Optomec Demonstrates Production 3D Printing Technology at Printed Electronics USA Conference

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Optomec announced today that the company will showcase its Aerosol Jet 5X system for production Printed Electronics applications at the IDTechEx conference held November 15-16th in Santa Clara, Californnia. Optomec will be in booth # J06.

Aerosol Jet 3D printing systems are used for a wide array of printed electronics applications from R&D to high volume manufacturing. Examples of printed electronic devices will be on display in the Optomec booth along with live demonstrations of the five axis Aerosol Jet 5X system for printed electronics. The company will also showcase a groundbreaking 3D Printed Sensor application that was developed working with its customer General Electric (GE). The production solution utilizes an Aerosol Jet 5X system to print passive sensors directly onto turbine blades used in an industrial gas turbine. The sensors are composed of a ceramic material that can withstand the very high operating temperatures seen in the hot section of the gas turbine. These sensors can detect deformations in the underlying metal that could ultimately result in an expensive and sometimes catastrophic failure. The data from the sensors has a direct tie to GE's Predix software platform, demonstrating the digital convergence between Additive Manufacturing and the Internet of Things

Mr. Mike O’Reilly, Director of Aerosol Jet Products, will deliver a presentation at the conference titled “Functionalizing Structures via Aerosol Jet 3D Printed Electronics” at 3:20 pm on Wednesday, November 15. Mr. O’Reilly will discuss how structural Electronics is emerging as a new way of adding intelligence into products such as automobiles, turbine engines, medical devices, and building infrastructure. These functions can be used to sense, report on, and take or recommend corrective actions when products are deviating from their specifications. Optomec Aerosol Jet printers deliver the unique ability to print electronic and other materials onto any type of 2D and 3D structure, in dimensions ranging from 10 microns up to centimeters in scale. Aerosol Jet 3D printed electronics solutions have been deployed to add intelligence to products enabling continuous monitoring and feedback. This added functionality facilitates just-in-time corrective action helping to insure steady state operation of the functionalized products. Real world examples will be presented including printed creep sensors on turbine blades to monitor metal fatigue; printed temperature sensors onto catheters to insure proper operation of critical arterial ablation procedures; printed strain sensor on rotary shafts providing instantaneous feedback on torque related issues; and printed gas sensors on well-heads for detecting excess methane leakage.

About Optomec

Optomec is a privately-held, rapidly growing supplier of Additive Manufacturing systems. Optomec’s patented Aerosol Jet Systems for printed electronics and LENS 3D Printers for metal components are used by industry to reduce product cost and improve performance. Together, these unique printing solutions work with the broadest spectrum of functional materials, ranging from electronic inks to structural metals and even biological matter. Optomec has more than 200 marquee customers around the world, targeting production applications in the Electronics, Energy, Life Sciences and Aerospace industries.