ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 5 -- United States Patent no. 12,275,173, issued on April 15, was assigned to Apple Inc. (Cupertino, Calif.).
"Porous oxide for improved titanium-polymer bonding" was invented by James A. Curran (Sunnyvale, Calif.), James A. Yurko (Saratoga, Calif.) and Todd S. Mintz (San Jose, Calif.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A chemical treatment process has been identified as a simple and effective means of improving the bonding of injection-molded polymer to titanium surfaces. This process forms an oxide layer on a titanium surface that includes a layered double hydroxide. The layered double hydroxide both raises the bond strength and minimizes air or water leakage. The process e...