Recently, MIT unveiled their new 3D-printing method that uses transparent glass rather than plastic.

In collaboration with the school’s Mechanical Engineering Department, the MIT Glass Lab, as well as the Wyss Institute and Mediated Matter Group, have created their new method of 3D printing, otherwise known as 3DGP.

Their method essentially works in the same way as a conventional 3D printer in that it’s an additive manufacturing platform that’s designed to print optically-transparent glass.

The team of researchers found a better way to modulate the light transmission, reflection and refraction qualities by accurately varying the thickness of the print.

In order to carry out the process, two heated-chambers are stacked one on top of the other. The first chamber acts as a kiln cartridge and works at 1,900 degrees Fahrenheit while the other chamber melts and hardens the structures together.

Though you never want glass to break, this breakthrough in 3D printing could lead to advances in the creation of fiber optic cables that can transmit data more efficiently. Furthermore, 3DGP could open the innovative gates that could lead to the creation of more complex structures and some that we’d never even imagined could be possible.

For now though, commercial applications for 3DGP don’t exist. However, some of the glass structures that the team has already created will be showcased at an art exhibit at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York in 2016.

Until then, let’s all marvel at the mesmerizing innovation that is MIT’s 3DGP!

GLASS from Mediated Matter Group on Vimeo.

Copyright Inventionland, 2015

Sources:

https://www.engadget.com/2015/08/21/mit-figured-out-how-to-3d-print-using-glass-instead-of-plastic/

https://mashable.com/2015/08/22/3d-glass-printing/

Media:

https://o.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/GLOB/crop/2560×1349+0+0/resize/1200×632!/format/jpg/quality/85/https://o.aolcdn.com/hss/storage/midas/c57306a015b6d3972d4854fcf8d89a2a/202512865/Screen+Shot+2015-08-21+at+9.44.35+AM.png

https://vimeo.com/mediatedmattergroup/glass

The post 3DGP is Absolutely Fascinating – Check it Out appeared first on Inventionland.

The University of Maribor in Slovenia is the stage for the latest 3D-printed invention.  After designing a “green” 3D printer in 2013, a group of students worked hard to turn 3D printers into on-demand gardeners through their creation of PrintGREEN.

The slogan that PrintGreen lives by is a twist on the old conservationist motto, “Think before you print,” and tells their audience to, in fact, “Print, because it is green.”

You might be wondering what makes PrintGREEN so environmentally friendly. If you were, we’re here to fill you in. This “green” invention is all about bringing together art, technology and nature into one, unified object.

The printer combines modern technology with an innovative approach by using a special CNC machine as a printing device. Rather than a canvas, PrintGREEN uses Styrodur, which is a print page that’s covered with black felt and reinforced with a sponge.

The “ink” that this printer uses is unlike any other ink. Rather than using and reusing recycled plastics that never fully degrade, PrintGreen’s ink will naturally degrade over time. The ink is actually made of a mixture of soil, water and seeds, the general ingredients that are used in typical gardens everywhere.

Once the organic ink is loaded, the printer then produces living prints of customized objects in a variety of shapes and sizes.

After the drying period, the muddy mixture holds its form and then begins to sprout grass from the organic material.

Check out these pictures straight from PrintGREEN’s website!

The end goal of PrintGREEN, as we mentioned before, is to fuse art and nature to creatively produce living designs through the assistance of modern technology.  PrintGreen is all about creating a “living” design/print as it becomes green on its own!

Copyright Inventionland, 2015

Source:

https://print-green.org/

https://www.zmescience.com/research/technology/3d-printing-green-06082015/s

https://upriser.com/posts/green-3d-printer-prints-living-designs-from-organic-ink

Media:

https://printgreendotorg.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/photo-41.jpg?w=273&h=273&crop=1

https://printgreendotorg.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/photo-2.jpg?w=306&h=408&crop=1

https://printgreendotorg.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/photo20.jpg?w=216&h=287&crop=1

The post PrintGREEN with this 3D Printer appeared first on Inventionland.

