Wearable devices have come a long way, but nothing on the market today compares to what we might see in the future. The University of Minnesota is offering a glimpse of that future, though, as researchers have achieved a first this week: using a 3D printer to print electronics directly on a human hand. Imagine the possibilities – printed electronics worn directly on the skin could be used as mobile chargers, or soldiers could print temporary sensors on their hands to detect chemical or biological agents.

Michael McAlpine

“We are excited about the potential of this new 3D-printing technology using a portable, lightweight printer costing less than $400,” said Michael McAlpine, the University of Minnesota Benjamin Mayhugh Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and an expert in 3D printed electronics. “We imagine that a soldier could pull this printer out of a backpack and print a chemical sensor or other electronics they need, directly on the skin. It would be like a ‘Swiss Army knife’ of the future with everything they need all in one portable 3D printing tool.”

To achieve the breakthrough, the researchers used a self-made 3D printer and an ink made from silver flakes that cure and conduct at room temperature, meaning that they can be printed and worn without burning the skin. To remove the electronics, the wearer can simply peel them off or wash them off with water.

To 3D print the electronics, temporary markers were placed on the skin to allow it to be scanned. The 3D printer then uses computer vision to adjust to small, involuntary movements of the hand.

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“No matter how hard anyone would try to stay still when using the printer on the skin, a person moves slightly and every hand is different,” said McAlpine. “This printer can track the hand using the markers and adjust in real-time to the movements and contours of the hand, so printing of the electronics keeps its circuit shape.”

Electronics aren’t the only things that can be 3D printed on the skin using the new technology – it can also be used to 3D print cells directly onto wounds. McAlpine and his team partnered with University of Minnesota Department of Pediatrics doctor and medical school Dean Jakub Tolar, an expert on treating rare skin diseases. The team successfully used the 3D printer and a bio-ink to print cells directly on the skin wound of a mouse. This could lead to advanced treatments for patients with skin diseases or injuries like burns.

“I’m fascinated by the idea of printing electronics or cells directly on the skin,” McAlpine said. “It is such a simple idea and has unlimited potential for important applications in the future.”

The research was published in an article entitled “3D Printed Functional and Biological Materials on Moving Freeform Surfaces,” which you can access here. Authors of the paper include Zhijie Zhu, Shuang-Zhuang Guo, Tessa Hirdler, Cindy Eide, Xiaoxiao Fan, Jakub Tolar, and Michael C. McAlpine.

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The April 13th Wall Street Journal front page article indicates that GE is analyzing hybrid transactions whereby it could be left with investments in multiple companies acquiring various GE business lines. It is well recognized that GE has made substantial investments in 3D printing in recent years approximating $2 billion after former CEO Jeff Immelt decided to go all in for 3D printing. Even after Immelt’s departure, his legacy can still be seen recently with GE boosting their stake in Arcam at the beginning of 2018.

The resulting impact on the 3D printing industry could be enormous since it is highly unusual for the fruits of a $2 billion technology investment to potentially become available to a new group of industrial companies. Since the businesses being sold are in many cases turnaround situations, it is in the best interest of both the purchaser and the seller to optimize the benefits of all transferred assets. The 3D printer industry can help itself by having its marketing resources provide comprehensive guidance to the buyers on how to optimize new and improving 3D printing technologies specific to their business.

In previous articles, we have covered the use of 3D printing for some of the products related to GE’s major business lines.

Integrating GE’s 3D printer technology and expertise with a new industrial business is going to present R&D tax credit opportunities for new and improved products and processes.

The Research & Development Tax Credit

Enacted in 1981, the now permanent Federal Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credit allows a credit that typically ranges from 4%-7% of eligible spending for new and improved products and processes. Qualified research must meet the following four criteria:

• Must be technological in nature
• Must be a component of the taxpayer’s business
• Must represent R&D in the experimental sense and generally includes all such costs related to the development or improvement of a product or process
• Must eliminate uncertainty through a process of experimentation that considers one or more alternatives

Since GE acquired a majority stake in Concept Laser GmbH in late 2016, the company has been expanding rapidly. Before the start of 2018, Concept Laser announced that they would be opening new offices that total over 130,000 square feet and that they would be open and operational sometime in 2019. The company announced that they plan to deliver 10,000 additive manufacturing machines from 2016-2026. Concept Laser has been at the forefront of development and innovation in the additive manufacturing space with patented technologies like LaserCUSING. LaserCUSING (CUSING is derived from the C in concept and the word Fusing) uses a high-precision laser to melt the metal filaments to create a product of the users’ choosing. Technologies like LaserCUSING and others allow Concept Laser to develop products for the dental, automotive, aerospace, medical, jewelry industries and more.

