Rapid Prototyping
“Rapid prototyping is the automatic construction of physical objects using additive manufacturing technology. The first techniques for rapid prototyping became available in the late 1980s and were used to produce models and prototype parts. Today, they are used for a much wider range of applications and are even used to manufacture production-quality parts in relatively small numbers.” (Wikipedia, Rapid Prototyping, 5/21/2011)
Recent US Patents
1/4/2011
7,862,320
Three-dimensional object forming apparatus and method for forming three dimensional object
Kumagai, Fujisawa and Ito of Seiko Epson, Japan, have developed a three-dimensional object forming apparatus forms a three-dimensional object by binding powder particles with a curable liquid. The apparatus includes a powder layer forming unit that spreads a powder to a uniform thickness to form a powder layer. A curable liquid ejection head ejects the curable liquid to the powder layer through an ejection nozzle. A sectional data producing device produces sectional data at each of a plurality of cross sections of a desired three-dimensional object according to shape data of the desired three-dimensional object. A cross-sectional member forming section is also included by which cross-sectional members are formed by ejecting the curable liquid to the powder layer from the curable liquid ejection head according to the sectional data and thus binding the powder layer. The cross-sectional member forming section includes a permeation rate controller controlling the permeation rate of the curable liquid to the powder layer. (RDC 3/13/2011)