In a groundbreaking new study, researchers from the University of Minnesota used a cheap and customized XNUMXD printer to print, for the first time ever, electronic components on a human hand. The technology could be used by soldiers on the battlefield to temporarily print sensors on their bodies in order to detect chemical or biological substances or even solar cells that could charge vital electronic devices
[Translation by Dr. Nachmani Moshe]
![One of the innovative features of the XNUMXD printing method on the skin is the printer's ability to use computer vision to track and adapt to the body's movements in real time University of Minnesota] McAlpine [Courtesy: Group](https://www.hayadan.org.il/images/content3/2018/04/3d_printing_on_hand_original_648x432_0-500x333.jpg)
In a groundbreaking new study, researchers from the University of Minnesota used a cheap and customized XNUMXD printer to print, for the first time ever, electronic components on a human hand. The technology could be used by soldiers on the battlefield to temporarily print sensors on their bodies in order to detect chemical or biological substances or even solar cells that could charge vital electronic devices.
The researchers were also able to print biological cells on the damaged skin of mice. The method could lead to the development of innovative medical treatments to heal wounds and direct printing of skin implants to treat skin diseases. The research has long been published in the scientific journal Advanced Materials.
"We are excited about the potential of a new 400D printing technology that uses a lightweight, portable printer that costs less than $XNUMX," said the lead researcher from the University of Minnesota. "We are able to imagine a soldier who can take this printer out of his backpack and comfortably print a sensor or other electronic device he needs, directly on his skin. "It will be a kind of 'Swiss army knife' of the future that will include everything the soldier needs in a single, portable tool of the type of a XNUMXD printer."
One of the ideas of the innovative XNUMXD printing method is that the printer can adapt to tiny movements of the body during printing. Temporary markers are fixed on the skin and then the skin is scanned. The printer uses computer vision to adjust the movements in real time. "No matter how much a person tries not to move during the activity of the printer on the body, he will still move slightly and each hand will be different from the other," says the lead researcher. "This printer can follow the hand with the help of the markers and adjust in real time the movements and contours of the hand, so that the printing of the electronic component remains stable."
Another unique feature of this 100D printing method lies in the fact that it uses a special iodine made of silver particles that can conduct electricity at room temperature. This feature differs from other iodine types of existing XNUMXD printers that require curing at relatively high temperatures of close to XNUMX degrees Celsius, a temperature that will cause hand and body burns.
In order to remove the electronic components printed on the skin, the person can simply peel the component with a tweezer or wash it out with water. In addition to electronic components, the new XNUMXD printing method paves the way for the development of many other applications, including cell printing and skin grafts for people suffering from skin diseases. The research team was able to use bio-ink to print cells onto the damaged skin of a mouse, a method that could help treat people with burns and skin diseases. "I am intrigued by the idea of printing electronic components or cells directly onto human skin," says the lead researcher. "This is such a simple idea and it has inexhaustible potential for the future development of important applications."
One of the innovative features of the XNUMXD printing method on the skin is the printer's ability to use computer vision to track and adapt to the body's movements in real time University of Minnesota] McAlpine [Courtesy: Group
3 תגובות
Indeed looks like a gimmick without much practical value.
Reminds me of "The Stars My Destination"
of Alfred Bester which takes place in the 24th century, which the hero uses
in an electrical network printed on his body (to the best of my memory and maybe it was these
wires threaded under the skin) and bypasses the nervous system to
speed up the body's action. It seems to me that someday this too will come...
Forgive me for being a "detractor", but you can clearly see that in this study - what is printed on the hand is not the chip and/or the sensor, but only conductive metal lines (consisting of silver particles, as written in this publication). This processor/sensor - which I think also requires some kind of transmission component - appears when it is already prepared in advance and is simply glued to the hand. If so, where is the innovation? I can draw conductive lines on my hand too, and don't even need the $400 printer!!! And in addition to all that - the printed lines are really thick (at least according to the photo in this publication), so why do you need "compensation" for body movements? What does a soldier care if the silver contact printed on it moves a few millimeters here or there???