METHOD FOR LASER BEAM ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OF A MECHANICAL PART WITH TECHNICAL AND/OR DECORATIVE FUNCTION AND MECHANICAL PART WITH TECHNICAL AND/OR DECORATIVE FUNCTION

Abstract

A method for laser additive manufacturing of a mechanical part includes providing a laser beam the operation of which will be controlled by a computer into which is introduced a CAD computer file which is cut into one or more strata which, once superimposed, allow to form the structure of the desired mechanical part, disposing a substrate in a manufacturing enclosure wherein an atmosphere of a neutral gas is created, depositing on the substrate at least a first layer of a powder of a first metallic material to be melted, levelling the first layer, subjecting by means of the laser beam the first layer to a selective melting step, if necessary, depositing on the substrate a second layer, levelling the second layer and subjecting this second layer to a step of selective melting, removing the excess material and cleaning the assembly and subjecting the part to finishing operations.

Claims

1-18. (canceled)

19. A method for laser additive manufacturing of a mechanical part with technical and/or decorative function, this mechanical part comprising a substrate and a structure formed on the substrate by laser additive manufacturing, this method comprising the steps of: providing a laser beam the operation of which will be controlled by means of a computer into which is introduced a CAD computer file which is cut into one or more strata which, once superimposed, allow to form the structure of the desired mechanical part, another computer file containing the operating parameters of the laser beam; providing a substrate made of a ceramic material whose melting temperature is higher than the temperature involved by laser additive manufacturing; disposing the substrate on a platform in a manufacturing enclosure; closing the manufacturing enclosure and creating in this manufacturing enclosure an atmosphere of a neutral gas; depositing on the substrate at least a first layer of a powder of at least a first metallic material to be melted; levelling the first layer of the first metallic material to be melted so that this first layer has a substantially uniform thickness; activating the laser beam and subjecting by means of this laser beam the first layer of the first metallic material to a selective melting step in accordance with the CAD computer file which corresponds to the 2-dimensional stratum of the structure of the desired mechanical part; depositing on the substrate at least a second layer of a powder of the same metallic material as that with which the first layer was produced or of a second metallic material which is different from the first metallic material; levelling the second layer and subjecting this second layer to a step of selective melting by means of the laser beam in accordance with the following two-dimensional stratum of the CAD computer file; if necessary, repeating the operations until obtaining the desired mechanical part consisting of the substrate and the structure formed on the substrate by laser additive manufacturing; removing the mechanical part from the manufacturing enclosure, removing the excess metallic material and cleaning the assembly, and if necessary, subjecting the mechanical part to finishing operations such as polishing.

20. The manufacturing method according to claim 19, wherein before the step of selectively melting the layer of powder material, the substrate is subjected to a surface treatment.

21. The manufacturing method according to claim 20, wherein the surface treatment consists in an ion implantation operation, a plasma treatment or a physical vapour deposition treatment.

22. The manufacturing method according to claim 19, wherein the substrate is preheated prior to the step of selectively melting the layer of powder material.

23. The manufacturing method according to claim 22, wherein the substrate is preheated to a temperature not exceeding 400° C.

24. The manufacturing method according to claim 19, wherein the thickness of the substrate is at least 100 μm.

25. The manufacturing method according to claim 19, wherein the neutral gas is argon and the volume concentration of oxygen in the manufacturing enclosure is less than 0.5%.

26. The manufacturing method according to claim 19, wherein the ceramic material is selected from the group formed by borosilicate glass, alumina, sapphire, titanium boride, titanium oxide TiO.sub.2, titanium carbide, tungsten carbide, silicon nitride, zirconia, emerald, ruby and diamond.

27. The manufacturing method according to claim 19, wherein the metallic material is selected from the group formed of aluminium, steel, platinum, gold, silver, palladium, zirconium and titanium.

28. The manufacturing method according to claim 27, wherein a 6061 aluminium powder is used, the particles of which have a diameter comprised between 5 and 63 μm.

29. The manufacturing method according to claim 27, wherein an 18 karat 750 thousandths gold powder is used, the particles of which have a diameter comprised between 5 and 45 μm.

30. The manufacturing method according to claim 28, wherein the powders of materials used are of the D10-D90 type, that is to say that 90% of the particles which form these powders have a diameter of less than 63 μm, and 10% of these particles have a diameter of less than 5 μm.

