System and method for sensing position and force of catheter

Abstract

An electrical component having electrical coils is formed by 3D printing of at least three different 3D printing materials, the 3D printing materials having a spatial distribution, creating an open magnetic circuit configuration of one of the electrical coils. The electrical component has a block formed from a non-magnetic dielectric 3D printed material; and an electrical coil in an open magnetic circuit configuration 3D printed in the block. 3D-printing a magnetic channel of a magnetic material in the block, the magnetic material forming a magnetic core of the electrical coil; and an electrical channel forming an inductor of the electrical coil, the electrical channel having an electrically conductive material 3D printed in the block in a coil / spiral geometry with electrically connected electrically conductive windings arranged around the magnetic channel, the magnetic channel being configured and operable in an open magnetic circuit configuration and having a magnetic material, the magnetic material occupies a central region of the coil / spiral geometry of the inductor while not surrounding the winding with a closed loop of the magnetic material.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This patent application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 533,258, filed on August 17, 2023, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein. Technical Field

[0003] The present invention is in the field of catheters, and in particular relates to systems and methods for sensing the position of a catheter and the forces exerted by the catheter. Background Art

[0004] In various therapeutic and diagnostic procedures, a catheter / probe is inserted into a patient's body (e.g., a cardiac chamber) and brought into contact with body tissue therein. Typically, in such procedures, it is necessary to determine the position of the catheter in the body (i.e., the position where the distal tip of the catheter engages the body tissue) and the pressure applied by the catheter to the tissue.

[0005] Catheters with integrated position and pressure sensors for sensing the position of the catheter and the pressure / force applied by the catheter at the contact area with the tissue are generally known. Such catheters generally utilize inductive coils to determine the position of the catheter within the body and / or the pressure / force applied by the catheter to the body tissue engaged therewith.

[0006] Conventional technology for such catheters typically utilizes a wound coil into which a ferrite core can be manually inserted after winding. The coil manufactured in this manner is then soldered to a cable that carries the coil signal to processing circuitry and assembled within the catheter body. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] In order to better understand the subject matter disclosed herein and to illustrate how the subject matter may be carried out in practice, various embodiments will now be described, by way of non-limiting examples only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0008] Figure 1A is a flow chart of a method 100 for manufacturing an electrical component having one or more open magnetic circuit electrical coils therein according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0009] Figures 1B to 1D are a perspective view, several transverse cross-sectional views, and a side view cross-sectional view, respectively, of a model 200 of an example electrical component 210 fabricated by the techniques of the present invention;

[0010] Figure 1E are schematic perspective views of two example electrical components 210(a), 210(b) of the present invention suitable for use as medical device sensors;

[0011] Figure 1F and Figure 1G are schematic perspective views of six example electrical components 210(c) to 210(h) according to the present invention, each electrical component comprising a single open magnetic circuit coil 3D printed using the techniques of the present invention; and

[0012] Figure 2 A side view of a medical device 1000, such as a catheter, is shown in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, wherein the electrical component 210 of the present invention is configured as a position and force sensor. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0013] The catheter art requires physically flexible and sensitive catheters with compact / narrow dimensions that can provide accurate feedback regarding the catheter's position in the body, the contact interface between the catheter and tissue, and the forces (eg, vectors) applied therebetween.

[0014] U.S. Patent No. 8,535,308 and U.S. Patent Application No. US2020 / 015693, both assigned to the assignee of the present application, disclose configurations of such catheters, for example utilizing sensing circuits having several coils for sensing the position and orientation of the catheter body and the forces applied by the catheter at the interface with the tissue.

[0015] One challenge in the field of such catheters is to fit accurate position and force sensors within the narrow body of the catheter, which typically has only a few millimeters in transverse dimensions. Indeed, as noted above, in conventional catheter technology, position and force sensors typically utilize a miniature wire-wound coil into which a ferrite core can be manually inserted in an open magnetic circuit configuration in order to generate sufficient induced voltages suitable for position and force sensing of the catheter components. However, these conventional techniques are time consuming and expensive, and involve delicate manual manipulations for fitting the coil within the small dimensions of the catheter body.

[0016] However, other conventional techniques for coil manufacturing are also not well suited for manufacturing high induced voltage miniature open magnetic circuit coils, and lack the ability to, for example, manufacture miniature open magnetic circuit coils having a longitudinal dimension to transverse dimension aspect ratio of at least 3 or 4 (e.g., a coil longitude of approximately 2 mm and a transverse dimension / width of approximately 0.6 mm). Therefore, conventional techniques are also lacking when manufacturing miniature open magnetic circuit coils having high sensitivity / induced voltage (e.g., approximately 0.1 to 1 μV / (Gauss*Hz)). This is because the sensitivity / induced voltage generally depends on the aspect ratio of the longitudinal dimension to the transverse dimension (where too small an aspect ratio significantly reduces the effective magnetic permeability of the magnetic core because it depends on the geometry). For example, when manufacturing small coils having the above dimensions and / or having a sufficient aspect ratio required to generate high induced voltages, conventional sheet lamination techniques (also known as green sheet lamination) for manufacturing inductor coils by printing internal inductor electrodes on multiple magnetic or dielectric green sheets and stacking these sheets are unreliable and prone to manufacturing defects.

[0017] Thus, there is a need in the art for manufacturing such catheters and for manufacturing small, highly sensitive coils (i.e., having a high induced voltage in response to a magnetic field) suitable for position and / or force sensing in catheters such as those disclosed above; further, there is a need in the art for automated manufacturing techniques for such coils to produce standardized coils with less variability between manufactured coils of the same design. Furthermore, to facilitate further advancements in the catheter field, there is a need in the art for facilitating size reduction and / or impedance / induced voltage improvements to improve one or both of the sensitivity and flexibility of the catheter and / or reduced size.

[0018] Thus, the present invention provides a novel position sensing system and novel construction and manufacturing methods for electrical components including open magnetic circuit coil(s) suitable for high induced voltage magnetic sensors, for example for use as position sensors fitted within the narrow dimensions of a catheter body.

[0019] Now refer to Figure 1A , a method 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in a flow chart to manufacture an electrical component having one or more electrical coils therein, the electrical component having an open magnetic circuit configuration suitable for use with a position sensor within a catheter.

[0020] Advantageously, method 100 utilizes 3D printing technology to print an electrical component having a ceramic and / or glass-ceramic solid block (non-laminated block) having an open magnetic circuit electrical coil embedded therein. The open magnetic circuit electrical coil embedded in the electrical component is made of at least three different materials with different electromagnetic properties, including: a magnetic material, a conductive material, and a non-magnetic dielectric (electrically insulating) material.

[0021] In this regard, the phrase open magnetic circuit configuration in relation to coils made by the techniques of the present invention should be understood herein to refer to a coil structure that does not substantially shield an external magnetic field (i.e., enables an external magnetic field to pass through the coil core without substantially bypassing the core). The term magnetic material and / or particles is used herein to refer to a high relative magnetic permeability μ r For example, a material having a magnetic permeability μ relative to vacuum 0 Preferably μ r ≥ 100. In contrast, the term non-magnetic material and / or particle is used herein to denote a low relative magnetic permeability μ r The relative magnetic permeability of the material is substantially lower than that of the magnetic materials used in the manufacture of electronic components and is typically about μ r ~1.

[0022] Furthermore, it should be noted that the phrase multi-material three-dimensional printing (i.e., hereinafter also referred to as 3D printing) is used herein to refer to a multi-material 3D printing technique in which material adhesion, polymerization and / or curing is performed layer by layer while achieving selective pixelated deposition, adhesion, polymerization and / or curing of voxels of several different materials (several distributions of voxels of different materials) in each layer. For this reason, the 3D-printing (multi-material) technique used in the present application should not be confused with other additive manufacturing techniques, such as sheet lamination techniques (e.g., raw sheet lamination), material extrusion or others, which do not facilitate selective pixelated deposition, adhesion, polymerization and / or curing of voxels of different materials within the same layer (also referred to herein as a feature of intra-layer pixelation).

[0023] Therefore, in operation 110 of method 100, a model 200 of one or more electrical components 210 to be 3D printed is provided. Model 200 indicates a 3D spatial distribution (voxel map) of at least three materials 221, 222, and 223, which will be 3D printed by multi-material 3D printing to form the electrical component of the present invention. In particular, model 200 indicates the corresponding distribution of the three materials 221, 222, and 223, according to which one or more open magnetic circuit coils (usually of small size) will be formed in one or more electronic components 210 by multi-material 3D printing.

