Printing Functional Systems

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Printing Functional Systems
Worlds Within Worlds
Hod Lipson Mechanical Aerospace
Engineering Computing Information
Science Cornell University
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Breeding machines in simulation
Lipson Pollack, Nature 406, 2000
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Printable Machines
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Multi-material RP
Illustration Bryan Christie
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Multi-material processes
Continuous paths Volume Fill
High-resolution patterning, mixing Thin films
(60nm)
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Our RP Platform
Fabrication platform (a) Gantry robot for
deposition, and articulated robot for tool
changing, (b) continues wire-feed tool (ABS,
alloys), (c) Cartridge/syringe tool
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Zinc-Air Batteries
With Megan Berry
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Zinc-Air Batteries
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IPMC Actuators
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IPMC Ionomer

• Ionomeric Polymer-Metal Composite
• Ionic polymer
• Branched PTFE polymer
• Anion-terminated branches.
• Small cation

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First printed dry actuator

• Quantitative characterization
• Improve service life
• Reduce solvent loss
• Reduce internal shorting
• Improve force output, actuation speed

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Embedded Strain Gages
Silver-doped silicon
Robot finger sensor
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IPMC Actuators
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With Daniel Cohen, Larry Bonassar
Multi-material 3D Printer
CAT Scan
Direct 3D Print after 20 min.
Sterile Cartridge
Printed Agarose Meniscus Cell Impregnated
Alginate Hydrogel
Multicell print
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Learning from history

• Similarity with the computer industry
• In the 50s-60s computers
• Cost hundreds of thousands of
• Had the size of a refrigerator
• Took hours to complete a single job
• Required trained personal to operate
• Were fragile and difficult to maintain
• Vicious circle
• Niche applications ? Small demand
• Small demand ? High cost ? Niche applications

Digital PDP-11, 1969
Stratasys Vantage, 2005
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Exponential Growth
RP Machine Sales
Source Wohlers Associates, 2004 report
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Availabot by Jack Schulze (Interaction Design)
plugs into your computer by USB, stands to
attention when your chat buddy comes online, and
falls down when they go away. Its a
presence-aware, peripheral-vision USB toy and
because the puppets are made in small numbers on
a rapid-prototyping machine, it can look just
like you
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Download your museum piece today
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The First Home Computer

• ALTAIR 8800 microcomputer kit (1975)
• 397 (2MHz, 256 bytes RAM)

Generally credited with launching the PC
revolution
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Came as a Kit

• Accessible (cost)
• Hackable (open)
• Solves chicken-and-egg paradox
• Killer app Games

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Fab_at_Home

• Multimaterial
• Low cost
• Open source

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fabathome.org
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FabLab, Pretoria, South Africa
Louisville, KY, USA
Rockefeller Univ., New York, USA
Science Museum, London, UK
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Boston, MA, USA
FabLab, Lyngen, Norway
Art Inst. of Chicago, USA
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University of Adelaide, Australia
Renato Archer Research Center, Campinas, Brazil
Univ. Washington, USA
FabLab, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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Cake frosting used as support material for
overhangs
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Massively Parallel Assembly

• With Jonathan Hiller

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500 µm
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A factory in your kitchen

• Buy blueprints, download and print
• No stock, shipping, and delays
• New class of independent designers
• Remove barriers due to resources and skills
• Mass customization
• Unencumbered by mass production paradigm
• More possible complexities
• Larger design space, freedom to create (Burns)
• Environmentally friendly
• Net shape, Nearly wasteless

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Grand Challenges

• Can we design machines that can design other
  machines?
• Can we make machines that can make other
  machines?
• Can we make machines that can explain other
  machines?