JPH05318606A - Method and device for forming three-dimensional shape - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a method for efficiently conducting a photosetting resin liquid removing process and a batchwise curing process without breaking or deforming a shaped three-dimensional object in a method for forming a required three-dimensional shape by laminating a plurality of photoset layers each formed by emitting a light to photosetting resin liquid. CONSTITUTION:In a resin liquid tank 10, a three-dimensional object M is shaped on a stage member 42. In a resin liquid removing process, photosetting resin liquid 12 adherently remaining on the surface of the shaped three-dimensional object M is removed in a cleaning tank 20 with this optically shaped three- dimensional object M loaded on the stage member 42. In a batchwise curing process, the three-dimensional object M with the resin liquid 12 removed is wholly cured to a final stage in a curing tank 30. In this manner, the soft three- dimensional object M before a final curing stage cannot be broken or deformed, and a labor of transferring the object M for every process can be omitted.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for forming a three-dimensional shape, and more specifically, it uses a photocurable resin that is cured by irradiation of light to mold and manufacture an article having a three-dimensional shape. Method and apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A method of forming a three-dimensional shape using a photocurable resin can easily and accurately form a complicated three-dimensional shape without using a molding die or a special processing tool. As a method, it is considered to use it for manufacturing various product models and three-dimensional models. Specifically, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-114817 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-114817.
There are methods disclosed in JP-A-141724 and JP-A-60-247515.

FIG. 8 shows a specific example of a conventional three-dimensional shape forming method. The resin liquid tank 1 contains the photocurable resin liquid 2. The table-shaped mounting member 4 moves up and down above and below the liquid surface of the photocurable resin liquid 2. A laser beam irradiation device 5 is provided above the resin liquid tank 1. The laser light irradiation device 5 includes an optical system such as a laser generator, a lens, and a reflecting mirror, and can irradiate the laser light R on the liquid surface of the photocurable resin liquid 2 while scanning the liquid surface in an arbitrary pattern. it can.

When the laser light R is irradiated on the liquid surface in a predetermined pattern with the table surface of the mounting member 4 arranged near the liquid surface of the photocurable resin liquid 2, the irradiation pattern of the laser light R is obtained. Therefore, the photocurable resin liquid 2 is photocured to form the photocurable layer m. When the mounting member 4 is sunk in stages and the pattern irradiation of the laser light R is repeated, a three-dimensional shaped object M in which a plurality of photocurable layers m are stacked is formed.

The uncured photocurable resin liquid remains adhered to the surface of the three-dimensional object obtained by such a method. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the photocurable resin liquid adhering to the surface of the resin molded product. In order to remove the photocurable resin liquid, a method of spraying a cleaning liquid such as an organic solvent onto the surface of the resin molded product to wash it off is considered. However, when a liquid having a function of dissolving the photocurable resin is used as the cleaning liquid, there is a problem that the surface of the resin molded product is melted and the three-dimensional shape that has been formed is destroyed. Then, in order to solve such a problem, the applicant of the present application has developed a method of using a liquid containing water as a main component as a cleaning liquid, and first, Japanese Patent Application No. 63-263782 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-1782).
Japanese Patent No. 11529).

Further, in the conventional three-dimensional shape forming method, when the photo-curable resin liquid is irradiated with light in a pattern by scanning with a laser beam or the like to form the photo-curable layer, the photo-curable resin is Do not expose to strong light for a long time to completely cure. Further, there are places where the curing is not sufficient as compared with other portions between the laser light scanning paths and between the stacked photo-curing layers. Therefore, after molding the three-dimensional shaped object, the whole obtained three-dimensional shaped object is collectively exposed to light with an ultraviolet lamp or heated to form the entire photo-curable resin constituting the three-dimensional shaped object. Is cured to the final cured state. This method has an advantage that the laser beam scanning can be performed at high speed to efficiently perform the modeling, and at the same time, the integrity and mechanical strength of the final three-dimensional object can be increased.

