Advanced Printed Electronic Solutions (APES) has launched Matrix6D, a flexible, modular adaptive additive manufacturing (AM) platform designed to enable scalable production.
With its 'swarm-based' approach to 3D printing, Matrix6D moves away from fixed build platforms to deploy magnetically levitated 'mobile build platforms' that are orchestrated by software across configurable tool stations.
The technology, APES says, enables 'unprecedented parallelisation, workflow flexibility, tool options, and throughput' in additive production. It uses a grid-based, XY-configurable tool-cell architecture to allow an arbitrary number of tool stations arranged in a matrix topology, with each station featuring different motion gantry options able to be configured depending on build volume and precision. Every cell is considered a mini manufacturing unit equipped with any combination of material deposition, including aerosol jet, inkjet, direct write, dispensing, or extrusion, as well as non-additive processes. These include curing/post-processing, pick-and-place robots, or other tools, such as vision systems for calibration and inspection. Mobile build platforms autonomously move from station to station via magnetic levitation, enabling complex, multi-step manufacturing processes without the spatial and functional constraints of traditional 3D printers.
APES has designed the platform to support mass customisation, concurrent production of different parts, and dynamic task allocation via orchestration software. Each tool station utilises machine vision or laser optics for self-calibration to ensure 'micron-level precision, even at scale'. Matrix6D's architecture is also said to support multiple classes of accuracy—from standard industrial-grade builds to high-resolution requirements needed for semiconductor packaging and advanced nano-fabrication capabilities.
"Every customer we've worked with asks the same question: how do we scale 3D printing beyond prototyping? 6D is our answer," said Rich Neill, CEO of APES. "It's a clean-sheet reimagining of the additive factory—adaptive, software-defined, and built for mass customization and true production volume."
The highly modular design of Matrix6D allows it to scale from small benchtop units to full production lines. It can accommodate varying toolhead sizes, tool station densities, and build volumes, while multiple manufacturing recipes can run in parallel. This, APES says, makes the technology ideal for applications in semiconductor and electronic device packaging, additively fabricated circuit boards, and metamaterial optics. The company also suggests there are opportunities in polymer-based processes, industrial automation applications, and volumetric AM.
Matrix6D is debuting at RAPID + TCT 2025 from Booth #1325, where APES is showcasing a working 1x2 demonstrator unit featuring a live extruder plus robotic handoff and dynamic mobile build platforms.
