We checked out the Fabmaker 3D printer, which originates in Germany. It’s a plastic filament-based device that is targeted for educators. We asked about the features that make the Fabmaker so appropriate for the education market and were told: Fabmaker provides specific consulting services to educators The Fabmaker’s exterior case is made from safety… Continue reading The Fabmaker 3D Printer
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Commercial 3D Printer Companies Focusing on Efficiency
At this year’s EuroMold trade show we were able to check out a number of commercial 3D printer companies. These are the organizations that produce the large scale devices capable of printing in exotic materials such as metal, nylon and even ceramics. They’re well beyond the price range of personal 3D printer owners, but the… Continue reading Commercial 3D Printer Companies Focusing on Efficiency
The Most Popular 3D Printers Are…
3D printer service 3D Hubs knows quite a bit about the state of personal 3D printers because it’s their business. They provide a service where folks with idle 3D printers can accept 3D print work for payment from the public. By tracking the changes in their population of 3D printer participants, 3D Hubs can… Continue reading The Most Popular 3D Printers Are…
Stratasys’ Nylon Material
A few weeks ago we speculated that Stratasys might begin focusing on new materials to exploit their huge base of installed 3D printers as their FDM patents expire, and it appears they’ve done so with the announcement of their new Nylon-12 material. Fred Fisher, Director of Materials at the company explained to Fabbaloo that… Continue reading Stratasys’ Nylon Material
The Village Plastics Acquisition: Explained
We stand corrected: today officials from 3D Systems informed us that in fact, Village Plastics has been supplying them with a very significant portion of the filament plastic used on their Cubify 3D printers. Yesterday we speculated that VP sold plastic only to 3D Systems’ competitors. Who knew? Now the acquisition makes complete sense.… Continue reading The Village Plastics Acquisition: Explained
3D Systems Acquires Village Plastics
In a totally surprising move, 3D printing giant 3D Systems acquired Ohio-based Village Plastics. VP, best known by their sales outlet Filaco, manufacturers generic plastic filament for personal 3D printers. The company is known for their high-quality, non-toxic filament and their penchant for experimenting with non-standard materials such as HIPS. But we’re wondering… Continue reading 3D Systems Acquires Village Plastics
Formlabs Releases a New Resin
Formlabs, makers of the popular Form 1 personal 3D printer have released a new resin. Previously, the company offered only two resins: Grey and Clear. The new material is “White”. For a rapid startup company such as Formlabs, it’s totally understandable they may take some time before introducing new materials, but now they’ve done… Continue reading Formlabs Releases a New Resin
Design of the Week: Verlan Dress
This week’s selection is the incredible Verlan Dress by NYC designer Francis Bitonti’s team. The dress is not only unusual in appearance but also its material, availability and creation process. The piece was sponsored by MakerBot in a successful effort to display their new Flexible Filament material, which was used in the dress to… Continue reading Design of the Week: Verlan Dress
How Good Can 3D Print Resolution Get?
Aside from research experiments in atomic-sized 3D printing, you might wonder what kind of ultimate 3D printing resolution could be achieved. Most personal 3D printers use a plastic filament-based process, which really doesn’t provide the best resolution. Typically prints are printed at a layer size no smaller than 0.1mm, simply because the visual appearance… Continue reading How Good Can 3D Print Resolution Get?
