Their website states:
“Guns prove out some of our younger generations’  beliefs about information and sharing at an extremity. If we truly believe information should be free, that the internet is the last bastion of freedom and knowledge, and that societies that share are superior to societies that censor and withhold, then why not guns?”.

Formlabs has just rolled out their FORM 1 3d printer on Kickstarter.  They have become fully funded in just 2.5 hours ($100,000 goal)!  There are some exceptional differences in this machine compared to the typical FDM & DLP printers out there.  This is SL based technology (stereolithography) using a $10 Blu-Ray laser (same as in hi-def DVD players) for photo exposure versus a $10,000 laser typically found in SLA machines. FORM 1 boasts build resolutions of 25 micron (.001″) in Z & 300 micron (.012″) feature details.  Build envelop is listed at 125 x 125 x 160mm (4.9 x 4.9 x 6.5 inches).  This is a substantial improvement over other desktop printers in its class.  Although this price tier is sold out (higher priced tiers remain at time of this writing) the starting price for the machine was placed at $2,299.  This project is exceptionally well put together & the machine looks to be at a considerably mature design stage. Formlabs states that they have built 7 generations of prototypes & a production run of alpha machines.  They have developed their own software package for build setups & support generation which does not look to be opensource.  No mention of future software/hardware support but the project is already a go so we’ll see how the company & product develops.  Exciting stuff, Love it!

Arts collective panGenerator has created an interesting piece entitled FLOAT.  It has surrounded a fish tank (that has a fish in it) with cameras. They plot the fish’s movements, compile that & turn it into a 3D Printed sculpture.  Exceptionally interesting shapes & patterns made by the random wandering of a fish in it’s prison. Always wonderful to see information in a form we can study & appreciate.  Would like to see this done with a colony of ants, a flock ofstarlings…or us in Times Square.

DUS, a Dutch architecture firm, unveiled their KamerMaker (“RoomBuilder”).  It is the first mobile 3D printer with the capacity to print inhabitable pavilions.  The technology is based on the Ultimaker printer (essentially RepRap) but can print as large as 2.2 x 2.2 x 3.5 meters.  It is housed in a giant chrome box that looks as if aliens had plopped down & begun building homes for themselves.  Although arguably not quite large enough yet to build a pavilion in a single go, it could certainly fabricate the pieces for onsite assembly.  The idea is to implement a more local & adaptable design approach, reuse available materials, & offer mobile construction of emergency & temporary shelter.

German hacker and security consultant who goes by the name “Ray” demonstrated Friday at the Hackers On Planet Earth conference in New York a 3d printed & laser cut keys that open high security handcuffs. He was able to open handcuffs built by the German firm Bonowi and the English manufacturer Chubb who both use a single key design for their products. Although the keys are purportedly harder to come by than more standard cuffs & not commercially available, Ray says he bought a Chubb key from eBay, and obtained the rarer Bonowi key through an unnamed source. He reverse engineered the keys & built CAD models that he then cut in plexiglass with a laser cutter and printed in ABS plastic with a Repman 3D printer.

Ray, says his goal isn’t to reduce security but to expose the vulnerability. He states, that his tools are already available to criminals along with the rest of the public.  “If someone is planning a prison or court escape, he can do it without our help.” says Ray. He says he won’t  post CAD models online, given that those keys are harder to obtain and providing models for their reproduction could in fact reduce their real-world security. But their availability should serve as a wake-up call. The cuffs’ applications include restraints for airplane passengers & plastic keys can easily be carried through airport security.  “People who have a high value goal don’t mind the cost of using a higher cost method. Someone with a higher criminal goal doesn’t care if it takes one dollar or one hundred dollars to make this key” he says.  “Lock security was broken before. I’ve just made it easier.”

I submit that the zip tie style thumb cuffs are just as effective & cheaper than the old-timey metal ones particularly now that the keys are so easily reproduceable. Hey, you could print the zip ties too!

French-born engineer and designer Luc Fusaro, a student at the Royal College of Art in London, claims he has invented the world’s fastest running shoe. Using 3d scans, the “Designed to Win” shoe is designed around the unique shape of a runner’s foot, weighs 96 grams, and  it can improve performance by as much as 3.5% (about .35 seconds in a 100-meter dash).  The shoe is not designed for long distance but for sprinter’s that time is the difference between silver and gold.  Unfortunately it will not be available for the upcoming Olympics but Fusaro hopes to have it ready for the 2016 games.

Burritob0t is the thesis project of grad student Marko Manriquez at NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program at the Tisch School of the Arts. This is in many respects similar to the Cornucopia.  I’m skeptical if the world’s first 3d printed burrito has happened yet or if this is just concept but I am so hungry.  Mmmm, extruded piles of beans, cheese, guacamole & sour cream. Imagine the implications in the fast food industry & @ 2am when you’ve maybe had too many drinks…instant burrito! Enjoy.

Inline with the recent advances of the ReconstructMe software package that turns your Microsoft Kinect into a 3D scanner, there are some new developments that may add to, or offer options to what’s already being done.  Check ’em out.

Leap Motion  gesture control with high precision 3D interaction. Claims to be 200x more sensitive than Kinect & at $70 it is quite appealing.  Wondering if this could be used in the same way as Kinect with ReconstructMe to create high-res scans.

Armada Concept 3d scanner device with dual 18mp cameras, aluminum body, & Class II laser (safe on the eyes). Meant to sync with your smart phone via bluetooth.

MiiCraft is the latest crowdfunding campaign for a 3d printer. This one looks to have all the necessary variables to be set them apart.  Hi-resolution, low cost, opensource software & firmware, reasonable project funding goal. Their 3D Printer is based on SLA technology using Pico DLP projectors & boasts a resolution of 450ppi (56 micron) X/Y axis & 0.1mm (100 micron) single layer Z axis. Build speed is spec’d at 2cm per hour with ip to 3cm per hour possible for some models. Build envelope is 43mm x 27mm x 180mm.  Check the campaign out at http://www.indiegogo.com/miicraft

While low cost 3D printers are entering the market (Makerbot, Printrbot, Portabee, eMaker, etc) they require extruded plastic filament that costs about $40-$54 per kg that is 5-10 times the cost of the raw resin pellets.  The Desktop Factory Competition is seeking to fund an opensource filament maker for all you owners of these FDM type machines. The competition is a partnership between business competition aggregator iStart and online Fab supply store Inventables.   The contest is offering $40,000  for the first filament making machine to meet their criteria.  I an addition to the cash (from the Kauffman Foundation) the winner will also receive a “Desktop Fabrication Lab” (3D printer, FS Laser Cutter, & Shapeoko CNC Mill).  I’m hoping the winning design is made of all printed parts