Patent Description:
Additive manufacturing or rapid prototyping methods for producing components comprise layer-by-layer solidification of a material, such as a metal powder material, using a laser beam. A powder layer is deposited on a powder bed in a build chamber and a laser beam is scanned across portions of the powder layer that correspond to a cross-section of the component being constructed. The laser beam melts or sinters the powder to form a solidified layer. As explained in more detail below with reference to <FIG>, it is typical to melt or sinter the desired pattern in the powder layer using a series of stripes. In particular, it is known to advance so-called hatch lines back and forth along a plurality of stripes in turn to construct the desired pattern in the powder layer. After selective solidification of a layer, the powder bed is lowered by a thickness of the newly solidified layer and a further layer of powder is spread over the surface and solidified as required.

During the melting or sintering process, debris (e.g. condensate, unsolidified particles of powder etc) is produced within the build chamber. It is known to introduce a gas flow through the build chamber in an attempt to remove debris from the chamber in the gas flow. For example, the M270 model of machine produced by EOS GmbH, Munich, Germany, passes a flow of gas from the top of the build chamber towards the powder bed and various exhaust vents collect the gas for recirculation. The gas flow in the M270 machine is thus turbulent and has no well defined flow direction. The newer M280 model of machine produced by EOS comprises a series of gas outlet nozzles located to the rear of the powder bed that pass a flow of gas to a series of exhaust vents that are located at the front of the powder bed. In this manner, a planar layer of gas flow is created at the surface of the powder bed. This planar gas flow arrangement has, however, been found by the present inventors to produce high surface roughness and non-uniformity of the solidified metal layers generated by the melting process. The prior art is described in <NPL>.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided selective laser melting apparatus according to appended claim <NUM>.

The present inventors have discovered a number of problems that occur when using commercially available selective laser melting machines, such as the EOS M280. In particular, it has been found that debris (e.g. condensate, powder particles etc) ejected during the laser solidification (e.g. melting) process can be deposited on areas of the powder layer that have yet to be solidified. This has been found to produce additional surface roughness and the formation of layers of non-uniform thickness, which additionally create defects (e.g. pores, inclusions etc).

In accordance with the present invention, debris is carried away from the melt front (i.e. the powder that is presently in the molten state) and the accumulation of debris at the melt front that is otherwise seen is avoided. Preventing or reducing debris accumulation at the melt front, and stopping deposition of debris on top of regions of the powder layer that have not yet been solidified, not only improves layer thickness and process uniformity but also improves the overall efficiency of the solidification process. In particular, preventing such a build-up of debris ensures that there is no significant attenuation of the laser beam by debris before it reaches the powder layer to be solidified (thereby ensuring efficient solidification) and also prevents previously deposited debris from being re-melted and ejected again from the surface.

Preferred features of the present invention are outlined in the various dependent claims and described in more detail below.

Selective laser solidification apparatus, namely selective laser melting apparatus, is described herein in which a powder layer is deposited on a powder bed. A laser scanning unit directs a laser beam onto the surface of the powder layer to solidify (melt) selected parts of the powder layer to form a required pattern (e.g. a pattern corresponding to the cross-section of a 3D object that is being constructed). This selective solidification may be performed by dividing the area to be scanned by the laser beam into a plurality of stripes or stripe segments. If a plurality of stripes or stripe segments are formed, each stripe or stripe segment may be formed by advancing the laser beam along the stripe or stripe segment in a stripe formation direction. As explained below, in a preferred embodiment the laser scanning unit rapidly moves (e.g. scans or steps) a laser spot across each stripe or stripe segment to form a hatch line which is advanced along the stripe or stripe segment in a stripe formation direction. A gas flow unit provides a flow of gas (e.g. a planar gas flow) over the powder bed whilst the stripes are being scanned.

The hatch lines may be used to form stripes, stripe segments, shells or any shape. The hatch line movement direction may be different for different areas on the powder bed.