3D Systems Acquires Figulo
3D Systems has made another key acquisition, this time of a small but very interesting provider: Figulo. If you haven’t heard of them, they are perhaps the leading provider of glazed-ceramic 3D prints. We understand their services are used by some of the major 3D print services for outsourced ceramic work. Why is this… Continue reading 3D Systems Acquires Figulo
The RepRap Industrial
RepRap 3D printers are for hobbyists, right? For tinkerers who like to build their own machines? Not always, if you were to ask the brothers Kühling & Kühling, who produce the RepRap Industrial 3D printer. This machine is a pre-assembled RepRap machine specifically designed for industrial use. What makes it so? We noticed multiple… Continue reading The RepRap Industrial
The 3D Printed Robot Heart Powered by Urine
Researchers in the UK have created a 3D printed robotic heart that uses urine as its fuel source. While many might be repulsed by the idea of a heart that pumps urine, have no fear – the robotic heart is designed for use in robots, not humans. In a paper published in the… Continue reading The 3D Printed Robot Heart Powered by Urine
A Visit to the London Science Museum’s 3D Print Exhibit
We strolled through the London Science Museum’s new exhibit on 3D printing recently. The intent of the exhibit, entitled, “3D Printing the Future”, was to expose more of the public to the amazing technology of 3D printing. Indeed, this was the case as we observed dozens of people marveling over the numerous print examples on… Continue reading A Visit to the London Science Museum’s 3D Print Exhibit
The Be3D DeeOrange 3D Printer
The Be3D DeeOrange is a small personal 3D printer assembled by a Czech company with 20 years of experience in engineering and technology. Available for two years, the device is a solid unit containing some solid features. Inside the attractive case is a heated plate the makes the machine capable of 3D printing ABS… Continue reading The Be3D DeeOrange 3D Printer
Project Shapeshifter: How To Torture Objects
Autodesk certainly has delivered very interesting free 3D software available recently – and another that might join the suite might be “Project Shapeshifter”. It’s a web-based service that can be used to develop 3D models. The service is terribly easy to use: start with a template and simply shift the sliders (as seen in… Continue reading Project Shapeshifter: How To Torture Objects
Interactive 3D Model Design with Digital Forming
We spoke with Lisa Harouni (yes, the Lisa Harouni of TED fame) regarding her new venture, Digital Forming. It’s a cloud service that provides an ability to interactively generate 3D models, which of course, can then be 3D printed. How does it work? After a designer develops a 3D model of an object or… Continue reading Interactive 3D Model Design with Digital Forming
Digital Crafts: A Book for Artists Exploring 3D Printing
We’ve checked out a new book that is specifically designed to assist artists who enter the world of 3D printing and digital design. The book contains many case studies involving not only digital design using 3D CAD software, but also the process of 3D printing using contemporary equipment and 3D scanning. There’s even information… Continue reading Digital Crafts: A Book for Artists Exploring 3D Printing
Uformia’s MeshUp
Scandinavian software developer Uformia is working on a new tool: MeshUp. The new product complements their existing product, Symvol, which operates as a plugin to Rhino3D, the popular 3D modeling software package. MeshUp offers similar functionality but in a standalone application without the requirement for Rhino3D. But what does it do for you? Many… Continue reading Uformia’s MeshUp
A Personal 3D Metal Printer: In Progress
We’re checking out a project that’s listed on the RepRap Wiki: MetalicaRap. The goal is to produce a: Open 3D metal & home solar cell printer, based on the principles of electron beam welding and vapor deposition. No, it isn’t ready yet – the project is still in the planning stages. While the… Continue reading A Personal 3D Metal Printer: In Progress
The Five Most Important 3D Printing Tips You Must Know
If you have a plastic extrusion-based personal 3D printer, there’s some things you’d better know. This printing technology has its quirks regardless of the brand and model of machine you’re using. We’ve put together a few of the most basic things to know before you get started. Level The Bed: Perhaps the single most… Continue reading The Five Most Important 3D Printing Tips You Must Know
Personal 3D Printing In Gold
Can you 3D print in gold at home? Not exactly. But we have found an example of how you can use 3D printing technology to cast gold. In a now-old post on the Ultimaker blog, jeweler Paul Steenbrink (a.k.a. Cardillac) experimented with a technique for preparing gold jewelry: The 3D print is invested… Continue reading Personal 3D Printing In Gold
Sculpteo Partners with French Post Office
France-based 3D print service Sculpteo has partnered with the French post office, La Poste, to provide 3D print services at three locations in the Paris area. La Poste is interested in exploring new ways to revive interest in using postal services – and 3D printing could be one of those ways if the experiment… Continue reading Sculpteo Partners with French Post Office
Could 3D Print Recycling Be Dangerous?
Recently several ventures have attempted to produce devices for producing your own 3D printer plastic filament. The idea is that you can purchase plastic pellets at a fraction of the price of filament, feed them into the filament machine, which then extrudes filament for you to spool. There’s another way to use these devices:… Continue reading Could 3D Print Recycling Be Dangerous?
The Fatal Paradox of Plastic Extrusion 3D Printing
There are several questions always asked by the public about personal 3D printing whenever they are exposed to the technology. They want to know: How big of an object can I print? Is there a way to get rid of those unsightly layer lines? Why does printing take so long?!! The answers have… Continue reading The Fatal Paradox of Plastic Extrusion 3D Printing
Design of the Week: Shades of Grey
This week’s selection is Claire Thompson’s Shades of Grey. It’s a fascinating work that is both smooth and two-tone. Perfectly sized to sit on the edge of a table, the portrait carries an interesting story. From Thompson: Shades of Grey is a portrait, digitally and manually created, which references the complexity and ambiguity of… Continue reading Design of the Week: Shades of Grey
What 3D Printers Will Be Announced at CES 2014?
