Tag Archives: 3D printing

Robotic Open-source Scale Dress Printed by ELEGOO Neptune 4 Series: 3D Printing in Fashion

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3D printing has revolutionized the design industry by making it easier to prototype ideas quickly and efficiently. This technology allows designers to experiment with new concepts without the high costs traditionally associated with prototyping. As a result, executing designs has become more affordable and accessible, opening up new avenues for creativity. Beyond design, 3D printing is now breaking into other industries, including fashion, with trailblazers like ELEGOO leading the charge.

ELEGOO is not just a pioneer in 3D printing but also in empowering women to use technology to turn their ideas into reality. One prime example is an innovative robotic and modular dress system that will showcase the potential of 3D printing in fashion, inspiring a new wave of creators. This initiative highlights how 3D printing is transforming the fashion industry, offering unprecedented opportunities for innovation and expression.

Designer: Anouk Wipprecht

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Anouk Wipprecht and the Scale Dress: Futuristic Fashion

Anouk Wipprecht, a visionary Dutch FashionTech Designer and Engineer, has partnered with ELEGOO to push the boundaries of fashion technology. She has developed a new modular system for integrating motors into fabrics, revolutionizing how garments can interact with the wearer and environment. This collaboration marks a significant leap in the fusion of fashion and technology, showcasing the endless possibilities of innovative design.

The “Scale Dress” is a groundbreaking creation from this collaboration, representing a futuristic approach to fashion. This robotic, open-source dress comprises multiple 3D-printed mechanical parts, each equipped with tiny servo motors. These motors animate the dress, creating dynamic movements around the body. Ingeniously, the mechanism is sandwiched between fabric layers, with its round shape evenly distributing weight to prevent sagging or imbalance.

The Scale Dress not only captivates with its moving elements but also serves as a modular, open-source template for aspiring designers. Anouk Wipprecht has ensured that the design is accessible to those interested in robotic fashion. The servo-arms can be interchanged to hold various elements, addressing the challenge of integrating electronics with fabric and creating lifelike movements.

To empower others to explore this innovative realm, Anouk has open-sourced the Scale Dress design on her Instructables page. In collaboration with ELEGOO, she provides a detailed step-by-step guide on creating your own robotic dress with moving parts. The guide focuses on utilizing 9g servo arms, enabling creators to experiment and personalize their designs with ease.

This initiative not only highlights the potential of 3D printing and robotics in fashion but also encourages a new generation of designers to embrace technology. By sharing her knowledge and tools, Anouk Wipprecht is paving the way for more innovative and interactive fashion creations, inspiring others to explore the intersection of technology and design.

ELEGOO With Her: Empowering the Next Generation of Women Creators

The “ELEGOO With Her” program is a remarkable initiative aimed at equipping more women and girls with 3D printing skills. And the debut of the Scale Dress marks the official launch of the program, followed by a roundtable featuring prominent female designers at Formnext 2024 in Frankfurt, the largest 3D Printing Fair in Europe. This will kick off the initiative that aims not just to revolutionize the 3D printing industry but also fashion tech.

From November 19, 2024, to February 5, 2025, ELEGOO will recruit 30 women and girls for its empowerment program, providing them with 3D printers, software support, and mentorship. Participants will benefit from two months of online courses and workshops, culminating in a showcase of their work in April. This program is a testament to ELEGOO’s commitment to fostering diversity and innovation in the tech industry, empowering women to become leaders in 3D printing.

ELEGOO Neptune 4 Series: Unleashing Creativity in Fashion Design

The Scale Dress, designed for the FashionTech field, utilizes 3D-printed mechanical parts created with the ELEGOO Neptune 4 series 3D printers. The Neptune 4 series’ intelligent printing capabilities make it an ideal tool for blending technology and fashion. By enabling intricate designs and seamless integration of mechanical parts, this printer is a catalyst for innovation in FashionTech, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in the industry.

This fusion of 3D printing technology and fashion is opening up new horizons for creativity and innovation. With pioneers like ELEGOO leading the way, the potential for groundbreaking designs and empowering diverse creators is limitless. As 3D printing continues to evolve, its impact on fashion and beyond will undoubtedly shape the future of design.

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3D-printed chairs are made from 100% recycled plastic from donation program

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3D-printed furniture is still not as common as regular furniture but we’re seeing a lot of movement when it comes to designs and concepts. Aside from the fact that it’s easy to adapt this in actual production, it can also be sustainable and eventually impactful. Most of these 3D-printing concepts try to create something that’s recyclable or made from recycled materials therefore making it more sustainable than regular furniture.

