This project is focused on providing a business application to a novel methodology of printing dendrites. We are a group of undergraduate students at Arizona State University who are tasked with researching and planning out a business model and possibly prototyping a product that could utilize this dendrite printing technology. The technology itself is owned and operated by a startup associated with a research laboratory at ASU.
In the course of two semesters, we should be able to present an idea for how we can use the printing technology in a new application. The current application is limited to fruit and vegetable produce and is only partially developed. As the project progresses, our group is to take the new developments in the current technology and current application to shape how we can change or adapt to the technology for our proposed product.
Success in a project as ambiguous as this is difficult to define and even more difficult to measure. That being said, success will be measured based on our completion of milestone tasks in the various phases of this project. Our true success will be judged by our ability to satisfy the needs of the stakeholders, mainly the startup and associated professors and laboratory staff. They believe that printed dendrites can help identify and validate products for their authenticity or provide the consumer valuable information regarding the product they are purchasing. From their ideas, this information could be as limited as a barcode or as specific as to where it was made, how it was handled, how it was processed, and more.
For this project, we want to either come up with an entirely new application in the food industry or to expand on what industries can use this and how. That change in perspective is integral to our success in this project. Given the new nature of this product, the only real barrier to introducing a new project based on this would be the lack of previous public interaction with it. Like any new technology, it will have to prove itself as worth something as it does not necessarily fulfill a need for the majority of the population.