Last year at CES 2013 in Las Vegas we saw the start of a pattern: two significant personal 3D printers we announced. Both MakerBot and 3D Systems showed off new flagship devices. As they have not released any new machines since then, we suspect they both plan big announcements. But what could they be?… Continue reading What 3D Printers Will Be Announced at CES 2014?
MCOR Doubles Their 3D Print Speed – At No Cost!
3D printer manufacturer MCOR, who produce the full-color Iris paper 3D printer, announced a pretty major new feature: double speed printing. Yes, TWICE as fast. Even better, the software upgrade that increases the speed is being made available for all existing machines. But how do they do it? It’s all in the motion.… Continue reading MCOR Doubles Their 3D Print Speed – At No Cost!
Leapfrog’s Selling Simplify3D
We managed to get a close look at the new version of Simplify3D software today, courtesy of Mathijs Kossen of Leapfrog 3D Printers. Leapfrog is offering Simplify3D as an option for use with their printers. The standard software, Slic3r, works well, but sometimes introduces layer artifacts such as those illustrated above. Simply3D attempts to… Continue reading Leapfrog’s Selling Simplify3D
We. Touched. It.
The rather simple plastic item shown above happened to be in the possession of certain individuals at 3D Systems’ booth at EuroMold 2013. What is it, exactly? We don’t really know or care, because that’s not its important characteristic. It is the very first 3D printed object. Ever. Made some 30 years… Continue reading We. Touched. It.
3D Printing Pre-Formed, Expandable Structures
In what could be a preview of the future of architectural design, Los Angeles-based architecture office ID4A has created a method for creating pliable, reconfigurable 3D prints. According to Rania Hoteit and Malek Idriss, principles at ID4A, their new method for architectural “hyper-prototyping” employs a “rigorous exchange between computational design, physical prototyping and additive… Continue reading 3D Printing Pre-Formed, Expandable Structures
Extending the Ban on 3D Printed Weapons
A story in the Guardian describes the work by New York Senator Chuck Schumer to extend the ban on “undetectable guns” before it expires on December the 9th of this year. Obviously this work was inspired by recent events where working guns were produced on 3D printers – although the weapons produced were by… Continue reading Extending the Ban on 3D Printed Weapons
The Ethical Filament Foundation
Do you know where your 3D printer plastic filament came from? Do you know who produced it, and how they did it? Is it possible you purchased 3D printer filament that was made by children, perhaps in dangerous environments? It seems that some filament is produced in third world countries by having the poor… Continue reading The Ethical Filament Foundation
Bee The First – A Portable 3D Printer
We managed to get a first hand look at a very unique 3D printer, BeeTheFirst from Portugal-based BeeVeryCreative. While the device has mechanical characteristics similar to most 3D printers of its category, it has a very unique design that includes a handle for easy portage. BeeTheFirst is a 20 pound unit that prints… Continue reading Bee The First – A Portable 3D Printer
Most 3D Scans are In Jail
Every few weeks we are bombarded with press releases from research organizations that are keen to tell the story of how they have captured in great detail a 3D scan of a building or property. Museums in particular are getting into the scanning business. It’s thought that the Smithsonian, for example, has hundreds, perhaps thousands… Continue reading Most 3D Scans are In Jail
The Robox Personal 3D Printer
We’re looking at another Kickstarter campaign for yet another 3D printer. There have been so many recently it has become very difficult to distinguish one offering from another. So how does Robox do it? We were surprised to find it does have several very unique and interesting features. Aside from the now-industry-standard features… Continue reading The Robox Personal 3D Printer
3D Systems Explodes with Announcements
3D printing giant 3D Systems isn’t standing still. At the EuroMold exhibition today they announced not one, not two, but twelve products to bolster their already considerable portfolio of equipment, software and services. They not only announced the products, but showed them at their massive booth at the Frankfurt trade show, staffed by what… Continue reading 3D Systems Explodes with Announcements
Finland’s miniFactory 3D Printer
We managed to check out a 3D printer from Finland: the Mini Factory and found it has several interesting features that differentiate it from other 3D printers in its class. Like many inexpensive 3D printers, the miniFactory uses plastic filament. A problem sometimes observed is that filaments break or bend during printing. The miniFactory… Continue reading Finland’s miniFactory 3D Printer
The Delta Tower 3D Printer
Tall. That’s one way to describe the incredible Delta Tower 3D printer. It uses, obviously, the delta technique for rapidly and efficiently moving the single or dual extruders through each layer during printing. The statistic you’re looking for is this: it can print items up to 580mm tall, approximately twice that of the biggest… Continue reading The Delta Tower 3D Printer
The KentStrapper Volta 3D Printer
