3D printing

RAPID + TCT is one of North America's biggest trade shows and conferences for the additive manufacturing (AM) industry. This year, IDTechEx attended and spoke at the show; they interviewed prominent players and observed industry trends.

This premium article provides an introduction to additive manufacturing for electric vehicles (EV) and evaluates additive manufacturing for different applications in EVs.

Smooth, functional surfaces that provide touch sensing, often with backlighting, are becoming increasingly common. Applications range from vehicle interiors and domestic appliances to medical devices and aircraft seating. Rather than relying on a mechanical or membrane switch, these surfaces utilize capacitive touch sensing - the same principle used in smartphone displays.

Neotech AMT and the TAMS-group at the University of Hamburg announce successful implementation of a camera-based monitoring system for Additively Manufactured objects with integrated electronics (Project: KAM EI). The project, funded by Central Innovation Program for SMEs (ZIM) from the German Federal Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), started in September 2020.

Finnish IMSE pioneer TactoTek and TracXon, an innovative spin-off of the Holst Centre, have signed a license agreement

Nanoscribe is a manufacturer of 3D printers using two-photon polymerization (2PP) and two-photon grayscale lithography (2GL) technologies. IDTechEx spoke with Jörg Smolenski, Business Development Manager at Nanoscribe.

NanoRial specialize in the dispersion of nanocarbons, specifically CNTs. IDTechEx spoke with Dr Chitral Angammana (Co-founder, Inventor & CEO).

Integrating multiple functionalities within a single entity promises simpler, more efficient devices without compromising capability. Smartphones are a great example, with maps, diaries, phones, cameras, games consoles, and more integrated into a single, compact device.

Using graphene to improve the performance of energy storage devices has been a key focus ever since the 2D material was isolated. As soon as the first commercial graphene manufacturers were established, there has been a steady stream of announcements related to batteries, but perhaps none are as significant as the 2023 news of Evonik entering the field with their investment in SuperC.

Surfaces, be they in kitchen appliances, automotive interiors, medical devices, or even furniture, are becoming increasingly smart. Embedded lighting, touch sensitivity, heating, and even haptic feedback enables inanimate and often neglected surfaces into a design feature with seamlessly integrated user controls. But what is the best way to manufacture these smart surfaces?

Thursday 23 February 2023 - Opportunities for Integrated Functionality. In this webinar Dr Matthew Dyson, a Principal Technology Analyst at IDTechEx, will discuss the following topics: - The status of IME and competing approaches for creating functional and decorative interfaces across multiple application sectors. - The challenges and benefits associated with functionality integration, and how the value proposition of IME is likely to grow over time. - IME specific material requirements, especially for conductive inks. - A roadmap for IME adoption, segmented by industry.

This premium article analyzes mergers, acquisitions, and investment activity in the additive manufacturing industry in 2022.

TIPE 3D Printing 2023 is a virtual conference ran by Women in 3D Printing and SME on January 24-26, 2023. At TIPE 2023, IDTechEx attended as a speaker on a panel and as an individual presenter. IDTechEx also attended several sessions and panels by other speakers on a variety of additive manufacturing (AM) topics. These sessions and panels are summarized in this premium article.

Wednesday 8 February 2023 - Technological Developments and Applications. Contents that will be covered in this webinar include: An overview of PIC technology; Drivers of increased data demands from data centres; PIC trends in the communications industry; and PIC adoption in other markets

DyeMansion are a German company producing high volume post-processing machines for polymer powder bed fusion. IDTechEx caught up with Applications Engineer Nils Raschke.

In July 2022, Nano Dimension acquired metal and ceramic 3D printer manufacturer Admatec. They also acquired 12% of shares in Stratasys, the market leader in polymer 3D printing.

As high-performance computing, artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms, and even consumers become increasingly data-hungry, hardware struggles to keep pace. In addition, the need for real-time assessments of moving data points - such as for the accurate velocity-mapping of other objects in autonomous systems and facial recognition for security systems - is crucial to an increasingly hands-free society.

In July 2022, Markforged acquired Digital Metal, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Swedish multinational Höganäs AB developing metal binder jetting printers.

Is this the year of rapid graphene sales? Are we slipping deeper into a disillusionment phase? Who will emerge as the market leaders? Is consolidation inevitable? 2023 will be a telling year for the industry.

In August 2022, 3D Systems acquired dp polar, a German 3D printer start-up making high speed photopolymer jetting printers.