling apparatus

Claims (11)

In a modeling apparatus for producing a three-dimensional object by laminating heated modeling materials,
A first storage chamber in which a first heating unit for heating the modeling material is disposed;
An air circulation unit for circulating air in the first containing chamber;
Have
The modeling apparatus, wherein the air circulation unit includes a filter through which the circulating air passes. The first storage chamber includes an outlet through which air flows out and an inlet through which air flows;
The air circulation part is
A circulation path connecting the outlet and the inlet;
A fan that forms a flow of air from the outlet to the inlet in the circulation path;
Have
The modeling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the filter is disposed in the circulation path. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a negative pressure portion that makes the flow rate of the air flowing in from the inflow port smaller than the flow rate of the air flowing out from the outflow port so as to make the first accommodating chamber have a negative pressure. The modeling apparatus of description. The modeling apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the negative pressure portion includes an opening that is disposed in the circulation path and discharges a part of the air that has passed through the filter to the outside of the circulation path. The first storage chamber and the air circulation unit are stored in a housing;
The modeling apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a discharge unit that discharges air discharged from the opening to the outside of the circulation path to the outside of the housing. The first storage chamber and the air circulation unit are stored in a housing;
In the housing, a material layer forming unit that forms a material layer by arranging the modeling material based on slice data of a three-dimensional model,
The casing has a discharge section that discharges air discharged from the opening to the outside of the circulation path to the outside of the casing, and / or a suction section that takes air from outside into the casing. ,
6. The modeling apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the first heating unit is arranged downstream of the material layer forming unit in a flow direction of air inside the housing. It has a material layer forming part that forms the material layer by arranging the modeling material based on slice data of the three-dimensional model,
A conveyance belt that carries the material layer and conveys the material layer to the first heating unit;
The first storage chamber is provided with a passage through which the transport belt passes,
The modeling apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the first accommodating chamber is set to a negative pressure by the negative pressure portion. The inflow opening part which is arrange | positioned upstream in the circulation direction of the air in the said circulation path from the said filter, and takes in air into the said circulation path from the outside of the said circulation path is characterized by the above-mentioned. The modeling apparatus according to item 1. A temperature detection unit that is disposed downstream of the inflow opening in the circulation path in the air flow direction and detects the temperature in the circulation path;
A control unit for controlling the amount of air taken into the circulation path from the inflow opening based on the detection result of the temperature detection unit;
The modeling apparatus according to claim 8, comprising: The modeling apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a second heating unit that heats air flowing into the first storage chamber from the inflow port. A modeling part on which the modeling material heated in the first heating part is laminated;
A third heating unit provided in the modeling unit and further heating the modeling material heated by the first heating unit;
A second storage chamber in which the shaping unit is disposed;
Have
The said 1st storage chamber and the said 2nd storage chamber are connected, The air in the said 2nd storage chamber flows into the said filter through the said 1st storage chamber, The any one of Claim 1 thru | or 10 characterized by the above-mentioned. The modeling apparatus of Claim 1.

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