Electroforming is an advanced manufacturing process that has become an essential manufacturing technology in the medical industry due to its unique capabilities and advantages over traditional manufacturing methods. This article will cover the introduction to Electroforming technology, its technical features and advantages for the medical industry, and typical applications in the medical field.
introducing Electroforming
Electroforming is an Additive Manufacturing process that produces high-precision metal components “atom by atom.” Compared to other traditional metal forming technologies, for example, casting, forging, stamping, or deep drawing, Electroforming can deliver mass volume at superior accuracy and extreme design complexity, due to the fact that it can replicate the shape of the mandrel at extreme accuracy.
As the world leader in Electroforming technology, Veco is the first in the industry to apply advanced Laser Direct Imaging technology in high-precision metal parts manufacturing. The combination of LDI and our leading Electroforming technology has enabled us to further push the boundaries of the industry with our Advanced Lithographic Electroforming, providing our customers with high-precision metal components of higher quality, at lower cost, and with quicker turnaround.
what makes Electroforming the preferred technology for the medical industry
Electroforming is an accurate and flexible manufacturing process specialized for the production of high-precision metal parts. Its technological capabilities, including precision, cost-effectiveness, biocompatibility, and design flexibility, make it the preferred technology for the medical sector.
- exceptional precision and tight tolerance. With Electroforming, tolerances at the micro level of ±1 micron can be achieved. In the medical industry, where components must function reliably in life-critical applications, this level of accuracy is critical.
- intricate and complex geometries. With Electroforming, extremely delicate and complicated geometries that cannot be accomplished with conventional production techniques can be created. This makes it possible to create complex designs suited to particular requirements.
- ultra-smooth, burr- and stress-free surfaces. The Electroforming process delivers exceptional surface quality characterized by ultra-smooth, burr- and stress-free finishes. It not only eliminates the need for secondary finishing operations but also enhances cleanability and sterilization effectiveness.
- cost efficiency from prototyping to mass production. Electroforming can be scaled efficiently, making it a cost-effective solution for producing high-precision parts from prototyping to large quantities. With Laser Direct Imaging (LDI), which is a maskless photolithography technology that eliminates traditional masks in the procedure, the process not only lowers tooling costs but also speeds up turnaround.
- material properties. Electroforming technology allows depositing metal alloys to tailor specific material properties like mechanical or thermal characteristics. Veco offers high-precision Electroforming with Nickel, in a variety of unique blends or alloys suitable for particular engineering demands, such as Veco84 Nickel, Sulfamate Nickel, Palladium-Nickel (alloy), HR-Nickel, and Meta-Nickel. These materials provide different options regarding hardness, conductivity, corrosion resistance, and biocompatibility, depending on the application. Bio-compatible materials suitable for medical applications can also be electroplated where needed.
applications of Electroforming in the medical industry
Electroforming is extensively used in the production of micro nozzle plates, which are often used in medical devices where precise fluid control is needed, such as drug delivery systems, microfluidic devices, and diagnostic tools. The Electroforming technology is particularly well-suited for manufacturing these micro nozzle plates due to its ability to produce micro-scale holes down to ±1 μm, burr- and stress-free edges, ultra-smooth surfaces, and complex patterns. In addition, Electroformed micro nozzle plates are highly durable and resistant, making them reliable in a variety of environments in medical applications. A typical example is nebulizer plate, which is a high precision mesh component in drug delivery devices used for respiratory treatments. In state-of-the-art aerosol drug delivery systems that utilize Vibrating Mesh Technology, Veco's electroformed nebulizer plate features 1000 tapered holes on a 5mm diameter surface. When vibrating at 128,000 times per second, this plate acts as a mini pump, generating a fine particle mist with uniform droplets ranging from 1 to 5 microns in diameter, facilitating effective deep lung penetration.
In the field of minimally invasive diagnostics, Electroforming is used to produce critical components for endoscopes and imaging systems, such as micro-optical components, light stops, and thin-walled housings. Light stop, for example, is a key component in the illuminated optic part of an endoscope system. It defines the edges of the images that are seen through endoscopes. With Electroforming, sharp, clean edges can be achieved without any burr or stress on the surface. Similarly, Electroforming is also used to manufacture slit plates in optical and imaging systems, such as spectrometers. These plates control the flow of light or particles with micron-level precision, determining the optical resolution and the performance of the system.
Electroforming is also used in the production of precision filters, meshes, and test sieves for medical applications involving the separation, filtration, or analysis of fluids and particles. Electroformed test sieves, for example, are commonly applied for particle size analysis, which is critical in medical research and quality control processes such as drug formulation and biological sample analysis. Sterile filtration, absolute filtration, critical cell-cell separation, cell deformability testing, cell harvesting, particle sieving (diamonds, seeds, and dust), cacao filtration, flow regulation, and laboratory testing are all typical fields where the micro sieves are utilized.
Electroforming has revolutionized the medical industry with critical components such as micro nozzle plates, precision filters, endoscope components, and so on. With the growing trend of miniaturization in the medical industry, Electroforming has great potential for advancing the development of next-generation medical devices with its capability to produce lightweight, miniaturized, and high-precision components with micron-level accuracy.