Method for operating an extruder in a three-dimensional (3D) object printer to improve layer formation
US11040487B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 27, 2019 |
| Grant date | Jun 22, 2021 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 27, 2039 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB33Y40/00
- WIPO fieldOther special machines
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
An additive manufacturing system opens the valves in an extruder needed to form a swath and operates an actuator to move the extruder through a transition region with those valves open to establish an amount of extrusion material between a faceplate of the extruder and a portion of an object being formed that is adequate for formation of a swath. The length of the transition region is determined with reference to a viscosity of the material being extruded and a speed at which the extruder is moved to form the swath. The transition region can be perpendicular to a path of the extruder to form the swath or aligned with the path of the extruder to form the swath.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.