Therefore, in the conventional method for forming a three-dimensional shape, the step of forming a three-dimensional shape by irradiation with light, the step of removing the photocurable resin liquid remaining on the surface of the three-dimensional shape, and the three-dimensional shape are performed. Three types of processes, that is, a collective curing process for completely curing the product, were performed.

[0008]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional method, the stereolithography process, the resin liquid removing process, and the collective curing process are performed by independent devices. There has been a problem that it takes time and effort to transfer the shaped object, and the three-dimensional object is deformed or damaged during the transfer operation.

As described above, this is because the three-dimensional shape obtained at the stage of the stereolithography is not completely cured,
Since there is also an uncured part partially, it is relatively soft and weak, and easily deforms or breaks when an external force is applied. Therefore, when the three-dimensional shaped object in such a weak state is removed from the placement member 4 or the like that has been subjected to the stereolithography process and moved to a place where the resin liquid removing process or the batch curing process is performed, this transfer operation is performed. There is a high possibility that the three-dimensional object will be deformed or damaged. In particular, when a three-dimensional shaped object is directly formed on the mounting member 4 or the like, the three-dimensional shaped object is in a state of being strongly adhered to the surface of the mounting member 4 or the like. Therefore, if the three-dimensional object is to be peeled off from the mounting member 4 or the like, an unreasonable force is applied and the three-dimensional object is highly likely to be damaged.

Further, since the work of transferring the three-dimensional shape is performed every time when the resin molding process, the resin liquid removing process and the collective curing process are carried out, it takes a lot of time and labor to reduce the productivity. Become. Therefore, an object of the present invention is, in the method for forming a three-dimensional shape as described above, without damaging or deforming the three-dimensional shaped object formed in the stereolithography step, the resin liquid removing step and the collective curing step. It is to provide a method of efficiently performing. Another object is to provide a three-dimensional shape forming device used in such a method.

[0011]

A method for forming a three-dimensional shape according to the present invention, which solves the above-mentioned problems, is to irradiate a photocurable resin liquid with light to form a photocurable layer, and to form the photocurable layer. In a method of obtaining a desired three-dimensional shaped article by stacking a plurality of layers, the three-dimensional shaped article is shaped on a placing member, and the three-dimensional shaped article that has undergone this optical shaping step is placed on the placing member, A resin liquid removing step of removing the photo-curable resin liquid remaining on the surface of the molded three-dimensional object and a batch curing step of curing the entire three-dimensional object from which the resin liquid has been removed to the final stage. To do.

The basic method of forming a three-dimensional shape, that is, the method or step of forming a layer of resin liquid, irradiating light, or stacking a photo-curing layer, that is, a so-called stereolithography step has been described above. Various methods similar to the ordinary three-dimensional shape forming method as disclosed in each related art can be applied. As the photocurable resin liquid, various photocurable resins that are also used in the conventional three-dimensional shape forming method are used. Specific examples include urethane, urethane-acrylate, epoxy, and epoxy-acrylate-based photocurable resins.

In the stereolithography process, as described above, the table-shaped mounting member is immersed near the liquid surface of the photocurable resin liquid, and the liquid surface is irradiated with laser light so that the mounting member is placed on the mounting member. A method of forming a photo-cured layer on the mounting member, and stepping the mounting member in the resin liquid step by step, repeating the formation of the photo-cured layer by laser light irradiation to stack the photo-cured layer on the mounting member. In addition to the known method, various other conventionally known optical modeling methods such as a method of sequentially supplying a thin layer of a resin liquid onto a fixed mounting member to form a photo-cured layer are applied. can do. Depending on the difference in the stereolithography method, the configuration of the required device differs, and the structure and operation of the mounting member also change.

As the resin liquid removing step, various conventionally known resin liquid removing methods may be applied as long as the resin liquid remaining on the surface of the molded three-dimensional object can be removed well. You can Specifically, for example, a method of spraying a cleaning liquid composed of an organic solvent, water and other components onto the surface of a three-dimensional object, or immersing the three-dimensional object in the liquid of the cleaning liquid to flow or circulate the cleaning liquid. There is. If a cleaning liquid containing water as a main component as disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-111529 is used as the cleaning liquid, the photocurable resin forming the three-dimensional object is not dissolved, which is a preferable method. Become. Further, instead of the cleaning liquid, fine solid particles may be sprayed on the surface of the three-dimensional object to remove the resin liquid.

