Additive manufacturing apparatus and system

Abstract

An additive manufacturing apparatus is configured to build a manufacturing object by building of repeating formation of one of a sintered portion or a fused portion by selectively heating a thinly developed powder material within a working region on the basis of drawing data derived from three-dimensional data of the manufacturing object and further formation of a new thin layer on one of the sintered portion or the fused portion. The additive manufacturing apparatus includes one or more channels connecting the inside and the outside of the region, and introduces a fluid into a crack progressing into the un-fused powder material through the channel after completion of building to forcibly cool one of the sintered portion or the fused portion, and the un-fused powder material.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An additive manufacturing apparatus configured to build a manufacturing object by building of repeating formation of one of a sintered portion or a fused portion by selectively heating a thinly developed powder material within a working region on the basis of drawing data derived from three-dimensional data of the manufacturing object and further formation of a new thin layer on one of the sintered portion or the fused portion, the additive manufacturing apparatus comprising
 one or more channels connecting the inside and the outside of the working region, and configured to introduce a fluid into a crack progressing into the un-fused powder material through the channel after completion of building to forcibly cool one of the sintered portion or the fused portion, and the un-fused powder material.   
     
     
         2 . The additive manufacturing apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising a temperature measurement unit to measure an internal temperature of the un-fused powder material after completion of building,
 wherein a fluid is introduced through the channel in a case where the temperature measurement unit measured the internal temperature below a prescribed temperature.   
     
     
         3 . The additive manufacturing apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising a database having recorded a lamination height and an elapsed time from the completion of building during which the crack of the powder material progresses at the lamination height,
 wherein the elapsed time from the completion of building during which the crack of the powder material progresses is estimated on the basis of the database from the lamination height by the building, and the fluid is introduced through the channel when the elapsed time arrives.   
     
     
         4 . The additive manufacturing apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein the channel includes one or more pressure measurement units to measure a pressure of the fluid and one or more flow rate controllers to control a flow rate of the fluid, and   the pressure measurement unit and the flow rate controller control to suppress introduction of a fluid of a prescribed pressure or more into the crack progressing in the powder material through the channel.   
     
     
         5 . The additive manufacturing apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a temperature measurement unit to measure an internal temperature of the un-fused powder material after completion of building; and   a flow rate controller in the channel to control the flow rate of the fluid,   wherein the flow rate controller increases the flow rate of the fluid to be introduced through the channel in accordance with a decrease in the internal temperature in a case where the temperature measurement unit measured the decrease in the internal temperature.   
     
     
         6 . The additive manufacturing apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein a temperature controller for controlling the temperature of the fluid introduced through the channel to a crack progressing in the powder material is provided in the channel.   
     
     
         7 . The additive manufacturing apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein a worktable capable of moving up and down is provided in the working region,   the manufacturing object is built on the worktable by the building and the channel includes a channel upper end and a channel lower end with the channel upper end being attached to the worktable, and   one end of the channel upper end is configured to be able to be connected to one end of the channel lower end via a connecting portion installed between the channel upper end and the channel lower end in accordance with an up/down position of the worktable.   
     
     
         8 . The additive manufacturing apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein a fluid discharge path through which the fluid introduced from the channel into the working region can be discharged to the outside of the working region is formed.   
     
     
         9 . The additive manufacturing apparatus according to  claim 8 ,
 wherein a filter to separate the powder from the fluid is provided in the middle of the fluid discharge path.   
     
     
         10 . An additive manufacturing system including an additive manufacturing apparatus configured to build a manufacturing object by building of repeating formation of one of a sintered portion or a fused portion by selectively heating a thinly developed powder material within a working region on the basis of drawing data derived from three-dimensional data of the manufacturing object and further formation of a new thin layer on one of the sintered portion or the fused portion,
 wherein the working region includes a worktable capable of moving up and down, the manufacturing object being built on the worktable by the building,   the working region includes one or more channels connecting the inside and outside of the working region,   the system includes a storage capable of storing the working region and includes one or more intra-storage channels connecting the inside and outside of the storage,   the system stores the working region, the worktable, and the channel in the storage after completion of building,   the system controls to connect the channel with the intra-storage channel via an intra-storage connecting portion, and   the system introduces a fluid into a crack progressing into the un-fused powder material from the outside of the storage through the channel to forcibly cool one of the sintered portion or the fused portion, and the un-fused powder material.   
     
     
         11 . The additive manufacturing system according to  claim 10 ,
 wherein the storage is available as a working region for extracting the manufacturing object.   
     
     
         12 . The additive manufacturing system according to  claim 10 ,
 wherein a fluid discharge path through which the fluid introduced through the channel into the working region can be discharged to the outside of the working region is formed.   
     
     
         13 . The additive manufacturing system according to  claim 11 ,
 wherein a fluid discharge path through which the fluid introduced through the channel into the working region can be discharged to the outside of the working region is formed.   
     
     
         14 . The additive manufacturing system according to  claim 12 ,
 wherein a filter to separate the powder from fluid is provided in the middle of the fluid discharge path.   
     
     
         15 . The additive manufacturing system according to  claim 13 ,
 wherein a filter to separate the powder from the fluid is provided in the middle of the fluid discharge path.