Researchers at Harvard University have announced 3D-printer that can be used as consumables as thermoplastic and highly conductive silver ink that can be printed on it various electronic devices.
Printer sales company will Voxel8, which was founded by Jennifer Lewis, a professor of the Institute Wyss School of Biologically Inspired Engineering, founded at Harvard University.
The company employs Voxel8 mechanical engineers, software developers and experts in materials. All of them graduated from Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The basis of the management team are graduates of the Harvard Business School.
Voxel8 maintains partnerships with Autodesk and uses computer-aided design system for creating electronic circuits, which are then printed on 3D-printer.
Voxel8 – is not the first company that manufactures printed circuit boards for 3D-printer. Last year a group of graduate students at Stanford University designed a special prefix for 3D-printer by which the board placed against the die, which allows you to quickly create working electronic prototypes.
Head of 3D-printers, developed by Stanford University and dubbed Rabbit Proto, designed for different versions of printer RepRap.
3D-Voxel8 printer can print special inks which dry at room temperature, while maintaining electrical conductivity.
After applying a layer of thermoplastic material on which is disposed an electronic circuit, the machine stops printing processor for installation. After the resumption of the processor is integrated into the electronic circuit.
Pre-orders for the developer kit accepted starting January 6. The retail price of the printer will be 9 thousand. USD.
Printer to print electronic circuits equipped with two heads – Thermoplastic and electrically conductive ink. In Development Kit includes a desktop 3D-printer for printing electronic circuits, conductive ink cartridges, a filament of thermoplastic PLA, as well as software for modeling and support.
Ultimately, Voxel8 plan to bring to market a wide range of functional materials and advanced platform for print, allow you to customize the working components.
Voxel8 already received funding from two venture capital funds and won the technological competition MassChallenge, which brought her another 50 thousand. Dollars.
Read another very interesting article about alternative energy of the Sun, water and air.
