Patent ID: 7799371

Claim:
A method for extruding/dispensing first and second materials to form a solid structure having a predetermined cross section, the method comprising: feeding said first material into a first channel such that the first material forms a first flow in the first channel, feeding said second material into one or more second channels residing on at least one side of the first channel such that the second material forms at least one second flow in the one or more second channels; merging the first flow of the first material and the at least one second flow of the second material into a single volume region such that the first and second flows combine to form a single flow in which the second material contacts the first material without substantial mixing; co-extruding the single flow from the single volume region through an orifice; applying the single flow co-extruded from the orifice onto a surface of a substrate to produce at least one composite structure in which the second material is disposed horizontally adjacent to the first material such that both the first material and the second material are in direct contact with the surface of the substrate; and post-processing the dispensed composite structure such that the first material forms said solid extruded structure having said predetermined cross section.