The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 03, 2026
Filed:
Mar. 28, 2023
Formlabs, Inc., Somerville, MA (US);
Luke Plummer, Jericho, VT (US);
Maria Rosa Ruiz, Malden, MA (US);
Carlos Ruiz-Vargas, Waltham, MA (US);
Robert Morgan, Winchester, MA (US);
Joseph Johnson, Norwood, MA (US);
Gregory Connor Evans, Somerville, MA (US);
Formlabs, Inc., Somerville, MA (US);
Abstract
Techniques are described for consistently moving powder from a hopper into a trough for subsequent delivery into a build area of an additive fabrication system. A powder conveyer may be arranged at least partially within the hopper and configured to be actuated to transfer powder to the trough. The powder conveyer may be formed as a screw conveyor, for example. Such techniques do not require complex closed-loop control systems and may be effective irrespective of the flowability of the powder. In at least some cases, there may be no production of excess powder because the amount of powder that is metered into the trough may be precisely controlled to be the amount needed for recoating.