Acquisitions of innovative companies only create value for the parent company if they can harness their capabilities properly. As a multinational conglomerate, GE tries to create synergies among their subsidiaries and use each individual company to help one another grow. For example, Baker Hughes is the world’s largest oil field services company and in their 2017 10-k annual report, they disclosed the following: “…we and GE currently collaborate as per terms of the Channel Agreement (e.g. additive manufacturing; digital).”  This small quote highlights just how committed GE is to additive manufacturing and its uses throughout various industries.

While shared data and other synergies would help one of these companies grow and expand their capabilities, a prospective purchaser of one of these companies would have to be very careful in negotiation and take factors like proprietary software, confidential data, IoT and patented technologies into consideration.

Dr. Louis Pasteur taught us the adage “Fortune Favors the Prepared Mind.” Hopefully the 3D printing industry is preparing for what should be a major 3D printing expansion opportunity.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below. 

Charles Goulding and Ian Brown of R&D Tax Savers discuss the GE restructuring. 

Receiving dentures doesn’t mean that one’s dental problems are over – far from it. In fact, two thirds of denture wearers in the United States suffer from frequent fungal infections that cause inflammation, redness and swelling in the mouth. This condition is called denture-related stomatitis, and it’s responsible for a great deal of discomfort in sufferers. But a team of researchers at the University at Buffalo are working on a new treatment using 3D printing – a treatment that could prevent the condition from taking hold in the first place.

The researchers 3D printed dentures filled with microscopic capsules that periodically release Amphotericin B, an antifungal medication. A study documenting the work was published in a paper entitled “Functionalized prosthetic interfaces using 3D printing: Generating infection-neutralizing prosthesis in dentistry,” which you can access here. The study showed that the 3D printed, drug-filled dentures can reduce fungal growth and actually prevent infection, unlike current treatments like antiseptic mouthwashes, baking soda and microwave disinfection.

[Image: Douglas Levere]

“The major impact of this innovative 3-D printing system is its potential impact on saving cost and time,” said Praveen Arany, DDS, PhD, the study’s senior author and an assistant professor in the Department of Oral Biology in the UB School of Dental Medicine.

Not only does 3D printing allow for the incorporation of medicines, it allows for the rapid chair-side production of customized dentures, which can take days or weeks using conventional methods.

According to Dr. Arany, the research could be applied to other clinical therapies such as splints, casts, stents and prosthetics.

“The antifungal application could prove invaluable among those highly susceptible to infection, such as the elderly, hospitalized or disabled patients,” he said.

The researchers 3D printed the dentures with acrylamide, which is the current go-to material for dentures. The study looked to determine whether the 3D printed dentures were as strong as conventional ones, and if they could effectively release the medication. To test the dentures’ strength, the researchers used a flexural strength testing machine to bend them and test their breaking point. Conventional lab-fabricated dentures were used as a control. Although the 3D printed dentures’ strength was found to be 35 percent less than the conventional ones, they never broke.

The research team placed the antifungal medication into biodegradable, permeable microspheres, which protect the drug during the 3D printing process and allow the release of the medication as they gradually degrade.

The work involved the development of a new type of acrylamide designed to carry antifungal payloads, as well as a syringe pump system to combine the dental polymer and microspheres during the printing process. The dentures were tested with one, five and 10 layers of material to see if additional layers would allow them to hold more medication. The sets with five and 10 layers turned out to be impermeable and ineffective at releasing the medication, however, while the porous single layer was perfectly adequate for release.

In the future, the researchers plan to reinforce the strength of the dentures with glass fibers and carbon nanotubes.

Authors of the paper include Malvika Nagrath, Alexander Sikora, Jacob Graca, Jennifer L. Chinnici, Saeed Ur Rahman, Sharaschandra G. Reddy, Sasikumar Ponnusamy, Abhiram Maddi, and Praveen R. Arany.

