Lab-on-a-Printer (LOP) Platform Technology for 4D Printing and Bioprinting

由建议工具支持的研究计划将使我们的团队能够探索和开发最初由Walus提出的新的打印机实验室(LOP)技术，从而为新兴的3D/4D打印领域做出重大贡献。 虽然许多人已经非常熟悉3D打印，但4D打印背后的新概念框架将使使用本研究计划中开发的独特3D打印系统的全新设备和技术得以开发。4D打印背后的基本思想涉及通过3D打印在制造后自组装和重新配置的结构。时间维度(第四个D)以一种非常重要的方式打开了打印设备和结构的潜在配置空间-因为结构及其组件可以在打印后重新形成。Walus正在开发的拟议的打印机实验室技术在打印过程中提供了对油墨成分的控制，并使4D打印过程和结构的组合开发成为可能，因为可以在不修改任何输入材料的情况下修改单个打印变体的组成和结构。这一能力是通过将微流控模块集成到3D打印系统的打印头中来实现的，该系统可以动态地操纵材料成分；例如，通过集成的混合。 拟建的打印头流体动力学表征站由倒置显微镜、高速成像系统、流量控制器、压电驱动器放大器和计算机组成，用于控制和同步组件之间的活动，并使我们的团队能够设计、表征、优化和应用UBC正在积极研究的新型LOP技术。所提出的研究工具将提供对微流控LOP打印头中的流动、材料切换和混合的动力学的高速成像能力。由于这些过程不是固定的，高速成像功能将使我们能够专门为这一应用开发和优化新的模块和系统，而控制和执行系统将提供必要的工具来驱动测试中的LOP设备。

The research program supported by the proposed tools will make a significant contribution to the emerging area of 3D/4D printing by enabling our group to explore and develop novel lab-on-a-printer (LOP) technology originally proposed by Walus. While many people are already quite familiar with 3D printing, the novel conceptual framework behind 4D printing will enable radically new devices and technology to be developed employing the unique 3D printing systems developed in this research program. The basic idea behind 4D printing involves structures that self-assemble and reconfigure after fabrication through 3D printing. The temporal dimension (the 4th D) opens up the potential configuration space of printed devices and structures in a very significant way - since the structure and its components can re-form post-printing. The proposed lab-on-a-printer technology being developed by Walus provides control over ink composition during the printing process and enables combinatorial development of 4D printing processes and structures as the composition and structure of individual printed variants can be modified without modifying any of the input materials. This capability is enabled by the integration of microfluidic modules into the printhead of a 3D printing system that can manipulate material composition on-the-fly; e.g. via integrated mixing. The proposed printhead flow dynamics characterization station consists of an inverted microscope, high-speed imaging system, flow controller, piezo-driver amplifier, and computer to control and synchronize activities amongst the components and will allow our team to design, characterize, optimize, and apply novel LOP technology being actively researched at UBC. The proposed research tool will provide high speed imaging capability of the dynamics of flow, material switching, and mixing in microfluidic LOP printheads. Since these processes are not stationary, the high speed imaging capability will allow us to develop and optimize new modules and systems specifically for this application, while the control and actuation system will provide the necessary tools to drive the LOP devices under test.