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AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
InventorsBruce A. Banks, Sharon K. Rutledge
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A method for fabricating soft tissue implants using a mold. The cavity surface of an initially untextured mold, made of an organic material such as epoxy, is given a thin film coating of material that has pinholes and is resistant to atomic particle bombardment. The mold cavity surface is then subjected to atomic particle bombardment, such as when placed in an isotropic atomic oxygen environment. Microscopic depressions in the mold cavity surface are created at the pinhole sites on the thin film coating. The thin film coating is removed and the mold is then used to cast the soft tissue implant. The thin film coating having pinholes may be created by chilling the mold below the dew point such that water vapor condenses upon it; distributing particles, that can partially dissolve and become attached to the mold cavity surface, onto the mold cavity surface; removing the layer of condensate, such as by evaporation; applying the thin film coating over the entire mold surface; and, finally removing the particles, such as by dissolving or brushing it off. Pinholes are created in the thin film coating at the sites previously occupied by the particles.
A method for fabricating soft tissue implants having doubly curved or irregularly shaped surfaces, and having surface roughness from a mold made from an organic material, comprising the steps of:
A mold for making soft tissue implants having doubly curved or irregularly shaped surfaces, and having a mold cavity surface treated in accordance with the method of
A method for fabricating soft tissue implants having doubly curved or irregularly shaped surfaces, and having surface roughness from a mold made from an organic material, comprising the steps of:
A mold for making soft tissue implants having doubly curved or irregularly shaped surfaces, and having a mold cavity surface treated in accordance with the method of:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.