

RepRap: Open Source, $500 3-D Printer (And Self-Replicates) - notdarkyet
http://reprap.org

======
decode
This reminded me of Cory Doctorow's great story "Themepunks", which includes
self-replicating 3-D printers. You can read it for free on Salon.com, but the
links between the chapters are a bit broken, so here they are if you are
interested:

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/09/12/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/09/12/themepunks_1/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/09/19/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/09/19/themepunks_2/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/09/26/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/09/26/themepunks_3/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/03/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/03/themepunks_4/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/10/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/10/themepunks_5/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/17/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/17/themepunks_6/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/24/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/24/themepunks_7/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/31/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/31/themepunks_8/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/11/07/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/11/07/themepunks_9/index.html)

[http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/11/14/themepunk...](http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/11/14/themepunks_10/index.html)

------
swombat
This was posted before... "you could also make most of the parts to make
another 3D printer" is not self-replication.

We don't expect this machine to be able to make itself out of thin air (though
that would be awesome). But in order to be self-replicating, it must be able
to build and assemble itself automatically from a set of input materials with
no human intervention other than providing the input materials.

As it is, it is _not_ self-replicating, it is merely "capable of producing
some of its own parts to help in the later assembly of a copy of itself" - by
no means an unworthy achievement, but let's call a cat a cat.

If it was able to produce _all_ its parts but needed human intervention to
assemble them, it would still not be self-replicating, merely "capable of
producing all of its parts so that copies can be manually assembled".

Unfortunately, this machine is incapable of self-replication by design, since
it cannot interace with an output product larger than or the same size as
itself. Given this, it is even more wrong to call it self-replicating.

~~~
t0pj
_"since it cannot interace with an output product larger than or the same size
as itself."_

For some reason, a geodesic dome comes to mind as a possible remedy (or at
least a component of a remedy) for this limitation.

[http://www.acadia.org/competition-98/sites/integrus.com/html...](http://www.acadia.org/competition-98/sites/integrus.com/html/library/tech/www.hoberman.com/fold/expand.html)

~~~
Niten
Or simply mounting the print head on a long, jointed mechanical arm...

------
ivankirigin
Throwing around "self replication" only hurts the cause. There are no
microcontroller factories that make other microcontroller factories.

But I love the idea.

~~~
notdarkyet
True, I should have said the goal is self replication and each RepRap version
intends to get one step closer to achieving process. All the parts that are
within the limitations of the machine are replicated and a community has been
established to trade such parts. I do apologize for coming off as trying to
push a sensationalist headline.

~~~
ivankirigin
Don't apologize. Usually those behind the effort really try to play this up. I
personally think the approach is flawed.

I would start with a real factory that can make everything in the factory. It
would probably be the size of a big building.

Just like the first computers.

Refine the components, and make it smaller and smaller.

The initial goal shouldn't be a tiny maker, but something light enough to send
to Mars or the Moon. I've been told (by one of Hod Lipson's students
actually), that NASA estimates such a factory today would weigh in at 100
tons. That seemed small to me. They should try to make this.

It's the first thing you'd need to make if we knew of a big asteroid that
couldn't be stopped.

------
SingAlong
Man! these kinda news only arouse my interest to combine my programming
knowledge with some yet-to-learn microcontroller stuff. Both seem like a
deadly combo that would make me wanna stop sleeping for 7 hours and situp and
start learning electronics.

Astonishingly, this RepRap is based on Arduino!!! The Arduino Decimelia board
has 16KB of memory(!). So it seems like the arduino serves for temporarily
storing variable data while the computer does the processing. Wouldn't the
printer be more faster if it uses a BeagleBoard or something like that? It
would enable faster calculations locally and would help in saving the
processing power of the computer for some other purpose(maybe to be to do
further calculations since printing 3D requires more calculations ofcourse).

The <http://parts.reprap.org> site is a great idea. It gives those who wanna
build reprap a great idea about prices and parts suppliers and what to
specifically buy. It even supports creating your shopping cart on Digikey and
Amazon etc :)

A cool idea with a really cool and helpful resource site.

And IMO, it wouldn't be too late before we seen an IronMan. I remember a scene
in the movie in which Stark selects his colors for the suit and the robot
paints the suit while Tony waits. Now its more possible ('realistic') to even
design the suit and wait for the printer to print it.

Don't be shocked if someone comes outta the dark shouts _I'm IronMan_ in a few
days :D

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nreece
"Not counting nuts and bolts RepRap can make 60% of its parts; the other parts
are designed to be cheaply available everywhere. This is an interesting
coincidence: we can make 60% of our proteins; the other parts are evolved to
be cheaply available everywhere..."

