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A 3D Printer On Every Desktop?

Posted by kdawson on from the abs-fab dept.

holy_calamity writes "Two Cornell researchers have designed an open source 3D printer that costs just $2,400. The self-assembly kit is part of what they call the Fab@Home project — they hope it will spark development of rapid prototyping for the consumer market in the same way the Altair 8800 did for personal computing in seventies." Here is a video showing a completed machine constructing a silicone bulb (16-MB WMV).
Update: 01/10 04:02 GMT by KD : The developers of this kit are at Cornell, not Carnegie Mellon University as the original post erroneously stated.

12 of 426 comments (clear)

  1. hmmmmm by User+956 · · Score: 4, Funny

    A 3D Printer On Every Desktop?

    I just circled my desk, and it looks like the HP Laserjet I already have exists in 3 Dimensions. Surely this means HP has beaten this other company to market.

    --
    The theory of relativity doesn't work right in Arkansas.
    1. Re:hmmmmm by Surt · · Score: 4, Funny

      I'm afraid that's just a stereoscopic projection trick, not real 3d. If you reach out and put your hand on 'top' of your printer, you'll find it's really quite flat.

      --
      "Who is the Journal of Quantum Physics going to believe?" --Stephen Hawking
    2. Re:hmmmmm by PRC+Banker · · Score: 5, Funny
      Three is a number under ten. Therefore it should be spelled out using letters.
      You do realise that 10 is not under 10? Therefore why do you spell it with letters?
      --
      Oh.
  2. I wonder by User+956 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Here is a video showing a completed machine constructing a silicone bulb (16M-MB WMV).

    Given the ungodly expense of regular inkjet cartridges, I can only wonder how much the refills for this thing will run.

    --
    The theory of relativity doesn't work right in Arkansas.
  3. Linking a 16 MB vid from the /. frontpage... by PsyQo · · Score: 5, Funny

    I bet they are printing a new webserver right now.

  4. Re:Where's the porn angle? by JamesTRexx · · Score: 4, Funny

    Download and compile your own Realdoll?

    --
    home
  5. Tea, earl grey, hot! by McGoon76 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Nuf said...

  6. Re:Amazing by MyHair · · Score: 5, Funny
    If I was very cynical I would say this could end capitalism itself :)


    Capitalism will end when I can print a blow job.
  7. No problem by jspoon · · Score: 5, Funny

    Whenever you get close to running out of material, print another cartridge.

  8. Re:Can't say much more than by numbski · · Score: 4, Funny
    Save your money. The API is pretty hosed. I sent a simple command, almost verbatim from the docs, only substituted my own object, and well, it didn't work! Here's the code snippet:

    fab("Earl Grey, Hot");
    --

    Karma: Chameleon (mostly due to the fact that you come and go).

  9. Re:Can't say much more than by Jon+Kay · · Score: 5, Funny

    > fab("Earl Grey, Hot");

    Lemme guess - you got a liquid that was almost, but not quite entirely unlike tea.

  10. Re:Can't say much more than by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    If they put him in a miniskirt, he might then be hot...