Nederlandse Organisatie Voor Toegepast-natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek Tno

Other

Friesland Brands B.v.

Frieslandcampina Nederland B.v.

René Jos Houben

Andries Rijfers

Leonardus Antonius Maria Brouwers

Frits Kornelis Feenstra

Gerrit Oosterhuis

Antonius Paulus Aulbers

Robin Bernardus Johannes Koldeweij

Ronaldus Jacobus Johannes Boot

Augustinus Gerardus Maria Biemans

Gerben Pieterse

Albert Thijs Poortinga

Gerardus Titus Van Heck

Jasper Joost Michels

Jacobus Eversdijk

Merijn Wijnen

Kjeld Jacobus Cornelis Van Bommel

Frederikus Johannes Maria De Vreede

Frits Verhoeven

Stijn Ruud Louis Berden

A production line for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing. The production line comprises: (i) a first and a second building platform for carrying a tangible product; (ii) a deposition head for providing a layer of construction material onto the building platforms; (iii) a conveyor for conveying the building platforms in a conveying plane towards and away from the deposition head repeatedly; and (iv) height adjustment means to adjust the distance between the deposition head and the building platforms by displacing the building platforms relative to the conveyor in a direction perpendicular to the conveying plane. The production line may further comprise a picking unit for picking a product from the building platforms.

Production line for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing

A production line for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing. The production line includes: first and second movable carriers, each carrier comprising a transporter for transporting the carrier, and a building platform for supporting a tangible product, one or more deposition heads for depositing construction material in a deposition direction onto the building platforms, and a conveyor for conveying the first and second building platform towards the deposition head and away from the deposition head repeatedly. The first and the second transporter are movable at variable speeds relative to each other along a trajectory of the conveyor. Optionally, the height of the building platforms can be adjusted.

The invention relates to a production line and a method for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing. The production line comprises a deposition head for depositing construction material layerwise on a building platform. The building platforms can move with a different speed along a conveyor. Optionally, the height of the building platforms can be adjusted. The method is characterized in that at least two building platforms are moving with different speed.

Apparatus and method for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing

The invention relates to a method and a production line () for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing. Layers of a uniform thickness are deposited on top of each other and solidified in a pattern that corresponds to a cross section of the product. The method and production line are in particular suited for making mutually different products out of powders of construction material. The construction material is deposited on the different building platforms () individually by a deposition head (). A surplus of material is removed by a remover (), preferably before the layer is solidified (). This allows that the quantity of material can be adapted to the specific product on each building platform. The production line further comprises a platform conveyor () for conveying the towards and away from the deposition head repeatedly.

Method and production line for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing

The invention relates to a method and a production line for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing. The production line comprises (i) a first and a second building platform () for carrying a tangible product, (ii) a deposition head () for providing a layer of construction material onto the building platforms, (iii) a conveyor () for conveying the building platforms in a conveying plane towards and away from the deposition head repeatedly, (iv) height adjustment means () to adjust the distance between the deposition head and the building platforms by displacing the building platforms relative to the conveyor in a direction () perpendicular to the conveying plane. The production line may further comprise a picking unit () for picking a product from the building platforms. The method allows making different tangible products in a continuous process by layerwise manufacturing. The method comprises a step of moving the platforms on which a product is made repeatedly past a material providing device for depositing subsequent layers and a step of adjusting the distance between such device and the building platforms by moving the platforms in a vertical direction.

Method and apparatus for making tangible products by layerwise manufacturing

The invention is directed at a print head for printing a suspension fluid. The print head comprises a nozzle having one or more nozzle outlets for allowing the suspension fluid to be ejected from the nozzle, a flow path including a supply channel for supplying the suspension fluid to the one or more nozzle outlets, and a supply pump for establishing a flow within the flow path. The nozzle further comprises an actuator for imparting pressure fluctuations on the suspension fluid at the one or more nozzle outlets for generating a stream of droplets therefrom. The flow path further comprises a shear section for locally increasing the shear rate at least at a location in the flow path upstream of the one or more nozzle outlets. The flow path further includes a return channel for allowing excess fluid not ejected from the nozzle to flow away from the one or more nozzle outlets. The shear section is configured to locally increase the shear rate to be larger than a shear rate obtained near at least one of the one or more nozzle outlets. The invention is further directed at a printing apparatus, a method of printing, and a method of manufacturing a print head.

