3D Printing True Electronic Parts with Todays Technology

If you think 3D printing can only produce parts with structural functions, think again. 

The first commercially available 3D-printing (additive manufacturing) system for electrical applications was launched more than a decade ago by Optomec of New Mexico, and developments in this field continue to emerge.

Most engineers and consumers think of 3D printing as building a physical part from layers of plastic, metal or perhaps bio-active materials. But 3D printing of electronics has emerged as a viable option, involving one or more of the following production approaches and materials: 

 

1. Extruding layers of electrically conductive plastic material alongside non-conductive plastic material
2. Laying down silver traces on 3D-surface topology of existing parts, eliminating the need for separate printed-circuit boards (PCBs)
3. Depositing conductive inks/pastes alongside insulating material in a single build cycle
4. Creating hybrid parts that include embedded wires or metal traces