News Roundup: 3D printed robot, TPU, Shapr3D, Indaero, 3D-printed orphan drugs

Dec 12, 2017 | By David

Here’s another round-up of recent events you might have missed, from the 3D printing world. Stories include a 3D printed heart model, new 3D CAD software from Shapr Pro, and many more besides.

1. Tomsky Polytechnic University 3D prints heart model for cardiac surgeons to plan forthcoming operations

A group of researchers at Russia’s Tomsk Polytechnic University have been using 3D printing techniques to develop models of children’s hearts. These organic replicas are then used by cardiac surgeons as guides, in order to better plan and carry out their procedures. TPU had created 3D printed heart models for adults before, but his is the first time the technique was carried out with children’s hearts, which are significantly smaller.

Professor Vyacheslav Ryabov from the SSMU Department of Cardiology says, "Our cardiac surgeons suggested creating 3-D-models of hearts. Today, surgeons do not blindly go into a planned operation. Using modern diagnostic visualization technologies, they try to obtain information prior to operations, which can help to plan operation process."

The heart models are based on MRI scans, which are then converted into digital 3D models. These can be printed cheaply and easily with a standard FDM 3D printer. The time it currently takes for the full process of ordering and making one of these hear t models is around two weeks, but the team is currently looking to develop more advanced software, in order to cut this down to just a few days.

2. Shapr3D raised $1.3M and brings powerful 3D CAD modeling to iPad Pro

Budapest-based software developer Shapr3D first launched its impressive 3D CAD software solution in March 2016, and its success eventually led to the Hungarian company receiving around $1.3 million in investment, from InReach and Lifeline Ventures. The team is now taking advantage of this financial capital to increase its ambition, and it will soon be releasing the world’s first CAD system to run Parasolid software and HOOPS Exchange natively on the iOS platform, and specifically the iPad Pro.

Parasolid software is the world’s leading 3D geometric modeling component and HOOPS Exchange is a leading CAD translation software development kit (SDK). Any user of Shapr3D in education will have access to these tools free of charge, including students, teachers and faculty members from any accredited educational institution.

“While most of our users have been professionals such as product designers, engineers, architects, jewellery designers and 3D printing hobbyists, we also have users from MIT, Harvard, Stanford, Berkeley, Duke, Columbia, Cambridge, University of Tokyo, Singapore Polytechnic and many other schools worldwide,” said István Csanady, Founder and CEO of Shapr3D. “We see this as an opportunity to empower as many students as possible, all over the world, to fuel their creativity and design aspirations. To help them, we are offering the Educational license for free.”

3. Emirates boy wins award for 3D printed robot that speaks 7 languages

A 15-year old Grade X student from GEMS Millenium School , Sharjah, U.A.E, has attained first prize in a recent high school technology competition organized by ATLAB. The technology-based company focuses on developing custom applications dedicated to humanoid robots and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), as well as innovation labs for corporates and educational institutions.

The second annual 3D Printing Olympiad had around 150 entries from across the U.A.E, 50 of which reached the final round. The winner had managed to create a realistic-looking humanoid robot, almost entirely using 3D printing technology. It took around eight months for the 15 year-old to complete his project.

"The robot I have built is a cost-effective solution and at Dh1,800 including the tablet, is a much cheaper option.’’, said Risabh Java. ‘’I have the arms designed and since the design was not my own I am not including it for the competition. Once the arms and legs are built, it could be about six feet tall. I have used open source software already available online to build the humanoid."

The participants were judged by a panel of nine judges who based their decision on the uniqueness of the design, research and development process as presented, the value and potential impact of the design, and the ability to communicate or demonstrate the features.

4. Indaero uses Stratasys 3D printing systems to secure Airbus business

Global 3D printing leader Stratasys has announced how Indaero has been making use of its additive manufacturing solutions in order to provide quality tools for the aerospace industry. Indaero, which is an engineering company based in Spain, has secured new business with several Tier 1 and Tier 2 Airbus suppliers as a result of its implementation of Stratasys’ FDM 3D printing technology

“Aerospace is unlike other industries, producing high volumes of tools,” explains Darío González Fernández, CEO of Indaero. “To traditionally manufacture production tools, injection molding or CNC machining would be used, but this would be very time-consuming and costly. With our Fortus 450mc 3D Printer, we can service low-volume production quickly and cost-effectively, producing many different tools on-demand to accelerate the manufacturing process and ensure we meet customer delivery deadlines. The importance of the ULTEM 9085 material cannot be understated either. It has become an integral part of our production process, as it is certified for aerospace and well known by our customer Airbus for a number of aircraft applications. With its unique combination of high strength-to-weight ratio and FST (flame, smoke, and toxicity) certification, we can 3D print robust, lightweight tools and respond to short run production of flying parts if required – giving us a unique advantage versus competition.”

Curved tools are a particular option that Indaero now has thanks to the adoption of 3D printing, and this is being exemplified through the company‘s work for Aernnova. The Stratasys Fortus 450mc 3D Printer is now being used by the company to optimize a series of production tools for the production of an Airbus NH90 Helicopter. With the complex geometries achievable with 3D printing, the team was able to redesign the existing tools with a curvature perfectly fitting the panel structure. As a result, Indaero provided Aernnova with a more effective tool that was also nine kilos lighter than its predecessor and capable of standing on its own. Manufacturing time for the tool was also cut in half.

5. Aprecia Pharmaceuticals and Cycle Pharmaceuticals partner to develop 3D-printed orphan drugs

Aprecia Pharmaceuticals, The 3DP Pharmaceutical Company, and Cycle Pharmaceuticals, Ltd. today announced they have signed a partnership agreement to develop and commercialize orphan drugs using 3D printing technology. The planned products will deliver quality-of-life improvements versus existing, approved orphan drugs, and will achieve this by utilizing Aprecia's proprietary 3DP ZipDose Technology platform. ZipDose is the only 3D printing technology used in a pharmaceutical drug product approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Antonio Benedetti, CEO of Cycle commented: "Many rare disease patients do not have a treatment option at all. For those rare diseases where there is an approved pharmaceutical treatment, patients continue to be burdened by sub-optimal drug formulations. Aprecia's ZipDose® 3DP technology can formulate fast-melt pharmaceutical products, incorporating significantly higher amounts of active pharmaceutical ingredient than any other fast-melt technology on the market. As such, this advanced technology can uniquely overcome both pill burden and dysphagia – swallowing difficulties – both of which are life-long, daily issues for so many rare disease patients."

"We are excited to work with the Cycle team, and we see important synergies in the companies' shared mission to address unmet needs in patient care," said Don Wetherhold, CEO of Aprecia. "Cycle specializes in orphan drugs - they have proven that they can deliver quality-of-life improvements to rare disease patients around the world. Aprecia is fully committed to applying its ZipDose® 3DP printing technology to address real-world, daily issues faced by rare disease patients," he continued.

Posted in 3D Printing Applications

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