Saturday, June 4, 2011

Thank you + FAQ II

Dear All,

Thank you very much for all nice and supportive words and suggestion in the blog comments, emails and twitters. I really appreciate that.

Please find below some answers for questions I have received through the blog comments:

Q. Are those materials suitable for lost-wax casting?
A: Yes, I have material for lost-wax casting.

2. Is the software ok for the stl files from Rhino?
A: Yes, any STL file works, including from Rhino.

Q. Is the resolution we see on the pictures achieved by using a Projector or a Laser Galvanometer for the exposure?
A: Projector

Q. Is there a glass between the base pan and the projector or is the purple outline we see in the pictures, and video, a reflection of the black plastic, or a purple filter, or a Blue Laser Beam?
A: There is a glass between the base pan and the projector

Q. What is the approximate usable ( good resolution without distortion ) work area of the printer?
A: The bottom up approach has some limitations of size as the object can not be too heavy. Also the vacuum created with the bottom of big will possibly break the object or the tray. I believe we can reach 210X180X200mm, but haven't tested.

Q. Is the Venus and Alien Head a Solid or are they hollow? What is the Wall thickness (or minimum wall thickness ) , if hollow?
A: They are all hollow. The wall thickness od this objects is 1.5mm. I already tried 0.45mm wall and works fine but it is fragile.

Q. Is the Base Tray sourced as a part from other manufacturers or is it glass/plastic DIY.
A: It is DIY

Q: This printer can arrive at this details: http://www.moddler.com/index.php?p=model&id=4 it is a 2 inc statue
A: Yes

@: Will you be making the software cross-platform? Windows, Mac, Linux, or even Ubuntu?
A: Yes the software is cross-platform. I will post some screen shots next week and release a beta version for download soon.

Messages:
@Guybrush – Please send me your e-mail through comment and I will contact you, so I can print some of your sculptures.

Cheers,

Junior

24 comments:

  1. Thanks for the update and keep up the good work! I can't wait to build one of these printers!!

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  2. Very exciting, looking forward to becoming an early adopter of your technology. Great work!

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  4. Hey junior,
    ALL I WANT IS TO BE ABLE TO GET A KIT!!!
    I'm very excited :D

    I also have a model that you could use to test! It's a very detailed sculpt of a head.
    Email me at vipond.t AT gmail.com and I can send it to you! :D

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  5. Thank you for the second FAQ. Can you give estimates about the material costs, please?

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  6. very impressive!
    i would love to try some of your beta software.
    email me at lachlan.thompson@live.com

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  7. As always, thanks for the update! Looking forward to utilizing one of these printers!

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  8. Please keep up the great work. It's so much more appealing then laser cutters or a RepRap machine. Please reach out the community so we can help you realize your ambitions and make this technology available to more people. I'd buy a KIT!!

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  9. Nice to read all this, I actually have a follow up question for the next Q&A.

    What is the speed compared to the 'plastic deposit printers' (I don't know how to descripe them otherwise, but you'll know them, like the makerbot)
    The projector suggests that the layers are plotted as a whole and therefore much faster. On the other hand hardening the resin could also cost time and the layers are much thinner.

    The high resolution makes exta time absolutely worth waiting, but printing time ís an issue.

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  10. Thanks for the update. Eagerly awaiting more!

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  11. Wants it!
    Thanks for the information.

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  12. Very cool.... please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you......
    Best
    99guspuppet http://resume.nope9.com

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  13. Hi, is your technology similar to this one ???
    http://www.zcorp.com/en/Products/Rapid-Prototyping-Machines/ZBuilder--andtrade--Ultra/spage.aspx

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  14. Can you give a rough idea of the cost of the expensive parts, or list them so we can start to get an idea of the cost for the DIY'rs?
    I assume a DLP projector is involved and needs to be secured, what make and model is good, a controller for the DLP I would guess and then a stepper motor for the vertical control? Just looking for a rough idea on the cost.

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  15. This is great work, BUT with Envisiontec being found guilty of patent infringement in March (3D systems took them to court) how are you going to be able to avoid a knock on you door. US patent 5,630,981. It’s quite funny to read as is claims any form of slicing a 3d model is an infringement of their patent, a system that has been public domain for a few thousand years.
    The issue remains how can you hope to patent anything on this system other than the resin formula. Which by coincidence is the one thing you don’t want to release.

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  17. Junior, will the resins be paintable? And will we be able to mix them ourselves from readily available commercial products, or will you be selling them?

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  18. Wow, this is awesome! A DIY 3D printer capable of printing sculptures and jewelry in addition to all those mechanical bits. I love the efficient/simplistic design. I can't wait to hear more about the kit.

    I had a crazy thought, though I know next to nothing about engineering. Do you think the curing process would still work if you switched (what I assume is) the stepper motor for the z-axis with a regular one which moves at the same constant averaged rate? My reasoning is that it would both lower the price of the electronics needed and make the resolution in Z limited to only the number of slices projected and the refresh rate of the projector.

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  19. Oh, and another question. How fast are the prints? The flute for example?

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  20. Can you give us an idea of time frame to print that sphere? The timelaspe video looks fairly quick? Does each layer have to cure for a set time?

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  21. Tell, what polymer for experiments is better? In what range UV-light(a,b,c) works? Whether the ultra-violet paint for silk-screen printing can be used? What for a light source in a projector it is established? A material of optics of a projector and a bath with polymer?

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  22. Junior,

    I`m from Brazil, and plan to buy a 3d printer, but they are too expensive. I'd like to know if you plan to sale you printer over sears.

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  23. junior, boa tarde como faço para entrar em contato com vc, estou interessado em sua maquina?? Grato Lucas

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About the Project


I have been dreaming about having a 3D Printer at home for many years, but the ones with good quality are not affordable and the low costs just deliver poor quality. Sounds crazy but I decided to build a high resolution 3D Printer by myself at home (people actually said that I was crazy and this was impossible). The funny thing I never saw this type of machines in real life, and still haven’t seen one besides the one I built.

Now that I succeed building the first prototype, the target is to bring this low cost 3D Printer to every home, so we are developing the first affordable one with high resolution.

I hope you enjoy our blog, follow us and you can have this printer in your home soon.