The 3D printer has the ability to turn a vision into a multidimensional, tangible object!
From combat aircraft parts to replicating tissue, here are 9 of the most amazing things
made by 3D printers.
9.
THE PRINCE URN
On April 21, 2016, the world lost one of its most influential and talented musicians to
a tragic accidental overdose.
Prince was laid to rest at Paisley Park, his private estate and mythical creative sanctuary
in Chanhassen, Minnesota.
Moreover, he was entombed in an elaborate 3D printed urn that is a replica of the building.
Prince’s sister, Tyka Nelson, and his nephew, President Nelson, teamed up with custom urn
company Foreverance to co-design the scale-model of Paisley Park, which measures 14 inches
high and 18 inches long.
It’s decorated with Prince’s famous “Love Symbol #2,” a purple ceramic and glass piece
which is covered by seven iridescent crystals that Tyka picked out and helped place.
The beloved artist’s ashes are sealed in the urn’s front column.
The facade opens, revealing a miniature replica of Paisley Park’s grand atrium, featuring
Prince’s purple Yamaha piano, a decorative tile floor, white ornamental doves, and even
real working lights.
Pete Saari, the CEO and founder of Foreverance, told PEOPLE magazine that the company aims
to create a “meaningful expression of a person’s life and legacy” and that they
have helped “hundreds of families tell the stories of their loved ones.”
I’d say that Prince’s detailed, one-of-a-kind urn is proof of the company’s accomplishment
of those goals!
8.
CUSTOM GUITARS
3D printers are a convenient option for musicians who want a custom guitar.
One company, Odd Guitars, makes the instruments to order, specifically tailoring each product
to the customer’s desired color, material, hardware, and other customizations.
Olaf Diegel, the company’s founder, points out on their official website that 3D printing
provides customers with a vast array of options for designing their guitar, without the cost
of the components skyrocketing.
Odd Guitars also sells a variety of guitars designed by the company.
To build the guitar body, the company uses a type of 3D printing technology called Selective
Laser Sintering.
Once the body is created, the neck, bridge, pickups, tuning heads, and controls are added.
The official website details a complicated, precision process for creating the guitar
bodies, which involves spreading one thin layer of nylon over another until the component
is completed.
Typically, the thickness of one layer of nylon is 0.1 millimeters.
And rest assured - these guitars may not look playable, but they certainly are!
7.
COMBAT AIRCRAFT PARTS
In Okinawa, Japan, United States Marines are using 3D printing technology to produce replacement
parts for combat aircraft.
Additive manufacturing, a technology that builds 3D objects by accumulating layers of
material, has been embraced by members of Combat Logistic Battalion 31, 31st Marine
Expeditionary Unit.
Marine Corps Chief Warrant Officer Daniel Rodriguez, who’s also CLB-31’s maintenance
officer, said in a statement that 3D printing is a great tool for lending credibility to
their motto while afloat, “Fix it forward.”
The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit must be ready for battle on a moment’s notice.
When it comes to obtaining replacement parts, time is of the essence.
They can’t sit around, waiting for the parts to be shipped from faraway parts of the world.
As a temporary source for parts, 3D printers, therefore, come in quite handy.
Earlier this year, an F-35B Lightning II aircraft was successfully flown by Marine Fighter Attack
Squadron 121 after being equipped with a 3D printed plastic bumper.
Replacing the part would typically require an entirely new door assembly, despite its
small size - a process that’s rather “time-consuming and expensive,” according to the Department
of Defense.
Thanks to 3D printing, the bumper was instead printed, installed, and approved within days.
The technology can also be credited for the creation of a new lens cap for a camera that
was attached to an unmanned ground vehicle.
Marine Corps Sergeant Adrian Willis, who’s also a computer and phone technician, summarized
his satisfaction with the program by saying: “Finding innovative solutions to complex
problems really does harken back to our core principles as Marines.”
And now for number 6, but first, what would you make with a 3D printer?
Let me know in the comments below!
And be sure to subscribe if you are new here, and join the origins Explained family!
6.
ORION SPACECRAFT PARTS
In 2023, NASA will launch the Orion spacecraft, sending four astronauts - and over 100 production-grade,
thermoplastic 3D-printed parts - around the moon and into the universe.
During April of this year, digital printing company Stratasys confirmed that it would
deliver the printed parts for the deep-space module.
For the project, Lockheed Martin Space will team up with Stratasys and Phoenix Analysis
& Design Technologies.
During Exploration Mission-1, the spacecraft will travel thousands of miles past the moon.
EM-1 will also be the first integrated test of NASA’s deep-space exploration systems,
including ground systems at Kennedy Space Center and the Space Launch System rocket.
The following mission, EM-2, will mark the first manned mission to the moon since Apollo
17 in 1972.
Additionally, it will be the inaugural flight of the 100 3D-printed parts mentioned earlier.
When it comes to the demands of space travel, Scott Sevcik, Stratys VP of manufacturing,
stresses the need for high-performance materials and the industry’s most rigorous manufacturing
processes.