We examined the Italian KentStrapper Volta 3D printer and found a very solid design. The Volta uses a laser-cut wood frame, unlike other models that have shifted to metal frames, but does use linear bearings to provide smooth mechanical movements. The Volta offers a relatively large build area, as you can see in the… Continue reading The KentStrapper Volta 3D Printer
ColorFabb’s Focus on 3D Printing
We had a chat about filament with Sander Strijbos of ColorFabb at the recent 3D Printshow in London. While there are quite a few vendors marketing filament, most of their innovations involve new colors of PLA and ABS plastic. Not so with ColorFabb, who explore the edge of the envelope in filament technology. Strijbos… Continue reading ColorFabb’s Focus on 3D Printing
Design of the Week: IKEA Ramvik Reinvented
This week’s selection is an incredible 3D printed table by Ole Hermann Godø. It’s not entirely 3D printed, but as you’ll see, the “guts” of this table were definitely 3D printed. The table’s innards have been replaced with several dozen intricately arranged 3D printed gears – that move! Combined with interior lighting, the effect… Continue reading Design of the Week: IKEA Ramvik Reinvented
Off To EuroMold!
This week we’re traveling to Frankfurt, Germany to take in this year’s EuroMold trade show. If you don’t know, EuroMold is the world’s largest event focused on mold-making and prototyping equipment – and that means 3D printers, too. What do we expect to see? There will be displays from all the large commercial 3D… Continue reading Off To EuroMold!
3D Systems Partners with Motorola
There are not a lot of details, but an agreement was reached between 3D Systems and Motorola, whereby 3D Systems would produce 3D printed “modules” to be used in Motorola’s modular smartphone venture, Project Ara. Project Ara intends on devising an open source, “free, open hardware platform for creating highly modular smartphones”, in which,… Continue reading 3D Systems Partners with Motorola
A New Approach to 3D Printed Skin
The University of Liverpool has developed a different approach to 3D printed skin, which had been previously accomplished. The problem with prior techniques is the appearance: manufactured skin was entirely uniform, without the bumps, wrinkles, freckles and curiosities of actual human skin. The new approach involves scanning a subject’s surviving skin to prepare a… Continue reading A New Approach to 3D Printed Skin
Development is Underway for a Graphene 3D Printing Material
In a recent press release, Lomiko Metal, a Vancouver based firm, announced its intention to create a laboratory dedicated to the development of “graphene-enhanced” 3D printing materials. Graphene, which recently proved to be the world’s strongest material, has been of keen interest to a wide range of industries since its first isolation in 2004.… Continue reading Development is Underway for a Graphene 3D Printing Material
3D Printing Patents Sky Rocket in Number
In a recently released report, the UK’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has stated that the amount of patent filing related to 3D printing has increased dramatically since the year 2000. After analyzing 9000 patent records filed since 1980, a team of IPO researchers pinpointed a rapid upswing in 3D printing related patents; particularly in… Continue reading 3D Printing Patents Sky Rocket in Number
MakerBot Opens Two New Stores
It’s happened. We reported earlier that MakerBot intended to open not one, but two additional retail outlets to add to the initial store located in lower Manhattan. One of the new stores is located in Boston, a city of some technological innovation activity, particularly in 3D printing. The other store is located in… Continue reading MakerBot Opens Two New Stores
The 3D Printing Patent Backlash Begins
It was inevitable, but the personal 3D printing community is not reacting well to the announcement by Stratasys that it was suing Afinia for patent infringement. It seems that the feeling is that other new 3D printer manufacturers might also become legal targets as patented technology could be found in their equipment. The image… Continue reading The 3D Printing Patent Backlash Begins
A 3D Printed Movie Character Collection
At this year’s 3D Printshow we were excited to visit the large display of 3D prints by Legacy Effects. If you don’t know about Legacy Effects, they are one of the premier special effects shops in Hollywood, and have produced numerous famous characters for motion pictures you’ve no doubt seen. While much of Legacy… Continue reading A 3D Printed Movie Character Collection
Implications of the Stratasys – Afinia Lawsuit
By now you’ve no doubt heard that Stratasys has launched a major lawsuit against Afinia for alleged violations of several Stratasys patents. We examined these patents previously, but we believe there are implications that travel far beyond simply Afinia, as the patents describe methods commonly used in many personal 3D printers. The concept of… Continue reading Implications of the Stratasys – Afinia Lawsuit
Details of the Stratasys – Afinia Lawsuit
We’ve been reading more about this week’s legal action by Stratasys against personal 3D printer marketer Afinia, who are alleged to have violated several of Stratasys’ patents. We’ve obtained a copy of the “Complaint for Patent Infringement” filed in the United States District Court, District of Minnesota (where Stratasys’ HQ is located, and, totally… Continue reading Details of the Stratasys – Afinia Lawsuit
3D Printed Batteries?