This isn’t contractor and 3D-printing enthusiast Andrey Rudenko’s first rodeo. In fact, in 2014, he created a castle that was made from his 3D-printing technology!

He has also been working on a 3D printer that’s capable of printing buildings on the moon with nothing but moon dust in order to house future astronauts.

But, aside from those monumental achievements, he even has plans to 3D print an entire village so that architects and engineers can learn about large-scale 3D printing.

Well, today, we really want to focus on Rudenko’s plans for 3D-printed replicas of ancient relics like the Legend of Atlantis and Stonehenge!

Let’s start with The Legend of Atlantis. In case you aren’t familiar, this mysterious piece of history is all about a city lost in the depths of the sea.

It’s this idea that truly fascinated Rudenko so much that he now wants to create a 3D-printed replica of the lost underwater artifacts. This would include full-sized buildings, arches and other large objects that might have never been considered to be 3D printable, due to a lack of pictures of the actual artifacts.

Thanks to Rudenko’s 3D printer that’s now capable of printing using geopolymer concrete, which is a mixture of lime and volcanic ash, he can now match the colors and textures of the 3D-printed replicas.

That’s not the only 3D-printed replica that Rudenko is working on. In fact, he’s working on replicating other landmarks, like a full-size model of Stonehenge.

His plans are to be able to move this 3D-printed replica around the world to different locations. His first thoughts were at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum since its location is prime real estate for displaying not only art, but also architectural projects as well.

But, along with his big plans for these 3D-printed replicas comes an even bigger price tag, not to mention getting museums, larger companies and designers to help Rudenko.

So, as the wheels are in motion for this 3D-printed project, only time will tell if these 3D-printed replicas will actually become full-size realities!

Copyright Inventionland, 2015

Sources:

https://3dprint.com/40883/3d-printed-stonehenge-atlantis/

https://3dprinting.com/news/engineer-wants-3d-print-stonehenge/

Media:

https://www.vzavtra.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/3d_printer_concrete_castle.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Stonehenge2007_07_30.jpg

The post 3D-printed Replicas Spark Curiosity appeared first on Inventionland.

Mina Khan is a seemingly normal two-year old. Except for the fact that a 3D-printed heart saved her life!

The young girl was born with a hole between her ventricles, a part of the heart that helps pump and circulate the blood to both her heart and lungs. This condition made it a struggle for her to survive, let alone lead a normal life.

When Mina was born, her heart was so deformed that even the doctors said that it couldn’t be repaired. The hole in her heart left Mina extremely tired, sick and unable to put on weight.

However, thanks to a 3D-printed heart, Mina was able to get the help that she needed.

Above is a picture of Mina Khan and her mother from the Daily Mail UK.

Defect and all, doctors at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London were able to create an exact copy of Mina’s small heart. Additionally, the skilled team was able to perfect the complicated procedure that was needed to help the little girl.

With the help of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computerized tomography scans, Mina’s surgeons were able to design a bespoke patch for the hole and identify and determine how it would need to be stitched into place.

The innovation of 3D printing allowed the doctors to create a model, which helped them examine and determine the exact dimensions and position of the hole in Mina’s heart.  This practice gave the doctors a better understanding of how to conduct the procedure.

This is not the first time that a 3D-printed heart saved someone’s life. In fact, surgeons at a New York hospital created a 3D-printed heart that saved a two-week-old baby’s life.

Not to mention, a man from Southampton persuaded doctors to let him help create a model of his own kidney that he needed for an operation to remove a kidney stone.

Doctors said that thanks to the 3D-printed kidney, it cut an hour from the two-hour kidney stone removal operation!

This process is currently going through a trial run with 21 other patients.

Although the practice of 3D-printing organs isn’t new, we can honestly say that hearing about life-changing surgeries thanks to 3D printing never gets old!

