Palo Alto Research Center Inc.

Max-planck-gesellschaft Zur F&#xf6;rderung Der Wissenschaften E. V.

Fraunhofer-gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forschung E.v.

Kai Melde

Armin R Volkel

John Steven Paschkewitz

Huangpin Ben Hsieh

Meng H Lean

Philipp Helmut Schmaelzle

Ashutosh Kole

Eric J Shrader

Terrance Lee Stephens

Norine E Chang

Peer Fischer

Eugene Michael Chow

David Mathew Johnson

Francisco Eduardo Torres

Victor Alfred Beck

Jeonggi Seo

Nitin S Parekh

H Ben Hsieh

Cory D Lancaster

Peter-Karl Weber

Joe Zuback

Emily Tow

A method of fabricating a component () comprises the steps of providing precursor material in a working medium, creating acoustic forces and positioning the precursor material in the working medium under the effect of the acoustic forces, so that a material distribution is formed, which has a shape of the component to be fabricated, and subjecting at least one of the material distribution and the working medium to a fixation, so that the precursor material of the material distribution or the working medium surrounding the material distribution is bound, wherein the step of creating the acoustic forces includes generating an acoustic interference pattern (), and the material distribution () is formed by moving the precursor material () towards energy extrema of the acoustic interference pattern (). Furthermore, an apparatus () for fabricating a component () is described.

Additive manufacturing method and apparatus for fabricating a component using acoustic forces to position precursor material

An ultrasonic apparatus () for creating a holographic ultrasound field () comprises an ultrasound source device () being adapted for creating an ultrasound wave, and a transmission hologram device () having a transmission hologram () and an exposed acoustic emitter surface (), said transmission hologram device () being acoustically coupled with the ultrasound source device () and being arranged for transmitting the ultrasound wave through the acoustic emitter surface () and creating the holographic ultrasound field in a surrounding space, wherein the acoustic emitter surface () is a smooth surface which do not influence the field distribution of the ultrasound wave. Furthermore, a method of creating a holographic ultrasound field in an object (), wherein the ultrasonic apparatus () is used, and applications of the ultrasonic apparatus () are described.

Apparatus and method for creating a holographic ultrasound field in an object

Hydrodynamic separation of suspended particles using curved channels offers advantages in many applications, since it is a fast continuous flow technology that can handle neutrally and near neutrally buoyant particles without the need of a physical barrier or the addition of chemical aids. Designs are provided for a flow splitter at the end of the separation channel, to maintain smooth, counter-vortex-free laminar flow and improve particle separation efficiency while reducing clogging and fouling propensities.

HDS channel exit designs for improved separation efficiency

An electrocoagulation system including a dosing unit, a mixing unit and a buffer tank is provided. The dosing unit receives a fluid from an external source and injects an electrochemically generated coagulant into the fluid using one or more pairs of electrodes. The mixing unit mixes the coagulant with the fluid and is separate from the dosing unit. The buffer tank holds the fluid until particles contained in the fluid grow to a predetermined size.

Electrocoagulation system

A Hydrodynamic separation device using curved channels is provided. High aspect ratio channels improve the focusing dynamics of the hydrodynamic separator and leads to improved channel design choices.

Hydrodynamic separation using high aspect ratio channels

An apparatus includes a bypass flow path between an ink supply port and a vent port and a primary flow path between the ink supply port and an ink delivery port. A first flow velocity of the bypass flow path is higher than a second flow velocity of the primary flow path. The first flow velocity induces bubbles to travel via the bypass flow path instead of the primary flow path.

Bypass flow path for ink jet bubbles

An assembly for a high output hydrodynamic separation unit includes, in one form, several components or parts. Top and bottom plates serve as caps for and distribute force through layers of separation channels. The compressive forces seal the channels and prevent leakage from the channels. An optional middle plate may also be provided to create smaller subsets of the layers of separation channels. At least one connector is provided to the combination of components to compress the layers of separation channels. In a variation, an optional outer shell may encase the unit to provide support and compress the stack with a unique threaded configuration.

Method and system for stacking and sealing hydrodynamic separation layers

A continuous flow projection lithography system to form microstructures using an optical array incorporated in a continuous coating process is provided. A mask is placed at a distance from the array. Each element of the array projects one image of the mask onto a substrate, effectively forming an array thereon. A coating process allows flows that can be used to define functional regions of particles or supporting layers that prevent adhesion of crosslinked polymers to surfaces.

Flow lithography technique to form microstructures using optical arrays

A wastewater treatment plant that employs an activated sludge process and a method of operating the same is described. Wastewater influent is provided to a bioreactor configured to perform activated sludge processing to develop mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS). The MLSS is passed from the bioreactor to a hydrodynamic separator (HDS) system, where separation operations are performed on the MLSS. The separation operations generate a low concentration MLSS stream and a high concentration MLSS stream. The low concentration MLSS stream is passed from the hydrodynamic separator system via a first output to a clarifier, and the high concentration wastewater stream is passed via a second output back to the bioreactor. The clarifier performs clarification operations on the cleaned wastewater stream and then outputs an effluent flow.

Recycling activated sludge by hydrodynamic seperator (HDS) to enable high MLSS bioreactor to process high influent flow and/or high strength wastewater

A print head includes an inlet port that receives a flow of a phase-change ink and an outlet port that delivers the flow to a jet. The print head includes a flow path along a flow direction from the inlet port to the outlet port. The flow path has top and bottom planar surfaces, and further includes two or more elongated grooves in at least one of the top and bottom planar surfaces. The two or more elongated grooves are at an angle to the flow direction and have a threshold capillary dimension such that bubbles in the phase-change ink are directed along the elongated grooves.

Print head ink flow path with bubble removal grooves

A system and method for visualization of fluid flow, includes a light emitting arrangement configured to emit a focused light, a fluid channel configured to hold a fluid including a carrier liquid and a stimuli responsive polymer, wherein the fluid flows though the fluid channel, and an image recording arrangement. The light emitting arrangement is positioned to emit the focused light into a selected area of the fluid channel to interact with the flowing stimuli responsive polymer within the selected area. This results in a phase change to a portion of the stimuli responsive polymer. The image recording arrangement is positioned to record an image the portion of the phase changed stimuli responsive polymer made visible by the phase change.

Phase-change enabled flow field visualization

An apparatus includes an inkjet manifold with at least one ink supply port coupled to an ink supply and at least one ink delivery port. A flow path is between the ink supply and ink delivery ports, and the flow path includes a trap configured to collect particle contaminants in response to a pulsed cleaning flow and hold the particle contaminants during an operational flow.

Trap configured to collect ink particle contaminants in response to a cleaning flow

An enhanced self-writing method for generating in-plane (horizontally-oriented) polymer lightguides that includes disposing one or more light deflecting structures in or on the upper surface of a uncured layer that deflect incident collimated light beams in a transverse direction (i.e., parallel to the uncured layer top layer surface), whereby the deflected collimated light beam polymerizes a corresponding elongated portion of the uncured material in a self-propagating manner to form in-plane polymer lightguides. When used in the fabrication of micro-truss structures, the in-plane polymer lightguides are linked to diagonal polymer lightguides to form superior truss configurations, such as that of the ideal octet-truss structure. Non-polymerized portions of the uncured layer are removed to expose the micro-truss structure for further processing.

Growing community of inventors

San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Kai Melde