JP7485536B2 - 3D modeling equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a three-dimensional modeling device.

Conventionally, 3D modeling devices that create 3D objects using the fused deposition modeling (FDM) method use a raw material (filament resin) made from a resin material that is hard at room temperature, such as thermoplastic PLA (Polylactic Acid) or ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene), in the form of threads (filaments).

This filament resin is wound and held on a filament reel (bobbin part) that is fixed to the outside (wall surface) of the housing of the three-dimensional modeling device, for example, and then transported to a transport mechanism such as a gear drive that is provided upstream of the melting part of the nozzle head that has an outlet. The filament resin is then transported to the nozzle head by this transport mechanism, and is discharged from the outlet in a molten state by the transport force of the transport mechanism to the nozzle head to layer the three-dimensional model (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).

JP 2018-89923 A JP 2019-155885 A

However, in the conventional three-dimensional modeling devices disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, when a three-dimensional object is formed, the filament resin is transported through a filament path from a material supply unit including a filament reel fixed to the outside of the housing to a transport mechanism that moves together with the nozzle head, which can cause the following problems:

In other words, if the positional relationship between the material supply unit and the conveying mechanism becomes far during modeling, the insertion angle of the filament resin becomes particularly steep at the insertion port of the conveying mechanism. This makes it easier for friction and refraction (bending) to occur in the filament resin along the filament path, including the insertion port. In such a situation, the conveying mechanism requires additional force to feed or retract the filament resin, which may impair the stable supply of the filament resin.

In addition, if modeling is performed in a situation where the transport mechanism moves quickly, some filament resins may break or stretch, making it impossible to sufficiently eject molten resin from the nozzle head outlet. In such cases, the layering of the three-dimensional object itself may stop, causing the modeling to fail.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a three-dimensional modeling device that can stably supply and transport resin material.

The three-dimensional modeling device according to the present invention is characterized in that it has a heating means for heating and melting a resin material, a nozzle head for discharging the molten resin material, a transport mechanism for feeding the resin material to the nozzle head and pushing out the resin material to be discharged, a first drive unit for driving the transport mechanism so as to be movable together with the nozzle head, a supply mechanism arranged apart from the transport mechanism and supplying the resin material to the transport mechanism, a second drive unit for driving the supply mechanism so as to be movable, and a control unit for controlling the first drive unit and the second drive unit.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the control unit controls the operation of the second drive unit so that the supply mechanism can follow the position of the transport mechanism.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the control unit determines whether the positional relationship between the position of the transport mechanism and the position of the supply mechanism satisfies a predetermined condition, and if the predetermined condition is met, controls the operation of the second drive unit to move the supply mechanism.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the control unit determines, as the predetermined condition, whether the positional relationship exceeds a preset distance.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the control unit determines, as the predetermined condition, whether the positional relationship is such that the insertion angle of the resin material from the supply mechanism to the conveying mechanism with respect to the horizontal plane is below a predetermined angle.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the transport mechanism and the supply mechanism are arranged to be freely movable within a first parallel plane and a second parallel plane, respectively, and the movement area of the supply mechanism in the second parallel plane is narrower than the movement area of the transport mechanism in the first parallel plane.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the supply mechanism is configured to be positionable above the transport mechanism.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the supply mechanism includes a bobbin portion around which the resin material before supply is wound and rotatably attached.

The present invention allows for stable supply and transport of resin materials.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic view of a part of a three-dimensional printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the three-dimensional modeling apparatus. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation of the three-dimensional modeling apparatus. 11A to 11C are diagrams for explaining an operational concept regarding the pursuit of a filament supply unit of the three-dimensional modeling apparatus. 13A to 13C are diagrams for explaining the operational concept regarding the tracking of the filament supply unit based on the insertion angle of the filament resin of the three-dimensional modeling device.