Print head for printing a suspension fluid comprising particles, printing apparatus and method

Method of spray-drying a high-viscosity fluid, e.g. comprising a food product. The method comprises providing a nozzle plate wherein at least one nozzle is provided, said nozzle plate having an inner main surface and an outer main surface. The method comprises providing the high-viscosity fluid in a reservoir that is in fluidum connection with the at least one nozzle. The method comprises pressurizing the high-viscosity fluid in the reservoir, wherein the fluid flows, as a result of said pressurizing, towards the nozzle plate, thus creating a pressure difference over the at least one nozzle so that the fluid flows out of the at least one nozzle, thereby passing the outer main surface after passing the inner main surface. A cross-sectional area of the at least one nozzle in the inner main surface exceeds a cross-sectional area of the at least one nozzle in the outer main surface.

Method of spray-drying and apparatus for spray-drying

The invention provides a method for applying a material onto a substrate using a droplet printing technique wherein a gas stream is released into the direction of a substrate, which gas stream comprises a carrier gas and droplets of a suspension of the material or droplets of a solution of a precursor of the material or droplets of a precursor of the material as such, whereby the droplets in the gas stream are first maintained in a steady flow and subsequently in a converging flow before the droplets are contacted with the substrate. The invention further provides an apparatus for carrying out said method.

Method and apparatus for applying a material on a substrate

A high pressure printing system comprising: a high pressure printing head, constructed and arranged for printing a printing fluid with a printing pressure in at least a part of a channel upstream of the printing head in an interval of 15-3000 bars; a pressure system comprising a printing fluid inlet and a plurality of pressure cylinders constructed and arranged for providing a constant flow of said printing fluid, the pressure cylinders being interconnected by at least a pressure valve; and a damper, connected between an outlet of the pressure system and said high pressure printing head, provided for damping the valve action of the pressure valve.

Constant flow high pressure printing system

An apparatus and method are for printing a fluid material by a continuous jet printing technique. The apparatus includes a flow restricting structure arranged near an outflow opening for restricting a flow of the material between a reservoir and the outflow opening by a restricted passage through the flow restricting structure. Furthermore, the flow restricting structure, an actuating surface, and a nozzle are arranged to bind a micro volume directly adjacent an inside of the outflow opening for the purpose of guiding or reflecting pressure variations generated by the pressure regulating mechanism towards the outflow opening.

Continuous jet printing of a fluid material

The invention relates to a droplet break up device () comprising: a chamber () for containing a pressurized printing liquid () comprising a bottom plate; at least one outlet channel (') having a central axis, provided in said chamber for ejecting the printing liquid; and an actuator for breaking up, a fluid jetted out of the outlet channel. The actuator comprises a revolving, member () comprising a surface deformation (&#x2032;) shaped to provide a pressure pulse near the outlet channel. Accordingly, a simple mechanism is provided for providing multiple printing nozzles.

Droplet break-up device

In one aspect, the invention provides a system and method for spray drying a fluid. The system comprises a fluid reservoir (), a spraying device () that comprises at least one outflow opening () for projecting droplets of fluid () from the reservoir () out of the at least one outflow opening () and at least one energy source () for at least partially drying the droplets. The spraying device () is arranged to project the droplets into a determinable droplet trajectory and the at least one energy source () is arranged for providing energy focused substantially on the droplet trajectory. It is an object of the invention to provide a system and method for reducing the amount of energy required for spray drying.

Effective droplet drying

A method and droplet selection device are provided for a continuous printer for selectively deflecting a droplet from a predetermined printing trajectory. In particular, a droplet selection device is provided for a continuous printer, comprising a droplet ejection system arranged to generate a continuous stream of droplets from a first fluid jetted out of an outlet channel; and a jet system arranged to generate a second jet for colliding the jet into the stream of droplets. The jet system comprises a deflector to selectively deflect the second jet into the continuous stream of droplets, so as to selectively deflect the droplets from a predefined printing trajectory.

Droplet selection mechanism

The invention relates to a droplet break up device comprising: a chamber for containing a printing liquid comprising a bottom plate; a pump for pressurizing the printing liquid; an outlet channel having a central axis, provided in said chamber for ejecting the printing liquid; and an actuator for breaking up a fluid jetted out of the outlet channel. The actuator is provided around the outlet channel, arranged to symmetrically impart a pressure pulse central to the outlet channel axis. Accordingly, smaller droplets can be delivered at higher frequencies.

The invention relates to a method of generating a 'multicomponent particle comprising: and a multicomponent particle generating system comprising: a first nozzle constructed to generate at least one isolated particle; a second nozzle arranged to generate a generally uninterrupted fluid jet without breaking up, &#x2014;said first and second nozzles arranged to have said isolated particle collide with the fluid jet so as to combine said particle with fluid of the second fluid jet, for providing a multicomponent particle; and a collector by which said isolated particles can be captured after collision with the fluid jet.

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Nederweert, Netherlands

René Jos Houben