As the collective curing step, various conventionally known collective curing methods can be applied as long as the entire three-dimensionally shaped object formed by the optical molding can be cured to a final cured state. Specifically, it is cured by radiation such as irradiation with an ultraviolet lamp or by heating. In the present invention, the resin liquid removing step and the collective curing step are performed with the three-dimensional object formed on the mounting member as described above being mounted on the mounting member. Therefore, the mounting member needs to be provided with a material or a shape structure that can be processed in the resin liquid removing step and the batch curing step. The three-dimensional object that has undergone the batch curing step may be subjected to the subsequent steps while being placed on the placing member also in the subsequent steps, or may be transferred from the placing member to another transfer means or the like and then subjected to the subsequent treatment. You can also

The second and subsequent aspects of the present invention relate to an apparatus for carrying out the above method. The apparatus according to claim 2 includes a stereolithography unit that performs a stereolithography process, a resin liquid removal unit that performs a resin liquid removal process, and a batch curing unit that performs a batch curing process.
In addition to being provided separately, a mounting member moving means for sequentially moving the mounting member to each processing unit is provided.

The structures of the stereolithography section, the resin liquid removing section, and the collective curing section may be the same as those of the conventional known three-dimensional shape forming apparatus. The mounting member moving means is only required to move the mounting member in the horizontal direction or the vertical direction to move the mounting member to each of the processing units, and various moving mechanisms or transfer mechanisms in a normal machine device, for example, , A screw screw mechanism, a cylinder mechanism, a conveyor mechanism and the like can be combined. When the processing units are lined up in a straight line, the mounting member moving means moves the mounting member in a straight line, and when the processing units are lined up on the circumference, the mounting member moving unit mounts the members. The structure of the placing member moving means and the moving state of the placing member are changed according to the arrangement state of each processing unit such as circumferentially moving the placing member.

In the stereolithography section, it is necessary to move the mounting member up and down, or to move the mounting member up and down in order to carry a three-dimensional object into the resin liquid removing unit or the batch curing unit. In this case, the mounting member moving means,
A mounting member elevating means can be provided. Claim 3
In the device of (1), a stereolithography part for performing a stereolithography process, a resin liquid removal part for performing a resin liquid removal process, and a batch curing part for a batch curing process are arranged side by side on a movable movable body, separately from the movable body. Each processing unit can be selectively arranged at the ascending / descending position of the mounting member with respect to the vertically movable mounting member installed at a fixed position.

The moving body has a base-like shape in which at least a main part for processing a three-dimensional object in each processing unit can be installed, and is formed by a normal moving mechanism or a transporting mechanism used in various mechanical devices. , Movably provided. The mounting member is provided so as to be able to move up and down, and the structural portion to which the mounting member is attached is separate from the moving body.
It is fixedly installed in a fixed position. The moving body moves so that each processing unit can be selectively arranged at a position where the mounting member moves up and down. If the stereolithography unit is arranged at the elevating position of the mounting member, the stereolithography process can be performed, and if the resin liquid removing unit or the batch curing unit is disposed at the elevating position of the mounting member, each process is similarly performed. ..

Each processing unit is provided with a structural part directly required for processing a three-dimensional object, or a structural part which is an obstacle when another processing unit moves, and the like is installed on the moving body. It suffices to say that among the structural parts of each processing unit, there may be a structural part that is fixedly installed separately from the moving body. Specifically, for example, in the stereolithography unit, the resin liquid tank needs to be installed on the moving body, but the laser light irradiation device is fixed at a position away from the moving path of each processing unit of the moving body. Just install it. Further, in the resin liquid removing section, the cleaning tank needs to be installed on the moving body, but a cleaning liquid supply device or the like for supplying the cleaning liquid to the cleaning tank may be fixedly installed outside the moving body. However, in this case, the cleaning liquid supply device and the cleaning tank are connected by a flexible hose or the like so that the cleaning liquid can be supplied.

