Here’s the typical way a prosthesis is made: First you wrap fiberglass tapes around a patient’s limb. The tapes harden into a mold, which is then filled with plaster to make a model of the limb. Next, heated plastic is formed around the mode. The device is then hand-finished by smoothing the edges and attaching […]
Introducing the Smallest Wave Springs on the Market
The question you are asking should not be how many miles did I ride or how many steps did I take, but “how did someone make a wave spring that small?” As engineers around the world design smaller and smaller assemblies, the question becomes, where can I find the compact components to support my designs?…
MD&M West for Tuesday February 7th — Innovation for medical applications
At every MD&M event, manufacturers from around the globe announce new products for use in medical devices — or to take them from concept to market. This is what I saw at the first day of this year’s show. First stop: Model Solution at Booth 873 (downstairs at MD&M) The first meet of the day […]
Stratasys targets professional prototyping with engineering-grade 3D printers
Stratasys introduced new tools to help CAD users get to market faster at SOLIDWORKS World 2017 today. These tools are three professional, versatile and fast FDM-based 3D printers—the F123 Series (F170, F270 and F370). Stratasys developed these printers to address user needs for ease of use, greater accessibility and printers that offer more material choices. […]
3D Systems adds to its dentistry portfolio with acquisitions
3D Systems acquired Vertex-Global Holding B.V., a provider of dental materials worldwide under the Vertex and NextDent brands. Together, 3D Systems’ Figure 4 platform and NextDent’s 3D printing materials give 3D Systems a strategic foothold in the multi-billion dollar digital dentistry industry. Vertex Dental and NextDent are leading global innovators and manufacturers of photopolymer, thermoplastic, […]
Trelleborg presenting specialty medical fabrics at MD&M West
Trelleborg Engineered Coated Fabrics will display its enhanced portfolio of quality polyurethane and rubber and silicone-coated fabrics to meet the complex requirements of contract converters, medical devices and OEMs at MD&M West 2017 Conference (Booth 1605). Due to the growing demands of coated materials for use in a myriad of innovative medical, orthopedic and surgical…
Herrmann Ultrasonics introduces two new features at MD&M WEST 2017
At MD&M WEST 2017, Herrmann Ultrasonics introduces two features to ensure more safety when changing welding tools within the production process. Firstly an RFID reader has been integrated into the tooling which guarantees that the right tool is installed for the production. Not only is it built into the sonotrode but also into the fixture.…
Xcentric Mold & Engineering Receives Growth Investment for Continued Expansion
Xcentric Mold & Engineering announced today that it has received an investment from The Riverside Company, a global private equity investment firm focused on high growth businesses in a variety of sectors. Xcentric provides technology-enabled custom injection molding, rapid prototyping, and CNC machining services for clients across numerous industries including medical devices, aerospace, automotive, consumer…
Non-Drip, Medical Grade Epoxy Resists Repeated Sterilizations
Master Bond EP3HTND-2Med Black is a high strength, fast curing epoxy for use in the assembly of medical devices. It fully meets USP Class VI specifications. This one part system delivers superior resistance to a variety of sterilization methods such as chemical sterilants, EtO, radiation and especially autoclaving. As a one component system, EP3HTND-2Med Black…
Stackpole Introduces The RTAN Series Precision Thin Film Tantalum Nitride Chip Resistors
Stackpole Electronics, Inc. announces the release of their new RTAN series chip resistors. The AEC-qualified RTAN is a Tantalum Nitride precision thin film resistor that is impervious to moisture corrosion. This type of thin film technology passes biased humidity testing at 85 degrees C, 85% relative humidity, and 10% rated power for more than 1000…
Seal-and-lube design ensures insulin pump lifespan
Type 1 diabetics are dependent on the steady flow of insulin. Portable insulin pumps allow an active, mobile life and can increase the quality of life of patients. The Swiss medical technology specialist Ypsomed is introducing a new pump known as the “mylife YpsoPump” into the European market. With a weight of just 83 grams—including…
What’s ahead for additive in 2017
What will happen to polymers and metals for additive manufacturing in 2017? What will the major vendors introduce this year? Will this industry continue to shift into manufacturing? These are some of the questions the Additive Manufacturing Research (AMR), an additive manufacturing industry analysis organization explores. For polymers and metals, here are a few predictions from […]
GE upping the stakes in additive manufacturing
GE has bought a few service bureaus and additive vendors. Now we know a bit more about the company’s plans. My colleagues at Medical Design and Outsourcing posted this blog about GE’s plans.
