DRM Could Come To 3D Printers

another random user sends this excerpt from TorrentFreak: "Downloading a car – or a pair of sneakers – will be entirely possible, although Ford and Nike won't be particularly happy if people use their designs to do so. A new patent, issued this week by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and titled 'Manufacturing control system', describes a system whereby 3D printer-like machines (the patent actually covers additive, subtractive, extrusion, melting, solidification, and other types of manufacturing) will have to obtain authorization before they are allowed to print items requested by the user. In a nutshell, a digital fingerprint of 'restricted items' will be held externally and printers will be required to compare the plans of the item they're being asked to print against those in a database. If there's a match, printing will be disallowed or restricted."

Comments

Shouldn't be patentable

[Nimey]

because it's bloody obvious.

Re:Shouldn't be patentable

[Moblaster]

That's true. On the other hand, it's virtually impossible to enforce on any practical technical level. Like the quality of a first post.

Re:Shouldn't be patentable

[Joce640k]

You can always rotate it and add a few snap-off tabs to fool the DRM.

You could even make two objects at once, joined by a bit of removable plastic. Let's see how the algorithm copes...

Re:Shouldn't be patentable

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually, if it's patented to have DRM on a 3D printer... wouldn't that mean printers wouldn't be able to DRM anything UNLESS they actually paid for rights to use the patent to prevent users from using their product?

"Your honor, my device does not legally have the right to use the DRM restriction, as it is a patented technology and we do not currently have any licenses to it."

Re:Shouldn't be patentable

[Anonymous Coward]

Imagine having to get online and connect to some central computer to get permission to run that new update to Firefox.

No sane person would ever put up with this.

Sent from my iPhone.

Or, is someone patenting it

[hsmith]

So, no one else can patent it, thus disabling "DRM" authorization?

I won't hold my breath.

I call the authorisation database entry

[Neil_Brown]

for rectangles with rounded corners.

Seriously! WTF

[Anonymous Coward]

God, the patent wars are coming to 3d manufacturing. What the heck is the point? I have to check with colgate before I can use my own machine to make myself a custom toothbrush? Is there going to be a DMCA provision for manufacturing at home now? Is it going to be abused like the current process is. I say BULLSHIT!

They Makes Me Laugh

[Githaron]

How can they believe that they can control this in a world where highly advanced 3D printing is possible at home? People will just print their own 3D printers that do not have these restrictions.

Kill 'em while their young

[betterunixthanunix]

We can't have disruptive technologies that force us to change how we monetize creativity! Let's make the technologies useless, cumbersome, and expensive, so that later on we can claim they were never really worth what everyone thought!

Oh, and did I mention how terrible it is that we failed to do it with the automobile:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_flag_laws

Sweet!

[Garridan]

Looks like the patent protects a technology to implement DRM on printers. So... if you want to implement DRM on your printer, you'll have to pay the owner of this patent licensing fees. Otherwise, no DRM. So, non-DRM printers will be cheaper and more readily available.

Remember guys, a patent is not a law that things must be done this way! It's the opposite -- if things are done this way, you'll have to pay for it.