Fabrication

Prototyping fabrication tools and methods

3D Printing

FDM 3D printed a "dummy" model to verify a proprietary seal design as an initial proof of concept.

Manual Lathe

Aluminum parts were turned on a lathe down to 50 micron tolerances and features as small as M0.9 threads were machined. Redesigned features to accommodate cutter tool clearances by analyzing designs with DFM in mind.

CAM & 3-axis CNC milling

Generated tool paths and implemented DFM design changes to reduce number of tool changes to minimize tolerance stack up with a budget CNC machine. Small and intricate parts like watch hands and dials, were machined with unconventional techniques such as cyanoacrylate fixturing.

Anodizing

To emulate different case finishes, aluminum prototype parts were type II sulfuric acid anodized. A self-developed masking technique was used to create markings in anodized parts without specialized tools by applying materials science and chemistry principles.