Selective metal deposition onto complex 3D-printed parts
This technology is a method for coating specific areas of a 3D-printed object with metals or other materials without masking, stencils, or electrical connections. The 3D printer uses different polymer materials to create zones with different electrical charges built right into the part. When the part is dipped in a coating bath, metal deposits only where the chemistry dictates — leaving other zones bare or receiving a different material. Multiple rounds of this process can stack different coatings in precise locations, creating composite parts with embedded conductors, sensors, or functional layers exactly where needed.
What you could build
A process toolkit or licensed manufacturing workflow enabling producers of printed electronics, RF antennas, or medical implants to integrate selective metal traces and functional coatings directly into additively manufactured parts. Primary buyers would be contract manufacturers in printed electronics, aerospace interior component suppliers, and medical device OEMs needing conductive or bioactive surface features on complex geometries.
Who in Virginia should care
Defense and aerospace primes and suppliers in Northern Virginia and the Hampton Roads corridor that use additive manufacturing for complex structural or electronic components would have direct interest.
Readiness: Lab validated
Concept — described but not yet demonstrated. Lab validated — supported by experimental results in the patent. Prototype likely — the text describes a built, working embodiment.
Readiness is inferred from the patent text, not from a lab visit.
The record
- Inventors
- Ryan HENSLEIGH, Xiaoyu ZHENG
- Granted
- June 4, 2024
- Status
- Granted patent
- Patent number
- 11999097
Ready to talk?
Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties handles licensing for this technology.
Prosim summaries are generated from public patent text and are not legal advice.