3D printing in adult and pediatric neurosurgery: the present and the future

Purpose Soft robotics is currently a rapidly growing new field of robotics whereby the robots are fundamentally soft and elastically deformable. Fabrication of soft robots is currently challenging and highly time- and labor-intensive. Recent advancements in three-dimensional (3D) printing of soft materials and multi-materials have become the key to enable direct manufacturing of soft robots with sophisticated designs and functions. Hence, this paper aims to review the current 3D printing processes and materials for soft robotics applications, as well as the potentials of 3D printing technologies on 3D printed soft robotics. Design/methodology/approach The paper reviews the polymer 3D printing techniques and materials that have been used for the development of soft robotics. Current challenges to adopting 3D printing for soft robotics are also discussed. Next, the potentials of 3D printing technologies and the future outlooks of 3D printed soft robotics are presented. Findings This paper reviews five different 3D printing techniques and commonly used materials. The advantages and disadvantages of each technique for the soft robotic application are evaluated. The typical designs and geometries used by each technique are also summarized. There is an increasing trend of printing shape memory polymers, as well as multiple materials simultaneously using direct ink writing and material jetting techniques to produce robotics with varying stiffness values that range from intrinsically soft and highly compliant to rigid polymers. Although the recent work is done is still limited to experimentation and prototyping of 3D printed soft robotics, additive manufacturing could ultimately be used for the end-use and production of soft robotics. Originality/value The paper provides the current trend of how 3D printing techniques and materials are used particularly in the soft robotics application. The potentials of 3D printing technology on the soft robotic applications and the future outlooks of 3D printed soft robotics are also presented.

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Conclusion – The future of printcrime: intellectual property, innovation law, and 3D printing

3D Printing and Beyond ◽

10.4337/9781786434050.00026 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 361-394

Author(s):

Dinusha Mendis

Keyword(s):

Intellectual Property ◽

3D Printing ◽

The Future

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The future of 3D printing of human tissues is taking shape

Nature Reviews Rheumatology ◽

10.1038/nrrheum.2016.29 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 191-191 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Liesbet Lieben

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Human Tissues ◽

The Future

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Methodology of technological evolution for three-dimensional printing

Industrial Management & Data Systems ◽

10.1108/imds-05-2015-0206 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 116 (1) ◽

pp. 122-146 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Sangsung Park ◽

Juhwan Kim ◽

Hongchul Lee ◽

Dongsik Jang ◽

Sunghae Jun

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Quantitative Methods ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Principal Component ◽

Technological Evolution ◽

Time Series Regression ◽

Printing Technology ◽

Content Type ◽

3D Printing Technology ◽

The Future

Purpose – An increasing amount of attention is being paid to three-dimensional (3D) printing technology. The technology itself is based on diverse technologies such as laser beams and materials. Hence, 3D printing technology is a converging technology that produces 3D objects using a 3D printer. To become technologically competitive, many companies and nations are developing technologies for 3D printing. So to know its technological evolution is meaningful for developing 3D printing in the future. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – To get technological competitiveness of 3D printing, the authors should know the most important and essential technology for 3D printing. An understanding of the technological evolution of 3D printing is needed to forecast its future technologies and build the R & D planning needed for 3D printing. In this paper, the authors propose a methodology to analyze the technological evolution of 3D printing. The authors analyze entire patent documents related to 3D printing to construct a technological evolution model. The authors use the statistical methods such as time series regression, association analysis based on graph theory, and principal component analysis for patent analysis of 3D printing technology. Findings – Using the proposed methodology, the authors show the technological analysis results of 3D printing and predict its future aspects. Though many and diverse technologies are developed and involved in 3D printing, the authors know only a few technologies take lead the technological evolution of 3D printing. In this paper, the authors find this evolution of technology management for 3D printing. Practical implications – If not all, most people would agree that 3D printing technology is one of the leading technologies to improve the quality of life. So, many companies have developed a number of technologies if they were related to 3D printing. But, most of them have not been considered practical. These were not effective research and development for 3D printing technology. In the study, the authors serve a methodology to select the specific technologies for practical used of 3D printing. Originality/value – Diverse predictions for 3D printing technology have been introduced in many academic and industrial fields. Most of them were made by subjective approaches depended on the knowledge and experience of the experts concerning 3D printing technology. So, they could be fluctuated according to the congregated expert groups, and be unstable for efficient R & D planning. To solve this problem, the authors study on more objective approach to predict the future state of 3D printing by analyzing the patent data of the developed results so far achieved. The contribution of this research is to take a new departure for understanding 3D printing technology using objective and quantitative methods.

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Printing the Future

10.37419/jpl.v4.i1.2 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 15-24

Author(s):

Timothy R. Holbrook

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Patent System ◽

Alma Mater ◽

Strong Affinity ◽

The Future ◽

Human Ear

What I am going to talk about today is sort of an aggregation of a lot of things I have already published, or am thinking about, that relates to how 3D printing challenges our patent system and how the patent system could respond doctrinally now and, in other ways, that we could theorize we could do. We should be frightened about some of those steps, however. I will then discuss some of the consequences that flow from these arguments. And so, I will skip through some of the earlier slides as to 3D printing. I think people know what that is. And there are obviously interesting things that can be printed. Speaking of fashion, I like this slide because, on one season of Project Runway, the designer using 3D printing was actually an N.C. State alum and an N.C. State professor, my alma mater. So I had a particularly strong affinity for that one. Of course, there are other challenging things like printing a human ear, and of course, the 3D printing of guns, and what that does for the regulation of guns.

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