IP Library › Granted Patent US 10,994,336
Granted Patent B2
US 10,994,336 · App. 16/892,350 · Granted May 4, 2021

Quality estimation device for additive product

Inventors: Takaya Nagahama (Obu, JP); Hiroyuki Hoshino (Chita-gun, JP); Takashi Mizoguchi (Kariya, JP); Makoto Tano (Obu, JP)
Assignee: JTEKT CORPORATION
B22F10/20B33Y30/00B33Y50/02G01N9/36B22F10/30
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,994,336
App. No.
16/892,350
Granted
May 4, 2021
Kind
B2
Abstract

A quality estimation device for an additive product includes an imaging device configured to illuminate a region including a molding surface during manufacturing of the additive product and image the region, when manufacturing the additive product at a molding position by irradiating with a light beam and a material powder melting and solidifying, a luminance acquisition unit acquires a luminance obtained by quantifying a brightness of a light reflected by at least the molding surface of the region in an image in which the imaging device images the region, and a molding density estimation unit estimates a molding density indicating a density of the material powder in a solidified state after melting based on the luminance of the molding surface acquired by the luminance acquisition unit. The material powder is supplied to the molding position.

Claims (39)

1. A quality estimation device for an additive product comprising:

an imaging device configured to illuminate a region including a molding surface during manufacturing of the additive product and image the region, when manufacturing the additive product at a molding position by irradiating with a light beam and a material powder melting and solidifying;

a luminance acquisition unit acquires a luminance obtained by quantifying a brightness of a light reflected by at least the molding surface of the region in an image in which the imaging device images the region; and

a molding density estimation unit estimates a molding density indicating a density of the material powder in a solidified state after melting based on the luminance of the molding surface acquired by the luminance acquisition unit,

wherein the material powder is supplied to the molding position.

2. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a luminance correction unit corrects the luminance of the molding surface acquired by the luminance acquisition unit,

wherein the molding density estimation unit estimates the molding density based on the luminance of the molding surface corrected by the luminance correction unit.

3. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 2 ,

wherein the imaging device comprises:

an illumination unit configured to illuminate the region from a predetermined direction, and

an imaging unit configured to image the region illuminated by the illumination unit, and

wherein the luminance correction unit corrects the luminance in accordance with a scanning direction of the light beam on the molding surface with respect to the predetermined direction in which the illumination unit illuminates the area.

4. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 3 ,

wherein the scanning direction of the light beam is changed for each of adjacent additive layers in the additive product.

5. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 2 ,

wherein the luminance correction unit corrects peripheral luminance of a peripheral region other than the molding surface in the region to a preset reference luminance.

6. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 1 ,

wherein the luminance of the molding surface is a single layer average luminance which is an average of unit area luminance per unit area in the image.

7. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 6 ,

wherein the luminance of the molding surface is a multiple-layer average luminance obtained by averaging the single layer average luminances of the molding surfaces of a plurality of additive layers of the additive product.

8. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 6 ,

wherein the molding density estimation unit estimates the molding density based on a correlation represented by a multiple regression equation, and

wherein the multiple regression equation includes the single layer average luminance and single layer standard deviation indicating variation in the unit area luminance in the single layer average luminance.

9. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 7 ,

wherein the molding density estimation unit estimates the molding density based on a correlation represented by a multiple regression equation, and

wherein the multiple regression equation includes the multiple-layer average luminance and multiple-layer average standard deviation obtained by averaging a plurality of the single layer standard deviations indicating variation in the unit area luminance in the single layer average luminance.

10. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 1 ,

wherein the imaging device configured to image the region after the molding surface is molded and before the material powder is newly supplied to the molding position.

11. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a defect determination unit determining presence or absence of an internal defect which lowers a strength of the additive product as compared with that of a none-defective product, based on the molding density estimated by the molding density estimation unit.

12. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 11 ,

wherein the defect determination unit determines that the internal defect is present inside the additive product, when the molding density estimated by the molding density estimation unit is equal to or less than a preset reference molding density.

13. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 11 ,

wherein manufacturing of the additive product is stopped, when the defect determination unit determines that the internal defect is present inside the additive product.

14. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 11 ,

wherein the additive product in which the defect determination unit determines that the internal defect is present, is sorted as a defective product.

15. The quality estimation device for the additive product according to claim 1 ,

wherein the material powder is aluminum or an alloy steel.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jul 2, 2020
From: NAGAHAMA, TAKAYA; HOSHINO, HIROYUKI; MIZOGUCHI, TAKASHI; TANO, MAKOTO
To: JTEKT CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 053109/0788 →
Priority Claims (1)
JP JP2019-117146 · Jun 25, 2019 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20200406358A1 · Dec 31, 2020