3D Printing News Unpeeled: Metal 3D Printing Pen, Shell Wall 3D Printing

Korean researchers have developed a new 3D Printing Metal technology. The technology uses an arc plasma heat source but continuously deposits molten droplets of metal letting one print overhangs and other complex structures. The researchers say that their process has better mechanical properties than WAAM and can be mounted on a robot arm. The technology could potentially make metal 3D printing much more accessible and prevalent.

University of Michigan researchers Mania Aghaei Meibodi, Alireza Bayramvand and Yuxin Lin have developed a shell wall concrete 3D printing technique that variably deposits concrete while using nonplanar tool paths. This lets them use up to 73% less concrete through printing topology optimized structures. 

I was reading a patent on catheter balloon molds (I know, I should probably get out more) when I found a mention of 3D printing in the patent. 3D printing was mentioned as a possible mold manufacturing technology using beryllium copper or copper. Beryllium copper seems to be an exciting but not very available material for 3D printing, although Materion seems to make it. High value parts such as catheter´s or other balloon structures seem to make for a fantastic 3D printing application. But, what if we 3D printed the balloon itself out of a woven structure to inflate it more variably? And what if we made lots of sizes of balloon catheters or individualized them?