Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor – With means applying wave energy or electrical energy...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-13
2002-07-02
Maki, Steven D. (Department: 1733)
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor
With means applying wave energy or electrical energy...
C156S510000, C156S516000, C156S583100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06413360
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique of forming a solid object, and more particularly to a method of forming a three-dimensional object easily with high accuracy by stacking and gluing sheets together and to a sheet lamination modeling apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, in order to fabricate a three-dimensional model having a complicated configuration, there has been proposed a method of stacking paper sheets on which heat-melting adhesive has been applied beforehand.
In this method, after stacking sheets one on the other, the sheets are glued together by heating the sheets with a hot roller. Then, an upper sheet is cut along a contour of a region constituting the three-dimensional object to be obtained.
However, according to this method, it was difficult to stack and glue paper sheets together with high accuracy to thereby fabricate a three-dimensional object having sufficient adhesive strength without separation of stacked sheets.
Further, paper sheets are subject to deformation by the effects of pressure, humidity, or the like. Additionally, with a certain thickness of the adhesive layer between the paper sheets, it was difficult to control the thickness in one adhesive layer to be even or to control the thickness of each adhesive layer to be the same. Therefore, it was difficult to ensure high fabricating accuracy of the three-dimensional model.
As an alternative way to fabricate a three-dimensional model, there has been proposed a photo-solidification modeling method. However, this method requires a step of light exposure by using a photo-solidifying resin. Therefore, the initial cost for preparing the equipment for performing this method is high, and the formed surface needs alcohol cleaning. Further, a secondary solidifying process is required after forming a model in order to obtain a perfect polymerization, so that it was difficult to fabricate such a three-dimensional object in an ordinary office.
SUMMARY
Therefore, the present invention provides a sheet lamination modeling method which can easily fabricate a three-dimensional object having sufficient strength without separation of stacked sheets.
Further, the present invention provides a sheet lamination modeling method which can fabricate a three-dimensional object having high accuracy.
Further, the present invention provides a sheet lamination modeling apparatus which can fabricate a three-dimensional object with high accuracy.
(1) A first aspect of the invention provides a method of forming a three-dimensional object by stacking and gluing sheets together, which comprises the steps of providing a lower sheet cut into an effective area constituting the three-dimensional object and a waste area not constituting the three-dimensional object, providing an upper sheet to be stacked on top of the lower sheet, the upper sheet having an effective area constituting the three-dimensional object and a waste area not constituting the three-dimensional object, supplying an adhesive between the lower sheet and the upper sheet and onto an area which extends outwardly of an overlapping area covering both the effective area of the upper sheet and the effective area of the lower sheet, thereby forming an effective adhesive layer, gluing the lower sheet and the upper sheet together, and cutting the upper sheet into the effective area and the waste area.
According to this method, the upper and lower sheets are glued together by supplying the adhesive onto an area larger than an area covering both of the effective areas of the upper and lower sheets (hereinafter referred to as an overlapping area). Thus, the upper and lower sheets are reliably glued together on the overlapping area, and a three-dimensional object having great strength without separation or deformation can be obtained with ease.
(2) A second aspect of the invention provides a sheet lamination modeling method according to the first aspect of the invention, which comprises the additional step of forming an auxiliary adhesive layer by supplying the adhesive less densely than the effective adhesive layer, onto the outside of the effective adhesive layer.
According to this method, with the auxiliary adhesive layer, the sheets can be supported during gluing and cutting operation. Thus, positional errors during gluing and cutting operation can be reduced and warps of the sheets can also be reduced.
(3) A third aspect of the invention provides a sheet lamination modeling method according to the first aspect of the invention,: wherein the adhesive is applied by electrostatic transfer.
According to this method, the adhesive can be applied by electrostatic transfer. Thus, it is possible to simply and easily fabricate a three-dimensional object in an ordinary office, and the amount and the position of the application of the adhesive can be set on a CAD system.
(4) A fourth aspect of the invention provides a sheet lamination modeling method according to the first aspect of the invention, wherein the upper sheet and the lower sheet are glued together under pressure.
According to this method, the effective adhesive layer (and the auxiliary adhesive layer) can be formed by pressurization. Thus, it is possible to make the lamination height of the object constant and to eliminate warps which may be generated on the stacked sheets. As a result, flatness of the stacked sheets can be secured and maintained, so that an object having sufficient accuracy can be obtained.
(5) A fifth aspect of the invention provides a method of forming a three-dimensional object by stacking and gluing sheets together, which comprises the steps of providing a lower sheet cut into an effective area constituting the three-dimensional object and a waste area not constituting the three-dimensional object, providing an upper sheet to be stacked on top of the lower sheet, the upper sheet having an effective area constituting the three-dimensional object and a waste area not constituting the three-dimensional object, supplying an adhesive between the lower sheet and the upper sheet, impregnating the adhesive into the upper sheet and the lower sheet under pressure, thereby forming a joined layer, and cutting the upper sheet into the effective area and the waste area.
According to this method, the adhesive is impregnated into both the upper and lower sheets by pressurization to form the joined layer through which the both sheets are tightly joined together. Thus, it is possible to eliminate fabrication errors which may be generated by the thickness of the adhesive layers, so that a three-dimensional object having high accuracy can be obtained.
Further, the impregnated adhesive forms the joined layer flat by pressurization at one time. Thus, it is possible to restrain warps or like defects of the sheets caused by moisture absorption, to thereby maintain flatness of the sheet lamination, and to secure the fabricating accuracy.
(6) A sixth aspect of the invention provides a sheet lamination modeling method according to the fifth aspect of the invention, wherein the adhesive is applied by electrostatic transfer.
According to this method, the adhesive is applied by electrostatic transfer, and thus, the amount and the position of the application of the adhesive can be easily controlled, so that a three-dimensional object having a complicated shape: can be obtained.
(7) A seventh aspect of the invention provides a method of forming a three-dimensional object by stacking and gluing sheets together, which comprises the steps of providing a lower sheet cut into an effective area constituting the three-dimensional object and a waste area not constituting the three-dimensional object, providing an upper sheet to be stacked on top of the lower sheet, the upper sheet having an effective area constituting the three-dimensional object and a waste area not constituting the three-dimensional object, supplying an adhesive between the lower sheet and the upper sheet, gluing the lower sheet and the upper sheet together under pressure, cutting the upper
Morita Satoshi
Sugiyama Kazuo
Dennison, Schultz & Dougherty
Kira Corporation
Maki Steven D.
LandOfFree
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