Copyright Inventionland, 2015

Sources:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2925771/Two-year-old-girl-s-living-normal-life-pioneering-surgeons-use-3D-printer-make-copy-heart.html

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/health/doctors-save-little-girl-using-3d-printer-heart-10001878.html

Media:

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/01/25/2509A86C00000578-2925771-image-m-40_1422222453738.jpg

The post 3D-printed Heart Saves Two-Year Old’s Life appeared first on Inventionland.

The 3D-printing company didn’t just 3D print one building, they 3D printed TWO buildings!

Recently, Winsun printed a five-story apartment building and an 11,840 square foot mansion!

The 3D printing company successfully completed this project by using a 500-foot-long 3D printer that uses recycled industrial waste to create new building materials for the structures.

As a note, this type of printing offers 10 times the efficiency in comparison to traditional construction and has the potential to reduce energy consumption by 30-70 percent!

But, as we said before in a previous blog about Winsun, Rome wasn’t built in a day; but, one level of the residential block was! However, it did take another five days to actually put the levels together!

Why is Winsun so good at 3D printing large structures? It’s because they specialize in 3D printers that are made solely for construction!

The 3D printers that the company uses produce layers of construction material, one on top of another, in order to form densely-packed building blocks.

The “ink” that is used throughout the building process, generally consists of glass fiber, cement and a hardening agent. Additionally, the ink is self-insulating and flexible. It’s been said that it is resistant to strong earthquakes as well!

As of late, the company is planning to expand their 3D-printed capabilities to 20 additional countries and Winsun also believes that their innovation can be used to build homes in developing countries or areas that have been struck by disaster.

Only time will tell what Winsun has planned for the future!

Copyright Inventionland, 2015

Sources:

https://www.pcworld.com/article/2872472/chinese-company-reveals-3d-printed-buildings.html

https://time.com/3674557/3d-printed-apartment-building-winsun/

https://www.designboom.com/technology/chinese-winsun-3d-prints-six-story-apartment-mansion-building-01-20-2015/

https://3dprintingindustry.com/2015/01/19/winsun-3d-printing-building/

Media:

https://3dprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/b51.png

https://ciclovivo.com.br/public/img/noticias/images/WinSun-3D-Printed-House-China-3.jpg

The post Winsun is at it Again with Latest Project appeared first on Inventionland.

However, thanks to 3D printing, people might be able to get their wrists around a Rolex for a much cheaper price.

Thanks to the innovative work of Franc Falco’s 3D printer, he’s been able to 3D-print Rolex Submariner replicas.

Now, the differences may seem obvious. One Rolex is real, while the other Rolex is 3D-printed.  But, there’s more than meets the eye.

One of the main differences is the size. Though it’s not the size of the Big Ben in London, Falco’s Rolex is printed at 300% scale.

This means that his 3D-printed watch is ginormous!

Take a look at the difference in the picture below from 3dprintingindustry.com:

The creation of this 3D-printed watch took many attempts. However, the final outcome of the product took more than 30 hours to complete and includes about 131 individual parts. These parts include the individual band links, the numbers and dial dots and the watch hands.

The work doesn’t stop there either, because all of these parts have to be hand-assembled with super glue!

Falco admits that the hardest part of the whole process was the lettering on the watch’s face dial.  Doing so involved “printing the face with de-bossed lettering at a very high resolution, then flooding the de-bossed areas with white paint, letting that dry, and then surface-sanding the whole face back to reveal the lettering.”

We must say, that does sound like a labor-intensive process!

In an effort to avoid any copyright infringement issues, Falco removed the Rolex logo from his 3D-printed replica.

Rolex has yet to comment on this 3D-printing endeavor, which leaves us very curious as to what the watch-making giant thinks about this larger-than-life imitation!

