The $500 water bottle cage.

[3drocketscientist]

A light painting made using a 3D printer by Aron Bothman. See my previous post for the explanation!

[3drocketscientist]

Here’s an interesting application of 3D printing you don’t see everyday.  Aron Bothman created the above video, a light painting, using 3D printing. A light painting is a photography style where a photograph is taken in the dark with a long shutter speed and a light is used to “paint” in space. A flash is usually triggered at the end of the exposure to capture the scene.

An example is below where Gjon Mili took a photograph of Picasso painting a minotaur. The concept is further explained in this Times article.

A video of the 3D printer painting with the light is in the video below. I have to warn you though, watching the 3D printer in action with the light is rather... boring.

A light painting by Gjon Mili of Picasso.

The light painting in action (below).

[3drocketscientist]

Light paintings made using a 3D printer by Aron Bothman. See my next post for the explanation!

[3drocketscientist]

Build this if you or your kids like bubbles :)

The instructions are here from Thingiverse courtesy of scratchhax.

[3drocketscientist]

Disney’s work on controlling the stiffness of an object by controlling the internal structure of the object. Good stuff!!

[3drocketscientist]

3D Printed Mini-Saw

Well, he’s done it again. Not only has New Zealand’s Lance Abernethy 3D printed the world’s smallest functioning power drill, but now he’s 3D printed the world’s smallest circular saw.  Regardless, if you’re curious how he did it, he used OnShape to design the saw and an Ultimaker 2 to print it.

At this time, I think the only piece of the puzzle he’s missing is Ant-Man to use these power tools :) 

[3drocketscientist]

Here’s some really interesting work Disney is working on. They are 3D printing objects that can deform with spatially varying elasticity using 3D printing.

In English, this means they are printing objects with (1) internal structure and they are (2) varying the structure so the object can bend easily in some areas but remains stiff in others. 

If you prefer an even simpler definition, they pictures show they make 3D printing objects that have an internal mesh. The object is stiff where the mesh is dense. The object is flexible where the mesh is coarse.

And as the picture shows, they are using this technology to make toys. 

Why didn’t I think of that?!?

[3drocketscientist]

3D Printing Helps Expectant Parents Meet Their Baby Before it’s Born

We have all probably read at least one of those amazing stories about doctors pre-planning dangerous and complicated surgeries using 3D printed models generated

Well, here is an interesting application on 3D printing. A UK based company, BabyBoo, is using ultra sound scans of pre-natal babies to generate 3D models for the family. The article says they use 2D, 3D, and 4D scanning technology... 2D tends to be a photograph, 3D tends to add the Z-axis, 4D tends to add the element of time. 

Another interesting element, that is not apparent, is that you are mainly getting a hollow mask of the baby. In the picture below, you see it’s not a full 3D model of the baby. And it is only part of the face. 

Very unique application of 3D printing!

[3drocketscientist]

The Future of Bike Building Could Be in 3D Printing

When it comes to 3D printing, future possibilities abound. Considering the hardware, software and various material types that facilitate the entire printing process, it seems that any sector or...

This is what I like to hear. 3D printing plus biking. Novak’s bike (pictured above) is only discussed briefly in the article but it apparently took him 150 hours to build.

A quote from the article: “What I really wanted to achieve was something that takes full advantage of the benefits of 3D printers, especially the ability to create one-off, customizable pieces that may be lighter-weight and stronger than archetypal frames through the use of complex lattice structures," said Novak (pictured above).  

[3drocketscientist]

Ten Ways 3D Printing Can Transform The Way You Live And Work

A few years ago, the office printer was in danger of becoming a dusty relic from a bygone era; like a floppy disk trying to stay relevant in an all-di...

Interesting article on 3D printing and how it can influence our lives. 

[3drocketscientist]

3D-printed drug approved in U.S. for 1st time ever

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the first prescription drug made through 3D printing: a dissolvable tablet that treats seizures.