Below, a three-dimensional printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. However, the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to each claim, and not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic of a portion of a three-dimensional modeling device according to one embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic of the functional configuration of this three-dimensional modeling device. As an example of the three-dimensional modeling device of this embodiment, a fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printer 100 shown in Figures 1 and 2 will be used for explanation. Note that the 3D printer 100 creates three-dimensional objects by ejecting and layering molten resin, but since the basic structure is already known, a major explanation will be omitted here unless necessary.

In addition, in the drawings used in the following description, the scale and dimensions of each component may be exaggerated, and some components may be omitted. In addition, in the following description, the "X-axis direction" refers to the left-right direction when facing the front of the 3D printer 100, the "Y-axis direction" refers to the depth direction in this case, and the "Z-axis direction" refers to the up-down direction (vertical direction) that intersects with the X-axis and Y-axis directions.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, an FDM type 3D printer 100 includes, for example, a nozzle head unit 10 and a filament supply unit 20 that supplies a filament resin 9, which is a resin material, to the nozzle head unit 10. In addition, the 3D printer 100 is provided with, for example, a computer 200 as a control device that controls the entire 3D printer 100.

The nozzle head 10 has a heat melting section 11 as a heating means for heating and melting the filament resin 9, and extrudes the molten resin. In this embodiment, an extruder 12 is provided as a conveying mechanism for feeding the filament resin 9 into the nozzle head 10 and pushing out the molten resin to be extruded, and is provided integrally with the heat melting section 11 in the nozzle head 10, for example.

Therefore, in the following description, the nozzle head unit 10 is configured to be movable in the X-axis and Y-axis directions by the head drive unit 102 as the first drive unit, but if the extruder 12 is provided separately from the nozzle head unit 10, the first drive unit only needs to drive the extruder 12 to be movable in the X-axis and Y-axis directions.

The filament supply unit 20 is disposed above the extruder 12 of the nozzle head unit 10, for example at a predetermined distance in the Z-axis direction. The filament supply unit 20 has a supply box 21 surrounded by a rectangular frame, and a bobbin unit 22 inside the supply box 21 around which the filament resin 9 is wound and rotatably attached before being supplied to the extruder 12. The bobbin unit 22 is detachably attached to the supply box 21.

The filament supply unit 20 is configured to be movable in the X-axis and Y-axis directions in the same way as the nozzle head unit 10, by an XY drive unit 104 serving as a second drive unit. The head drive unit 102 and the XY drive unit 104 are controlled by a computer 200. The computer 200 is configured to be able to acquire position information of the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20, for example, according to the state of the head drive unit 102 and the XY drive unit 104.

The 3D printer 100 also includes a housing frame 101, a modeling table (not shown), and a lifting mechanism for the modeling table. The housing frame 101 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape that is elongated in the Z-axis direction, for example, and includes a framework made of aluminum, iron, or the like. Near the four corners from the bottom of the housing frame 101 to the head drive unit 102, for example, four Z-axis guide shafts 103 are formed to extend in the Z-axis direction.

The Z-axis guide shaft 103 is, for example, a straight rod-shaped member that determines the direction for moving the modeling table in the Z-axis direction. The number of Z-axis guide shafts 103 can be set to various numbers as long as the modeling table can be stably maintained and moved. The modeling table also serves as a base on which the modeled object is placed, and functions as a platform on which the molten resin ejected from the nozzle head unit 10 is accumulated.

The lifting mechanism is configured with a roller (not shown) that rotates in contact with the Z-axis guide shaft 103 provided on the modeling table, and a power transmission mechanism (not shown) that transmits the driving force of the motor through a timing belt, wire, pulley, etc. The lifting mechanism moves the modeling table, for example, in the Z-axis direction at a predetermined interval.

