We live in an age of mobile, virtual, wireless everything. And yet, somehow, nothing makes 2015 feel more futuristic than the rise of 3D printers. In case you haven’t heard, 3D printers are just what they sound like. Most 3D printers use an “ink” that is actually a flexible plastic substance that molds according to the specifications set by the user, and it hardens into a solid final form.
Up until recently, 3D printing was limited to plastic. That still enabled an astonishing range of applications, such as toys. A plastic 3D printed gun made headlines not long ago. A less controversial story centered on an astronaut who requested — and received — a wrench that was emailed to the space station and printed out in space.
From Voxel8.
Yes, we are now emailing wrenches. Welcome to the future.
Now, things are about to get even more futuristic. The Voxel8 printer is debuting at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The Voxel8 prints metal and promises to change the 3D printing game forever.
The Voxel8 is the brainchild of Jennifer Lewis and her team at Harvard University. They have reportedly worked on it for several years.
Wired magazine writer Klint Finley points out that the Voxel8 “can’t print something as complex as a smartphone.” But what the Voxel8 can do is nothing short of mind-blowing.
Finley reports that the Voxel8 can “print the body of a quadrocopter drone.” (Speaking of ridiculously futuristic advancements…)
With both metal and plastic available for 3D printing, the possibilities are endless. We’re particularly excited about the implications for the medical industry. According to Finley, the Voxel8 and printers like it have the potential to print fully customized hearing aids. Current 3D printers can already print parts of hearing aids, but the metal parts still needed to be soldered into the plastic.
There are several 3D printers on the market today, but the Voxel8 is the first of its kind. Finley reports that the Voxel8’s “real breakthrough is the conductive ink the printer uses to print electronic circuits. The ink has a toothpaste-like consistency” and once it dries, it “doesn’t require any post-processing.” That makes printing simple and fast (provided, of course, you own a Voxel8).
Still not impressed? The Wired article reports that the team behind the Voxel8 have already made it possible to print lithium-ion batteries, and that’s not even the most amazing piece of this story. They’ve also “developed a process for printing human tissues that could eventually help construct or repair human organs.”
The future is sounding pretty good to us.