US 12,103,232 B2
Three-dimensional printing of reinforced concrete and nozzle therefor
Chenglin Wu, Rolla, MO (US); Genda Chen, Rolla, MO (US); Dimitri Feys, Rolla, MO (US); Guirong Yan, Rolla, MO (US); and Bryce Tyler Tafolla, Gladstone, MO (US)
Assigned to THE CURATORS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI, Columbia, MO (US)
Appl. No. 17/797,342
Filed by The Curators of the University of Missouri, Columbia, MO (US)
PCT Filed Mar. 25, 2021, PCT No. PCT/US2021/024146
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Aug. 3, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/195375, PCT Pub. Date Sep. 30, 2021.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/994,543, filed on Mar. 25, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0055418 A1, Feb. 23, 2023
Int. Cl. B29C 64/209 (2017.01); B28B 3/26 (2006.01); B28B 23/02 (2006.01); B29C 64/106 (2017.01); B33Y 10/00 (2015.01); B33Y 30/00 (2015.01)
CPC B29C 64/209 (2017.08) [B28B 3/2645 (2013.01); B28B 23/02 (2013.01); B29C 64/106 (2017.08); B33Y 10/00 (2014.12); B33Y 30/00 (2014.12)] 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A nozzle for three-dimensional (3D) printing of reinforced concrete, the nozzle comprising:
a first inlet configured for connection to a concrete extruder such that the concrete extruder can extrude unreinforced concrete through the first inlet;
a second inlet configured for connection to a concrete reinforcement feeder such that the concrete reinforcement feeder can feed one or more elongate reinforcement members into the nozzle through the second inlet;
a reinforcement configurator operatively connected to the second inlet such that each of the one or more elongate reinforcement members fed through the second inlet is fed through the reinforcement configurator, the reinforcement configurator configured to deform each elongate reinforcement member into a defined reinforcement shape as it is fed through the reinforcement configurator;
an outlet in communication with the first inlet and the second inlet; and
the nozzle being configured to combine the unreinforced concrete extruded through the first inlet with the one or more elongate reinforcement members fed through the second inlet to form reinforced concrete in the nozzle and to impart an extrusion of the reinforced concrete through the outlet of the nozzle.