Halloween Pumpkin Carving With CNC Robotics

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Halloween Pumpkin Carving With CNC Robotics

Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday October 29, 2008 @11:57PM from the high-tech-carving dept.

An anonymous reader writes "A guy at Lumenlab has created a way to carve his face on a pumpkin using his DIY CNC gantry robot. I think this demonstration says a lot about the future ubiquity of the technology. I'm really looking forward to the day that I have one of these machines in my garage."

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Whoa! by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 00:06 · Score: 0

First Post.
That pumpkin is FREAKIN SWEEEEET
1. Re:Whoa! by tritonman · 2008-10-30 00:32 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  That pumpkin is an abomination! It represents all that is wrong with the world taken over by robots, so much for the sanctity of halloween! I'm sure this one will make the baby jesus cry, when he created halloween, this is NOT what he had in mind!
2. Re:Whoa! by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 02:04 · Score: 0
  
  you ever ponder the fact that your "God" hates you?
3. Re:Whoa! by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 02:20 · Score: 0
  
  Ohh my god i dont know where to start. I mean are you being serious is that your genuine take on CNC pumpkin carving or are you just making an attempt to be funny? I hope its the later because by christ you need to get a life if its the former.
4. Re:Whoa! by popmaker · 2008-10-30 04:11 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Jesus did not create halloween, and you must not anger the halloween spirits, or this will happen: http://www.theonion.com/content/video/in_the_know_has_halloween_become
5. Re:Whoa! by AlexBirch · 2008-10-30 06:41 · Score: 1
  
  You insensitive clod, Jesus created everything. Halloween, Buddha, Mohammedan, etc...
6. Re:Whoa! by spitek · 2008-10-30 07:04 · Score: 1
  
  LEAVE OUR HOLIDAY's alone and well leave yours alone crazy freak!
7. Re:Whoa! by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 15:27 · Score: 0
  
  That pumpkin is an abomination! It represents all that is wrong with the world taken over by robots, so much for the sanctity of halloween! I'm sure this one will make the baby jesus cry, when he created halloween, this is NOT what he had in mind!
  Go eat some candy corn, and let the kids get cavities once a year.
8. Re:Whoa! by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 17:43 · Score: 0
  
  baby jesus is goin' down . . .
Holy Crap! by Capt+James+McCarthy · 2008-10-30 00:08 · Score: 4, Funny

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Fine_(actor)

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Alien? by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 00:08 · Score: 0

I sure hope he doesn't look like slashdot picture..
This is really obligatory! by cosmocain · 2008-10-30 00:10 · Score: 4, Funny

Take this!
Very cool by shad0wfire1 · 2008-10-30 00:15 · Score: 2, Interesting

These Guys have upgraded a hell of a lot since I first purchased the projector kit from them. Loved my projector :) New site looks amazing.
nice pumpkin, but by v1 · 2008-10-30 00:23 · Score: 3, Interesting

I think I like the /. article pumpkin better. I can't imagine how you'd carve that thing... I mean, even the spikes... how? incredible.

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1. Re:nice pumpkin, but by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 00:42 · Score: 0
  
  The predator pumpkin is the work of Ray Villafane.
  http://www.villafanestudios.com/pumpkins.htm
2. Re:nice pumpkin, but by Clarious · 2008-10-30 01:05 · Score: 1
  
  I think I like the /. article pumpkin better. I can't imagine how you'd carve that thing... I mean, even the spikes... how? incredible.
  If you RTFA, then you will know that is not the pumpkin he carved, he used CNC machine to carve his face on a pumpkin, not a demonic face. It is still incredible though
3. Re:nice pumpkin, but by cool_arrow · 2008-10-30 02:34 · Score: 1
  
  I don't think the spikes are carved. They are likely something like colored toothpicks stuck in after the cnc is done.
4. Re:nice pumpkin, but by cool_arrow · 2008-10-30 02:37 · Score: 1
  
  nvm. they're different sizes. Carved maybe but not w/ cnc.
5. Re:nice pumpkin, but by alx5000 · 2008-10-30 02:51 · Score: 2, Informative
  
  Well, and if you cared to read the comment you just replied to, you may find out that he already knows, and that he still likes the one samzenpus used better.
  And it's not demonic, FFS, it's a predator!
  
