Vienna, June 10, 2020. The crisis has once again raised the demand for local and European-based production capabilities. Cubicure and FDX recognized this need and used the expertise of both companies to develop a flow sensor for ventilators in a very short time. FDX and Cubicure decided to make the components available to the public, free of charge for non-commercial use.
The crisis has once again raised the demand for local and European-based production capabilities. Cubicure and FDX recognized this need and used the expertise of both companies to develop a flow sensor for ventilators in a very short time. FDX and Cubicure decided to make the components available to the public, free of charge for non-commercial use.
„Der 3D-Druck ist für die Fertigung unserer Strukturen ideal, da unsere Geometrien strömungsbedingt durchaus komplex sind und traditionelle Fertigungsverfahren hier an ihre Grenzen stoßen“, betont Oliver Krüger, CTO von FDX. Es wurde somit nach einer Technologie gesucht, die neben der hohen Genauigkeit auch die passenden Materialeigenschaften liefert. Cubicure war mit der Hot Lithography Technologie der passende Technologieanbieter, so Krüger: „Das Hot Lithography Verfahren von Cubicure unterstützt nun erstmals hochwertige Kunststoffe, die direkt für unsere Serienteile einsetzbar sind und die hohe Fertigungspräzision erlaubt den 3D-Druck umströmter Oberflächen ohne Nachbearbeitung“.
Manufacturing potential for high-tech sensors, nozzles and components in the MedTech industry
For Cubicure, the project is also very exciting: The complex internal structures of the FDX sensor housings result in an oscillating airstream which can be interpreted acoustically by microphones. In this way, flow velocity and flow rate can be directly calculated. The geometry has been specially developed for the use in a respiratory ventilator and can therefore accurately determine the amount of air supplied to and discharged from the patient. The sensors can be manufactured very precisely and cost-efficiently.
"In terms of size and complexity, such components are the perfect examples of smart solutions using additive manufacturing," says Robert Gmeiner, CEO of Cubicure. "For components of this type, 3D printing can already cost-efficiently handle series production of up to several 10,000 units. The layer-by-layer structure and the elimination of production tools mean that additional functions can be realized in a single component". According to this production potential, both companies envision great opportunities in the medical technology sector, but also in many other industries that use fluidic components in the form of nozzles, fluid distributors or even sensor housings.
According to this production potential, both companies envision great opportunities in the medical technology sector, but also in many other industries that use fluidic components in the form of nozzles, fluid distributors or even sensor housings.
Cubicure GmbH develops, produces and distributes industrial 3D printing solutions for polymer parts. With roots in academia and the ambition to help shape the digital future of manufacturing, this Vienna-based company has been setting the course for agile production since 2015. Their Hot Lithography process enables the unprecedented additive manufacturing of resilient high-precision components.
Berlin-based FDX Fluid Dynamix GmbH was founded in 2015. With a team of 15 employees, consisting mostly of highly qualified engineers, the company has created a proprietary nozzle technology platform. They offer a standard product range and additionally have the expertise to develop 6,000 different nozzles through flow simulations. With OsciNet, the company has developed an app with which function, flow rate and pressure can be checked in real time, so that constant quality assurance is possible.