[0024] Reference Figure 1B , schematically illustrates a perspective view of a model 200 of an electrical component 210, which in this non-limiting example includes a single open magnetic circuit coil 220. As shown, the model 200 indicates a 3D distribution of a conductive material 223, which forms at least one electrical channel 220C of the coil 223, the at least one electrical channel having at least two end terminals 223T thereof. 1 and 223T 2These end terminals are generally formed of the same conductive material 223. In addition, the model 220 indicates that at least two distal end surfaces 222E are formed thereon. 1 With 222E 2 Typically, the two distal end surfaces 222E of the magnetic channel 222C are 1 and 222E 2 The general direction / axis of the magnetic flux flow presenting the input / output through the magnetic channel 222C and, therefore, the sensitivity of the coil to the external magnetic field B can be generally considered to be at these distal end faces 222E. 1 and 222E 2 The direction of span between them is shown by the double arrow at B in the figure (for example, in some embodiments, regardless of the actual shape of the magnetic channel 3D printed between them).

[0025] The material distributions 222 and 223 forming the magnetic channel 222C and the electrical channel 223C of the modeled coil 220 are configured in the model 220 having the coil geometry so that a voltage is generated in the electrical channel 223C in response to a change in magnetic flux in the magnetic channel 222C, or vice versa. The coil geometry of the magnetic channel and the electrical channel 222C and 223C is generally such that at least one of the electrical channel and the magnetic channel 223C or 222C is configured to have a plurality of windings / turns (wraps) around the other of the magnetic channel and the electrical channel 222C or 223C. This thus provides that the electrical channel is configured and operable as an inductor 220I of the electrical coil 220, and the magnetic channel is configured and operable as a magnetic core 220M of the electrical coil 220 to generate a higher induced voltage in the coil 220 in response to a change in the magnetic field and / or vice versa.

[0026] As described above, the electrical component 210 printed in the technology of the present invention includes at least one electric coil 220 having an open magnetic circuit configuration. The open magnetic circuit configuration facilitates the effective coupling of magnetic flux from the external magnetic field B to pass through the magnetic core 220M of the open magnetic circuit coil 220, thereby enabling a high induced voltage to be generated in response to changes in magnetic flux. The open magnetic circuit configuration of the magnetic channel is generally implemented so that the distal end surface 222E of the magnetic channel 222C is 1 and 222E 2 Typically, the distal end surface 222E 1 and 222E 2 The magnetic channel 222C in the model 200 (at its distal end face 222E) is arranged to face different directions (e.g., opposite directions) so as to facilitate the magnetic flux from the external magnetic field to flow efficiently through the magnetic channel 222C. 1 and 222E 2The spatial distribution of magnetic material 222 in the conductive channel 223C (between) is such that the conductive channel 223C is not surrounded by a closed loop of magnetic body 222. More specifically, the spatial distribution of magnetic material 222 of the conductive channel 223C does not define a continuous set of adjacent magnetic material voxels that form a closed path of magnetic material around the conductive channel 222C.

[0027] It should be noted that in the specific non-limiting examples shown in the figures, the coil geometry of the electrical and magnetic channels 223C and 222C of the modeled coil 220 is implemented by the spiral / spiral geometry of the electrical channel 223C, and the magnetic channel 222C is configured to occupy an area at the center of the spiral / spiral geometry of the electrical channel 223C. Therefore, in these non-limiting examples, the electrical channel 223C is configured to have a plurality of windings / turns 223W around the magnetic channel 222C. However, it should be understood that the present application is not limited to this specific geometry, and that models 200 presenting other coil geometries of the magnetic and electrical channels 222C and 222C that functionally generate an induced voltage / current in the electrical channel 223C in response to a change in magnetic flux in the magnetic channel 223C or vice versa may also be implemented / 3D printed according to the techniques of the present invention without departing from the scope of the present application.

[0028] In order to effectively realize the open magnetic circuit coil configuration, the model 200 includes a spatial distribution of another material, which is a non-magnetic electrically insulating material 221 used as a bulk material. Its two electrical terminals 223T 1 and 223T 2 The electrical channel 223C between the bulk material 221 is completely embedded in the bulk material 221, so that its voxels are connected to the voxels of the bulk material 221, the voxels of the magnetic material 222, or both, and are not located at the edge surface of its corresponding electrical component 210, except for the two electrical terminals 223T. 1 and 223T 2 Additionally, they may optionally be exposed at an edge face of the electrical component 210 to facilitate electrical connection with the coil 220 .

[0029] In this regard, it should also be noted that the inductor 220I is preferably completely embedded within the bulk 220B of the electrical component 220, so that its conductive material 223 is not exposed at the outer surface of the bulk 220B (except possibly for the two electrical terminals 223T). 1 and 223T 2220I) and thereby isolated from environmental conditions that could degrade the physical / conductive properties of the conductive material 223 (e.g., due to excessive oxidation that could occur, for example, under high temperature conditions of a sintering process; storage in humid air). In particular, it should be appreciated that protecting the conductive material from environmental conditions is particularly important when the techniques of the present invention are implemented for manufacturing miniature electrical coil components. For example, the present invention facilitates the manufacture of an open magnetic circuit coil 220 having a conductive winding 223W that is 5 μm thick along an electrical path 223C of an inductor 220I. Such small features can be easily damaged by environmental conditions, and therefore it is particularly important to embed them within the block 220B in order to maintain proper functionality of the coil while allowing it to withstand some of the high temperature processing performed during 3D printing without functional damage.

[0030] Back to Figure 1A In operation 120 of method 100, multi-material 3D printing is applied to print one or more electrical components 210 based on model 200, thereby obtaining one or more electrical components 210 in which at least one open magnetic circuit electrical coil 220 is embedded. Multi-material 3D printing can be performed, for example, by using photopolymerization 3D printing technology to print a layer composed of a combination of several materials (e.g., two, three or more) with different electromagnetic properties. For example, 3D printing of electrical components with spatial distribution of at least three materials, including: conductive material, magnetic material and non-magnetic dielectric material. Using the technology of the present invention, electrical components with small feature sizes can be printed using 3D printing layers, which have a thickness as low as micrometers (e.g., 8 micrometers of sintered layer thickness) and pixelated (later) features with feature sizes of tens of micrometers or less. Printing can be implemented, for example, based on the principle of vat photopolymerization, using, for example, stereolithography (SLA) or digital light processing (DLP) for pattern implementation / projection. The present invention is not limited to these specific techniques, and may generally be implemented by other multi-material 3D printing techniques, as may be developed to be suitable for the manufacture of electrical components according to the present invention.

[0031] In order to perform 3D printing, curable resins corresponding to at least three materials respectively specified by the model 200 are provided. More specifically, the curable resins used in the 3D printing of the electronic component 210 according to the present invention include at least the following:

[0032] -Magnetic material resin including particles of soft magnetic material The magnetic material 222 is suspended in a curable polymer binder. The particles of the magnetic material 222 may include, for example, particles of ceramic-ferrite material. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the particles of the magnetic material 222 may alternatively include particles of magnetic metal materials, such as iron alloys, iron-silicon alloys, iron-aluminum-silicon alloys, low carbon steel, nickel-iron alloys, iron-cobalt alloys, ferrites, amorphous alloys, and in some cases nickel-cobalt alloys (particularly in the case where they have soft magnetic qualities). In embodiments for manufacturing microcoils, in embodiments where the magnetic channel 220M of the coil exhibits fine features, the particles of the magnetic material used may be provided, for example, with characteristic sizes on a micron to submicron scale.

[0033] - A conductive material resin comprising particles of a conductive material 223 suspended in a curable polymer binder. The particles of the conductive material 223 may, for example, comprise a silver material, a copper material and / or a silver-palladium alloy. The specific selection of a suitable conductive material generally depends on the required temperature of the sintering / firing process required to complete the printing of the electrical component, and therefore on the type of magnetic material and dielectric material. In embodiments of manufacturing micro-coils having conductive windings with a characteristic size of a few microns or tens of microns, the particles of the conductive material 223 used in printing may have a characteristic size of sub-micron scale, and may be as small as nanometer scale in the case where it is desired to print such small features.

[0034] - A dielectric and non-magnetic material resin comprising particles of a non-magnetic dielectric material 221 suspended in a curable polymer binder. The particles of the non-magnetic dielectric material typically comprise ceramic or glass-ceramic particles that can withstand the high sintering / firing temperatures required to sinter the printed conductive and magnetic materials. Also here, the size of the particles can be selected based on the minimum feature size that should be occupied by the dielectric material / volume of the electrical component, and for the manufacture of micro coils, can be selected, for example, in the nanometer to submicrometer range.

