JPS61114817A - Apparatus for forming solid configuration - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten significantly the supplying time of a liquid photo-curable resin material, by providing means for supplying the photo-curable resin material uniformly onto a photo-curable resin surface from an opening section having a prescribed width that is elongate in a prescribed direction. CONSTITUTION:The supply of a certain amount of a liquid photo-curable resin material 31 is started from a supply port 35 spaced a distance l apart from the main scanning position of a laser beam 22 in the subscanning direction. From the point where the distance l or over is moved, the curing by exposure is carried out successively and selectively by the main scanning of the modulated laser beam 22, based upon a cross- section information pattern. When the resin material supply port 35 reaches the end of a container 30 and the curing by exposure is completed, the supply of the liquid photo-curable resin material 31 is stopped, and the subscanning of the resin holding container 30 is also stopped. Then the resin holding container 30 is lowered by a distance corresponding to the thickness of the liquid photo-curable resin material 31 that will be subjected to curing by exposure, and is returned to its original prescribed position, and the level adjustment is carried out such that an ftheta lens 28 is positioned at the focus position. The step is repeated to place layers of the exposed and cured resin successively, the resulting solid cured resin image is removed, and the liquid photo-curable resin material 31 is washed away.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention is a method of selectively exposing and curing a photocurable resin material using a laser beam scanning means to form a three-dimensional model shape that displays three-dimensional three-dimensional information. The present invention relates to a three-dimensional shape forming apparatus, and particularly relates to an improvement in a means for supplying a photocurable resin material.

As methods for displaying three-dimensional stereoscopic information, stereoscopic display using holography, perspective view display, projection view display, contour line display, etc. have been developed and are generally widely used. With the exception of holography, all of these methods can convert three-dimensional information into two
It includes a procedure for converting into dimensional information, and is not necessarily a satisfactory technique for intuitively grasping and fully understanding the displayed three-dimensional shape.

In this respect, the holography is visually and intuitively more advantageous than the above techniques, but it requires a reproduction device to obtain a three-dimensional shape, and it is difficult to display non-existent virtual objects. .

For this reason, in order to grasp 3D information intuitively and display it in an easy-to-understand manner, it is best to create a 3D shape such as a model, so it is relatively easy to create a 3D shape like a model. As a method, a photocurable resin material is supplied stepwise into a resin material storage container, and each time the resin material is supplied, the photocurable resin material is selectively photocured by a laser beam irradiation means to create a complex three-dimensional model. A method of forming a shape in a layered manner has been proposed.

However, in this conventional forming method, an overflow method is used to supply the photocurable resin material in stages, so it takes a long time to supply the material, and the entire forming process takes a long time. There is a problem that greatly affects the process, and there is a desire to shorten the resin supply time.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, as a method for forming a model shape that displays three-dimensional information using a laser beam irradiation means using a photocurable resin material, as shown in FIG. 12, a liquid photocurable resin material 3 is filled. The elevating support table 2 in the storage container l is lowered by a predetermined distance, and one portion of the photocurable resin material 4 is supplied by overflowing onto the elevating support table 2.

After that, - the laser beam 5 is irradiated onto the photocurable resin material 4 of the essential parts, for example, using the first information pattern signal among the cross-sectional information pattern signals obtained by dividing the model shape to be created into several slices; The first cured resin layer 4a is then selectively exposed and cured.

Next, as shown in FIG. 13, the lifting support 2 is lowered by a predetermined distance again, and a new second layer of photocurable resin material 6 is placed on the first cured resin layer 4a on the lifting support z. is supplied in the same manner as described above, and as shown in FIG. 14, the photocurable resin material 6 is irradiated with the laser beam 5 according to the second information pattern signal to selectively expose and cure it, thereby forming a second cured resin layer. 6a
form.

Thereafter, in the same manner as shown in FIG. 15, the second! A new third layer of photocurable resin material 7 is further supplied onto the l'-cured resin mBa, and a laser beam is applied to the photocurable resin material 7 according to the third information pattern signal as shown in FIG. 5 is selectively exposed and cured to form a third cured resin layer 7a, a laminated three-dimensional cured resin image is finally formed in the liquid photocurable resin material 3. .

