KR20170130124A - System for monitoring 3d printer - Google Patents

Abstract

A 3D printer monitoring system according to the present invention which creates a 3D model by forming layers of a material on top of one another, comprises: a printer unit which includes a print head adapted for discharging the material, and includes a motor driving unit adapted for changing a displacement of the print head according to a command code; a sensor unit which detects a current signal of the motor driving unit; a control unit which calculates the displacement of the print head and a progress rate of a 3D model formation by using the signal detected by the sensor unit to calculate a production finish time of the model; and a server unit which transmits information calculated by the control unit to multiple terminals. The monitoring system according to the present invention provides multilateral information to a user regarding an operational status of the 3D printer by calculating and providing the production progress rate and production finish time of the model. Further, by utilizing such information, the operational status of the 3D printer may be visually realized. Furthermore, by transmitting information regarding the operational status of the 3D printer to multiple terminals, the monitoring system may allow multiple users to monitor the operational status of the 3D printer from anywhere.

Description

A 3D printer monitoring system {System for monitoring 3d printer}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a three-dimensional printer monitoring system, and more particularly, to a three-dimensional printer monitoring system that remotely provides operating conditions of three-dimensional printing to a plurality of users.

3D printing technology is also called additive manufacturing. It is based on the shape of an object modeled on a design program, and a material such as a polymer material, plastic or metallic powder is laminated in a continuous layer, and a three- Refers to a technique for manufacturing an object.

The 3D printing method is divided into FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling), DLP (Digital Light Processing), SLA (Stereolithography Apparatus) and SLS (Selective Laser Sintering).

Among them, the FDM method is an extrusion laminate molding method, melting plastic materials such as ABS and PLA by using heat, accumulating them at the positions indicated in the modeling, and producing the result. Such an FDM method is not only simple in structure but also used in a solid state material, so that it is the most commonly used method because it is easy to manage.

The 3D printer structure of the FDM scheme includes an inkjet for outputting a material, a G-code generator for generating G-code for the X, Y, and Z axes through modeling, and a G-code generator for analyzing the G-code to transfer the inkjet in the X, A motor driving unit, and a bed on which a manufactured model is seated.

Such a 3D printer may cause defective end products when the inkjet does not operate in the course of printing or printing is performed at an incorrect angle. In order to solve this problem, a system has been proposed in which the operation status of a 3D printer is monitored and a malfunction is detected.

Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-2015-0113843 is disclosed as a related technology. Wherein the printer includes a conductive substrate, wherein the printhead discharges the structural material in a test pattern. The plurality of conductive members arranged in a pattern corresponding to the test pattern are moved toward the predetermined distance substrate so that the member ends contact the substrate surface or the structural material of the substrate. A current source in contact with the substrate provides current to the members in contact with the substrate. Thus, inkjets corresponding to the members from which the current is generated are identified by inactivity and the printing of the object is stopped so that the restoring action is taken against the printhead, (Hereinafter referred to as "detection system").

However, the conventional detection system provides only information on whether the print head (inkjet) is not operated, and the information can be transmitted only when the user is located adjacent to the detection system.

Accordingly, there is a demand for a monitoring system that can provide more diverse information and allow users to access information regardless of the place.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a three-dimensional printer monitoring system which is easy to access information on the operation status of a 3D printer and is capable of providing more various information.

A three-dimensional printer monitoring system according to the present invention is a three-dimensional printer monitoring system for producing a three-dimensional model by stacking raw materials, comprising: a print head for discharging the raw material; and a motor driver for moving the displacement of the print head according to an instruction code A printer section; A sensor unit for sensing a current signal of the motor driving unit; A control unit for calculating a manufacturing completion time of the model by calculating a displacement of the print head and a manufacturing progress rate of the 3D model using a signal sensed by the sensor unit; And a server unit for transmitting the information calculated by the controller to a plurality of terminals.

Wherein the motor driver comprises an x-axis motor for moving the x-axis displacement of the printhead, a y-axis motor for moving the y-axis displacement of the printhead, and a z-axis motor for moving the z- .

The sensor unit includes a thermal sensor for sensing heat generated in the printer unit, a hall sensor for sensing current signals of the x-axis motor, the y-axis motor, and the z-axis motor, and the x- and an angular position sensor for sensing a torque generated in rotation of the z-axis motor.

The control unit receives the current signals of the x-axis motor, the y-axis motor, and the z-axis motor from the hall sensor, reads the command code transmitted to the x-axis motor, the y- Can be calculated.

In addition, the controller may determine an operating state of the printer unit using the information received from the thermal sensor and the angle sensor.

According to the three-dimensional printer monitoring system of the present invention, it is possible to provide the user with various information about the operation status of the 3D printer by calculating and providing the manufacturing progress and the completion time of the model, You can visually implement the operation status of the 3D printer.