[0035] Regarding the material selection in the above text, it should be noted that although it is generally possible to print the magnetic channel 222C with a magnetic metal material, in various embodiments, it may be preferred to print the magnetic channel with an electrically insulating ceramic ferrite. One reason for this is that the use of ceramic ferrites helps to achieve a more compact arrangement of magnetic and electrical channels 222C and 223C. This is because the soft magnetic metal materials (non-ceramic ferrites) suitable for magnetic channel printing are generally conductive. Therefore, the magnetic channel 222C printed with non-ceramic ferrites should be separated from the electrical channel 223C (in order to prevent short circuits). This requires designing and printing a more complex model 200 of the electrical component, in which the intermediate voxel of the dielectric material (a buffer layer of ceramic or glass-ceramic material) should be located between the magnetic channel 222C and the electrical channel 223C, at the area where these channels may otherwise butt against each other. In addition, due to the required spacing between the conductive magnetic channel 222C and the electrical channel 223C, it may affect the achievable miniaturization of the component, and the spacing should preferably be at least a few microns for sufficient electrical isolation. Furthermore, when such non-ceramic ferrite materials are used, and for current printers, the spacing is typically about 10(s) microns or more in practice, depending on the minimum lateral (in-layer) feature size supported by current printers. Therefore, preferably, ceramic ferrite materials are used for printing of magnetic channels 222C, and particularly when printing electrical components including miniature coils with high sensitivity / induced voltages.

[0036] Therefore, by using the at least three curable protrusions described above, 3D printing of the electrical component 210 may be performed layer by layer according to the three-dimensional spatial distribution of the material in the model 200 .

[0037] As described above, printing can be performed, for example, using a photopolymerization multi-sided 3D printing technology such as SLA or DLP. Preferably, the printing direction in which printing is performed is substantially perpendicular to the plane 223W spanned by the conductive winding. That is, the printing direction is preferably Figure 1B , which is perpendicular to the XY plane around which the winding spans (approximately). With current 3D printing technology, this choice of printing direction Z can be of particular importance in the printing of miniature open magnetic circuit coils 200 in order to achieve a high density of windings in such miniature coils (e.g., a high count of conductive windings 223W of inductor 220I per unit length of magnetic core 220M). This is because with current 3D printing technology, the lateral feature resolution in the XY plane is lower than the "vertical" resolution obtained along the printing direction Z of the layer (e.g., the lateral resolution of some 3D printing technologies facilitates small feature sizes of about 25μm and even as low as 15μm, while the thickness of the printed layer (and therefore the "vertical" feature size) can be substantially smaller, below 10μm and even as low as only one or a few microns (e.g., 5μm).

[0038] Reference Figure 1C and 1D , four consecutive transverse sections (a), (b), (c) and (d) of a model 200 of an electrical coil 220 according to an example of the present invention are shown in FIG. Figure 1C is schematically shown in a self-explanatory manner, and the vertical section (e) is Figure 1D 200. The lateral cross sections (a), (b), (c) and (d) are taken from a lateral plane XY perpendicular to the printing direction Z and present four corresponding printable layers of the model 200. In one example, the cross sections a, b, c show three consecutive layers of the electrical coil 220.

[0039] To this end, typically, 3D printing of each layer of the open magnetic circuit electric coil 220 usually includes the following (not necessarily in this order):

[0040] - printing and curing of magnetic material 222 at the area of ​​the layer corresponding to the magnetic core 220M of the electric coil;

[0041] - printing and curing of a conductive material 223 at the area of ​​the layer corresponding to the inductor 220I of the electrical coil; and

[0042] - Printing and curing of non-conductive (dielectric) non-magnetic material 221 at least near the interface of conductive material 223, said interface not being at the interface with magnetic material 222, possibly excluding contact area 223T 1 and 223T 2 ) (This is to embed the conductive material 223 into the bulk of the electrical component 210 to prevent degradation due to environmental conditions.

[0043] Thus, by 3D printing 120 , a structure of one or more electrical components 210 is obtained including at least one electrical coil 220 in an open magnetic circuit configuration.

[0044] In this example, if Figures 1B to 1D As shown, 3D printing is performed so that the magnetic core 220M of the open magnetic circuit coil 220 occupies the central region of the coil / spiral geometry of the inductor 220I, while not surrounding the conductive windings of the inductor with a continuous closed loop / channel of magnetic material 222.

[0045] At this point, it should be noted that in some embodiments of the present invention, method 100 is performed for 3D printing electrical components 110 in which miniature electrical coils having features of micron-scale dimensions are embedded. For example, depending on the specific model design and 3D printing technology used, the 3D printed layer can be printed with a thickness in the range of about 5 to 15 μm (e.g., 9 μm). Therefore, the pitch 223W of the coil / spiral arrangement of the winding along the printing direction Z of the 3D printed layer can be in the range of about 10 μm to 30 μm (e.g., a winding pitch of about 18 μm), which can be about twice the pitch of the 3D printed layer.

[0046] It should be understood that although in the above non-limiting example, the coil windings 223W are distributed at different 3D printed layers of the electrical component 210 and have a spiral configuration, other winding configurations may be implemented in the open magnetic circuit electrical coil manufactured by the technology of the present invention without departing from the scope of the present application. For example, multiple windings may be arranged in each of one or more 3D printed layers of the electrical component 210, and may be connected in a spiral geometry within such a layer, or in the form of a concentric double / multiple spiral configuration across multiple layers, such as, for example Figure 1G As shown in . Therefore, an open magnetic circuit coil having a winding 223W with a single spiral geometry can be manufactured, and / or in order to promote a higher density of windings 223W within the microcoil, the winding 223W can be configured and manufactured by the technology of the present invention to have a concentric multi-spiral geometry and / or to have a spiral-spiral geometry. For example, in a spiral-spiral arrangement of windings, one or more spiral windings can be distributed at different one or more 3D printed layers within the 220B block and connected between them to form a spiral-spiral arrangement. Alternatively or additionally, in a double / multi-spiral geometry of the winding, concentric spirals (or spiral-spirals) of windings that can be connected in parallel or in series with each other can be manufactured within the open magnetic circuit coil 220.

[0047] In such embodiments where the concentric windings 223W or portions thereof are fabricated within the same 3D printed layer, the concentric portions are typically spaced apart by 3D printing non-magnetic dielectric material 221 to maintain the open magnetic path geometry of the coil 220 while also not shorting the winding path. In some embodiments, 3D printing is performed at a lateral print resolution of the 3D printed layer of approximately 15 to 30 μm (typically approximately 25 μm). At this point, it should be understood that projectors typically project pixels at a resolution of between 19 μm and 35 μm, and during sintering of the printed parts, their size shrinks by approximately 20%, thus yielding a layer resolution / feature size of between 15 and 30 μm.

[0048] Thus, in some embodiments of the present invention, the microcoil 220 is manufactured to include concentric layer windings 223W (e.g., having a multi-helix or spiral helical geometry), the lateral pitch of the layer windings can be on the order of about 30 μm to 60 μm (e.g., typically about 50 μm), which is about twice the lateral resolution of 3D printing. This can thereby be implemented to further improve the spatial density of the windings in the microcoil and produce an improvement in the voltage induced in response to a changing magnetic field.

[0049] Reference Figure 1E , two examples of electrical components 210(a) and 210(b) on a printing platform 201 are shown after printing by operations 110 and 120 of the method 100 of the present invention. The two electrical components illustrated here are manufactured to be suitable for use as sensors for sensing the position and / or orientation (e.g., relative to an external reference system) of a medical device such as a catheter - component 210(b), and for sensing forces applied by the medical device / catheter to tissue in contact with - component 210(a). In this specific non-limiting example, the electrical component 210(a) has a ceramic or glass-ceramic body 220B, which is formed into a ring / donut shape with three miniature open magnetic circuit coils 220.1, 220.2 and 220.3, which are distributed on the circumference of the ring / donut shape body 220B and are co-aligned with their magnetic axes along the symmetry axis Z of the donut shape body. Thus, the electrical component may be mounted within the elongated body of a catheter with its axis of symmetry Z aligned with the longitudinal axis of the catheter body and adapted to sense its orientation relative to a source of a magnetic field placed in front of it along the longitudinal axis at a distal portion of the catheter (and thus may be used to sense forces applied by the catheter to tissue). In this particular non-limiting example, component 210(b) is a single open magnetic circuit coil having a small height in the Z direction along its magnetic axis and having an elongated lateral aspect ratio in the XY plane, such that it is adapted to be mounted within the elongated body of a catheter for sensing, with sufficient sensitivity, the component of the magnetic field perpendicular to the longitudinal axis Z of the elongated body of the catheter. Thus, two such components 210(b) arranged in the catheter at different directions with their magnetic axes perpendicular to the longitude of the catheter together with one of the coils of component 210(a) with its magnetic axis aligned with the longitude of the catheter may be used to sense the position and orientation of the catheter relative to a source of an external magnetic field residing outside the catheter.

