Patent ID: 6954127

Claim:
An electromagnet assembly for supplying a region of concentrated electromagnetic flux to a work piece surface, the assembly comprising: a flat strip of an electrically conductive metal, the strip having a first and a second opposite planar surfaces at least one of which is covered by a dielectric material, the strip having first and second end portions, the strip being wound in a coil including at least one first loop and one second loop and disposing the second opposite planar surface in the first loop substantially adjacent the first opposite planar surface in the second loop to form a keel portion, the coil being disposed about an axis of symmetry that is approximately perpendicular to the surface and extends through the keel portion so that an electromagnetic flux generated by the assembly is concentrated at approximately a midpoint on the axis of symmetry, wherein at least one of the first loop and the second loop includes a first helix having a first end and a second end, a handedness, and a substantially oval cross-section, the cross-section having a major axis, the helix being bent at an angle along a line in a plane of the cross-section parallel to and offset from the major axis resulting in a first planar surface including the major axis and a second planar surface having an outer edge opposite the line parallel to and offset from the major axis; and first and second electrical terminals connected at the first and second end portions, respectively.