The head drive unit 102 has a frame 102a provided around the middle of the housing frame 101 in the Z-axis direction, a pair of X-axis guide rails 13a provided inside the frame 102a in the vicinity of the frame 102a along the X-axis direction, and a pair of Y-axis guide rails 13b provided inside the frame 102a in the vicinity of the frame 102a along the Y-axis direction. The X-axis guide rails 13a and the Y-axis guide rails 13b are offset in the Z-axis direction so as not to interfere with each other.

The head drive unit 102 also has a pair of X-axis sliders 14a slidably mounted on the X-axis guide rail 13a, and a pair of Y-axis sliders 14b slidably mounted on the Y-axis guide rail 13b. The head drive unit 102 also has an X-axis drive motor 17a for moving the X-axis sliders 14a along the X-axis direction, and a Y-axis drive motor 17b for moving the Y-axis sliders 14b along the Y-axis direction.

Both ends of the Y-axis guide pole 16b are fixed to the X-axis slider 14a, and both ends of the X-axis guide pole 16a are fixed to the Y-axis slider 14b, which are also fixed to the Y-axis slider 14b. The X-axis guide pole 16a and the Y-axis guide pole 16b are offset in the Z-axis direction so as not to interfere with each other. The nozzle head unit 10 is fixed to a pole guide through which the X-axis guide pole 16a and the Y-axis guide pole 16b pass, and is arranged so as to be freely movable in the X-axis and Y-axis directions by the driving forces of the X-axis drive motor 17a and the Y-axis drive motor 17b.

On the other hand, the XY drive unit 104 has a frame 104a provided near the upper part of the housing frame 101 in the Z-axis direction, a pair of X-axis guide rails 15a spaced apart inside the frame 104a so as to extend in the X-axis direction at a predetermined distance from the frame 104a, and a pair of Y-axis guide rails 15b spaced apart inside the frame 104a so as to extend in the Y-axis direction at a predetermined distance from the frame 104a. The X-axis guide rails 15a and the Y-axis guide rails 15b are offset from each other so as not to interfere with each other in the Z-axis direction.

The XY drive unit 104 also has an X-axis drive unit 18a that slidably moves the filament supply unit 20 along the X-axis guide rail 15a, and a Y-axis drive unit 18b that slidably moves the filament supply unit 20 along the Y-axis guide rail 15b. The Y-axis drive unit 18a and the Y-axis drive unit 18b are each equipped with a drive motor, for example, and the drive force of this motor drives the filament supply unit 20 to be movable in the X-axis and Y-axis directions.

The filament resin 9, which is the material for the object, is made of a string-like thermoplastic resin with a diameter of, for example, about 1.75 mm to 3.00 mm, and can be made of resins such as ABS, PLA, PET (polyethylene terephthalate), PC (polycarbonate), or relatively hard elastomeric resins. The filament resin 9 is held in a wound state on the bobbin section 22 of the filament supply section 20, and during modeling, it is sent, for example, exposed, to the heat melt section 11 in the nozzle head section 10 by the extruder 12 provided in the nozzle head section 10.

The computer 200 stores in the memory unit 106 modeling data of the object input via the input unit 105, which is made up of input devices used to input various information, such as a keyboard, mouse, touch panel, etc., and communication devices such as a data communication module. The modeling data includes, for example, data on the movement of the nozzle head unit 10 by the head drive unit 102. This movement data includes position information of the nozzle head unit 10 (such as coordinates in the XY plane). The memory unit 106 includes memory modules such as RAM, ROM, HDD, SSD, etc., and stores various information related to the 3D printer 100.

The computer 200 controls the operation of the head driving unit 102 based on the movement data of the modeling data stored in the memory unit 106, moves the nozzle head unit 10 in the XY plane, and forms a model. At this time, the computer 200 calculates movement data (tracking data) for the filament supply unit 20 so that the filament supply unit 20 can track the position of the nozzle head unit 10 equipped with the extruder 12 in the XY plane, and also controls the operation of the XY driving unit 104 based on this tracking data.