[0050] Back to Figure 1A, method 100 also includes an operation 130 for sintering one or more 3D structures of electrical component 210 printed in 3D printing operation 120. Sintering is generally performed at a temperature sufficient to burn or drive off polymers (binding polymers) from printed electrical component 210 and to fire the ceramic or glass-ceramic material used in printing. To this end, the material density of the ceramic and metal materials (e.g., 221, 222, and 223) of the printed electrical component 210 after sintering is close to 100%. For example, in an embodiment in which the conductive material 223 mainly includes silver, the sintering can be performed at a temperature below the melting point of silver (e.g., at a temperature not exceeding 961°C (preferably, in this case, the sintering temperature can be limited to up to about 900°C in order to achieve a stable sintering process). In other embodiments in which the conductive material includes a silver-palladium alloy, the sintering can be performed at a temperature below the melting point of the alloy. The specific melting point depends on the ratio of silver to palladium in the alloy, and depending on the composition, the melting point is generally between the melting point of silver, 961°C, and the melting point of palladium, 1555°C. In another example, in an embodiment in which the conductive material 223 includes copper, the sintering can be performed in an oxygen-deficient environment (to avoid oxidation of the copper) and at a temperature below the melting point of copper, 1084°C.

[0051] Additionally, optionally (depending on the particular printing technology used), method 100 may include a method for removing electrical component 210 from a build platform (e.g., Figure 1E 201) shown in FIG. 1 . Typically, depending on the type of build platform 201 (e.g., and whether it can withstand sintering 130), operation 140 is typically performed before sintering 130. In fact, in some embodiments of the present invention, particularly in the case of printing micro / precision electrical components, which may be damaged by performing their separation from the build platform before sintering, a suitable build platform 201 that can withstand the temperature of sintering 130 can be used, and the separation of the components from the platform can be performed after sintering in order to avoid / reduce damage to the components during the separation process.

[0052] In addition, optionally, in some embodiments, it is also desirable to equip one or more of the 3D printed electrical components 210 with surface mounts to mount them on a circuit board via surface mount technology (SMT). According to some embodiments of the present invention, surface mounts suitable for SMT are 3D printed 210 together with the 3D printing of the components. In such embodiments, materials such as silver-palladium alloys are typically used for electrical contacts of the SMT mounts, because conventional materials tin and nickel-tin, which are typically used in electrical contacts of SMT mounts, are not suitable for the sintering process of the 3D printing technology of the present invention (the melting point of tin is too low and nickel-tin will oxidize in the process). To this end, in some embodiments, the 3D printing operation 120 of the method 100 also includes 3D printing of external / SMT contacts. The 3D printed SMT contacts can be made, for example, of silver-palladium alloy (Ag-Pd) and formed to have a thickness of about 9 μm to produce external Ag-Pd SMT electrodes for the 3D printed electrical component 210.

[0053] Alternatively or additionally, in some embodiments of the present invention, SMT contacts / mounting parts or some of them are manufactured / attached to the 3D printed electrical component 210 only after 3D printing and sintering of the component 210. To this end, in some embodiments, the method 100 also includes an operation 150 for manufacturing / attaching SMT surface mount parts to the 3D printed electrical component 210. Figure 1F , four electrical components 210(c), 210(d), 210(e), and 210(f) are shown in a self-explanatory manner, each of which includes a single open magnetic circuit coil 3D printed by the technology of the present invention. The four electrical components 210(c), 210(d), 210(e), and 210(f) are shown as having surface mounts 210S, 210S coupled and electrically connected to the 3D printed components. 1 and 210S 2 In this example, the surface mount 210S210S 1 and 210S 2 Arranged at each coil component, including a pair of electrical contacts / pads (e.g., made of tin or nickel+tin). 210P 1 and 210P 2 Electrically connected to the corresponding electrical terminal 220T 1 and 220TP 2Each coil 220 of the components is suitable for soldering to a circuit board by SMD technology. As shown in the figure, in two variants 210c and 210d of the electrical component, SMT mountings are provided so that the coils 220 will be mounted to the circuit board in a so-called horizontal orientation, so that their magnetic axis B is parallel to the surface of the circuit board. The difference between components 210(c) and 210(d) lies in the corresponding arrangement of the SMT mountings, wherein in 210(c), the mountings are arranged along the magnetic axis B (to produce a narrower and more slender dimension of the component), and in 210(d), the mountings are arranged beside / parallel to the magnetic axis B210(d) (to produce a shorter and wider dimension of the component). In two variants of electrical components 210(e) and 210(f), SMT mountings are provided so that the coils 220 will be mounted to the circuit board in a so-called vertical orientation, so that their magnetic axis B is perpendicular to the surface of the circuit board. Components 210(e) and 210(f) differ in the respective arrangements of the SMT mounts, wherein in 210(e) a single mount is arranged along magnetic axis B (to produce a narrower and more slender / taller dimension of the component), and in 210(f) the mount is arranged beside / parallel to magnetic axis B 210(d) (to produce a short and wider dimension of the component). Thus, as shown, the present invention facilitates different arrangements of SMT mounts on 3D printed electrical components to produce desired optimization of the overall dimensions of the component having the mounts to fit desired real estate space allotted thereto, such as a conduit in which it is mounted, as well as facilitates appropriate selection of the orientation of the magnetic axes of the components relative to the circuit board to facilitate their appropriate adaptation to sensing applications in which available real estate for their placement is scarce. Notably, it should be understood that the SMT bases 210S, 210S 1 and 210S 2 The manufacturing of can be performed according to any suitable technique known in the art (e.g., by electroless or electrochemical deposition of, for example, nickel (Ni) and / or tin (Sn)), or during 3D printing in 120 as described above. It is also worth noting that in the SMT base 210S, 210S 1 and 210S 2 In embodiments arranged to face the magnetic axis of the coils, their bodies are preferably made of a non-magnetic conductive material so as not to shield the magnetic flux from the coils.

[0054] Reference together Figures 1E to 1G, showing several variations of electrical components 210(a) to 210(g) having 3D printed open magnetic coils according to the present invention. As shown in the coils of all those electrical components 210a to 210g, the boundaries of the block 220B of the electrical component / coil are printed with one or more materials in addition to the conductive material 223 so as to protect the conductive material of the inductor 220I from damage due to environmental conditions. In other words, the conductive material of the inductor 220I is completely embedded within the block 220B of its corresponding electronic component and is not exposed to the outer surface of the block, except for 220B, and is not in contact with its electrical contacts. As described above, the intervals between adjacent conductive windings can be occupied by 3D printed non-conductive material (e.g., dielectric body material 221, or by magnetic material 222 in the case where it is non-conductive). For example, as shown, such as in components 210(c) and 210(d), the conductive windings of inductor 220I can be separated from each other by magnetic material 223 of core 220M, which is an insulator in these examples. This is so long as the magnetic material 223 does not form a closed loop on the conductive windings and thus maintains an open magnetic circuit configuration of the coil. In addition, in some embodiments, the magnetic material can extend to the boundaries of the electrical component in some places, as shown, for example, in component 210(c). In other embodiments, such as component 210(e), the windings can be separated by a dielectric body material 221. As shown in component 210(e), in some embodiments, the model of the electrical component may also include a conductive path 220CP extending from the inductor 220I of the coil to its terminal electrical contacts, such as 220T. 2 Or extend to a model of another component located anywhere within block 220B. In addition, as described above, inductor 220I can be fabricated to have a coaxial / multi-helix configuration, such as shown, for example, in the double helix of component 210(g), and / or to have a spiral-helix configuration, such as shown, for example, in component 210(h).

[0055] To this end, the technology of the present invention provides a miniature electrical component having a ceramic / glass-ceramic body in which a highly sensitive open magnetic circuit coil is embedded, which can be configured as and operable as a sensor (e.g., a magnetic sensor and / or a position sensor and / or an orientation sensor and / or a force sensor). The miniature electrical component can be manufactured to have a small size, such as about 0.5 mm to 2 mm, and have a high sensitivity / induced voltage in response to a magnetic field, such as in the range of 0.1 to 1 μV / (Gauss*Hz).

