Tooling Assembly for Decreasing Powder Usage in a Powder Bed Additive Manufacturing Process

Abstract

A tooling assembly for mounting a plurality of components, such as compressor blades, in a powder bed additive manufacturing machine to facilitate a repair process is provided. The tooling assembly includes component fixtures configured for receiving each of the compressor blades, a mounting plate for receiving the component fixtures, and a complementary fixture defining a plurality of voids within which the compressor blades are received when the complementary fixture is mounted to the mounting plate such that less powder is required to fill the powder bed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A tooling assembly for supporting a component during a powder bed additive manufacturing process, the tooling assembly comprising:
 a mounting plate configured for receiving the component such that a repair surface of the component is positioned within a build plane; and   a complementary fixture defining a void corresponding to the component such that positioning the complementary fixture over the mounting plate positions the component within the void.   
     
     
         2 . The tooling assembly of  claim 1 , wherein a clearance gap is defined between the component and the complementary fixture when the complementary fixture is positioned over the mounting plate. 
     
     
         3 . The tooling assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the clearance gap has a width that is constant along a height of the complementary fixture. 
     
     
         4 . The tooling assembly of  claim 3 , wherein the clearance gap is approximately 1 millimeter all the way around the component. 
     
     
         5 . The tooling assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the clearance gap has a width that increases gradually from a bottom of the complementary fixture toward a top of the complementary fixture. 
     
     
         6 . The tooling assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the void corresponds substantially to the shape of a blade of a gas turbine engine. 
     
     
         7 . The tooling assembly of  claim 1 , wherein a top surface of the complementary fixture is positioned at or below the build plane when the complementary fixture is positioned over the mounting plate. 
     
     
         8 . The tooling assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the complementary fixture is formed from a metal, ceramic, or plastic material. 
     
     
         9 . The tooling assembly of  claim 1 , wherein a layer of additive material is deposited over the complementary fixture and the repair surface of the component. 
     
     
         10 . The tooling assembly of  claim 9 , wherein the layer of additive material is a different material than the component. 
     
     
         11 . The tooling assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the complementary fixture is formed by:
 obtaining a component CAD model of the component mounted to the mounting plate; and   determining a fixture model by removing the component CAD model from a CAD model of a solid three-dimensional volume corresponding to a powder bed.   
     
     
         12 . The tooling assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the complementary fixture is formed by additively manufacturing the fixture model. 
     
     
         13 . The tooling assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the mounting plate is configured for receiving a plurality of components and the complementary fixture defines a plurality of voids, each of the plurality of voids corresponding to one of the plurality of components such that positioning the complementary fixture over the mounting plate positions the plurality of components within the plurality of voids. 
     
     
         14 . A method of repairing a component using an additive manufacturing machine, the method comprising:
 mounting the component on a mounting plate such that a repair surface of the component is positioned within a build plane; and   positioning a complementary fixture over the mounting plate, the complementary fixture defining a void for receiving the component, and wherein a clearance gap is defined between the component and the complementary fixture.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising:
 positioning the mounting plate, the component, and the complementary fixture on a build platform of the additive manufacturing machine;   depositing a layer of additive powder over the repair surface of the component using a powder dispensing assembly; and   selectively irradiating the layer of additive powder to fuse the layer of additive powder onto the repair surface of the component.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the clearance gap has a width that is constant along a height of the complementary fixture. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the clearance gap has a width that increases gradually from a bottom of the complementary fixture toward a top of the complementary fixture. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein a top surface of the complementary fixture is positioned at or below the build plane when positioned over the mounting plate. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising forming the complementary fixture by:
 obtaining a component CAD model of the component mounted to the mounting plate; and   determining a fixture model by removing the component CAD model from a CAD model of a solid three-dimensional volume corresponding to a powder bed.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 14 , comprising:
 mounting a plurality of components on the mounting plate such that a repair surface of each of the plurality of components is positioned within the build plane; and   positioning the complementary fixture over the mounting plate, the complementary fixture defining a plurality of voids, each of the plurality of voids corresponding to one of the plurality of components such that positioning the complementary fixture over the mounting plate positions the plurality of components within the plurality of voids.