German startup iFactory3D has now launched their inexpensive belt 3D printer on Kickstarter. Inspired by the 3D print community, Artur Steffen and Martin Huber developed an open source belt 3D printer design way back in 2018. They posted this design on Thingiverse, and apparently received demand from visitors to provide a kit to build the…

An incredible demonstration of the capabilities of belt 3D printers has been completed: a 20 foot (6-meter) long part has been produced. Karl Brown of NAK 3D Designs achieved this incredible feat on a pre-release version of the upcoming 3DPrintMill from Creality, likely as a demonstration of its capability. Belt 3D Printers Belt 3D printers…

Crocs, Inc. is an American company based in Niwot, Colorado that offers comfortable leisure footwear and is known for innovation. In 2020 Crocs sales have surged partly due to people staying at home in response to COVID-19. The company saw a 14% increase in March 2020 when compared to 2019 sales numbers. Crocs has done…

I’m reading a fascinating story about how a small motorsport company is using 3D printing in a very different way. The company is Finland-based JML-Sports, which is an automotive company specializing in rebuilding decades-old “cult cars”, like the Toyota Celica or the Mitsubishi Lancer. It’s the brainchild of Finnish rally car driver Jari-Matti Latvala, Latvala…

BMF has released details about their new industrial-grade 3D printer targeting the micro parts market – the microArch S240. Projection Micro-Stereolithography The Boston-based company has been on our pages earlier this year when they revealed their technology. The resin-based 3D printing process they use is called “PμSL”, for “Projection Micro-Stereolithography”. PμSL is able to achieve…

MakerBot announced a new service called MakerBot CloudPrint, which is intended to deliver a seamless 3D printing experience to clients. MakerBot Print Up to now MakerBot 3D printer operators would use MakerBot Print to prepare and schedule jobs for attached MakerBot devices. That tool has been around for several years, and it’s proven to be…

Arkansas-based AMBOTS is developing a concept called “Swarm 3D Printing”, describing themselves as “an advanced manufacturing company with a focus on swarm 3D printing and assembly” that will bring us “the next manufacturing revolution.” “This technology aims to automate manufacturing with a swarm of smart and autonomous mobile robots, from everyday products to houses and…

Today I’m looking at a 3D printer I had not seen before, the Incus Hammer Lab35. Incus Background Incus is a spin off of Austria-based Lithoz, who have done very well with their line of ceramic 3D printers. Now it seems they’ve leveraged their expertise to produce a metal 3D printer that is capable of…

Researchers at UC Davis have developed an unusual new form of 3D printing that uses Droplet-Based Multiphase Emulsion. One of the big challenges in 3D printing is the inability to handle multiple materials. Typical 3D printers of today can 3D print a single material at a time, with certain more advanced models being able to…

A new online service has emerged that hopes to guide 3D printer operators to better printing parameters: 3DOptimizer. FabControl SIA, the producers of 3DOptimizer, seems to be a spinoff from well-known 3D printer manufacturer Mass Portal. Their claim to fame was being able to achieve 3D prints of astonishing quality, so there’s definitely skill present.…

Note: This is concept software! Interested in available 8-bit/DOS modelers? Check out Magicvoxel, 3D Studio DOS, or Mikshape3D! Game developer Johan Peitz posted a tweet recently with a video of a project he’s working on called “PICO CAD”. It’s a kind of 8-bit 3D modeling system to develop very simple 3D objects. We don’t yet…

The idea of parallel 3D printing is incredibly powerful. The rap against 3D printers has long been that they are monumentally slower than traditional manufacturing equipment to produce finished units, even though they are able to make objects of any design on the next print job. This slowness has sometimes been the reason for not…

If you happen to own stock in Nano Dimension, it’s definitely your lucky week, as the price quadrupled after a surprise announcement.  The company announced a breakthrough in its technology that will be of significant interest to the industry. Nano Dimension produces equipment to 3D print circuit boards. While circuit boards are essentially 2D structures,…

Miele, the high-end German manufacturer of consumer goods, now offers downloadable 3D models for printing. The company produces a wide array of top-notch consumer products, including vacuums, stoves, refrigerators, washers and dryers, wine coolers, dishwashers, coffee makers, and much more. Last year their revenue exceeded €4B, making them one of the largest producers of appliances…

Did you know Autodesk is providing free access to Fusion 360 due to the crisis? Fusion 360 Features Autodesk’s Fusion 360 system is a powerful cloud-based CAD tool that can provide both beginners and full-time professional designers a worthy experience. The system includes a wide variety of CAD features, including 2D sketching, 3D modeling, simulation,…

I thought I’d heard all I needed to know about 3D printed corals some years ago, but I was wrong. Some years ago, D-Shape, a then-emerging construction 3D printer manufacturer, demonstrated a way to 3D print coral reefs using their concrete printing process. Essentially they developed a rough design for a coral-like concrete structure, then…