Specifically, the computer 200 moves the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 by the following process. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the 3D printer 100. As shown in FIG. 3, when the 3D printer 100 is started and a modeling operation according to the modeling program is started, the computer 200 first reads modeling data from the memory unit 106 (step S100) and obtains movement data of the nozzle head unit 10 in a series of modeling operations (step S101).

Next, the position coordinates of the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 specified by the movement data are analyzed to determine whether the positional relationship between the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 when forming the model satisfies a predetermined condition (step S102). An example of the predetermined condition determined in step S102 is whether the positional relationship between the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 exceeds a preset distance.

If the positional relationship does not meet the predetermined condition (No in step S102), it can be determined that, for example, the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 are located close to each other during modeling. Therefore, it can be determined that no load is placed on the filament path and that defects due to friction or bending of the filament resin 9 are unlikely to occur, so the nozzle head unit 10 is moved based on the movement data (step S103) to model the object.

On the other hand, if the positional relationship meets the predetermined condition (Yes in step S102), it can be determined that, for example, the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 are located far apart during modeling. For this reason, it can be determined that a load is placed on the filament path, and that problems may occur due to friction or bending of the filament resin 9. Therefore, the tracking data for the filament supply unit 20 is calculated based on the movement data (step S104), and the filament supply unit 20 is caused to track in accordance with the movement of the nozzle head unit 10 (step S105), thereby forming the modeled object.

Then, for example, when a series of modeling programs ends, it is determined whether or not to end the modeling (step S106). If it is determined that the modeling is to be ended (Yes in step S106), the series of processes according to this flowchart ends. If it is determined that the modeling is not to be ended (No in step S106), the process proceeds to step S100 above, where modeling data for the next modeling is read, and the subsequent processes are repeated.

In the above flowchart, movement data may be acquired (step S101), a predetermined condition may be determined for the position of the filament supply unit 20 relative to the positions of all nozzle head units 10 when forming the object (step S102), and if necessary (Yes in step S102), tracking data may be calculated (step S104) to form the object.

By operating the filament supply unit 20 as described above, the 3D printer 100 of this embodiment can reduce the load (friction and bending) on the filament resin 9, particularly in the filament path, or prevent problems associated with the load from occurring, making it possible to stably supply and transport the filament resin 9 to the nozzle head unit 10.

The specific tracking operation based on the tracking data of the filament supply unit 20 relative to the nozzle head unit 10 is performed as follows. Figure 4 is a diagram for explaining the operational concept regarding the tracking of the filament supply unit 20 of the 3D printer 100. Note that in Figure 4, tracking in the Y-axis direction is used as an example, but similar operation is also possible in the X-axis direction.

As shown in FIG. 4, the nozzle head unit 10 is configured to be movable on the Y axis to, for example, point A (not shown), point A, point B, point C, point D, and point D (not shown), and the filament supply unit 20 is configured to be movable on the Y axis to points A', B', point C', and point D'. Note that "point A" here refers to a point on the opposite side of point A from point B, and "point D" refers to a point on the opposite side of point D from point C.

For example, when the nozzle head unit 10 is at point A and the filament supply unit 20 is at point A', if the nozzle head unit 10 moves from point A beyond point B toward point C as shown in the figure (1), the positional relationship between the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 will meet a predetermined condition, that is, the positional relationship will exceed a preset distance. Therefore, the filament supply unit 20 will follow it to move from point A' to point B' as shown in the figure (2). The filament supply unit 20 that has moved to point B' will not follow it when the nozzle head unit 10 is moving between point A and point C as shown in the figure (3), that is, when the positional relationship does not meet the predetermined condition.

Next, for example, when the nozzle head unit 10 moves from point B past point C toward point D as shown in the figure (4), the positional relationship meets the specified condition. Therefore, the filament supply unit 20 follows it to move from point B' to point C' as shown in the figure (5). The filament supply unit 20 that has moved to point C' does not follow it when the nozzle head unit 10 is moving between point B and point D as shown in the figure (6), for example, because the positional relationship does not meet the specified condition.

