Removing build material particles

Abstract

An example of an apparatus to decake a 3D printed part is disclosed. The apparatus comprises a housing including at least a conduit connectable to a gas source and at least a channel connectable to a vacuum source. The conduit, when in use, is to direct a gas flow to remove un-solidified build material particles from a surface of a 3D printed part. The channel, when in use, is to direct an airflow that generally surrounds the gas flow to extract the removed un-solidified build material particles.

What it is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A 3D cleaning station comprising:
 a transport module to transport at least one 3D printed part with un-solidified build material through the 3D cleaning station;   a housing including at least a conduit connectable to a gas source and at least a channel connectable to a vacuum source;   the conduit, when in use, to direct a gas flow to remove un-solidified build material particles from a surface of the 3D printed part; and   the channel, when in use, to direct an airflow that generally surrounds the gas flow to extract the removed un-solidified build material particles.   
     
     
         2 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of the housings located at different positions relative to the transport module to remove and extract un-solidified build material particles from the 3D printed part as the 3D printed part moves through the 3D cleaning station. 
     
     
         3 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 1 , further comprising a positioning mechanism to move the housing with respect to the 3D cleaning station. 
     
     
         4 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 1 , further comprising the gas source and the vacuum source respectively connected to the conduit and the channel. 
     
     
         5 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 1 , wherein the conduit forms an airknife that spans substantially the full width of the transport module. 
     
     
         6 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 1 , wherein the gas in the conduit flows at a higher speed than the airflow in the channel. 
     
     
         7 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 1 , wherein the conduit and the channel are located around a central axis. 
     
     
         8 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of a conduit end and a channel end comprises a nozzle opening. 
     
     
         9 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 8 , further comprising an array of conduits and channels to span substantially a full width of the transport module. 
     
     
         10 . The 3D cleaning station of  claim 1 , wherein the housing further comprises a skirt defining an aperture that spans, at least in part, a surface of the 3D printed part. 
     
     
         11 . An apparatus to decake a 3D printed part comprising:
 a housing including at least a conduit connectable to a gas source and at least a channel connectable to a vacuum source;   the conduit, when in use, to direct a gas flow to remove un-solidified build material particles from a surface of a 3D printed part; and   the channel, when in use, to direct an airflow that generally surrounds the gas flow to extract the removed un-solidified build material particles.   
     
     
         12 . The apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein the conduit and the channel are located around a central axis. 
     
     
         13 . The apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein the gas flow in the conduit is to have an average speed from about 0.01 m/s to about 1 m/s. 
     
     
         14 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the distance in which the housing is positioned relative to the 3D printed part is adjustable. 
     
     
         15 . A non-transitory machine-readable medium storing instructions executable by a processor, the non-transitory machine-readable medium comprising:
 instructions to control a transport module to move through a 3D cleaning station;   instructions to control a gas source to generate a gas flow towards the transport module to remove un-solidified build material particles from a 3D printed part placed thereon; and   instructions to control a vacuum source to direct an airflow that generally surrounds the gas flow to extract the removed un-solidified build material particles.