Selective laser melting process in action. Credit: Tim Sercombe/University of Western Australia
Researchers have been investigating whether it’s possible to 3D print an object that acts as a superconductor.
research
Large Scale 3D Printed Nanostructures Possible
A newly invented process could enable large-scale use of nano-printed metal materials.
Security Risks in 3D Printing? Apparently So
A report suggests there may be cybersecurity risks present in the current 3D printing workflows that could result in bad things happening.
Dissolvable Metal Support Material for 3D Printed Metal Could Create New Opportunities
Researchers have developed a very unusual support material: dissolvable carbon steel that could be used for metal 3D printing support structures.
BAE Systems’ “Chemical” Printer: Fantasy or Possibility?
There’s a very strange announcement on the BAE Systems site, proposing a “chemputer” that would “grow” objects. Is this something that’s actually feasible?
3D Models, Created by an A.I.: Good or Bad Idea?
An experiment by researchers at the University of Copenhagen attempted to persuade an A.I. to create a 3D model from scratch. It did.
3D Printed Construction Milestone Achieved
Netherlands company Heijmans partnered with CyBe Construction to produce prototype concrete formworks. Apparently, they were successful.
Resurrecting an Extinct Chocolate Bar with 3D Printing
It’s now been proven: prehistoric chocolate bars can indeed be brought back from extinction!
A New Bio-Active 3D Printing Polymer Suggests Many New Applications
Researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have done something I’ve not seen before: mixed bio-active enzymes with 3D printing polymer.
Sculpteo Releases Their “State of 3D Printing” Survey Results
3D print service Sculpteo undertook a comprehensive survey of their clients earlier this year and today they publish the results.
Electric 3D Printing? New Adhesive Method Could Enable a New Form of 3D Printing
A new adhesive is triggered by electricity, suggesting the possibility of a new form of 3D printing.
Fascinating Vector-Driven Metal 3D Printing From Harvard
Researchers at Harvard have developed a truly fascinating 3D printing technique that shows the limitations of current technologies.
Is That 3D Printed Mega-Groot For Real?
Earlier we published a story on the massive CoLiDo Mega 3D printer, but some believed the print was faked.
Projection Micro-Stereo-Lithography: A New Way To Create Precision Components
Researchers at Northwestern University have used a 3D printing technique called “projection micro-stereo-lithography” to create incredibly complex lenses.
Siemens’ Spiders Could Lead To Massive 3D Printing Projects
Research at engineering giant Siemens seems to be developing a kind of mobile 3D printing robot.
RetroFab: 3D Printed Parasitic Interfaces For Ancient Appliances
A bizarre project from Autodesk Labs investigates whether one can generate new physical interfaces for old appliances: They Can!
MIT Team 3D Prints Functioning Robot in a Single Step
Though the field of robotics is evolving at a rapid pace, there is a good deal of progress to be made on almost every front.
NASA’s Aerosol Jet 3D Printing Experiment’s Will Change Your Factory
It seems that NASA has been experimenting with Aerosol Jet 3D printing and their work could leak into other applications.
This New Manufacturing Method Uses Fabric and 6-Axis Robots to Bring Variation to Cast Objects
As conventional casting methods have taught us, the best way for reliably manufacturing multiples of any object is to start with an accurate and sturdy mold.
Carbon’s Huge M1 Pricing May Not Be Totally Crazy After All
Some analysis shows that Carbon’s recent pricing announcement for their M1 “CLIP”-based 3D printer might not be as stratospheric as you might think.
A Consideration of EBM versus DMLS Industrial Metal 3D Printing Processes, Part 2
This is the final segment of a two-part series comparing EBM and DMLS 3D printing processes. The first part may be found here.
Chemically Active 3D Prints To Make Amazing Things Happen
Some interesting research in the journal Science and Technology of Advanced Materials shows how a 3D printed object could be functional in a chemical manner.
New 3D Printing Process Could Revolutionize Metal Printing
Researchers from the University of Southern California have developed yet another 3D printing process, which they call “Selective Separation Sintering”.
Carbon Dioxide As 3D Printing Material?
Yes, we’ve all seen carbon fiber 3D printing material, but now scientists from the University Of California have managed to use carbon dioxide to 3D print.
