A three-dimensional (3D) metal object manufacturing apparatus is equipped with a liquid silicate application system to apply liquid silicate to a surface of a build platform prior to manufacture of a metal object. The liquid silicate layer is permitted to air dry and then the platform is heated to its operational temperature range for formation of a metal object with melted metal drops ejected by the apparatus. The liquid silicate layer forms a glassy, brittle layer on which the metal object is formed. This brittle layer is removed relatively easily with the object after the object is manufactured and the build platform is permitted to cool. The silicate layer improves the wetting of the surfaces of build platforms made with non-wetting materials, such as oxidized steel, while also preventing metal-to-metal welds with wetting materials, such as tungsten or nickel.

A three-dimensional (3D) metal object manufacturing apparatus is equipped with a liquid silicate application system to apply liquid silicate to a surface of a build platform prior to manufacture of a metal object. The liquid silicate layer is permitted to air dry and then the platform is heated to its operational temperature range for formation of a metal object with melted metal drops ejected by the apparatus. The liquid silicate layer forms a glassy, brittle layer on which the metal object is formed. This brittle layer is removed relatively easily with the object after the object is manufactured and the build platform is permitted to cool. The silicate layer improves the wetting of the surfaces of build platforms made with non-wetting materials, such as oxidized steel, while also preventing metal-to-metal welds with wetting materials, such as tungsten or nickel.

A method to fabricate hierarchical graded materials includes providing a reservoir of functionalized particles, mixing at least some of the functionalized particles using a mixer in the print head having a mixed fluid volume control on an order of a voxel to produce mixed functionalized particles, and actuating a print head to deposit the mixed functionalized particles on a substrate.

Provided are a systems and methods for continuously providing a metal wire to a welding torch in the correct orientation with respect to the heat source of the welding torch for manufacturing objects by solid freeform fabrication to provide continuous deposition of metal to the freeform object, especially objects made with titanium or titanium alloy, or nickel or nickel alloy, wire.

Additive manufacturing, such as laser sintering or melting of additive layers, can produce parts rapidly at small volume and in a factory setting. To ensure the additive manufactured parts are of high quality, a real-time non-destructive evaluation (NDE) technique is required to detect defects while they are being manufactured. The present invention describes an in-situ (real-time) inspection unit that can be added to an existing additive manufacturing (AM) tool, such as an FDM (fused deposition modeling) machine, or a direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) machine, providing real-time information about the part quality, and detecting flaws as they occur. The information provided by this unit is used to a) qualify the part as it is being made, and b) to provide feedback to the AM tool for correction, or to stop the process if the part will not meet the quality, thus saving time, energy and reduce material loss.

A three-dimensional (3D) printer includes an ejector having a nozzle. The 3D printer also includes a heating element configured to heat a solid metal in the ejector, thereby causing the solid metal to change to a liquid metal within the ejector. The 3D printer also includes a coil wrapped at least partially around the ejector. The 3D printer also includes a power source configured to supply one or more pulses of power to the coil, which cause one or more drops of the liquid metal to be jetted out of the nozzle. The 3D printer also includes a substrate configured to support the one or more drops as the one or more drops solidify to form a 3D object. The 3D printer also includes a gas source configured to cause an oxygen concentration to be less than about 5% proximate to the one or more drops, the 3D object, or both.

A three-dimensional (3D) printer includes an ejector having a nozzle. The 3D printer also includes a heating element configured to heat a solid metal in the ejector, thereby causing the solid metal to change to a liquid metal within the ejector. The 3D printer also includes a coil wrapped at least partially around the ejector. The 3D printer also includes a power source configured to supply one or more pulses of power to the coil, which cause one or more drops of the liquid metal to be jetted out of the nozzle. The 3D printer also includes a substrate configured to support the one or more drops as the one or more drops solidify to form a 3D object. The 3D printer also includes a gas source configured to cause an oxygen concentration to be less than about 5% proximate to the one or more drops, the 3D object, or both.

Orthopedic implants produced by additive manufacture, followed by refinement of exterior and interior surfaces trough mechanical erosion, chemical erosion, or a combination of mechanical and chemical erosion. Surface refinement removes debris, and also produces bone-growth enhancing micro-scale and nano-scale structures.

An intermittent material-tool interaction control enabling continuous deposition of solid metal voxels using local high-frequency, small-displacement oscillatory strain energy, and methods of use are presented. The present disclosure provides for a new type of manufacturing and method of additive manufacturing different from conventional three dimensional printing still capable of producing production-level parts. Furthermore, the present disclosure provides a system and method for producing production-level quality parts of metal and the like, previously incapable in the state of the art or of extreme difficulty and expense.

An intermittent material-tool interaction control enabling continuous deposition of solid metal voxels using local high-frequency, small-displacement oscillatory strain energy, and methods of use are presented. The present disclosure provides for a new type of manufacturing and method of additive manufacturing different from conventional three dimensional printing still capable of producing production-level parts. Furthermore, the present disclosure provides a system and method for producing production-level quality parts of metal and the like, previously incapable in the state of the art or of extreme difficulty and expense.