US-12623310-B2 - Laser heating for the manufacture or repair of a turbine blade

US12623310B2US 12623310 B2US12623310 B2US 12623310B2US-12623310-B2

Abstract

A device for laser heating of a mechanical part of the turbine blade or turbine blade element type, including: one or more laser emitters, for respectively emitting at least a first laser radiation at a first predetermined power towards a first target area of the part and for emitting a second laser radiation at a second predetermined power towards a second target area of the part, different from the first target area, the second predetermined power being different from the first predetermined power.

Inventors

Damien Jonathan Julien COURAPIED
Guillaume Valentin Giamondo MARION

Assignees

SAFRAN

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20210609
Priority Date: 20200618

Claims (9)

1 . A laser heating device for heating a mechanical part or a part element, including a blade element or a blade of a turbine, according to a predetermined thermal profile, said heating device comprising: a given laser source provided with plural laser emitters, respectively to emit at least one first laser radiation according to a first predetermined power in the direction of a first target area of the part or of said part element and to emit a second laser radiation according to a second predetermined power in the direction of a second target area of the part or of said part element distinct from the first target area, the second predetermined power being different from the first predetermined power, and a control module of said laser emitter elements, said control module being provided with a memory storing geometric data relating to a geometry of the part element and positioning data of different target areas of the part element, said control module being configured to: produce thermal profile data associating said geometric and position data of target areas of said part element with respective heating temperature values or associating position data of target areas of said part with respective heating temperature values, modulate the respective emission power of said laser emitters of said laser source according to said thermal profile data, wherein the laser emitters of the laser source are arranged on a support defining a cavity in which the part can be placed, with the laser emitters distributed along a closed contour around the cavity.
2 . The device according to claim 1 , wherein said first laser radiation according to said first power and said second laser radiation according to said second power are emitted successively by the same laser emitter, or said first laser radiation according to said first power and said second laser radiation according to said second power originate respectively and concomitantly from a first laser emitter and from a second laser emitter.
3 . The device according to claim 1 , wherein said given laser source comprises at least one first emitter belonging to a first support and at least one second emitter belonging to a second support distinct from the first support, a space between said first support and said second support being provided to accommodate said part.
4 . The device according to claim 1 , wherein the laser emitters are laser diodes emitting a laser ray perpendicular to the surface of an active semiconductor region called VCSEL (vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser) laser diodes.
5 . The device according to claim 1 , wherein said memory stores a three-dimensional model of the part element associated with structural data of its constituent material.
6 . A system for additive manufacturing by direct deposition of material of the metal powder or molten metal wire type comprising a laser heating device according to claim 1 .
7 . The additive manufacturing system according to claim 6 , provided with a material dispenser member and with another laser source distinct from said given laser source, the heating device being configured so that said laser emitters emit at a specific power so as to achieve heating at a temperature lower than the melting temperature of said material.
8 . A method for manufacturing or repairing a blade or of a blade element of an aircraft engine comprising: additive manufacturing by laser-assisted powder spraying being preceded or followed by a heat treatment using a laser heating device according to claim 1 .
9 . The method according to claim 8 , wherein said heat treatment is performed at a temperature lower than the melting temperature of said powder.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD AND PRIOR ART The present application relates to the field of the manufacture or repair of mechanical parts for which at least one heating step according to an accurate thermal distribution must be carried out. In particular, it applies to making of a part, in particular made of metal and/or of a composite material, with a complex shape and likely to undergo significant thermal and mechanical stresses such as a turbine blade, for example for an aircraft engine. During the process of manufacturing a blade, it is common practice to subject a blade element to a heat treatment which modifies the characteristics of its material. For example, a so-called “pre-heating” heat treatment may be implemented before a welding operation or before a material addition operation, in order to limit stresses in the material and prevent the apparition of cracks. To perform this kind of step, it is known in particular to use an induction heating device. An example of an induction heating device is illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1B (respectively giving a cross-sectional view and a longitudinal sectional view) and enables contactless heating of a body 1 in an electromagnetic field produced by a coil 2. In the illustrated example, the coil 2 has a shape suited to that of the body 1 and replicates its geometry. This allows distributing the heat uniformly. Such a device has the drawback of being difficult to adapt to heating of elements of different geometry. Moreover, in some cases, a non-uniform yet controlled heat distribution over different areas of the part may be desired. The problem of implementing a new heating device that is improved with regards to the above-mentioned drawback(s) arises. DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention provides for a laser heating device for heating a part or a part element according to a predetermined thermal profile, said heating device comprising: a given laser source provided with one or more laser emitter(s), respectively to emit at least one first laser radiation according to a first predetermined power in the direction of a first target area of the part or of said part element and to emit a second laser radiation according to a second predetermined power in the direction of a second target area of the part or of said part element distinct from the first target area, the second predetermined power being different from the first predetermined power. Such a device can allow obtaining an accurately controlled heating temperature gradient or carrying out a substantially uniform heating of a part or of a part element without necessarily replicating the geometry of this part. Such a device can be used to perform a “pre-heating”, in other words a heat treatment prior to a given material addition step during an additive manufacturing, in particular by a powder bed melting technique or by LMD (standing for “Laser Metal Deposition”). Such a heating device can also be used to carry out a heat treatment following a given material addition step, during an additive manufacturing, in particular by a powder bed melting technique or by LMD. In both cases, the heating is carried out at a temperature lower than the melting temperature of said given material or of said powder. In particular, the considered part may be a metal and/or composite material part, in particular a part intended to be subjected to significant thermal and mechanical stresses. The laser heating device is particularly suitable for making or repairing turbine blade elements for an aircraft engine. The heating device is provided with a module for controlling said laser emitter elements configured to: acquire thermal profile data associating geometric and/or position data of target areas of said part with respective heating temperature values,modulate the emission power of said one or more laser emitter(s) of said laser source according to said thermal profile data. According to a possible embodiment, the first laser radiation according to said first power and said second laser radiation according to the second power can be emitted successively by the same laser emitter. Thus, a temporal control of heating can be implemented. The first laser radiation according to said first power and said second laser radiation according to the second power may originate respectively and concomitantly from a first laser emitter and from a second laser emitter. Thus, a spatial control of the heating can also be implemented. According to a possible implementation, the laser source may be formed of one or more first emitter(s) belonging to a first support as well as one or more second emitter(s) belonging to a second support distinct from the first support, a space between said first support and said second support being provided for to accommodate said part. According to another possible implementation, the laser source includes laser emitters distributed over an area of a support forming a closed contour, in particular circul