3D Printers for Peace

In the wake of the Cody Wilson’s 3D printed gun fiasco, Michigan Tech is launching a 3D printing contest for good.

Below are the details of the contest and how to enter.

3D printing is changing the world. Unfortunately, the only thing many people know about 3D printing is that it can be used to make guns. We want to celebrate designs that will make lives better, not snuff them out.

What is the Printers for Peace Contest?

We are challenging the 3D printing community to design things that advance the cause of peace. This is an open-ended contest, but if you’d like some ideas, ask yourself what Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King, or Ghandi would make if they’d had access to 3D printing.

• low-cost medical devices
• tools to help pull people out of poverty
• designs that can reduce racial conflict
• objects to improve energy efficiency or renewable energy sources to reduce wars over oil
• tools that would reduce military conflict and spending while making us all safer and more secure
• things that boost sustainable economic development (e.g. designs for appropriate technology in the developing world to reduce scarcity)

1st Prize

Fully assembled, open-source Type A Machines Series 1 3D Printer
The Series 1 recently won best in class in the Make: Ultimate Guide to 3-D Printing. It has a 9-by-9-by-9-inch build volume, prints at 90mm/sec in PLA, ABS and PVA with 0.1mm resolution.

2nd Prize

Michigan Tech’s MOST version of the RepRap Prusa Mendel open-source 3D printer kit
The RepRap can be built in a weekend. It has a 7.8–by-7.8-by-6.8-inch build volume on a heated bed, prints comfortably at 80 mm/sec ABS, 45 mm/sec PLA, HDPE and PVA with 0.1 mm resolution.

Enter the Contest

Go to the Michigan Tech website to enter the contest.

Image by snapies_gi used under Creative Commons license.

Mega Deletes 3D Printing Gun Plans

Kim Dotcom, the Internet entrepreneur and convicted cyber-criminal behind Megaupload and now Mega does not want to support 3D printed guns.

While reports came out that the US Government has removed the files from DEFCAD and whether international arms control laws may have been broken, Kim Dotcom instructed his company to delete the uploaded plans for the “Liberator”, Cody Wilson’s 3D printed gun.

Via Newstalk ZB.

Kim Dotcom photo by sam_churchill used under Creative Commons license.

3D Printing News

A roundup of the top 3D printing news from May 7 to May 11:

Tuesday, May 7

• 3DLT Launches at TechCrunch Disrupt After Challenging Past
• Video: Cody Wilson of Defense Distributed Launches 3D Printed Gun

Thursday, May 9

• Breaking: US Government Takes Down 3D Printed Gun Plans

Saturday, May 11

• Obama Announces $200 Million Program for 3D Printing and Innovation

War on 3D Printed Guns

“DEFCAD files are being removed from public access at the request of the US Department of Defense Trade Controls. Until further notice, the United States government claims control of the information.”

That’s the notice on Cody Wilson’s DEFCAD website, a self-proclaimed “makeshift response” that was created when MakerBot took 3D printed gun designs off of its marketplace Thingiverse so that Defense Distributed could provide plans to 3D printed guns online.

This comes just days after the launch of the Liberator 3D printed gun.

The announcement of the takedown is trending on Reddit and designs have been replicated to torrent networks.

More as this develops…