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Recent advances in 3D printing have enabled the creation of novel 3D constructs and devices with an unprecedented level of complexity, properties, and functionalities. In contrast to manufacturing techniques developed for mass production, 3D printing encompasses a broad class of fabrication technologies that can enable 1) the creation of highly customized and optimized 3D physical architectures from digital designs; 2) the synergistic integration of properties and functionalities of distinct classes of materials to create novel hybrid devices; and 3) a biocompatible fabrication approach that facilitates the creation and co-integration of biological constructs and systems. Developing the ability to 3D print various classes of materials possessing distinct properties could enable the freeform generation of active electronics in unique functional, interwoven architectures. Here we are developing a multiscale 3D printing approach that enables the integration of diverse classes of materials to create a variety of 3D printed electronics and functional devices with active properties that are not easily achieved using standard microfabrication techniques. In one of the examples, we demonstrate an approach to prolong the gastric residence of wireless electronics to weeks via multimaterial three-dimensional design and fabrication. The surgical-free approach to integrate biomedical electronics with the human body can revolutionize telemedicine by enabling a real-time diagnosis and delivery of therapeutic agents.
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Transforming Military Medicine with 3D Printed Bioelectronics
The advent of wearable or body-borne electronics is rapidly changing how the Department of Defense (DoD) provides diagnostic and therapeutic medical care to the warfighter. Multiple DoD entities, from the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s Chemical Biological Center, to the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, are seeking bioelectronics that can transform military medicine by providing medics with valuable information to improve acute care on the battlefield, and aiding military doctors providing prolonged care. For instance, bioelectronics sensors that measure multiple signals, including heartbeat and the secretion of metabolites in perspiration, can provide remote monitoring of warfighter medical status during operations. Next-generation bioelectronics can be delivered by implantation or can be swallowed so as to deliver therapeutic medications. A seamless integration of such bioelectronics with the soft, complex, and 3D shape of the human body is inherently challenging due to the geometrical, material, and mechanical dichotomies between the two. Conventional electronics are typically fabricated via planar, top-down processes on a rigid substrate. Conversely, the human body is an irregularly shaped and highly flexible, stretchable construct. Significant research has been dedicated to overcoming this challenge, including the design of stretchable, flexible electronics, the development of electronic skin tattoos, and the manufacturing of electronic textile and bioelectronic implants. This article proposes and highlights the advancement of a multimaterial and multiscale 3D printing approach that can enable the fabrication of bioelectronics to better interface with the human body. Specifically, the article highlights the development of (a) a freeform electronics fabrication approach that allows for the creation of complex 3D systems, and (b) the multimaterial-printing of an ingestible gastric resident system that allows for non-surgical and needle-free delivery of wireless electronics into the human body.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1830958
- PAR ID:
- 10113577
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- HDIAC journal
- Volume:
- 6
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 2578-0832
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 34-38
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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