Harvard materials scientist Jennifer Lewis has produced a new liquid material that could be used to 3D print lithium-ion batteries. The “ink” is intended to be 3D printed using the syringe approach that is frequently used for bioprinting or culinary experiments. The process to produce the liquid material is quite interesting. Printing battery… Continue reading 3D Printed Batteries?
Stratasys Sues Afinia
3D printing giant Stratasys launched legal action against Afinia, a marketer of personal 3D printers. The statement from Stratasys says: Afinia’s sale, promotion and use of its Series H printer infringes patents directed to part porosity, liquefier structure, temperature control, and tool paths for constructing part perimeters. The most recent Stratasys patent that Afinia… Continue reading Stratasys Sues Afinia
Cirri – A Software 3D Scanner
A new 3D scanning option has appeared, courtesy of a group in Ottawa. The Cirri scanner hopes to provide a “professional 3D scanning solution”. Cirri isn’t a piece of hardware – instead it’s a software solution that uses multiple digital images of a subject to develop a true 3D model. This means that you… Continue reading Cirri – A Software 3D Scanner
The Stilnest Option
We had a chat with the nice folks from Stilnest, who operate an online 3D print store. Many such shops have recently emerged, so many that it’s getting difficult to distinguish them. So what does Stilnest do? They practice what we might call, “extreme curation”. Where other shops go for quantity, Stilnest focuses… Continue reading The Stilnest Option
123D Offers More 3D Content
One of the best introductory 3D toolsets you can use is Autodesk’s 123D Suite, particularly the 123D Design tool. But when you’re designing something, it’s often very helpful to begin your design with an existing model that you can modify. 123D does this by providing a library of thousands of starter models you can… Continue reading 123D Offers More 3D Content
3D Systems’ New Scanning Solution
3D Systems announced an inexpensive personal 3D scanner last week, but they also announced a professional 3D scanning solution, too. The new GeoMagic Capture bundle is a combination of a blue-LED 3D scanner and application-specific software to integrate the scan directly into several high-end 3D modeling solutions, including: SolidWorks, SpaceClaim, Design X, Design Direct,… Continue reading 3D Systems’ New Scanning Solution
Design of the Week: Wit’s End
This week’s selection is Ravi Venkataraman’s Wit’s End, which as you can see above, captures that feeling quite distinctly. It’s part of Venkataraman’s “Emotions in 3D” series, where a variety of emotions, from profound to fun are explored in 3D sculptures. We’ve seen several of these works but this one somehow resonates the best;… Continue reading Design of the Week: Wit’s End
New Ways to Resurrect Dinosaurs with 3D Printing
A paper published in the journal Radiology explores new techniques used to capture 3D information from dinosaur fossils. The new approach overcomes the problem of removing non-fossil material from the actual fossil during excavation and subsequent processing. Apparently when surrounding material is removed, small portions of the true fossil can be lost. The new… Continue reading New Ways to Resurrect Dinosaurs with 3D Printing
Cubes In Harrods!
3D Systems’ Cubify division has made another notable retail move, this time sealing a deal with Harrods of London to display the Cube personal 3D printer at their flagship store in Knightsbridge. Cubify has been rapidly expanding their network of resellers recently, but to be at Harrods is a big accomplishment. Harrods is a… Continue reading Cubes In Harrods!