Designer: Ethan Solodukhin

The Revo Chair Concept, with Revo meaning “revolutionary”, is a collection of 3D-printed furniture and is powered by the PlastiVista Atelier program. The program actually encourages homes, schools, and communities to donate their plastic waste and those that can be used for 3D printing converted into filament. The collection includes the Revo Chair and the Stoool (yes that’s not a typo). They are made from 100% recycled plastic.

The Revo Chair uses a single-piece design and it can serve as both an actual chair but when used with a different orientation, it can also serve as storage. The photos show it’s a box-like storage although it’s not really shown how it can be turned into that although the surfaces can be something you can place objects on. The Stoool meanwhile just serves as a seat with its compact surface, although you can probably also use it as a side table if you want to.

The renders of these chairs reminds me of those small, plastic phone holders that you can get for cheap. The question of course for these 3D-printed chairs would be if they are durable enough and comfortable enough for people to sit in for a long period of time.

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3D printed chess pawns transform into queens thanks to magnets and springs

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Chess is a game that has existed for centuries, and it hasn’t really changed much during that time, especially in recent decades. The rules of the game are pretty much the same, which includes “power-ups” that were invented way before the term even showed up in video games. Of course, these moves don’t require any special piece outside of what’s already included in the entire set, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do anything to spruce it up.

This rather elaborate 3D printed design, for example, solves the practical problem of how to represent a pawn that has reached the opposite end and “evolved” into a queen. Sure, you can just try to remember which is which, but wouldn’t it be easier if you had spare queen pieces instead? Better yet, why not just literally evolve the pawn instead, keeping the chess set simple, relatively?

Designer: Works By Design

“Queening” is what happens when a pawn is crowned and gains the queen’s large movement powers when it reaches the opposite end of the board. In some cases, when your queen has already been captured, you can simply swap out the pieces. But what if your queen is still there or, by some stroke of luck, you have two pawns that become queens?

This form-changing pawn is one solution that utilizes 3D printing, springs, magnets, and a rather complicated internal design. The challenge was to take a regular-sized pawn and have it not only expand to the size of a queen but also exhibit its features, particularly its flared crown. If you’ve ever watched Transformers, then you might get the idea more or less.

The design underwent several iterations, particularly with the spring mechanism that holds the pieces together and then pushes them out to expand. In the end, the simpler version won out, though the final pawn size was definitely larger than normal. Fortunately, it still fits within international standards, so it probably won’t be contested in an official match.

The 3D-printed pawn uses magnets in its feet to trigger the expansion mechanism, so placing it on any metal surface, like the back row of this custom-made chess board, would make it spring into action, so to speak. It’s definitely a convoluted design for a rather simple problem, but it also adds a bit of excitement and thrill to the game, becoming a goal of its own in addition to actually winning the match.

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3D Printed lamps made from cornstarch plastic exude cute candy-like vibes

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3D printing has truly revolutionized the design and production industry, giving anyone the power to create almost any form they can think of. That revolution, however, came at a price to the environment, increasing the use of plastic material even further. Thankfully, there has been some significant pushback and changes in this young industry, as different kinds of material become printer-compatible, including food, metal, or even wood. There are even attempts at using alternative source materials for plastic, like this playful 3D-printed lamp that uses a base that you might have never thought of: corn starch.

Designers: Alexandre Touguet, Lise Rissel

Of the many types of materials used for 3D printing, PLY or polylactic acid plastic is one of the most popular. Unlike most plastics that are made from petroleum, this thermoplastic uses organic material, in this case, corn starch. This gives PLA a more sustainable character, although sometimes minimally so. It is biodegradable, but only under specific conditions that aren’t always easy to meet naturally.

It’s still a step in the right direction, nonetheless, especially since it opens the doors to more interesting designs when used in 3D printing. ALT Light is one such example, using 3D printing to bring not only light but also a joyful atmosphere to any space. Although its design might be possible to execute using traditional manufacturing processes and harmful plastic, the product demonstrates the economic and environmental benefits of a more sustainable approach to design and production centered around 3D printing.

ALT Light starts from the bottom with a normal rectangular block, if you could call a block with vertical ridges “normal” in the first place. As you lift your eyes, higher, you are the block seems to flare open, creating the semblance of a traditional conical lampshade. It stops halfway through this transformation, though, creating a sense of instability and dynamism simply through forms, as if the lampshade is trying to break free from its confines.

