Manifesto
It’s THAT time of year when everyone will be making amazing predictions about AM for the 2013 year. I was recently at a holiday party (wearing a silver tie and long tails) discussing “3D printing and AM, and it’s amazing feats”. Someone then asked “Haven’t you been playing around with this technology for [...]
I just returned from a very interesting conference dealing with 3D printing (including hardware and software issues). It was great to see old friends and even better to meet a collection of new ones. What I liked most at this conference was the real diversity of viewpoints relating to additive manufacturing (AM) issues. A couple [...]
3D Printista – 3D·Print·is·ta [three-dee-print-is-tuh -ee-stuh; ] –noun, plural 3D·print·is·tas, 3D·print·is·ti a person who is specially trained in the operation of 3D printing devices, and the fabrication of 3D objects using such devices at maker / create / hacker geek or research spaces. {Grant Marchelli as a 3D Printista @ UW Solheim AM Lab} [...]
A couple of days ago Bre Pettis was featured on the Steven Colbert report. It was an amazing event. Bre Pettis and Makerbot continue to become more than just “Geek Star” famous. THE best part of the show happens at the 4:39 mark! Steven Colbert: “How you going to make your money? Just Like. Just [...]
This is an important time in the development of 3d printing. We have just cleared nearly two decades of the fundamental MIT patents on 3d printing using powders, and although there is a tangle of improvement patents on particular forms of 3dp technology, we have some hope of opening up development activities from its university-created, [...]
After all of the craziness of last week, it was interesting to listen to the noise about “How horrible it is to make things by molding or casting!” or “The parts can’t be as strong as RP’d parts!”. All good fun. We would like to point out that molding/casting IS one of the fundamental manufacturing [...]
There’s an expression “Deus ex machina” (the god from the machine) that describes a plot where things are resolved by the timely arrival (as, with some stage device) of some unexpected character or agent–such as an authority figure–to settle things that have gotten out of hand. (Like, the arrival of the police at the end [...]
Many developers have been working to take the next step along of the path of “What wee really need” — Better geometry creation software. Easier to use geometry creation software. Geometry creation software available on a broader variety of platforms. There have many really interesting ideas buzzing around. Thank you for your interest and excitement [...]
Continue reading about One of many answers to “What wee really need”
As the year draws to a close, we see quite a few posting on blogs and news services heralding “2010 = the year of the 3D printer or personal 3D printer.” We have a slightly different idea of what might be going on! Yes, personal fabrication is clearly on the rise. We thank all [...]
Fabbaloo has a nice commentary on a discussion in Make magazine on the competitive pathways of 3d printer manufacturers. Make folks say, because electronics is cheaper in Asian volume-oriented factories, some day the commercial vendors will undersell the DIY and Makerbot folks. Importantly, Make asks, does it matter? Fabbaloo, for their part, thinks the low [...]