IBM secures patent for 4D printing — smart material uses ML for transporting microparticles

Tech giant IBM secured a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on its technology for transporting microparticles using a 4D-printed smart material. According to the patent, these smart materials can use shape-memory alloys or polymers that respond to external forces like temperature, light, magnetism, or electrical currents.

After being deformed, the smart materials return to their original shape, allowing the researchers to induce movement in them and use them to transport minute-sized particles that would be difficult or impossible to transport using traditional delivery methods.

The user must initially set the delivery path and its environmental conditions and note the item's size, shape, weight, and composition to be delivered. Once completed, the machine learning algorithm applies the proper stimulus to move the material. This could be heat or light that causes one part or the other of the 4D material to respond, generating an action that results in an equal but opposite reaction.

Aside from following the user's initial path, IBM’s machine language monitors the 4D-printed smart material for any deviations or blockages. It will resolve the situation, allowing the operation to proceed with little human intervention. All external stimuli are removed when it reaches its destination, allowing the smart material to deliver its payload.

This design allows for the delivery of microparticles between 1 and 100 microns in diameter. Furthermore, its different control methods mean it can travel through various media, making it useful for medical and industrial applications. For example, doctors and medical technologists could use this technique to deliver drugs to specific cells via the blood or the gastrointestinal tract. It could also be used for miniature electronics manufacturing and perhaps introduce a new semiconductor manufacturing method.

4D printing builds upon 3D printing technology, wherein the filament used for printing reacts to external stimuli. Researchers can then use this to generate movement, much like how a single-celled organism can move by using chemical reactions within its cell membrane.