Medical Device Additive Manufacturing With Alloy Composition Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional manufacturing methods for medical devices, such as laser micro-cutting, result in inefficiencies and higher costs, while additive manufacturing techniques offer potential cost reduction but face challenges in maintaining precise material composition during laser sintering, leading to uneven vaporization of metals like nickel and titanium.
Innovation Solution
Selecting a common laser processing wavelength that matches the absorption spectra of both metals, such as nickel and titanium, and controlling the laser sintering process under specific pressures to maintain equal vaporization rates and minimize voids, ensuring consistent material composition in the final product.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If additive manufacturing with laser sintering is used to manufacture medical devices, then manufacturing cost and timeline are reduced, but material composition uniformity deteriorates due to uneven vaporization of metals
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by optimizing laser processing parameters (wavelength, power, speed, pulse duration) and atmospheric parameters (pressure, gas composition) to control the vaporization behavior of different metals during laser sintering. By adjusting these parameters, the process achieves uniform material composition in the final product while maintaining high manufacturing efficiency through additive manufacturing.
2Device complexity
If laser sintering is used to deposit metallic powder layers, then device complexity is reduced and manufacturing is simplified, but material composition control worsens due to differential vaporization rates of alloy components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes physical parameters including laser wavelength selection to match absorption characteristics of alloy components, pressure control (1-10 atm range) to modulate vaporization rates, and atmospheric composition to suppress preferential vaporization. These parameter adjustments maintain simple additive manufacturing processes while achieving precise material composition control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback control through real-time monitoring of laser processing parameters and material deposition characteristics. Sensors detect variations in vaporization rates and process conditions, and the system automatically adjusts laser power, speed, or atmospheric parameters to maintain consistent material composition throughout the building process.
3Stability of the object's composition
If traditional laser micro-cutting is used to manufacture medical devices, then material composition is maintained, but manufacturing cost and time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the traditional subtractive manufacturing approach into an additive process by changing the fundamental manufacturing parameter from material removal to material deposition. Through careful control of laser sintering parameters and atmospheric conditions, the process achieves both high manufacturing efficiency and material composition stability, resolving the contradiction between productivity and composition maintenance.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Preserves the desired material composition and performance characteristics of medical devices like stents, reducing material loss and enhancing mechanical properties, thus improving manufacturing efficiency and device performance.
Implementation Method 1
processing the base material with a laser to form a processed material, the laser emits a laser beam matching the common laser processing wavelength
Implementation Method 2
analyzing an absorption wavelength spectrum for the first metal and an absorption wavelength spectrum for the second metal
Implementation Method 3
comparing the absorption wavelength spectrum for the first metal and an absorption wavelength spectrum for the second metal to determine a common laser wavelength which does not excite a plurality of atoms of the first metal at a substantially higher rate than a plurality of atoms of the second metal
Data Source
AI summary
An example method for manufacturing an object is disclosed. The example method includes determining the material composition of a base material, wherein determining the material composition of the base material includes determining the relative percentage of a first metal and the relative percentage of a second metal forming the base material. The method further includes selecting a common laser processing wavelength to be used in processing the base material. The method further includes processing the base material with a laser to form a processed material, the laser emits a laser beam matching the common laser processing wavelength during the processing of the base material and the material composition of the processed material is substantially similar to the material composition of the base material.