2024-04-17 19:33:19
The 3D printed pressure vessel from MX3D, the 3D Chromatic Collection by Anouk Wipprecht and Acci, a 3D printed instrument for eye surgery, are this year’s Dutch entries nominated for the 3D Pioneers Challenge 2024. Materialize has been nominated from Belgium.
The 25-member international jury of 3D Pioneers Challenge has selected 43 finalists who will present their innovative applications and printing technology during 3D RapidTech in Erfurt in mid-May. This year, for the first time, the AM fair will take place with support from the VDMA AM working group. The theme of the competition, which focuses on applications, was Responsible Production this year. Sustainable materials and recycled processes were two key words.
Surgical instrument without assembly
Kirsten Lussenburg from TU Delft (Biomechanical Engineering) is one of the 43 finalists. At the university, she is involved in research into 3D printing of medical instruments that are designed in such a way that assembly is unnecessary or is reduced to a minimum. She will receive her PhD at the end of April on the topic of Non-assembly additive manufacturing of Medical devices. She submitted Acci. Acci is a steerable illumination instrument for eye surgery, with a tip diameter of 0.75 mm, 3D printed in a single step. The production of the surgical instrument therefore requires no further assembly.
The world’s first eye transplant
Materialize’s nomination also relates to a 3D printing application in the medical sector. The Belgian company owes the nomination to the role it played in the world’s first transplant of a whole eye. This groundbreaking surgery took place last May at NYU Langone Health Hospital in New York. It also included a partial face transplant. Materialize developed a virtual preoperative 3D plan of the operation and 3D printed various medical instruments tailored to the donor and patient. This allowed the surgeons to perform the operation faster and more accurately.
Printing reinforced pressure vessel
The MX3D team has been nominated for the AM Prize with the 3D printed reinforced pressure vessel, produced on the M1 Metal of the Amsterdam manufacturer of WAAM solutions. MX3D printed a 52 kg aluminum alloy reinforced pressure vessel for industrial purposes, proving that complex components can be 3D printed.
New collection Anouk Wipprecht
The fourth nomination from the Benelux is for a new project by Anoud Wipprecht, together with Cora Leibig. This is the Chromatic Dress from the collection of the same name. The motion-responsive LED dresses embedded via elastomeric 3D printing process using ChromaFlow 70 with Chromatic 3D Materials.
3D printing technology nominated
The other nominations include many applications, but also some interesting 3D printing technological innovations. For example, Bosch Industrial Additive Manufacturing has been nominated with the melting unit in the new pellet printer it has developed. What is special is that you can print with injection molding materials. The Ostschweizer Fachhochschule has been nominated with a new, 5-axis 3D printer, the IWK 5X. The fourth and fifth axes are integrated into the 3D printer using a rotating table such as in CNC machines. The German micro factory 3D Solutions has developed a resin printer in which all process steps are integrated into the machine. Finally, ETH Zurich has been nominated with the Prōtóplasto, an ultra-light installation for the extrusion of large hollow polymer granules, making unprecedented construction speeds possible.
You can view all nominated entries during 3D RapidTech in Erfurt, from May 14-16. The winners will also be announced then. The nominations can be found here. The winners of this international competition for innovative applications of 3D printing or new technology will be announced on May 15 in the afternoon.
Photos: 3D Pioneers Challenge
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