Houghton, Michigan – November 17, 2015 – A new, personal manufacturing robot named Athena is expanding the scope of what 3-D technology can do and leading the launch of a new Upper Peninsula- based business.
Michigan Tech research scientist and alumnus Jerry Anzalone and Michigan Tech Materials Science and Engineering PhD candidate Bas Wijnen have teamed up with Calumet High School tech and trades instructor Mark Bonenfant to form Phidias, LLC. Athena is the face of the company, which develops and sells open-source hardware and software.
The advanced robot commercialized by Phidias and recently featured in TechCentury and BusinessWire, has a multitude of manufacturing tasks in its repertoire in addition to printing 3-D plastics. It can mill print circuit boards and other soft materials. It can print with pastes, including sealants and food-based materials. It accurately cuts vinyl and other pliable materials. And it can pen-plot complex vector graphics.
One of Athena’s most innovative qualities is the ability to handle heavy as well as light tools, something beyond the capacity of typical 3-D printers.

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