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While the RAPID + TCT conference in Fort Worth, Texas ends later today, my time at this amazing event came to a close rather, well rapidly (please forgive me this lame joke). I left the show midday on Wednesday, my head spinning with all of the amazing things I’d seen and wonderful people I’d met.

The first thing I did at RAPID was attend Tuesday’s keynote, sponsored by Arconic, titled “Tomorrow’s Additive Manufacturing: An Aerospace & Defense OEM Perspective.” Debbie Holton, the Vice President of Events and Industry Strategy for SME, walked onto the stage first, which was flanked by large hexagon elements 3D printed by Titan Robotics.

“We’re privileged to work with today’s leaders,” Holton said to the crowd.

“Here’s the big question – what’s next?

“Manufacturers don’t always have the in-house knowledge or expertise to know if they can or should additively manufacture parts.”

With that, Holton called on Dr. Michael Grieves, a professor from Florida Tech and the university’s Executive Director for the Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Innovative Design, to provide an update on the ITEAM (Independent Technical Evaluation of Additive Manufacturing) initiative that SME launched at RAPID last year.

“You may have heard there’s no ‘I’ in team, but we’re putting the ‘I’ back in team,” Dr. Grieves told the crowd.

The expert system is a virtual repository for AM. The ITEAM consortium is completing an independent technical evaluation of AM – its mission is to create and operate an analysis platform to answer that all-important question when it comes to 3D printing – can I make it, and should I make it?

Users need to be confident when answering this question – if they’re not comfortable with the technology, they won’t use it.

According to Dr. Grieves, SME is in a “unique position to be a trusted third party for users” who are trying to determine if they should invest in 3D printing. ITEAM will be engaging feedback from users’ experience, in order to convince executives to make the investment in this technology.

“Designing new parts that we couldn’t design before that will be lighter, have less parts, and have capabilities that we couldn’t with subtractive capabilities will drive this area much farther,” Dr. Grieves explained.

The ITEAM platform that will enable these evaluations is called RAMP, or RAPID Additive Manufacturing Platform. RAMP is a layered architecture that will help create a central repository for 3D printers and their capabilities.

SME released the ITEAM repository inquiry at RAPID this week. Now, below the button on the ITEAM page that says “Join Consortium,” there is a new button that lets you try the beta release of the new tool. All you need to do is click, enter your criteria, and SME will send you back a list of 3D printers that meet your specific qualifications.

Next to take the RAPID stage were Shawn Sullivan and Lynn Karabin, technologists from Arconic who were excited to share the company’s new proprietary aluminum alloys for 3D printing.

“3D printing is on the rise and our customers want the technology,” said Sullivan.

In 2016, the company split from Alcoa into a separate entity and opened a $60 million 3D printing metal powder production facility in Pittsburgh. Arconic knows that 3D printing is still very “complex,” but definitely sees “great potential” for aluminum materials as its customers are looking for “higher performance.”

“When we think about materials largely today the materials haven’t been developed for 3D printing,” explained Sullivan.

“Today we are reinventing the aluminum industry for additive manufacturing.”

Now, Arconic is bringing enhanced properties to its customers for the first time with its new thermally stable aluminum alloy offerings for AM: Arconic AI-ET255 and Arconic AI-ET389. The company developed its own 3D printable version of 6061, and these new materials balance printability, performance, and cost, so that Arconic customers can, according to Karabin, “choose the alloy that best meets their needs.”

Arconic’s new aluminum alloys have 85% higher strength at room temperature than aluminum silicone magnesium, and they can be 3D printed at 30% faster speeds as well. With twice the strength of conventional high temperature aluminum alloys, Arconic’s new AI-ET255 and AI-ET389 compositions were designed to make conventional alloys that are typically difficult to 3D print actually work in the AM industry.

Working with EOS through its customer pilot program, which the new proprietary aluminum alloys are a part of, Arconic also developed new print recipes for the materials. Karabin also said that the company has worked with Lockheed Martin to develop 3D printed metal parts for NASA’s Orion spacecraft, which brings us to the introduction of that morning’s keynote speaker.

Michael D. Packer, a member of the SME Board of Directors, is the Director of Manufacturing, Advanced Production Programs for Skunk Works, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics. Lockheed Martin has employed 3D printing in numerous applications, and with over four decades of experience in operations and production engineering, Packer had a lot to say regarding use of the technology in the aerospace and defense industry.