Copyright Inventionland, 2015

Sources:

https://gizmodo.com/this-cheap-3d-printed-rolex-would-be-perfect-for-spendt-1678858004

https://www.3ders.org/articles/20150112-rolex-submariner-watch-3d-printed-at-300-times-its-original-size.html

https://3dprintingindustry.com/2015/01/17/gianormous-3d-printed-rolex-giant-life/

Sources:

https://content.rolex.com/is/image/Rolex/default-sharing13147175139993H4S?wid=560&hei=350&qlt=85&fmt=png-alpha

https://3dprintingindustry.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/giant-3D-printed-rolex-with-small-rolex.png

The post This Rolex is in Another Dimension appeared first on Inventionland.

This spring, you might be thinking of a list of home improvements that you would like to do. Maybe renovate the kitchen or even update the furniture in your living room. If you plan on the latter, would you ever consider using 3D-printed furniture?

Winbo, a Chinese company, has created and continues to create 3D printers that are able to print objects of all shapes and sizes.

The company specializes in the research, development and manufacturing of 3D printers and 3D-printing materials.

But, as we’ve seen last year and into this year, 3D printing has the capability to pretty much print anything under the sun. Winbo has taken this notion into account as they have printed small-sized home models, as well as life-sized, usable 3D-printed furniture.

The inspiration for this innovative endeavor of 3D-printed furniture stems from the realization that more and more people are customizing and personalizing their homes, rather than choosing fixed designs.

So, Winbo decided to use their 3D printers to print home models at first. Then, the company took their home plan idea a step further when they created actual, useful 3D-printed furniture.

Although the idea of 3D-printed furniture has been done before, the attention to detail to which Winbo 3D prints their furniture is unlike anything anyone has ever seen.

Winbo’s first creation was a 3D model of a very detailed chair. The company used one of their printers to print pieces, one pieces at a time, of a life-sized chair.

From that point on, the 3D-printed furniture train did not stop; in fact, Winbo has 3D-printed tables to match the chairs and the company is currently working on printing a large desk as well.

This feat is more about showing what 3D printers are capable of, rather than the style and comfort of the 3D-printed furniture.

Winbo’s site currently features an array of the 3D-printed furniture that they’ve created thus far that ranges from lamps to sofas and everything in between.

Above is a picture of some of Winbo’s 3D-printed furniture from 3Dprint.com.

The opportunities are endless with Winbo’s 3D-printed furniture. Who knows, they might come out with porch furniture or maybe even a bedroom set. Only time will tell!

Copyright Inventionland, 2015

Sources:

https://3dprint.com/35379/winbo-3d-printed-chairs/

Images:

https://3dprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/winbo2.jpg

The post Take a Seat on this 3D-printed Furniture appeared first on Inventionland.

Artec Group, a company that develops and sells 3D scanners, might have just found a better way to take pictures in a photo booth.

Rather than leaving with a strip of pictures, a person will leave the Shapify booth with a 3D-printed model of themselves.

In only 12 seconds, the Shapify booth will create a scanned and detailed 3D model of the customer, which is known as the Shapie.

Let’s get a better look at how the Shapify booth works!

First, a person would step into the Shapify booth and four high-resolution scanners would rotate around them, which would then detail their figure so much that even the most intricate of features, like the wrinkles on their face, would be seen.

Next, Artec would use their advanced algorithms to stitch together 700 surfaces. Once this is done, a file is then created that’s used to 3D print a figurine.

The goal of the Shapie is to act in the same way as the traditional photo booth, except that the 3D-printed figurine, rather than a strip of photos, would be used to commemorate the memory.

Artec Group has already seen people capture their pregnancy as well as create wedding cake toppers with their Shapie.

Through their invention of the Shapify booth, it looks like the Artec Group might have just reinvented the photo booth!

In short, the company believes that the possibilities with Shapies are endless.

As the Shapie is slowly on the rise, you could very well see Shapify booths in places like theme parks, Walmart stores, and retail stores among other places, in the near future.

Take a look at this clip to see this invention in action!

