High-precision path planning for multi-material 3D bioprinting of complex structures

作者：Wenyu Ning, Fei Duan, Lily Raymond, Weikang Lv, Jiangtao Hao, Yang Yang, Wenbo Jin, Jian Yang, Shijun Li, Sai Ma, Cheng Zhang, Prof. Yifei Jin, Danyang Zhao · 发表于：Biofabrication · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.1088/1758-5090/ae36f8 · 被引用次数：2 · 研究领域：3D Printing in Biomedical Research、Advanced Materials and Mechanics、Nanomaterials and Printing Technologies

Multi-nozzle (MN) collaborative bioprinting enables high-precision fabrication of complex tissue and organ models through synchronous deposition of heterogeneous bioinks within a shared substrate, offering a promising solution for efficient construct generation. However, challenges remain, including nozzle motion interference and inconsistent geometric fidelity when printing asymmetric structures with heterogeneous materials. This study proposes a multi-nozzle collaborative and alternating printing path (MN-CAPP) planning strategy that integrates intra-layer repartitioning with adaptive mode switching to optimize the fabrication of complex heterogeneous tissues. By printing two Y-shaped vascular models with distinct interfaces, MN-CAPP preserves the efficiency advantages of collaborative printing for symmetric regions, improving printing efficiency by 32.4% and 33.0%, respectively, compared with single-nozzle printing. Furthermore, MN-CAPP adaptively regulates printing strategies for regions with significant nozzle step differences based on ink rheology and printing parameters. During the fabrication of size-differentiated scaffolds, the proposed path effectively suppresses edge material stack in small-scale scaffolds, resulting in a 33.8% improvement in pore diffusion degree relative to conventional collaborative printing. Finally, successful fabrication of a heterogeneous rabbit hepatobiliary model demonstrates a deviation of ⩽4% in critical feature dimensions from design s...