In DESIGN

Is This the All-in-One Bike Helmet of the Future?

3 Mins Read

For those used to cycling on busy city streets (NYC comes to mind), the need for swift reaction times could be compared to that of catching a fly with your bare hand. With maniac cab drivers and aloof SUV drivers running up and down Broadway, sometimes a simple hand signal doesn’t do the trick…especially at night. Designed by Balázs Filczer, this award-winning helmet design concept is sure to be the bike helmet of the future that aims to make biking in densely-populated areas a little more safe…for both cyclists and everybody else.

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In FAB

iMakr Opening My Mini Factory to Provide Free 3D Printable Files (and Sell Yours.)

3 Mins Read

Raise of filament rolls in the room–who thinks they can open up a website that allows you to 1) download 3D printable files and 2) upload your own to make some cold, hard cash? I know, you’re thinking, “Egad, what is this genius!? The like has yet been seen!” The reality is there are a lot of websites to both download, upload and share 3D printable files (GrabCAD, Thingiverse, etsy, FabFabbers, etc.) or even sell your creations (Shapeways, Ponoko, Sculpteo, Etsy, etc.), yet a new site is launching with the aim of “becoming the YouTube of 3D files.” iMakr has announced the launch of My Mini Factory coming June 18th (with a Champagne and Canapés launch party at the iMakr store). So, how are they different?

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In DESIGN

New Adventures in Cutting Tape: The Liquid Tape Cutter by Kouichi Okamoto

2 Mins Read

Invented just one year after the invention of Scotch tape in 1930, the tape dispenser is a unique package design-tool hybrid that can be found in just about every household. Due to the frustration of finding the loose end of tape on a roll, 3M Engineer John A. Borden invented the serrated-edge dispenser to keep the end of the tape away from the roll. Almost a century later, Japanese designer Kouichi Okamoto has redesigned the tape dispenser to create a liquid-like form from the resulting tape cuts.

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In FAB

Test Your 3D Printer's Tolerances With This 8-Piece $30 3D Printer Test Kit

2 Mins Read

As the number of 3D printers purchased each week increases exponentially, many proud new owners of a 3D printer are also learning the limitations of their new device. Chances are, an entire weekend may have been spent calibrating your printer or waiting for that very first test print. But what about the other limitations of your material? Recently posted on Kickstarter, the 3D Printer Test kit offers eight unique sample chip files that allows a user to test everything from ridges to flexibility to overhangs so you’ll know exactly where the limitations and strengths are for your 3D printer…whether it’s a Replicator 2 or a Fortus.

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In RADIO

SolidSmack Radio | Jah Morning Sun

1 Min Read

This week’s Spotify-powered SolidSmack Radio Playlist brings an entirely new face-smack of great music to help propel you through those laborious, tedious design tasks for the next few days. This week we’ll be laying down the island vibes with some reggae tunes that will ensure positive vibes all day, mon. Turn up the bass and kick back a little further in your chair as we fire it up with the Expanders and move through a reggae odyssey including Eek-a-Mouse, Yami Bolo, Rebelution, and the wise words of Jahmings Maccow. All fruits ripe, mon!

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