Systems, apparatus and methods provide a visual representation to users of data collected from a three dimensional manufacturing process, such as an additive manufacturing (AM) process. In an embodiment, a user device receives process data associated with a three dimensional manufacturing process, transforms the process data into visualization data compatible with a computer-aided design specification, receives a Boolean query, and then renders, in response to the Boolean query, a visual depiction on a display screen of at least one aspect of the three dimensional manufacturing process and/or the three dimensional manufacturing apparatus and/or a object being manufactured.

The invention relates to a method for layered production of a three-dimensional object, wherein a powdery or fluid building material, which can be solidified by the effects of electromagnetic or particle radiation, is applied in layers having a layer thickness d, and the locations in each layer which correspond to a cross-section of the object allocated to said layer are solidified by means of electromagnetic or particle radiation. According to the invention, each cross-section consists of a contour region and an inner region and the method comprises the following sub-step: in a sequence of N successive cross-sections, wherein N is a whole number greater than 1, a partial region is defined in every cross-section as a critical region and the rest of the cross-section is defined as a non-critical region, a number of N layers are applied successively, without solidification of the non-critical regions. The non-critical regions of all N layers are not solidified in all N layers until after application of the Nth layer.

This disclosure provides systems, methods, and tooling for additive manufacturing on a build surface of a pre-existing component. An additive manufacturing tool successively positions layers of powdered materials and selectively fuses the layers of powdered materials to create an additive component on the build surface of the pre-existing component. The pre-existing component is secured in a build plate by a thermal expansion fit during the additive manufacturing process.

A calibration method for a system for powder bed-based generating of three-dimensional components by means of electromagnetic radiation, in particular such as a PBLS system, having a radiation source deflection unit and a raisable and lowerable carrier plate, above which a component is built, where, in order to calibrate the radiation source deflection unit, at least one virtual reference mark is used and, by means of a detector, a target-actual deviation between the virtual reference mark and a beam of the radiation source deflection unit is determined. An improved calibration method is achieved in that the at least one virtual reference mark is projected on a reference surface, which can travel vertically by means of the raisable and lowerable carrier plate, and independently of the vertical position thereof.

Method, and corresponding system, for producing an alert during manufacture of a part formed by a plurality of layers. The method includes determining the sensor data values at the working tool positions of each of the plurality of layers based on a correlation of the values of the sensor data relative to time and the working tool positions of each of the plurality of layers relative to time. During the manufacturing process, the sensor data values at the working tool positions of at least one of the plurality of layers are compared to reference data values at the working tool positions for the at least one layer to determine a comparison measure for the at least one layer. An alert is transmitted if the determined comparison measure of a layer is not within a defined range. A defined action is applied to the manufacturing process based on the transmitted alert.

A machining method and apparatus for machining a part comprises a machining head and motorized axes comprising a rotary axis for displacing the machining head in a working space. Apparatus comprises a mechanism for positioning a part and holding it in position the working space. The machining head comprises a support for supporting a material shaping tool and a supply device for supplying material.

The invention relates to a method for regulating the operation of an electromechanical apparatus (1), for example an EBM apparatus, in order to obtain certified processed products, wherein it is provided an initial calibration step that is intended to check the proper functioning of all the component parts of the apparatus (1) structured to ensure the complete functionality and a subsequent quality control step carried out on the obtained products by the carried out working process. The method entails the following steps: defining a plurality of measurement parameters relating to the component parts of the apparatus; measuring at least some of said parameters by means of sensors and/or measurement indicators related to said parameters during at least one processing phase performed by the apparatus; performing a quality control step on the obtained products after the working process obtaining data on any deviation from the expected quality; comparing the detected measurements of said parameters and data on any deviation from the expected quality with corresponding values of reference parameters available for that specific apparatus and for those products; detecting any deviations in one or more of said parameters or said data with respect to the values of the reference parameters; computing, on the basis of such differences, a total correction and regulation value; applying said total correction and regulation value preferably to only one of said parameters prior to the subsequent process, for example to the generation energy of the electrons beam (3). Basically, the method of the present invention allows obtaining semi-finished products free from structural defects by means of a primary check of the correct functioning of the various component parts of the apparatus (calibration procedure), a secondary check of the operational effectiveness of the process itself (operational qualification procedure) and a further final check of the process stability and repeatability within a process window (performance qualification).

Systems, methods, and devices may be configured to detect and remediate component failures in three-dimensional object printers (10, 10a-f) preemptively. For example, systems may include: (a) a plurality of printers (10, 10a-f) each configured to produce three-dimensional objects (13), each printer including: (i) a plurality of subsystems; and (ii) at least one sensor; and (b) processor(s) (41, 42) and memory resource(s) (21) storing an inventory of available replacement components for at least some of said subsystems. The one or more memory resources may (21) store instructions that may cause the one or more processors to: (i) identify a predetermined pattern in data sensed during a process of producing a three-dimensional object by a sensor of a printer as an indicator of likely failure of a subsystem or component thereof; and (ii) assign a component in inventory to said printer based on a unique identifier of the printer and the indicator of likely failure identified in the signal.

A method of manufacturing a custom golf club, the method including measuring swing dynamics of a user, determine club design parameters based on the measure swing dynamics of the user, generating a computer model representing an custom golf club head based on the determined design parameters, and manufacturing the custom golf club head based on the generated computer model using additive layer manufacturing processes using powder material and a high energy beam.

A three-dimensional fabricating apparatus includes a fabrication chamber, a supply chamber, a flattening unit, and a controller. In the fabrication chamber, powder is layered to form a powder layer and bonded together in a desired shape to form a layered fabrication object. The supply chamber stores the powder. The flattening unit is reciprocally movable above the supply chamber and the fabrication chamber, to transfer the powder and flatten the powder in the fabrication chamber to form the powder layer. The controller is configured to control the flattening unit to move in a first direction to transfer and supply the powder from the supply chamber to the fabrication chamber. The controller is configured to control the flattening unit to move in a second direction opposite the first direction to form the powder layer and transfer an unused portion of the powder from the fabrication chamber to the supply chamber.