The FilaFab Filament Maker
We had a close look at the FilaFab, a “Desktop Filament Fabricator”. It’s pretty simple in concept: put in some plastic bits and usable 3D printer filament comes out the nozzle. But there’s a lot more to it than that. The device has been carefully designed to ensure consistent melting temperature and flow rate… Continue reading The FilaFab Filament Maker
Apple Takes a Big Step Towards 3D Printing
Reports this week that Apple has purchased 3D sensor maker Primesense got us thinking about what this might mean in the future. But first, what happened? An Israeli news site broke the story of Israel-based Primesense in negotiations with Apple for an acquisition said to be in the more-than-USD$300M range. Primesense produces 3D sensors… Continue reading Apple Takes a Big Step Towards 3D Printing
Lawmakers Hope to Regulate 3D Printed Guns with an Act from the 1980s
US Senator Chuck Schumer (D) is sounding the alarm about the proliferation of 3D printed weapons as a law banning undetectable firearms is set to end on December 9, 2013. The Undetectable Firearms Act, which was adopted in the 1980s, sought to make firearms more easily detectable by requiring that they contain a minimum… Continue reading Lawmakers Hope to Regulate 3D Printed Guns with an Act from the 1980s
USC Investigating Multi-Material 3D Printing
Researchers at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering led by Professor Yong Chen have demonstrated a new method of 3D printing multiple materials. By “multiple” we mean two materials that can be combined in different ratios. For example, the process can print an object that has both hard and soft portions – in different degrees… Continue reading USC Investigating Multi-Material 3D Printing
Shapeways Announces Programmable Models
3D printing service Shapeways has released “ShapeJS”, a programming environment that can generate 3D models using Javascript programs. In other words, if you know how to use Javascript, one of the most popular tools for creating dynamic web pages, you’ll be able to produce 3D models simply by describing them with code, including complex… Continue reading Shapeways Announces Programmable Models
Walmart Selling Cube 3D Printers – in Brazil
We know Staples sells Cubify’s entry-level personal 3D printer, the Cube, at an undetermined number of physical outlets in the USA. But now we learn Walmart also sells the Cube – but not in the USA; they’re available in Brazil. The Cube is priced at R$5,758 (USD$2,478), quite a bit more than the standard… Continue reading Walmart Selling Cube 3D Printers – in Brazil
The War on 3D Printed ABS
It was the first plastic used in personal 3D printers, but are ABS’s days coming to an end? The once popular plastic seems to be supplanted by PLA. In fact during the recent 3D Printshow in London we encountered many 3D printer manufacturers who simply dismissed ABS as something they didn’t want to support… Continue reading The War on 3D Printed ABS
What is it Like at a 3D Printed Fashion Show?
Many of you may have never attended a proper fashion show and we thought it might be interesting to give you a little bit of the flavor of such an event with video from the London 2013 3D Printed Fashion Show. First we have a video of one model showing “Half Entity” by… Continue reading What is it Like at a 3D Printed Fashion Show?
The WASP Project 3D Prints Clay
Need something 3D printed in clay? Something very large? If so you’ll want to check out the WASP project from Italy. WASP is actually an acronym, standing for World’s Advanced Saving Project. Their goal is to be able to build homes in third world countries with advanced technology like 3D printing, yet use… Continue reading The WASP Project 3D Prints Clay
Have You Joined 3D Hubs?
There are several initiatives seeking to link 3D print owners with 3D print buyers, but as time passes only a few are going to succeed. One of them is likely to be 3D Hubs, currently the leader in number of participants. The idea is pretty straightforward: if you have an idle 3D printer, sign… Continue reading Have You Joined 3D Hubs?
