Posted on 06/23/2013 2:32:56 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
(VIDEO-AT-LINK)
3D printing suggests an intriguing future: forget going to the shops to buy an item, simply design and print your own.
For the present, however, 3D printers – which “print” items by layering liquid or melted plastic – continue to be just out of reach for all but the most enthusiastic early adopters, because of high prices and the skills needed to use CAD software.
That could be set to change, based on the 3D printers on show at CES this week. Competition is starting to push prices down, and new features are making it easier for mainstream consumers to use the machines. We checked out four to find out which offered the most potential.
MakerBot Replicator
When it comes to 3D printing, MakerBot is the name that first springs to mind. The company was one of the earliest to start shipping machines to be used at home by hobbyists.
MakerBot is now on the second version of its Replicator, and has added another version that supports a different type of material – previously it used a recyclable plastic called PLA; now the Replicator 2X supports biodegradable ABS, which is harder to work with.
(VIDEO-AT-LINK)
The Replicator remains expensive at $2,199, but the machine has a build size of 410 cubic inches and is fast, too. Plus, it has an established, extensive community – 15,000 Replicators have been sold, and the hobbyists who use them like to share their ideas.
That’s at the core of Thingiverse, MakerBot’s sharing website, which has a new feature that allows users to upload a design for others to customise and print. That means a new MakerBot owner can get started without first mastering 3D design, by using the app to configure existing designs how they choose, such as an iPhone case.
(Excerpt) Read more at pcpro.co.uk ...
I want one, I don’t know why but I want one. I am waiting, however; the price of good ones will drop.
The first 1 megapixel camera that you could buy in stores was the Kodak DCS-100 in 1991. It cost $13,000.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_camera#The_arrival_of_true_digital_cameras )
I’ll bet cleaning the machine after each use is a bear.
Nothing to clean.
The real interesting 3d print stuff is the potential to work materials that were impossible or very difficult with old tooling.
And in a while, we may even see new materials popping up.
printed food.
use oatmeal (or something) for the material, print out edible Taj Mahals.
I just ordered a 3-D printer and I’m gonna print a bunch of 3-D printers and open an online store. Anyone want to pre-order?
I’ve never seen on up close, but wouldn’t there be a material hopper feeding into a nozzle/series of nozzles, which heats-up the plastic to form the 3-D item? I need to research one and how it works...
It’s already being done. Not oatmeal, but chocolate. Two years ago.
http://www.fastcodesign.com/1664454/the-worlds-first-3-d-chocolate-printer
https://chocedge.com/3dprinting.php
After looking at some videos, it looks like a cold process; I’ thought it was a heat fusion process. You’re right; nothing to clean!
Where I work, we have a 3-d printer, it takes hours to create a model with Layers and layers of a plastic material.(Over 12 hours or more that I recall).
After the model was complete, our model (machine) shop created the actual piece for prototyping.
Don't laugh folks. This is where we are going. The worry is what happens when that 3D machine gets the brains to figure out that it can build it's own twin with the added feature of a little mobility and does so while you are on vacation. And then the twin gets an even better idea.
And so on.
They are on the verge of making parts that can be used in working prototypes. I have been trying to get my company to buy one. We deal with a lot of detailed small plastic parts where it would be a huge benefit to make slight one off from a design to improve the manufacturing process. Desing Engineer always seem to forget the this they design have to actually be made with true physical constrants.
Oh all right ... 1%, then.
Right now, my preference would be:
http://store.qu-bd.com/category.php?id_category=23
as it can be equipped with either an extrusion head (for 3D “additive” machining) OR a milling head (for 3D “subtractive” printing).
IMO, this it the most “bang-for-the-buck” option available.
Unless you run 24/7, this is not that much of a problem. Load it up before quitting time, and come back to the printed part next AM.
My company has a Roland MDX-40A (CNC Mill aka "subtractive 3d "printing""), and that is how I use it. It has sped up our R&D efforts immensely, and we do a few low-volume but highly complex small plastic parts for production on it.
The nozzle is the only thing that heats up. These are usually fed by rolls of ABS or another plastic.
The build material looks pretty much like the spools of weed-whacker line you buy at the hardware store.
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