I’m re-posting a forum post from http://forums.reprap.org/read.php?1,205005,205005 It extrudes ABS plastic re-purposed from refrigerators doors. The author says he has last then $100 in costs and it produces a working filament. Xabbax wrote: “Low cost filament extruder made from 10 mm ID stainless steel tube, silver soldered inside an ordinary plumber 15 mm copper tube…
Taulman3D offers a 3D printing filament called t-glase. This amazing plastic works with 3D printers designed to use PLA. One for those users that print mostly with PLA or lower temperature 3D Printers. The name t-glase is short for tough glass and is pronounced as Tee-Glass. The main features of t-glase Strength – similar to…
A popular biodegradable plastic is polylactide, or PLA. PLA is a synthetic polyester that biodegrades within a year, decaying much faster than conventional petroleum-based plastics. The creation of PLA, a bio plastic, involves bacterial fermentation, similar to the fermentation in the synthesis of PHAs. This fermentation creates lactic acid, which is then polymerized. Furthermore,…
Below is a list of links to exciting companies I saw at the consumer electronics show in Las Vegas Afinia – 3D printers Stratasys – 3D printers Makerbot – 3D printer Leti – Maker of sensors and other components for advance devices Rii – makers of cool keyboards Robo 3D – 3D printers ZY LIghts – maker of…
Forbes published great article by Gary Shapiro is president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) on the emerging 3D printing business and established industries attempts to fight it. Shapiro wrote “3D printing is facing legal challenges. Established players in manufacturing are going after user-generated 3D file sharing sites, arguing that their intellectual property is ripped…
I found several videos of people making solar heaters out of aluminum and tin cans. A unit only a few feet in size can output air well over 100 °f. They can be made with soup or pop cans. The enclosure can be made out of most materials. The cover can be any clear…
Today your iphone case has traveled the world before it is ever was in your hand. Currently, oil from the Middle East is shipped to China where it is turned into plastic with cheap labor. That plastic is molded into a iphone case and shipped on to the US. Then from a port on the…
A exciting and promising technology is microbial fuel cell. These use microbes to product electricity and can convert human waste such as urine into electricity. This technology is a long way off but is exciting. Read more: http://www.microbialfuelcell.org
Daniel Omar was only 14 the South Sudanese government dropped a bomb on rebel forces nearby, and the he lost both his arms. With the help of philanthropist Mick Ebeling , co-founder and CEO of research firm Not Impossible Labs, Daniel was able to feed himself for the first time in two years. The printed arm and hand will give him…
Nokia is releasing design files letting cell phone owners use 3D printers to make their own cases for Nokia phones. Anyone can download the specs for a Nokia phone and customize a case. Nokia is the first major manufacturer we know of to release its product specs for the purpose of letting people 3D…
Instructables has posted a video on creating a very simple prosthesis using a 2 liter soda bottle.
This is the first first time 3D printing support has been added to a mainstream creative tool like Photoshop, says Adobe product manager Andy Lauta. “This is going to be an exciting opportunity for our consumer base. And it’s going to have a big impact on 3D printing industry as well.” With the popularity of 3D…
3D printers and printing are raising new questions in the realm of product liability law. Traditionally, if you purchase a product from a manufacturer and are injured by the product you have the right to sue the manufacturer for damages. But Stanford law professor Nora Freeman Engstrom isn’t sure that’s the case when it comes…
The University of Toronto has partnered up with a hospital from Uganda and an NGO to 3D print prosthetics in order to speed up the process of helping Ugandan people who’ve lost a limb. Professor Matt Ratto is using 3D scanning technology to scan patients arms and sending the scans to technicians who design customized prosthetic…
3D printing has arrived in the world of fashion. Designer have created a fully 3D printed bikini made from a special nylon. Read how they made it here.
A man in West Africa created a 3D printer from e-waste he scavenged from local sources. Afate Gnikou of Togo used parts from old computers, scanners, and other e-waste to build what is thought to be the first 3D printer made mostly from discarded electronic items. The 33-year-old, who makes a living repairing cellphones and computers in…
The science of 3D printing is being applied to human organs. Below is a 2009 videos by leading researcher Dr. Vladimir Mironov explaining the process.
Remote villages, urban disasters and the battle fields are prime places where 3D printed medical tools can save lives. The U.S. military has been investigating how to use 3D printing to solve supply chain issues involving front-line soldiers. Now, a group of Army and Navy researchers have developed a plastic surgical kit that can be…
The aid group, iLab Haiti, is working with Haiti Communitere in Haiti prototyping umbilical cord clamp for use in a local hospital that has severally limited supplies. Doctors were using their surgical gloves to tie off the umbilical cord leaving the doctors with our gloves while delivering babies from mothers who sometimes had AIDS. Using Makerbot machines and…