LOWER GAS FLOW INJECTION SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING SYSTEM

• Main Authors: de Nazelle, Rene du Cauze, Ramakrishnan, Kishore, Stammberger, Jens, Shalaby, Mohammed Mounir, Wakelam, Christian Thomas
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 27.02.2020
• Subjects: AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING; APPLYING LIQUIDS OR OTHER FLUENT MATERIALS TO SURFACES, IN GENERAL; ATOMISING APPARATUS; CASTING; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; NOZZLES; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; POWDER METALLURGY; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDEDFOR; SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SPRAYING APPARATUS; SPRAYING OR ATOMISING IN GENERAL; TRANSPORTING; WORKING METALLIC POWDER; WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE, IN GENERAL

An additive manufacturing (AM) system includes a housing defining a chamber, a build platform disposed in the chamber at a first elevation, and a lower gas inlet disposed at a second elevation and configured to supply a lower gas flow. The AM system includes a contoured surface extending between the lower gas inlet and the build platform to direct the lower gas flow from the second elevation at the lower gas inlet to the first elevation at the build platform, where the contoured surface discharges the lower gas flow in a direction substantially parallel to the build platform. The AM system also includes one or more gas delivery devices coupled to the lower gas inlet to regulate one or more flow characteristics of the lower gas flow, and a gas outlet configured to discharge the lower gas flow.