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Neri Oxman – The MIT Mediated Matter Lab and MaterialEcology.com

Posted on by Iowa City 3D

Neri Oxman Bio. Neri Oxman received her PhD in design computation as a Presidential Fellow at MIT, where she coined the term Material Ecology to describe her research area. Prior to MIT she earned her diploma from the Architectural Association (RIBA 2) after attending the Faculty of Architecture and Town Planning at the Technion Israel Institute of Technology, and the Department of Medical Sciences at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

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Neri Oxman, Founder of the Mediated Matter Lab at MIT.

 

About the MIT Mediated Matter Lab. The Mediated Matter group is dedicated to the development and application of novel processes that enable and support the design of physical matter, and its adaptability to environmental conditions. Their research integrates computational form-finding strategies with biologically inspired fabrication. They seek to establish new forms of design and novel processes of material practice at the intersection of computer science, material engineering, design and ecology, with broad applications across multiple scales.

Further Reading

Neri Oxman: On Designing Form

Video Description. Originally uploaded to YouTube by Poptech on Mar 12, 2010. Architect Neri Oxman is the founder of MATERIALECOLOGY, an interdisciplinary design initiative expanding the boundaries of computational form-generation and material engineering. Named one of Fast Company’s “100 Most Creative People in Business,” Oxman investigates the material and performance of nature in an effort to define form itself.

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Autodesk Fusion 360 CAD/CAM System

Posted on by Iowa City 3D
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaVb4NiVazM]

Synopsis. Autodesk Fusion 360 is an integrated 3D CAD/CAM tool for product development, merging industrial design, mechanical engineering, and manufacturing with the benefit of cloud collaboration. Co-developed with the community, it starts at just $25 a month. [More…]

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Autodesk Meshmixer

Posted on by Iowa City 3D
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5m9SG9C_lUo]

The latest update for Meshmixer boasts an all-in-one 3D printing suite with new features!

Now you have all of the mixing, sculpting, healing, stamping, painting tools of Meshmixer you always had with a streamlined path direct to your 3D printer.

You can choose your printer and other settings for 3D printing your creation. You will also have access to all of the mixing and sculpting tools as well to effortlessly make adjustments within Meshmixer.

The powerful and easy features of Meshmixer make it a great companion application for anyone who is 3D printing, whether you are just beginning or a seasoned Maker.

More videos from Autodesk 123D.

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CREAFORM Handyscan3D EXAscan

Posted on by Iowa City 3D

The HandySCAN 3D™ handheld scanners of new generation have been optimized to meet the needs of product development and engineering professionals on the lookout for the most effective and reliable way to acquire 3D measurements of physical objects.

Creaform’s flagship metrology-grade scanners underwent a complete re-engineering, building on its core assets. They are now more portable and they are faster at delivering accurate and high resolution 3D scans while remaining overly simple to use. Yet, it is their true portability that has changed the rules and set a whole new trend in the 3D scanning market.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx8FSnVfQTM]

New Features

  • 25 times faster than the previous generation
  • 40% more accurate
  • Improved ergonomy:
    • 35% lighter
    • 50% smaller
    • Greater freedom of movement
    • Multi-function buttons for easier interaction with the software

TRUaccuracy: Accurate measurements in real life operating conditions

  • Metrology-grade measurements: accuracy of up to 0.030 mm (0.0012 in.), resolution of up to 0.050 mm (0.002 in.), high repeatability and traceable certificate.
  • Accuracy in real-life conditions: regardless of environment conditions, part set-up or user.
  • No rigid setup required: optical reflectors are used to create a reference system that is “locked” to the part itself, so users can move the object any way they want during scanning sessions (dynamic referencing). Changes in surrounding environment have no impact on data acquisition quality or accuracy.
  • Self-positioning: the HandySCAN 3D scanner is a data acquisition system and its own positioning system. This means that no external tracking or positioning devices is required. It uses triangulation to determine its relative position to the part in real time.
  • Reliable: consistent and repeatable results across all work conditions or environments.
  • On-demand user calibration: the scanner can be calibrated as often as necessary (day-to-day basis or before each new scanning session). Calibration takes about 2 minutes and guarantees optimal operation.