This three-dimensional cured resin image is taken out from the liquid photocurable resin material 3, and by washing away the liquid photocurable resin material 3 with a dilute alkaline cleaning solution, a desired three-dimensional solid image is created as shown in FIG. A model shape 8 for displaying information is being created.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, the method for supplying the liquid photocurable resin material 3 in the above-mentioned forming method is not suitable for supplying the liquid photocurable resin material 3 onto the elevating support 2 that has been lowered by a certain amount, or on the elevating support 2 that has already been formed on the elevating support 2. As shown in FIGS. 13 and 15, the liquid photocurable resin material 4 or 6 is supplied by a so-called overflow method, in which the liquid photocurable resin material 4 or 6 is naturally flowed onto the cured resin layer 4a or 6a. Coupled with the relationship with the viscosity of the liquid photocurable resin material 3, a considerable amount of supply time is required to obtain a sufficient supply resin surface.

Therefore, when forming a three-dimensional shape in a layered manner as described above, the total supply time of the liquid photocurable resin material 3 is - the number of layers times the resin material supply time for the essential resin material, and the total forming process time is thick (there are problems that affect it).

In addition, as the viscosity of the liquid photocurable resin material 3 increases, not only does the supply time increase, but it also becomes difficult to control the thickness of each liquid photocurable resin layer, which slows down the formation process. This is a major obstacle to increasing speed and precision.

Furthermore, when supplying the liquid photocurable resin material 3 onto the cured resin layers 4a and 6a that have already been exposed and cured, since the volume or surface area of each cured resin layer is not constant, the resin material supply time for each layer is different. There is a drawback that it is not easy to control the entire process of forming the three-dimensional shape.

[Means for solving problems]

The above-mentioned problem can be solved by using a device that irradiates a photocurable resin material with a beam using a laser beam optical system to selectively harden the photocurable resin material to form a three-dimensional shape. Partly, the problem is solved by the three-dimensional shape forming apparatus according to the present invention, which comprises means for uniformly supplying a photocurable resin material to the surface of the photocurable resin.

[Function] That is, the supply port of the resin supply means for supplying the photocurable resin material to the resin storage container is made into an elongated opening in the laser beam main scanning direction with respect to the photocurable resin material surface of the resin storage container, When forming a three-dimensional shape by arranging the opening on the resin container in parallel with the main scanning direction of the laser beam, the resin container is moved by the sub-scanning table and at the same time a photocurable resin material is supplied from the resin material supply port. The supply of photocurable resin material to the resin storage container is stabilized by supplying the photocurable resin material into the resin storage container and exposing and curing the surface of the supplied photocurable resin material by selectively scanning the main beam with the beam. This can be done quickly and in a short time, and furthermore, it becomes possible to create a desired three-dimensional shape at high speed.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an embodiment of a three-dimensional shape forming apparatus according to the present invention.

In the figure, 21 is a laser device that emits a laser beam 22, 23 is an optical modulator using a functional element such as an acousto-optic effect, an electro-optic effect, or a magneto-optic effect, 24 is a reflecting mirror, and 25 and 26 are lenses. , 27 is a rotating polygon mirror, 28
is the laser beam 22 scanned by the rotating polygon mirror 27
is an fθ lens that has a function of scanning the irradiation surface at a constant speed, and the fθ lens 28 can set the focus of the laser beam 22 on the irradiation surface, and the diameter of the laser beam at the focus can be reduced to a minute diameter. This allows concentrated irradiation of beam energy. 29 is a scanning reflecting mirror.

Further, 30 is a resin storage container containing a liquid photocurable resin material 31, 32 is a support stand, and 33 is a support stand 32 that is moved and scanned in the direction of arrow A, and also finely adjusted in the up and down direction as shown by arrow B. Furthermore, 34 is a resin material supply mechanism section having a supply port (opening) 35 elongated in the main scanning direction of the laser beam with respect to the photocurable resin material surface of the resin container 30.

In such a configuration, the laser beam 22 emitted from the laser device 21 is modulated by the optical modulator 23, the beam 22 is converted into an appropriate beam diameter by the lens 25, 28, is deflected by the rotating polygon mirror 27, and is further The light is scanned at a constant speed by the fθ lens 28, and is irradiated in a focused manner onto the photocurable resin material surface of the resin container 30 by the scanning reflecting mirror 29.