In a preferred embodiment, hatch lines are used to form stripes or stripe segments. By ensuring the predefined gas flow direction is always at least partially opposed to the stripe formation direction of the stripe or stripe segments, the quality and uniformity of components made by laser solidification can be improved. Ensuring that stripe or stripe segment formation does not occur in the presence of a "tail wind" means that less ejected debris (condensate, powder particles etc) is deposited on powder that is molten or is yet to be melted. Debris is thus carried away from the melt front (i.e. the part of the stripe that is presently in the molten state) and the accumulation of debris at the melt front that is otherwise seen is avoided. Preventing or reducing debris accumulation at the melt front, and deposition on top of regions of the powder layer that have not yet been solidified, not only improves layer thickness and process uniformity but can also improve the overall efficiency of the solidification process. In particular, preventing such a build up of debris ensures that there is no significant attenuation of the laser beam by debris before it reaches the powder layer to be solidified (thereby ensuring efficient solidification) and also prevents previously deposited debris from being re-melted and ejected again from the surface.

The stripe formation direction is preferably at least partially opposed to the predefined gas flow direction. In other words, there may always be a component of the stripe formation direction vector that is in the opposite direction to the gas flow direction vector. The stripe formation direction may be completely opposite (anti-parallel) to the gas flow direction or there may be an oblique angle (e.g. of less than <NUM>°, more preferably of less than <NUM>° or more preferably of less than <NUM>°) between the stripe formation direction and the gas flow direction. It should be noted that the sign of such an oblique angle must still be selected to ensure that stripe formation direction is always at least partially opposed to the predefined gas flow direction. Providing a stripe formation direction that is completely opposite (anti-parallel) to the gas flow direction provides optimum performance, but maintaining a single stripe formation direction when constructing objects from multiple layers may not always be desirable, as described in more detail below. Conveniently, the stripe formation direction subtends an angle (α) of at least <NUM>° to the normal to the gas flow direction. More preferable, the angle (α) is at least <NUM>°, <NUM>°, <NUM>°, <NUM>°, <NUM>°, <NUM>°, or <NUM>°. In a preferred embodiment, the stripe formation direction subtends an angle (α) of more than <NUM>° to the normal to the gas flow direction. This ensures that the hatch lines that are used to form the stripes do not become parallel or substantially parallel to the direction of gas flow.

It has been found that the order in which the plurality of stripes or stripe segments are formed can affect the uniformity and roughness (e.g. the density) of the solidified layer. If the flow of gas over the powder bed originates from a first side of the powder bed (e.g. if a gas outlet is provided at the first side of the powder bed), it is preferred that the plurality of stripes or stripe segments are formed in reverse order of their proximity to the first side of the powder bed. Forming the stripes or stripe segments in such an order ensures that debris (e.g. condensate or ejected particles) generated at the melt front is carried by the gas flow to areas of the powder layer that have already been solidified, rather than being deposited on material that has yet to be solidified. This ensures that subsequent solidification is only of the fresh powder layer (i.e. a powder layer on which minimal debris has been deposited). This again helps improve layer thickness uniformity and reduces surface roughness, thereby reducing defects.

The gas flow unit passes gas over the powder bed along a predefined gas flow direction. The gas flow may be along a linear gas flow direction or it may be along a non-linear (e.g. curved) gas flow direction. The gas flow direction may vary as a function of the position on the powder bed. Preferably, the gas flow direction is uniform over the powder bed (e.g. a planar gas layer may be produced). The gas flow unit may comprise at least one gas outlet. The at least one gas outlet may comprise a linear bar with a plurality of spaced apart gas nozzles. The gas flow unit may comprise at least one gas exhaust. The at least one gas exhaust may comprise a linear bar with a plurality of exhaust vents. The gas flow unit may include a gas pump. The at least one gas outlet and the at least one gas exhaust are preferably placed either side of the powder bed such that gas pumped from the at least one gas outlet passes to the at least one gas exhaust. Preferably, a substantially planar flow of gas is generated along the predefined gas direction. Preferably, a substantially laminar flow of gas is generated along the predefined gas direction. This planar or laminar flow of gas may be generated by passing gas from the at least one gas outlet passes to the at least one gas exhaust.

Advantageously, the gas flow unit generates a gas flow that moves with a velocity of at least <NUM>/s over the powder bed. The gas flow rate is preferably selected so as to not disturb any deposited powder layer, but to allow ejected debris to be blown clear. Any gas, e.g. air, may be passed over the powder bed. Advantageously, an inert gas is passed over the powder bed. The inert gas may be at least one of nitrogen, argon and helium.