31. The manufacturing method according to claim 29, wherein the powders of materials used are of the D10-D90 type, that is to say that 90% of the particles which form these powders have a diameter of less than 63 μm, and 10% of these particles have a diameter of less than 5 μm.

32. The manufacturing method according to claim 19, wherein the thickness of a layer of material deposited on the substrate is comprised between 10 μm and 50 μm.

33. The manufacturing method according to claim 32, wherein the number of layers of material deposited on the substrate is comprised between 10 and 20.

34. The manufacturing method according to claim 26, wherein the power of the laser beam is set at a working value comprised between 10 and 35 Watts and in that its speed of movement on the surface of the substrate is comprised between 100 and 700 mm/s.

35. The manufacturing method according to claim 34, wherein the laser beam is of the Yb:YAG type.

36. The manufacturing method according to claim 26, wherein the 2-dimensional stratum of the desired mechanical part has a contour which delimits at least one surface.

37. A mechanical part with technical and/or decorative function, this mechanical part comprising a substrate made of a ceramic material and a structure made of a metallic material and formed on the substrate by laser additive manufacturing.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0045] Other features and advantages of the present invention will emerge more clearly from the detailed description which follows of an example of implementation of the additive manufacturing method according to the invention, this example being given purely by way of illustration and not limiting only in connection with the appended drawing on which:

[0046] FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a laser beam additive manufacturing installation suitable for implementing the method according to the invention;

[0047] FIG. 2 is a detailed schematic view which illustrates the situation of the additive manufacturing installation before the start of the additive manufacturing method;

[0048] FIG. 3 is a detailed schematic view which illustrates the deposition of the first layer of powder material to be melted onto the substrate;

[0049] FIG. 4 is a schematic detail view which illustrates the removal of excess powder material;

[0050] FIG. 5 is a detailed schematic view which illustrates the step of selectively melting, by means of a laser beam, the first layer of powder material;

[0051] FIG. 6 is a detailed schematic view which illustrates the step of selectively melting an additional layer of powder material;

[0052] FIG. 7 is a detailed schematic view which illustrates the final step of cleaning the substrate, and

[0053] FIG. 8 schematically illustrates a substrate preparation step by means of a plasma torch prior to the deposition of a first layer of powder material to be melted on the substrate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

[0054] The present invention proceeds from the general inventive idea of producing mechanical parts with technical and/or decorative function in a single piece by means of an additive manufacturing method by laser beam. More specifically, the invention relates to an additive manufacturing method by laser beam wherein the joint use of a solid ceramic substrate and of a metal powder to produce the structure by laser additive manufacturing allows to obtain high quality mechanical parts with technical and/or decorative function. It has indeed been observed that the metal structure obtained by laser melting adheres sufficiently to the ceramic substrate on which this structure is made and allows to obtain mechanical parts that can be directly used in the objects wherein they are intended to be mounted. This seems to be due in particular to the good chemical (ionic/covalent) affinity between the metal atoms and the oxygen contained in the ceramics. For example, the titanium atoms combine well with the oxygen contained in the ceramic substrate to form titanium dioxide molecules TiO.sub.2. Likewise, aluminium atoms have a great affinity for the oxygen atoms of a substrate such as alumina, sapphire or zirconia. The invention thus demonstrates that it is possible to combine or bond together materials which, until now, were considered incompatible.

[0055] On the other hand, it was observed that the same affinity for the oxygen contained in the ceramic material in the case of gold was not obtained. This is why, when it is desired to grow a gold structure by laser melting on a ceramic substrate, it is preferable to subject the ceramic substrate to a surface treatment for example of the ion implantation, plasma torch or else physical vapour deposition type. In the case of plasma treatment, the gas used to create the torch will preferably be compressed air containing 22% oxygen and about 70% nitrogen.

[0056] The ceramic substrate used to make the desired mechanical part is integral with this mechanical part and therefore does not need to be separated from the latter once the manufacturing method is complete. This ceramic substrate is therefore not intended to be sacrificed and will serve as a permanent support for the structure obtained through laser additive manufacturing with which it forms the mechanical part according to the invention. The risks of deforming or even destroying this structure that were encountered in the prior art during the separation of such a structure from its manufacturing substrate are thus avoided.