Now, in order to form a desired three-dimensional model shape for displaying three-dimensional three-dimensional information using the above-described apparatus, first, as shown in FIG.
0 sub-scanning and a laser beam 2 on the resin container 30.
The elongated supply port 3 of the resin material supply mechanism section 34 is arranged at a distance l from the main scanning position of No. 2 in the sub-scanning direction.
5, the supply of a certain amount of liquid photocurable resin material 31 is started.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3, from the time when the resin storage container 30 has moved by a distance of 4 or more from the supply start position of the resin material 31 by sub-scanning, the resin storage container 30 is moved from the supply start position of the resin material 31 by an interval of 4 or more. Based on the cross-sectional information pattern signal obtained by dividing the three-dimensional model shape to be created into several slices from the shape signal control circuit, the light irradiation is performed selectively in sequence by light irradiation by main scanning of the modulated laser beam 22. It will be done.

That is, the liquid photocurable resin material 31 from the resin material supply port 35
Supply and exposure curing by main scanning of the laser beam 22 are performed simultaneously and in parallel.

Eventually, as shown in FIG. 4, when the resin material supply port 35 reaches the end of the container 30 and the exposure and curing of the predetermined pattern is completed, the supply of the liquid photocurable resin material 31 is stopped and the resin material supply port 35 reaches the end of the container 30. Sub-scanning also stops.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the resin storage container 3o is lowered by the sub-scanning mechanism 33 by the thickness of the resin material that is to be supplied and exposed to light to cure the liquid photocurable resin material 31, and the resin storage container 3o is The container 30 is quickly returned to its original predetermined position as shown in FIG. 6, and the level is adjusted so that the surface of the next layer becomes the focus position of the fθ lens 28 via the scanning reflector 29.

Hereinafter, the steps explained with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6 above are repeated, the exposed and cured resin layers are sequentially laminated, and this laminated three-dimensional cured resin image is taken out from the liquid photocurable resin material 31.
For example, by washing away the liquid photocurable resin material 31 with a dilute alkaline cleaning solution or the like, it becomes possible to efficiently form a three-dimensional model shape that displays desired three-dimensional stereoscopic information in a relatively short time.

That is, in this embodiment, since the supply of the liquid photocurable resin material 31 and the exposure curing by the laser beam 22 irradiation are performed almost simultaneously and in parallel, the average of the sub-scanning direction for the surface of the liquid photocurable resin material 31 is When the exposure area width is L, L
By making l small, the supply time of the liquid photocurable resin material 31 can be almost ignored, and only the exposure time and the operation time for returning the resin storage container 30 to its original predetermined position are shortened. Three-dimensional shapes can be formed in time.

Regarding the layer thickness of the liquid photocurable resin material layer supplied to the resin storage container 30, the length of the opening in the elongated supply port 35 of the resin material supply mechanism section 34 is determined by W, per unit time. When the supply amount of is S and the moving speed of the resin storage container 30 in the sub-scanning direction is V, when the length W of the opening and the width of the resin storage container 30 are equal, the supplied liquid photocurable resin material layer The layer thickness of is expressed by the following formula.

h=s/(w-v) That is, by keeping the supply amount S of the resin material constant, the liquid photocurable resin material can be supplied to have a uniform layer thickness.

7 to 11 are main part sectional views showing an embodiment of the three-dimensional shape forming apparatus according to the present invention, which sequentially explains the structure and operation of forming a three-dimensional shape, and FIGS. 6
Parts equivalent to those in the figure are given the same reference numerals.

This embodiment differs from the embodiments shown in FIGS. 2 to 6 in that the main scanning of the laser beam that irradiates the elongated resin material supply port of the resin material supply mechanism section 34 onto the liquid photocurable resin material layer. The liquid photocurable resin material is selectively supplied from either of these supply ports depending on the scanning direction of movement of the sub-scanning table 33 on which the resin storage container 30 is placed. is supplied into the resin storage container 30.

That is, as shown in FIG. 7, while sub-scanning the resin container 30 placed on the support stand 32, the resin container 3
For example, one of the two elongated supply ports 41 and 42 of the resin material supply mechanism section 34 which are disposed facing each other with a predetermined gap across the main scanning position of the laser beam 22 on the As shown in FIG. 8, supply of a certain amount of liquid photocurable resin material 31 is started.

