Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Methods – Surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
Patent
1997-02-21
1999-03-02
Sells, James
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Methods
Surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
156256, 156267, 1562728, 1562755, 1563798, 1563799, 156512, 156538, 264405, 4251744, B32B 3100
Patent
active
058765506
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to the improvements in laminated object manufacturing (LOM) method and apparatus for forming three-dimensional objects out of laminations, and more particularly to the techniques relying on laminations produced out of powder based or sheet materials. The laminated object manufacturing process aims at automated production of metal, plastic, ceramic, and composite parts of unlimited complexity directly from a computer generated image.
Background Art
In order to understand the advantages which LOM system offers one has to consider how small batches of parts are usually produced. In conventional manufacturing the part's design is first created using computer aided design (CAD) or other drafting techniques. Later, manufacturing operations are defined and the prototype is painstakingly produced by conventional cutting or forming processes, often requiring skilled labor, considerable time and expense. Multiple tools and machines are used in such production as a rule. After the prototype testing, design changes are likely to occur, and laborious production process has to be repeated until the design is optimized.
Therefore, the ability to manufacture prototypes or small batches of parts directly as a computer output utilizing a single production device is highly desirable. If the modification of the design is needed after the part has been examined, a necessary change can be done on the computer screen and another "hard" copy can be created by the LOM system.
In general, the family of LOM systems proposed herein use laser as a tool for forming laminations and bonding them into a stack. In recent years, flexibility and responsiveness of laser based systems motivated a number of organizations and inventors to apply them in the three-dimensional object production. Several techniques based on two intersecting laser beams selectively solidifying ultra violet (UV) curable liquids at the point of their intersection deep within the liquid medium have been described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,041,476, 4,078,229, 4,238,840 and 4,288,861. These systems have suffered from a number of problems related to their resolution, exposure control and difficulties related to synchronous control of two intersecting laser beams.
A more successful process and system has been proposed by Charles W. Hull in U.S. Pat. No. 4,575,330. The stereolithography process described in this patent generates three-dimensional objects by curing a UV curable material with a single laser beam focused on the surface of a platform placed in a vat of a UV curable plastic. As the beam cures a cross-section of the part the platform makes an incremental move down thus exposing another layer of liquid plastic. The beam scans the new surface within the pattern of the desired cross-section solidifying the plastic material within that pattern and attaching it to the previous cross-section. The step is repeated until the desired object is produced.
In spite of a number of advantages gained by this method with respect to earlier technologies the method has a disadvantage of being capable of producing parts out of liquid (mainly UV curable) polymers only. These polymers represent a relatively limited group of materials. They are often toxic. The parts produced through the UV curing process are usually only partially cured and therefore are dimensionally and structurally unstable as they are removed from the vat.
In order to prevent their sinking into the liquid, a substantial support structure has to be designed and built for cross-sections located above the platform and unattached to other cross-sections at a particular level. The process also creates internal stresses within the plastic part created as a result of a shrinkage caused by the UV curing process. These stresses cause warpage of unsupported or suddenly expanding cross-sections and therefore make it difficult to create certain geometries. Thick walled parts are difficult to create for the same reason. The speed of the process is also limited by the low powers of currently
REFERENCES:
patent: 3280230 (1966-10-01), Bradshaw, Jr. et al.
patent: 3301725 (1967-01-01), Frontera
patent: 3539410 (1970-11-01), Meyer
patent: 3932923 (1976-01-01), DiMatteo
patent: 4196737 (1980-04-01), Bevilacqua
patent: 4323756 (1982-04-01), Brown et al.
patent: 4361262 (1982-11-01), Israeli
patent: 4575330 (1986-03-01), Hull
patent: 4752352 (1988-06-01), Feygin
patent: 4814296 (1989-03-01), Jedlicka et al.
patent: 4847137 (1989-07-01), Kellen et al.
patent: 4863538 (1989-09-01), Deckard
patent: 4880486 (1989-11-01), Maeda
patent: 4945203 (1990-07-01), Soodak et al.
patent: 4961154 (1990-10-01), Pomerantz et al.
patent: 5002854 (1991-03-01), Fan et al.
patent: 5015312 (1991-05-01), Kinzie
patent: 5037416 (1991-08-01), Allen et al.
patent: 5094935 (1992-03-01), Vassiliou et al.
patent: 5174843 (1992-12-01), Natter
patent: 5354414 (1994-10-01), Feygin
patent: 5514232 (1996-05-01), Burns
patent: 5578155 (1996-11-01), Kawaguchi
patent: 5637175 (1997-06-01), Feygin et al.
Feygin Michael
Pak Sung Sik
Helisys, Inc.
Sells James
LandOfFree
Laminated object manufacturing apparatus and method does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Laminated object manufacturing apparatus and method, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Laminated object manufacturing apparatus and method will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-418569