Thingiverse - Digital Designs for Physical Objects. The dark side of 3D printing: 10 things to watch. The 3D printer is a double-edged sword.
It stands to transform technology and society for the better, but we also can't ignore the potential negative consequences. As with any new technology, it's easy to get swept up in the benefits of 3D printing. It opens up a world of new possibilities for all industries, and stands to lessen transportation costs, environmental impacts, waste, and reliance on corporations by enabling the maker movement. But 3D printers are still potentially hazardous, wasteful machines, and their societal, political, economic, and environmental impacts have not yet been studied extensively. To make sure you aren't thrown off guard by the conversations to come, we've compiled a list of 10 things you need to know about the dangers and potentially negative impacts of 3D printers. 1. 3D printers are energy hogs 2. 3D printers may pose a health risk when used in the home, according to researchers at the Illinois Institute of Technology. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
RepRap. TEDxEWB Talk: Adrian Bowyer at Imperial College, London, introduces RepRap RepRap is humanity's first general-purpose self-replicating manufacturing machine.
Sub-$500 'Plug-and-Play' 3D Printer Lands at CES. XYZPrinting Inc.'s da Vinci is a $499 personal 3D printer that the company says requires no assembly or equipment adjustment.
LAS VEGAS–XYZprinting Inc. is at CES showing off da Vinci, a personal 3D printer priced at just $499. Modern Meadow. DIY Wedding goes to a new 3-D level. Do It Yourself or DIY weddings are more popular than ever, whether you would like a little bit (or more) uniqueness infused into a traditional day, adding personal touches makes it even more special.
Most brides (or grooms) to-be are familiar with the classic DIY craft items, the tissue flowers, handmade centerpieces, drapes of ribbon and the list goes on… but have you thought about 3-D printing your rings or cuff-links? Shapeways is a new online service that is sort of the Etsy for 3D products. This cross between a 3-D printing firm and consumer marketplace allows any average person the opportunity to “print” almost anything they can imagine. Phoenix Bridal Hair Accessory Design by Hanyin So the term “printing” may seem a bit confusing if you’re not familiar with the process. Creating A Kinkos For 3-D Printing. "Our goal is to help people make stuff," says Nathan Tone--a straightforward mission for the creator of a website that connects people who need 3-D printers with those who have them.
Tone and his partner Chad Masso came up with the idea after Tone himself struggled to find an affordable, local 3-D printer in San Francisco for a design project he was working on. "I didn’t have the 3-D printer at the time, so I sent it off to a service bureau in New York," he explains. "And it was just really frustrating because it was really expensive.
" It also took a while to turn the task around. A 3-D Printing "Pen" Project Hits Kickstarter. Filabot Turns Your Plastic Junk Into Material for 3-D Printers. It’s all too easy for forget the first two R’s before “recycle”: “reduce” and “re-use.”
By letting makers reuse their plastic scrap, Filabot helps skip the recycle box. Photo: Whitney Trudo Filabot promises to help turn your plastic crap into 3-D printed fanciness, alleviating one of the biggest sustainability problems for 3-D printing. Just over a year ago, Tyler McNaney was on break from college. “I was surfing the internet as most college kids do, and I saw a video of 3-D printing,” he says.
For desktop 3-D printers to work, they need some kind of material to work with. Think a meat grinder on top of a pasta maker and you get the general idea. The need for something like this is enormous. MakerBot’s Bre Pettis only wants to start a new industrial revolution. Bre Pettis wants to empower people.
And not in an ironic, marketing speak kind of way. It’s immediately evident that there is no cynical disconnect between what he’s saying about Makerbot’s mission and what he believes. Pettis is the CEO of Makerbot Industries, a Brooklyn, NYC-based company that is essentially in the business of commoditizing the process of rapid prototyping. The machines, the latest of which is the Replicator 2, measure a couple of feet square and consist of a 3D printing head that uses melted polymer filament to craft objects from digital models.
If you’ve got a 3D model of it, the Replicator 2 can likely reproduce it. The process of rapid prototyping came to be a part of the industrial design process in the 80′s, but until very recently required an incredible investment in people and machinery. MakerBot Announces More Advanced Replicator 2X 3-D Printer. The Replicator 2X.
Photo: Courtesy of MakerBot Months ago, MakerBot dropped hints to Wired about a newer version of their shiny Replicator 2 3-D printer. Today at CES, CEO Bre Pettis announced the Replicator 2X, an update to the printer that is designed for a more advanced consumer, a more experimental user. Targeting a higher-end market, the 2X features dual heads for printing more-complex objects. “For the daredevils out there, the Doc Browns, the MacGyvers, the test pilots, we haven’t forgotten about you,” says Pettis in a YouTube video released in advance of the announcement. “There are many ABS filament fans out there that want to keep using ABS, even though it can be a trickier and more challenging product to use,” Pettis says in MakerBot’s press release.
3D printing, laser cutting – design, make & build your own products with Ponoko. Shapeways - Make & Share Your Products with 3D Printing. The fast, easy to build, affordable 3D printer - 3D printing for everyone! Replicator™ 2 Desktop 3D Printer.