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Science

Occulus

(20,599 posts)

14. The patent and copyright implications alone will turn things on their heads.

Reply to Posteritatis (Reply #5)

Mon Jan 23, 2012, 11:33 AM

Jan 2012

There are much more sophisticated commercial printers available, the ones that cost like $75K. A company in Europe called Shapeways uses them to 3D print objects in glass, steel, gold, silver, and other materials. They refuse to print copyrighted or trademarked objects, but I'm wondering what will happen when the quality of items they produce is available on everyone's desktop...

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The disruptive future of {3D} printing (BBC) [View all] eppur_se_muova Jan 2012 OP

The neat thing about rerap is that you only have to make one printer FSogol Jan 2012 #1

"Earl Gray, hot." HopeHoops Jan 2012 #2

Next up: tricorder scanners. silverweb Jan 2012 #7

"Dang - the tricorder found my penile implant!!!" HopeHoops Jan 2012 #8

I missed that episode. silverweb Jan 2012 #9

It was in the outtakes. HopeHoops Jan 2012 #10

Easy to imagine, though. silverweb Jan 2012 #11

"That's funny coming from a guy who had sex with every moon princess and Tirakian slave girl... HopeHoops Jan 2012 #12

I think I will make one Vincardog Jan 2012 #3

People are already releasing files that let you make gun parts. Jean V. Dubois Jan 2012 #4

I'm counting the days before the first really big ridiculous moral panic-fest over the things Posteritatis Jan 2012 #5

The patent and copyright implications alone will turn things on their heads. Occulus Jan 2012 #14

Yeah, the combination of that and the Think Of The Children freakouts will be .. interesting. (nt) Posteritatis Jan 2012 #15

Great for things made purely from cheap plastic muriel_volestrangler Jan 2012 #6

Actually, this general category works for metals too. originalpckelly Jan 2012 #16

And the people making a mint... krispos42 Jan 2012 #13

And there are 3D scanners too... originalpckelly Jan 2012 #17

Throughout the history of manufacturing... krispos42 Jan 2012 #18