Editor’s Note
This article highlights a significant step in technology transfer, as IIT Indore licenses its advanced micro additive manufacturing system to an industry partner. It underscores the growing bridge between academic research and practical industrial application in India’s tech landscape.
The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore has licensed its micro additive manufacturing technology to Vfuse Metal Private Limited. This step is a significant achievement in bringing the technology developed in IIT’s laboratory to the industry.
This technology is called a Laser Decal Transfer (LDT)-based micro 3D printer, developed by a team of researchers from the institute’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. According to officials, with the help of this technology, the company will now be able to start industry production. The micro 3D printer will soon be available in the market.
Research work on micro additive manufacturing has been ongoing in the institute’s laboratory for over two years. Key contributors from the Department of Mechanical Engineering include Prof. Palani Anand, Prof. Vipul Singh, Dr. Anshu Sahu, and research scholar Krishna Tomar.
This micro 3D printer is capable of creating micro and highly precise designs using very thin layers of material (thin film feedstock). Its most notable feature is that it reduces material wastage, which lowers costs and yields more accurate results.
This advanced technology will prove particularly useful in fields requiring micro-scale features and high precision. These include microelectronics, biomedical devices, wearable technology, advanced sensors, and sensitive sectors like defense and space. This technology will not only benefit industries but will also prove to be a crucial step towards making India technologically self-reliant.