A required pattern may be formed from a plurality of stripes. The stripes may be elongate stripes. The plurality of stripes may comprise stripes of any shape. For example, a plurality of curved stripes may be formed. Preferably, each of the plurality of stripes comprises a linear stripe having an elongate axis. The stripe formation direction is then preferably parallel to the elongate axis of the stripe.

The plurality of stripes may be formed in any order, although as described above it is preferred to form stripes in reverse order of their proximity to the source of the gas flow. The laser beam may be advanced along an entire stripe before moving on to the next stripe. In other words, selective melting of one stripe may be completed before starting to melt a different stripe. Alternatively, only a part or section of one stripe may be formed before moving onto a part or section of another stripe. It is, of course, possible for only part of a stripe to be solidified in order to define the part of the pattern that is contained within that stripe. The apparatus may include a controller for controlling the laser scanning unit that defines the plurality of stripes that are to be used. Each stripe may have a width of at least <NUM>, at least <NUM>, at least <NUM> or at least <NUM>. Each stripe may have a width of no more than <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> or <NUM>.

A required pattern may alternatively be formed from a plurality of stripe segments. For example, a required pattern may be formed from a regular grid of stripe segments that form a checkerboard pattern. The checkerboard pattern may comprise a plurality of square or rectangular stripe segments. The stripe segments may all be the same size or may be different sizes. An irregular pattern of stripe segments (e.g. islands) may also be formed. The formation of such stripe segments or sections is described in, for example, <CIT>. All the stripe segments within a layer may be formed by advancing the laser beam along the same stripe formation direction. Alternatively, a plurality of different stripe formation directions may be used for different stripe segments of a powder layer. For example, the different stripe segments may be formed using different stripe formation directions. As explained above, the stripe formation direction is preferably always at least partially opposed to the gas flow direction when writing each stripe segment.

The laser scanning unit may comprise a pulsed laser. Preferably, the laser scanning unit comprises a continuous wave (CW) laser. The laser scanning unit may include a laser beam modulator. The modulator may then modulate (e.g. activate or deactivate) the laser beam that impinges on the powder layer. In this manner, laser solidification can be controlled by turning on and off the laser beam as required. Alternatively, the laser power may be modulated, e.g. a sine wave modulation may be applied. The laser scanning unit may generate a laser beam of sufficient power to sinter and/or melt a powder layer. The power of the laser beam may be adjustable by a user.

The laser scanning unit may generate a laser beam that is appropriately shaped (e.g. by beam shaping optics) to form a variable length laser line having a long axis that extends across the stripe or stripe segment. In such an example, the pattern within the stripe is formed by advancing the laser line along the stripe or stripe segment in the stripe formation direction. Advantageously, the laser scanning unit generates a laser spot that is moved (e.g. stepped or scanned) across the stripe to form a so-called hatch line. The laser spot may have a substantially circular cross-sectional profile (e.g. a Gaussian beam profile). The laser scanning unit may form the hatch line by rapidly moving (e.g. stepping or scanning) the spot from one side of the stripe to the other. This may be done using appropriate beam steering optics of the laser scanning unit. Preferably, each of the plurality of stripes or stripe segments are formed using a plurality of hatch lines that are advanced along the stripe formation direction. In other words, hatch lines across the stripe or stripe segment are formed in succession with each hatch line being located further along the stripe formation direction than the preceding hatch line. It should, of course, be noted that not all of the powder layer within a stripe or stripe segment may need to be melted to form the desired pattern. The formation of partial hatch lines, or the omission of hatch lines along selected parts of a stripe or stripe segment, would be possible by appropriate control of the laser scanning unit.

According to an embodiment not part of the presently claimed invention, the apparatus may form the series of hatch lines by raster scanning the laser beam back and forth across the stripe or stripe segment. The series of hatch lines may also be formed by rapidly stepping the laser beam back and forth across the stripe or stripe segment. The formation of such bidirectional hatch lines (i.e. hatch lines formed by laser motion across the width of the stripe in two, opposite, directions) is the conventional hatch line formation technique used to form the required pattern along a stripe. As is also known, the laser beam may be deactivated when the beam steering optics are being used to reposition the laser beam from one hatch line to another.

