MRI: Development of a Next-Generation 3-D Printer for Smart Product Design - Purdue PolymerMakers

该项目开发了全新一代的3D打印机，旨在实现新的研究领域，包括协同设计、机器人元材料、软机器人、纳米结构、神经形态架构和规划。新一代3D打印机（Purdue PolymerMaker 3-D Smart Mixer）除了其传感器、计算和驱动之外，还将实现原型（表单）的结构（功能），使其工作，开创了智能产品设计的新时代，将通过聚合物结构的3-D打印，用于传感，计算和驱动的聚合物电子产品的2-1/2 D打印，3D打印液态金属互连，以及非聚合物组件（如硅微处理器和电磁电机）包覆成型的自动规划。这项工作有赖于各学科大量研究人员的扎实工作。聚合物的发明对设计师可以设计的物体的形式产生了突然的影响。聚合物3D打印的发明对创新者如何实现这些令人兴奋的新形式的原型产生了更大的影响。预计聚合物和设计的下一个巨大飞跃将是同时实现形式和功能。想象一下，只需按下一个按钮就可以创建整个智能产品原型！聚合物的沉积，无论是作为一个结构，作为有源半导体，或作为激活的传感位点，取决于它所粘附的表面，环境，以及沉积后的工艺步骤。该项目建议选择和开发自动化工艺和材料，当集成时，经过精心选择和调整，以“最大限度地减少界面边界处的阻抗失配”。机电一体化的精确，闭环，运动控制的沉积和固化将确保材料放置在需要的时间和地点。将采用微活性刮刀对挤出的粘稠液体进行局部整平。刀片是由机器人控制的。更广泛的影响：新一代3D打印机将跨越大多数领域，使社会和行为科学家能够探索新的技术形式，医学和生物专家能够打印新类型的智能分析，教育工作者从“K到Gray”开发新的实践活动，工程师和计算机科学家能够更快地完成工作并产生更大的影响。研究生和本科生将参与新的课程材料，通过科学，技术，工程，数学相关的招聘活动和活动营地接触K-12学校，并在许多领域创建新的初创企业。一所新的普渡大学赞助的内城高中将提供以机器人技术为重点的长期外展的新途径，以及在13个系和5所学院进行机器人课程的大学范围内的考试，其中将包括这项工作的各个方面。

This project, developing an entirely new generation of 3D printers, aims to enable new areas of research into co-design, robotic meta-materials, soft robotics, nano-structures, neuromorphic architectures, and planning. This new generation of 3D printers (Purdue PolymerMaker 3-D Smart Printers) will realize the structure of a prototype (form) in addition to its sensors, computation, and actuation (function) that make it work, ushering a new era of smart product design that will be achieved through a combination of 3-D printing of polymer structure, 2-1/2 D printing of polymer electronics for sensing, computation and actuation, 3-D printing liquid metal interconnect, and automated planning for over-molding of non-polymer components, such as silicon microprocessors and electromagnetic motors. This work relies on the solid work of a large number of researchers in a variety of disciplines. The invention of polymers had a sudden impact on the form of objects designers could design. The invention of polymer 3-D printing has a more dramatic impact on how innovators could realize prototypes of those exciting new forms. The expected next giant leap in polymers and design will be the simultaneous realization of both form and function. Imagine creating an entire smart product prototype at the press of a button!The deposition of polymers, either as a structure, as active semiconductor, or as activated sensing site, depends on the surface it adheres to, the environment, and the process steps that follow deposition. This project proposes to select and develop automated processes and materials that, when integrated, are carefully selected and tuned to "minimize impedance mismatches" at the interfacial boundaries. The mechatronic integration of precise, closed-loop, motion control for deposition and curing will assure materials are placed when and where needed. Micro-active doctor blading will be employed to locally level the thick extruded liquids. The blade is robotically controlled. Broader Impacts:This new generation of 3-D printers will cut across most fields, allowing social and behavioral scientists to explore new forms of technology, medical and biological experts to print new types of smart assays, educators from "K to Gray" to develop new hands-on activities, and engineers and computer scientists to do their jobs faster and with greater impact. Graduate and undergraduate students will be engaged in new class materials to reach out to K-12 schools with Science, Technology, Engineering, Math-related recruitment drives and activity camps, and to create new start-ups in many fields. A new Purdue-sponsored inner city high school will offer new avenues of long-term outreach with robotics focus, as well as a university-wide examination of robotics curriculum across 13 departments and 5 colleges where aspects of this work will be embraced.