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6. Re:nice pumpkin, but by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 03:56 · Score: 0
  
  Here's how Ray Vilafane creates his pumpkins: http://www.villafanestudios.com/pumpkins.htm
7. Re:nice pumpkin, but by svnt · 2008-10-30 05:39 · Score: 1
  
  Whoa whoa whoa I have to stop you.
  
  "a demonic face"
  A?! demonic face?!
  GTFO. Seriously. Try again tomorrow.
8. Re:nice pumpkin, but by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 11:01 · Score: 0
  
  I think I like the /. article pumpkin better. I can't imagine how you'd carve that thing... I mean, even the spikes... how? incredible.
  If you RTFA, then you will know that is not the pumpkin he carved, he used CNC machine to carve his face on a pumpkin, not a demonic face. It is still incredible though
  Oh, hell no you didn't...
Re:Is that a pumpkin, or Nancy Pelosi's twat? by morgan_greywolf · 2008-10-30 00:34 · Score: 0, Offtopic

Yes.

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DOOOM by coleblak · 2008-10-30 00:36 · Score: 1

Christ, I had a Doom flashback. It's too early in the morning for a pic like that. Nonetheles, AWESOME!

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Wrong picture... taken from here by bryansj · 2008-10-30 00:40 · Score: 5, Informative

This guy was on Food Network and won the pumpkin carving challenge. The Predator pumpkin shown was stolen from his site. http://www.villafanestudios.com/pumpkins.htm
1. Re:Wrong picture... taken from here by HEbGb · 2008-10-30 01:00 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  Exactly. The CNC methods are fun and all, but it's really offensive to have a solid, hand-carved artwork misattributed like that. The photo should be removed.
2. Re:Wrong picture... taken from here by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 01:33 · Score: 0
  
  The actual pumpkin is much less impressive. Although the blog does have some pictures of the making and a video.
3. Re:Wrong picture... taken from here by eonlabs · 2008-10-30 01:37 · Score: 1
  
  If the second pic was properly attributed to the site it came from I don't think it matters, but since it isn't, it either should be or be removed.
  Seconded!
  
  --
  I wouldn't consider the mad hatter mad. Just reality impaired. He sure can make a mean cup of tea.
4. Re:Wrong picture... taken from here by swb · 2008-10-30 02:55 · Score: 0, Flamebait
  
  What's worse is that the CNC carved pumpkin is only shown lit up from a distance -- no up close detail or anything. I'd also swear it looks like the lit up CNC carved pumpkin isn't actually a carving but is an image projected onto the pumpkin -- the lighting just doesn't look right, but this is just an impression I don't really have any proof.
5. Re:Wrong picture... taken from here by svnt · 2008-10-30 05:42 · Score: 1
  
  Offensive? To who, pumpkin artists everywhere?
  What percentage of the population do you think that is? If we can't afford to offend pumpkin artists we have seriously gone off the deep end.
6. Re:Wrong picture... taken from here by EdIII · 2008-10-30 06:31 · Score: 1
  
  No offense, but your an idiot.
  He was not talking about offending a small minority of people, which according to you does not matter since they are a minority. An offensive concept in of itself, I might add.
  What he was referring to, of which I agree, is that is offensive to mislead people and attribute one person's work to another regardless of the nature of that work and its popularity.
  This is about ethics and professional conduct in journalism.
7. Re:Wrong picture... taken from here by PitaBred · 2008-10-30 06:51 · Score: 1
  
  I find it offensive to represent one person's work as someone else's, especially when one is machine-made and another is hand-made.
  
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8. Re:Wrong picture... taken from here by Jrono · 2008-10-30 10:28 · Score: 1
  
  "Ethics" and "professional conduct"? On Slashdot?
  You must be new here... :-)
  But yeah, I had to browse through the comments to figure out where that picture came from. It's very annoying when things like this aren't properly attributed.
That was the retouched version by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 00:45 · Score: 0

You should see the real one... if you want to go blind.
Obligatory by cunniff · 2008-10-30 00:48 · Score: 1, Redundant

I, for one, welcome our robotic CNC overlords.
hmmm by thatskinnyguy · 2008-10-30 00:57 · Score: 1

ROGR... is that any relation to the WOPR

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His face? by Joolz50 · 2008-10-30 01:02 · Score: 1

...A guy at Lumenlab has created a way to carve his face on a pumpkin ...
Thats his face?
1. Re:His face? by mcgrew · 2008-10-30 04:13 · Score: 1
  
  If it is, he's a dead ringer for my ex-wife!
  
