An integrated system and method of integrating fluid dispensing
technologies (e.g., direct-write (DW)) with rapid prototyping (RP)
technologies (e.g., stereolithography (SL)) without part registration
comprising: an SL apparatus and a fluid dispensing apparatus further
comprising a translation mechanism adapted to translate the fluid
dispensing apparatus along the Z-, Y- and Z-axes. The fluid dispensing
apparatus comprises: a pressurized fluid container; a valve mechanism
adapted to control the flow of fluid from the pressurized fluid
container; and a dispensing nozzle adapted to deposit the fluid in a
desired location. To aid in calibration, the integrated system includes a
laser sensor and a mechanical switch. The method further comprises
building a second part layer on top of the fluid deposits and optionally
accommodating multi-layered circuitry by incorporating a connector trace.
Thus, the present invention is capable of efficiently building single and
multi-material SL fabricated parts embedded with complex
three-dimensional circuitry using DW.