“Our customer is buying a weapon system,” Packer said regarding the F-35 fighter aircraft, which was built with the help of EBDM (electron beam direct manufacturing) technology.

“Additive manufacturing was a tremendous enabler for bringing this to reality.”

Packer explained that after nearly 10 years of hard work, the F-35A, F-35B, and F-35C have completed flight testing and are now qualified for initial operational capability. Roughly 4,000 of the 5,000 tools on the F-35 were 3D printed with the help of partners like Stratasys and MakerBot, which helped reduce overall costs. Over 100 production parts on the Orion were 3D printed as well, and the company has also 3D printed “hundreds and hundreds of support equipment.”

But Packer believes that over the next five years, nearly 12,000 of these tools will be additively manufactured, mostly with polymers, as these materials have been proven for temporary tooling. For now, the aerospace industry needs to focus on scaling up on EBDM, which offers high deposition rates, so companies can eliminate unnecessary parts when 3D printing larger structures; potential applications for F-35 under consideration include the root rib and several spars.

“Primary structures is the holy grail,” Packer explained.

“There are a lot of challenges and a lot of work ahead of us to go and achieve that.”

Packer said that additive manufacturing aligns strongly with future capabilities, as it successfully creates solutions that were previously not achievable.

But for now, implementation of EBDM is on hold pending several risk reduction activities, such as improving the understanding of the process and leveraging concepts such as generative design.

“Now you have an ability to grow that part based on stiffness, fatigue, thermal properties…all of that can be put into the design rules and you only add what you need, as opposed to machining away all you don’t need.

“Qualification is the challenge ahead of us. ITEAM is going to lead us down the patch,” Packer said, bringing things full circle onstage.

Lockheed Martin continues its heavy investment in additive manufacturing, with possible applications like production fixtures, support equipment, and vehicles for ground, aerospace, and underwater being looked into. Packer said that a digital thread is currently “in action on the shop floor,” so techs can download the latest 3D CAD models and project them in order to keep their hands free, and that “non-contact metrology is game-changing.”

However, he also noted that more technology maturation was still required.

Packer said, “If the parts are designed from the onset from an additive leverage standpoint, that will reduce the cycle time of bringing those ideas to reality.”

When asked during the question and answer session at the end what materials he recommended for aerospace designs, Packer said that while there are still conventional advancements being completed in polymers for tools, they are continuing to see growth in metallics, like aluminum, Inconel, and titanium, in secondary and tertiary structures. Another person asked if Lockheed Martin was looking into 4D printing, to which Packer replied, “Good question, good idea. We will now!”

“It continues to accelerate the speed at which we can turn ideas into reality,” Packer said when asked what the future holds for 3D printing at Lockheed Martin.

“It allows us to accelerate supporting the warfighters in the field with either damage from battle or just damage to pieces parts and some weapons systems that we can quickly respond and replace on-site.”

Keep watching 3DPrint.com for more news from the RAPID + TCT show, which ends today in Texas.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below. 

[Images: Sarah Saunders for 3DPrint.com]

It would be hard to overestimate the importance of helping young people to feel comfortable navigating the world of 3D technology. While not every aspect of life will be saturated with 3D fabrication, the ability to understand the technology is a vital part of operating in the 21st century global economy. As such, a number of companies have developed educational systems to help students become fluent with the programs and machines required for operating 3D manufacturing tools. One of the newest releases in this arena comes from the innovative startup Skriware, based in Poland, that has exploded onto the scene with their unique approach to democratizing 3D printing. Their latest foray into expanding the number of people who can interact with these advanced manufacturing tools comes in the form of an educational program they have developed for young people called Destination: Mars, and we sat down for an interview with Karol Górnowicz, CEO of Skriware, for an interview to learn more about their offering.

Can you tell me a little bit about your own background?

“Let me start off with the statement that education has always been close to me. I was an active student leader acting as the President of the Global CEMS Student Board, working on curricula improvement projects and fostering cooperation between alumni and corporate partners. I studied Economics and Finance at the Warsaw School of Economics and CEMS International Management at the Rotterdam School of Management. I am also acting as the Board Member of CEMS Alumni Association Poland. Prior to joining Skriware, I worked as an Associate at The Boston Consulting Group and in the M&A Office of PZU.

