Recently, policies on the construction of medical associations are being intensively introduced in various provinces, which not only marks the accelerated implementation of the national hierarchical treatment system, but also means the expansion and upgrading of the medical device market demand. Going hand in hand with the active policy is China's huge market potential: revenues are set to break a trillion and it has become the second largest market in the world. According to relevant data: the number of private hospitals in China will grow to around 35,900 in 2023, with an average CAGR of around 11.53% from 2019-2023.
The safety of information and applications in the medical and health industry involves the safety of people's livelihood, the Party Central Committee and the State Council, the National Health Commission attaches great importance to, in addition to national recognition for medical device companies in the transformation of science and technology, independent research and development to provide sufficient room for growth, laser welding technology in the road to help medical devices, also has a huge market application space.
Compared to other commonly used welding techniques, laser welding technology produces virtually no dross or debris and the welding process does not require any added adhesives, thus allowing the entire welding process to be completed in a clean room. Laser welding technology has greatly contributed to the development of medical devices such as：
Ear wax protector
Today's typical ITE hearing aids are only about the size of a pinky finger, but all of them face a major problem: ear wax (also known as earwax) produced in the ear canal contaminates the sound output area. To ensure that hearing aids can function reliably, it is necessary to provide protection at the point of sound output, and this is where laser technology is the most suitable option.
Analytical instruments
Analytical instruments are usually equipped with plastic specific parts designed for single use for blood analysis. In order to be able to absorb the laser beam, when joining two different parts it is generally necessary to place the transparent part above and the part below it to be able to absorb it.
Balloon catheter
Laser welding of balloon catheters is infrared welding using a laser as the source of energy. The laser beam can be directed at the surface of the plastic that absorbs the laser, causing the plastic to melt to achieve the weld. The advanced laser welding technology allows for a seamless connection between the balloon tip and the body, allowing the balloon catheter to be advanced unobstructed through curved and narrow diseased vessels with minimal damage to the vessel and a safer operating procedure.
Dispensing systems
"Drug delivery systems" or drug dosing systems help patients to continue taking their medication. Its increasingly compact construction makes it more portable. Due to the direct patient use, the hygienic requirements are extremely high and the integrated microchannel diameters are located in the >10 μm region and the weld seam must be absolutely and completely particle-free. These requirements can be met with the aid of laser welding technology.
Microfluidic components
The mask soldering principle enables precise and stable soldering of microfluidic components. The channel geometry is kept intact, preventing the melt from flowing into the narrow channels of only 200 µm.
Today, the medical device industry is appearing more frequently as the country pays more attention to it. There is no doubt that the medical device industry has evolved from a vertical industry into a comprehensive industry for the whole society, integrating the digital and intelligent transformation of various industries, and is a key focus point for human society to move towards the Internet of Everything. In addition to laser welding technology currently being used in the production of medical devices, there are many other innovative laser processing technologies that have great potential in the manufacture of medical devices, such as laser surface modification, laser cutting, laser drilling and laser micromachining. It is believed that good research and informed use of these advanced laser processing technologies will lead to the design of more high quality and demanding medical devices.