Next, for example, when the nozzle head unit 10 moves from point C to point D as shown in the figure (7), the positional relationship becomes the specified condition. Therefore, the filament supply unit 20 follows it to move from point C' to point D' as shown in the figure (8). Conversely, when the nozzle head unit 10 is at point D' and moves from point D to point B beyond point C as shown in the figure (9), the positional relationship also becomes the specified condition. Therefore, the filament supply unit 20 follows it to move from point D' to point C' as shown in the figure (10). When the nozzle head unit 10 moves between point D and point B as shown in the figure (11), for example, the filament supply unit 20 that has moved to point C' does not follow it because the positional relationship does not become the specified condition.

For example, when the nozzle head unit 10 moves from point C past point B toward point A as shown in the figure (12), the positional relationship meets the specified condition. Therefore, the filament supply unit 20 follows it to move from point C' to point B' as shown in the figure (13). And when the nozzle head unit 10 moves between point C and point A as shown in the figure (14), the filament supply unit 20 that has moved to point B' does not follow it because the positional relationship does not meet the specified condition. By having the filament supply unit 20 follow the nozzle head unit 10 in this way, the filament resin 9 can be stably supplied and transported from the filament supply unit 20 to the nozzle head unit 10.

As the above-mentioned predetermined condition, for example, the positional relationship between the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 may be determined to be a positional relationship in which the insertion angle θ of the filament resin 9 from the material discharge port (not shown) of the bobbin unit 22 to the material insertion port (not shown) of the extruder 12 with respect to the horizontal plane is below a predetermined angle.

The insertion angle θ of the filament resin 9 may be detected based on the distance in the Z-axis direction calculated from the arrangement of the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20, and the distance calculated from the coordinates in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction obtained from the movement data, or based on the output from a detection means such as a position sensor separately installed in each unit 10, 20 or an angle detection sensor for the filament resin 9 installed on the housing frame 101, etc.

Figure 5 is a diagram for explaining the operational concept regarding the movement of the filament supply unit 20 based on the insertion angle θ of the filament resin 9, with Figures 5(a), (b), and (c) being schematic perspective views of the 3D printer 100, and Figures 5(d), (e), and (f) being schematic bottom views. Note that in Figure 5, reference numerals other than those of components necessary for the explanation are omitted.

First, as shown in Figures 5(a) and 5(d), for example, when the 3D printer 100 starts operating, the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 are each located near the center of the movement area in the parallel XY planes (the first parallel plane and the second parallel plane). Therefore, the insertion angle θ that the filament resin 9 supplied and transported from the filament supply unit 20 to the nozzle head unit 10 makes with the horizontal plane is approximately 90°. Therefore, there is almost no load on the filament resin 9 in the filament path.

From this state, as shown in Figures 5(b) and 5(e), for example, if the nozzle head unit 10 moves to a position at the end of the movement area in the X-axis direction and Y-axis direction, the insertion angle θ that the filament resin 9 from the filament supply unit 20 makes with the horizontal plane becomes quite acute (for example, less than 45°). This may increase the load on the filament resin 9 in the filament path.

Therefore, in such a case, as shown in Figures 5(c) and 5(f), depending on the movement position of the nozzle head unit 10, the filament supply unit 20 is moved to a position near the end in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction so that the insertion angle θ between the filament resin 9 and the horizontal plane is maintained at a predetermined angle (e.g., 45°) or more. By moving the filament supply unit 20 in this manner, it is possible to respond before the load on the filament resin 9 increases, so that the filament resin 9 can be stably supplied and transported to the nozzle head unit 10 during modeling, making it possible to prevent problems such as modeling failures.