The WitBox 3D Printer
There’s an explosion of extrusion-based personal 3D printers occurring now, with new entries emerging from all corners. One of them is the WitBox by Spanish company BQ. Unlike many new entrants, the WitBox comes from an already established company. BQ “is a Spanish company dedicated to the multimedia devices and 3D printers sale.” According… Continue reading The WitBox 3D Printer
Tasting the ChocEdge Chocolate 3D Printer
We had a chance to speak with Christina Zheng, Business Development Director for ChocEdge. It’s one of the very few personal 3D printers capable of extruding chocolate, and perhaps the only one you can easily buy yourself. The ChocEdge looks much like many other personal 3D printers, until you notice the extruder. It’s basically… Continue reading Tasting the ChocEdge Chocolate 3D Printer
The CADScan Cubik 3D Scanner
We spoke with Dr. Alastair Buchanan, the man behind the Cubik full-color tabletop 3D scanner at the London 2013 3D Printshow. The device is a tabletop unit, meaning you can only scan items that will fit into its scan chamber. It’s also a sealed chamber, meaning that you can operate the scanner in a… Continue reading The CADScan Cubik 3D Scanner
Ultimaker Reorganizes
You may have heard about Ultimaker’s new personal 3D printer, the not-so-surprisingly named Ultimaker 2, but that’s not all that’s going down at the Dutch manufacturer. We listened to a talk by their new CEO, Henk van Gils at the London 3D Printshow 2013, in which he revealed some corporate moves at the growing… Continue reading Ultimaker Reorganizes
Design of the Week: Imprinted Bodies
This week’s selection is Imprinted Bodies by NYC-based sculptor Lilia Ziamou. It’s actually two pieces, #1 and #2. While the pieces are certainly not as dramatic as some by other artists, there is a story behind these unusual works. Ziamou explores the “concept of the female body”, using “curve and crevice”. She initially develops… Continue reading Design of the Week: Imprinted Bodies
The Smithsonian Releases 3D Scans
We’ve written about the Smithsonian’s forays into 3D scanning previously, but now you can access some of the 3D scans they’ve been collecting. Last week the institution released the first batch of 3D scans, all of which can be viewed online and several are suitable for 3D printing. As of this writing, some 17… Continue reading The Smithsonian Releases 3D Scans
A New Printrbot, the Plus
One of the first big-time winners in 3D printing Kickstarter campaigns was the Printrbot, which raised a then-record USD$830,827 (with an original goal of USD$25,000). We suspect it was Printrbot’s success that led to the explosion of subsequent 3D printer launches on the crowdfunding site. We chatted with Brook Drumm of Printrbot at the… Continue reading A New Printrbot, the Plus
The World’s Largest 3D Print Gallery
In retrospect, we hadn’t realized what we were looking at, when, at the 3D Printshow we stumbled into the covertly-located 3D print gallery. The large area held many examples of 3D printed art, some already famous and some about to be famous. We met some of the artists who had produced the work, as… Continue reading The World’s Largest 3D Print Gallery
3D Printed Coral Reefs
Forbes published more information on the 3D printed reef produced by concrete 3D printer D-Shape, whom we met with earlier this year. Why 3D print a reef when you can simply drop concrete blocks or sink redundant ships at the correct locations? The answer lies in the shape of the reef. Evidently artificial… Continue reading 3D Printed Coral Reefs
3D Printing Be Could Be Worth $8.41B by 2020
According to a recent study, the market for 3D printers could be worth nearly $8.5 billion by 2020. The study, conducted by Indian research firm MarketsandMarkets, forecasts a compound annual growth rate of 23% for 3D printing technology over the next seven years. According to MarketsandMarkets, one of the motivations for this growth is… Continue reading 3D Printing Be Could Be Worth $8.41B by 2020
The World’s First 3D Printed Car Needs Your Help
You might recall the Urbee, the world’s first 3D printed car (or at least 3D printed body), unveiled in 2011. Now the folks behind the project are looking to build interest and funding to proceed to Urbee-2, a more advanced vehicle. The new vehicle will have not only a 3D printed body, but also… Continue reading The World’s First 3D Printed Car Needs Your Help
Cosmo’s Patina Kit
During 3D Printshow 2013 we spent some time with Cosmo Wenman, the fellow who has captured 3D scans of numerous famous sculptures over the past year. But it’s what he does with the scans afterwards that is so much more interesting. Wenman 3D prints the sculptures on his aging yet still reliable MakerBot Replicator… Continue reading Cosmo’s Patina Kit
Making Prints Stick: Some Tips
The folks at ProtoParadigm have produced a terrific list of tips on how to reduce or eliminate the deadly warping effect that plagues personal 3D printers. There’s nothing worse than discovering a time-consuming mess caused by a print that lifted off the bed. The warping itself isn’t such a problem; it’s that the warping… Continue reading Making Prints Stick: Some Tips
MakerBot’s Leap into Classrooms
At this year’s 3D Printshow, MakerBot CEO Bre Pettis expressed his unhappiness with the current US educational system, which has largely removed “making” courses from the curriculum. As a student, Pettis enjoyed “shop classes” where he no doubt picked up the making bug. But how can this happen today? MakerBot is attempting to change… Continue reading MakerBot’s Leap into Classrooms
Cubify’s New Handheld Scanner
Cubify announced the “Sense 3D Scanner” in a surprise announcement. The 3D printer manufacturer has thus far produced only 3D printers, making the Sense a completely new product line. It’s a handheld 3D scanner capable of rapidly capturing 3D shapes. We examined the specifications for the device and noted the following: The scan… Continue reading Cubify’s New Handheld Scanner
Shapeways Plus Swarovski Plus Victoria’s Secret Equals?