[0056] It should be noted that in Figures 1B to 1GThe illustrations of the electrical components in the 3D printed circuit board are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not necessarily drawn to scale or in proper proportion. For example, in general, the winding count in the open circuit electrical coil 220 according to the present invention can be substantially higher than that shown in the figure. In addition, the open circuit electrical coil 220 is shown as having a rectangular shape / cross-section, and it should be understood that in practice, they can be 3D printed to have various polygonal or circular shapes / cross-sections, and / or have aspect ratios different from those shown, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0057] In view of the above, the method 100 of the present invention provides a novel and inventive technique for manufacturing electrical components including open magnetic circuit coils by 3D printing. The method 100 is suitable for manufacturing micro-coils with feature sizes as small as a few microns, and can be used in large-scale production (especially when the printing is based on vat photopolymerization technology) to simultaneously 3D print a large number of (e.g., between hundreds and thousands of electrical components typically built in parallel on the same platform) micro-coils in one printing batch. This makes the technology of the present invention cost-effective for printing micro-coils, which, when manufactured by conventional techniques, usually need to be manufactured one by one, and usually require manual manufacturing steps.

[0058] To this end, the present invention also provides a novel and inventive electrical component formed by 3D printing of at least three different 3D printing materials and comprising one or more electrical coils in an open circuit configuration. Figures 1E to 1G The illustrated electrical component includes a block formed of a non-magnetic and electrically insulating 3D printed material having at least one electrical coil therein, the electrical coil including: (a) at least one magnetic channel 222C formed of a 3D printed magnetic material embedded in the block; (b) at least one electrical channel 223C formed of a 3D printed conductive material embedded in the block and extending therethrough between two terminals that may be exposed at a surface of the block to serve as electrical contacts for the electrical coil. At least one of the electrical channel or the magnetic channel is 3D printed with a coil geometry to form a plurality of windings around the other, such that the electrical channel serves as an inductor for the coil and the magnetic channel serves as its magnetic core (e.g., the electrical channel may be 3D printed with a coil / spiral geometry having a plurality of windings around the magnetic channel). The 3D printed magnetic channel forming the magnetic core is configured as an open magnetic circuit configuration such that it does not surround the conductive channel with a closed loop of magnetic material.

[0059] As described above, the 3D printed electrical component 210 of the present invention having an open magnetic circuit coil 220 therein is particularly suitable for use as a position and / or force sensor in a medical device requiring the same. Figure 2, which shows a side view of a medical device 1000 (e.g., a probe / catheter) according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein a position and force sensor utilizes a 3D printed electrical component 210 of the present invention having an open magnetic sensor coil therein to sense the spatial position and orientation of the medical device and the forces thereby applied to tissue in contact therewith. The medical device 1000 includes a housing H in which a magnetic field-based position sensor 300 is provided. The medical device 1000 is coupled to one or more magnetic field sources MF L and / or MF O In association, these magnetic field sources provide reference magnetic fields that can be measured by magnetic field-based position sensor 300 to determine the spatial position and orientation of medical device 1000 and / or the forces applied thereby to patient tissue, respectively.

[0060] In an embodiment 1000 of the force applied by the medical device on body tissue, the housing H of the medical device can be along a longitudinal axis L and include a main portion M, a front end T connected at the distal end of the main segment M, a through-hole striped coupler J, and the striped coupler J can be, for example, a spring or a joint, which is configured so that the orientation of the tip segment can be T can bend relative to the longitudinal axis L. The housing H is subjected to an applied force F (which can be applied, for example, when the tip segment T-medical device is in contact with the patient's body tissue) wherein the degree of the strip corresponds to the magnitude and direction of the applied force. F In order to measure the magnitude and direction of the force. F is applied by the tip T-tissue, the medical device 1000 includes a first magnetic field source MF O (eg, a magnetic field generating coil with associated power delivery circuitry) and a magnetic field based positioning sensor. 300 Orientation sensor 310 and first magnetic field source MF O At different sides of the joint J, for example, typically a first magnetic field source MF O is arranged in the tip section T, and the orientation sensor 310 is arranged at the main section M (although the opposite arrangement is also applicable). The first magnetic field source MF O The position sensor 310 is configured and arranged in the housing H (e.g., in the tip T) for generating a magnetic field having flux lines / axes substantially along the longitudinal axis L of the housing H. The position sensor 310 comprises a plurality of at least three open magnetic circuit coils 220.1, 220.2, and 220.3 according to the present invention, which are capable of sensing the magnetic field generated by the first magnetic field source MF. O The three open magnetic circuit coils 220.1, 220.2 and 220.3 of the orientation sensor 310 are generally arranged so that their magnetic axes are collinear with each other and parallel to the longitudinal axis L of the housing H, while not coplanar, so that the orientation sensor 310 and the magnetic field source MF O The relative orientation between the two can be sensed by three coils for source MF OThe magnetic field is determined about two orientation axes (e.g., pitch and yaw), as will be understood by those skilled in the art. In this non-limiting example, the housing has a narrow width / diameter of about 2 mm, and three open magnetic circuit coils 220.1, 220.2, and 220.3 are manufactured according to the technology of the present invention. Figure 1E Components of the electrical component 210(a) shown in . As described above, the electrical component 210(a) having a solid ceramic or glass ceramic block / block is assembled in the main part M of the housing and is optionally directly connected to a signal line (not specifically shown) for receiving coil signals without the need for an intermediate circuit board (the signal line can be directly soldered to the terminals of the coils 220.1, 220.2 and 220.3 in the electrical component 210(a)). Preferably, the ceramic or glass ceramic body of the electrical component 210(a) has a cylindrical / annular structure with a hole in the middle as shown above, and its axis of symmetry is assembled parallel to the longitudinal axis of the housing, so that various components / connection lines of the instrument can be arranged to pass from the main part of the housing to the tip part (for example, a channel for a power transmission line to a magnetic field source and / or other connections / fluid lines that can be provided in the medical device). Advantageously, the construction of the electrical component 210(a) utilized for the orientation sensor 310 facilitates reliable, accurate, and cost-effective assembly and electrical connection of the three open magnetic circuit coils 220.1, 220.2, and 220.3 within the narrow dimensions of the housing H. It should be noted that in alternative embodiments, the orientation sensor 310 may include the three open magnetic circuit coils 220.1, 220.2, and 220.3 as separate electrical components manufactured in accordance with the present invention. For example, the orientation sensor 310 may include a rigid flat circuit board (e.g., a disk-like shape with a hole in the middle) having three electronic components, such as those described above with reference to FIG. Figure 1F 210(e) are depicted as being vertically mounted on a rigid circular circuit board by their SMT contacts so that the open magnetic circuit coils embedded therein serve as coils 220.1, 220.2 and 220.3 orientation sensors 310. In yet another embodiment, the orientation sensor 310 may be implemented with a flexible / foil circuit board, such as the flexible board CB of the position sensor 320 discussed below, which is bent into a cylindrical shape about the longitudinal axis L of the housing H. Three electronic components, such as those described above with reference to Figure 1F 210(c) as described, can be horizontally mounted on a cylindrical flexure board, for example, CB, by their SMT contacts so that their magnetic axes are parallel to the longitudinal axis L, so that the open magnetic circuit coils embedded therein serve as coils 220.1, 220.2 and 220.3 orientation sensors 310. To this end, given the technology of the present invention, a person skilled in the art will readily understand how to generate an orientation sensor 310 based on the magnetic field source MF. OThe orientation of the sensor 10 relative to the source MF is determined by measuring the magnetic field generated (which provides a reference frame relative to which the orientation can be determined). O Furthermore, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily understand how the force vector F can be determined based on the measured orientation and the characteristics of the ribbon coupler J (eg, spring constant).

[0061] Alternatively or additionally, in some embodiments, the position sensor 300 includes a position and orientation sensor 320 adapted to measure the position of the medical device 1000 relative to a magnetic field generated by at least one external magnetic field source MF. L The spatial position and orientation of the reference system provided by the magnetic field (located outside the medical device). The position and orientation sensor 320 includes three open magnetic circuit coils 220, which are configured according to the technology of the present invention and arranged in the housing H so that their magnetic axes are not parallel to each other and span three-dimensional coordinates. Therefore, the three open magnetic circuit coils 220 facilitate measuring the spatial position and orientation of the reference system provided by the external magnetic field source MF L The different vector components of the magnetic field generated by the external magnetic field source MF can be measured, as will be readily appreciated by a person skilled in the art. L The position and orientation of the medical device 1000 is determined by the reference frame defined by the magnetic field.