TRUportability: 3D scanning where you need to go

  • Stand-alone device: there is no need for an external positioning system, arms, tripod or fixture.
  • On-the-go scanning: you can take it from place to place or use it in-house or on site.
  • Lightweight: weights under 1 kg.
  • Small: Fits into a case the size of a carry-on.
  • Easy access to confined spaces: thanks to its small size and flexible stand-off distance.

Speed: Fastest path from physical objects to your design or inspection workflow

  • Fastest 3D scanner on the market: 25 times faster than the previous generation.
  • Highest measurement rate among all laser scanners: 480,000 measures/s.
  • Automatic mesh output: ready-to-use files, right as you complete acquisition.
  • Quick workflow integration: usable scan files can be imported into RE/CAD software without post-processing.

TRUsimplicity: Very simple 3D scanning process

  • User-friendly: very short learning curve, regardless of the user’s experience level.
  • Quick set-up: up and running in less than 2 minutes.
  • Direct mesh output: no complicated alignment or point cloud processing.
  • Real-time visualization: look at the computer screen to see what you are doing and what is left to be done.
  • Versatile: virtually limitless 3D scanning – no matter the part size, complexity, material or color.

3D Printed Fibonacci Zoetrope Animated Sculptures in Motion (Video)

Posted on by Iowa City 3D
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB-xKZP2gMk]

Fibonacci Zoetrope Sculptures from Pier 9 on Vimeo.

These are 3-D printed sculptures designed to animate when spun under a strobe light. The placement of the appendages is determined by the same method nature uses in pinecones and sunflowers. The rotation speed is synchronized to the strobe so that one flash occurs every time the sculpture turns 137.5º—the golden angle. If you count the number of spirals on any of these sculptures you will find that they are always Fibonacci numbers.

For this video, rather than using a strobe, the camera was set to a very short shutter speed (1/4000 sec) in order to freeze the spinning sculpture.

John Edmark is an inventor/designer/artist. He teaches design at Stanford University.

Visit John’s website here: web.stanford.edu/~edmark/
and Vimeo site: vimeo.com/johnedmark/videos

Learn how he made these sculptures here: instructables.com/id/Blooming-Zoetrope-Sculptures/

And more about the Pier 9 Artist in Residence program here: autodesk.com/air

Music – “Plateau” by Lee Rosevere – freemusicarchive.org/music/Lee_Rosevere/Farrago_Zabriskie/Lee_Rosevere_-_Farrago_Zabriskie_-_03_-_Plateau

Cinematography and editing by Charlie Nordstrom

Fab Lab hopes to buy permanent space

Posted on by Iowa City 3D

[Source: “Fab Lab hopes to buy permanent space,” Press Citizen, 6:42 p.m. CST January 22, 2015, by Josh O’Leary]

Zoning hurdles have thwarted the idea of establishing the state’s first Fab Lab inside an Iowa City shopping center, but organizers are still keeping hope alive for a high-tech workshop.

The STEAM Room has been hosting clubs and organizing science events inside the Iowa City Marketplace, formerly Sycamore Mall, since last summer, with the initial goal of one day opening up a permanent operation at the mall.

However, obtaining the necessary heavy commercial zoning from the city at that location would have been far from a sure thing, said STEAM Room director Kirk Cheyney, so the organization is searching for a new home and has kicked off a fundraising campaign.

“It’s easier to move to the right zone than change the zoning law,” Cheyney said. “It would have been a months-long process, and at the end, if they said ‘no,’ it would have been months without having anything to show for it.”

Cheyney first pitched a Fab Lab for Iowa City in 2013 — a digital fabrication laboratory packed with an array of tools and electronics such as CNC machines, 3D printers, laser cutters, a computer lab, woodworking equipment and welding gear, to name just a few of the components.

The idea, which began as an MIT outreach initiative and has since grown into a national network of Fab Labs, is to provide widespread access to the tools of invention. The nonprofit Iowa City lab would rent work spaces and sell monthly memberships, like a gym, giving the public the ability to use equipment they normally wouldn’t have access to.

