General Electric Company
Apparatus and method for continuous additive manufacturing

Abstract:

An apparatus for continuous powder-based additive manufacturing of a large annular object or multiple smaller objects simultaneously is described. The build unit(s) of the apparatus includes a powder delivery mechanism, a powder recoating mechanism and an irradiation beam directing mechanism. The build unit(s) is attached to a rotating mechanism such that the build unit(s) rotates around and above the annular powder bed during production. The rotating mechanism is supported onto a central tower, and both the rotating mechanism and the tower are concentric with the non-rotating annular powder bed. An additive manufacturing method using the apparatus involves repetitive and continuous cycles of at least simultaneously rotating the build unit(s) to deposit powder onto the powder bed and irradiating the powder to form a fused additive layer. The continuous additive manufacturing process may be further aided with a helical configuration of the powder bed build surface.