Tweet
Hi Guys...
Well its been a long time coming and under wraps but we are adding a new technology to our modelmaking capabilities now. Its a 3D printer. This will allow us to create all of our models in 3D first, and then print them out in plastic as a solid, finished, smooth final product ready for molding or investment casting for metal even.
The technology's logical image that it conjures up is a Star Trek replicator where something can be created in a physical 3D manner from nothing. Kind of ... Imagine a CAT scan or an MRI which takes layered images front to back of your head... Each layer can be a thickness of say half a thousandth to 3 thousandths. The finer the resolution the finer the final product. Of course, the tradeoff is time to 'build' the final product. These machines can run for a straight week to build complex or larger pieces. If you would have taken a month to build such a piece then the machine is the way to go. But if you can do it in a week yourself, then we would opt to do it the good old fashioned way.
The way this machine works is interesting. The print 'heads' deposit molten plastic in layer after layer until the final layer is put on top. In this way, we can literally create a gearbox for instance that would be a fully operational gearbox with gears inside. Since the machine grows as cross sections, the entire gearbox with axles, gear stops, gears, all meshed and with external axles to turn it would be grown such that when it comes off the machine, you can turn the axles and the gear box will work, and be full of gears turning. As a practical example of the capability this would work. As a gearbox that can handle the rigors, it wont. The plastic is soft typically and would not last very long under duress. That is why you then mold the result. This is also why you would not make a working gearbox as is. It could not be molded easily!
This is how we are going to make our remastered props from now on for all of our models and new models, plus a million other uses in the industrial world. We will also be producing many different types of items with this machine but they will only be as good as the digital model. Our investment in the CG world is heavy and has been for a decade now so this will help I am hoping.
For the most part, though, we will continue with traditional modelmaking as our typical process because this machine's hourly cost is not cheap. But, with clients helping along the way to pay for it we plan on producing a goodly number of items.
In any case I will post imagery showing its capabilities when I have some time to train on this machine. It arrives Monday and the company is here with us Tuesday-Wednesday for training, setup, and walkthroughs. I didnt quite realize what we were getting into...
I am hopeful that we might find some cool projects up here that people might like to see. If so we might just do them for training purposes here. Think about it and let me know what interests you!
Marc
Well its been a long time coming and under wraps but we are adding a new technology to our modelmaking capabilities now. Its a 3D printer. This will allow us to create all of our models in 3D first, and then print them out in plastic as a solid, finished, smooth final product ready for molding or investment casting for metal even.
The technology's logical image that it conjures up is a Star Trek replicator where something can be created in a physical 3D manner from nothing. Kind of ... Imagine a CAT scan or an MRI which takes layered images front to back of your head... Each layer can be a thickness of say half a thousandth to 3 thousandths. The finer the resolution the finer the final product. Of course, the tradeoff is time to 'build' the final product. These machines can run for a straight week to build complex or larger pieces. If you would have taken a month to build such a piece then the machine is the way to go. But if you can do it in a week yourself, then we would opt to do it the good old fashioned way.
The way this machine works is interesting. The print 'heads' deposit molten plastic in layer after layer until the final layer is put on top. In this way, we can literally create a gearbox for instance that would be a fully operational gearbox with gears inside. Since the machine grows as cross sections, the entire gearbox with axles, gear stops, gears, all meshed and with external axles to turn it would be grown such that when it comes off the machine, you can turn the axles and the gear box will work, and be full of gears turning. As a practical example of the capability this would work. As a gearbox that can handle the rigors, it wont. The plastic is soft typically and would not last very long under duress. That is why you then mold the result. This is also why you would not make a working gearbox as is. It could not be molded easily!
This is how we are going to make our remastered props from now on for all of our models and new models, plus a million other uses in the industrial world. We will also be producing many different types of items with this machine but they will only be as good as the digital model. Our investment in the CG world is heavy and has been for a decade now so this will help I am hoping.
For the most part, though, we will continue with traditional modelmaking as our typical process because this machine's hourly cost is not cheap. But, with clients helping along the way to pay for it we plan on producing a goodly number of items.
In any case I will post imagery showing its capabilities when I have some time to train on this machine. It arrives Monday and the company is here with us Tuesday-Wednesday for training, setup, and walkthroughs. I didnt quite realize what we were getting into...
I am hopeful that we might find some cool projects up here that people might like to see. If so we might just do them for training purposes here. Think about it and let me know what interests you!
Marc
Comment