Motorola Mobility, a Google company, is building a 3D printed modular phone, and has partnered with 3D Systems for commercial fulfillment. More »
The Captured Dimensions pop-up studio was located in the Smithsonian Castle and featured approximately 80 digital cameras all connected to 3D software. More »
Microsoft expanded their support for 3D printing by launching a Windows 8 app called 3D Builder. It includes a library of objects you can edit and 3D print. More »
3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) announced the availability of the Sense 3D scanner, the first 3D scanner designed for the consumer and optimized for 3D printing. More »
With rumors circling that 3D Systems will be purchased by IBM, the stock soars. We look at why IBM might be interested in the 3D printing giant. More »
Yearly Archives: 2012
Shapeways Turns Four, Parties Like 3D Printing Rock Stars
Congratulations to 3D printing marketplace Shapeways on its 4th anniversary!
It has been quite a year for Shapeways, from raising $6.2 million in series B funding to opening a NYC distribution center to hitting the milestone of 1 million 3D printed products.
Photos from the party are available here and here. Looks like a great party. Don’t forget to invite us next time, Shapeways!
Top 3D Printing Headlines Last Week: Guns, Germs, and ABS Plastic
A roundup of the top news On 3D Printing brought you from July 23 to July 29.
Monday, July 23
Friday, July 27
- Afinia Targets Consumer Market with New 3D Printer Priced at $1499
- Organovo 3D Printing: Bold Mission But Needs Cash, May Offer Secondary
Saturday, July 28
University of Washington Club 3D Prints a Boat with Recycled Materials
Students at University of Washington have achieved two amazing feats: 1) 3D print a 7-foot boat, and 2) use recycled milk cartons as the raw materials for the print.
The students are part of an organization called the University of Washington Fabbers, and used a large, custom-designed 3D printer in the UW’s Mechanical Engineering Building. The completed boat was raced at the annual Milk Carton Derby at Green Lake in Seattle.
The new UW student club, Washington Open Object Fabricators (or WOOF), built the boat as its inaugural project. They spent the last two months researching, engineering, extruding, printing, and dumpster diving for the greater good, and eventually produced a 40 lbs (~250 1 gallon milk jugs) “canoeyak” capable of supporting 150lbs.
The club aimed to be the first to print a seaworthy craft, but the judges of the Derby weren’t sure what to make of their creation. Qualification was a problem as the engineers had used recycled milk cartons for its buoyancy, but not quite in the way that contest organizers had originally envisioned. It was eventually decided that the boat should be entered as “an unofficial entry in the adult open category” — it placed second in the race.
Speaking to Phys.org, faculty adviser Mark Ganter, professor of mechanical engineering, said that printing a boat “was a historic first.”
“Frankly, milk jug material is an awful material to work with,” Ganter said. “It shrinks, it curls, it doesn’t want to stick to itself. Overcoming all those parts of the problem was part of the achievement.”
Via inhabitat.com.
Fab Lab of the Week: Fab Lab Dublin Brings Ideas to Life in Ireland
This week’s featured Fab Lab is Fab Lab Dublin in Ireland, your own personal factory in the city with all the equipment and expertise to make it easier, faster, cheaper and more fun to create things. 3D printing is one of the key technologies at Fab Lab Dublin.
From their website:
We are a collective of designers, entrepreneurs and makers who are setting up Fab Lab Dublin. A Fab Lab is a digital fabrication lab equipped with computer-controlled machines like 3d printers, laser cutters, 3d scanners and precision milling machines. The lab acts as a personal factory in the city where you can design and produce your own inventions, prototypes and designer products.
Design and manufacture is fundamentally changing. Designs (physibles) can be shared digitally and collaborated on at a global scale. Manufacturing is being reinvented by the ability to ship digital data more efficiently than products. Digital information is now at the forefront of manufacture and design. A fab lab is equipped with computer-controlled tools that take digital data to create physical products. The lab includes technology-enabled products generally perceived as limited to mass production – meaning individuals can now compete with large-scale manufacture.
We want to empower individual designers, entrepreneurs and makers with access to the tools of invention. Fab Lab Dublin is a space where you can share your passions, designs and ideas. It is a space where collaboration and invention take place. Life is about the people you meet and the things you create with them. So come join us and share your passion.
Dublin recently hosted a mini Maker Faire. Here is a video showcasing some of the ideas at the faire.
Learn more about Fab Lab Dublin at their website, or follow them on Twitter @FabLabDublin.
See all of our featured Fab Labs in our weekly series.
Dublin at night photo by infomatique used under Creative Commons license.
Here Comes Controversy: Hobbyists 3D Print Automatic Weapons
An interesting and controversial story was published by Atomic MPC this week involving hobbyists designing and 3D printing automatic weapons.
In the wake of the tragic shooting in Colorado earlier this week, the Atomic forums entered a discussion on gun control and gun laws not only in Australia but the USA. Naturally as conversation progresses the topic goes off track a little, and one Atomican discovered a forum discussing the manufacture of AR15 lower receivers.
At first glance some readers, and especially gun enthusiasts may say “so what, why is this any different to making your own car parts?”. Well, the answer really is very simple, an engine part is not an object designed with the specific purpose of forging a weapon, a lower receiver is for the most part, is destined for such duties.
Okay, here comes the controversy. 3D printing is enabling easier access to guns, right? Wrong.
Look back at the 1993 film In The Line of Fire, starring Clint Eastwood and John Malkovich, and you will see a fanatic who creates a gun out of plastic molds. That was well before MakerBot got its start. Dangerous people will always find ways to hurt others. Technology does not accelerate this trend.
3D printing will have a revolutionary impact on our society, spanning industries from medical to logistics to entertainment. We hope to see, and report on, many more stories about the positive applications of this technology.
Via Atomic MPC.
