Microfluidic Chip Mold Core for High-Precision Micro-Groove Arrays
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing microfluidic chip manufacturing processes, such as laser processing and electrochemical etching, result in low shape accuracy and surface quality, leading to a low utilization rate of microfluidic chips.
Innovation Solution
A manufacturing method involving a five-axis machining center with micro-milling and fine milling-grinding tools to create a micro-structured mold-core, followed by injection molding or hot embossing to produce microfluidic chips with high-precision micro-grooved array structures, ensuring controllable shape and size accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If traditional machining processes (laser processing, electrochemical etching) are used to manufacture microfluidic chips, then the manufacturing process is simple, but the shape accuracy and surface quality of micro-structured channels are low
Solution Approach 1:
The machining process is divided into two distinct stages: rough-milling to remove large amounts of material and form the basic micro-projection array structure, and finishing with fine milling-grinding to achieve high precision and surface quality. This segmentation allows each stage to be optimized independently, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing precision and process complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The rough-milling stage performs preliminary shaping of the micro-projection array structure before the finishing stage. By pre-forming the basic geometry with larger tolerances, the subsequent fine milling-grinding can focus solely on achieving high precision and surface quality, thereby improving overall manufacturing precision without excessively increasing total process complexity.
2Productivity
If traditional machining processes are used, then the manufacturing process is simple, but the utilization rate of microfluidic chips is low
Solution Approach 1:
The two-stage machining process (rough-milling + fine milling-grinding) enables high-precision micro-grooved array structures that improve fluidity and enable more complicated reagent detection applications. This increases chip utilization rate by allowing chips to perform more functions with better performance, justifying the increased process complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the machining parameters by introducing fine milling-grinding with specific parameter ranges (spindle speed 5000-20000 rpm, feed depth 0.1-50 micrometers, feed speed 10-1000 mm/min). These parameter optimizations enable high-precision machining that improves chip quality and utilization rate, resolving the contradiction between productivity and device complexity.
3Productivity
If rough-milling is used first, then material removal efficiency is high, but initial surface quality is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The machining process is segmented into rough-milling (high material removal efficiency, lower surface quality) and fine milling-grinding (low material removal, high surface quality). This segmentation allows the system to achieve both high productivity through efficient rough-milling and high manufacturing precision through the subsequent finishing stage, resolving the contradiction between these two parameters.
Solution Approach 2:
Rough-milling performs preliminary material removal to quickly achieve near-final dimensions and remove the bulk of material. This preliminary action enables the subsequent fine milling-grinding to focus on surface quality improvement with minimal material removal, thereby maintaining high overall productivity while achieving excellent surface quality.
Data Source
AI summary
A micro-structured mold-core of a microfluidic chip and its manufacturing method, which includes the steps of: installing a mold-core on a worktable of a five-axis machining center, and installing a micro-milling cutter and a fine milling-grinding tool on a tool holder of the five-axis machining center; rough-milling a surface of the mold-core using the micro-milling cutter according to a preset first machining track, to form a micro-projection array structure with a specific shape; finishing a surface of the micro-projection array structure formed by rough-milling using the fine milling-grinding tool according to a preset second machining track, to form a desired micro-projection array structure; and installing the mold-core on an injection molding machine, and adding particle material of polymer for micro injection molding to form a microfluidic chip, or installing the mold-core on a hot-embossing machine, and adding block material of polymer for hot embossing to form a microfluidic chip.