According to the invention, a series of hatch lines may be formed by only moving the laser beam in the same line direction across the stripe or stripe segment. In other words, unidirectional hatch lines may be formed. The line direction across the stripe or stripe segment is at least partially opposed to the gas flow direction. In this manner, debris ejected during hatch line formation is carried away from the direction in which the laser beam is advancing across the stripe or stripe segment. Although the improvement associated with using unidirectional hatch lines is relatively small compared to the benefits of aligning the stripe formation direction to the gas flow direction, it does still provide a useful improvement. This is, however, at the expense of significantly reducing the speed at which the hatch lines can be written.

In one embodiment, the way in which the hatch lines are formed may be varied during use.

The apparatus is typically used to build, layer-by-layer, three dimensional objects. The apparatus is thus preferably arranged to deposit and selectively solidify a plurality of powder layers, each layer deposited on top of the preceding layer, to form a three dimensional object. It is preferred that the layer formation technique is applied to each layer, in turn, of the object that is formed.

It should be noted that it is possible to perform a contour scan before and/or after a required pattern has been written into a powder layer (e. using the stripe or stripe segment based formation technique). A contour scan involves rapidly scanning the laser beam around the contour of the part to re-melt/re-solidify material that will form the outer surface of the part being formed. Such a contour scan involves the solidification of only a small amount of material thereby ejecting minimal amounts of debris and can thus be formed in a conventional manner (i.e. with no control over laser beam movement direction relative to the gas flow direction). Such a contour scan may be performed between a stripe formation technique being applied to a plurality of different powder layers.

The apparatus preferably also includes powder deposition apparatus for depositing a powder layer onto the powder bed. The powder deposition apparatus preferably comprises a powder dispenser and a powder wiper. The powder bed may also include a moveable platform or table. A base plate may be attached to platform. The height of the platform within the machine may be adjustable to allow the powder bed to be dropped prior to the deposition of a powder layer. Such features are conventional for selective solidification machines and will not be described further herein for brevity.

It has been explained previously in <CIT> that altering the stripe direction for different layers is advantageous when forming a three-dimensional object. This also applies when using the technique of the present invention. In particular, different stripe formation directions (e.g. differing by <NUM>°) are preferably used for adjacent powder layers.

The apparatus of the present invention is used to selectively melt powder. The powder may, for example, comprise plastic powder, ceramic powder or metal powder. Preferably, the apparatus is arranged to deposit and solidify metal powder. For example, metal powders such as steel (e.g. steel grade <NUM>), Stainless steel, titanium, cobalt chrome etc may be used.

The invention will now be described, by way of example only, based on a preferred embodiment, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:.

Referring to <FIG>, a known selective laser melting machine <NUM> is schematically illustrated.

The laser melting machine <NUM> comprises a build chamber or housing <NUM> in which there is provided a powder bed <NUM>. The powder bed <NUM> can be raised and lowed (i.e. moved in the z-direction) by a piston mechanism <NUM>. A powder dispensing and roller system <NUM> is provided for depositing a thin (e.g. <NUM>-<NUM>) powder layer onto the top of the powder bed <NUM>. The powder used to form the powder layer is preferably a metal powder (e.g. <NUM> grade steel powder).

A laser scanning unit <NUM> is also provided that comprises a high power continuous wave (CW) laser and scanning optics to direct a laser beam <NUM> towards the powder bed <NUM>. The scanning optics also allow the laser beam <NUM> to be moved rapidly over the surface of the powder bed <NUM>. The laser scanning unit <NUM> also includes an optical modulator to enable the laser beam <NUM> that impinges on the powder layer to be turned on and off as required.

A gas flow unit <NUM> is also provided. The gas flow unit <NUM> comprises a gas outlet bar <NUM> having a plurality of nozzles <NUM> for ejecting gas. A gas exhaust bar <NUM> is also provided for collecting gas. A pump <NUM> is used to draw in gas from the gas exhaust bar <NUM> and to pump gas to the nozzles <NUM> of the gas outlet bar <NUM>. Suitable gas tubing <NUM> is provided to connect the gas outlet bar <NUM> and gas exhaust bar <NUM> to the pump <NUM>. In use, gas flows from the gas outlet bar <NUM> to the gas exhaust bar <NUM>. There is thus a predefined gas flow within the machine; i.e. gas is passed over the powder bed along the gas flow direction G.

