Microstereolithography-based computer-aided manufacturing for tissue engineering.
Various solid freeform fabrication technologies have been introduced for constructing three-dimensional (3-D) freeform structures. Of these, microstereolithography (MSTL) technology performs the best in 3-D space because it not only has high resolution, but also fast fabrication speed. Using this technology, 3-D structures with mesoscale size and microscale resolution are achievable. Many researchers have been trying to apply this technology to tissue engineering to construct medically applicable scaffolds, which require a 3-D shape that fits a defect with a mesoscale size and microscale inner architecture for efficient regeneration of artificial tissue. This chapter introduces the principles of MSTL technology and representative systems. It includes fabrication and computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) processes to show the automation process by which measurements from medical images are used to fabricate the required 3-D shape. Then, various tissue engineering applications based on MSTL are summarized.
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pohang Institute of Intelligent Robotics, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang, South Korea. dwcho@postech.ac.kr
Dong-Woo
DW
Cho
Hyun-Wook
HW
Kang
D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry*; D017076:Computer-Aided Design; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D055616:Microtechnology / Q000295:instrumentation*; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry; D016062:Porosity; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000295:instrumentation*; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry*
D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D011108:Polymers