A 3D printer that is mostly twenty to thirty times faster than existing 3D printers. Pixel-based Raster images are converted into Scalable Vector Graphic (SVG) images, which are then categorized as lines, curves and surface areas. For each category, faster printing methods for printing with pre-formed shapes such as rods, boards, arcs, etc., are disclosed. Pre-formed shapes may be made of plastic/thermoplastic/polymer or sintering materials, as desired. Sintering materials may be cladded/coated with appropriate materials such as solder, copper, and thermoplastics. The new print-head, which has a fixed portion and a replaceable portion, has a mechanism to draw upon pre-formed shapes to print. The replaceable portion has varying shapes and sizes of placement holes, and a mechanism to signal which replaceable portion has been mounted. The print-head incorporates mechanisms to heat and tack the pre-formed shapes. The invention discloses methods to use multiple print-heads to further speed up printing.

A welding system includes at least one high intensity energy source to create a weld puddle during a root pass on a narrow joint of a workpiece with a clad layer. The system also includes a controller to control a weld ramp out process such that, as the molten puddle advances to a start of an existing root pass weld, the controller at least one of decreases an energy output of the at least one high intensity energy source and reduces an interaction time between the at least one high intensity energy source and the weld puddle. After completion of the root pass, a thickness of a root pass weld in a region that is at or near the start point of the existing root pass weld is in a range of 100 percent to 130 percent of a nominal root pass thickness of a remainder of the root pass weld.

A welding system includes at least one high intensity energy source to create a weld puddle during a root pass on a narrow joint of a workpiece with a clad layer. The system also includes a controller to control a weld ramp out process such that, as the molten puddle advances to a start of an existing root pass weld, the controller at least one of decreases an energy output of the at least one high intensity energy source and reduces an interaction time between the at least one high intensity energy source and the weld puddle. After completion of the root pass, a thickness of a root pass weld in a region that is at or near the start point of the existing root pass weld is in a range of 100 percent to 130 percent of a nominal root pass thickness of a remainder of the root pass weld.

A method for processing a foil comprising lithium includes irradiating the foil with a laser beam having a wavelength of between 200 nm and 1 μm.

A method for processing a foil comprising lithium includes irradiating the foil with a laser beam having a wavelength of between 200 nm and 1 μm.

A welded blank assembly is formed by welding first and second sheet metal pieces together at a weld joint. At least one of the sheet metal pieces includes a boron steel or press hardenable steel base material layer and an aluminum-based coating material layer, along with a weld notch where at least a portion of the coating material layer is removed before welding. An additional material can be provided during welding to influence weld joint composition and/or a secondary heat source can be used to heat and flow a protective material in a weld region of the blank assembly. The weld notch has a width that may be related to the width of a heat-affected zone formed during welding.

A welded blank assembly is formed by welding first and second sheet metal pieces together at a weld joint. At least one of the sheet metal pieces includes a boron steel or press hardenable steel base material layer and an aluminum-based coating material layer, along with a weld notch where at least a portion of the coating material layer is removed before welding. An additional material can be provided during welding to influence weld joint composition and/or a secondary heat source can be used to heat and flow a protective material in a weld region of the blank assembly. The weld notch has a width that may be related to the width of a heat-affected zone formed during welding.

Disclosed are an aluminum-coated blank, a manufacturing method thereof, and an apparatus for manufacturing the same. The blank includes two or more aluminum-coated steel sheets connected together by a joint, each of the steel sheets including: a base steel sheet including 0.01-0.5 wt % of carbon, 0.01-1.0 wt % of silicon, 0.5-3.0 wt % of manganese, greater than 0 but not greater than 0.05 wt % of phosphorus, greater than 0 but not greater than 0.01 wt % of sulfur, greater than 0 but not greater than 0.1 wt % of aluminum, greater than 0 but not greater than 0.001 wt % of nitrogen, and the balance of iron and other inevitable impurities; and a coating layer including aluminum and formed on at least one surface of the base steel sheet.

Disclosed are an aluminum-coated blank, a manufacturing method thereof, and an apparatus for manufacturing the same. The blank includes two or more aluminum-coated steel sheets connected together by a joint, each of the steel sheets including: a base steel sheet including 0.01-0.5 wt % of carbon, 0.01-1.0 wt % of silicon, 0.5-3.0 wt % of manganese, greater than 0 but not greater than 0.05 wt % of phosphorus, greater than 0 but not greater than 0.01 wt % of sulfur, greater than 0 but not greater than 0.1 wt % of aluminum, greater than 0 but not greater than 0.001 wt % of nitrogen, and the balance of iron and other inevitable impurities; and a coating layer including aluminum and formed on at least one surface of the base steel sheet.

A method for fusion welding of one or more steel sheets (1, 2) made of press-hardened steel, preferably manganese-boron steel is disclosed. At least one of the steel sheets has a metallic coating (4) which contains aluminum, and the fusion welding is performed while filler material (11) is being fed into the molten bath (9). In order to improve the hardenability of the weld seam (14), irrespective of whether the steel sheets to be welded together are steel sheets of the same or different material grades and/or steel sheets of different sheet thicknesses, a single laser focal spot (16) with different energy distribution is generated on the molten bath by means of one or more optical elements such that the laser focal spot (16) has a smaller laser focal spot area (16.1) and a larger laser focal spot area (16.2).