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July 23, 2006
Print Me A 3D Plane
When I was just a wee-geek-boy, I remember watching a show called Beyond 2000 and in a particular episode, they covered a new technology called 3d printing which uses lasers to carve and melt polymer together. At the time, it was just small projects - little objects that could help designers better envision and test their creations. This opened the doors to rapid prototyping.
Fast forward almost 20 years and it seems the technology has advanced far enough to print not only the object, but the mechanics inside as well.
One of the first to fruition from this technology is of course, funded by the military. It's called the Polecat UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle), designed to test cheaper and faster manufacturing technologies. Since most of its parts are laser printed, there is less room for manufacturing errors as computers are far more accurate and consistent.
If the project proves successful, we could see the technology trickle down to consumer levels. 3D laser printing could be the bridge between current manufacturing methodologies and the often romanticized nano technology.
Posted by tranism at 6:37 PM | Permalink
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