An additive manufacturing apparatus manufactures a shaped object by stacking a bead that is a solidified product of a filler metal caused to be melted. The additive manufacturing apparatus includes: a feeding unit that feeds the filler metal to a workpiece; a beam source that outputs a beam for melting the filler metal that is fed; and a position calculation unit that calculates a tip position of the filler metal, the tip position being a position where a temperature reaches a melting point of the filler metal by irradiation with the beam, on the basis of a feeding speed of the filler metal to be fed to the workpiece and beam power from the beam source.

A powder convergence improves without varying the flow velocity and powder density of a powder flow. A processing nozzle includes an inner cone including a beam path that passes light from a light source, an outer cone arranged outside the inner cone, a fluid ejection channel formed by a gap between the inner cone and the outer cone, and including an ejection port that opens toward a process surface, and a fluid guide channel having a flow inlet for a fluid. The fluid guide channel guides the fluid toward the fluid ejection channel in a direction away from the beam path.

Storage units 60, 70 store a first computer program calculating a flow rate of an assist gas with a linear function having a pressure of the assist gas in a processing head 35 as a variable, and a second computer program calculating a slope of the linear function with a function having a gap G from a tip end of a nozzle 36 to a surface of a workpiece W as a variable. A control unit 50 substitutes a value of the gap G into the function to calculate the slope of the linear function and substitutes the slope of the linear function and a value of the pressure of the assist gas into the linear function to calculate the flow rate of the assist gas.

The present disclosure generally relates to additive manufacturing systems and methods on a large-scale format. One aspect involves a build unit that can be moved around in three dimensions by a positioning system, building separate portions of a large object. The build unit has an energy directing device that directs, e.g., laser or e-beam irradiation onto a powder layer. In the case of laser irradiation, the build volume may have a gasflow device that provides laminar gas flow to a laminar flow zone above the layer of powder. This allows for efficient removal of the smoke, condensates, and other impurities produced by irradiating the powder (the “gas plume”) without excessively disturbing the powder layer. The build unit may also have a recoater that allows it to selectively deposit particular quantities of powder in specific locations over a work surface to build large, high quality, high precision objects.

A processing head of a laser cladding apparatus, configured to form a cladding layer on a substrate, includes: a laser irradiation part that introduces incident laser light and irradiates the substrate with the laser light; a jet nozzle, into which an assist gas is introduced and which forms a jet of the assist gas around the laser light; and a powder storage part that stores a cladding material powder to be fed to the substrate. The powder storage part has a powder feeding port that is opened facing a jet formation region of the assist gas.

A method is provided for controlling an additive manufacturing process in which one or more energy beams are used to selectively fuse a powder contained in an additive manufacturing machine having a gas flow therein in order to form a workpiece, in the presence of one or more plumes generated by interaction of the one or more energy beams with the powder, wherein the process is controlled by an electronic controller. The method includes: performing a build process to form a workpiece using a set of initial process parameters; sensing a condition of the finished workpiece; using the electronic controller, comparing the condition of the finished workpiece to a predetermined standard; using the electronic controller, changing one or more of the initial process parameters to define a set of revised process parameters; and performing a subsequent build process using the revised process parameters.

A laser processing apparatus includes: a scan moving unit which moves one or both of a workpiece and a laser beam; a laser beam irradiation unit which irradiates the workpiece with the laser beam; and a gas discharge unit which discharges at least a first gas to an irradiation area irradiated with the laser beam in the workpiece. The gas discharge unit has a rectifying surface at a position facing the workpiece during laser beam irradiation. The rectifying surface is provided with a first gas discharge port through which the first gas is discharged; and one or both of a second gas discharge port and a gas front-back suction port. The second gas discharge port discharges a second gas to the workpiece during laser beam irradiation on both outer sides of the first gas discharge port at least in the scanning direction.

An exhaust manifold for an additive manufacturing system includes a manifold housing, at least one baffle movable relative to the manifold housing configured to modify an exhaust flow area defined in part by the at least one baffle, and an actuator operatively connected to the at least one baffle configured to move the at least one baffle. The manifold housing defines a housing channel. The at least one baffle can be one or more moveable baffles at least partially disposed within the housing channel and configured to move relative to the housing to modify a respective exhaust flow area of a respective baffle of the one or more moveable baffles. The actuator is operatively connected to each of the one or more movable baffles and configured to move the one or more movable baffles relative to the housing.

A laser processing system that can effectively blow out a material of a workpiece that is melted by a laser beam by effectively utilizing an assist gas emitted from a nozzle. The laser processing system includes a nozzle including an emission opening configured to emit a jet of an assist gas along an optical axis of a laser beam, the nozzle being configured to form a maximum point of velocity of the jet at a position away from the emission opening; a measuring instrument configured to measure a supply flow rate of the assist gas to the nozzle; and a position acquisition section configured to acquire the position of the maximum point from a measurement value of the measuring instrument by predetermined calculation.

Methods and apparatus for laser patterning leverage mask trench debris removal techniques to form etch singulation trenches. In some embodiments, the method includes forming a mask layer on the wafer, forming a pattern in the mask layer using a laser of a laser assembly where the pattern allows singulation of the wafer by deep etching and forms a trench in the mask layer with a laser beam which has a process point at a bottom of the trench, directing gas nozzles that flow a pressurized gas at the process point in the trench as the pattern is formed with a gas flow angle relative to the process point and evacuating debris from the trench using an area of negative pressure where the gas flow from gas nozzles and the area of negative pressure are in fluid contact and are confined within a cylindrical housing.