Tallying Up The Carbon M1’s Total Cost Of Ownership
Carbon announced their first product, the M1 3D Printer last week, but with a twist: subscription pricing. We calculated how much it could cost you.
Could A Plasma 3D Printer Be In Your Future?
New research from NASA Ames and SLAC demonstrates an effective way of 3D printing nanomaterials using plasma.
The Most Unusual 3D Printing Patent Yet Seen
Researchers at Boeing have published a patent describing a bizarre method of 3D printing that involves levitation. I am skeptical.
Your Quick Answers Could Help Additive Manufacturing Research
A survey is underway seeking answers from professionals using 3D printing / additive manufacturing processes.
Autodesk’s Project Escher Attempts To Combine 3D Printing With Other Manufacturing Processes
This could be a very big deal: Autodesk has taken up the challenge of opening up 3D printing to a much wider audience with Project Escher.
The Secret To 3D Printing Graphene: Freeze It!
It’s been quite problematic to 3D print graphene, but researchers at the University of Buffalo have come up with a very cool solution.
Fraunhofer’s Metal 3D Screen Printing Achieves Mass Production of Intricate Metal Parts
Critical to the adoption of additive manufacturing in the aerospace, automotive and defense industries, metal 3D printing is poised to see significant advances in the near future.
Considering The True Biodegradability of PLA
Hackaday’s recent story about PLA biodegradability got me thinking more about PLA’s characteristics.
Audio Capture of 3D Print Security Fears Overblown
Researchers at the University of California at Irvine have found a potential security issue with 3D printers, but I believe fears expressed are overreactions.
Proven: Metal Additive Manufacturing Can Optimize Building Structure
A research paper by engineers from Netherlands-based Arup suggests that 3D printed building elements could provide significant benefit when designing particular structural styles.
Unique Method of 3D Printing Bone Joints
Researchers at the University of Waterloo in Canada have developed a method of 3D printing custom, bio-absorbable bone joints.
Ultrafast 3D Printed SuperCapacitors Produced: Could Change Many Things
Researchers at UC Santa Cruz have developed a method of 3D printing graphene electrodes that could revolutionize the way we power mobile devices.
US Army Testing Mission-Specific Custom 3D Printed Drones
The US Army is conducting a test to investigate whether it is feasible to design and 3D print highly specific drone designs for specific missions.
Body-Temperature Polymer Could Provoke Some Very Interesting 3D Prints
A new polymer developed by a team from the University of Rochester has an interesting property: it changes shape when triggered by body temperature alone.
The Solid Vibration 3D Printing Project
Studio van Broekhoven in Eindhoven has developed a fascinating and simple technique to incorporate sound into 3D prints.
New Data On 3D Printer Emissions: Good Or Bad News?
Researchers from several institutions have performed more extensive testing on particulate emissions from commonly available 3D printers, and the results should be known by all 3D printer owners.
New Technique Could Dramatically Strengthen Resin-Based 3D Printing
Researchers at the University of Bristol’s Faculty of Engineering have developed a new technique for strengthening 3D printed resin.
Nano-Level Electro-Chemical 3D Printing Demonstrated
A new microscopic 3D printing process has been developed by Swiss company Cytosurge, and it can print metal!
NewPro3D’s Speedy ILI 3D Printing Technology
Vancouver-based NewPro3D has developed a new process for resin 3D printing that seems quite fast.
UCLA Invents New Strong And Lightweight Metal, But Can It Be 3D Printed?
A new metal alloy developed by UCLA researchers looks quite promising, particularly for aerospace use, but can it be 3D printed?
The Best 3D Print Benchmarks: Done?
We 3D printed two popular benchmark 3D models on a top quality industrial 3D printer, the Stratasys Objet Connex260.
IT’S ALIVE!? 3D Printing of Micro-Organs
Printing functioning organs may still sound like science fiction, but a new process for creating embryoid bodies (EB) by 3D printing embryonic stem cells (ESC) could bring us another step closer to turning science fiction into science fact.
3D Printing Materials Toxicity Assessment: Yes, Toxic
Researchers at the University of California, Riverside have determined that at least some commonly used 3D printing materials are toxic.
