by DATA-DOG 17 Replies latest social current
Check out this site, you can create your own designs and then upload the file to this site and select a material, they 3D it for you and mail out.
If you make something that others can use, Iphone attachments, etc they will take orders and then send you some of that money.
NJY
Colour me geek, but I am looking forward to more passive air-cool designs that take advantage of the greater surface area that a 3D printer can build.
Passive air cooled design means quieter electronics (no fans), that use less energy.
There is an entire hobbyist scene around it. Go around to your local hackerspace to find out more about it. Either way it will become a big industry once the printers and the material start being affordable and better quality. All the little doo-dads that are currently being shipped from China? Just print them. A case for your iPhone? Print it! The material will still come from China but it will be pure plastic so less transportation costs.
Like copiers and printers back in the day, remember when you had to go to a copy shop for your class project? These days you just print multiples at home because it's cheap.
3D printing is just like regular printing but instead of 2D (flat) you're printing things in the 3rd dimension by simply layering materials. It's usually plastics (various types including ABS and PVC) but more expensive laser-driven models can also "print" (it's technically fusing) metals like steel, gold etc and even electronic circuits.
As far as software, there is plenty of free and open source software for it, most 3d printers are actually open designs which can replicate most of their own parts (except for the motors and metal parts)
3D printing are already real, and will be used in near future to build nanobots in our home as easy as we print stuff in a sheet of paper. And the nanobots will cure all the human diseases, including old age and death.
There is a video on you tube showing how NASA could take one on a flight maybe the space station and could just create a tool as needed for repair. Instead of taking ALL the specific repair that may never even be needed, just bring a 3D printer and IF you need a tool, just print it out A needed.
NJY
What are they for?
They are great for making one-of-a-kind items and low volume production parts--prototypes and experimental designs. Among other things, a 3-D printed part can be used as the master to make molds for sand-castings. With the right (professional) equipment, it's faster and less expensive than making metal tools for high-colume production in a machine shop. For limited quantities the final parts can be of equal quality (until the plastic master wears down--which is why high-volume production tools aren't made of plastic).
I'd also add that some of this software is frightfully expensive (What does the plain vanilla AutoCAD retail for these days? $4000.00 or so?)
professional 3D modelling software is very expensive, although there are some cheaper alternatives. There is an AutoCAD clone called draftsight that is free to download, however I wouldn't recommend AutoCAD or draftsight for 3D modelling as they are primarily 2D drawing packages. It can be done but it is very labour intensive and frustrating, using a proper 3D modeller is much more intuitive.
Jgnat,
Unfortunately 3D printing would be no good for passive heatsinks as the 3D printed metal parts are effectively a bonded metal powder, they wouldn't have the required thermal transfer properties. Sorry!
John Mann,
That is the same near future that the JWs talk about? We are a long way from nanobots let alone home 3D printed ones. If you think that kind of genetic/medical experimentation is going to be freely available for amateurs to do at home you must be crazy.
I wouldn't recommend AutoCAD or draftsight for 3D modelling as they are primarily 2D drawing packages. It can be done but it is very labour intensive and frustrating, using a proper 3D modeller is much more intuitive.
I would definitely agree....