The apparatus according to claim 4 is provided with a processing tank provided with a vertically movable mounting member, and the processing tank is provided with an optical molding means for performing an optical molding step, a resin liquid removing means for performing a resin liquid removing step, and Equipped with a collective curing means for performing a collective curing step,
Each process can be performed sequentially in the processing tank. In this apparatus, all the processes of the stereolithography process, the resin liquid removing process, and the collective curing process are performed in one processing tank. Therefore, the mounting member only needs to be moved up and down in the processing tank, and may be provided with an operating mechanism similar to that of the mounting member that moves up and down in the resin liquid tank in the conventional ordinary optical modeling apparatus. A resin liquid and a cleaning liquid can be stored and discharged in the processing tank. Further, a laser beam irradiation device and an ultraviolet irradiation lamp for collective curing are also provided. However, when the stereolithography process is performed in the processing tank, the resin liquid is supplied to the processing tank, and when the resin liquid removal step is performed in the processing tank, the resin liquid is completely discharged before the cleaning liquid is supplied, and the processing liquid is collectively supplied in the processing tank. When performing the curing step, each processing means is arranged so that the structure inside the processing tank can be changed according to the processing content of each processing step such that the three-dimensional object is exposed. deep. When changing the configuration of the processing tank from the state for the stereolithography process to the state for the resin liquid removal process, the mounting member on which the three-dimensional shape is placed is moved to the outside of the processing tank and the conversion work inside the processing tank is performed. After performing the above, the three-dimensionally shaped object and the mounting member are returned to the processing tank.

[0022]

[Function] Since the three-dimensional shaped object is not completely cured, the processes up to the stereolithography step for molding the three-dimensional object, the resin liquid removing step, and the collective curing step are performed on the three-dimensional object. Apply as much force as possible, deform it,
It is necessary to handle it without damaging it.

Therefore, if the above-mentioned steps are carried out with the three-dimensional object placed on the placing member, the three-dimensional object will not be subjected to an unreasonable force and the three-dimensional object will not be applied. It will not be damaged. Moreover, since it is not necessary to move the three-dimensionally shaped object for each process, it is possible to improve the work efficiency. As an apparatus for carrying out such a method, in the apparatus of claim 2, the optical molding section, the resin liquid removing section and the collective curing section are separately provided, and the mounting member is moved to each processing section by the mounting member moving means. I am able to do it. When the mounting member moves to each processing unit, the processing process in each processing unit is performed. That is, in the stereolithography section, a three-dimensional object is formed on the placing member, the three-dimensional object is sent to the resin liquid removing unit while being placed on the placing member, and the resin liquid is removed by the resin liquid removing unit. The three-dimensional shape thus formed is sent to the batch curing section while being placed on the placing member. In this apparatus, each processing unit may be fixedly installed independently of each other as in the conventional case. Therefore, the structure of each processing unit is relatively simple and easy to manufacture. Further, if each processing unit itself uses the conventional apparatus as it is and installs only the mounting member moving means, it is possible to use known equipment.

In the apparatus of the third aspect, since the mounting member is installed at a fixed position, the structure of the mounting member is simplified, and the mounting member is moved up and down or a three-dimensional object mounted on the mounting member is mounted. Position control can be performed accurately. Therefore, in the stereolithography process,
Since the position of the mounting member can be controlled with high accuracy, the accuracy of shape of the photo-cured layer and the three-dimensional object to be formed becomes good. According to the apparatus of claim 3, in one processing layer, the stereolithography process,
Since all the processes of the resin liquid removing process and the collective curing process are performed, less equipment is required and the entire apparatus can be downsized as compared with the case where a processing unit is provided for each process.

