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David A. Hutchins

Other affiliations: Queen's University, Alcan, Hydro One  ...read more
Bio: David A. Hutchins is an academic researcher from University of Warwick. The author has contributed to research in topics: Ultrasonic sensor & Transducer. The author has an hindex of 45, co-authored 326 publications receiving 6895 citations. Previous affiliations of David A. Hutchins include Queen's University & Alcan.


Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
21 Nov 2012-PLOS ONE
TL;DR: This advance in low-cost 3D printing with offer a new paradigm in the3D printing field with printed sensors and electronics embedded inside 3D printed objects in a single build process without requiring complex or expensive materials incorporating additives such as carbon nanotubes.
Abstract: 3D printing technology can produce complex objects directly from computer aided digital designs. The technology has traditionally been used by large companies to produce fit and form concept prototypes (‘rapid prototyping’) before production. In recent years however there has been a move to adopt the technology as full-scale manufacturing solution. The advent of low-cost, desktop 3D printers such as the RepRap and Fab@Home has meant a wider user base are now able to have access to desktop manufacturing platforms enabling them to produce highly customised products for personal use and sale. This uptake in usage has been coupled with a demand for printing technology and materials able to print functional elements such as electronic sensors. Here we present formulation of a simple conductive thermoplastic composite we term ‘carbomorph’ and demonstrate how it can be used in an unmodified low-cost 3D printer to print electronic sensors able to sense mechanical flexing and capacitance changes. We show how this capability can be used to produce custom sensing devices and user interface devices along with printed objects with embedded sensing capability. This advance in low-cost 3D printing with offer a new paradigm in the 3D printing field with printed sensors and electronics embedded inside 3D printed objects in a single build process without requiring complex or expensive materials incorporating additives such as carbon nanotubes.

681 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Air-coupled capacitance transducers have been manufactured using anisotropic etched silicon backplates and commercially available dielectric films (Kapton and Mylar) as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Air-coupled capacitance transducers have been manufactured using anisotropically etched silicon backplates and commercially available dielectric films (Kapton and Mylar). The small backplate pits which result from etching, provide well ordered and highly uniform air layers between the backplate surface and thin dielectric film. Such uniformity allows the transducers to be manufactured with reproducible characteristics (a property difficult to achieve through conventional manufacturing). Impulse response studies in generation and detection, have indicated well-damped, wideband behavior, with bandwidths extending from >

284 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the transfer function of the metal block has been deconvoluted to give the acoustic source function, which was modeled as a rapidly expanding point volume of material, and the thermoelastic source generated longitudinal (L) and (S) waves, but the latter predominated at the epicenter, where, in experiments presented here, both wave amplitudes L and S were proportional to the total absorbed energy in the laser pulse.
Abstract: Quantitative experimental measurements have been made in the study of thermoelastic generation of elastic waves in a metal by unfocused laser radiation. A calibrated wide‐band detection system, incorporating a capacitance transducer, has enabled acoustic waveforms to be recorded with a minimum of distortion. From these measurements, a theoretical model has been developed. The transfer function of the metal block has been deconvoluted to give the acoustic source function, which was modeled as a rapidly expanding point volume of material. The thermoelastic source generated longitudinal (L) and (S) waves, but the latter predominated at the epicenter, where, in experiments presented here, both wave amplitudes L and S were proportional to the total absorbed energy in the laser pulse.

261 citations

Book ChapterDOI

238 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the amplitude of bulk acoustic waveforms where the laser beam was directed onto free metal surfaces in the presence and absence of surface plasmas, and onto modified metal surfaces.
Abstract: The generation of acoustic waves in metals by pulsed laser irradiation over a wide range of material conditions has been studied. Capacitance transducers have been used to obtain quantitative measurements of the amplitude of bulk acoustic waveforms where the laser beam was directed onto free metal surfaces in the presence and absence of surface plasmas, and onto modified metal surfaces. The application of acoustic wave propagation theory has allowed theoretical waveforms to be determined. By combining data for thermoelastic and normal force sources, waveforms have been produced that follow closely those measured experimentally.

216 citations


Cited by
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[...]