Get 100% metal parts from filament metal 3D printing
The Additive Manufacturing Users Group reports that BASF scientists have found a way to use the additive technique of extrusion to create 100% metal parts. This could be an interesting breakthrough, as most additive processes that use metal materials to make parts are powder-based and use an additive sintering or melting process. Another technique uses […]
Stackpole’s MG / MGM Series Axial Leaded Metal Glaze Resistors For 0.25W to 3W Applications
The MG / MGM Series from Stackpole is a high voltage thru hole resistor product with resistance values from 1K ohms up to 1G ohm. The metal glaze element provides working voltages ranging from 1600V up to 7000V, tolerances as low as 1% and 100 ppm TCR. This makes the MG / MGM Series ideal…
New Matt Chrome Covers For OKW’s Designer COM-KNOBS
OKW has added striking new matt chrome covers to its COM-KNOBS range of collet knobs for rotary potentiometers – perfect for metal or metallic-look front panels. High quality COM-KNOBS suit a huge range of applications including measuring and control, medical and wellness devices, laboratory equipment, heating and air conditioning, communications equipment and building management systems.…
Kit for touchless gesture controls — New haptics for new HMIs and more
Ultrahaptics, specialist in mid-air touchless haptic technology, introduced a development platform that allows companies a route to evolve control solutions through gesture controls enhanced by tactile feedback sensations. The UHDK5 TOUCH Development Kit provides hardware and software with an architecture that can be embedded in product designs, from prototypes right through to volume production. Ultrahaptics…
Printer marks medical instruments for better tracking
The METAZA MPX-95 is a photo impact printer. With its diamond stylus it can add custom text, data and images with photographic detail onto a variety of hard metals, such as stainless steel, iron, titanium and platinum, as well as softer substrates like gold, silver, copper, nickel, aluminum and acrylic – quickly and with pinpoint…
PLC+HMI unit powers next generation of biodefense
Jim Robinson • Senior VP Product Development at AeroClave EMTs, ambulance workers, fire fighters, and more are often exposed to invisible pathogens and the threat of infection. In these settings, decontamination is critical for everyone’s safety. Hygienic routines to clean and disinfect surfaces contaminated with biological materials must be quick and easy to use. To…
3D-printed device controls ultrasound waves for surgical procedures
Here’s an interesting story from one of our sister publications on how 3D printing was used to create a device that improves the precision of surgery. Researchers from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore developed a 3D-printed device that harnesses high-pressure ultrasound to move, manipulate or destroy tiny objects. By controlling these photo-acoustic waves, the device […]
Liquid metals show promise in speeding additive manufacturing
The task of removing support structures for metal 3D printed / additively manufactured parts has always been a challenge. So much so, that it’s often better to design the part so that it doesn’t need support. But when the design must have an overhang that requires support, or support to reduce thermally induced distortion, you […]
How to make 3D printing fit manufacturing realities
“Control and consistency are concepts firmly entrenched in, and vital to, traditional manufacturing but not widely associated with Additive Manufacturing (AM),” says Tim Van den Bogaert, Materialise Director New Businesses. “Unlike subtractive processes where materials are manipulated without changing their intrinsic properties, AM needs to achieve precision powder and energy ratios – ratios that dictate […]
Arcam’s CoCr process benefits the orthopedic industry
Arcam announced its CoCr process for Arcam Q10plus at the Formnext show in Frankfurt this week. CoCr, together with titanium, is the prime material for the orthopedic industry and it is a commonly used material in the aerospace industry. The CoCr process provides parts with high resolution, production level productivity and impeccable material properties. The […]
Siemens to deliver end-to-end additive manufacturing software
Siemens’ product lifecycle management (PLM) business has been making moves into the additive manufacturing industry for several months now. (Siemens to collaborate with HP Inc. to elevate 3D printing from prototyping to full production; Local Motors 3D printing cars with Siemens PLM Software; Siemens moves into metal 3D printing; and Software optimizes parts for 3D […]
Can you get injection molded quality parts without post processing from 3D printers?
Two features of 3D printers that can be issues for users are the surface finish quality of the part and the subsequent post processing often needed to finish the part. The developers at Rize created a 3D printer to address these issues. The Rize One 3D printer is small enough to sit on a desktop, […]