My mother is a teacher and her day-to-day concerns had a significant impact on my life. She always wanted me to become the Minister of Education and improve our national system of education. I guess this really made me think about the need of immediate change that needs to take place in order for teachers to be more productive and for students to engage in learning and be more proactive.’

What is the story of how the company Skriware came to be?

“The idea behind Skriware was to make 3D printing as easy to use as possible. That’s why nearly two years ago we created and launched our first 3D printer on Kickstarter. It was an intuitive device, providing one-click printing user experience. The next step after the successful crowdfunding campaign was to create a set of tools that would easily allow people to gain and develop skills related to 3D printing.

We truly believe that 3D printing is one of the key future technologies. That’s why we started working on a solution that will help the future generation adopt this technology. But we didn’t want to limit it to 3D printing just for the sake of it. Our team consists of people with variety of backgrounds, skills and interests that are into 3D printing for completely different reasons. We wanted to share our passion for learning by making. That’s why holistic STEAM education was the natural choice for us, especially since 3D printing technology itself is a natural choice for such an interdisciplinary learning.”

What do you see as the biggest hurdle to making young people feel fluent in and comfortable with 3D technologies?

“I strongly believe that 3D printing may change many areas of our lives. Unfortunately, most of the solutions in this field are aimed at professionals and require specialized knowledge to use. We decided to take a different approach and created our first 3D printer to be as easy to use as possible. To this end, we built a whole ecosystem consisting of  3D printers, a library with 3D-printable objects, a 3D model creator and an e-learning platform. By teaching programming, design, artistic and project approaches, 3D modeling and robotics, we want to prove that the STEAM interdisciplinary approach to learning can not only be a great fun but also a great investment in the future.”

The Destination: Mars course that is being introduced sounds interesting; what types of activities will students engage in when they participate in the course?

“‘Destination: Mars’ sends students on a mission on the surface of the Red Planet. During a 15 hours course they learn the basics of robotics and programming, as well as various scientific trivia through fun and engaging scenarios. What distinguishes us from other STEAM solutions is a programmable robot – Skribot, that helps children develop new skills, and the ability to use our 3D printers and tools to design and print new elements, which encourages them to modify their robots and add new functions. Skribot gains new functions along with the development of the child’s skills, who can program him in one of two ways. Beginners can use block coding in the dedicated app, whereas, more advanced users can use the C ++ programming language on the computer.”

Can you give me some more detail about the company’s integrated educational ecosystem?

“At this moment, the ecosystem consists of 3D printers, a STEAM education platform, 3D models library, Skribots and a dedicated mobile app. We encourage hands-on learning by doing, integrating coding tasks with creative problem solving, including knowledge of engineering, electronics, 3D design. All served in play & learn-like environment. For example, some of the students who participate in our Mars mission can choose to try their hands at 3D modelling, others may choose to go further into robotics or engineering. Whatever they choose we want them to know that other possibilities are open and no one is stopping them from exploring. The name of the game is to inspire passion for learning and build their confidence.”

Who is the market for this course? Is it meant to be packaged for schools or after school programs? Or is it also available for private individuals who want their children to engage with this kind of technology?

“Our platform is now available for institutional clients like schools. Skriware’s ecosystem is tested by young students from all around the world. Our partners include Kids Code Fun, CoderDojo, IT for SHE and Perspektywy Foundation, not to mention several public and private schools running pilot semesters in Poland, Middle East and in Asia. Prior to the launch of the ‘Destination: Mars’, we have reviewed it with industry experts from Ivy League institutions like Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Dartmouth College. What’s more, also our space-related content was consulted with the scientists from the Astro Center at Texas A&M University. We are aiming to make ‘Destination: Mars’ available for individual customers in the coming several months. Our goal is to create a home and school- suited ecosystem for students aged 9-16.”

Why does Skriware believe it is important for children to be engaged in educational initiatives such as Destination: Mars?

“In Skriware we believe children will acquire knowledge more easily if issues are presented in a way that attracts their attention. ‘Destination: Mars’ and, in general, STEAM education offers exactly that. The idea is to learn in a more comprehensive manner by using the acquired skills to solve real problems. Art and creativity are of key importance here, as they allow the use of the technical skills in practice – from the design of websites and interfaces, through advertising, to the futures of robotics, AI, and 3D modeling.