These 3D printed pills, by Aprecia, are now FDA approved! I didn’t find much information on their website except that they have a licence to use 3D printing techniques developed by MIT. Too bad!!

[3drocketscientist]

The Possibilities of 3D Printed Skin

BWest takes a look at one of the most exciting frontiers of discovery: Medical technologies that have the potential to restore sensory and organ function to patients. Today we speak to Organovo, which is 3D printing human skin tissues. We speak to the CEO about immediate uses for skin in the beauty industry and the potential to use 3D printed skin tissue to treat diabetes patients, and eventually, burn victims. (Source: Bloomberg)

Yup! 3D printed skin! Organovo is working on 3D printing skin for the beauty industry. But in practical terms, this could be applied in plastic surgery where burn victims need work done. The company also appears to be working on liver and kidney. Maybe one day we can 3D print an organ instead of doing transplants!

[3drocketscientist]

3D Printed Self-Driving Car

This is what happens when worlds collide. You get a 3D printed car... that is also automated. This car is being developed by Local Motors in collaboration with researchers at University of Michigan. It makes sense to develop this vehicle at the University of Michigan because they have a world class facility to test connected and automated vehicles. 

These vehicles will operate at low speeds like a golf cart. The overall objective is that one day, one of these cars can drive you around a small region/community like a university campus. One researcher at UofM compared it to Uber but with slow cars that are autonomous. Hopefully, minus the lawsuits that Uber is facing.  

[3drocketscientist]

3D Printed Grass.

Here’s an interesting application of 3D printing - grass!! In the above, researchers at the University of Maribor in Slovenia have developed a 3D printer that prints grass. Above, integrated the pot and the plant. So in theory, we could print the grass in almost any shape. In practical terms, I think this project is more on the “fun” side than “practical” side. 

However, this type of printer is similar in concept to printers that print Nutella - yummy. 

[3drocketscientist]

3D Printed Tank.

Well, I took a bit of a hiatus from Tumblr as work, my part time job, and marathon/triathlon training took over my life for a bit. Not to worry, I’ve still be following the 3D printing world... just not posting anything :(

So it’s finally time to get back into it. Here we go with one of the most awesome projects I’ve every seen. 

Codename Colossus, this monstrosity is from Machination Studio. This “toy” sits at 20 inches tall, 400 3D printed parts (laser sintering), powered by 7.4V of rechargeable batteries... it walks, the tank guns rotate, and it is  

along with movable legs, guns and cannons enabled by Arduino-controlled servos, LEDs and motors. Meanwhile, the device itself is powered by 7.4V LiPo rechargeable batteries, or six 7.2V AAs with a recommended minimum of 2800mAh. Unfortunately, it comes with a $5000 price tag :( Pictures and a timelapse of the construction below.

[3drocketscientist]

The World’s Fastest 3D Printed Cockroach Inspired Robot - 3D Printing

A team at UC Berkley’s Department Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences’ Biomimetic Millisystems Lab developed the world’s fastest cockroach-inspired robot using 3d printing technologies. Cockroach robots have been designed before, duplicating the exact movements and the structure of the insect. However, the previous cockroach robot designs have restrictions in the number of steps taken in …

If you saw this 3D printed cockroach would you:   A. Stomp your foot on it?   B. Do a double take and then run for your life?   C. Admire it’s robotic superiority?   D. Feed it?

Well for me, I’d probably “Admire it... “ followed by a “run for your life”. Interesting design that was developed using 3D printing by UC Berkley. This thing can also run 4.9 m/s. That’s 11mph or 17.6 km/h... faster than the Olympic 5km and 10km athletes. Although, still not as fast as Usain Bolt :)

[3drocketscientist]

3D Printer Makes Replica of Iconic Sports Car

Cars with parts made by 3D printers are already on the road, but engineers are still learning about this new technology. While testing the possibility of printing an entire car, researchers at the U....

3D printed Shelby Cobra? Nice... 

Electric powered Shelby Cobra? Awesome... (Although, I’m crying inside that it doesn’t have the same pick up)