Covering All Technology and Application Areas of Additive Fabrication Including:
RAPID PROTOTYPING 3D PRINTING RAPID TOOLING RAPID MANUFACTURING

Manufacturing

From Update 54 - 3/4/08 to 6/10/08:

With all the work going on in the field, gas turbine blades are well on their way to becoming the next "hearing-aid" for rapid manufacturing. Their complex geometry and high-value-added nature means that it is becoming increasingly inevitable that additive fabrication will be preferably used for either their tooling or direct manufacture. This quarter, two issued patents to Rolls-Royce Corp. describe a complex mold generated by three dimensional printing which permits directional solidification to produce single-crystal blades. Numerous additional documents in the field were also published this period. See Fig. 3.
Sonitus Medical, Inc. has had additional patent applications published this quarter that describe a novel approach to hearing aid fabrication. One or more extra microphones are mounted to the teeth and receive sounds by bone conduction. The signal may be used to cancel unwanted noise or otherwise improve information processing for the patient. One of the applications this period concerns using the instrumentation to treat tinnitus, the common condition of ringing in the ears.
Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC is the assignee for a device that can be used to quickly determine biological or chemical threats. Specific additive fabrication technologies are not mentioned, but the method of making these "plastic antibodies" is architecturally the same as micro-stereolithography. An inverted microscope is used to expose photopolymer-based substance recognition sites in nano- to micro-scale sizes. See Fig. 4.
Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Netherlands) uses fused deposition modeling (FDM) to fabricate seamless enclosures for NMR radio frequency coils in its patent application. Depending on use, such coils can come in intimate contact with a patient and the seamless feature makes them easier and safer to clean.
Lockheed Martin Corp. is the likely assignee for a patent application by Hestness et al. A tool is described for accurately applying epoxy to bond aircraft skins to underlying frames. The tool guarantees that neither too much nor too little material is applied. See Fig. 5.

From Update 53 - 12/4/07 to 3/4/08:

Honeywell International Inc. has received an interesting patent for a small pressure sensor, ostensibly for medical, automotive or industrial applications. What’s most interesting is that Optomec’s Maskless Mesoscale Material Deposition (M3D) (TM) is one method of making the sensor itself, and MicroTEC mbH’s micro-stereolithography is a method of making the package. Combining additive technologies in this way has the potential to become an important factor in many future applications. See Fig. 3.
The Boeing Company describes making a new type of fastener using RP in its just-published patent application. The recess for a tool (slot, star, etc.) in the face of the fastener is filled by a spring-loaded insert when not in use. Such an easy-to-remove fastener provides smooth external surfaces for an aircraft, while not requiring laborious secondary operations such as filling with cement for drag reduction. See Fig. 4.
Siemens Corp. has applied for a patent on a hearing aid with a shell comprising multiple layers that form a battery to power the device. Such a construction is said to considerably decrease the overall volume of the device. See Fig. 5.
Encap Technlogies, Inc. has applied for several patents on aspects of manufacturing electric motors with complex cooling features obtained using additively-fabricated molds. Essentially this is conformal cooling applied to a field other than injection molds. The motors are most likely to be of interest for such applications as hybrid vehicles. See Fig. 6.
Michigan State University has designed a complete gas turbine engine with millimeter cross-sectional dimensions according to their patent application. Local power generation for MMD devices is an obvious application, but the authors also envision the devices as being useful for providing thrust for tiny aerial drones, and when used in the millions able to fly a manned aircraft. See Fig. 7.

From Update 52 - 9/4/07 to 12/4/07:

Siemens AG (Germany) is the likely assignee for a patent application written by Michael Eberler et al. Laser sintering is used to directly manufacture complex gradient coil structures for nuclear magnetic resonance instruments. See Fig. 3.
Caterpillar Inc. has received a patent for the use of additive fabrication in making a complex power system component. Laser powder forming technology is used to make a turbine wheel for a supercharger. Operation at 200,000 RPM requires precision and material integrity. See Fig. 4.
Sonitus Medical, Inc. has had several patent applications published this quarter that describe a novel approach to hearing aid fabrication. One or more extra microphones are mounted to the teeth and receive sounds by bone conduction. The signal may be used to cancel unwanted noise or otherwise improve information processing for the patient. See Fig. 5.
A published patent application by Francis Reininger describes a fiber-coupled artificial compound eye. The system is modeled after the eyes of insects and provides a wide angle view with an infinite depth of field. The structure is made using stereolithography and then coated with aluminum. See Fig. 6, above.
Stereolithography permits the direct fabrication of single piece, light-weight, complex missile igniters without tooling according to a patent issued to the US Army this period.
A published patent application from Lucent Technologies, Inc. uses raised micro-scale features to provide surfaces which reduce the resistance to flow of fluids to very low values. In addition, such hydrophobic surfaces can make biochips, micro-reactors and the like self-cleaning. See Fig. 7.

