An apparatus for introducing a parting agent into a hollow workpiece before or during processing of the hollow workpiece by using a laser processing machine, includes an introduction section with a nozzle for dispensing the parting agent and a centering element which is disposed on the introduction section and serves for centering the introduction section within the hollow workpiece. A loading station, a system and a method are also provided.

The laser welding device includes a laser transmission window and a gas injection nozzle. The gas injection nozzle includes an optical path hole and an injection unit that injects an inert gas for shielding metal vapor into the optical path hole toward an irradiation direction (E) side and an optical axis (A) side of a laser beam (L).

A welding window device includes an elongated body that defines a welding cavity that extends through the body from a top side to a bottom side. The welding cavity is framed by an inlet end, an outlet end, and lateral sides of the body. The body includes one or more gas channels inwardly extending through one or more of the first lateral side or the second lateral side from an inlet opening in the inlet end toward the outlet end of the body. The gas channels include nozzle openings inwardly oriented toward the welding cavity. The gas channels are positioned in the body to direct a gas into the welding cavity during welding of other bodies together within the welding cavity.

A material joining end effector generally includes a first arm, an optics assembly, a clamp, and a second arm. The first arm elongated along a longitudinal axis. The optics assembly is configured to focus an energy beam. The clamp is movably coupled to the first arm, the clamp being configured to move along a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis. The second arm is rotationally coupled to the first arm, the second arm being configured to rotate relative to the first arm. The clamp is configured to removably couple the optics assembly to the first arm to allow the optics assembly to be decoupled from the first arm.

Heat pipes and methods of forming heat pipes, such as for use in nuclear reactor systems, are described herein. A representative method of forming a heat pipe includes forming a first wicking structure from a first material and forming a second wicking structure on the first wicking structure. Forming the second wicking structure can include mixing a second material and a third material, and heating the mixture of the second material and the third material to a temperature (a) less than a melting temperature of the second material and (b) greater than a melting temperature of the third material to melt the third material. The method can further include cooling the mixture of the second material and the third material to below the melting temperature of the third material such that the third material solidifies to bond together a plurality of particles of the second material into a porous structure.

According to one embodiment, a nozzle includes a magnetic field generating section and a body. The magnetic field generating section is configured to generate a magnetic field. The body is configured so that the magnetic field is generated on an inner side by the magnetic field generating section, and includes an opening configured so that a powder swirling around in the magnetic field is ejected therefrom.

A nozzle includes an ejection section and an acceleration section. A powder is configured to be ejected from the ejection section. The acceleration section is configured to allow the powder to circle around and is configured to accelerate the powder in a peripheral direction of the powder that circles around so as to transport the powder to an opening.

Methods of forming a weld joint using rotating shielding devices are disclosed. To form the weld joint, the rotating shielding device may be moved continuously along a seam formed between two structures being welded, so as to avoid having to remove the rotating shielding device during, for example, welding around corners. In this manner, disclosed methods of welding may improve efficiency of techniques such as vertical welding. During welding, rotating shielding devices may be coupled to a shielding gas supply, such that the shielding gas exits through an outlet formed in an axle of the rotating shielding device as the device is rotated and moved along the seam. The rotating shielding device may contain a plurality of partitions defining one or more chambers, the partitions and chambers being positioned between spaced-apart rotating portions, with the rotating shielding device configured to direct the shielding gas towards the weld pool during welding.

A numerical control device includes: a program analyzing unit analyzing a transition of a moving velocity of a machining head and a transition of a supply amount of a material supplied to a beam-irradiation position based on a machining program; a movement distance calculating unit calculating a first distance based on a result of analysis performed by the program analyzing unit, the first distance being a length of a first movement section to a first position at which addition of the material to the workpiece is started, the first movement section being a section through which the machining head is moved while the head is accelerated; and a condition command generating unit generating a supply command to increase the supply amount of the material per hour from zero to a command value according to a machining condition while the machining head is moved through the first movement section.

A nozzle device according to an embodiment includes a first opening, a plurality of second openings, and a first duct part. The first duct part includes at least one first branching part having a first part extending in a first direction and a plurality of second parts connected to a first end of the first part and extending in respective directions intersecting with the first direction. The first duct part connects the first opening and the second openings and is branched at least once by the first branching part in a path extending from the first opening to the second openings. The path lengths and the numbers of first branching parts between the first opening and the respective second openings are the same. The cross-sectional area of the first end of the first part is smaller than the cross-sectional area of a second end of the first part.