After the resin material supply starts, a cross-sectional information pattern signal is sent from a shape signal control circuit (not shown) to the supplied liquid photocurable resin material layer 31, which is obtained by dividing the three-dimensional model shape to be created into several slices. Exposure and curing is selectively performed by light irradiation by main scanning of the laser beam 22 modulated based on.

That is, the liquid photocurable resin material 31 from the resin material supply port 42
Supply and exposure curing by main scanning of the laser beam 22 are performed simultaneously and in parallel.

Eventually, as shown in FIG. 9, when the resin material supply port 42 reaches the end of the container 30 and the exposure and curing of the predetermined pattern is completed, the supply of the liquid photocurable resin material 31 is stopped and the resin material supply port 42 reaches the end of the container 30. Sub-scanning also stops.

Next, as shown in FIG. 10, the resin storage container 30 is lowered by the sub-scanning mechanism 33 by the thickness of the resin material for which the liquid photocurable resin material 31 is supplied and exposed and cured.
Level adjustment is performed so that the surface of the next layer becomes the focal point of the fθ lens 28 via the scanning reflector 29.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 11, the resin storage container 30 is sub-scanned in a direction opposite to the sub-scanning direction, and a certain amount of liquid photocurable resin material 31 is started to be supplied from the other supply port 41. , selective exposure hardening is performed in parallel by light irradiation by main scanning of the laser beam 22 modulated based on the cross-sectional information pattern signal.

Hereinafter, these steps are repeated to sequentially stack the exposed and cured resin layers, and the layered three-dimensional cured resin image is taken out of the liquid photocurable resin material 31, and the liquid photocurable resin is washed with a dilute alkaline cleaning solution, for example. By washing away the material 31, it becomes possible to form a three-dimensional model shape displaying desired three-dimensional three-dimensional information more efficiently and in a shorter time than in the embodiment described above.

That is, in this embodiment, since the sub-scanning of the laser beam 22 on the surface of the liquid photocurable resin material 31 is a reciprocating scan, there is no need to return the resin container 30 to the initial predetermined position for each sub-scanning. Most of them have the advantage that three-dimensional shapes can be formed in a short time, such as the exposure and curing scanning time.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As is clear from the above description, according to the three-dimensional shape forming apparatus according to the present invention, the time for supplying the liquid photocurable resin material to the resin storage container is greatly shortened, and the liquid photocurable resin material with high viscosity is It is possible to stably supply a thin layer with a uniform thickness even when using a liquid photocurable resin material, and to quickly and accurately form a three-dimensional model shape that displays desired three-dimensional information using a liquid photocurable resin material. This has the advantage of making it possible to

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an embodiment of a three-dimensional shape forming apparatus according to the present invention, and FIGS. 2 to 6 are examples of operations for forming a three-dimensional shape by the three-dimensional shape forming apparatus according to the present invention. FIGS. 7 to 11 are cross-sectional views of main parts sequentially illustrating other embodiments of the three-dimensional shape forming apparatus according to the present invention and one embodiment of the operation of forming a three-dimensional shape. FIGS. , FIGS. 12 to 17 are explanatory diagrams showing a conventional method for forming a three-dimensional shape. In the figure, 21 is a laser device, 22 is a laser beam, 23 is an optical modulator, 24 is a reflecting mirror, 25 and 26 are lenses, 27 is a rotating polygon mirror, 28 is an fθ lens, 29 is a scanning reflecting mirror,
30 is a resin storage container, 31 is a liquid photocurable resin material, 32
33 is a sub-scanning mechanism section, 34 is a resin material supply mechanism section, and 35, 41, and 42 are resin material supply ports, respectively. 1111 23rd 3s Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 7 Figure 8rgJ Figure 9 Figure 10 Figure 11 Figure 12 Prisoner Figure 13 Figure 14 Flash Figure 15 Figure 16

Claims (1)

[Claims] In an apparatus that irradiates a photocurable resin material with a beam using a laser beam optical system to selectively harden the photocurable resin material and form a three-dimensional shape, the photocurable resin material is exposed through an opening of a predetermined width elongated in a predetermined direction. A three-dimensional shape forming apparatus comprising means for uniformly supplying a resin material to the surface of the photocurable resin.