News and Insights of 3D Printing and Manufacturing
There is no question that 3D printing has increased the possibilities of design in a big way, opening the doors for more innovative and original products. Here at 3dpbm, it’s not only the innovative design projects that catch our eye—as sometimes it’s the funnest, most tongue-in-cheek ones that showcase 3D printing’s potential.
It’s not just cutting edge startups helping NASA achieve its 3D printing in space goals; students and universities are also playing an important role. At South Dakota State University (SDState), a team of mechanical engineering students have been developing new 3D printing materials for use aboard the International Space Station.
As additive manufacturing gradually improves its viability as a manufacturing process, its role as a prototyping technology can sometimes be overlooked or underemphasized. Rather than seeing its prototyping potential as a limitation, however, there are some who are looking to shine a spotlight onto this particular application of 3D printing.
With Mars nearer to us than it’s been in over a decade, it’s no wonder that space exploration and Mars missions have felt more palpable than ever. But it’s not only because the red planet could be seen by the naked eye this past week, it’s also because space organization NASA has been making some important inroads.
Stryker’s Spine division today announced the publication of a pre-clinical animal study comparing the performance of spinal implants made from a variety of materials, which illustrated the bone ingrowth and biological fixation capabilities of its 3D-printed Tritanium cages. The study, titled “Bony Ingrowth Potential of 3D Printed Porous Titanium Alloy: A Direct Comparison of Interbody Cage Materials in an In Vivo Ovine Lumbar Fusion Model,” was published in the July issue of The Spine Journal.
Engineers from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have successfully developed an artificial neural network using 3D printing. The physical device is reportedly capable of analyzing large amounts of data and identifying objects at the speed of light and could have important applications in autonomous vehicles and more.
Beginning in 2014, the NASA 3D-Printed Habitat Competition has been challenging teams from around the world to propose effective solutions for colonizing the red planet through robotic building systems (which are now generally understood to be different types of 3D printers). After two stages where NASA awarded a total of over $1 million to competitors, the final prize was awarded to the top 5 projects.
In 2014, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) awarded Ohio-based Fabrisonic seed funding to develop its hybrid Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing (UAM) process for improved metal heat exchangers. With continued support from JPL over the years and with in depth development and testing, Fabrisonic has successfully developed pumped fluid loop heat exchangers which are lighter, more efficient and faster to produce than traditional epoxy tube heat exchangers.
Swiss 3D printer manufacturer Sintratec signed L.corporation as a distributor for South Korea. Sintratec’s compact SLS 3D printers are now being sold in the world’s 8th largest market for 3D printing.
With many exciting developments in the intersecting industries of additive manufacturing and space exploration this past week, we were hardly surprised to hear that Made In Space, a pioneer of 3D printing in space, also had some news. The company, responsible for sending the first 3D printer (the AMF system) into space in 2016, is now developing power systems for small satellites which will provide them with large satellite power and capability.