A method for making an article is disclosed. According to the method, a digital model of the article is generated. The digital model is inputted into an additive manufacturing apparatus comprising an energy source. The additive manufacturing apparatus applies energy from the energy source to successively applied incremental quantities of a powder to fuse the powder to form the article corresponding to the digital model. The powder particles individually include a composite core including a first phase of a first metal and a second phase of a ceramic. A first shell including a second metal is disposed over the core.

A method for selecting optimum operation performance criteria for a metal working process. The method includes the step of developing a process model relating process parameters for the operation with performance variables for said operation, wherein the process parameters and performance variables are retrievable via integrated multiple data sources, and selecting at least one optimization technique to define a function, said function including process parameters. Moreover, the method includes generating the function for optimization by using acceptable tolerances of a product to be machined as a basis to define ranges for performance variables along with ranges for process parameters, and applying the at least one optimization technique to said function, whereby optimum operation performance criteria are calculated for the process model including process parameters and performance variables to obtain a set of requirements to be used for controlling the metal working process.

Physical vapor deposition target assemblies and methods of manufacturing such target assemblies are disclosed. An exemplary target assembly comprises a flow pattern including a plurality of arcs and bends fluidly connected to an inlet end and an outlet end.

The present disclosure generally relates to additive manufacturing systems and methods on a large-scale format. One aspect involves a build unit that can be moved around in three dimensions by a positioning system, building separate portions of a large object. The build unit has an energy directing device that directs, e.g., laser or e-beam irradiation onto a powder layer. In the case of laser irradiation, the build volume may have a gasflow device that provides laminar gas flow to a laminar flow zone above the layer of powder. This allows for efficient removal of the smoke, condensates, and other impurities produced by irradiating the powder (the “gas plume”) without excessively disturbing the powder layer. The build unit may also have a recoater that allows it to selectively deposit particular quantities of powder in specific locations over a work surface to build large, high quality, high precision objects.

Device surfaces are rendered superhydrophobic and/or superoleophobic through microstructures and/or nanostructures that utilize the same base material(s) as the device itself without the need for coatings made from different materials or substances. A medical device includes a portion made from a base material having a surface adapted for contact with biological material, and wherein the surface is modified to become superhydrophobic, superoleophobic, or both, using only the base material, excluding non-material coatings. The surface may be modified using a subtractive process, an additive process, or a combination thereof. The product of the process may form part of an implantable device or a medical instrument, including a medical device or instrument associated with an intraocular procedure. The surface may be modified to include micrometer- or nanometer-sized pillars, posts, pits or cavitations; hierarchical structures having asperities; or posts/pillars with caps having dimensions greater than the diameters of the posts or pillars.

A food processing apparatus including a tank having an inlet end for receiving food product and an outlet end for discharging food product, the tank having a rotatable auger mounted in a compartment, the auger for advancing food product within the compartment from the inlet end toward the outlet end, the auger including flights having a flight wall with a radial edge, a clearance space being defined between the radial edge of the flights and a solid, imperforate wall portion of an inner wall. One of the inner wall and the flight wall may include a perforated wall portion. A transition zone includes a moveable surface to contain food product while in use.

An optical manufacturing process sensing and status indication system is taught that is able to utilize optical emissions from a manufacturing process to infer the state of the process. In one case, it is able to use these optical emissions to distinguish thermal phenomena on two timescales and to perform feature extraction and classification so that nominal process conditions may be uniquely distinguished from off-nominal process conditions at a given instant in time or over a sequential series of instants in time occurring over the duration of the manufacturing process. In other case, it is able to utilize these optical emissions to derive corresponding spectra and identify features within those spectra so that nominal process conditions may be uniquely distinguished from off-nominal process conditions at a given instant in time or over a sequential series of instants in time occurring over the duration of the manufacturing process.

In various embodiments, three-dimensional layered metallic parts are substantially free of gaps between successive layers, are substantially free of cracks, and have densities no less than 97% of the theoretical density of the metallic material.

A method for selecting optimum operation performance criteria for a metal working process. The method includes the step of developing a process model relating process parameters for the operation with performance variables for said operation, wherein the process parameters and performance variables are retrievable via integrated multiple data sources, and selecting at least one optimization technique to define a function, said function including process parameters. Moreover, the method includes generating the function for optimization by using acceptable tolerances of a product to be machined as a basis to define ranges for performance variables along with ranges for process parameters, and applying the at least one optimization technique to said function, whereby optimum operation performance criteria are calculated for the process model including process parameters and performance variables to obtain a set of requirements to be used for controlling the metal working process.

A method for producing pressure vessels, including pressure accumulators, such as hydraulic accumulators and parts of the parts of the accumulator (24). The parts produced by a 3D printing method can include one or more or all of two housing parts and a separating element separating the interior chamber of the two hosing parts are at least partially produced by a 3D printing method.