08 Dec 2001-BMJ
TL;DR: There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one, which seems an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality.
Abstract: There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality. Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

33,785 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An overview of the rapidly expanding field of photoacoustic imaging for biomedical applications can be found in this article, where a number of imaging techniques, including depth profiling in layered media, scanning tomography with focused ultrasonic transducers, image forming with an acoustic lens, and computed tomography using unfocused transducers are introduced.
Abstract: Photoacoustic imaging (also called optoacoustic or thermoacoustic imaging) has the potential to image animal or human organs, such as the breast and the brain, with simultaneous high contrast and high spatial resolution. This article provides an overview of the rapidly expanding field of photoacoustic imaging for biomedical applications. Imaging techniques, including depth profiling in layered media, scanning tomography with focused ultrasonic transducers, image forming with an acoustic lens, and computed tomography with unfocused transducers, are introduced. Special emphasis is placed on computed tomography, including reconstruction algorithms, spatial resolution, and related recent experiments. Promising biomedical applications are discussed throughout the text, including (1) tomographic imaging of the skin and other superficial organs by laser-induced photoacoustic microscopy, which offers the critical advantages, over current high-resolution optical imaging modalities, of deeper imaging depth and higher absorptioncontrasts, (2) breast cancerdetection by near-infrared light or radio-frequency–wave-induced photoacoustic imaging, which has important potential for early detection, and (3) small animal imaging by laser-induced photoacoustic imaging, which measures unique optical absorptioncontrasts related to important biochemical information and provides better resolution in deep tissues than optical imaging.

2,343 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors give an overview on 3D printing techniques of polymer composite materials and the properties and performance of 3D printed composite parts as well as their potential applications in the fields of biomedical, electronics and aerospace engineering.
Abstract: The use of 3D printing for rapid tooling and manufacturing has promised to produce components with complex geometries according to computer designs. Due to the intrinsically limited mechanical properties and functionalities of printed pure polymer parts, there is a critical need to develop printable polymer composites with high performance. 3D printing offers many advantages in the fabrication of composites, including high precision, cost effective and customized geometry. This article gives an overview on 3D printing techniques of polymer composite materials and the properties and performance of 3D printed composite parts as well as their potential applications in the fields of biomedical, electronics and aerospace engineering. Common 3D printing techniques such as fused deposition modeling, selective laser sintering, inkjet 3D printing, stereolithography, and 3D plotting are introduced. The formation methodology and the performance of particle-, fiber- and nanomaterial-reinforced polymer composites are emphasized. Finally, important limitations are identified to motivate the future research of 3D printing.

2,132 citations

Journal Article
TL;DR: In this article, a class of π;-conjugated compounds that exhibit large δ (as high as 1, 250 × 10−50 cm4 s per photon) and enhanced two-photon sensitivity relative to ultraviolet initiators were developed and used to demonstrate a scheme for three-dimensional data storage which permits fluorescent and refractive read-out, and the fabrication of 3D micro-optical and micromechanical structures, including photonic-bandgap-type structures.
Abstract: Two-photon excitation provides a means of activating chemical or physical processes with high spatial resolution in three dimensions and has made possible the development of three-dimensional fluorescence imaging, optical data storage, and lithographic microfabrication. These applications take advantage of the fact that the two-photon absorption probability depends quadratically on intensity, so under tight-focusing conditions, the absorption is confined at the focus to a volume of order λ3 (where λ is the laser wavelength). Any subsequent process, such as fluorescence or a photoinduced chemical reaction, is also localized in this small volume. Although three-dimensional data storage and microfabrication have been illustrated using two-photon-initiated polymerization of resins incorporating conventional ultraviolet-absorbing initiators, such photopolymer systems exhibit low photosensitivity as the initiators have small two-photon absorption cross-sections (δ). Consequently, this approach requires high laser power, and its widespread use remains impractical. Here we report on a class of π;-conjugated compounds that exhibit large δ (as high as 1, 250 × 10−50 cm4 s per photon) and enhanced two-photon sensitivity relative to ultraviolet initiators. Two-photon excitable resins based on these new initiators have been developed and used to demonstrate a scheme for three-dimensional data storage which permits fluorescent and refractive read-out, and the fabrication of three-dimensional micro-optical and micromechanical structures, including photonic-bandgap-type structures.

1,833 citations

07 Apr 2002
TL;DR: An updated review covering the years 1996 2001 will summarize the outcome of an updated review of the structural health monitoring literature, finding that although there are many more SHM studies being reported, the investigators, in general, have not yet fully embraced the well-developed tools from statistical pattern recognition.
Abstract: Staff members at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) produced a summary of the structural health monitoring literature in 1995. This presentation will summarize the outcome of an updated review covering the years 1996 2001. The updated review follows the LANL statistical pattern recognition paradigm for SHM, which addresses four topics: 1. Operational Evaluation; 2. Data Acquisition and Cleansing; 3. Feature Extraction; and 4. Statistical Modeling for Feature Discrimination. The literature has been reviewed based on how a particular study addresses these four topics. A significant observation from this review is that although there are many more SHM studies being reported, the investigators, in general, have not yet fully embraced the well-developed tools from statistical pattern recognition. As such, the discrimination procedures employed are often lacking the appropriate rigor necessary for this technology to evolve beyond demonstration problems carried out in laboratory setting.

1,467 citations