Desktop Micro Surface Texturing System
- Technology Benefits
- • Efficient and economically sustainable • Minimal material waste and low energy cost • Room temperature practice • Environmental friendly
- Detailed Technology Description
- Adesktop deformation-based surface texturing system for efficiently andeconomically fabricatingmicro-scale surface textures.#INSTRUMENTATION #DEVICE #fabrication #manufacturing
- *Abstract
-
Northwestern researchershave developed a desktop surface texturing apparatus that can efficiently andeconomically fabricate micro-scale surface textures. Various energy andbiomedical applications requires creating micro surface textures on theexterior of interface parts. However, there is a lack of such an economicallysustainable and environmental friendly fabrication method for surface microtexturing. Northwestern’s invention fills this void by using the efficientmicro form rolling process to produce micro textures on thin sheet materialsand internal surface of a journal bearing. Based on the deformation theory,this system enables mass production of micro channels at a lower cost with lessenergy consumption, less environmental impact, and a minimal material wastecompared with alternative processes such as the laser texturing andphotochemical machining. This promising invention can be applied to a widerange of areas, such as friction/wear reduction, bacteria sterilization andself-cleaned surfaces.
Figure DesktopDeformation-based Micro Surface Texturing System. (a): Schematic ofrolls with micro-channel features. (b): Schematic of desktop surface texturingsystem. (c): Assembled desktop surface texturing apparatus. (d): Fabricatedmicro-channel array. (e): Fabricated micro-grid pattern.
- *Inventors
- Jian Cao* Rui Zhou Kornel F. Ehmann
- *Publications
- Zhou R, Cao J, Ehman K, Xu C (2011) An investigation on deformation-based surface texturing, J. Manuf. Sci. Eng. 133(6), 061017.
- Country/Region
- USA
