An Australian scientist is preparing to begin field trials of an invention expected to provide life-saving vaccines to children around the world immeasurably cheaper and years faster than is now possible.

And it is all without the use of needles.

Breakthrough: Mark Kendall.

Mark Kendall is the inventor of the Nanopatch, a strip smaller than a postage stamp with thousands of microscopic points that can inject disease-breaking vaccines into the skin.

Professor Kendall, of Brisbane, and a team of international researchers have been working for nine years on the ''needle-less'' vaccination in the laboratory.