guest post from Danielle Appletone of Otherfab
This is the story of Otherfab. I doubt you’ve heard of us, but I think our story is a good one.
Four months ago, we were working on the future of this country: digital design and computer-controlled manufacturing tools for the STEM education of our children.
So many people in government had worked very hard to carve out the funding for a truly radical program to put shop class back into high schools with a focus on integrating modern technology. It was the first time I had worked so closely with a government organization, and I was blown away by how much they cared about our mission. Maybe that says more about me then them, but either way, it made me happy.
We were about to begin deploying our program into 1000 high schools when the sequester hit. For a small company like us, a sequester-induced delay and complete financial uncertainty of several months was crippling. We had very little buffer and a young team that absolutely could not be furloughed.
But here’s where it gets good.
(more…)
Posted in CNC Routing, Hardware by Ponoko Team | Comments are off for this post
Make your own stuff using: CNC Routing
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Digital music goes analog once again
We’ve encountered Amanda Ghassaei and her digitally fabricated records before, when she 3D printed some rockin’ tracks that were playable on a standard turntable. This time around, she has turned her talents towards exploring the potential of laser cutting to get her groove on.
The visual impact of this laser cut timber is stunning, but how does a record cut from Maple actually sound? As you’ll hear when you click through to the video after the break, we aren’t really talking hi-fidelity… however as an experimentation it is very interesting indeed. (more…)
Posted in Functional Art + Objects, Guy Blashki, Laser Cutting, Technology by Guy Blashki | Comments are off for this post
Make your own stuff using: Laser Cutting
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Just type ‘Maker Faire’ in the special shipping instructions.
It’s May, and that means Maker Faire Bay Area is on its way! So we’re running a perennial promo fave:
Get a FREE $50 Making Voucher with your $100 order!
To get your $50 making voucher:
1. Log in to your Ponoko account. If you don’t have one, sign up for free here.
2. Place a $100 minimum order at the Ponoko US or NZ hub.
3. Type ‘Maker Faire’ in the special shipping instructions, and we’ll email you your $50 Making Voucher.
Things you should know: Offer good for making stuff with laser cutting or 3D printing at Ponoko. Showroom or sample store purchases do not qualify. $100 minimum does not include shipping. Other coupon codes or vouchers cannot be used with this offer. Offer only good at Ponoko US and NZ. Offer totally valid for Ponoko Prime accounts! Offer ends at 8pm pacific time on May 31, 2013.
About the free Making Voucher: Promotional making voucher is good for a future order, not the initial $100 order. One promotional voucher per account. (Making Vouchers are good on making costs only.)
Posted in Ponoko News by Kristen Turner | Comments are off for this post
Bring your work to life with digital tableware and animal bones!
Sourcing high resolution models for design work (and 3D printing) can be difficult and expensive. There are a fair number of free community 3D models on the web, but many are low quality or have restrictions against commercial use.
That’s where Forme It, a new service that sells high resolution 3D models, comes in.
Forme It’s library of 3D models is broken down into three main areas: Reference, Classic, and Modern. Reference contains models of the natural world, sorted into animal, plant, and mineral. Classic is for functional designs, currently holding a variety of tableware. And Modern at present has a few patterns to texture items with.
To help people actually use the content that they buy, Forme It has started a series of long-form YouTube tutorials. The idea is show one of the available designs used in a practical way, like this tree bark scan made into a container using Blender: (more…)
Posted in 3D Printing, Derek Quenneville by Derek Quenneville | Comments are off for this post
Make your own stuff using: 3D Printing
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Ponoko-made project by Andrea Garuti
Andrea Garuti’s engineering skills earned him the grand prize in the GrabCAD/SolidSmack laser cut toy design competition.
His castle-under-attack toy model — complete with draw bridges, trebuchet, catapult, battleram, and a basilica — blew away all the judges.
Andrea’s inspiration came from the medieval history surrounding his home near Modena, Italy. “It’s not a strict reproduction of a real castle. I wanted to include as many medieval elements as I could,” he says.