[0062] In an embodiment, for example as shown in the figure, the position and orientation sensor 320 includes a flexible circuit board CB folded into a cylindrical shape, and at least two preferably similar open magnetic circuit coils 220 according to the present invention are provided on the flexible circuit board CB so that their magnetic axes are substantially not parallel to each other and are not parallel (usually perpendicular) to the longitudinal axis L of the housing H. The two preferably similar open magnetic circuit coils 220 can be, for example, coils implemented by an electronic component such as 210 (b) of the present invention, which have high magnetic sensitivity while having a low profile / height along their magnetic axes so that they can be mounted in a narrow housing, wherein their magnetic axes are perpendicular to the longitudinal axis L of the housing H. Preferably, as shown in the figure, the two open magnetic circuit coils 220 can be implemented by an electronic component such as 210 (f) of the present invention, which is similar to 210 (b) and has only SMT contacts mounted thereon. Therefore, the electronic component 210 (f) having two coils can be provided on the flexible board CB by cost-effective SMT mounting technology. In addition, the position and orientation sensor 320 includes a third open magnetic circuit coil arranged in the housing so that its magnetic axis is not parallel to the magnetic axes of the two other coils, and preferably so that its magnetic axis is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis L of the housing H. In the embodiment shown in the figure, in which the position sensor 300 also includes an orientation sensor 310, the third open magnetic circuit coil of the position and orientation sensor 320 can be one of the coils of the orientation sensor 310, such as coil 220.1. Alternatively, for example in an embodiment in which the position sensor 300 does not include the orientation sensor 310, the third open magnetic circuit coil can also be arranged on the flexible board CB (for example, its axis is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis L). In such an embodiment, the third coil can be implemented by the electrical component of the present invention, for example by Figure 1F The electrical component 210 ( c ) shown in FIG. 1 is implemented and can optionally be provided on a flexible board CB via SMT technology.

[0063] Thus, the present invention provides a novel and inventive position sensor 300 configuration that utilizes novel and inventive 3D printed open magnetic circuit coils to facilitate cost-effective and reliable assembly at locations within narrow-sized medical devices. As described above, the position sensor 300 may include, for example, an orientation sensor 310 suitable for determining forces applied to tissue by a medical device and including three open magnetic circuit coils configured in accordance with the present invention, and / or a position and orientation sensor 320 including three open magnetic circuit coils configured in accordance with the present invention and operable to determine the spatial position and orientation of the medical device 1000 (in the event that the position sensor 300 includes both sensors 310 and 320, a total of five open magnetic circuit coils may be sufficient for performing measurements).

[0064] Example

[0065] Embodiment 1.-An electrical component comprising one or more electrical coils, the electrical component being formed by 3D printing of at least three different 3D printing materials having a spatial distribution that produces an open magnetic circuit configuration of at least one of the one or more electrical coils; the electrical component comprising:

[0066] Blocks formed from non-magnetic and dielectric 3D printed materials; and

[0067] At least one electrical coil in an open magnetic circuit configuration, 3D printed in the block, comprising:

[0068] - at least one magnetic channel comprising magnetic material 3D printed in a block forming a magnetic core of said at least one electric coil; and

[0069] - at least one electrical path of an inductor forming at least one electrical coil, the at least one electrical path comprising a conductive material 3D printed in a block in a coil / spiral geometry having a plurality of electrically connected conductive windings arranged as a magnetic path around a magnetic core; and

[0070] Therein, the magnetic channel of the magnetic core is configured and operable with an open magnetic circuit configuration and includes magnetic material that occupies a central region of the coil / spiral geometry of the inductor while not surrounding the conductive winding with a closed loop of magnetic material.

[0071] Embodiment 2. The electrical component according to Example 1, wherein the electrically connected conductive windings include conductive windings distributed at different 3D printed layers of the electrical component, thereby forming a spiral arrangement of the electrically connected conductive windings.

[0072] Embodiment 3. An electrical component according to Example 2, wherein the thickness of the 3D printed layer is approximately 5 to 15 μm, thereby producing a pitch of the spiral arrangement of the conductive winding approximately twice the pitch of the 3D printed layer of approximately 10 to 30 μm along the printing direction of the 3D printed layer.

[0073] Embodiment 4. An electrical component according to Example 1, wherein the electrically connected conductive windings include a plurality of conductive windings concentrically arranged in one or more 3D printed layers of the electrical component, thereby forming a spiral arrangement of conductive windings in the one or more 3D printed layers.

[0074] Embodiment 5. An electrical component according to Example 4, wherein, after sintering, the resolution of the 3D printed layer is approximately 15 to 30 μm, thereby producing a pitch of the spiral arrangement of the conductive windings approximately twice the resolution of the 3D printed layer relative to a lateral plane of the 3D printed layer.

[0075] Embodiment 6. An electrical component according to Example 5, wherein the electrically connected conductive windings include a spiral arrangement of multiple conductive windings distributed at different 3D printed layers of the block and electrically connected therebetween to form a spiral-helical arrangement of the electrically connected conductive windings.

[0076] Embodiment 7. The electrical component of Embodiment 1, wherein spaces between adjacent windings of the plurality of electrically connected conductive windings are occupied by a 3D printed non-conductive material, the non-conductive material being one of a non-magnetic dielectric material and a magnetic material.

[0077] Embodiment 8. An electrical component according to Example 1, wherein the 3D printed conductive material of the inductor is fully embedded within the block and not exposed at the outer surface of the block so as to isolate the inductor from environmental conditions that may degrade its physical / conductive properties.

[0078] Embodiment 9. The electrical component of claim 1, wherein at least one of the following:

[0079] - conductive materials include silver;

[0080] - Conductive materials include copper;

[0081] - The conductive material includes a silver-palladium alloy;

[0082] -Magnetic materials include ceramic-ferrite materials;

[0083] -Magnetic materials include metallic materials;

[0084] - The magnetic material has a relative magnetic permeability μ of about 100 or more r Soft magnetic materials

[0085] - Non-magnetic dielectric materials include ceramic or glass-ceramic materials.

[0086] Embodiment 10. A method of manufacturing one or more electrical components including one or more electrical coils;

[0087] wherein at least one of the one or more electrical coils has an open magnetic circuit configuration; the method comprising:

[0088] providing a model of the one or more electrical components, wherein the model indicates a three-dimensional spatial distribution of at least three materials in the at least one electrical coil having the open magnetic circuit configuration, including: a 3D distribution of magnetic material, a 3D distribution of conductive material, and a 3D distribution of non-magnetic dielectric material;

[0089] The three-dimensional spatial distribution of the at least three materials indicates:

[0090] - spatial distribution of the mass of at least one electric coil formed of a non-magnetic dielectric material;

[0091] - a spatial distribution of magnetic material defining at least one magnetic channel in a block associated with the magnetic core of said at least one electric coil;

[0092] - a spatial distribution of a conductive material defining at least one electrical channel in a block associated with an inductor of at least one electrical coil and having a coil / spiral geometry having a plurality of electrically connected conductive windings arranged around the magnetic channel;

[0093] wherein the spatial distribution of the magnetic material has an open magnetic path configuration and indicates that the magnetic material occupies a central region of a coil / spiral geometry of the inductor while the conductive windings of the inductor are not surrounded by a closed loop of magnetic material; and

[0094] 3D printing is applied to print one or more electrical components to obtain at least one electrical coil having an open magnetic circuit configuration that promotes efficient coupling of a flux path from an external magnetic field through a magnetic core to generate a high induced voltage in response to the external magnetic field.

[0095] Embodiment 11. The method according to embodiment 10, wherein the applying of 3D printing comprises:

[0096] (a) providing curable resins corresponding to the at least three materials respectively, wherein the curable resins include:

[0097] - a magnetic material resin of magnetic material particles in a curable polymer binder;

[0098] - a conductive resin of conductive material particles in a curable polymer binder;

[0099] - the non-magnetic dielectric material resin comprises particles of non-magnetic dielectric material suspended in a curable polymer binder; and

[0100] (b) 3D printing the curable resin layer by layer according to the three-dimensional spatial distribution of the model to obtain one or more 3D structures having one or more electrical components, wherein 3D printing each layer comprises:

[0101] - printing and curing magnetic material at the areas of the layer corresponding to the one or more magnetic cores of the one or more electrical coils;

[0102] - printing and curing a conductive material at the areas of the layer corresponding to the one or more inductors of the one or more electrical coils; and

[0103] - printing and curing a non-magnetic dielectric material at least near the interface of the conductive material of the one or more inductors that does not interface with the one or more magnetic cores; and

[0104] wherein the 3D printing is performed such that the magnetic core of at least one coil of the open magnetic circuit configuration occupies a central region of the coil / spiral geometry of the inductor while not surrounding the conductive winding of the inductor with a continuous closed loop channel of magnetic material; and

[0105] (c) sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature sufficient to burn or drive off the polymer,

[0106] This allows for nearly 100% ceramic or metal density.