From Update 51 - 6/6/07 to 9/4/07:

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has received a patent on a method of marking tires using additive fabrication. Inkjet technology and selective laser sintering are mentioned as being appropriate to apply writing of various types to sidewalls. The method is said to be less susceptibile to damage or removal, and can also be used to provide variable information or custom designs on each tire. See Fig. 3.
DaimlerChrysler AG (Germany) describes extending selective laser sintering and three dimensional printing to carbon particle materials in its published patent application. Porous carbon electrodes are formed which are said to offer great geometric and design freedom for fuel cell applications.
Nuveatix, Inc. has received a patent for a complex IC heat sink made by stereolithography. The device incorporates its own means for forming a matrix of jets of heat transfer fluid for cooling. See Fig. 4.
Solidica's Ultrasonic Consolidation offers some unobvious advantages in a patent application by Frederick Fortson. Metal packaging for sensors and circuitry can be formed around sensitive devices that avoids the heating which would be caused by more typical methods such as welding. See Fig. 5.
Running white-gloved hands over smooth surfaces is often the method used to detect flaws on finely-finished consumer goods like automobiles. What if the gloves had a mind of their own and could amplify small errors for the inspector? Gloves which amplify these small differences contain parts that are geometrically complex and made by stereolithography. See Fig. 6.
Jennifer Lewis and Scott White have applied for a patent on a material containing microcapillary networks. The potential applications are very advanced such as smart materials containing integral sensors, self-healing materials, fluid mixing, etc.

From Update 50 - 3/6/07 to 6/6/07:

SonicBlue Aerospace, Inc. is the likely assignee for a patent application written by Richard Lugg. Additive fabrication is used to make graded-index parts for a hybrid jet/electric turbine engine (called advanced hypersonic magnetic jet/electric turbine AHMJET). The company is a start-up engaged in designing aircraft that will use electrically-driven fans for vertical take-off and landing (VTOL), and gas turbines for forward propulsion. The system is claimed to be considerably more energy-efficient than other schemes. See Fig. 2.
A series of patent applications by Huang et al has been published that hold the prospect of being able to separate, measure, alter or enrich circulating tumor cells or other specific particles from a living organism's blood stream. Specific cells are caused to separate from the main fluid stream by running them through what amounts to a miniature obstacle course. Once free of the main stream they can be worked on with a focused intent that can't be accomplished with more scattershot approaches. The work has profound implications for many medical diagnoses and treatments. See Fig. 3.
Osram Sylvania Inc. describes using stereolithography to make a ceramic bulb for a high pressure discharge lamp. After sintering, the material becomes translucent to allow light transmission. The claimed advantages are fast fabrication without tools. The component could also be made by other additive processes.

From Update 49 - 12/5/06 to 3/6/07:

Low-cost fabrication of satellites is the subject of a patent application by Mosher and Stucker. The authors describe the combined use of several additive technologies such as ultrasonic consolidation and direct writing to make highly-integrated and instrumented satellite systems. See Fig. 3.
EFAB technology from Microfabrica Inc. is described as an appropriate means to make an extremely sensitive and rapid miniature detector for specific proteins and other substances according to a just-issued patent. The tips of numerous micro-tuning forks are coated with different chemical binders for specific substances. As the tuning forks resonate in the presence of target materials that become bound to the tuning forks, their mass changes. A consequent frequency shift can be detected with very great precision. The patent claims a sensitivity of 0.05 picograms. See Fig. 4.
Microfabrica Inc. has had a patent application published for a method of making microtools using its electrochemical fabrication technology (EFAB). The primary use contemplated is multi-functional endoscopic tools, but there could be many industrial uses, as well. Various tools are swung into position and unsheathed at the end of a chain-like arrangement making the device much like a tiny, remote-controlled, Swiss Army knife for surgeons. See Fig. 5.
Patent applications by a Swedish group discuss the use of additive fabrication, particularly selective laser sintering, to make jewelry products from precious metals. Much of the discussion concerns the advantages for producing chain-like and interlinked objects.

From Update 48 - 9/5/06 to 12/5/06:

Road wheels for tracked vehicles are the subject of a patent assigned to GS Engineering, Inc. Additive fabrication is said to allow the production of complex hollow features that optimize weight and inertia. Such wheels might be used, for example, on military vehicles like tanks or on commercial earth-moving equipment. See Fig. 3.
A small implantable glucose sensing system for diabetes treatment and control is described in three patent applications published this period. The work addresses overcoming problems of the human foreign body response which causes materials to be deposited on sensors which interfere with ongoing measurement.
A patent application has been published concerning a microfluidic sperm isolation and insemination device for in vitro fertilization and other applications. Stereolithography may be used to form the complex channels. See Fig. 4.
A sorting device with complex channels can be made using additive fabrication according to a recent patent application. Many uses are foreseen but the main one may be for sorting out sub-standard rice grains from a product stream. See Fig. 5.
Two patents have been applied for on ultrasonic inspection tools and standards. Additive fabrication is said to make it much faster and less expensive to create such devices. Savings can be considerable since a typical composite step wedge standard costs thousands of dollars to fabricate at present. See Fig. 6.
Adrian Marshall (UK) has written a patent application that should make the manufacture of candies and other three dimensional novelty shaped food items like Gummi Bears faster as well as easily customizable. Wheels are fabricated by stereolithography with quadrant sections of the final product shape desired arranged around their periphery. Several such wheels are run together, rather like a rotating extrusion die, to form a continuous stream of feed material into the final desired shapes. See Fig. 7.