The 2016 Taipei International Invention Show & Technomart has begun in Taipei World Trade Center Exhibition Hall 1 on September 29. On the day of the opening ceremony, Shih-Kuang Li, the minister of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, was accompanied by Jen-Yi Lin, the Chairman of MIRDC, and Chia-Min Wei, the Vice President of MIRDC in visiting the exhibition area of the MIRDC. During the visit, Chun-Chieh Wang, the director of Metal Processing R&D Department at MIRDC, presented the research result of high-value metal materials and innovative applications derived from nitinol technology; the minister was highly interested in the products on display, and acknowledged that the key technology developed by the MIRDC will help the traditional industries upgrade.
In this exhibition, the MIRDC presented products from various fields, including metal materials, mold & die, micro fabrication and medical devices. Among the displayed products, the medical-grade nitinol shape-memory alloy material was the focal point in this exhibition. The nitinol developed by the MIRDC has seen a breakthrough and solved the manufacturing limitations of high metallurgical threshold and difficulties in controlling the shaping and the alloy’s characteristics, which established the indigenous supply ability of nickel-titanium materials domestically, and helped the downstream businesses speed up product R&D process in order to grab international market share.
The nitinol is equipped with unique characteristics such as shape-memory for recovery to unreformed shapes, super elasticity, anti-fatigue and biocompatibility, and has been applied in industries covering aerospace, civil industry and medical care. With the support of Department of Industrial Technology, the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the MIRDC has introduced the manufacturing system equipment and technology of nitinol benchmark factories from the States since 2013, and has built the first demonstrative experimental production line in Taiwan. The production line is able to carry out indigenous R&D of nitinol materials domestically, and is capable of providing a complete line of service that starts from the design of nitinol materials and ends with the commercialization of the nitinol materials. Currently, the line is capable of producing medical implant grade nitinol wires and tubes; the cleanliness and strength of the materials conform to the international standard ASTM F2063, and have passed five ISO 10993 biocompatibility tests. The technology has been used to support the domestic makers to develop needle files and wires for dental uses, key parts for orthopedic surgeries, medical guide pins, cardio-vascular stent and knee guard, which will enable the makers to be able to indigenously supply nitinol materials domestically and reduce the dependency on imports.
In addition, the MIRDC will also exhibit several vital technologies such as metal manufacturing process, micro-fabrication and medical devices in the 2016 Taipei International Invention Show & Technomart from September 29 to October 1. Everyone is welcome to enjoy this high tech experience in person! The exhibition booth of MIRDC: at the “R&D Alliance Hall” Exhibition Area of Taipei World Trade Center Exhibition Hall 1, booth number A0620.