Kumovis R1 prints medical devices in clean room environment
German startup showcasing medical 3D printer at Formnext
Kumovis, a Munich-based developer of 3D printers founded in 2017 (which was a winner of the Formnext Start Up Challenge in 2018), will showcase its KUMOVIS R1 3D printer at this year’s Formnext conference. The machine is the “world’s first 3D printer with clean room integration” and can be used for on-the-spot production of medical devices.
Targeted at the medtech industry, the R1 is designed to fit seamlessly into medical production environments. The printer uses Fused Layer Manufacturing (FLM) technology and is compatible with a wide range of thermoplastic materials, including PEEK. Kumovis says the R1 is “designed to manufacture a high variety of medical products starting from rapid prototyping up to personalized implants.”
The “clean room” aspect of the printer involves a specially designed filter which prevents external particles from entering the printing environment and potentially contaminating a medical device or other printed part.
Officially released in August, the R1 will be demonstrated at this week’s Formnext exhibition, where Kumovis will present its vision for the future of medical production alongside 3D-LABS, a long-time partner of the Munich company.
“With the R1 3D printer, mechanical properties can be achieved as with no other polymer FLM technology,” said Sebastian Pammer, Head of R&D at Kumovis. “We want to make visible the variety of new possibilities with [3D-LABS] in the form of functionalized parts, among other things.”
Alongside the R1 printer, Kumovis will demonstrate solutions such as a new monitoring technology that measures dimensions and detects defects during printing.
“At Kumovis, we have been devoted to delivering the leading 3D printing ecosystem for medical technology since day one,” said Miriam Hearst, Managing Partner at Kumovis. “We are thus very happy that key customers and partners such as Switzerland-based Samaplast have been among its first users.”
Other features of the Kumovis R1 include a temperature management system and “user-centered” interface.