As part of the prize, Ponoko sponsored free laser cutting for the winner. Andrea’s epic design required thirty-two P3 (about 31″x15″) size sheets. Rather than ship an entire castle battle over from the US, we worked with our friends Vectorealism, a laser cutting service based in Milan, to have Andrea’s design made closer to home.
The picture below of Andrea’s son standing behind the castle walls demonstrates just how big this toy is!
(more…)
Posted in Architecture, Laser Cutting, Maker Stories, Toys + Games by Kristen Turner | Comments are off for this post
Make your own stuff using: Laser Cutting
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D-Shape Concrete printing awarded first place in Waterfront Construction Competition.
When Hurricane Sandy blasted some 565 miles of coastline across NYC, seawalls and other coastal features received quite a battering. Seeking out novel approaches to repairing and redeveloping these damaged areas, the NYCEDC competition “Change the Course” has awarded a $50,000 first prize to concrete 3D printer D-Shape.
The D-Shape proposal is to scan damaged infrastructure, design and fabricate encasements and extensions to the existing surfaces and then fabricate them off-site. (more…)
Posted in 3D Printing, Guy Blashki, Technology by Guy Blashki | Comments are off for this post
Make your own stuff using: 3D Printing
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Consumer hardware and open source software help build a $3500 satellite.
NASA recently put three nanosatellites powered by Google HTC Nexus One smartphones into orbit. Dubbed PhoneSats, they are about the size of a coffee mug. The satellites are intended to demonstrate how the rapidly decreasing cost and increasing power of off the shelf hardware and open source software can be used for a new generation of accessible, low-cost space research.
(more…)
Posted in Electronics + Robotics, Open Source, Taylor Gilbert, Technology by Taylor Gilbert | Comments are off for this post
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May 2-4 in San Francisco
With 3D printing gaining traction as the democratization of manufacturing, now is the time to discuss the environmental impact and envision a sustainable future for this rapidly growing industry.
To anser the question ‘Can 3D printing go green?’ Swissnex, an organization that fosters connections between Switzerland and San Francisco, is coordinating a multi-day forum on 3D printing and biomaterials.
All are welcome to attend The Ethics and Sustainability of 3D Printing conference this Thursday in San Francisco. The four hour event includes speaker presentations, panel discussions, demos, and a reception. Advanced tickets are just $10, and free for students under 25.
There will also be a hands-on workshop on Saturday for creating your own biomaterials.
On Friday, experts ranging from business leaders and venture capitalists to government funded researchers and academic scholars will convene to discuss their insights, debate future scenarios, and develop a roadmap for achieving sustainability across the 3D printing industry.
• Get tickets for the conference here.
• Get tickets for the workshop here.
Posted in 3D Printing, Events by Kristen Turner | Comments are off for this post
Make your own stuff using: 3D Printing
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The Laser Cutter Roundup — a weekly dose of laser-cut love: #123
Hey, Sam here collecting the post from The Laser Cutter.
Make sure you join TLC’s Facebook page.
Above is a laser cut business card from b-type design.
After the jump, a stormtrooper helmet, desires, madness, and a plotter… (more…)
Posted in Laser Cutting, Sam Tanis by Sam | Comments are off for this post
Make your own stuff using: Laser Cutting
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The Blender 2.67 release includes a feature packed 3D printing toolbox
Blender has long supported the .STL file format used to export for 3D print and it is very welcome news that there will be additional support within the software to help modelers. As a popular, free and open source 3D modeling software package, these new features will greatly help save users’ time in finding issues with their models.
The new toolbox looks set to have features useful for printing models both with online services such as Ponoko, and also with RepRap or Makerbot kitset 3D printers. Models for 3D printing need to be perfectly watertight, so all their edges need to meet to enclose a volume. For most users this can cause issues from time to time, trying to find where a tiny hole might exist.
(more…)
Posted in 3D Printing, David McGahan, Software by David McGahan | Comments are off for this post
Make your own stuff using: 3D Printing
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