Now, the idea of 3D printing with food isn’t new, even pancake batter has been previously used as well. However, a new invention called the Peter Pancake, is changing the pancake game.

The inventor behind the Peter Pancake is a man from China named Wu Yili. He wanted to create a better way to make pancakes, so he quit his job at IBM and worked tirelessly to pursue his invention.

Accompanied by a few classmates from Tsingua University, he began to build the machine that he calls Peter Pancake. As of late, his invention is available for use at a food chain that translates roughly to “Good Luck Food.”

The Peter Pancake resembles a desktop 3D printer; however, in place of the extruder is a container filled with pancake batter, which is then dispensed onto the griddle.

The consistency of the batter is extremely important for the Peter Pancake to work correctly. If the batter is too thin, it’ll leak out; but, if it’s too thick, it won’t come out of the nozzle.

Once the batter is perfected, it’s fed into the container, which is hooked up to the printer that’s connected to a tablet via an app. The app gives a person the creative license to select the pattern that they’d like to print.

Once the griddle is hot, the Peter Pancake starts to print the design. The pancakes are flipped manually and require a great deal of attention, so that they do not burn.

The cooking takes about 30 to 90 seconds to complete. The running rate for a 3d-printed pancake is approximately $1.60.

Yili’s invention, Peter Pancake, has been named “China’s first pancake robot” and it continues to create customized shapes and patterns that are as innovative as they are delicious!

Copyright Inventionland, 2015

Sources:

https://3dprint.com/82599/pancake-3d-printer-china/

https://www.3ders.org/articles/20150720-former-ibm-employee-creates-china-first-3d-printed-pancake-robot.html

Media:

https://3dprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/pancake114-1024×713.png

https://3dprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/pancake10.jpg

The post Peter Pancake is Flipping with Innovation appeared first on Inventionland.

In a previous blog, we’ve written about the Printeer, which is an invention that makes 3D printing more accessible to kids in order to let them creatively express themselves with a boost from technology.

Today, we want to build off of that notion and discuss the latest venture of the Bonsai Lab, which hopes to make 3D printing a family-friendly affair.

The Bonsai Lab BS Toy is offering a simple 3D-printer design that’s geared towards families and children. The company plans to officially announce it as a 3D printer for “educational or home use.”

The Bonsai Lab’s BS Toy 3D printer (as pictured above from 3dprint.com) is lightweight and meant for family use.

The Bonsai Lab’s BS Toy is a safer, smaller successor to Bonsai Lab’s BS01 + printer. The small size is what is appealing for kids to use, of course, with parental supervision!

Now, back to the size of the BS Toy; it’s an 8-inch cube that weighs in at 4.4 pounds.

But, in addition to its appealing size, the key to making this 3D printer for “home and educational use” can be found in the exclusively-designed filament from Polymaker.

Let’s get technical for a minute. The BS Toy’s filament melts at 176 degrees Fahrenheit. Bonsai Lab says that is less than half of the average temperature that it takes other filaments from other 3D printers to melt.

Though it’s not exactly the coolest in regard to the temperature of the filament, it is a pretty “cool” idea in general!

So, if your kids love to use their imaginations and create new things, this family-friendly 3D printer might take their imaginations to a whole new dimension by showing them an entirely new way to create.

As of right now, Bonsai Lab hopes to have the BS Toy on the market by the 2015 holiday season with a price tag of anywhere between $500-600.

Copyright Inventionland,2015

Sources:

https://www.gizmag.com/bonsai-lab-3d-printing-for-kids/35933/

https://3dprint.com/41972/bonsai-lab-bs-toy-3d-printer/

Media:

https://3dprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/p3.png

The post Bonsai Lab Invents New Family-friendly 3D Printer appeared first on Inventionland.

What happens when you pair light with 3D printing? The result is Lightpaper, which may one day help users print their own light.

Rohinni is working to 3D print with light, in order to prove that new innovation and flexibility for manufacturers exists. Shockingly enough, they do have some competition; however, Rohinni’s invention is unlike the others, because the Lightpaper is razor thin, flexible and most importantly, 3D printable.

The Lightpaper that was invented by this company can be applied to pretty much any surface, anywhere.

Through this process, lighting can be produced affordably and rapidly, offering consumers a better way to light specialized areas like headlights in the automotive industry.

As of late, Lightpaper is manufactured by combining ink and tiny LEDs together, which are then printed on a conductive layer.

From there, this layer is sandwiched between two additional layers and is then sealed.

Throughout the material, tiny diodes that are the size of red blood cells are then dispersed. It’s when the current runs through these diodes that the material lights up.

