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Next Dynamics has developed a proprietary print head it calls "DigiJet", which works like a 3D version of the tried-and-true inkjet printing.
The NexD1 features six of these print heads, each with 200 nozzles that spray fine droplets of material onto the build surface, which is then hardened by a UV laser before moving onto the next layer. With a diameter of five microns for each nozzle, the machine is able to print at a resolution of down to 10 microns, within its build area of 8 in3 (20 cm3).
[...] Standing as a compact cube of 16.5 in3 (42 cm3), the NexD1 can house six cartridges at once, printing with and mixing different materials as desired. At the moment, these include the options of tough, flexible, transparent, CMYK-colored and conductive (more on those in a minute) resins, as well as supporting structures that can prop up overhanging sections before being washed off with water. The team is working with other manufacturers to expand that materials library.
But the most interesting of those materials is the conductive resin. Galvanized and infused with nano-particles, Next Dynamics claims its resin can be printed into circuit boards that are just as conductive as standard PCBs, unlike other electronic-printing devices like the Voxel8. Designed for rapid prototyping, the NexD1 can even build three-dimensional circuit boards.
The initial unit sounds a bit pricey, but it would be fun to have something like this in the workshop.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 15 2016, @09:44AM
The problem with printing your own PCBs now isn't the printing, which is easy, but the trace material, and some way to make multiple layer boards. Copper traces with a resin solder mask are needed for any non-toy work. I would probably pay $100k for a printer that can print real copper traces and plate vias (the little copper-filled holes that carry signals from one side of the board to the other). I don't think I'd pay even $1K for a printer that can only print single layer boards with high resistance traces.
If it can really print the PCBs in 3D, that's potentially even better than vias, since you don't have to drill holes, and you can place traces with a little more flexibility. Design software will have to evolve a bit to really make use of it. But it's still useless if the trace material resistance is high.
There are some other issues too. Modern electronics need to worry about capacitance and inductance too, and even if the trace material has good properties, it's still probably different from the copper on fiberglass that is used everywhere for mass production. This will not be good for prototyping, because you'll end up having to do a prototype traditional PCB anyway, to make sure everything works with the different materials.
If all you want is to have your arduino blink some lights, anything will do, but you can do that with a breadboard for $10.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 15 2016, @03:22PM
What kind of useful circuits can actually be made today at home anyway? Who is building what? It all seems like toy stuff for children.