[0107] Embodiment 12. A method according to embodiment 10, wherein 3D printing is performed by continuously printing layers with a thickness of approximately 5 to 15 μm along the printing direction (z), and making the pitch of the conductive windings along the printing direction (z) approximately twice the layer thickness, which is approximately 10 μm to 30 μm, thereby producing the printing of micro electrical coils with a high winding density.

[0108] Example 13. The method according to example 10 is adapted for mass production of electrical components and wherein the model indicates material distribution in an arrangement of multiple electrical components to be 3D printed simultaneously.

[0109] Embodiment 14. A method according to embodiment 10, wherein the boundary of the block is printed with one or more materials other than the conductive material, so that the inductor is completely embedded in the block of its corresponding electronic component and is not exposed at the outer surface of the block except from its terminal electrical contacts.

[0110] Embodiment 15. The method of claim 14, wherein at least one of the following:

[0111] - the one or more materials printed in the boundaries of the block include non-magnetic dielectric materials;

[0112] as well as

[0113] -The one or more materials printed in the boundary of the block include non-magnetic dielectric material and magnetic material, and wherein the non-magnetic dielectric material is inserted between separate areas of magnetic material at the boundary so as to prevent the formation of a closed-loop magnetic channel surrounding the conductive winding of the inductor.

[0114] Embodiment 16. The method according to embodiment 10, wherein 3D printing is performed using a vat photopolymerization 3D printing method.

[0115] Embodiment 17. The method of claim 10, wherein at least one of the following:

[0116] - the conductive material comprises silver, and the method comprises sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature below 961°C;

[0117] - the conductive material comprises copper, and the method comprises sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature below 1084° C. in an oxygen deficient environment (e.g. a nitrogen rich environment);

[0118] - the conductive material comprises a silver-palladium alloy, and the method comprises sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature below the melting point of the silver-palladium alloy; and

[0119] -Magnetic materials include ceramic-ferrite materials;

[0120] -Magnetic materials include metallic materials;

[0121] -Magnetic material has a relative magnetic permeability μ of about 100 or more r ;

[0122] - the non-magnetic dielectric material comprises a ceramic or glass-ceramic material, and wherein the method comprises sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature sufficient to fire the ceramic or glass-ceramic material.

[0123] Embodiment 18. The method according to Example 10 further includes: providing contact elements of the electrical channel connected to the inductor defining at least one electrical coil at the terminal area where the conductive material of the electrical channel is exposed from the block, thereby enabling the at least one electrical coil to be mounted to the circuit board.

[0124] Embodiment 19. A magnetic sensor comprising one or more electrical coils, the magnetic sensor being formed by 3D printing of at least three different 3D printing materials, and comprising:

[0125] a block formed of a non-magnetic dielectric 3D printing material; and

[0126] at least one electrical coil in the block;

[0127] wherein the at least one cell comprises:

[0128] - at least one magnetic channel comprising 3D printed magnetic material embedded in a block; and

[0129] - at least one electrical channel comprising a 3D printed conductive material embedded in the block and extending through the block between two terminals of the electrical channel of the electrical coil, the two terminals being exposed at a surface of the block to serve as electrical contacts for the electrical coil;

[0130] wherein at least one of the electrical channel and the magnetic channel is 3D printed in the block with a coil geometry forming a plurality of windings around the other of the electrical channel and the magnetic channel such that the at least one electrical channel is configured and operable as an inductor for the at least one electrical coil and the at least one magnetic channel is configured and operable as a magnetic core for the inductor for the at least one electrical coil;

[0131] Wherein, the magnetic channel forming the magnetic core is configured to have an open magnetic circuit configuration, so that the magnetic channel does not surround the conductive channel with a closed loop of the magnetic material, thereby promoting effective coupling of the flux path through the magnetic core from an external magnetic field, and enabling a high induced voltage to be generated in the at least one electrical coil in response to the external magnetic field.

[0132] Embodiment 20. A method of manufacturing one or more magnetic sensors comprising one or more electrical coils, wherein at least one of the one or more electrical coils has an open magnetic circuit configuration; the method comprising:

[0133] providing a model of the one or more magnetic sensors, wherein the model indicates a three-dimensional spatial distribution of at least three materials in the at least one electrical coil having the open magnetic circuit configuration, including: a 3D distribution of magnetic material, a 3D distribution of conductive material, and a 3D distribution of non-magnetic dielectric material;

[0134] The three-dimensional spatial distribution of the at least three materials indicates:

[0135] - spatial distribution of the mass of at least one electric coil formed of a non-magnetic dielectric material;

[0136] - a spatial distribution of magnetic material defining at least one magnetic channel in a block associated with a magnetic core of at least one electrical coil;

[0137] - a spatial distribution of an electrically conductive material defining at least one electrical channel in a bulk associated with an inductor of at least one electrical coil;

[0138] wherein at least one of the spatial distribution of magnetic material defining a magnetic channel of the at least one electrical coil and the spatial distribution of conductive material defining an electrical channel of the at least one electrical coil has a coil geometry forming a plurality of windings around the other of the electrical channel and the magnetic channel such that the at least one electrical channel is configured and operable as an inductor of the at least one electrical coil and the at least one magnetic channel is configured and operable as a magnetic core of the inductor of the at least one electrical coil;

[0139] wherein the spatial distribution of magnetic material defining the magnetic channel has an open magnetic circuit configuration and does not surround the conductive channel with a closed loop of magnetic material; and

[0140] 3D printing is applied to print one or more magnetic sensors to obtain at least one electrical coil having an open magnetic circuit configuration that promotes efficient coupling of a flux path from an external magnetic field through a magnetic core to generate a high induced voltage in response to the external magnetic field.

Claims

1. An electrical component comprising one or more electrical coils, the electrical component being formed by 3D printing of at least three different 3D printed materials, the 3D printed materials having a spatial distribution so as to produce an open magnetic circuit configuration of at least one of the one or more electrical coils; and wherein the electrical component comprises: A block formed of a non-magnetic dielectric 3D printing material; and at least one electrical coil in the open magnetic circuit configuration 3D printed in the block, the at least one electrical coil comprising: - at least one magnetic channel comprising magnetic material 3D printed in said block, said magnetic material forming a magnetic core of said at least one electrical coil; and - at least one electrical path of an inductor forming said at least one electrical coil, said at least one electrical path comprising an electrically conductive material 3D printed in said block in a coil / spiral geometry having a plurality of electrically connected electrically conductive windings arranged to surround said magnetic path of said magnetic core; Wherein the magnetic channel of the magnetic core is configured and operable in the open magnetic circuit configuration and comprises a magnetic material occupying a central region of the coil / spiral geometry of the inductor while not surrounding the conductive winding with a closed loop of the magnetic material.

2. The electrical component of claim 1, wherein the electrically connected conductive windings comprise conductive windings distributed at different 3D printed layers of the electrical component, thereby forming a spiral arrangement of electrically connected conductive windings.

3. The electrical component of claim 2, wherein the thickness of the 3D printed layer is approximately 5 μm to 15 μm, thereby producing a pitch of the spiral arrangement of the conductive windings along the printing direction of the 3D printed layer that is approximately twice the pitch of the 3D printed layer, which is approximately 10 μm to 30 μm.

4. The electrical component of claim 1, wherein the electrically connected conductive windings comprise a plurality of conductive windings concentrically arranged in one or more 3D printed layers of the electrical component, thereby forming a spiral arrangement of conductive windings in the one or more 3D printed layers.

5. The electrical component of claim 4, wherein after sintering, the resolution of the 3D printed layer is approximately 15 μm to 30 μm, resulting in a pitch of the spiral arrangement of the conductive windings that is approximately twice the resolution of the 3D printed layer relative to a lateral plane of the 3D printed layer.

6. An electrical component according to claim 5, wherein the electrically connected conductive windings include a spiral arrangement of multiple conductive windings distributed at different 3D printed layers of the block and electrically connected between the different 3D printed layers to form a spiral-helical arrangement of the electrically connected conductive windings.

7. The electrical component of claim 1, wherein spaces between adjacent windings of the plurality of electrically connected conductive windings are occupied by a 3D printed non-conductive material, the non-conductive material being one of the non-magnetic dielectric material and the 3D printed magnetic material.

