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AssigneeUtron Kinetics, LLC
InventorsMaurice M. Meneguzzi, Dannis W. Massey, David L. Kruczynski
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A chamber is pressurized with a natural gas and air mixture. The pressure moves a piston and die to compress material to be formed into a part. The pressurized gas and air mixture is ignited with a laser beam focused with a lens or collimator into a point or fine line in a center of the chamber. Rapid combustion of the gas and air mixture drives the piston and die, compacting the part into a net shape. The focused laser beam centrally ignites pressurized gas and air mixture providing controlled combustion in the chamber and preventing damaging detonation. The focused point beam is used in chambers having length to diameter L/D aspect ratio of 2 or less than 2. The collimated thin beam is used in chambers having L/D greater than 2.
Apparatus comprising a combustion driven compaction press having a combustion chamber, a piston in and extending from the chamber, a die connected to an end of the piston remote from the chamber, gas and air inlets connected to the chamber for filling and pressurizing the chamber with a gas and air mixture and moving the piston and die to initially compress a near net shape part, a laser source spaced from the chamber for projecting a laser beam, an optical device optically aligned with the laser source for focusing the laser beam and directing the laser beam toward the chamber, a window in the chamber opposite the piston for admitting the focused and directed laser beam into the chamber for igniting the gas and air mixture and initiating combustion of the gas and air mixture in the chamber and driving the piston and die outward to compact the part to near net shape, wherein the optical device comprises a lens for focusing the laser beam to a focal point within the chamber, and wherein the lens focuses the focal point in a center of the chamber.
Apparatus comprising a cylindrical chamber, inlets for natural gas and air connected to the chamber for producing a pressurized natural gas and air mixture in the chamber, a piston extending from the chamber and mounted for axial movement in the chamber, the piston having an inner end in the chamber and an outer end outside of the chamber, a die on the outer end of the piston for compressing a near net shape part when the cylinder is pressurized natural gas and air mixture and for compacting the part when the piston is driven in an outward direction from the chamber by rapid combustion of an air and natural gas mixture in the chamber, a thick sapphire window in an end of the chamber opposite the piston, a laser source spaced from the end of the chamber and spaced from the window, a laser beam focuser and director between the laser source and the window for focusing and directing a laser beam from the laser source through the window into the chamber in a fine line or a focused point in a center of the chamber for igniting the air and natural gas mixture in the chamber and initiating combustion to drive the piston of the air and natural gas mixture and the die outward from the chamber to compact the part.
A method comprising filling a chamber with a combustible gas and air mixture, pressurizing the chamber with the combustible gas and air mixture, moving a piston and the die attached to the piston outward with the pressurized gas and air mixture and compressing a near net shape part, focusing a laser beam with an optical device through a window in the chamber into a point or fine line in a center of the chamber, igniting the gas and air mixture in the chamber, with the focused laser beam and combusting the gas and air mixture and rapidly driving the piston and the die with combustion product gases into the part and compacting the part.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.