The laser melting machine <NUM> is operated, under the direction of a controller <NUM>, as follows. Firstly, a substrate plate is affixed to the piston mechanism. The substrate plate, which is preferably formed from the same material as the powder to be deposited on it, forms the base of the powder bed. The powder dispensing and roller system <NUM> is then used to dispense a powder layer of a certain thickness (e.g. <NUM>) onto the substrate plate. The laser scanning unit <NUM> then directs the laser beam <NUM> onto the powder layer and melts selected parts of the powder layer; i.e. selected regions of the powder layer are melted to the substrate plate. The path over the powder bed that is used by the laser is scanned is described in more detail below. Once the required pattern (e.g. cross-section) has been written into the powder layer, the piston <NUM> drops the powder bed <NUM>, another powder layer is deposited on top of the existing (partly solidified) layer and the laser scanning unit then selectively melts the newly deposited powder layer. This process is then repeated, layer-by-layer, to form the required three dimensional object. During this fabrication process, a continuous supply of gas is passed over the powder bed along the gas flow direction G by the gas flow unit <NUM>.

The illustration and description of <FIG> shows only the basic operation of known laser melting machines. The skilled person would be aware of further details of the machine construction and operation. It should be noted that the above schematic illustration is based on the M280 model of laser melting machine that is made by EOS GmbH.

Referring next to <FIG>, a prior art process for selectively melting a deposited powder layer using the machine described above with reference to <FIG> will be described. This process is implemented as standard on the EOS M280 machine mentioned above.

<FIG> illustrates a powder layer <NUM> that is to be selectively melted to form the solidified layer pattern <NUM>. The powder layer <NUM> is deposited on the powder bed using the powder dispensing and roller system <NUM> that is described with reference to <FIG>. Also shown is the gas outlet bar <NUM> and the gas exhaust bar <NUM> that provide a planar flow of gas along a gas flow direction G.

In order to solidify the powder layer <NUM> to form the solidified layer pattern <NUM>, a plurality of stripes (labelled S1-S12 in <FIG>) are defined. The stripes S1-S12 together define a square region that contains the area on the powder bed where the solidified layer pattern <NUM> is to be written. The laser scanning unit <NUM> generates a laser spot that is rapidly scanned across the width of the stripe (i.e. along a direction perpendicular to the elongate axis or length of the stripe) to form a so-called hatch line. In order to selectively melt powder along the length of the stripe, successive hatch lines are moved along the stripe in the direction L. In other words, the stripe is formed by movement of the hatch line along the stripe formation direction L. It should be noted that the hatch line formed by the laser may be the width of the stripe or it may be shorter than the width of the stripe if melting is not required across the whole stripe width at that particular position.

In the prior art example shown in <FIG>, the stripe S12 is addressed first. This involves the laser scanning unit forming a hatch line that is moved from left to right along the stripe formation direction L to solidify the part of the layer pattern <NUM> falling with the S12 stripe. After stripe S12 has been written, the pattern of stripe S11 is written, which involves moving the hatch line along the stripe S11 in the stripe formation direction L. The stripe formation direction L for stripe S11 is opposite to the stripe formation direction L for stripe S12. It can thus be seen that the stripe formation direction L alternates between stripes as the stripes are written in turn (i.e. in the order S12 to S1). In the present example, all even numbered stripes (S2, S4, S4 etc) are formed using a hatch line that is moved from left to right whereas all odd numbered stripes (S1, S3, S5 etc) are formed using a hatch line that is moved from right to left.

The present inventors have found that this prior art technique has a number of disadvantages. As shown in <FIG>, it has been found by the present inventors that stripes formed by hatch line movement in opposed stripe formation directions have different surface discoloration and surface roughness. In particular, the present inventors have found that oxidization and high surface roughness occurs for even numbered stripes (S2, S4, S4 etc) that have been formed using a hatch line that is moved (in <FIG>) from left to right. These even numbered stripes are identified by the label <NUM> in the photomicrograph of <FIG>.

Referring now to <FIG>, the effect of the gas flow direction relative to the stripe formation direction on layer formation will be described.