In addition, information on the operation status of the 3D printer can be transmitted to a plurality of terminals, so that a plurality of users can monitor the operation status of the 3D printer without restriction to a place.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a process of providing operation information of 3D printing to a user's terminal using a three-dimensional printer monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing the configuration of the printer unit, the sensor unit, and the control unit shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a signal transfer process of the Hall sensor shown in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a process of calculating a manufacturing progress rate and a manufacturing completion time of the model in the control unit shown in FIG. 2;
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which G-code is visualized in step S420 shown in FIG. 4,
FIG. 6 is a chart recording current changes in the x-axis, the y-axis, and the z-axis sensed through the hall sensor in step S440 shown in FIG.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, terms and words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as limited to ordinary or dictionary terms, and the inventor should appropriately interpret the concepts of the terms appropriately The present invention should be construed in accordance with the meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention.

Therefore, the embodiments described in the present specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are merely the most preferred embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the technical ideas of the present invention are described. Therefore, at the time of the present application, It should be understood that variations can be made.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a process of providing information on the operation status of 3D printing to a user's terminal using a three-dimensional printer monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention. And FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a signal transmission process of the Hall sensor shown in FIG. 2. Referring to FIG.

Referring to FIG. 1, a 3D printer monitoring system (hereinafter referred to as a "monitoring system") according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a system for remotely transmitting information on the operation status of 3D printing to a plurality of users to be. To this end, the monitoring system includes a printer unit 100, a sensor unit 200, a control unit 300, and a server unit 400.

The printer unit 100 stacks raw materials to produce a three-dimensional model. Referring to FIG. 2, the printer unit 100 includes a printhead 110 and a motor driver 120. The print head 110 has nozzles through which raw materials are injected at the lower end thereof, and is transported in three axial directions by the motor driving unit 120. At this time, the fuel injected from the nozzle forms a layer, and a plurality of the layers are stacked to produce a three-dimensional model. The motor driving unit 120 receives the command code generated in the 3D modeling process and moves the displacement of the print head 110 according to the command code. The motor driving unit 120 includes an x-axis motor 121 for moving the x-axis displacement of the print head 110, a y-axis motor 122 for moving the y-axis displacement of the print head 110, And a z-axis motor 123 for moving the z-axis displacement of the printhead 110. [ Here, the instruction code designates the number of rotations for the x-axis motor 121, the y-axis motor 122, and the z-axis motor 123, respectively. One end of the motor driving unit 120 is connected to the x-axis motor 121, the y-axis motor 122 and the z-axis motor 123 and the other end is connected to the print head 110, (Not shown) for linearly driving the print head 110 using the rotational force of the motor 121, the y-axis motor 122 and the z-axis motor 123. That is, the x-axis motor 121, the y-axis motor 122, and the z-axis motor 123 are rotated a specified number of times according to the instruction code, Axis, and the z-axis direction, corresponding to the rotation of the print head 122 and the z-axis motor 123, respectively.

The sensor unit 200 senses a current signal of the motor driving unit 120. 2 and 3, the sensor unit 200 includes a hall sensor 220 for sensing current signals of the x-axis motor 121, the y axis motor 122, and the z axis motor 123 . The hall sensor 220 senses a current signal generated by the rotation of the x-axis motor 121, the y axis motor 122, and the z axis motor 123. The hall sensors 220 may be connected to the x-axis motor 121, the y-axis motor 122, and the z-axis motor 123, respectively. The Hall sensor 220 includes a magnet disposed radially to the rotation axis of the x-axis motor 121, the y-axis motor 122 and the z-axis motor 123, and a sensor terminal for sensing a magnetic field emitted from the magnet . At this time, a current signal (magnetic field change) is generated in the magnet by rotation of the rotation axis of the x-axis motor 121, the y axis motor 122 and the z axis motor 123, and the sensor terminal generates the current signal ). The principle of the hall sensor 220 as described above is well known, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted. Also, the Hall sensor 220 transmits the sensed current signal to the controller 300.

The sensor unit 200 may further include a thermal sensor 210 and an angle sensor 230. Here, the heat sensor 210 senses heat generated in the printer unit 100. The inverse angle sensor 230 senses torque generated in the rotation of the x-axis motor 121, the y axis motor 122, and the z axis motor 123. At this time, the thermal sensor 210 senses an overload of the printer unit 100, and the angle sensor 230 senses the non-operation of the print head 110. The sensor unit 200 may further include a camera (not shown) for photographing the driving state of the printer unit 100, and may transmit the photographed image of the control unit 300. At this time, signals or images recorded from the thermal sensor 210, the angle sensor 230 and the camera are transmitted to the controller 300.

The control unit 300 compares the signal sensed by the sensor unit 200 with a command code transmitted to the motor driving unit 120 to calculate the displacement of the print head 110 and the manufacturing progress of the model.

