METHOD FOR IMPROVING RESOLUTION OF WRITING AND 3D PRINTING IN LASER MELTING DEPOSITION

Publication type: 
Patent
Year: 
2019

Patent data

OSIM no.: 
RO133408A0

The invention relates to a method for improving the resolution of writing and 3D printing of metallic materials using laser melting deposition technique. This technique consists in blowing metal powder particles in a hot laser spot, where the powder is melted in the laser spot and hardens quickly, forming a dense metallic structure. By simultaneous motion of the laser spot and the powder particle beam, complex trajectories can be traced for new metallic material to grow thereon and, by successive irradiation of the same contour, 3D metallic shapes can be obtained at coarse writing/printing resolution, which is why the laser melting deposition technique is limited to generation of large-size objects. According to the invention, the method is meant to improve writing/printing resolution in laser melting deposition technique and it consists in using a powder flow which is higher then the optimum flow required for deposition, combined with a higher moving speed of the robotic arm on which the powder blowing device and the laser source used for melting the same are mounted, under accelerated cooling of the laser-irradiated material, thereby achieving higher resolutions, similar to those obtained by selective laser sintering technique.