Brian Kaplun, manager of additive manufacturing at Lockheed Martin Space, said in a statement
that the production of spacecraft will become faster and more affordable by this reshaping
of the production strategy.
See, what you can do with 3D printers is endless!!
5.
ROBOTIC LAWNMOWER
The 3D-printed robotic lawnmower, brought to you by Reprap Windturbine, takes do-it-yourself
projects to a whole new level.
It operates within the confines of a boundary wire fence, which prompts the machine to turn
around and mow in another direction when it gets too close.
After purchasing the downloadable files and the construction manual for printing the chassis
and mechanical parts and building the electronics and boundary wire fence, all you need is a
handy-dandy, average-quality 3D printer.
Some parts must be purchased separately, including the metal cutter blade, electronics, batteries,
and motor.
Sounds as easy as 1-2-3, right?
Well, it might - if you’re more mechanically inclined than I am, which is not that much!
The upside to building your own robotic lawnmower is that it costs less than a ready-made, commercial
model.
4.
BIONIC ARM
As you’ve probably noticed, one of the most beneficial aspects of 3D printing is its ability
to cut the production costs and slash the price tags of a lot of things, from leisure
items, such as guitars, to important machinery components used by the military and space
industries.
The medical industry will also see more affordable products.
Prosthetic arms currently cost anywhere from $3,000 to $30,000.
Thanks to 3D printing, however, that figure may soon drop into the hundreds.
The HACKberry, created by Exii, is a 3D-printable electric prosthetic arm that comes equipped
with a functioning hand.
It’s made out of inexpensive parts and has a flexible wrist and partially motorized fingers.
The open-source prosthesis can be controlled with muscle sensors and smartphone technology.
According to the creators, when nerve and muscle tissue is stimulated by signals from
the brain, the data is sent to an onboard microcontroller and translated into hand and
arm movements.
Users can even open and close the hand and control individual fingers.
So far, only prototypes have been created, but the founders of HACKberry have big visions
for its future, which they hope will be a game-changer in the prosthetics industry once
it meets medical device regulations and is ready for mass adoption.
3.
Chocolate Printer
Although 3D printing is becoming increasingly accessible over time and the possibilities
are virtually endless when it comes to what can be made, food remains one of the trickier
items to work with.
Using 3D printing technology to print food is still in the experimental stages, despite
some commercial 3D food printers, such as the PancakeBot, being available on the market.
In 2017, a junior at the University of Pennsylvania decided to take matters into his own hands
and make his own 3D food printer.
Evan Weinstein, who was studying mechanical engineering and applied mechanics, had actually
started building his Cocoa Press when he was still in high school.
He spent the next three years learning what he needed to do to build a machine that would
successfully print chocolate.
Weinstein’s Cocoa Press works by melting Hershey chocolate bars and extruding the chocolate
using a pneumatic syringe, much like a clay printer.
Immediately after extrusion, the melted chocolate is cooled.
Unfortunately, the chocolate failed to cool properly when this brilliant young man featured
his invention at Maker Faire NY - judges were so impressed with the device, however, Weinstein
still won three ribbons for it!
The Cocoa Press remains a work-in-progress but is currently capable of printing vases
up to 7 inches tall.
2.
EARS AND HUMAN TISSUE
In 2016, a groundbreaking 3D bioprinter known as an Integrated Tissue and Organ Printing
System was created by regenerative medicine scientists at Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative
Medicine.
This device is capable of producing replacement tissue that is strong enough for transplantation
and has been used to print ear, bone, and muscle structures.
To form the tissue shape, the system uses plastic-like, biodegradable materials and
living cells from humans, rabbits, rats, and mice, which are contained by water-based gels.
The printing process, which also forms a strong, temporary outer structure, does not harm the
cells.
This was just one development to come during a years-long quest within the scientific community
to produce 3D-printed organs and tissues, which can be used for a variety of purposes,
including testing an organ’s response to a drug and replicating a patient’s lost
tissues.
Before the development of this 3D bioprinter, other experiments involving brain and kidney
tissue were already underway.
What’s amazing about this printer, however, is its ability to create functional, vascularized
tissues that can be used on humans.
Until then, most 3d-printed structures were too unstable, small, or simple to be implanted
in humans.
1.
YOUR UNBORN BABY
Thanks to Embryo 3D, a Russian company that uses prenatal images to reproduce your baby’s
image, you can now print and hold your unborn baby.
Using detailed scans taken by medical professionals, the company produces high-quality 3D prints
made out of plastic and heavy-duty plaster.
For an additional fee, they’re happy to also create a precious metal keepsake of your
impending bundle of joy.
The idea of 3D printing unborn babies resulted from conversations between company founder
Ivan Gridin and expectant parents, who told him that they wished a tangible object could
be created from their prenatal scans.
For future moms and dads who are eager to meet their child before he or she is ready
to meet them, these 3D printed fetuses sure put those 3D ultrasound images to shame!