Sounds corny.

------
tjic
As I wrote last time this topic came up
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=295880>

Building stuff is cool.

Universal machines / replicators are cool.

Early prototypes of things that will be better in a few generations are cool.

However, Fab@Home and RepRap are sad, and make me embarrassed for them.

I'm hugely interested in self replicating machinery, metalworking, and other
forms of constructing items (I launched <http://SmartFlix.com> based on these
interests).

...and I've done a fair bit of reading on RepRap (I was considering building
one a year or so back).

I am dramatically underwhelmed.

The construction is shoddy, the technique (basically hot-glue extrusion of
thermoplastics) is hackish and has poor tolerances, the concept of "self
replication" is grossly dumbed down (a very very large number of parts are not
constructed, even from high quality inputs, but just store bought), etc., etc.

In short, I was fairly embarrassed for the RepRap folks.

Their toy is somewhat cool (although nowhere near as cool as, say, the Gingery
lathe that is cast from aluminum melted in a cast iron cookpot, and machines
itself as construction progresses), but to claim that it represents any
important step forward in self replication ... not so much.

~~~
shader
I suppose it depends what you mean by poor tolerances. In the beginning their
stuff was pretty bad, but recently it has gotten a lot better.

Here's some pictures of stuff they made a few months ago (large): (jar and
lid) <http://tinyurl.com/6z2ha8> (coat hook) <http://tinyurl.com/5lkhcz> (x
carriage pieces) <http://tinyurl.com/5uq88g>

They obviously aren't injection-mold quality, but very usable.

The main problem that the reprap has is dribbling when they are moving the
extruder head from place to place. This has become less of a problem lately,
as they've made some better valves. Also, getting the right settings for
temperature, extrusion rate, and lateral speed have taken time.

At least the reprap community is vibrant, and interested in improving the
tool, as compared with the stagnant fab@home.

It will probably never reach "self-replication." You can always come up with
another level of "self-sufficiency" that it will not meet. It will however,
become a useful tool capable of making some of it's own parts cheaply, and
assisting in bootstrapping slightly better versions of itself.

------
notdarkyet
I also found some good videos on the subject (uses the Arduino):

[http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2007/11/make_a_reprap_robot...](http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2007/11/make_a_reprap_robot_part_1.html)

<http://reprap.org/bin/view/Main/RepRapVids>

[http://technorati.com/videos/youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DYt52V...](http://technorati.com/videos/youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DYt52V7lABuc)

------
justindz
My first thought is that encouraging people to make their own highly
inexpensive plastic objects and to spread the ability to their neighbors could
lead to a significant increase in disposable plastic usage. In general,
plastic doesn't really go away. Anyone know if the plastic used here is
recyclable, biodegradable or otherwise mitigates the long term (granted, I
mean, really long term) concern of flooding landfills?

~~~
shader
The main plastics used are ABS and HDPE. HDPE is commonly used in milk jugs,
so you could recycle your own milk jugs and make stuff at the same time.

Obviously, since all they are doing is melting a thermoplastic and extruding
it, it is trivial to recycle the product: just grind it up and make something
else.

------
sh1mmer
I saw this at OSCON. It was pretty neat but pretty slow. It's nice to see
people homebrewing though.

------
Tichy
I wonder how to get one, though. I searched on Twitter but apparently nobody
in my vicinity has a copy. The closest reference I have seen was on one of Guy
Kawasaki's photographs of the Google Lab in Munich. Perhaps I really should
try to contact them.

------
tocomment
I'm kind of impressed with [the stuff it's
made](<http://reprap.org/bin/view/Main/ItemsMade>).

Anyone know why it takes it hours to make things though? 12 hours for a door
handle?

------
sciolizer
<http://shop.ebay.com/items/reprap>

It has yet to create the same market that g-mail invites did when they first
came out. I guess I should jump in while supply is low. :)

------
thomasfl
So, will this "...bring down global capitalism, start a second industrial
revolution and save the environment"?

~~~
mixmax
but of course it will..

------
lallysingh
Oh come on, I can't be the only one worried about these things eventually
evolving to be the basis of the robot apocalypse.

~~~
IsaacSchlueter
It's like the grey goo, just MUCH MUCH BIGGER. Oh noes!!

~~~
Eliezer
Grey GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO?

~~~
LogicHoleFlaw
_gooopy gloopy goppity geep_

 _they come to get you in your sleep_

 _replicate, synthesize_

 _eat the world before your eyes!_