The movement area of the nozzle head unit 10 in the XY plane is wider than the movement area of the filament supply unit 20 in the XY plane. In other words, the movement area of the filament supply unit 20 is sufficiently narrower than the movement area of the nozzle head unit 10. Therefore, the 3D printer 100 of this embodiment can move the filament supply unit 20 with a margin even if there is a slight time lag in response to the frequent movement of the nozzle head unit 10, and realizes a structure that can maintain a stable supply and transport of the filament resin 9. In addition, the filament supply unit 20 moves only when the positional relationship with the nozzle head unit 10 meets a predetermined condition, so it does not follow all of the frequent movements of the nozzle head unit 10. Therefore, unnecessary movement of the filament supply unit 20 can be prevented, and vibrations and unnecessary power consumption can be suppressed.

As described above, the three-dimensional modeling device according to the embodiment of the present invention can prevent the occurrence of loads such as friction and bending of the filament resin 9 in the filament path from the filament supply unit 20 to the nozzle head unit 10, making it possible to stably supply and transport the filament resin 9 to the nozzle head unit 10 for modeling.

Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described above, this embodiment is presented as an example and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. This new embodiment can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims.

For example, in the above embodiment, the modeling table is moved in the Z-axis direction by the lifting mechanism to form the model, but modeling may be performed while the nozzle head unit 10 moves in the Z-axis direction together with the head drive unit 102 by the lifting mechanism while the modeling table remains fixed. In this case, the positional relationship between the nozzle head unit 10 and the filament supply unit 20 is subjected to a process of determining whether the predetermined conditions are met, taking into account factors in the Z-axis direction.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 nozzle head section 11 thermal melt section 12 extruder 20 filament supply section 21 supply box 22 bobbin section 100 3D printer 102 head drive section 104 XY drive section 105 input section 106 memory section 200 computer (control device)

Claims (7)

a nozzle head having a heating means for heating and melting a resin material and for discharging the melted resin material;
a conveying mechanism that feeds the resin material to the nozzle head and extrudes the resin material so as to be discharged;
a first driving unit that drives the transport mechanism so as to be movable together with the nozzle head;
a supply mechanism that is disposed apart from the conveying mechanism and that supplies the resin material to the conveying mechanism;
A second drive unit that movably drives the supply mechanism;
a control unit that controls the first drive unit and the second drive unit ,
The control unit determines whether a positional relationship between a position of the transport mechanism and a position of the supply mechanism satisfies a predetermined condition, and controls an operation of the second drive unit to move the supply mechanism when the predetermined condition is met.
A three-dimensional modeling apparatus comprising: The three-dimensional modeling apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit controls an operation of the second driving unit so that the supply mechanism can follow the position of the transport mechanism in accordance with the position of the transport mechanism. The three-dimensional printing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit determines, as the predetermined condition, whether the positional relationship is a positional relationship exceeding a preset distance. The three-dimensional printing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit determines, as the predetermined condition, whether the positional relationship is such that an insertion angle of the resin material from the supply mechanism to the transport mechanism with respect to a horizontal plane is below a predetermined angle. a nozzle head having a heating means for heating and melting a resin material and for discharging the molten resin material;
a conveying mechanism that feeds the resin material to the nozzle head and extrudes the resin material so as to be discharged;
a first driving unit that drives the transport mechanism so as to be movable together with the nozzle head;
a supply mechanism that is disposed apart from the conveying mechanism and that supplies the resin material to the conveying mechanism;
A second drive unit that movably drives the supply mechanism;
a control unit that controls the first drive unit and the second drive unit,
the transport mechanism and the supply mechanism are disposed so as to be freely movable within a first parallel plane and a second parallel plane, respectively;
a movement area of the supply mechanism in the second parallel plane is narrower than a movement area of the transport mechanism in the first parallel plane. The three-dimensional modeling apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the supply mechanism is configured to be able to be arranged above the transport mechanism. The three-dimensional modeling apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the supply mechanism includes a bobbin portion around which the resin material before being supplied is wound and which is rotatably attached.

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