<FIG> shows a powder bed <NUM> that carries a layer of melted metal <NUM> and a powder layer <NUM> that has yet to be melted. The dashed lines <NUM> illustrate the hatch lines that were generated by the laser scanning unit to melt the powder that now forms the layer of melted metal <NUM>. In this example, the gas flow direction G is the same as the stripe formation direction L. In other words, there a component of the gas flow direction that is in the same direction as the stripe formation direction L; this could be thought of as there being a "tail-wind".

The inventors have found that when the gas flow direction G and stripe formation direction L are aligned in the manner shown in <FIG>, debris from the melting process (powder particles, partially melted clumps of powder particles and other residue/condensate from the melting process etc) are carried by the gas flow towards the part of the powder layer that has yet to be melted. This debris forms a surface region or bulge of contaminant <NUM> that moves along the stripe as the melt progresses. This not only results in a layer of non-uniform thickness being formed because of the different sized particles being deposited on the top of the unmelted powder, but it also reduces the laser power that reaches the powder layer thereby altering the melting conditions of the underlying powder layer. In particular, it has been found that sub-optimum oxidisation of the melted powder occurs and that the process generates a relatively high level of surface roughness and introduces defects etc. The effect shown in <FIG> accounts for the poorer quality of the even numbered stripes (S2, S4, S4 etc) shown in the photomicrograph of <FIG>.

<FIG> shows a powder bed <NUM> that carries a layer of melted metal <NUM> and a powder layer <NUM> that has yet to be melted. The dashed lines <NUM> illustrate the hatch lines that were generated by the laser scanning unit to melt the powder that now forms the layer of melted metal <NUM>. In this example, the gas flow direction G is opposed to the stripe formation direction L. In other words, there is no component of the gas flow direction that is in the same direction as the stripe formation direction L; i.e. there is no "tail-wind".

In this example, the flow of gas in the gas flow direction G acts to blow debris from the melting process away from the powder layer of the stripe that has yet to be melted. This has been found to prevent the formation of a bulge of contaminant as illustrated in <FIG>. It should be noted that although <FIG> illustrates the use of gas flow direction G that is fully opposed to the stripe formation direction L, there may instead be an oblique angle between the gas flow direction G and the stripe formation direction L. Providing such an oblique angle also ensures that the debris is not deposited onto regions of the stripe that have just been melted.

It should also be noted <FIG> illustrate embodiments in which the whole width of the stripe is melted by a plurality of full width hatch lines that are formed at successive points along the stripe formation direction L. It is, of course, possible to only melt selected parts of each stripe in order to construct the desired cross-section or pattern of melted material.

<FIG> illustrates the powder layer <NUM> that is to be selectively melted to form the solidified layer pattern <NUM>. The powder layer <NUM> is deposited on the powder bed using the powder dispensing and roller system that is described with reference to <FIG>. Also shown are the gas outlet bar <NUM> and gas exhaust bar <NUM> described with reference to <FIG> that provide a flow of gas along a gas flow direction G.

In order to solidify the powder layer <NUM> to form the solidified layer pattern <NUM>, a plurality of stripes are melted in turn; these stripes are labelled as S1-S12 in <FIG>. Unlike the prior art process described above with reference to <FIG>, the stripes illustrated in <FIG> formed by moving the hatch line along each stripe in the same direction. In other words, the same stripe formation direction L is used for each of the stripes S1 to S12. In addition, the stripe formation direction L is arranged to differ from the gas flow direction G by the angle θ, which in this example is about <NUM>°. Also shown in <FIG> is the angle α between the normal to the gas flow direction G and the stripe formation direction L. In this example, α has a value of around <NUM>°.

Providing such an angle between the gas flow direction G and the stripe formation direction L means that any debris ejected during the melting process is carried by the flow of gas away from the part of the powder layer that is yet to be melted and also away from any material of that stripe that has just been melted. For example, debris ejected from the surface when melting the point P shown in <FIG> is carried along the vector d and away from the stripe S1. This helps ensure that the majority of the debris does not cover powder yet to be sintered and also does not adhere to powder that has recently been melted. The solidified layer pattern <NUM> formed by the melting process thus has a more uniform (less rough, fewer defects) surface than layers produced using alternating stripe formation directions as per the prior art process described with reference to <FIG>.

