Digital fabrication tools have revolutionized the way designers, engineers, and artisans express their creativity. With the right resources, you can learn to use these powerful instruments in no time! Whether it’s 3D printing or laser cutting that interests you, these articles will provide useful tutorials and inspiration for makers of all levels. Discover how digital fabrication can open up new possibilities so that your craftsmanship is truly extraordinary!
There is a kernel of a really cool idea in the Carma Project, sponsored by ad firm Leo Burnett Lisbon. They made a bike with as many reclaimed car parts as possible, and it looks kinda sweet! That said, I really would have preferred that it had been made out of 100% car parts, even […]
The mad snow scientists at California-based Signal Snowboards are at it again. They have a monthly show they put together with Network A, called Every Third Thursday, where they come up with a snowboard concept, regardless of how off the wall, execute it, and ride the board they’ve created. To date, they’ve made a Lego […]
When you’re out networking, you could hand someone a plain old flat, rectangular piece of paper with your information printed on it. But wouldn’t it be much more awesome (and memorable) to hand them a 3D-printed figurine of you as a superhero, with your email address on the bottom? That’s what the folks at the Amsterdam interactive design agency Resoluut did. Each employee illustrated a superhero version of themselves and had 20 copies 3D printed, with their email address printed on the underside.
Like it or not, the ability to pirate physical objects and functional electronics is nearly upon us. In this article we devote some time and space to thinking about that possible future, and what might be done to avoid it. Additive manufacturing makes the entire design process “think it up, design or scan it, create it on-site.” So where does the “research to make sure you’re not conflicting with anyone elses existing intellectual property” step come into play? Before or after you hit the print button?
The DeltaMaker, a recent success on Kickstarter, is an elegant 3D printer built on a delta robot platform. Delta robots have been used for picking and packaging applications in factories for decades, thanks to their impressive speed and agility. The DeltaMaker uses MakerSlide aluminum extrusions paired with Delrin v-wheels on bearings to move quicker than normal printers; the Z axis in particular isn’t limited by the low speed of a threaded rod, so it can move just as quickly as the other axes.
I spoke with the company’s mechanical engineer, Zack Monninger to discuss their success on Kickstarter and what’s next.
Today on Food Makers, a Google+ hangout on air at 2pm PST/5Pm EST, I’ll be exploring the how and why of 3D printed food with three luminaries in the field: avant garde chef Homaro Cantu of Moto restaurant in Chicago, Jeffrey Lipton from Cornell University’s Fab@Home, and Andracs Forgacs of Modern Meadow, a biotech firm developing the technology to print raw meat grown from animal cells–petri dish meat if you will.
Is 3D printed food the future? Would anyone want to eat it if was? Tune in right here to find out. If you can’t make it to the live broadcast, check out the archived video on our YouTube page at youtube.com/make.
Engadget Expand, a two-day event of presentations, consumer electronics, and innovation, kicked off today at Fort Mason in San Francisco. The first panel discussion was “3D Printing Goes Mainstream” and it featured Ari Reichental, president and CEO of 3D Systems; Hod Lipson, associate professor of engineering at Cornell University; and Max Lobovsky, president and CEO of Formlabs.
In truth, the panel discussion would have better called “3D Printing Will go Mainstream When…” Because as all the panelists agreed, while 3D printing is big and getting bigger we’re still in the early adopter stage and seamless consumer interface has not yet been achieved. That’s the killer app, they agreed.
