Patent ID: 8178814

Claim:
A hand-held electric discharge machine (EDM) device comprising, in combination: a base; a handle attached to the base; a hood attached to the base at a distal end of the base, the hood being configured to enclose a workspace when brought to a workpiece; an erosion electrode having a distal end disposed within the workspace and moveable relative to the base along an axis; a ground electrode having a distal end disposed within the workspace and moveable relative to the base along the axis, wherein the ground electrode is configured to contact at least a portion of the workpiece; a dielectric inlet configured to deliver a dielectric fluid to between the erosion electrode and the workpiece; a dielectric outlet configured to evacuate the dielectric fluid; a ground tube in fluid connection with the workspace and slideably disposed within a valve block; and a valve ball selectively held against the valve block by a valve compression spring, wherein the ground electrode is configured to compress the valve compression spring, move the valve ball from the valve block, and introduce a flow of dielectric fluid to the workspace when the ground electrode is placed against the workpiece, wherein the hand-held EDM device is configured to be held by a user and brought to a workpiece.