In addition to each stripe being formed by moving a hatch line along the same stripe formation direction L, the stripes S1 to S12 are preferably formed in a specific order. In particular, the stripes S1 to S12 are preferably formed in reverse order of their proximity to the gas outlet bar <NUM>. In other words, the stripe S1 nearest the gas exhaust bar <NUM> is formed first, then stripe S2 is formed, then stripe S3 etc. Forming the stripes in this order has the advantage that any debris ejected when writing one stripe does not disrupt the powder layer for stripes that have yet to be written. In particular, it can be seen that any debris ejected whilst melting the selected parts of the powder layer within stripe S1 does not get carried in the flow of gas over the stripes S2-S12. This means that a more uniform, substantially debris free, powder layer is present when each stripe is written.

Referring to <FIG>, a powder layer <NUM> is shown that is to be selectively melted to form the solidified layer pattern <NUM>. The powder layer <NUM> is deposited on the powder bed using the powder dispensing and roller system that is described with reference to <FIG>. Also shown are the gas outlet bar <NUM> and gas exhaust bar <NUM> described with reference to <FIG> that provide a flow of gas along a gas flow direction G.

In this example, the stripes S1 to S12 are again preferably formed in reverse order of their proximity to the gas outlet bar <NUM>. Each stripe is formed by moving the hatch line along each stripe in the same direction. In other words, the same stripe formation direction L is used for each of the stripes S1 to S12. It can also be seen that the stripe formation direction L of <FIG> is a reflection of the stripe formation direction L shown in <FIG> about the gas flow direction. In other words, the stripe formation direction L is arranged to differ from the gas flow direction G by the angle -θ in <FIG>. The arrangement of <NUM> thus has similar benefits to that of <FIG>.

In addition to optimising the stripe formation direction L, it should be remembered that each stripe is formed using a series of hatch lines. These hatch lines are formed by scanning a laser spot across the stripe; i.e. the hatch line is formed by moving a laser spot along a line that is perpendicular to the stripe formation direction L. It has further been found that a further improvement to the uniformity of stripe formation can be obtained by altering the hatch line formation process. This will now be explained with reference to <FIG>.

Referring to <FIG>, there is shown a prior art method for scanning a laser spot back and forth across the width of a stripe S to form a succession of hatch lines <NUM> along the stripe formation direction L. The dashed lines <NUM> illustrate the notional paths at the end of each hatch line <NUM> that are traversed (with the laser beam deactivated) in order to appropriately position the laser beam ready for formation of the next hatch line. For convenience, the series of hatch lines of <FIG> can be termed bidirectional hatch lines.

The technique of hatch line formation shown in <FIG> has the advantage that the successive hatch lines can be formed at high speed because the beam steering optics of the laser scanning unit only need to provide a small amount of (notional) laser beam movement between the end of one hatch line and the start of the next hatch line. It has been found, however, that the direction of hatch line formation relative to the gas flow direction also affects the quality and uniformity of the layer that is generated from melting the powder layer within a stripe. It has also been found that the non-uniformity caused by this effect increases as the magnitude of the angle α (which is described above with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>) between the normal to the gas flow direction G and the stripe formation direction L reduces.

Forming the hatch lines by always scanning the laser beam in the same direction across the stripe can thus improve the uniformity of the melted layer. <FIG> shows how hatch lines <NUM> can be formed by always scanning the laser spot from the top to the bottom of a stripe S. <FIG> shows how hatch lines <NUM> can be formed by always scanning the laser spot from the bottom to the top of a stripe S. For convenience, the series of hatch lines of <FIG> can be termed unidirectional hatch lines. Although the formation of unidirectional hatch lines can improve stripe quality, such an improvement is accompanied by an increase in the time it takes to form a series of hatch lines. In particular, there is an additional delay associated with the scanning optics of the laser scanning unit moving back across the stripe to allow the next hatch line to be formed.

If stripes are being formed, it should also be noted that the direction of formation of the unidirectional hatch lines relative to the stripe formation direction L will depend on the orientation of the stripe being formed relative to the gas flow direction G. For example, the stripes formed in <FIG> would benefit from being formed from the unidirectional hatch lines of <FIG> whilst the stripes formed in <FIG> would benefit from being formed from the unidirectional hatch lines of <FIG>. In both cases, the direction of beam movement during hatch line formation is arranged to at least partly oppose the gas flow direction G. This means that the majority of debris associated with powder melting is blown clear of powder within the hatch line that is yet to be melted. The formation of unidirectional hatch lines may thus be varied as required for different stripe orientations relative to the gas flow direction.