[0025]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the overall structure of a three-dimensional shape forming apparatus. A resin liquid tank 10 is provided as a stereolithography unit that performs the stereolithography process. Resin liquid tank 1
At 0, the photocurable resin liquid 12 is stored. A laser beam irradiation device 50 is provided above the resin liquid tank 10. The laser light irradiation device 50 includes a laser light generator 52, a shutter 53, a condenser lens 54, and a set of two scanning mirrors 5.
The laser light R generated by the laser light generator 52 is supplied to the photocurable resin liquid 12 in the resin liquid tank 10.
It is possible to irradiate any position on the liquid surface of. Next to the resin liquid tank 10, a cleaning tank 20 is provided as a resin liquid removing section for performing the resin liquid removing step. Cleaning tank 20
The cleaning liquid 26 is stored in the pipe 23 and the pipe 23
The cleaning liquid supply device 22 is connected via the
4 is attached. Further, next to the cleaning tank 20, a curing treatment tank 30 is provided as a collective curing process unit that performs a collective curing process. The curing treatment tank 30 has a lid 3
2 is attached, and an ultraviolet irradiation lamp 34 for collective curing is attached to the back side of the lid 32. That is,
The resin liquid tank 10, the cleaning tank 20, and the curing treatment tank 30 are arranged in a line.

A placing member moving device 40 is provided adjacent to each tank 10, 20, 30. Placement member moving device 4
0, a mounting member 42 having a flat mounting base similar to that shown in FIG. 8 is attached to an elevating device 44 so as to be vertically movable. The elevating device 44 elevates and lowers the mounting member 42 by a screw screw mechanism that is rotationally driven by a motor. The elevating device 44 is the main body 4 of the moving device 40.
6 is attached so as to be movable in the horizontal direction. A moving mechanism such as the screw screw mechanism is also used as a mechanism for moving the elevating device 44 in the horizontal direction.
Therefore, the mounting member 42 is used for each of the tanks 10, 20, 3
It is possible to move horizontally in parallel with 0 and move up and down at any position.

The use of the three-dimensional shape forming device having the above structure will be described. First, in the state shown in FIG. 1, a stereolithography process is performed. The elevating device 44 is arranged next to the resin liquid tank 10, and the mounting member 42 is submerged in the photocurable resin liquid 12 of the resin liquid tank 10. A step of scanning a laser beam R emitted from the laser beam irradiating device 50 on the liquid surface of the photocurable resin liquid 12 to form a photocurable layer having a predetermined pattern;
A three-dimensional object in which a plurality of photocurable layers are stacked by alternately repeating the step of submerging the mounting member 42 in the photocurable resin liquid 12 and covering the photocurable layer with a new photocurable resin liquid 12. Shape M. The stereolithography process itself is the same as the conventional method.

When the stereolithography process is completed, the three-dimensional object M
After the mounting member 42 on which is mounted is lifted from the resin liquid tank 10, the elevating device 44 is moved to the position of the cleaning tank 20 for performing the next step. The resin liquid removing step is performed in the state shown in FIG. The placement member 42 is lowered from above the cleaning tank 20 to sink the three-dimensional object M into the cleaning tank 20, and the cleaning liquid 26 is supplied from the cleaning liquid supply device 22. Cleaning liquid 2
6 passes through the surface of the three-dimensional object M, rinses off the photo-curable resin liquid remaining on the surface of the three-dimensional object M, and discharges it from the drain pipe 24. When the resin liquid removing step is completed, the placing member 42 on which the three-dimensional object M is placed is placed.
Is lifted from the cleaning tank 20, and then the elevating device 44 is moved to the position of the curing tank 30 where the next step is performed.

In the state shown in FIG. 3, the collective curing step is performed.
After lowering the mounting member 42 into the curing treatment tank 30, the lid 3
Close 2 After that, when the ultraviolet irradiation lamp 34 is turned on, the three-dimensional object on the mounting member 42 is uniformly cured to the final stage. When the collective curing step is completed, the lid 32 is opened, and the mounting member 42 on which the three-dimensional object M is mounted is removed.
By pulling up from the curing treatment tank 30, the three-dimensionally shaped object M, which has been cured, is taken out.

When any post-treatment is carried out after the collective curing step, the elevating device 44 is further moved horizontally to transfer the mounting member 42 and the three-dimensional shaped object M to the target post-treatment step. You may do it. Further, since the three-dimensional shaped object M for which the collective curing step has been completed has been cured, there is no fear of being deformed or damaged even if it is removed from the mounting member 42. Therefore, the three-dimensional object M
May be removed from the mounting member 42 and the three-dimensional object M may be handled by an ordinary transportation means.

