Hewlett-packard Development Company, L.p.

Albert Mora Murciano

Pau Martin Vidal

Anna Torrent

Pablo Dominguez Pastor

Miguel Angel Lopez

Marius Valles

Carlos Perez

Guillermo Garcia Marcos

Gabriel De La Cal

A material management apparatus for an additive manufacturing system comprises a build material supply system to supply build material to a building area for building an object by additive manufacturing. The build material supply system includes a first build material supply unit to supply build material from a first side of a building area and a second build material supply unit to supply build material from a second side of the building area, the second side opposing the first side. The material management apparatus also includes a controller to control the build material supply system to vary an amount of build material to be supplied via the first build material supply unit based on a detected difference between a first amount of material available for supply via the first build material supply unit and a second amount of material available for supply via the second build material supply unit.

Build material management

There is disclosed a build material supply unit, comprising: a supply chamber body enclosing a supply volume to contain a build material for additive manufacture; an electromagnetic distance sensor to determine a length parameter relating to a length of a beam pathway extending from an emitter of the sensor to a surface level of build material in the supply volume; and a reflector to reflect the beam pathway between the emitter and the surface level of build material; wherein the reflector is spaced apart from the emitter.

Build material supply unit with distance sensor

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Sant Cugat del Valles, Spain

Albert Mora Murciano