An Easy Method To Generate Hair – On Almost Any 3D Printer!
Researchers at Carnagie Mellon have developed a ridiculously simple method of 3D printing hair-like structures.
A Big Step Towards 3D Printed Organs
Carnegie Mellon researchers have worked out a way to successfully print “squishy” biological tissues, thus removing one of the key barriers to major bioprinting.
Could Self-Healing Plastic Be 3D Printed?
A curious new plastic can heal itself in water, but could this be used in a 3D printer? Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania examined squid teeth, which have a very unusual property: they can heal themselves, even when submerged in water. Here’s the interesting part: the researchers were able to determine which genes controlled… Continue reading Could Self-Healing Plastic Be 3D Printed?
MIT’s Fab Forms Pre-Tests 3D Model Variations
Researchers at MIT have developed “Fab Forms”, a system that pre-tests thousands of variations of a 3D model to simplify end user design.
3D Hubs Trend Report For September
3D Hubs has issued its latest trends report on their view of 3D printer use. We noticed some interesting patterns.
More On Gartner’s 3D Printing Predictions
Gartner 3D printing analyst Pete Basiliere pointed us at their company’s latest detailed report on 3D printing and it shows some interesting predictions.
Microsoft Developing Mobile 3D Scanning Technology – For Any Smartphone!
A paper from Oxford and Microsoft researchers details an experimental workflow enabling capture of 3D models using only a smartphone’s camera.
MIT’s 3D Glass Printer Raises Questions
Researchers at MIT unveiled an incredible new 3D printing process that uses glass as the print material. We’re asking some questions about its capabilities.
Made In Space’s New In-Vacuum 3D Printer
You’ve probably heard of Made In Space, the company that recently installed a real 3D printer on the International Space Station. Now they’ve developed a new method of 3D printing in a vacuum!
3D Print Flexible Objects With Solid Plastic? Disney Can!
New research from scientists at Disney have described ways to 3D print objects with components of varying flexibility using only solid plastic.
Alternative Method of 3D Printing Electronics Developed
Researchers at UC Berkeley and National Chiao Tung University have developed a simple alternative method of 3D printing electrical traces within printed objects.
Report: Desktop 3D Printer Shipments Grow By 114% But Which Vendors Lead?
We’re looking at a summary of an industry report from CONTEXT that calculates the growth in desktop 3D printer shipments was 114%, comparing 1Q14 to 1Q15.
New Digital DNA-Based 3D Printing Technology Emerges
While 3D printing at human-sized scales remains a busy marketplace, research into 3D printing at microscopic scales also continues.
A Glimpse at Autodesk’s Robotics Lab of the Future
A recent piece by FastCompany details the new direction that software giant Autodesk is moving at their Applied Research Lab at Pier 9 in San Francisco.
A Seahorse Shows How 3D Printed Robots Can Be Much, Much Better
Dr. Michael M. Porter of Clemson University in South Carolina and team have discovered something very interesting about the mechanics of seahorses – and it may change 3D printed robotics.
Smooth or Bumpy? New 3D-Printed Surfaces Change on Demand
An MIT team has been working on a way to make soft materials using a 3D printer.
3D Hubs’ July 2015 Trends Reveals Interesting 3D Printing Behavior
This month’s trends report from 3D Hubs has some interesting data that identifies who’s actually 3D printing.
Could This Unusual Material Be 3D Printed?
Japanese plastics company Polysis unveiled a peculiar plastic that we think could be of interest to 3D printing.
Breakthrough in 3D Bioprinting: Reinforced Tissue Constructs
A team from the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Brisbane has developed a way to make robust bioprints.
Hydrographic 3D Print Painting?
Wired reports on a potential method of coloring complex 3D prints: hydrographic painting. But is it really feasible?
Researchers Create New Class Of 3D Printed Aerogels
Using a 3D printing technique called direct ink writing, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory researchers created graphene aerogel micro lattices with an engineered architecture.
Space 3D Prints Returned To Earth Inspected By NASA
Remember the 3D printer sent to the International Space Station? The first prints from it have been examined by NASA.
3D Printed Metal Pricing Analysis
A reader recently asked us how much it would cost to print an item in metal. We said, “Lots”, but there’s more to the story.