I’ve bumped into a very interesting technique that could save an enormous amount of support material and 3D printing time. Support structures are an inevitable aspect of 3D printing: some geometries are simply not capable of being printed without support for overhangs exceeding the threshold of your device. Typically this ranges from 45 to 60…

Matt Boyle is the VP of Engineering at Shapeways and, in a recent post from him on StackOverflow, reveals some of the methods the company uses to provide high-speed, global 3D print services.  Shapeways History Shapeways has been one of the longest-running 3D print services available to the public. They launched in the Netherlands long…

Essentium announced a pair of new materials for its high-speed 3D printer.  The Texas-based 3D printer manufacturer’s claim to fame is its highly engineered HSE series of 3D printers that can operate at 3D print speeds unseen in most other FFF devices. They are able to do so due to the precise engineering of the…

The biggest thing to hit 3D printing in the next few years is likely to be volumetric 3D printing. But who’s developing it? If you haven’t seen Fabbaloo’s previous questions about volumetric 3D printing on the tech, let’s start with a quick overview.  Volumetric 3D Printing Volumetric 3D Printing projects the form of an object from…

Researchers have developed a complex system that is able to 3D print tiny structures at very high speeds.  There are few vendors providing microscopic 3D printing today, but those that do enable the production of incredible microscopic devices, lenses, and components. Many use what’s called the “two-photon” approach, where light is focused deep within a…

A young engineering student found a way to deliver 150 3D printed robots to students. Danielle Boyer is a nineteen-year-old engineering student with a passion for 3D printing and STEM. She’s the founder of a non-profit, The STEAM Connection, which develops accessible educational materials designed to increase thinking and diversity in students.  Boyer is clearly a…

I’m looking at an interesting project undertaken by Protolabs, the well-known manufacturing service. The project in question is the curiously-named “Wayzn Slide”, a smart robotic door opening system designed for pet access. It’s a mechanism that attaches to a standard sliding door and can open and close the door automatically. It does this through a…

After reading yet another mainstream publication talk about “3D printed human organs” I thought it wise to share my thoughts about the five most frequently heard myths of 3D printing.  These myths have been around since I started in this business over 12 years ago, and for some unexplainable reason, they have not gone away.…

Protolabs has selected two innovative designs as their Cool Idea Award: Healthcare Grant.  Protolabs is a well-known 3D print and manufacturing service based in Minnesota, and they’ve been operating an awards program they call the “Cool Idea Award” since 2011. Since inception, the program has awarded projects some $1.5MM USD in services to aid in…

Researchers have been exploring new concepts for developing metamaterials. Metamaterials are small mechanical structures made from one or more basic materials, but the motions possible in the structure exhibit more complex behaviors. A very simple example might be to 3D print a spiral structure – but at the same time creating a “springy” material. The…

Stratasys announced a new workflow system, GrabCAD Shop. GrabCAD GrabCAD is Stratasys’ main 3D model repository, having acquired it from independent owners way back in 2014. Stratasys bills it as: “The largest online community of professional designers, engineers, manufacturers, and students” And this is likely true, as they say there are currently over 6,550,000 members.…

I was a bit shocked when I saw a press release from Israel-based Modix that touted a coming “Personal Car Factory 3D Printer”. Could someone 3D print their own car? It seems to me that level of additive manufacturing tech is still a bit into the future. Maybe quite a bit. But it turns out…

Autodesk seems to be tightening up their rules regarding use of the popular Fusion 360 CAD system. The company moved the product to a subscription-based cloud system a couple of years ago and then simplified their licensing levels. This is a very common practice in the software industry as it provides significant advantages: a near-100%…

There are plenty of uses of 3D printing, and one of them is for design feedback. The most frequent use of 3D printing is prototyping, in which a proposed model of the final design is produced and tested. The testing can take many forms, from mechanical to aesthetic, and this approach has been very successful…

miniFactory has announced the release of a series of technical datasheets that should enable engineers to more easily use their 3D printers. Finland-based miniFactory (not be be confused with London-based 3D model repository MyMiniFactory) has been producing high-end desktop 3D printers for many years. We first saw them in 2013 when they exhibited a device…

Researchers at the Berkeley Lab have developed a technique for 3D printing liquid structures that are reconfigurable. Microscopic Machines The researchers were experimenting with ferro-fluids, which are liquids infused with ferric nanoparticles. These iron oxide particles are only 20 nanometers across, so they are extremely tiny. The liquid was 3D printed into 1mm droplets through…

United States government invests $15 million towards the development of the next generation of metal 3D printing technology and 3D Systems is joining forces for the ambitious metal 3D printing project. Largest Metal 3D Printer This remarkable $15 million contract is officially targeted at work “to create the world’s largest, fastest, most precise metal 3D…