[0057] In accordance with the method according to the invention, first provision is made of a substrate on which a structure will be grown by additive manufacturing using a laser beam. The shapes and dimensions of the substrate are selected according to the subsequent use that will be made of the mechanical part resulting from the implementation of this method. It is sufficient that the substrate has at least one flat surface on which the additive manufacturing operation can be carried out. For reasons of strength, however, it is preferred that the thickness of the substrate is not less than 100 μm. This substrate is made of a ceramic material whose melting temperature is higher than the temperature involved by laser melting additive manufacturing. The substrate is made of a ceramic material such as alumina Al.sub.2O.sub.3, sapphire, titanium oxide TiO.sub.2 or zirconia ZrO.sub.2. Other ceramic materials that are equally suitable are silicon nitride Si.sub.3N.sub.4 and titanium carbide TiC.

[0058] Once the substrate has been selected and introduced into a manufacturing enclosure, a layer of powdered material is deposited on this substrate, which is then selectively melted by means of the laser beam. This pulverulent material is different from the material from which the substrate is made. This powder material is a metallic material such as aluminium, gold, platinum, titanium, steel or else zirconium.

[0059] In the case of aluminium, the choice will preferably be made on a 6061 aluminium alloy comprising between 95.85 and 98.56% by weight of aluminium, 0.4 to 0.8% by weight of silicon, a maximum of 0.7% by weight of iron (no minimum required), 0.15 to 0.4% by weight of copper, a maximum of 0.15% by weight of manganese (no minimum required), between 0.8 and 1.2% of magnesium, between 0.04 and 0.35% of chromium, a maximum of 0.25% by weight of zinc (no minimum required), a maximum of 0.15% by weight of titanium (no minimum required), the concentration of the other elements not having to exceed 0.05% by weight each, the total concentration of these other elements not having to exceed 0.15% by weight. The 6061 aluminium powder used in the context of the present invention is formed from a mixture of particles whose diameter is comprised between 5 and 63 μm.

[0060] Parts made by depositing 10 to 20 layers of the aluminium powder detailed above have been structured on a zirconia substrate. Likewise, a zirconia substrate was used to manufacture parts from titanium powder TiAl.sub.6V.sub.4.

[0061] In the case of gold, it is preferably 18 karat gold containing 750 thousandths of pure gold, 50 thousandths of silver and 198.5 thousandths of copper. The gold powder used in the context of the present invention is formed from a mixture of particles whose diameter is comprised between 5 and 45 μm.

[0062] Parts made by depositing 10 to 20 layers of the gold powder detailed above have been structured on sapphire and zirconia substrates.

[0063] Once the layer of powdered material is spread over the substrate, it is levelled by mechanical sweeping in order to have a substantially uniform thickness, typically in the range of 15-50 μm. It will be understood that during this sweeping operation, the powder particles the diameter or at least one of the dimensions of which exceeds the thickness of the layer are removed from the substrate.

[0064] Once the layer of powder material is equalised, the manufacturing enclosure is closed and an atmosphere of neutral gas is created in the volume of this enclosure. The neutral gas selected is preferably, but in a non-limiting manner, argon, and the volume concentration of oxygen in the manufacturing enclosure is less than 0.5%.

[0065] The laser device used in the context of the present invention is for example a Yb:YAG type laser, the maximum power of which is equal to 100 Watts and which emits continuously. As a preferred but non-limiting example, depending on the selected type of laser beam, the power thereof is set at a working value comprised between 10 and 35 Watts and its speed of movement on the surface of the substrate is comprised between 100 and 700 mm/s. The laser beam melts the layer of powder material spread over the substrate in an outline determined by a computer wherein a CAD computer file is stored. This file corresponds to one or more 2-dimensional strata which, once superimposed, allow to form in the layer of powder material the structure of the desired mechanical part. Another computer file containing, for each stratum of the desired mechanical part, the operating parameters of the laser beam such as the power of the laser beam, the speed of movement of the laser beam and the path that this laser beam must travel is also used.

[0066] Each stratum of molten material therefore has a thickness comprised between 15 μm and 50 μm. The thickness of the final structure can be in the range of 500 μm to 1 mm. The only difference between these values is the manufacturing time, which is as long as the final structure is thick.

[0067] After structuring the first layer of powder material by selectively melting this material according to the instructions contained in the CAD computer file, the excess material is removed, then a second layer of powdered material which can be the same as that used to make the first layer or which can be different, is deposited on the substrate. Finally, the operations are repeated until obtaining the desired mechanical part consisting of the substrate and the structure formed on the substrate by laser additive manufacturing. The resulting mechanical part is taken out of the manufacturing enclosure, excess material is removed and the assembly is cleaned. The resulting mechanical part is ready for use.

