News and Insights of 3D Printing and Manufacturing
In the additive manufacturing industry, Olaf Diegel is probably best known for his role as associate consultant at Wohlers Associates, an independent consulting firm focused on the 3D printing market. However, there is another aspect of Diegel’s work which we’d like to focus on today: he is the founder of ODD Guitars, a small venture through which he designs and 3D prints customizable guitars.
Since Pre-Hispanic times the cochineal insect has been used as a natural colorant by indigenous peoples from the Americas. For the upcoming Cooper-Hewitt exhibition, Nature by Design: Cochineal, Emerging Objects produced a series of 3D printed objects using this ancient colorant.
For months, Australia has been combatting some of the most intense bushfires in its history, which have caused unprecedented devastation to its land, wildlife and people. In recent weeks, media attention for the ongoing environmental disaster has picked up significantly, which has led to an outpouring of support from around the world. Wanting to play they part to help their country’s dire situation, Australian metal 3D printing company Titomic is working with British bike manufacturer Vaaru Cycles to raise money for the Victorian bushfire appeal.
With CES 2020 kicking off today, there is a ton of buzz around consumer electronics. As one might expect, 3D printing has figured in to the event in a significant way. Yesterday, for instance, we reported that Korean beauty giant Amorepacific was presenting its new 3D printed facial sheet masks at CES 2020. Now, we’ll take a look at some of the other 3D printing products that are being highlighted in Las Vegas this week.
For more than a decade, additive technology has been a creative mainstay at LAIKA, evolving with LAIKA’s increasingly ambitious artistic vision and rapid advancements in 3D printing and software. In its latest animated comedy adventure Missing Link, fresh winner of the Golden Globe award for Best Animated Feature Film, the stop-motion studio extensively leveraged 3D printing technology, as we reported back in April.
Canadian footwear company Native Shoes is working with MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab and a team from the Emily Carr University of Art and Design to develop a new type of 3D printed shoe. The collaborative project, called Liquid Printed Natives, involves a novel liquid rubber 3D printing technique.
The potential of using additive manufacturing and lattice structures to improve protective sportswear is becoming increasingly clear. As of last month, what is less clear is the commercial potential of its use—at least for football helmet startup VICIS. The NFL-backed company known for its innovative helmet designs, and which licensed HRL Laboratories’ 3D printed lattices, is coming into 2020 with some serious financial trouble.
Korean beauty giant Amorepacific will be introducing its customizable 3D printed face mask system at CES 2020 this week. In fact, CES 2020 has named the 3D printed cosmetic product, “IOPE Tailored 3D Mask”, as an Honoree of its 2020 Innovation Awards. The customized 3D printed face mask will become available to consumers at Amorepacific’s flagship store in Seoul in April 2020.
3D printing company HP has just announced it is deepening its partnership with Oakley, a leading brand of sportswear sunglasses. Together, the companies will continue to leverage HP’s Multi Jet Fusion 3D printing technology to boost Oakley’s product design process and prototyping.
In the additive industry we often talk about 3D printing spare parts for the aerospace and transport industries, but there is another area where on-demand spare parts could make all the difference: toys!