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AVP by circletimessquare · 2008-10-30 01:02 · Score: 4, Funny

Alien Pumpkin versus Predator Pumpkin: Whoever Wins, We... get pumpkin pie

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Massively misleading article summary and photo by nmg196 · 2008-10-30 01:04 · Score: 4, Informative

Just in case it isn't obvious, the photo is NOT related to the article summary and the pumpkin was NOT carved on a CNC machine! This article is massively misleading. The photo was stolen from another site featuring hand-carved pumpkins. I doubt a CNC machine could even vaguely come close to doing that on a material so soft and flexible.
1. Re:Massively misleading article summary and photo by mephistophyles · 2008-10-30 01:31 · Score: 1
  
  I think a CNC machine could actually... the main problem would be making sure the pumpkin doesn't move while you're working on it. The teeth would be hard to do, but a 3D CNC machine like certain specialized businesses and technical universities have should be able to make a decent attempt, but since the material is fairly fragile it'll take a while.
  
  whether a material is soft and flexible doesn't mean it can't be CNC'ed, it just means that the bit will have to rotate a lot faster and the movement speed will have to take into account the shape it's making... It's a challenge, but certainly not too difficult. It'll leave a mess that needs to be cleaned though...
2. Re:Massively misleading article summary and photo by BLKMGK · 2008-10-30 01:33 · Score: 1
  
  Redundant but here's the site with that pumpkin - featured on DIGG awhile ago which is how I found it -> http://www.villafanestudios.com/pumpkins.htm
  
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3. Re:Massively misleading article summary and photo by TheGeniusIsOut · 2008-10-30 01:35 · Score: 1
  
  The easiest way to work with soft and fragile materials like a pumpkin would be to deep-freeze it before carving.
  
  --
  Ignorance is Bliss -- And the Opposite is True -- Genius is Madness
4. Re:Massively misleading article summary and photo by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 02:46 · Score: 0
  
  And then it turns into blurp when it thaws.
5. Re:Massively misleading article summary and photo by AlexBirch · 2008-10-30 06:33 · Score: 1
  
  Just in case it isn't obvious, the photo is NOT related to the article summary and the pumpkin was NOT carved on a CNC machine!
  
  OMG Slashdot uses misleading intro to increase their viewership, news at 11.
FUCK YOU IDLE!! by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 01:44 · Score: 0

The misleading picture seduced me to click on a... [gasp] idle link! Now I feel dirty!
Will never do that again. Swear.
I believe you but .... by frovingslosh · 2008-10-30 01:46 · Score: 1

You would better support your statement by providing a link to the other site that you say exists. The problem that I have with the article is that he completely ignores the issue of irregular gourd shape, both outside and in. Lots of babble about converting the image to a depth map, but no mention at all of the bigger issue of how to map that to a irregular round surface. I don't believe this was done on this system either, but I find it hard to understand how you could make your claim and not provide a link.

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Nice carving, but ... by Muad'Dave · 2008-10-30 01:50 · Score: 5, Interesting

...I'd love to see the same sort of thing done from inside the pumpkin (through a hole in the top), without piercing the outside skin on the side. The pumpkin would look unmolested until you illuminated it from the inside. Wooo!!! Scary!!!

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1. Re:Nice carving, but ... by smellsofbikes · 2008-10-30 02:39 · Score: 1
  
  There's a famous Charles Addams cartoon that shows a field of pumpkins, with one in the foreground being carved from the inside: just a knife blade sticking out, busily cutting away...
  Alas, I can't find a pic online.
  