[0068] FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a laser beam additive manufacturing installation suitable for implementing the method according to the invention. Designated as a whole by the general reference numeral 1, this additive manufacturing installation comprises a manufacturing enclosure 2 inside which is arranged a platform 4 on which is placed a substrate 6. Preferably, the platform 4 is coupled with a first piston 8 so that it can be moved vertically from bottom to top and from top to bottom. The additive manufacturing installation 1 also comprises a first reservoir 10 and a second reservoir 12 both arranged inside the manufacturing enclosure 2. The first reservoir 10 inside which a second piston 14 moves is used for storage of a powder material to be melted. As for the second reservoir 12, it serves as a receptacle for excess powder of the material to be melted as well as for waste from the selective melting step. The manufacturing enclosure 2 also contains a laser beam 16 disposed directly above the platform 4 on which the substrate 6 is placed, as well as a head 18 for transferring the powder of the material to be melted.

[0069] In FIG. 2, the substrate 6 is placed flush with a printing surface 20 by actuating, if necessary, the first piston 8 which controls the movements of the platform 4 on which the substrate 6 is placed. At the same time, the second piston 14 is actuated so as to bring an amount of powder 22 of the material to be melted to the height of the printing surface 20.

[0070] In FIG. 3, the transfer head 18 is responsible for bringing the amount of powder 22 of the material to be melted onto the substrate 6. To this end, the transfer head 18 is equipped with a first and a second scraper 24 and 26 which can be selectively raised or lowered. As visible in FIG. 3, to bring the amount of powder 22 on the substrate 6, the transfer head 18 is translated to the left of the figure, the first scraper 24 being raised so as not to oppose the advancement of the amount of powder 22, and the second scraper 26 being lowered in order to be able to move this amount of powder 22.

[0071] Conversely, in FIG. 4, the transfer head 18 is moved to the right of the figure with the first scraper 24 lowered and the second scraper 26 raised to level and compact the layer of powder material 28 which has been brought onto the substrate. 6.

[0072] In FIG. 5, the layer of powdered material 28 is melted using the laser beam 16. To this end, the operation of the laser beam 16 will be controlled by means of a computer into which is introduced a CAD computer file which is cut into one or more strata which, once superimposed, allow to form the structure 30 of the desired mechanical part 32.

[0073] In FIG. 6, the platform 4 on which the substrate 6 is placed is lowered by actuating the first piston 8 in order to place the substrate 6 on the surface of which the first layer of powder material 28 has been structured flush again with the printing surface 20. Then, if it is desired to structure a new layer of powder material on the surface of the substrate 6, the operations which have been detailed above in connection with FIGS. 2 to 5 are repeated.

[0074] Finally, when the desired structure 30 is obtained by having subjected the first layer of powdered material 28 to a step of selective melting by means of the laser beam 16, it is possible, if necessary, to clean the mechanical part 32 formed by the substrate 6 and the structure 30, for example by means of a vacuum cleaner 34 (see FIG. 7).

[0075] To improve the adhesion of the structure 30 obtained by additive manufacturing by means of the laser beam 16 on the substrate 6, it is possible, before the start of the manufacturing operations, to subject the substrate 6 to a surface treatment by means of a plasma torch 36 (see FIG. 8).

[0076] It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment which has just been described and that various modifications and simple variants can be considered by the person skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. It will be understood in particular that within the meaning of the present invention and of its particular embodiments, the term “mechanical part” is understood to mean parts which can be mechanically stressed such as links of a watch bracelet, but also parts which have only a decorative function such as a dial for a timepiece on the surface of which a material structure has been manufactured.

NOMENCLATURE

[0077] 1. Laser beam additive manufacturing installation [0078] 2. Manufacturing enclosure [0079] 4. Platform [0080] 6. Substrate [0081] 8. First piston [0082] 10. First reservoir [0083] 12. Second reservoir [0084] 14. Second piston [0085] 16. Laser beam [0086] 18. Transfer head [0087] 20. Printing surface [0088] 22. Amount of powder [0089] 24. First scraper [0090] 26. Second scraper [0091] 28. Layer of powder material [0092] 30. Structure [0093] 32. Mechanical part [0094] 34. Vacuum cleaner [0095] 36. Plasma torch