Laser-Based Meso/Micro Rapid Manufacturing System

The meso/micro layered manufacturing technologies have significant implications for the design and fabrication of complex miniature structures. A laser-based additive/subtractive Rapid Manufacturing system is thus developed to build meso/micro structures. By incorporating laser microdeposition and micromachining with a pulsed Nd:YAG laser that has four harmonic wavelengths, this manufacturing system takes computer-aided design (CAD) output to reproduce meso/micro components in a wide selection of materials. To precisely deposit micro/nano powders and to control composition in-situ, an ultrasonic-based micro powder-feeding mechanism is developed. This additive/subtractive micro/meso manufacturing technology provides a platform for a solid integration from CAD to the realization of complex 3D miniature parts.