. 24/7 Space News .
TECH SPACE
3-DIY: Printing your own bioprinter
by Staff Writers
Pittsburgh PA (SPX) Mar 30, 2018

PrintrBot Simple Metal modified with the LVE for FRESH printing.

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have developed a low-cost 3-D bioprinter by modifying a standard desktop 3-D printer, and they have released the breakthrough designs as open source so that anyone can build their own system.

The researchers - Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) and Biomedical Engineering (BME) Associate Professor Adam Feinberg, BME postdoctoral fellow TJ Hinton, and Kira Pusch, a recent graduate of the MSE undergraduate program - recently published a paper in the journal HardwareX that contains complete instructions for printing and installing the syringe-based, large volume extruder (LVE) to modify any typical, commercial plastic printer.

"What we've created," says Pusch, "is a large volume syringe pump extruder that works with almost any open source fused deposition modeling (FDM) printer. This means that it's an inexpensive and relatively easy adaptation for people who use 3-D printers."

As the researchers explain in their paper, "Large volume syringe pump extruder for desktop 3D printers," most commercial 3-D bioprinters currently on the market range in cost from $10,000 to more than $200,000 and are typically proprietary machines, closed source, and difficult to modify.

"Essentially, we've developed a bioprinter that you can build for under $500, that I would argue is at least on par with many that cost far more money," says Feinberg, who is also a member of the Bioengineered Organs Initiative at Carnegie Mellon. "Most 3-D bioprinters start between $10K and $20K. This is significantly cheaper, and we provide very detailed instructional videos. It's really about democratizing technology and trying to get it into more people's hands."

And not only does the LVE cut down on cost, it also allows users to print artificial human tissue on a larger scale and at higher resolution, opening doors for researchers, makers, and professionals to experiment with 3-D printing biomaterials and fluids.

"Usually there's a trade-off," explains Feinberg, "because when the systems dispense smaller amounts of material, we have more control and can print small items with high resolution, but as systems get bigger, various challenges arise. The LVE 3-D bioprinter allows us to print much larger tissue scaffolds, at the scale of an entire human heart, with high quality."

"Bioprinting has historically been limited in volume," adds Pusch, "so essentially the goal is to just scale up the process without sacrificing detail and quality of the print."

Pusch, the first author on the paper, was a research assistant in Feinberg's lab for three years during her undergraduate career. During that time, she received an International Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (iSURF) to work in the Netherlands, and also interned with General Electric's Center for Additive Technology Advancement. Following her graduation from Carnegie Mellon in December of 2017, she began a spring internship at Formlabs in Boston and has since accepted a second internship position for the summer at Blue Origin in Seattle.

Pusch has also co-authored a second paper in ACS Biomaterials Science and Engineering with Hinton, "3D Printing PDMS Elastomer in a Hydrophilic Support Bath via Freeform Reversible Embedding." As a research assistant in Feinberg's lab, Pusch was able to experience real-world application of her research early on in her academic career. When asked about her experience in Feinberg's lab, Pusch emphasizes how grateful she is to have had the opportunity to work with such supportive and brilliant mentors.

In their paper, the researchers demonstrated the system using alginate, a common biomaterial for 3-D printing, and using the lab's signature Freeform Reversible Embedding of Suspended Hydrogels (FRESH) technique.

Feinberg's lab aims to produce open source biomedical research that other researchers can expand upon. By making their research widely accessible, Feinberg's lab hopes to seed innovation widely, to encourage the rapid development of biomedical technologies to save lives.

"We envision this as being the first of many technologies that we push into the open source environment to drive the field forward," says Feinberg. "It's something we really believe in."

Research paper


Related Links
College of Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University
Space Technology News - Applications and Research


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


TECH SPACE
Researchers use 3-D printing to create metallic glass alloys
Raleigh NC (SPX) Mar 23, 2018
Researchers have now demonstrated the ability to create amorphous metal, or metallic glass, alloys using three-dimensional (3-D) printing technology, opening the door to a variety of applications - such as more efficient electric motors, better wear-resistant materials, higher strength materials, and lighter weight structures. "Metallic glasses lack the crystalline structures of most metals - the amorphous structure results in exceptionally desirable properties," says Zaynab Mahbooba, first author ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

TECH SPACE
Inspired by ASU NASA mission, students create space art

Airbus delivers new life support system for the ISS

60 years in orbit for 'grapefruit satellite' - the oldest human object in space

China to become top patent filer within three years: UN

TECH SPACE
Soyuz rocket rolled out for launch

SpaceX launches innovative secondary payload dispenser along side Hispasat

Air Force Chief of Staff: US 'On Track' to Replace Russian RD-180 Rocket Engine

Air Force awards launch contracts to SpaceX and ULA

TECH SPACE
Sol 2000: Roving for 2000 Martian Days

Opportunity Mars Rover brushes a new rock target

Mars' oceans formed early, possibly aided by massive volcanic eruptions

Martian oceans formed earlier but weren't as deep as previously thought, study finds

TECH SPACE
Chang'e-4 Lunar Probe will Reach the Far Side of the Moon

China to launch Long March-5B rocket next year

China plans to develop a multipurpose, reusable space plane

China moving ahead with plans for next-generation X-ray observatory

TECH SPACE
Ground-breaking satellite projects will transform society

Isotropic Systems to offer OneWeb compatible ultra low-cost terminals

New laws unlock exciting space era for UK

Iridium Certus Distribution Expands; Enables Globally 'Connected Vehicles', Assets and Teams

TECH SPACE
Pressing a button is more challenging than appears

Researchers use 3-D printing to create metallic glass alloys

New 'AR' Mobile App Features 3-D NASA Spacecraft

Diamond powers first continuous room-temperature solid-state maser

TECH SPACE
UK team to lead European mission to study new planets

TRAPPIST-1 planets provide clues to the nature of habitable worlds

ESA's next science mission to focus on nature of exoplanets

'Oumuamua likely came from a binary star system

TECH SPACE
Jupiter's turmoil more than skin deep: researchers

New Horizons Chooses Nickname for 'Ultimate' Flyby Target

Jupiter's Great Red Spot getting taller as it shrinks

Jupiter's Jet-Streams Are Unearthly









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.