3D Printing Of Electronic Sensors Now Possible With Carbomorph Material

 3D Printing

Scientists are developing new materials which could one day allow people to print out custom-designed personal electronics such as games controllers which perfectly fit their hand shape. The University of Warwick researchers have created a simple and inexpensive conductive plastic composite that can be used in 3D printers, allowing even home-based users to print out their own devices complete with microelectronics embedded.

Researches at the University of Warwick have printed working electronic devices for the first time using a standard 3D printer fitted with a new type of plastic that conducts electricity.

“This technology could revolutionize the way we produce the world around us,” said Dr Simon Leigh, who led the research team at the School of Engineering at the University of Warwick.

Carbomorph is a carbon-rich composite material that can be used in existing 3D printers to print electronic circuits.  The results of the research are published in PLOS One.

With Carbomorph injected alongside a regular plastic in multi-headed 3D printers this could allow the printing of the physical forms plus the electronic innards of objects such as mobile phones and remote controls in one operation.

Until now, the exterior form and interior workings of electronic devices have had to be manufactured and printed separately.

“It’s always great seeing the complex and intricate models of devices such as mobile phones or television remote controls that can be produced with 3D printing,” Leigh said. “But that’s it, they are invariably models that don’t really function.”

He added: “We set about trying to find a way in which we could actually print out a functioning electronic device from a 3D printer.”

3D printing of flex sensors. ai) the CAD design of flex sensor, aii) the printed flex sensor, aiii) the printed sensor undergoing flexing, aiv) the resistance response of the sensor during flexing, bi) CAD design of the 3D printed ‘glove’, bii) the printed ‘glove’, biii) the printed ‘glove’ before flexing, biv) the printed ‘glove’ during flexing and bv) the resistance response of each finger during 5 flexings. Image Source: doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0049365.g002

“It’s a very high-carbon plastic,” said technology journalist Adrian Mars. “That means that with a dual-head printer you can not only print a case for electronics but you can print the buttons, the circuit boards, the tracks, the contacts. And you don’t have to upgrade your printer. If you’ve got a two-headed printer you just buy Carbomorph when it goes on sale.”

Leigh’s research team now plans to work on printing more complex items such as cables that connect devices.

“In the long term, this technology could revolutionalise the way we produce the world around us, making products such as personal electronics a lot more individualised and unique and in the process reducing electronic waste,” said Leigh “Designers could also use it to understand better how people tactilely interact with products by monitoring sensors embedded into objects.”

Leigh added: “However, in the short term I can see this technology having a major impact in the educational sector for example, allowing the next generation of young engineers to get hands-on experience of using advanced manufacturing technology to design fairly high-tech devices and products right there in the classroom.” —


SOURCE  PLOS One, University of Warwick

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