Methods and apparatus for manufacturing and printing hollow spheres
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
InventorsAaron Wiest, Rebecca Stevens, Robert Dale Conner, Craig MacDougall, Sam Pratt
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Abstract
Apparatus and methods for forming and printing hollow bodies from amorphous materials to form three-dimensional objects are provided. Apparatus provide a hollow body forming and printing machine, and methods for determining a desired amount of impact deformation for the hollow spheres, including calculating specific characteristics of the hollow spheres and the amorphous material, deriving a target viscosity range, adjusting the apparatus to satisfy the target viscosity range, and using the apparatus to form a plurality of hollow spheres with controlled deformation.
Claims10
A method of forming hollow spheres from an amorphous material comprising:providing an amorphous material having a temperature-dependent viscosity;
- providing a source of a gas;
- flowing a stream of the gas coaxially through a flow of the amorphous material to form at least one hollow sphere having the gas disposed therein;
- depositing the at least one hollow sphere onto a base plate surface such that the at least one hollow sphere free falls to generate a target kinetic energy in the at least one hollow sphere, wherein the kinetic energy on impact with the surface is sufficient to deform the at least one hollow sphere without rupture;
- repeating the depositing of the at least one hollow sphere to form a plurality of hollow spheres layer-by-layer to form a three dimensional object therefrom;
- and
- modifying a volume of the flow of the amorphous material such that the plurality of hollow spheres having at least two different wall thicknesses are formed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.