[Robotgroup] Researchers design open source 3D printer that costs $2, 400

[Don Colbath]

If we can get the mill working we can put in a can of that spray cheese 
and make a Foodaracacycle.

Vernon Graner wrote:

>FRom this link:
>
>http://www.newscientisttech.com/article/dn10922-desktop-fabricator-may-kickstart-home-revolution.html
>
>tiny here:
>
>http://tinyurl.com/y4s847
>
>comes this article:
>
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>Desktop fabricator may kick-start home revolution
>
>    * 17:59 09 January 2007
>    * NewScientist.com news service
>    * Tom Simonite
>
>The Fab at Home device can be used to create 3D objects from various
>materials (Image: Hod Lipson / Evan Malone)
>
>A cheap self-assembly device capable of fabricating 3D objects has been
>developed by US researchers. They hope the machine could kick start a
>revolution in home fabrication – or "rapid prototyping" – just as early
>computer kits sparked an explosion in home computing.
>
>Rapid prototyping machines are already used by designers, engineers and
>scientists to create one-off mechanical parts and models. These create
>objects by depositing layer upon layer of liquid or powdered material.
>
>These machines typically cost from $20,000 to $1.5 million, says Hod
>Lipson from Carnegie Mellon University, US, who launched the Fab at Home
>project with PhD student Evan Malone in October 2006.
>
>The standard version of their Freeform fabricator – or "fabber" – is
>about the size of a microwave oven and can be assembled for around $2400
>(£1200). It can generate 3D objects from plastic and various other
>materials. Full documentation on how to build and operate the machine,
>along with all the software required, are available on the Fab at Home
>website, and all designs, documents and software have been released for
>free.
>Many hands
>
>"We are trying to get this technology into as many hands as possible,"
>Malone told New Scientist. "The kit is designed to be as simple as
>possible." Once the parts have been bought, a normal soldering iron and a
>few screwdrivers are enough to put it together. "It's probably the
>cheapest machine of this kind out there," he adds.
>
>The machine connects to a desktop computer running software that controls
>its operation. It then creates objects layer-by-layer by squeezing
>material from a mechanically-controlled syringe. A video shows a
>completed machine constructing a silicone bulb (16MB, wmv format).
>
>Unlike commercial equipment, the Fab at Home machine is also designed to be
>used with more than one material. So far it has been tested with
>silicone, plaster, play-doh and even chocolate and icing. Different
>materials can also be used to make a single object – the control software
>prompts the user when to load new material into the machine.
>
>Malone and Lipson hope Fab at Home will grow into a community of enthusiasts
>who share designs for 3D objects and even modify the machines for
>themselves. This will prompt the emergence of widespread personal
>fabrication, Lipson hopes.
>
>"We think it's a similar story to computers," he explains. "Mainframes
>had existed for years, but personal computing only took off in the late
>seventies." A cheap self-assembly computer called the Altair 8800,
>launched in 1975, sparked the rapid development of personal computing, he
>notes: "We hope Fab at Home can do the same for rapid prototyping."
>Copy cat
>
>Adrian Bowyer, who is also working on rapid prototyping machines at Bath
>University, in the UK, agrees that the technology could have mass appeal
>once the equipment is cheap enough. One of his own machines can even make
>some of its own parts (see 3D printer to churn out copies of itself).
>
>"Fab at Home is an interesting idea; it should be easy for anyone in the
>world to build," Bowyer says. "Once you've used one you never want to go
>back, it's liberating and enormously fun." Bowyer believes the technology
>could one day even replace traditional models of manufacturing.
>
>Bowyer adds that the Fab at Home machine could probably already be used to
>make many cheap injection-moulded products already on the market: "I can
>imagine people swapping plans of things to make online, or paying to
>download them instead of going to the shop."
>Related Articles
>
>    * A plane you can print
>    * http://www.newscientisttechnology.com/article/dn9602
>    * 21 July 2006
>    * Tailor-printed shoes will offer a perfect fit
>    * http://www.newscientisttechnology.com/article/mg18925386.200
>    * 15 February 2006
>    * 3D printer to churn out copies of itself
>    * http://www.newscientisttechnology.com/article/dn7165
>    * 18 March 2005
>
>Weblinks
>
>    * Fab at Home
>    * http://www.fabathome.org/
>    * RepRap
>    * http://reprap.org/
>
>
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-- 

I planted some bird seed. A bird came up. Now I don't know what to feed it.