We had a closer look at Velo3D’s amazing metal 3D printing process. In a word, it’s delicious. No Support 3D Printing The company, which operated in complete stealth until just under a year ago, had been secretly developing a powerful metal 3D printing process. Now, we’ve seen up close some of the prints that were…

nTopology announced a revolutionary new tool for product design, nTop Platform. Generative Design for 3D Printing The tool is a bit challenging to describe, as it is a hyper-mix of functions that are today often found in separate tools and products. But let me try to do so! In the old world, product design followed…

When it comes to makeup, an extensive color pallet is what the pros are always looking for. Getting hues to match the outfit or creating contrasting and complementing shades to match the mood, are always a challenge. Mink hopes to solve the problem, and brings you the opportunity to 3D print the exact color you…

Anisoprint announced a new 3D print material that we have never heard of previously, Composite Basalt Fiber. CONTINUOUS FIBER 3D PRINTING The company is very well-known for their continuous carbon fiber 3D printer, where you are able to insert continuous long strands of very strong carbon fiber into 3D prints. This is very different from…

Polymaker has announced a series of new materials, and showcased some dramatic demonstrations of their capabilities. Polymaker Engineering Materials The China-based company has been one of the leaders in the 3D printing industry and in developing engineering-grade high-quality 3D printing filaments. They have also come out with some highly unusual 3D printing materials, and now…

3D Platform has produced a rather large 3D printer, the WorkCenter 500 – and the build volume on this beast is substantial, at 1400 x 2800 x 700 mm (55″ x 110″ x 27″), or 2.7 cubic meters (95 cubic feet) of volume. It should be able to accommodate the needs of many large part-makers.…

Don’t freak out, but we’ve just learned of a new venture that looks at simplifying access to 3D printed bones: The ADAM Project. Led by Vlad Usov, the founder and CEO of Kwambio – a company specializing in ceramic 3D printing and has developed and produced several powerful 3D printers, which create high-quality ceramic objects.…

Markforged has introduced its latest Onyx material, the flame-retardant Onyx FR. The Boston-based company first made its name with high-strength polymer 3D printing. As with the 3D printing industry in general, though, it seems like lately more spotlight attention has been focused on their metal offerings. Certainly metal is exciting, and Markforged is demonstrably working…

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon and the Missouri University of Science and Technology have developed a method of 3D printing battery components to dramatically increase capacity. There’s great interest in improving battery technology in recent years, due to the ongoing switch from oil to electric power, particularly in vehicle design. Many researchers are investigating a number…

Researchers have developed an incredibly ingenious new method of 3D printing very strong structures using techniques analogous to nature. Researchers at the University of Southern California were inspired by the material called “nacre”. You haven’t heard of nacre? You probably have, as it is simply the scientific name for “mother of pearl”–the substance mollusks use…

We haven’t heard much from MakerOS over the past couple of years, but they have big news today. If you have not encountered MakerOS, they are a Michigan-based service that provides a number of powerful management functions to design and making communities and industries. Their tagline is: “MakerOS is an end-to-end management platform for your…

A Girls 3D Print Club in Cincinnati, Ohio helps highlight STEM opportunities for students. GE Additive’s dedication to education is helping students of all ages gain access to 3D printing. Jessica Hughes of Hyde Park School is a teacher who is herself dedicated to that same mission. One of the early participants in the Additive…

Researchers at MIT have developed yet another unusual metamaterial, and this one is simply hair. We’ve seen some experiments in 3D printed hair previously, but those were essentially for fun and artistic merit. Those experiments used extrusion movements to pull strands from the nozzle, leaving thin and flexible hair-like structures that could be rearranged at…

AstroPrint announced a spectacular arrangement with Stanley Black & Decker. According to the press release, Stanley Black & Decker will use AstroPrint’s Enterprise Cloud “to connect, control, and optimize their fleet of 3D printers across multiple facilities.” AstroPrint is a popular cloud–based solution for managing groups of 3D printers. We first wrote about them in…

There have been a few developments recently that have brought me to the view that STL file format will slide away quietly. STL has always been a highly problematic format, but at the same time has been used almost ubiquitously in 3D printing. Now there seems to be a crack in that standard that ultimately…

There’s something very interesting going down at Velo3D. The previously mysterious California-based metal 3D printing startup made a splash last fall with their new Sapphire metal 3D printer, which has the incredible ability to 3D print extreme overhangs without the need for support structures. Today we learned quite a bit more about the company and…

A report suggests that upcoming Apple iPhone designs may include powerful 3D scanning capabilities. According to a report on Bloomberg, it seems that Apple is expanding its 3D camera technology in a way that might enable some extremely interesting 3D scanning applications — not just applications the company is pursuing. Let’s review what Apple does…