Contrasting the Corporate Acquisitions of Stratasys and 3D Systems
Did you ever notice there’s quite a few news releases from 3D printing companies describing their latest acquisitions? We tallied them up.
3D Hubs’ April Trends
Each month 3D Hubs deploys an analysis of trends they observe in their 3D printer network. It’s always an interesting read.
More On Carbon3D’s New 3D Printing Process
If you are anywhere close to the world of 3D printing, you no doubt saw the blockbuster announcement last week of Carbon3D’s new speedy process. We took a bit deeper look at it.
Gizmo 3D Printers Develops Another Rapid Printing Process
An Australian startup seems to have found a way to significantly speed up DLP 3D printing.
3D Printed Architectural Structure Demonstrates New Approach
3D Systems teamed with a team from UC Berkeley to 3D print an intricate architectural structure, perhaps the largest cement structure ever 3D printed.
3D Printed Parts Provide Low-Cost Alternative for Lab Equipment
The 3-D printing scene, a growing favorite of do-it-yourselfers, has spread to the study of plasma physics.
3D Hubs’ Trends Report Provides Deeper Insights
This month’s trend report from 3D Hubs again provides deeper insights into the use of personal 3D printing gear.
3D Printing, Scanning Bring Insights to Stegosaurus Research
While the Stegosaurus happily competes with both the Tyrannosaurus rex and the Diplodocus as being every other child’s favourite dinosaur,
New Quality Control Techniques For EOS Metal 3D Printers
EOS manufactures high-end industrial 3D printers, some of which can print in metal. But how do they maintain quality control?
China Sets Up a Medical 3D Printing Center
The PRC has established a center for medical 3D printing.
Research May Lead to Low Cost 3D Metal Printing
Research on aluminum 3D printing has discovered ways to potentially lower operational costs.
3D Printing Body Parts in Japan
Japanese researchers are focusing on developing ways to 3D print body parts.
3D Printing with DNA-Based “Smart Glue”
Researchers have developed a way to use DNA as “glue” to hold together 3D prints.
Engineers to Fine-Tune ‘Cold Spray’ a Next-Gen 3D-Printing Technology for Astronauts
Engineers from Trinity College Dublin are leading a four-year, €500,000 European Space Agency (ESA) project to fine-tune ‘Cold Spray,’ (CS) – a revolutionary, environmentally friendly technology that deposits materials onto engineering components.
3D Hubs’ January Trends Yields a Surprising Result
We’re looking at some interesting statistics presented by 3D Hubs in their monthly trends report.
3D Printing Bested by “Pop Up” Fabrication?
Researchers at Northwestern University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed a simple new fabrication technique to create beautiful and complex 3-D micro- and nanostructures with many advantages over 3-D printing.
Nanoscribe’s Nano-Scale 3D Printing Technology
We took a closer look at Nanoscribe’s nano-scale 3D printing technology to understand how it works.
New 3D Printing Algorithm Reduces Support Material, But…
A new algorithm might prove effective to reduce the amount of support material required for 3D prints by chopping objects into more easily printable shapes.
Impossible Objects Receives Funding
The scientists at Impossible Objects have developed a unique 3D printing process, and it appears the market like it: they were just awarded USD$2.8M.
TNO’s 3D Printing Breakthroughs
TNO has been developing some unique 3D printing technologies that we may see in new machines soon.
New Technique Could Enable 3D Printed Contact Lenses
Researchers at Princeton University have developed a technique for 3D printing multiple materials that could prove quite interesting.
Space 3D Printer Is Installed
A few short weeks ago a SpaceX cargo craft carried a unique experiment: A 3D printer designed for space. Now it’s being installed.
New Process Could Lead to Consumer-Priced 3D Metal Printers
We’re checking out a proposed new 3D printing process that could significantly lower the barriers to metal 3D printing: Selective Inhibition Sintering.
The Beauty of Great 3D Printer Filament
Remember we performed some tests on the FoxSmart filament? We did one more test afterwards and found something very interesting.
Quasicrystalline Alloys Could Improve 3D Print Materials
Researchers at the University of Lorraine in France have been working on new methods of creating powdered alloys.