The lamp can come in different combinations of colors for the base and the lampshade. The transparent top gives it a jelly-like appearance, while the translucent version is like hard candy. The ribbed surface does more than just make the forms look interesting, they also create an interplay of light and shadow that mesmerizes the viewers. In addition to their unique designs, these lamps are all made in order to cut down on material waste, and each creation has minute imperfections that give each ALT Light lamp its own unique character.

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Leftover date seeds become 3D printer filaments to enable sustainable creations

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3D printers revolutionized the manufacturing and design industries, enabling almost anyone to bring their ideas to life and iterate over designs quickly. Unfortunately, this flood of creativity also resulted in a surge in the use of plastic, specifically the thermoplastics used as filaments for fused deposit modeling or FDM 3D printers. Even the more sustainable PLA type of filament is only biodegradable under very specific conditions, so there is a dire need for more eco-friendly but accessible alternatives. This particular idea tries to harness and reuse the equally growing volume of food waste that we throw away, particularly fruit seeds that really serve no other purpose unless they’re planted again.

Designer: Nawa Tek

Dates are a very popular fruit, especially in Middle Eastern countries like Oman that produce and process tonnes of the fruit yearly. But like many fruits, only the flesh of dates is consumed, and the seeds or pits are simply discarded. These are biodegradable, of course, but they only decompose after a certain period of time, resulting in tonnes of garbage taking up space and potentially polluting waters as well. You can also plant some of the seeds but not all can be used this way.

Playing on the word for date pits and “repeat,” RePit is an emerging technology that puts these previously unusable food waste to better use. Rather than simply reusing the pits as they are, which could bring other complications like longevity and durability, the seeds instead becoming the foundations for a completely new material, one that can be woven into 3D printed products. In other words, what would have become garbage is ultimately transformed into art object, machine parts, and more.

In a nutshell, crushed date pits are mixed with limestone and clay to create a water-resistant composite material that is not unlike traditional Iranian “sarooj” that’s used for building houses. The composite is then transformed into filaments compatible with FDM 3D printers to create any shape imaginable, at least in theory. For a demonstration, decorative tiles were 3D printed and then fired and glazed to give them a ceramic-like appearance.

RePit is still a work in progress and it’s one of the growing number of sustainable 3D printing filaments being researched and developed today. The 3D printing industry has already expanded to support materials like metal, wood, and even chocolate, so it’s only proper that a more environment-friendly and long-lasting option is also developed, preferably one that embraces a circular economy that also reduces the waste we heap on landfills.

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This Mini Robot Arm can be built in Under $100 Using Arduino Nano and 3D Printed Files

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reating a mini robotic arm with Arduino and 3D printing is an exciting way to merge electronics and design. This project invites enthusiasts into the world of robotics, blending creativity with hands-on technical work. It’s ideal for those eager to dive into the realms of motion control and automation, using accessible components and open-source technology. The core of the project is the Arduino Nano, a compact microcontroller that coordinates the movements of four SG90 servo motors. These motors are controlled through potentiometers, offering precise adjustments to the arm’s motion. By adjusting the position of each potentiometer, you can direct the servo to move in a specific direction, making the control feel intuitive and satisfying.

Designer: FABRI Creator

To build this arm, you’ll need several essential components. Beyond the Arduino Nano, four SG90 servo motors serve as the muscles of the arm, providing the torque required for smooth movements. These motors are driven by the signals from potentiometers, which read user inputs and translate them into specific positions for the servos. The project also requires electronic parts like resistors and capacitors for the PCB, ensuring stable and efficient operation. A DC jack connector allows for easy power connection, supporting a 5V 3A adapter or a standard PC power supply, ensuring the arm has a reliable power source. With a breadboard for prototyping and a custom PCB for permanent assembly, you can seamlessly organize all connections, creating a clean and efficient setup.

But here’s where the magic truly happens: 3D printing. Using software like Fusion 360, you get to design the structural parts of your robot arm, optimizing the form and function to your specific needs. It’s not just about the technical specs—it’s about bringing your vision to life in a tangible, tactile way. The parts, printed with durable PLA filament, take shape layer by layer, transforming digital models into physical components. The design smartly minimizes the need for supports during printing, making it efficient and less wasteful. The result is a sleek, lightweight arm that looks as good as it functions, embodying the intersection of art and engineering.

Programming the Arduino is where the project gains its soul. With a bit of code, you can teach the arm to follow your commands, offering both manual and automated control modes. In manual mode, the potentiometers give you direct control over each servo, letting you guide the arm’s movements with finesse. Automated mode, on the other hand, takes it a step further—allowing you to record sequences and replay them, turning the arm into a precise tool for repeating tasks. This duality of control means you can create everything from a delicate touch for small tasks to a mechanical memory that runs on its own.