Where exactly can we expect to see Lightpaper? As of right now, the company is hoping to provide everything from headlights on a car to an illuminated logo on a mobile phone.

However, like most inventions, there are problems and Rohinni is working to iron out these wrinkles. Some of the problems with their first version are that the LEDs are not evenly distributed on the printed surface, which can give off a starry night or shimmering effect.

So, the company is working on a second version of Lightpaper, which will hopefully produce even light distribution.

Lightpaper is expected to hit the market in mid-2015 and will most likely only by used for industrial and commercial purposes.

Copyright Inventionland, 2014

Sources:

https://3dprint.com/26679/rohinni-3d-printed-lightpaper/

https://www.fastcolabs.com/3038890/rohinnis-lightpaper-is-incredibly-thin-and-printable

Media:

https://static.squarespace.com/static/52efed01e4b0da3953abfcb1/t/5334bb23e4b0e88efea84322/1395964714866/?format=300w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGJP62eISEA

The post Lightpaper is Lighting the 3D-Printed Path appeared first on Inventionland.

The innovation that is created through the invention of 3D printing continues to evolve with each passing day. Although we might be a little more familiar with the 3D printing process that involves plastic, Structur3D Printing has invented a new 3D printer add-on by the name of Discov3ry. This new invention allows users to begin the 3D printing process with soft, almost paste-like materials that can then be printed through any filament-based 3D printer. The Discov3ry might just open the doors to a world where 3D printed objects are soft and bendable; sometimes even edible 3D objects are created.

This means that anything from silicone and ceramics to some “sweet” materials like icing, sugar and even Nutella can be printed with this invention!

Charles Mire and Andrew Finkle of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada are the principals of Structur3D Printing. Both men are material engineers and have taken a different approach for the paste printing problem.

Their new approach was focused on “reinventing only the parts of the printer that are involved with the delivery and extrusion of the material.” This is why they invented the Discov3ry Paste Extruder, because it was designed to work with almost any fused deposition modeling (FDM) desktop 3D printer system.

This new paste extruder can do just about anything. Structur3D has tested their new extruder with food printing, in particular, with cake frosting. Although this is the “sweet” side to this invention, the Discov3ry, as we mentioned before, can print with materials like ceramics, silicon and polyurethane, to name a few. This feature is great for prototyping more flexible objects like insoles or even gaskets! Furthermore, this invention has the potential to be used for biomedical applications that range from prosthetics to hearing aids and even surgical implants.

Here’s a quick video of Structur3D’s Discov3ry creating a deliciously sweet 3D-printed creation!

Copyright Inventionland 2014

Sources:

https://www.3dprinterworld.com/article/universal-paste-extruder-called-discov3ry

https://mashable.com/2014/06/10/3d-printer-nutella/

https://3dprintingindustry.com/2014/05/13/universal-paste-extruder-launch-maker-faire-weekend/

Media:

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

The post The Sweet Side of 3D Printing appeared first on Inventionland.

Recently, a Chinese company by the name of WinSun Decoration Design Engineering showcased the capabilities of their giant 3D printer by rapidly building 10 one-story houses in less than 24 hours.The houses are constructed of a mix of quick-dry cement that allows the walls to be built layer by layer. This process is similar to how a baker would ice a cake.  Each of the 3D-printed homes is approximately 2,100 square-feet and cost less than 5,000 U.S. dollars to build.

The printer parts that were used in the 3D-printed house project were purchased overseas and assembled in a factory. This made a new type of 3D-printed structure that was environmentally friendly and cost effective.

However, this isn’t the first time that the world has seen 3D printing-based construction. In fact, researchers at the University of Southern California invented a 3D printer that is capable of building a 2,500 square-foot house within a 24-hour timeframe. This was accomplished through a process known as contour crafting, which is a layered fabrication technology that has great potential for automating the construction of whole structures, in addition to sub-components.

This latest development in the 3D printing and construction world could help ease housing crises in developing countries.

At Inventionland, we are always interested in the new innovations that are swirling around the 3D printing world. However, inside of our world, we have 27 3D printers, two of which were made from 3D-printed parts! These printers allow us to quickly make and replicate projects, much like the 3D printers that were used in the WinSun project.

As of right now, this type of 3D printing is reserved for the housing market; however, WinSun hopes to expand this innovative technology to build skyscrapers!

Here is a quick look at WinSun’s latest 3D printing construction invention!

Sources:

https://www.gizmag.com/china-winsun-3d-printed-house/31757/

https://mashable.com/2014/04/28/3d-printing-houses-china/

https://www.contourcrafting.org/

Media:

https://images.gizmag.com/inline/china-3d-printed-houses-2.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cyd7_nZ3fAY

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