This invention concerns a module for insertion into an additive manufacturing apparatus. The module comprising a frame mountable in a fixed position in the additive manufacturing apparatus, the frame defining a build chamber and a dosing chamber. A build platform is movable in the build chamber for supporting a powder bed during additive manufacturing of a part. A dosing piston is movable in the dosing chamber to push powder from the dosing chamber. A mechanism mechanically links the build platform to the dosing piston such that downward movement of the build platform in the build chamber results in upward movement of the dosing piston in the dosing chamber.

The present disclosure various apparatuses, and systems for 3D printing. The present disclosure provides three-dimensional (3D) printing methods, apparatuses, software and systems for a step and repeat energy irradiation process; controlling material characteristics and/or deformation of the 3D object; reducing deformation in a printed 3D object; and planarizing a material bed.

The invention relates to a laser machining tool (100), in particular a laser cutting tool, comprising a machining device (1) which is guided on a bridge (10) and has a movable carriage (2), on which a machining unit (3) is arranged, which has a machining head (4), which is designed in such a way that it directs a laser beam of laser light onto a workpiece to be machined, wherein a flexible fibre cable (6) for supplying the laser light from a laser light source (16) is connected to the machining head (4) and the machining unit (3) can be moved linearly together with the machining head (4) relative to the movable carriage (2). The fibre cable (6) is fixed to the machining unit (3) with a first fixing means (7) and fixed to the movable carriage (2) with a second fixing means (8), wherein the fibre cable (6) is freely movable for enabling a linear movement of the machining unit (3) relative to the movable carriage (2) in a predetermined guide plane (G) between the first and second fixing means (7, 8).

A laser processor includes a machining head and a cartridge configured to be inserted in the machining head. The machining head includes an optical path of a laser beam, a pressing member, and a stopper surface. The cartridge is configured to be pressed along the optical path toward the stopper surface by the pressing member when the cartridge is in the machining head. The cartridge includes an optical component configured to be positioned in the optical path when the cartridge is in the machining head. The optical component has a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface along the optical path, a first member configured to contact the first surface of the optical component and the pressing member, and a second member configured to contact the second surface of the optical component and the stopper surface.

A method of additive manufacture is disclosed. The method may include creating, by a 3D printer contained within an enclosure, a part having a weight greater than or equal to 2,000 kilograms. A gas management system may maintain gaseous oxygen within the enclosure atmospheric level. In some embodiments, a wheeled vehicle may transport the part from inside the enclosure, through an airlock, as the airlock operates to buffer between a gaseous environment within the enclosure and a gaseous environment outside the enclosure, and to a location exterior to both the enclosure and the airlock.

Laser additive manufacturing and a method for preparing thin-walled preforms by laser metal deposition and follow-up rolling. This can solve the problems that when the existing laser metal deposition technology prepares the thin-walled preforms, the limit width size of a molten pool at high power affects the forming wall thickness of the preforms so that it is difficult to prepare preforms with wall thickness less than 2 mm, and the problems of poor surface quality and low accuracy of preforms due to convex and concave peaks caused by the interlayer overlapping, but also can solve the problems that a laser beam with a preset trajectory cannot act on the end surfaces of the preforms due to preform deformation caused by residual stress in a printing process so that the preforms cannot be continuously formed.

A method and associated device for joining a battery cell tab to a plurality of foils associated with a plurality of electrodes of a battery cell are described. This includes arranging the plurality of foils in a stack, and joining, via a first joining device, the plurality of foils, wherein the first joining device defines a joining region. A portion of the battery cell tab is arranged on the plurality of foils, and joined, via a second joining device, to the plurality of foils. The second joining device generates a weld joint that is encompassed within the joining region defined by the first joining device. In doing so, weld quality and strength of internal welds in a battery cell may be improved by reducing the occurrence of porosities and cracks in the foil/tab weld joints.

According to an embodiment, an apparatus for manufacturing a display device includes a stage on which a target substrate is mounted, and a suction unit positioned above the stage. The suction unit includes a main body including an outer box with top and bottom openings and an inner cup disposed in the outer box, a light emitting unit disposed on at least one inner surface of the outer box, the light emitting unit providing light, and a light receiving unit disposed opposite to the light emitting unit, and disposed on at least one inner surface of the outer box, the light receiving unit receiving the light provided from the light emitting unit.

A method and an apparatus for collecting powder samples in real-time in powder bed fusion additive manufacturing may involves an ingester system for in-process collection and characterizations of powder samples. The collection may be performed periodically and uses the results of characterizations for adjustments in the powder bed fusion process. The ingester system of the present disclosure is capable of packaging powder samples collected in real-time into storage containers serving a multitude purposes of audit, process adjustments or actions.

A laser welding system includes a laser power supply having a controller that controls activation of laser light by the power supply. A sense lead is attachable to a workpiece. A handheld laser welding torch is connected to the power supply to receive the laser light. The torch includes a nozzle having an electrically insulating outer surface, and a pressure sensor that measures a pressure level applied to the nozzle and generates a pressure level signal. A proximity sensor is operatively connected to the sense lead and the torch and is configured to determine whether the torch is adjacent to the workpiece and generate a proximity signal. The controller receives the pressure level signal and the proximity signal. The controller activates the laser light when the pressure level applied to the nozzle meets or exceeds a threshold and the proximity signal indicates that the torch is adjacent to the workpiece.