8. The electrical component of claim 1, wherein the 3D printed conductive material of the inductor is fully embedded within the block and not exposed at an outer surface of the block so as to isolate the inductor from environmental conditions that may degrade the physical / conductive properties of the inductor.

9. The electrical component of claim 1, wherein at least one of the following conditions exists: - the conductive material comprises silver; - the conductive material comprises copper; - the conductive material comprises a silver-palladium alloy; - the magnetic material comprises a ceramic-ferrite material; - the magnetic material comprises a metal material; - The magnetic material has a relative magnetic permeability μ of about 100 or more r Soft magnetic materials - The non-magnetic dielectric material comprises a ceramic or glass-ceramic material.

10. A method of manufacturing one or more electrical components comprising one or more electrical coils; wherein at least one of the one or more electrical coils has an open magnetic circuit configuration; the method comprising: providing a model of the one or more electrical components, wherein the model indicates a three-dimensional spatial distribution of at least three materials in the at least one electrical coil having the open magnetic circuit configuration, including: a 3D distribution of magnetic material, a 3D distribution of conductive material, and a 3D distribution of non-magnetic dielectric material; wherein the three-dimensional spatial distribution of the at least three materials indicates: - spatial distribution of the bulk of said at least one electric coil formed of non-magnetic dielectric material; - a spatial distribution of magnetic material defining in said block at least one magnetic channel associated with a magnetic core of said at least one electric coil; - a spatial distribution of an electrically conductive material defining in said block at least one electrical channel associated with an inductor of said at least one electrical coil and having a coil / spiral geometry having a plurality of electrically connected electrically conductive windings arranged around said magnetic channel; wherein the spatial distribution of the magnetic material has the open magnetic circuit configuration and indicates that magnetic material occupies a central region of the coil / spiral geometry of the inductor while not surrounding the conductive winding of the inductor with a closed loop of the magnetic material; and 3D printing is applied to print the one or more electrical components to obtain the at least one electrical coil having the open magnetic circuit configuration, which promotes effective coupling of a flux path from an external magnetic field through the magnetic core to generate a high induced voltage in response to the external magnetic field.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the applying of the 3D printing comprises (a) providing curable resins corresponding to the at least three materials respectively, whereby the curable resins include: - a magnetic material resin comprising magnetic material particles suspended in a curable polymer binder; - a conductive material resin comprising conductive material particles suspended in a curable polymer binder; - a non-magnetic dielectric material resin comprising particles of non-magnetic dielectric material suspended in a curable polymer binder; as well as (b) 3D printing the curable resin layer by layer according to the three-dimensional spatial distribution of the model to obtain one or more 3D structures having the one or more electrical components, wherein 3D printing each layer comprises: - printing and curing said magnetic material at areas of said layer corresponding to one or more magnetic cores of said one or more electrical coils; - printing and curing said electrically conductive material at areas of said layer corresponding to one or more inductors of said one or more electrical coils; and - printing and curing the non-magnetic dielectric material at least near the interface of the conductive material of the one or more inductors that does not interface with the one or more magnetic cores; and wherein said 3D printing is performed such that said magnetic core of said at least one coil of said open magnetic circuit configuration occupies said central region of said coil / spiral geometry of said inductor while not surrounding said conductive winding of said inductor with a continuous closed loop channel of said magnetic material; and (c) sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature sufficient to burn or drive off the polymer, thereby achieving nearly 100% ceramic or metal density in the electrical component.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein the 3D printing is performed by continuously printing layers with a thickness of approximately 5 μm to 15 μm along a printing direction (z), and making the pitch of the conductive winding along the printing direction (z) approximately twice the thickness of the layer, which is approximately 10 μm to 30 μm, thereby producing the printing of a micro-electric coil with a high winding density.

13. The method of claim 10, suitable for mass production of electrical components, and wherein the model indicates material distribution in an arrangement of a plurality of the electrical components to be 3D printed simultaneously.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the boundaries of the block are printed with one or more materials different from the conductive material so that the inductor is fully embedded in the block of the corresponding electronic component of the inductor and is not exposed at the outer surface of the block except from the terminal electrical contacts of the block.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein at least one of the following conditions exists: - said one or more materials printed in said border of said block include said non-magnetic dielectric material; and -The one or more materials printed in the boundary of the block include the non-magnetic dielectric material and the magnetic material, and wherein the non-magnetic dielectric material is inserted between separate areas of the magnetic material at the boundary so as to prevent the formation of a closed-loop magnetic channel surrounding the conductive winding of the inductor.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the 3D printing is performed using a tank light-curing 3D printing process.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein at least one of the following conditions exists: - the conductive material comprises silver, and the method comprises sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature below 961°C; - the conductive material comprises copper, and the method comprises sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature below 1084° C. in an oxygen deficient environment, such as a nitrogen rich environment; - the conductive material comprises a silver-palladium alloy, and the method comprises sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature below the melting point of the silver-palladium alloy; - the magnetic material comprises a ceramic-ferrite material; - the magnetic material comprises a metal material; - the magnetic material has a relative magnetic permeability μ of about 100 or more r ; - the non-magnetic dielectric material comprises a ceramic or glass-ceramic material, and wherein the method comprises sintering the one or more 3D structures at a temperature sufficient to fire the ceramic or glass-ceramic material.

18. The method according to claim 10 further includes providing a contact element connected to the electrical path of the inductor defining the at least one electrical coil at a terminal area, thereby enabling the at least one electrical coil to be mounted to a circuit board, wherein the conductive material of the electrical path is exposed from the block at the terminal area.

19. A magnetic sensor comprising one or more electrical coils, The magnetic sensor is formed by 3D printing of at least three different 3D printing materials, and comprises: A block formed of a non-magnetic dielectric 3D printing material; and at least one electrical coil in the block, whereby the at least one electrical coil comprises: - at least one magnetic channel comprising 3D printed magnetic material embedded in the block; and - at least one electrical channel comprising a 3D printed conductive material embedded in the block and extending through the block between two terminals of the electrical channel of the electrical coil, the two terminals being exposed at a surface of the block to serve as electrical contacts for the electrical coil; wherein at least one of the electrical channel and the magnetic channel is 3D printed in the block with a coil geometry forming a plurality of windings around the other of the electrical channel and the magnetic channel, such that the at least one electrical channel is configured and operable as an inductor for the at least one electrical coil, and the at least one magnetic channel is configured and operable as a magnetic core for the inductor for the at least one electrical coil; The magnetic channel forming the magnetic core is configured to have an open magnetic path configuration so that the magnetic channel does not surround the conductive channel with a closed loop of the magnetic material, and thereby promotes effective coupling of the flux path from an external magnetic field through the magnetic core, and enables a high induced voltage to be generated in the at least one electrical coil in response to the external magnetic field.

20. A method of manufacturing one or more magnetic sensors comprising one or more electrical coils; wherein at least one of the one or more electrical coils has an open magnetic circuit configuration; The method comprises: providing a model of the one or more magnetic sensors, wherein the model indicates a three-dimensional spatial distribution of at least three materials in the at least one electrical coil having the open magnetic circuit configuration, including: a 3D distribution of magnetic material, a 3D distribution of conductive material, and a 3D distribution of non-magnetic dielectric material; wherein the three-dimensional spatial distribution of the at least three materials indicates: - spatial distribution of the bulk of said at least one electric coil formed of non-magnetic dielectric material; - a spatial distribution of said magnetic material defining in said block at least one magnetic channel associated with a magnetic core of said at least one electric coil; - a spatial distribution of said conductive material in said block defining at least one electrical path associated with an inductor of said at least one electrical coil; wherein at least one of the spatial distribution of magnetic material defining the magnetic channel of the at least one electrical coil and the spatial distribution of conductive material defining the electrical channel of the at least one electrical coil has a coil geometry forming a plurality of windings around the other of the electrical channel and the magnetic channel, thereby causing the at least one electrical channel to be configured and operable as an inductor for the at least one electrical coil, and the at least one magnetic channel to be configured and operable as a magnetic core for the inductor for the at least one electrical coil; wherein the spatial distribution of the magnetic material defining the magnetic channel has the open magnetic circuit configuration and does not surround the conductive channel with a closed loop of the magnetic material; and 3D printing is applied to print the one or more magnetic sensors to obtain the at least one electrical coil having the open magnetic circuit configuration, which promotes effective coupling of a flux path from an external magnetic field through the magnetic core to generate a high induced voltage in response to the external magnetic field.

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