  --
  Nostalgia's not what it used to be.
2. Re:Nice carving, but ... by cool_arrow · 2008-10-30 02:47 · Score: 1
  
  That would be cool. Perhaps cut the pumpkin in half, scrape out the gunk, cnc, and "glue" it back together.
3. Re:Nice carving, but ... by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 04:15 · Score: 0
  
  Did that in 2004, it won first place. :)
4. Re:Nice carving, but ... by RockDoctor · 2008-10-30 21:40 · Score: 1
  
  I can almost hear the flurry of foolish {Insert deity of your choice}-ian people (*) writing to {Insert idiotic excuse for a newspaper in your region} along the lines of "Look at this photo of a pumpkin I brought. It's got an image of [ {Insert deity of choice} OR {Insert angel of choice} OR {Insert demon of choice} OR {Insert politician of choice} ] and therefore proves that [ { ( {deity of choice} exists ) OR ( {politician of choice} is the [spawn of {devil of choice} ] OR [ favoured of {deity of choice} ] )
  Have I mismatched a parenthesis there?
  (*) I use the word "people" in an anatomical sense, not to imply any mental abilities that would make a mother amoeba proud.
  
  --
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5. Re:Nice carving, but ... by Muad'Dave · 2008-10-31 02:54 · Score: 1
  
  In my opinion, that would make it all worthwhile. 8-)
  
  --
  Tiller's Rule: Never use a word in written form that you've only heard and never read. You will end up looking foolish.
Misleading Picture by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 02:09 · Score: 0

Wow, is there any way that the slashdot editors could go back and actually make the picture be from the story.
That was horribly misleading. The guy in the article made an awesome carving with a CNC robot, but the picture is someone else's hand carved one.
very sloppy guys
Goat pic? by Zarniwoop · 2008-10-30 02:32 · Score: 1

Ok... is it just me, or did the smaller pic look like a pumpkin goatse to anyone else?
Oh god... the interwebs, they've rotted my brains.

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the pumpkin is cool and all... by viridari · 2008-10-30 02:49 · Score: 3, Informative

...but Lumenlab is a much cooler site to go to in that they produce an affordable mini-CNC mill for $599 that is run by open source software.
Re:Is that a pumpkin, or Nancy Pelosi's twat? by morgan_greywolf · 2008-10-30 03:05 · Score: 1

Offtopic? Offtopic? No, it's not offtopic. At least mod it correctly: It's either A) Funny or B) Troll. And damn, why do the mods have no sense of humor today?

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Silence....I kill you! by nevillethedevil · 2008-10-30 03:13 · Score: 1

That guy is talented. Wait isn't this Ahmed the dead terrorist?

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Get your facts straight! by Locke2005 · 2008-10-30 05:02 · Score: 1

Hollowe'en wasn't created by :"Baby Jesus"! It was created by "I've returned from the dead and boy am I pissed" Zombie Jesus!"

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I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
I see a money maker by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 05:14 · Score: 0

Carve Jesus on it and sell it on eBay!
Pumpkin Carved with a Laser Cutter by elkaim · 2008-10-30 05:17 · Score: 1

In my lab at UC Santa Cruz, we used a laser cutter to carve our school logo into a pumpkin. One of the graduate students devised a rolling rig so that the distance to the surface of the pumpkin remained roughly constant, keeping the beam in focus. He made a video of the process seen at the link below.
http://apps.soe.ucsc.edu/elkaim/archives/000333.html
My ex did it by hand... by malachid69 · 2008-10-30 06:07 · Score: 1

/></a>

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1. Re:My ex did it by hand... by malachid69 · 2008-10-30 06:11 · Score: 1
  
  hmm, well, that's annoying...
  
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  http://www.google.com/profiles/malachid
2. Re:My ex did it by hand... by kayditty · 2008-10-30 06:35 · Score: 0
  
  you know that you can usually get a larger version of a myspace cdn image by changing m to l (or s to l as the situation requires), instead of stalking the private myspace of your "ex" to get thumbnail profile pictures.
3. Re:My ex did it by hand... by malachid69 · 2008-10-30 06:45 · Score: 1
  
  Actually, that's in my album. I had just hit the copy-code button without really looking at it.
  
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  http://www.google.com/profiles/malachid
Predator by Terminus32 · 2008-10-30 06:10 · Score: 0

Awesome job!

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Re:Is that a pumpkin, or Nancy Pelosi's twat? by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 09:30 · Score: 0

Maybe it's because all the mods have dressed as Nanci Pellosi for Halloween. They demand respect for having to wear that much to appear as they are. Maybe if we're lucky, they'll take some pictures of their lesbian strapon romp with one another.
Re:Is that a pumpkin, or Nancy Pelosi's twat? by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-30 23:20 · Score: 0

You would consider that terrible image "lucky?" *shudder*