3D Printer Thermal Management Techniques

Controlling the preheating of a build plate in additive manufacturing allows the production of high-quality parts with consistent properties. The preheating is carried out with an energy beam and involves controlling the power distribution over the build plate. This is done by measuring the temperature at the center and edges of the plate and adjusting the beam power to achieve a target temperature difference.

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Temperature control system for additive manufacturing to improve properties of printed parts. It involves fusing material with an energy source and then forging it. A detector measures an internal effect parameter at the forging location. A control module calculates the temperature at that location based on the parameter. If the temperature is outside a desired range, it adjusts the energy source and forging device to bring it into range.

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A thermally decomposable build plate for additive manufacturing that enables easy release of 3D printed metal parts without damaging the parts or build plate. The build plate is an open frame with a recessed section that is filled with a lower-temperature melting metal or alloy insert. After printing, the insert can be melted and drained to release the 3D printed part without mechanical cutting. The lower melting insert protects the build plate, allows separation without damage, and reuses the plate.

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Additive manufacturing of polymeric materials with controlled properties using variable 3D printer temperature zones. The process involves selectively heating or cooling regions of a resin during polymerization to control the properties of the printed object. This enables the formation of multi-region objects with distinct physical characteristics from a single resin formulation. The ability to 3D print polymers with tunable properties could have applications in areas like customized orthodontics, where dental aligners can be made with different regions having tailored flexibility or stiffness.

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A method to control the cooling of a build table in an additive manufacturing apparatus to cool the build table to a desired temperature in an efficient manner. The method involves heating the build table to a predetermined set temperature and then adjusting the supply refrigerant temperature based on the set temperature. The refrigerant is circulated between the refrigerant circulation device and a cooler that cools the build table. Adjusting the refrigerant temperature based on the set temperature allows the build table to be cooled efficiently and precisely to avoid excessive cooling time or overheating issues.

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3D metal printing method that uses sequential near-infrared (NIR) radiation heating to reduce stress and cracking when locally melting and fusing metal powder layers. The method involves preheating and post-heating specific areas of each powder layer using NIR radiation before and after selective melting to join layers. This allows localized control of temperatures to minimize thermal stresses.

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Selective laser melting (SLM) 3D printing method that uses thermographic monitoring to optimize laser scanning. The method involves acquiring thermographic data from previous layers and then using that data to guide the laser scanning of the current layer to minimize temperature gradients and avoid overheating. This improves quality by reducing defects like cracking and burrs. The thermographic data can be acquired using a movable detector that scans the layer after irradiation.

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An apparatus for cooling an LCD panel in a 3D printer to improve print quality. The cooling is achieved by installing a sealed case between the light source and LCD panel, with a cooling module that cools the air inside the case. This prevents the LCD panel from overheating and blackening during printing, which can degrade image quality.

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A heat exchanger that leverages additive manufacturing (AM) to improve performance and manufacturability compared to conventional heat exchangers. The heat exchanger is built using layer-by-layer AM, such as powder bed fusion. The AM process allows complex geometries with internal passages that are difficult or impossible to produce with conventional manufacturing. The heat exchanger has an annular body with an integrated heat exchanger core. It also has an axially extending spar and connection region that expands and contracts with the core. This prevents stress and strain concentration that could lead to failure. The manufacturing process involves forming annular layers, then growing the body and core upwards from one end. This allows trapped powder to be removed from the other end.

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Metal jetting using a 3D printer to create a 3D part from liquid metal drops. It involves pulsing the printer's magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) pump coil at sub-threshold levels that provide supplemental induction heating to the pump without ejecting drops. This helps maintain consistent drop temperatures during warm-up, standby, and other non-printing modes.

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A plate-fin heat exchanger with flexible manifold that enhances thermal robustness and reliability by reducing thermal stresses compared to conventional exchangers. The exchanger has a flexible manifold with multiple individual layers joined to the heat exchanger core layers. The compliant flexible manifold allows thermal expansion and contraction without creating significant stress concentrations. It is metallurgically joined to the core layers, enabling thermal expansion continuity. This reduces thermal stress compared to rigid manifolds bolted or welded to the core. The flexible manifold has ports at each end to connect fluids and vanes dividing layers.

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Heat-aware toolpath generation for 3D printing of physical objects. The toolpath is generated with criteria that optimize the path to minimize heat accumulation and deformation during the print. The toolpath design accounts for factors like the amount of heat generated in a zone, the proximity to previously printed zones, and the time between printing zones to strategically plan the order and placement of printed paths. This reduces heat-related deformations and improves the quality of printed objects.

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3D printing process to create customized medical implants like spinal implants. The process uses a 3D printer with heated components to maintain the printing material at a specific temperature. The printer extrudes layers of a polymer material to build the implant. The ability to adjust printing parameters like temperature, speed, and porosity allows customizing implants for each patient.

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Recyclable PAEK powder for 3D printing with stable properties over multiple runs. It is obtained by thermally treating PAEK powder between 260-290C to stabilize the melting temperature. The powder can be reused in successive 3D printing runs without degradation. This allows economical recycling of unused powder.

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Resin composition for 3D printing that has improved properties suitable for general purpose 3D printers. The composition contains a thermoplastic resin with a polar group like aromatic polycarbonate and a heterocyclic compound with multiple heteroatoms like a condensed ring compound containing N, O, or S at para positions. The composition exhibits different behavior in elastic strength above and below its glass transition temperature, with increased modulus below Tg and reduced viscoelasticity above Tg. This allows lower temperature 3D printing while still maintaining strength and heat resistance when formed into molded parts. It also reduces gas generation during molding compared to anti-plasticizers.

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A 3D printing method to produce thermal management components like heat shields that can ablate when exposed to high energy levels. The technique involves using filament deposition and selectively removing a sacrificial binder from the coating, then sintering the remaining powder to form the thermal coating. The coating is designed to ablate when absorbing energy to protect the underlying substrate from heat.

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3D printing technique using thermal breaks to prevent overheating and material degradation in selective laser sintering of powdered materials. The technique involves fabricating 3D objects in a chamber with breaks or regions of lower thermal conductivity. This allows heating the top surface of the powder to the sintering temperature while keeping the lower regions cooler to avoid damaging previously sintered material. The breaks can be created using materials with lower thermal conductivity or insulating layers.

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Heat dissipation structure for immersion cooling of electronics. It has a solid lower heat sink and an upper porous heat sink. The lower heat sink provides high thermal conductivity. The upper porous heat sink increases contact area with the coolant and generates more vapor bubbles. The vapor bubbles enhance boiling heat transfer. The combination provides efficient heat dissipation in immersion cooling systems.

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Nozzle device for 3D printers that allows rapid cooling of the molten filament output from the nozzle to enable direct printing of scaffolds on a patient's body without risk of burns or tissue damage. It adds a humidifier that sprays water vapor onto the molten filament. The water vapor rapidly cools the filament upon contact.

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Manufacturing by additive manufacturing a microstructured article with tailored expansion/contraction properties upon temperature change. The article has repeating microstructures with two portions that contact each other. The first portion has a property that can restrain or enhance the second portion's matching property. For example, metals with different thermal expansion coefficients. The tailored contact causes the article to expand, contract, or remain unchanged when heated. Applications include adjustable flow control valves, prosthetics, casts, and aircraft tabs.

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