CNC Electroforming Machine

http://www.google.com/patents/US3074860

Plating titanium was developed long ago, the process can be kept the same and used as such. Titanates or titanium hydroxide is soluble in many organic solvents, this will require much less reagent.

I am scratching the whole laser/magnetron idea, instead going with a submerged build plate and a nickel wire feed. Will be printing in nickel, copper and titanium. Nickel should be easier to electroform, If the distances are kept very small high amperage may be possible and higher deposition rates possible.

The thickness of the nickel wire will determine the thickness of the printed lines. Deposition rates to be controlled by amperage and fines by close.

Watts nickel electroplating solution will be used and then titanium solution and 99.5% Titanium Ni Anode.

A cartesian build with a submersible silicone nickel graphite build plate should suffice. An attempt to disperse nano carbons in the liquid will be attempted and there will be circulation in the bath. The circulation nozzle will come out around the wire, using pressure to center the wire leaving the plastic nozzle.

A glass nozzle may be used, a pipette of say 10mL in 1mL per inch segments would work if placed in a geared housing to control depth

This way the whole target is bathed in nickel or titanium saturated fluid. The nano-carbons should be positively charged at the cathode as they are circulated close to the anode a electrostatic attraction should occur plating them in place.

The printer could also be used to print copper traces, lifted out of the bed, apply a mask and spray an insulator, remove the mask and plate a second level, and a third add infinitum.

The toxicity of the plating solutions is a concern so I am going to tackle that by plating in a sealable container. So as to not loose the plating solution. It is also imperative that some computer monitoring of pH is needed and adjustments made with the appropriate buffer or pH down/up solution.

Information below on the nickel plating solution.

https://www.nickelinstitute.org/~/media/Files/TechnicalLiterature/NPH_141015.ashx

I am going to need to pull a slight vacuum on the whole machine.

This will be accomplished by laying up fiberglass on the outside of a 36" cement tube and dropping a delta styled 3d printer inside.

I will need a door, to get at any prints on the inside and probably a camera to monitor the progress of the prints.

The top and the bottom will be fiberglass plates with fittings for a vacuum pump and argon/co2 mix injection.

A magnetron plasma will be the only thing I will be able to fuse particles with, but should be easily achievable with small enough particle sizes.

I don' think the laser makes sense, I will be attempting to make a simple high voltage DC magnetron and sputtering the aluminum through the magnetron at the build plate.

This will allow layer heights as low as .1 micron and incredible resolution if I can focus the magnetron beam to a small enough point. A refractory epoxy will be used to glue very small magnets into a copper pipe using another magnet oriented in the opposite direction in the center.

Print times will be massive but its the cost of printing so small.

I will be entering this into the automation portion of the 2016 HAD prize.