Copyright Inventionland, 2014

Sources:

https://3dprint.com/20589/artec-shapies-3d-selfies/

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-29/first-selfies-now-shapies-scanning-booths-capture-the-moment-in-3-d.html

Media:

https://www.artec3d.com/upload/iblock/f63/Man%20and%20shapie.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0bYWQddsyw

The post Shapies: These Selfies are in Another Dimension appeared first on Inventionland.

In October, the announcement was made that the White House would be holding a “3D Printed Ornament Challenge,” and more than 300 innovators and creative minds all over the nation submitted their winter-inspired 3D-printed ornament designs!

These submissions then went through a judging process and only 20 of the innovative designs were chosen as finalists. From that 20, only five of the 3D-printed ornaments were chosen to be displayed in the White House! Talk about some tough competition!

Aside from holiday cheer, the White House sponsored “2014 3D Printed Ornament Challenge” to build off of their interest in innovation and creativity through the action of  making.

In an effort to support American innovation, the Obama Administration is also working on creating more opportunities for students to immerse themselves in hands-on learning in the subjects of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

At Inventionland, we know a thing or two about STEM as we have partnered with WQED to host the “Design Lives Here Invention Convention,” where students from Pittsburgh-area schools participated in a day full of invention challenges!

Now, back to the 3D-printed ornament challenge! The five winners of this contest created beautiful 3D-printed ornaments that captured the essence of the holiday season!

The ornament designs are now being featured in the Smithsonian’s state-of-the-art 3D data platform and will join the collection of White House ornaments located in the Political History division of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.

Take a look at this quick video of the “2014 3D Printed Ornament Challenge!”

Happy holidays from Inventionland to you and your family!

Copyright Inventionland, 2014

Sources:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2014/12/03/announcing-winners-first-ever-white-house-3d-printed-ornament-challenge

Media:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCGdrI0gT4E&feature=youtu.be

The post ‘Tis the Season for 3D Printed Ornaments appeared first on Inventionland.

Royal Mail is now taking their delivery system to another dimension!

Though it’s only a trial run to gauge the interest of 3D printing, Royal Mail will be involving 3D-printing company, iMakr, to install printers in Royal Mail’s New Cavendish Street delivery office in London.

The reason for the installments of these 3D printers is to offer customers the option of custom designs and ready-to-print objects.

Chief Customer Officer for Royal Mail Mike Newnham noted that through the addition of these 3D printers, Royal Mail is making 3D printing more accessible to small businesses and consumers alike who might not have the funds to invest in a 3D printer of their own.

Additionally, now that the holiday season is in full effect and your gift shopping should be for the most part complete, for those people who like to wait until the last minute to shop for and mail their presents, 3D printing through Royal Mail could potentially help get them out of the holiday bind.

How so? Well, for starters, Royal Mail would allow a person to 3D print their goods in store and ship them immediately afterwards.

If this 3D printing idea sticks with Royal Mail, people will be able to bring in their own creations or, if a person is really in a pinch, they can pick from standard designs that range from a wine cooler to a stamp magnet!

Essentially, Royal Mail would turn into a one-stop-shop for sending 3D-printed gifts to family and friends!

Take a look at this cool time lapse video of Royal Mail’s 3D-printing endeavor!

Over the next five years, it’s projected that 3D-printing services that create items and then ship them to customers will increase and Royal Mail looks to capitalize on this opportunity.

But, for now, as the trial is underway, only time will tell if 3D printing will be a mainstay with Royal Mail!

Copyright Inventionland, 2014

Sources:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/dec/09/royal-mail-launches-3d-printing-service

https://www.engadget.com/2014/12/08/royal-mail-3d-printing-trial/

Media:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/ee/Royal_Mail.svg/1280px-Royal_Mail.svg.png

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMeAWRD-5W0

The post Royal Mail Could Soon be in Another Dimension appeared first on Inventionland.