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US 2019/0337055 A1Published application
Porous structure and methods of making same
AssigneeSmith & Nephew, Inc.
InventorsMarcus L. Scott, Lu Gan, Vivek D. Pawar, Stanley Tsai
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Abstract
The present disclosure provides methods to improve the properties of a porous structure formed by a rapid manufacturing technique. Embodiments of the present disclosure increase the bonding between the micro-particles 5 on the surface of the porous structure and the porous structure itself without substantially reduce the surface area of the micro-particles. In one aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure improves the bonding while preserving or increasing the friction of the structure against adjacent materials.
Claims20
A method comprising the step of:
- forming a porous structure by rapid manufacturing technique utilizing a metallic material, wherein the rapid manufacturing technique is selected from group consisting of direct metal fabrication, direct metal laser sintering, and solid free-form fabrication;
- treating the porous structure with a thermal treatment to increase the bond strength between a plurality of micro-particles attached to said porous structure and said porous structure without substantially reducing the surface area of the porous structure;
- and
- selecting a time and temperature for the thermal treatment, wherein the time is between 30 minutes to 300 minutes and the temperature is between about 800 degrees C. and about 1200 degrees C.
1 more element
A method comprising the step of:
- forming a titanium alloy porous structure formed by rapid manufacturing technique, wherein the rapid manufacturing technique is selected from group consisting of direct metal fabrication, direct metal laser sintering, and solid free-form fabrication;
- treating the porous structure with a thermal treatment to increase the bond strength between a plurality of micro-particles attached to said porous structure and said porous structure without substantially reducing the surface area of the porous structure, wherein the thermal treatment is performed in a vacuum or inert gas furnace below atmospheric pressure;
- and
- selecting a time and temperature for the thermal treatment, wherein the time is between 30 minutes to 300 minutes and the temperature is between than about 800 degrees C. and about 1200 degrees C., and wherein the time and temperature of the thermal treatment is determined based at least on the desired friction of a surface of the porous structure.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.