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
A Sweet Alternative: 3D Printing Chocolate for Easter
While most 3D printers use plastic polymers, UK scientists have changed the game, developing a method for printing chocolate. All we can say is: Delicious!
Lead scientist Dr Liang Hao told BBC about the process:
“You just need to melt some chocolate, fill a syringe that is stored in the printer, and get creative printing your chocolate.”
Chocolate 3D Printers are expected go on sale in the April. Read more at BBC.
Below is a video of the chocolate printer in action.
Tinkercad Chess Set Design Contest: Winner Announced!
A few weeks ago, 3D design software company Tinkercad hosted a contest where users could submit their designs for 3D printable chess sets. The winner, announced today, was awarded a MakerBot 3D Printer.
The image above shows the winning submission, called Action Chess by cymon. This innovative design not only is a traditional chess set, but also pays homage to Transformers by allowing chess pieces to be combined into a larger creature.
Congratulations to cymon. Hope to see more creative designs like this soon!
Leapfrog Launches New 3D Printer Line in Europe
Netherlands-based Leapfrog launched a new 3D printer line in Europe. There are two models: the Creatr for € 1250 and the Xeed for € 4920. Both printers should be ready to ship by May 2012.
Leapfrog lists their mission statement as:
The purpose of Leapfrog is to bridge the gap between the current state of technology of 3D printers and the future of 3D printing as a whole. We aim to deliver very easy to use, plug and play devices that look awesome. Our drive is to become a worldwide recognized brand name, capitalizing on the high growth in the market for 3D printing and to take 3D printing to the next level. We strive to deliver devices which make a high quality of printed product available to a much broader customer base at an affordable price. You, the customer are central and should not have to deal with understanding the technology, letting you what you do best: designing and creating new cool things.
Super-Light, 3D Printed Guitar Revolutionizes Instrument Design
It’s a real guitar and has relatively the same shape as traditional shape of a classic les Paul, but this instrument did not come from a factory. This guitar was 3D printed.
Derek Manson, director of New Zealand design firm One.61 Ltd created the design and produced this new concept. He shared his inspiration.
“As you know music is so very subjective so we have no real data to support our design. The initial idea came from when I was watching Metallica’s Cunning Stunts DVD and Kirk Hammetts Wavecaster guitar is featured. This spawned the idea that a polymer based guitar is feasible because if it’s good enough for Kirk, it’s good enough for me.”
The implications of this achievement could be revolutionary for the music industry. It’s one thing to create a new design for an electric instrument, but imagine the possibilities for acoustic instruments.
Musical instruments have classic designs that are based mainly on the refinement by generations of specialist experts in hand-crafting the perfect shape for an instrument to have resonance and acoustic properties. Once a classic design is adopted, instruments can be mass produced.
With 3D printing technology, every musician can now experiment with complex instrument design. We are bound to see some instruments change from their classic form and new instruments appear.
Skeptical? Watch this video about a 3D printed flute.
Read more about the 3D Printed guitar at Forbes.
MIT Scientists Putting $10 Million Grant Toward 3D Printed Robots
Researchers from MIT are embarking on a mission to ”make it possible for the average person to design, customize and print a specialized robot in a matter of hours.”
With a $10 million grant from the National Science Foundation, collaborators from MIT, Harvard and UPenn are hoping to “democratize access to robots” within 5 years.
The Potential Impact?
Disposable, “origami-esque” robots could be printed on demand and programmed to perform tasks, from getting into hard-to-reach places to cleaning unsanitary surfaces and beyond. The goal of this research is to make robots accessible to everyone, thereby inspiring a new wave of technological innovation applied to real world challenges.
Below is a video of some of the prototype robots that have been built.
Read more at Wired.