As you bring it all together, the assembly process becomes a meditative practice in precision and patience. Soldering each component onto the PCB, carefully routing wires, and securing the servos in place requires focus, but the reward is a beautifully crafted piece of tech that feels like a personal accomplishment. The attention to detail in organizing cables and ensuring smooth motion paths doesn’t just keep things tidy—it elevates the overall aesthetic and functionality of the arm. It’s a reminder that design is as much about what you don’t see as what you do.

By the time the project is complete, you’ll have a fully functional mini robotic arm capable of manual and automated control. The combination of 3D printing and Arduino brings a level of customization that lets you adapt the design to your needs, making it a perfect entry point into robotics. This DIY project is less about building a one-time gadget and more about being an entry-point into the world of STEM and Design. It demonstrates how accessible and versatile modern technology can be, offering a fulfilling way to explore the world of robotics, whether you’re a seasoned maker or just starting out… and once you’re done you can quite literally pat yourself on the back with your new robot arm!

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Easy-to-use Toybox 3D printer lets kids learn, design, and print their own toys

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If you’re an aspiring engineer or simply a hobbyist, you can find a 3D printer for your needs. But there aren’t many options for kids. What if there was a toy (3D printer) that could allow children, and concerned parents, to print their own toys, like they want, and as instantly as possible? Seems like a dream? Not anymore!

On showcase at the ongoing IFA Berlin, the Toybox 3D printer is a one-touch operable 3D printer for kids to design and print their toys. If you have been wanting to get your engineering-minded child a perfect birthday present that could align with his aspirations, the Toybox is definitely what you want. The easy-to-use 3D printer is developed for entertainment purposes, but it does the job of teaching and introducing kids to the idea of printing.

Designer: Toybox

A toy that makes toys; the Toybox is a fun toy for kids that even the adults wouldn’t mind using. The simple design of the printer comes with an onboard on/off button, a print bed, and a feeding slot wherein goes one end of PLA -non-toxic and corn-based plastic – roll, which is the printer’s food and the material it uses to print various outputs. PLA comes in a range of colors, so no matter the toy you are printing, you can do it with matching colors.

Children can print intuitive toys from a rich selection of options and content on the Toybox app. A child simply browses through an ever-increasing catalog of toys, find what they want to print, and hit print. To create their own toys on the fly, kids can connect the printer to their smartphone or tablet and build one object after the other.

The fun with Toybox is not limited to its library of content. Users have the option to import toy or object models from other platforms along with 1.75mm PLA filament of their liking if the sustainable, kid-friendly ones from Toybox are not interesting enough. Content from other platforms can be imported to the Toybox in STL, OBJ, and gCode formats. Then, with thousands of amazing toys available for print on Toybox and many more you can add from other places, this 3D printer will never give your kids the chance to get bored.

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Mesmerizing 3D printed lamp has a maze-like design that is never repeated

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3D printing is a truly revolutionary technology that blasted open the floodgates of creativity and design. It gave almost everyone a powerful tool to realize their dreams and experiment with their ideas. These machines also made it easier to have more flexibility in the execution of designs, like adding an element of randomness to each output. That’s the kind of uniqueness that each of these Maze Lamps brings to your room, catching your attention with its unique lines and snaking paths, creating a play of light and shadow even when the lamp is turned off.

Designer: Stijn van Aardenne

Most people probably think of 3D printers as extras large boxes that sit on desks, applying layer upon layer of melted plastic to complete a small shape. In reality, there are different kinds of 3D printers and different types of printing, and while the most popular machines are designed for use by individuals or small businesses, it didn’t take long for industrial-grade ones to pop up. This kind of printer offers a bit more flexibility in terms of movement and can cover a wider area as well.

The Maze Lamp design takes advantage of this capability by having an industrial 3D printer lay out the lines over a rotating axis. Normally, what you’d get is a cylindrical shape that looks like it was made from a spindle of extra-large spaghetti as the plastic material coils around and around the slowly spinning base. But if you move the nozzle forward, backward, and sideways while it spins, you can create more interesting patterns that look like the lines of a maze. Stack those lines on top of each other and you get a three-dimensional maze on a cylinder.

What makes this process even more special is that the pattern of these lines is random. No two Maze Lamps will ever have the same design, making each piece a one-of-a-kind item. For programmers and designers, this kind of procedurally generated pattern adds a unique characteristic to every iteration. As a bonus, the material used by the 3D printer is made from plastic shredded from discarded refrigerator doors, giving our own waste a beautiful new lease on life.