In addition to the obvious competencies focusing on engineering, mathematics, and applied sciences, students need to think logically and creatively, solve problems or work in a group. Thanks to this comprehensive approach, children educated in a STEAM trend gain key resources for their future careers.”

Why has the Skriware decided to enter the US market and what does it hope to offer that might be different than what is already available to customers in the US?

“Skriware operates globally and has just entered the US market. At this moment, our biggest orders come from Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and South-East Asia. We are trying to reach people from all around the world, people with different backgrounds and from different cultures. But in my opinion, quality education should have no borders. The US market is particularly interesting due to a long history of STEM education and the presence of top universities, which are on the forefront of education innovation.”

What is in the works next for Skriware?

“We continuously develop our platform and prepare new educational products. Soon, new courses will be added. ‘Destination: Mars’ is just the beginning of our adventure. Expect more of the Red Planet of course but we have a variety of interactive courses and robots under development in cooperation with our education partners.

STEAM is already one of the most promising trends in the education and we believe it will develop even more with the progress of new technologies. There is a reason why so many educators are excited about it. I’m not saying that every child should become a scientist, engineer or designer. But it’s extremely important that they grow up knowing they can and how to use their abilities. Thinking about our children’s future, we must remember that how we work is currently changing very fast. Many future professions don’t even exist yet, but we already know that they will require a combination of different skills. The future world will be built by our children so we should help them by creating the best conditions to learn teamwork and understanding of diversified skills necessary for effective cooperation regardless of the profession they will decided to choose.

Thanks to STEAM, we can be sure that students will be prepared to face future. Society that is well-educated and ready for the challenges of the modern world gives hope for a better future. Sky is not the limit – we should aim at conquering space and we can only achieve that with the right mix in a team skill.”

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When Charlotte Massey was born, she had a whole list of problems, including a partially formed spine with a missing thoracic vertebrae. She had only three of the twelve ribs that support the left lung, which, as a result, never developed to its full size. Her heart was incorrectly positioned on the right side of her chest, and she had one central kidney and an intestinal obstruction. Finally, she had a large skin-covered meningocele, where the membranes that cover the spine and part of the spinal cord protrude through a defect in the vertebral column.

That was obviously a lot for Charlotte’s parents to cope with, but they had time to prepare before she was born, thanks to 3D printing. Ultrasounds and a fetal MRI gave Scott and Elizabeth Massey some idea of what they could expect, but it wasn’t until the Vanderbilt Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences’ 3-D Printing Center 3D printed a model of Charlotte’s anatomy, focusing on her spine, ribs and lungs, that they began to understand.

“When we had a care conference with the model we were able to get a better understanding and an actual visual of what the ribs look like, especially on the right side where she has them and where they are absent on the left side,” said Scott. “We could hold it and see that this is what our daughter’s anatomy looks like.”

“To hear her ribs are fused together: well what does that mean?” added Elizabeth. “[The model] helps to give a clearer picture of her story. We were able to ask questions we might not have considered.”

Sumit Pruthi, MD, and Steven Lewis oversee the 3-D Printing Center

The 3-D Printing Center was recently opened, located on the first floor of the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. It has three 3D printers that can create models anywhere from the width of a human hair to the length of a human leg. A 3D scanner and Materialise Mimics Innovation Suite are also used. Since January, the center has produced more than 56 models for different purposes.

“One of the goals at Vanderbilt is innovation, and this technology certainly is in keeping with that mission. 3-D printing is innovative and part of the future of medicine,” said Center Director Sumit Pruthi, MD, Associate Professor of Radiology and Pediatrics and Chief of Pediatric Neuroradiology. “The models can be used for patient education, medical student and resident education/training, surgical planning and simulation. If a person has a tumor with complex surgical anatomy, we can make a 3-D tumor model which the surgeon can hold in his/her hand, in order to optimize surgical planning. Models can also be used to practice complex steps in operations before they are performed.”

3D printed ultrasounds have been used to provide visually impaired parents with an image of their unborn baby, as well as created for parents who just want a three-dimensional keepsake. In Charlotte’s case, however, 3D printing her anatomy before her birth may have been lifesaving. Not only did the model help her parents understand what was happening, it helped her doctors prepare for how they would treat her once she was born. Four days after Charlotte was born via cesarean section, Jay Wellons, MD, chief of Pediatric Neurosurgery, was able to successfully repair her meningocele. Shortly after that, the baby’s pediatric surgeon, Harold Lovvon III, MD, performed two abdominal procedures after examining the 3D printed model.