When Victoria’s Secret is putting on a fashion show, you know it’s going to be interesting, especially when they asked Shapeways to help produce a “Snow Queen” costume for the event. Shapeways asked designer Bradley Rothenberg to design the costume, which is “festooned with thousands of Swarovski crystals”. You’ll be able to see this… Continue reading Shapeways Plus Swarovski Plus Victoria’s Secret Equals?
The Masters & Munn Code
Earlier this week our design of the week featured Icarus Had a Sister, by Masters & Munn. While we’re certain you’ll agree the work is astonishing, we also must tell the incredible story of how it came to be, as revealed during a long conversation at the close of the 2013 3D Printshow. The… Continue reading The Masters & Munn Code
Let’sMakeStuff
Yet another 3D print making-sharing-selling site has launched, Let’sMakeStuff. The site provides an ability for designers to sign up and submit 3D models for sale on the site, and for consumers to browse the site and select 3D models for purchase. The service also will 3D print items on request. It’s a basic… Continue reading Let’sMakeStuff
The Fashion Show at 3D Printshow 2013
Unaccustomed to attending any fashion show, let alone a 3D printed show, we were surprised and perhaps even shocked to see startling works displayed on the runway by professional models. The works ranged from simple accessories, such as bangles or necklaces, to highly complex headdresses and apparel that defied description. We noted audience members… Continue reading The Fashion Show at 3D Printshow 2013
3D Printed Robotic Futures
Michael Overstreet has written his thoughts on the future of robotics as affected by 3D printing on i.Materialise. He believes that 3D printing should encourage rapid creation of new forms of robotics over the next few years. Clearly, the first and most obvious point is that robotic models and associated ideas are accessible via… Continue reading 3D Printed Robotic Futures
3D Scanning and Lighting
MakerBot recently issued some tips and instructions on how to best use their new Digitizer 3D scanner, with a focus on lighting. We’ve been fiddling with 3D scanners in the lab and have to agree: lighting is critical. Regardless of the scanner used, be it MakerBot’s, a cheap Kinect or a USD$50K scanner, lighting… Continue reading 3D Scanning and Lighting
Design of the Week: Icarus Had a Sister
This week’s selection is the stunning “Icarus Had a Sister” by artists Masters & Munn, a.k.a. André Masters and his partner, CJ Munn. It’s the obvious selection, as this piece helped the pair win the “Rising Star” award at last week’s Global 3D Print Awards at the 2013 3D Printshow. (Note the actual award trophy… Continue reading Design of the Week: Icarus Had a Sister
Thoughts On What Might Have Been The Best 3D Printing Conference In History
We’ve just finished this year’s London 3D Printshow, and while our feet still ache and our brains still explode, we must tell you about this astounding event. It’s only the second of this series; the first, in 2012, planned on 1,500 attendees. Four thousand showed up. This year, organizers noted the previous demand and… Continue reading Thoughts On What Might Have Been The Best 3D Printing Conference In History
Something Interesting is Inside the new Builder 3D Printer
At the 2013 3D Printshow we stopped by the Code-p west BV booth, who produce the Builder personal 3D printer. These folks produce a typical personal 3D printer, but as we talked with their spokesman, something very interesting was revealed. At first, their machine appears much like many other personal 3D printers: a cubic… Continue reading Something Interesting is Inside the new Builder 3D Printer
McDonald’s Considering 3D Printed Toys?
A report in The Register quotes the Director of IT for McDonald’s UK operation as stating at an event in Munich that the giant food mega-corp may be considering using 3D printers to produce small toys to be included in their popular (amongst youngsters) Happy Meals. We suspect the idea would be that customers… Continue reading McDonald’s Considering 3D Printed Toys?