Adjustment of a halftoning threshold can, in an example implementation, include assigning a relative energy value, relative to a reference energy value, to a location of a build area and adjusting a halftoning threshold based on the relative energy value.

A laser beam is irradiated onto material powder on a manufacturing table to solidify the material powder and form a solidified layer. The material powder is further deposited on the solidified layer and the laser beam is irradiated onto one part of the material powder to solidify the material powder. They are repeated to manufacture a manufactured object. An irradiation output value of the laser beam is determined based on measurement information regarding a deposition surface before depositing the material powder or regarding a surface state of the material powder after deposition that is acquired by a camera. Alternatively, the aforementioned irradiation output value is determined based on parity information regarding a number of solidified layers that were already solidified by irradiation of the energy beam, or determined in accordance with an irradiation output value used when solidifying a solidified layer solidified prior to deposition of the deposited material powder.

A removable calibration plate (10) comprises a sheet (20) comprising an upper face (21) intended to face towards the powerful incident-radiation beam, and bearing a reference marking (30) and being intended to receive a test marking (40), and a lower face (23). The plate (10) comprises an etching layer (22) to be etched by a powerful incident-radiation beam (F),this layer being secured to the upper face (21) of the sheet (20) and opaque to visible light, and being able to be destroyed locally by the powerful incident-radiation beam (F) in order to form the at least one test marking (40), the sheet (20) being transparent to visible light, the lower face (23) of the sheet (20) being frosted.

A removable calibration plate (10) comprises a sheet (20) comprising an upper face (21) intended to face towards the powerful incident-radiation beam, and bearing a reference marking (30) and being intended to receive a test marking (40), and a lower face (23). The plate (10) comprises an etching layer (22) to be etched by a powerful incident-radiation beam (F),this layer being secured to the upper face (21) of the sheet (20) and opaque to visible light, and being able to be destroyed locally by the powerful incident-radiation beam (F) in order to form the at least one test marking (40), the sheet (20) being transparent to visible light, the lower face (23) of the sheet (20) being frosted.

A removable image-capture apparatus (200) comprises an opening (202) intended to receive a calibration plate (10) bearing a reference marking (30) and possibly a test marking (40). The apparatus (200) comprises a source (204) of backlighting visible light situated beneath the opening (202), a sensor (205) for acquiring an image, in the backlighting visible light, of the plate (10), a guiding and supporting device (206) for positioning the sensor (205) above the opening (202) relative to the surround (201), a calculation device (207) configured to analyze the image, recognize the marking (30) and possibly the marking (40) in the image, and calculate aiming-command corrections intended for a firing system firing a powerful incident-radiation beam, which system belongs to an additive manufacturing apparatus, distinct and separate from the apparatus (200).

A removable image-capture apparatus (200) comprises an opening (202) intended to receive a calibration plate (10) bearing a reference marking (30) and possibly a test marking (40). The apparatus (200) comprises a source (204) of backlighting visible light situated beneath the opening (202), a sensor (205) for acquiring an image, in the backlighting visible light, of the plate (10), a guiding and supporting device (206) for positioning the sensor (205) above the opening (202) relative to the surround (201), a calculation device (207) configured to analyze the image, recognize the marking (30) and possibly the marking (40) in the image, and calculate aiming-command corrections intended for a firing system firing a powerful incident-radiation beam, which system belongs to an additive manufacturing apparatus, distinct and separate from the apparatus (200).

The present invention relates to an article fabrication system having a plurality of material deposition tools containing one or more materials useful in fabricating the article, and a material deposition device having a tool interface for receiving one of the material deposition tools. A system controller is operably connected to the material deposition device to control operation of the material deposition device. Also disclosed is a method of fabricating an article using the system of the invention and a method of fabricating a living three-dimensional structure.

A calibration method serves for calibrating a manufacturing device for additively producing a three-dimensional object by applying layer by layer and selectively solidifying a building material. The manufacturing device comprises at least two scanning units, each of which is capable of directing a beam to different target points in the working plane, which are located within a scanning region assigned to the respective scanning unit, wherein the scanning regions region of the at least two scanning units overlap in an overlap area. At least a first of the at least two scanning units is assigned a first monitoring unit whose monitoring region extends to a target point of the first scanning unit and its proximity, wherein a change of a position of the monitoring region is carried out as a function of a change of a position of the target point.

A planning device for planning locally selective irradiation of a work region using an energy beam in order to produce a component from a powder material arranged in the work region is provided. The planning device is configured to obtain a plurality of irradiation vectors for irradiating a powder material layer arranged in the work region with the energy beam. The planning device is further configured to determine a vector alignment in a coordinate system on the work region for at least one irradiation vector of the plurality of irradiation vectors, and to specify, for the at least one irradiation vector, a beam alignment for a non-circular beam shape of the energy beam on the work region relative to the vector alignment of the at least one irradiation vector.

A planning device for planning locally selective irradiation of a work region using an energy beam in order to produce a component from a powder material arranged in the work region is provided. The planning device is configured to obtain a plurality of irradiation vectors for irradiating a powder material layer arranged in the work region with the energy beam. The planning device is further configured to determine a vector alignment in a coordinate system on the work region for at least one irradiation vector of the plurality of irradiation vectors, and to specify, for the at least one irradiation vector, a beam alignment for a non-circular beam shape of the energy beam on the work region relative to the vector alignment of the at least one irradiation vector.