Next, the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 will be described. Since the basic structure of each processing step unit is the same as that of the above-mentioned embodiment, the difference will be mainly described. In this embodiment, the resin liquid bath 10, the cleaning bath 20, and the curing bath 3
0 is provided on a base plate-shaped moving body 62 included in the moving device 60. The moving body 62 is horizontally moved in a direction in which the tanks 10, 20, 30 are arranged by a screw screw mechanism driven by a motor. The cleaning liquid supply device 22 is fixedly installed separately from the moving body 62, and is connected to the cleaning tank 20 on the moving body 62 by a flexible piping hose 25. The lifting device 44 equipped with the mounting member 42 is used for the moving body 6
2 is fixedly installed at a fixed position separately from the position 2, and as the moving body 62 moves, the resin liquid tank 1
0, the cleaning tank 20, and the curing tank 30 are sequentially arranged. The laser light irradiation device 50 is installed so that the laser light R can be irradiated to the front position of the elevating device 44.

A method of forming a three-dimensional shape by the above apparatus will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the resin liquid tank 10 is mounted on the mounting member 4
The stereolithography process is performed in a state where the stereolithography process is arranged at a position adjacent to 2. The mounting member 42 is moved up and down in the resin liquid tank 10, and laser light R is emitted from above the resin liquid tank 10 by the laser light irradiation device 50.
The three-dimensional shaped object M is formed on the mounting member 42 by a normal stereolithography procedure such as irradiation with. When the three-dimensional object M is modeled, the mounting member 42 is pulled up onto the resin liquid tank 10 and then the moving body 62 is moved in the horizontal direction.

As shown in FIG. 5, the resin liquid removing step is performed in a state where the cleaning tank 20 is arranged at a position adjacent to the mounting member 42. The three-dimensional object M placed on the placing member 42 is immersed in the cleaning liquid 26, and the flexible hose 2 is pulled from the resin liquid supply device 22.
The cleaning liquid 26 is supplied to the cleaning tank 20 via 5 and the resin liquid remaining on the surface of the three-dimensional object M is removed. When the removal of the resin liquid is completed, the mounting member 42 is pulled up onto the cleaning tank 20, and then the moving body 62 is moved in the horizontal direction.

As shown in FIG. 6, the batch curing step is performed in a state where the curing treatment tank 30 is arranged at a position adjacent to the mounting member 42. The three-dimensional object M placed on the placing member 42 is put into the curing treatment tank 30, the lid 32 is closed, and then the ultraviolet lamp 34 is irradiated to cure the three-dimensional object M collectively. After that, when the mounting member 42 is pulled up onto the curing treatment tank 30, the three-dimensional shaped object M that has been cured to the final stage is obtained.

Next, the embodiment shown in FIG. 7 will be described. In this embodiment, the stereolithography process, the resin liquid removing process, and the collective curing process are performed in one processing tank 70. The photocurable resin liquid 12 or the cleaning liquid 26 can be arbitrarily supplied to or discharged from the processing tank 70. A resin liquid supply device 72 installed separately from the processing tank 70 and the processing tank 70 are connected to the processing layer 70 by a circulation pipe 73.
Further, in the processing tank 70, a cleaning liquid supply device 74 is provided with a pipe 73.
And a drainage pipe 75 is attached to the processing tank 70. A laser beam irradiation device 50 is provided above the processing bath 70.
Is provided. A lid 76 that can be opened and closed is provided at the upper end of the processing tank 70, and the ultraviolet irradiation lamp 7 is provided inside the lid 76.
7 is attached. Further, the mounting member 42 provided in the elevating device 44 moves up and down inside and outside the processing bath 70.