“It really is helpful to hold the model in one’s hand to look at what the anatomy and malformations are before actually operating on a patient,” said Dr. Lovvorn, Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Pediatric Surgery. “In Charlotte’s case, it was also an excellent teaching tool for the family — and really for everybody on her care team. The model solidified our thinking.”

Charlotte’s care team did look into the option of giving her prosthetic ribs, but found it unlikely as they didn’t have a portion of a vertebral column to attach them to. The model did allow them to discuss care options for treating Charlotte’s severe scoliosis as she grows, however.

“The more information we have as care providers and the more precise that information is, not only can we perform better operations and provide better care, but we can also counsel a family better and they can have a better appreciation of what their baby or child is up against,” said Dr. Lovvorn.

Models at the 3-D Printing Center can be created from one of four different medical and dental materials with a range of colors and textures, which Dr. Pruthi hopes to expand. Anyone at Vanderbilt can request 3D printed models via a link on eStar.

Charlotte is now four months old and will go home when she gets a little bit bigger. She has many difficulties ahead of her, but because of the 3D printed model her doctors examined before she was born, some of her problems were able to be quickly relieved. And that 3D printed model will continue to help her throughout her life; her parents have a copy that they will show to the caregivers who take care of her as she gets older.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below. 

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/ Images: Anne Rayner]

3D printing has made fantastic strides in the automotive industry, but not always in the most conventional of ways. While the technology has found its place at BMW, Ford, and even Rolls Royce, you never know where else 3D printed parts will turn up. From production of 3D printed cars from Local Motors to the Olli Bus—not to mention a variety of DIY racecars and motorcycle parts—automotive enthusiasts on every level are able to enjoy the benefits of 3D printing today.

Now, Silicon Valley’s Proterra is on a mission to transform global mass transportation issues, using 3D printing manufacturing techniques from Carbon. Already famous for their innovation with electric buses, Proterra continues to play a major role in creating commercial vehicles that leave as little environmental footprint as possible. With 3D printed parts for their buses, manufacturing costs are eliminated by a staggering 90-95 percent—and can be installed in the buses within two weeks (rather than the typical three months for conventional parts manufactured through injection molding).

This new partnership in production was the subject of a recent case study by Carbon, highlighting the use of their Digital Light Synthesis technology. While offering a more positive environmental impact played a big role in exploring 3D printing, Proterra was able to enjoy all the benefits—from efficiency and affordability, to the ability to make strong yet lightweight parts.

Proterra works with customers varying in order volumes. One may order two vehicles, while another orders 25. Each bus has around 4,000 parts, most of which have historically been injection molded.

“The economic model of the commonly-used injection-molding (IM) manufacturing method breaks down when the quantity of end-production parts needed is small. The typical injection-mold development and tooling cost can be anywhere between $25,000 and $50,000 for low-to-medium complexity small parts and between $100,000 and $400,000 for more complex larger parts. For example, if one customer orders only 10 buses, the estimated cost for a medium-complexity, injection-molded part unique to that customer can be as high as $5,000 (=$50,000/10) each. This is one of the most critical challenges for organizations everywhere that require high-quality, low-volume production parts,” stated Carbon in their case study.

Proterra used M Series 3D printers to create two different types of parts, using rigid polyurethane (RPU): the first is a handle designed with ergonomics and dual purpose in mind, operating as both a door switch handle and a tool for gaining entry to access panels. The second part is a custom dash plate (again, made from RPU) featuring the Proterra logo.

“The final Carbon part looked better than any injection-molded part I have previously seen for comparable dash plates,” said Proterra engineer Trey Underwood.

Along with creating improved, high performance parts, Proterra was able to eliminate the need for both tool makers and materials suppliers. Digital Light Synthesis™ technology allows for a ‘single point of ownership,’ preventing recurring problems with parts and delays overall.

“3D Manufacturing with Carbon overcomes the injection-molding tooling requirements when volumes are low,” said Joshua Stewart, Director of Customer Engineering at Proterra. “At Proterra, there are no barriers to utilizing 3D manufactured parts on our vehicles if the quality and economics meet our requirements. Carbon’s technology has exceeded these requirements.”

Read more on the case study regarding Proterra and Carbon’s work here.

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