Desktop Automated Powder Processing Station

Desktop Automatic Powder Processing Station
Category:
Multidiscipline (Software, Electrical, Mechanical)
Problem Statement
Powder Bed Fusion 3D Printing (SLS, MJF, etc) allows for the 3D printing of polymer parts utilizing melted plastic powder. When recovering parts from a SLS printer, the parts come caked in a “shell” of hardened plastic that must be removed via a manual process (scrubbing, media blasting). This process takes a lot of touch labor, rotating the part to every possible angle to ensure full media blasting of every surface.
Task
Develop an automated method of processing SLS printed parts utilizing compressed air, media blasting, vibration, tumbling, and or other processes. The system should be closed, able to accept a 6” cubed part, and able to remove the vast majority of caked powder from the surface from parts of arbitrary geometry.
Desktop Automatic Powder Processing Station – Requirements
The final solution must meet the following requirements:
Automated system that allows users to process SLS printed parts.
Remove (at a minimum) 98% of caked on SLS powder
Self-clean parts, removing processing media (ex. glass media blast powder) from parts upon completion.
Accept a part at a minimum size of 6”x6”x6”.
Accept parts as small as ¼”x¼”x¼” without losing them.
Does not use any liquids to process (dry processes only).
Recycles any processing media (blasting powder, tumbling stones, etc).
Completely sealed to minimize produced debris.
Well lit to allow for visibility to the cleaning process.