Referring to <FIG>, the process of constructing a three-dimensional object <NUM> from a plurality of melted layers (700a-700f) is illustrated. Each layer 700a-700f may be formed by a process that involves selectively melting each layer using multiple stripes, each stripe of one layer being formed along a common stripe formation direction L. The stripe formation direction L may vary between layers, but it is preferred that the gas flow direction is always at least partially opposed to the stripe formation direction for each layer. In this manner, the benefits are obtained for each layer in a three-dimensional object. The use of different stripe formation directions L for each layer may also mean that certain layers can be formed using bidirectional hatch lines whilst other layers are formed using unidirectional hatch lines. The benefits of altering the stripe formation direction between layers has also been described previously in <CIT>). A difference in stripe formation direction between adjacent layers of at least <NUM>° is used in this example, but other different angles may be implemented. For example, the rotation angle between adjacent layers may be more than <NUM>° or it may be <NUM>°. The rotation angle between adjacent layers is preferably less than <NUM>°. Again, it should be noted that it is preferred that each layer (or at least the majority of the layers) meets the requirement that the gas flow direction is always at least partially opposed to the stripe formation direction.

It should also be noted that although the melting process may take place by advancing hatch lines along a stripe, there may be other processing steps that do not requires such tight control over the stripe formation direction relative to the gas flow direction. For example, the laser scanning unit may perform a contour scan before and/or after a layer has been melted by advancing hatch lines along a stripe. The contour scan may simply scan the laser beam around the contour of an object to re-melt and solidify the metal to improve surface quality. In such a contour scan the path of the laser beam spot may take on any orientation relative to the gas flow direction. This has not been found to have a detrimental effect because the amount of debris generated by such a contour scan is minimal.

Referring to <FIG>, it is also illustrated how the present invention can be applied to layer formation using stripe segments. In particular, <FIG> illustrates a powder layer <NUM> that is to be melted to form a desired pattern (not shown). The powder layer <NUM> may be deposited using the powder dispensing and roller system described with reference to <FIG>. As described previously, a planar flow of gas is provided over the powder layer along the direction G.

The desired pattern is written to the powder layer <NUM> by dividing the layer into a plurality of stripe segments <NUM>. Each stripe segment <NUM> is formed separately. The stripe segments may be written in any order. As also shown in <FIG>, the stripe formation direction L may be different for the different stripe segments (although it may be the same). However, the gas flow direction G is always at least partially opposed to the stripe formation direction L of each stripe segment.

Claim 1:
Selective laser melting apparatus (<NUM>), comprising;
a powder bed (<NUM>;<NUM>;<NUM>) onto which a layer of powder (<NUM>;<NUM>) can be deposited,
a gas flow device (<NUM>) for passing a flow of gas over the powder bed along a predefined gas flow direction (G), the gas flow device (<NUM>) comprising at least one gas outlet and at least one gas exhaust, the at least one gas outlet and the at least one gas exhaust being placed either side of the powder bed such that gas pumped from the at least one gas outlet passes to the at least one gas exhaust and provides a substantially planar flow of gas along the predefined gas direction (G),
a laser scanning unit (<NUM>) for scanning a laser beam (<NUM>) along a scan path on a layer of powder (<NUM>;<NUM>) deposited on the powder bed (<NUM>;<NUM>;<NUM>), the laser beam (<NUM>) being selectively output as the scan path is traversed to allow selected regions of the layer of powder (<NUM>;<NUM>) to be melted, and
a controller (<NUM>) configured to control the laser scanning unit (<NUM>) to move the laser beam (<NUM>) to form a series of hatch lines (<NUM>;<NUM>) that are advanced over the powder layer (<NUM>;<NUM>) along a hatch line movement direction,
characterised in that the controller (<NUM>) is configured to control the laser scanning unit (<NUM>) so that the hatch line movement direction is anti-parallel to the gas flow direction (G) or there is an oblique angle between the hatch line movement direction and the gas flow direction (G) such that the hatch line movement direction is at least partially opposed to the gas flow direction (G), any particles ejected during laser melting thereby being substantially prevented from being carried by the gas flow into regions of the scan path that have yet to be scanned.