A method of forming a three-dimensional shape by the above apparatus will be described. First, the resin liquid 12 is stored in the processing tank 70, the mounting member 42 is submerged in the resin liquid 12, and the laser light R is irradiated from the laser light irradiation device 50, so that the three-dimensional object M is placed on the mounting member 42. Modeling. When the three-dimensional object M is modeled, the mounting member 42 is pulled up above the processing bath 70. Resin liquid 12
After returning to the resin liquid supply device 72, the cleaning liquid is supplied from the cleaning liquid supply device 74 to the processing bath 70. Mounting member 4
2 is lowered to immerse the three-dimensional object M in the cleaning liquid in the processing tank 70, and the resin liquid is removed. When the removal of the resin liquid is completed, the cleaning liquid is discharged. When the lid 76 is closed and the ultraviolet irradiation lamp 77 is turned on, the three-dimensional shape M is collectively cured. When the collective curing is completed, the mounting member 42
Is pulled up above the processing tank 70, and the three-dimensional object M may be taken out.

[0037]

According to the method for forming a three-dimensional shape according to the present invention described above, the three-dimensional shaped object formed in the stereolithography process is left on the mounting member on which the molding is performed. By performing the subsequent resin liquid removing step and collective curing step, it is possible to stably handle the three-dimensional object which is not completely cured without being deformed or damaged.

As a result, it is possible to provide a three-dimensional object having high shape accuracy and excellent quality performance. Also, since it is not necessary to move the three-dimensional object each time each process is performed, the labor of the work is saved and the work time is short.
Productivity can be improved. Further, according to the three-dimensional shape forming apparatus of the present invention, the above method can be simply and surely executed.

Particularly, in the apparatus according to the second aspect, the above method can be realized only by providing the mounting member moving means while keeping the respective processing units having the same structure as the conventional one. According to the apparatus of claim 3, since it is not necessary to move the mounting member to each processing unit,
The lifting operation of the mounting member in the stereolithography process can be performed with high accuracy, and the shape accuracy of the obtained three-dimensional object becomes good.

In the apparatus according to the fourth aspect, all the processing is performed in one processing tank, so that the entire apparatus can be downsized and the installation space for the apparatus can be reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an overall structure and a molding process of a three-dimensional shape forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a resin liquid removing step.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a batch curing process.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a molding process in another embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a resin liquid removing step.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a collective curing step.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing another embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Resin Liquid Tank 12 Photocurable Resin Liquid 20 Cleaning Tank 30 Curing Treatment Tank 40 Mounting Member Moving Device 42 Mounting Member 44 Elevating Device 50 Laser Light Irradiating Device M Three-dimensional Shaped Object

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A method of forming a photocurable layer by irradiating a photocurable resin liquid with light, and stacking a plurality of the photocurable layers to obtain a desired three-dimensional shaped object, comprising: A resin that removes the photo-curable resin liquid remaining on the surface of the molded three-dimensional object while the three-dimensional object that has been molded on the mounting member and has undergone this stereolithography process is still mounted on the mounting member. A method for forming a three-dimensional shape, which comprises performing a liquid removing step and a collective curing step of curing the entire three-dimensional object from which the resin liquid has been removed until the final stage. 2. An apparatus for use in the method of claim 1, comprising:
A mounting member that separately includes a stereolithography unit that performs the stereolithography process, a resin liquid removal unit that performs the resin liquid removal process, and a collective curing unit that performs the collective curing process, and that sequentially moves the mounting member to each processing unit. An apparatus for forming a three-dimensional shape, characterized by comprising a moving means. 3. A device for use in the method of claim 1, comprising:
The stereolithography part that performs the stereolithography process, the resin liquid removal part that performs the resin liquid removal process, and the batch curing part that performs the batch curing process are installed side by side on a movable movable body and installed at a fixed position separately from the movable body. A three-dimensional forming apparatus, wherein each processing unit can be selectively arranged at an elevating position of the mounting member with respect to the mounted mounting member which can be raised and lowered. 4. A device for use in the method of claim 1, comprising:
A processing tank provided with a vertically movable mounting member is provided, and the processing tank is provided with a stereolithography unit for performing a stereolithography process, a resin liquid removal unit for performing a resin liquid removal process, and a collective curing unit for performing a collective curing process. In addition, the three-dimensional shape forming apparatus is characterized in that each step can be sequentially performed in the processing tank.