3D Systems Announces ProJet 4500 and 5500X
Euromold is underway, and that means new product reveals and company announcements about future endeavors. As the largest design and manufacturing conference in the world, Euromold draws vendors and attendees from around the globe to hear about advances in technology, and see the latest innovations. Additive manufacturing (AM) has become an integral part of the conference, thanks to its growing impact on parts production, rapid prototyping, and end-use product manufacturing.
3D Systems is first off the blocks this year to showcase its newest products: the ProJet 4500 and ProJet 5500X. The ProJet 4500 offers high resolution, full-color plastic prints, and the ProJet 5500X advances 3D Systems’ dedication to multi-material composites printing. Let’s take a closer look at each in turn. Continue reading
Fripp Design Offers 3D Printed Facial Prosthetics
Additive manufacturing (AM) has been widely embraced by the medical community, and one of the technology’s most frequent medical uses is prosthetics design. All manner of prosthetics have been designed with the aid of AM, including high tech models, low cost models, and even animal prosthetics. AM’s flexibility and material options make it uniquely suited to building prosthetics more quickly and less expensively than through traditional manufacturing methods.
UK based Fripp Design is looking to add to the potential of 3D printed prosthetics with its development of AM-built facial prosthetics. Through careful material selection and model design, the company is planning to offer nose, ear and eye prosthetics. Not only will these prosthetics be less expensive than the custom, hand-crafted models currently used, they will also be available in a fraction of the time. A prosthetic could be ready in days, rather than the months currently required. Continue reading
Solidoodle 4 Launches
For many of the smaller 3D printer manufacturers, simply launching a product is the end of a long struggle. By now, there are enough different manufacturers that new players in the market have to bring something special to the table if they hope to get noticed. For a few companies, however, producing a solid product that does what it claims it will do is enough to move forward.
Founded in 2011, Solidoodle has continued to produce additive manufacturing (AM) systems that, while not fancy, generally perform as advertised. As a result, the company has been able to continually refine its manufacturing methods and release updated models on a regular basis. The company’s newest offering is the Solidoodle 4, a desktop AM system that moves away from RepRap aesthetics to a sleeker, more professional appearance. Continue reading
Bring History into Your Home with the Smithsonian X 3D Collection
The Information Age is glorious. At no other point in history have humans had such easy access to enormous amounts of information. Movies, books, music, and more are all at our fingertips. With the advent of 3D scanning, we can even experience objects we might otherwise never see, from museums and collections around the world.
The Smithsonian is on top of the digitalization of information. In addition to the massive amount of written material that has been digitized, the museum has added 3D printing to its arsenal, allowing easier examination or “lending” of exhibits. Now, with the new Smithsonian X 3D Collection, users can take a close-up look at history, or even print out replicas to educate and impress. Continue reading
3D Systems Partners with Motorola for Project Ara
Additive manufacturing (AM) is revolutionizing the manufacturing industry by offering increased customization for consumers. Sites like Shapeways exist to provide customers with unique 3D printed products that can be tweaked to suit the customer’s desires. Only AM could offer the sort of end-use products sold on Shapeways, thanks to the technology’s design and material flexibility.
Following its acquisition by Google, Motorola has also been focusing on customization. The early steps were similar to those taken by Nokia, offering variously colored cases and different configurations of the Moto X. Perhaps unsatisfied by mainly cosmetic options, Motorola has moved on to Project Ara, and the goal of developing a modular smartphone with the assistance of 3D Systems. Continue reading