Hereinafter, a method for deriving the manufacturing progress and production completion time of the 3d printing in the control unit 300 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6. FIG.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a process of calculating the progress and the completion time of 3d printing in the control unit shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 5 is a view showing a state in which G-code is visualized in step S420 shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a chart recording current changes in the x-axis, the y-axis, and the z-axis sensed through the hall sensor in step S440 shown in FIG.

First, the controller 300 generates a G-code for the 3D model (S410). In this case, the G-code is a file in which three-dimensional coordinate values to be moved by the print head 110 are recorded, and controls the movement path of the print head 110. At this time, the controller 300 preferably divides the designed STL file format modeling data laterally using a slicer, and then converts the STL file format modeling data into G-code format.

The controller 300 visualizes the G-code and displays the G-code on a three-dimensional basis (S420). At this time, the controller 500 can visualize G-code as shown in FIG. 5, and can visually represent the machining feature of the model. At this time, the control unit 300 linearly visualizes the movement path of the print head as shown in FIG.

Then, the printer unit 100 is operated to start 3d printing of the model (S430).

At this time, as the print head 110 moves, a signal of a current of a motor connected to each axis of the print head 100 is sensed by the Hall sensor 220 at step S440. Here, the hall sensor 220 senses a current signal due to rotation of the x-axis motor 121, the y axis motor 122, and the z axis motor 123. At this time, the control unit 300 records the signal transmitted from the hall sensor 220 as shown in FIG.

In step S450, the controller 300 compares the visualized G-code with the current signal of each axis and tracks coordinate values corresponding to the current signal on the G-code.

In step S460, the controller tracks the current operation position of the print head 110 as described above. At this time, the position of the identified print head 110 is displayed on the image obtained by visualizing the G-code.

Finally, the control unit 300 calculates the manufacturing progress and the manufacturing completion time using the operation position of the print head 110 (S470). At this time, the controller 300 marks the current operating position on the linearly visualized G-code and calculates the ratio of the length of the entire G-code occupied by the length to the marked operating position to calculate the manufacturing progress It is desirable to do it. Also, the control unit 300 may calculate the manufacturing completion time by comparing the production progress rate calculated as described above with the time taken until the current operation time.

At this time, the controller 300 may visualize information on the manufacturing progress and the manufacturing completion time calculated as described above, and convert the visualization data into image data.

Also, the control unit 300 transmits the image data to the controller 300 together with the information received from the thermal sensor 220, the angle sensor 230, and the camera. At this time, the controller 300 transmits the collected information to the server 400.

The server unit 400 collects information transmitted from the controller 300 and transmits the collected information to a plurality of terminals. At this time, the server unit 400 displays and collects the collected information to a plurality of terminals and transmits the information. At this time, the terminal may be a portable terminal such as a computer, a notebook computer, or a smart phone

The monitoring system according to the present invention can provide various information about the operation status of the 3D printer to the user by calculating and providing the manufacturing progress and the manufacturing completion time of the model. In addition, the operation status of the 3D printer can be visually implemented using the above information and the information.

In addition, information on the operation status of the 3D printer can be transmitted to a plurality of terminals, so that a plurality of users can monitor the operation status of the 3D printer without being restricted to a place.

It will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the true scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

100: Printer section
110: printhead
120:
121: x-axis motor
122: y-axis motor
123: Z-axis motor
200:
210: Thermal sensor
220: Hall sensor
230:
300:
400:

Claims (5)

A printer unit having a print head for ejecting the raw material and a motor driving unit for moving the displacement of the print head according to an instruction code, the three-dimensional model being produced by laminating the raw materials;
A sensor unit for sensing a current signal of the motor driving unit;
A control unit for calculating a manufacturing completion time of the model by calculating a displacement of the print head and a manufacturing progress rate of the 3D model using a signal sensed by the sensor unit; And
And a server unit for transmitting the information calculated by the controller to a plurality of terminals. The method according to claim 1,
The motor drive unit includes:
An x-axis motor for moving the x-axis displacement of the printhead,
A y-axis motor for moving the y-axis displacement of the print head,
And a z-axis motor to move the z-axis displacement of the print head. The method according to claim 1,
The sensor unit includes:
A thermal sensor for sensing heat generated in the printer unit,
A hall sensor for sensing current signals of the x-axis motor, the y-axis motor, and the z-
Axis motor, and a yaw axis sensor for detecting a torque generated in rotation of the x-axis motor, the y-axis motor, and the z-axis motor. The method of claim 3,
The control unit receives the current signals of the x-axis motor, the y-axis motor, and the z-axis motor from the hall sensor, reads the command code transmitted to the x-axis motor, the y- Printer monitoring system for calculating displacement. The method of claim 3,
Wherein the control unit determines the operating state of the printer unit using the information received from the thermal sensor and the angle sensor, and transmits the information to the server unit.

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