| A research project was undertaken to integrate Ultrasonic Consolitation (UC) and Direct-Write (DW) technologies into a single apparatus to fabricate embedded electrical systems within an ultrasonically consolidated metallic enclosure. Process and design guidelines were developed after performing fundamental research on the operational capabilities of the implemented system. In order to develop such guidelines, numerous tests were performed on both UC and DW. The results from those tests, as well as the design and process guidelines for the fabrication of an embedded touch switch, can be used as a base for future research and experimentation on the UC-DW apparatus. The successful fabrication of an embedded touch switch proves the validity of the described design and process parameters and demonstrates the usefulness of this integration. |