Thanks to the three dimensional patterns printed around the core, the Maze Lamp entices viewers whether the light is on or not. The light shining from the casts an eerie glow, almost like some otherworldly artifact found hidden in some ancient Aztec temple. On its own, the lamp becomes a sculptural art piece, not unlike a totem that represents the aesthetics and the technology of civilization that made it.

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How 3D Printing Revolutionized Retail Spaces: A Look Inside PINKO’s Stunning Store

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3D printing is often relegated simply to hobbyists and small-time designers. Given its size limits, architects and interior designers haven’t embraced the technology overwhelmingly yet – but fashion brand PINKO is looking to use the technology to create some of the most unique retail spaces ever. Located within the Fiumicino airport, this outlet boasts an interior facade made entirely of 3D-printed modules joined together. The space looks like living tapestry, as the walls have hypnotic depth to them.

Designer: External Reference

Inspired by the brand’s iconic swallows and the intricate details of textile fibers, the design translates into a “skin” that wraps the entire shop. This textured layer is a marvel of engineering. It’s composed of two overlapping “threads” that begin with a simple, linear arrangement before morphing into a complex, swirling pattern. This intricate design adds depth and a captivating richness to the space.

The “threads” cleverly intertwine with the display shelves, creating a seamless integration between form and function. Glass shelves highlight the handbags, while the central area boasts coat racks that echo the color scheme of the threads, showcasing the garments. The final part of the store features a large mirror, adding a touch of spaciousness…. but the magic doesn’t stop there. Embedded within the 3D-printed cladding are programmable luminous glass spheres. These spheres create dynamic light effects, transforming the atmosphere and injecting a touch of sophistication. The result? A retail space that transcends its purpose, evolving into a dynamic and ever-changing setting.

The monochromatic color palette further underscores the design’s brilliance. The neutral tones create a versatile backdrop that complements the clothing on display, fostering a contemporary and elegant atmosphere.

The complexity of the design demanded an innovative approach to production. To achieve the desired form, prototypes were created using a novel technique where robots 3D printed directly onto custom-made molds. This method allowed for precise control and the creation of a truly unique design element. Each wall panel was printed out of PIPG, a polymer composed of 70% recycled PET-G, demonstrating a commitment to eco-friendly practices without compromising on quality.

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3D printed ceramic cooling tower takes inspiration from termite mounds

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They say everything in nature has a purpose for existing, even if their existence is a nuisance to us humans. Scavengers, for example, are nature’s janitors and recyclers, putting dead things to good use. Even termites, whose presence is often a death sentence for homes and structures, are important to the ecosystem, and they can apparently serve as artful inspiration as well. Maybe not the termites themselves but the complex tunnels they create inside their mounds. These patterns are actually meant to facilitate airflow, which makes it the perfect reference for a man-made cooling solution that brings natural design and technology together to create a more sustainable solution to hot temperatures.

Designer: Rameshwari Jonnalagedda

There has been some interest in alternative cooling solutions, especially those that don’t consume too much electricity or none at all. Traditional techniques, particularly evaporative cooling that makes use of clay pots or pipes, have gained a lot of traction, especially because they can become decorative pieces inside modern homes. That said, the old methods don’t exactly scale well to today’s climate, room sizes, and needs, so designers have to think a bit outside the box to come up with a better solution to fit modern needs.

TerraMound looks to termites for one part of the solution, particularly how their shapes exemplify high surface-area-to-volume ratios, meaning how much surface area there is in a compact space. Surface area is one of two critical elements in an evaporative cooler, and that is made possible by utilizing complex geometric patterns that look like artistic versions of termite mounds. Such a design would be impossible to do en masse by hand, which is where 3D printing comes in and where the project’s uniqueness really shines.

The other critical element to this type of cooling solution is porosity, which is why clay is the preferred material for this kind of cooler. Clay is also not a typical 3D printing material, which is what makes this ceramic cooler design even more special. This method can eventually be extended to large-scale 3D printing technologies, allowing the quick and easy production of facade panels, walls, and other structures that not only look beautiful but can also help improve airflow in buildings.

As a cooler, TerraMound isn’t completely passive, as it has a fan at the bottom to draw air upwards. A planter sits on top as a source of water that trickles down the desktop cooling tower, utilizing the absorbent properties of the terracotta clay to help the evaporation process. It also acts as a distinctive and beautiful piece of table decoration, one that you wouldn’t have guessed was inspired by something we humans consider to be pests.

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