Consumer Additive Manufacturing
Final users of 3D printing technol0gies was the last category to emerge. This category includes primarily adopters of consumer additive manufacturing technologies. These may be enthusiasts and hobbyists who have purchased a 3D printer as a garage tool to further explore the production of drones, miniature models, RC cars or accessories.
This category of adopters was created when the RepRap movement made many of the technologies and processes necessary to build 3D printers available to everyone through open source sharing of information. Focusing primarily on filament extrusion and – in minor part – on DLP stereolithographic technologies, this movement led to a further, drastic reduction in the price of some 3D printers, taking it from the $5,000 professional and prosumer cost level to below $1,000 (with some systems running as low as $200).
Early RepRap adopters and developers often evolved their expertise thus creating a new business segment for affordable desktop 3D printers. This trend was – and continues to be – driven by the Maker movement, which is largely made up of amateur engineers and artists who have embraced digital manufacturing technologies and make things for the sake of making.
While in many cases this passion for making leads to failures or products that prove to be useless on unattainable, there is no doubt that the maker movement and amateur 3D printing adoption has been instrumental in raising global awareness around the use of these technologies, proving much more effective – to this day – than initiative promoted by governments and large corporations.
Latest consumer additive manufacturing news:
-
Aniwaa’s new VR and AR comparison engine is now live and available. Following a recent round of seed funding, the company has built the most complete database yet devoted to virtual, augmented and mixed reality head-mounted displays (HMDs). To mark this milestone and the startup’s first foray beyond 3D printing, Aniwaa is also unveiling a major update to its website…
Read More -
There’s no denying that being a startup can be tough and often entails a journey marked by ups and downs. For South Korean 3D printer startup Team Owl Works, things began promisingly enough as it successfully raised over $244,000 dollars through a 2016 Kickstarter to bring its Morpheus delta resin 3D printer to life. Since then, however, things seem to…
Read More -
There was a time when many people who were starting to familiarize with 3D printing did not see any real value in 3D models and thus limited their exploration to free models from Thingiverse and other free 3D model databases. Not much has changed but, as 3D printing becomes more widespread, and people’s capabilities improve, the demand for higher quality…
Read More -
German auto manufacturer BMW recently launched a fashion collection through its BMW i sub-brand, which is focused primarily on developing innovative vehicles using sustainable materials. The new BMW i Collection, consisting of shirts, jackets, bags and other accessories, brings this principle beyond just car making and into fashion. And while all the items in the collection are worth noting—the t-shirt,…
Read More -
Dutch designer Matthijs Kok is no stranger to 3D printing. With experience working as a product designer and 3D modeler for 3D Systems and as the creative director at innovative design agency Freshfiber (a position he still holds), the young designer knows better than most how additive manufacturing can revolutionize design. His most recent design, the Fold Case for the…
Read More -
John Briscella is a former Autodesk Pier 9 resident designer (like Anouk Wipprecht and other 3D printing celebs) who has been experimenting with some advanced generative design capabilities for a growing range of consumer products. He has since launched Aminimal, his and his design partner’s Lana Blum’s online shop for parametrically designed 3D printed jewelry, and his own design studio…
Read More -
3D pen pioneer 3Doodler has announced the release of its latest products: the Create+ Pen and the 2018 Create Product Line. Starting at $80, the new 3D pen—the latest version of 3Doodler’s legacy Kickstarter product—integrates a range of improvements that promise to make 3D drawing easier than ever before. Having introduced 3D pen technology in 2013, 3Doodler is no stranger…
Read More -
In celebration of the Royal couple’s dedication to the fight against single-use plastic bottles, SodaStream, the world’s largest sparkling water brand, has dressed up a set of limited edition bottles to be auctioned as a donation to the plastic-free charity – Surfers Against Sewage. As a driving force behind the removal of single-use plastic from the world, SodaStream is thrilled to shed light on this global hazard by donating all proceeds to Surfers Against Sewage, a charity chosen by the royal…
Read More -
Sure, one of the coolest things about the Nintendo Labo series of games is that the “accessories” are made from recyclable cardboard so they are environmentally friendly and won’t pollute for centuries to come (unlike those piles of E.T. buried in the New Mexico desert by Atari). However, there is little arguing that cardboard has a hard time sustaining the…
Read More -
Precious AM powder (and EOS PRECIOUS M80) supplier Cooksongold will be providing its 18K 5N Red Gold to talented watchmaker Michiel Holthinrichs to produce an exclusive gold version of his unique Ornament 1 3D printed watch model. Michiel has been among the first to experiment with 3D printing as a designer watch manufacturing tool and the results have been quite…
Read More