Organizers set up shop last year in two empty storefronts in the shopping center — which is undergoing major renovations — where they hosted youth summer camps and have continued to hold regular activities in the months since. Robotics clubs from West High and City High, for instance, are frequent users of the lab.

The Fab Lab can only use the mall space through May, however, said Cheyney, and organizers have been scouting properties in south Iowa City. The city had told the lab it would require a zoning change to operate permanently at the mall.

Cheyney said the Fab Lab has four properties on its short list, ranging from 12,000 to 40,000 square feet, with the hopes of purchasing a facility by this spring. To do so, organizers have set a goal of raising $750,000 in the coming months.

Wendy Ford, Iowa City’s economic development coordinator, said the city will support the Fab Lab in its search for a permanent location.

“We’re excited to see them pursue their own building in an appropriately zoned area, and look forward to supporting those endeavors,” Ford said.

The lab already owns an array of equipment, much of which has been donated. Now it just needs a place to house it all, said Cheyney.

“It’s amazing the amount of support we’ve already received and keep receiving,” Cheyney said. “We’ve built our current facility with nothing but volunteers. The support of community has been great; we’re just hoping to kick it up a notch.”

Learn more about the STEAM Room Fab Lab and its capital campaign at www.thesteamroom.org.

Reach Josh O’Leary at joleary@press-citizen.com, 319-887-5415 or on Twitter at @JD_OLeary.

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Kirk Cheyney watches a 3D printer at work on Wednesday inside the STEAM Room Fab Lab’s temporary location at the Iowa City Marketplace. Cheyney, the Fab Lab’s founder, hopes to acquire a new facility for the nonprofit lab. (Photo: Josh O’Leary / Iowa City Press-Citizen)

3D Printed Prosthetic Arms You Can Control with Your Brain

Posted on by Iowa City 3D

“LaChappelle made his first robotic hand out of LEGOs, fishing wire, and electrical tubing when he was all of 14 years old, and it’s now, after considerable effort on his part, a 3D printed marvel capable of operating in conjunction with the user’s mind.”

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“It’s considerably more functional than a traditional prosthesis – and stronger than a human hand. LaChappelle says the next generation of the arm was capable of sustaining 50 pounds of pressure on each individual finger. ‘The strength of the hand is so great that it’s almost dangerous,’ LaChappelle says of the device.” [More…]

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The above quotes are from a 3DPrint.com article, “Teen Launches GoFundMe Campaign to 3D Print Prosthetic Arms You Can Control with Your Brain.” (20 Jan 2015)

Mindful Media: Easton LaChappelle’s Great Project – Brain Controlled Prosthetics

Posted on by Iowa City 3D

Easton LaChappelle has developed a million-dollar brain-controlled artificial limb. Now he’s giving away the technology as an open source project.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofcdWe1vvMU]

“There’s been a fundamental shift in how we see technology. Science and engineering are no longer just industries. Technology is something we’re passionate about, whether we’re arguing over the iPhone or eagerly anticipating the next technology that will change everything. Just like every song has a story, the technology we most care about has a deeply personal journey behind it, from Steve Jobs’ decades-long obsession with changing how we use computers to Sergey Brin and Larry Page turning a fascination with the mathematics that underlie how we use the Internet into Google. Just like we care as much about the singer as we do the song, we care about the engineer behind the world-changing idea.” [More…]

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Riding in a 3D-printed car – NAIAS 2015

Posted on by Greg Johnson
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMRO9XJKfE8?rel=0]

Originally published by The Verge to YouTube on 13 Jan 2015.

About

“At Detroit’s North American International Auto Show, we had a chance to ride in an all-electric car that’s assembled in a very, very unusual way. It’s not fast, but it gets plenty of looks.”

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3D Systems ushers in the Home of the Now at CES 2015

Posted on by Iowa City 3D
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7riJ7Dr0AU]

From clothes to wearables to desserts and even virtual gaming, 3DS invites you to experience how 3D printing has the power to impact everyday life. First published to YouTube by 3D Systems on Jan 7, 2015.