Matthew Borgatti has been one of the first users of make.r.dust by
Viridis3d. His work on soft robotics was inspired by DARPA funded projects
like the Harvard/Whiteside Group.
The first two generations he built are tentacles that could be used to
manipulate items in a fashion similar to small mechanical robot arms. He is
currently working on a quadruped soft robot, that could be used to carry
devices in places where a metal robot couldn't go.
fabbster
uploaded a video of 3D prints of flexible material made on a fabbster 3D
printer. fabbster uses a special material concept: SDM - stick deposition
moulding.
"The extruder of the printer is fed with special sticks developed by the
fabbster team. These sticks are characterized by a cogging-shape on their
sides. They are made by injection molding technique and thus are extremely
precise. This innovation offers some major advantage over circular filament
that is subject to slip. The sticks are automatically fed to the extruder
via a supply magazine. The result is a precise dosage of the melt. Also they
can be easily combined to produce an object in various colors and materials.
"
In this video, fabbster showed objects printed using sticks made of flexible
material and compared the print with ABS plastic print.
Viridis3D
LLC and University of the West of England, Bristol (UWE)
and Viridis3D LLC are pleased to announce that they have entered in to a
license agreement granting Viridis3D the exclusive rights to market
ViriClay™, a 3D printable ceramic material developed by Professor Steve
Hoskins and Dave Huson of UWE’s Centre for Fine Print Research.
ViriClay™, has wide domestic and commercial applications for the arts and
consumer product markets and offers these advantages:
Reduces the total time, labor, and energy required to make a 3D
printed ceramic objects by more than 30%.
Improves the surface finish of glazed parts.
Ceramic prints can be produced from many digital sources including
CAD, 3D scan data, etc.
Compatible with standard 3D printers.
ViriClay™ also allows users to produce unique works of art without
incurring modeling and tooling costs. It is directly applicable to the
whiteware and tableware industry, where it will shorten ceramic design and
production lead times. Excitingly, it will enable designers, makers, and
artists to produce works that would simply not have been possible without
this technology.
Professor Hoskins said: “We have a new approach to 3D printing with
ceramics. This development means that for the first time it will be possible
to print rapid prototypes in porcelain ceramic, and fire them to 1200 C.
Prior to this, ceramic prototypes were fabbed in plastic or plaster so it
was not possible to fire a clay prototype and test the glazes.”
Viridis3D maintains an active University outreach program, working
globally with schools at all levels to install 3D printing technology and
licensing new products to bring to market.
LOWELL, MA: Viridis3D recently spun off their ceramic production
operations, expanded their research facility, and launched a new Website,
showcasing their expertise in 3D ceramic and metal casting solutions.
Viridis3D doubled their facilities from 2,000 to 4,000 square feet by
opening a new research office in Charlestown, MA. The corporate
headquarters and sales office remains in Lowell, MA.
The expansion provides space for continued development of their 3D printing
sand casting products for both ferrous and non-ferrous alloys.
Viridis3D core competencies includes: licensing, developing, and
commercializing new materials for additive manufacturing.
With Viridis3D products and training, metal casters can go from CAD to
casting, in as little as 24 hours, making this an ideal solution for
prototypes, low volume production, and quickly incorporating design or
material changes – allowing companies to get their product to market faster
and expand the range of design possibilities.
Their new Website: www.viridis3d.com
details how 3D printing works along with pricing for all of the materials.
According to President, Will Shambley, “Viridis3D is in an expansion mode
and pleased to bring products that any metal caster can deploy quickly.
3D printed molds, cores and patterns have been successfully used in these
markets: pump & fluid flow, transportation, architecture, restorations, fine
arts and consumer parts industries. The Figulo spin-off is a big milestone
for us as it allows us to focus on launching another wave of ceramic
products. Some of our other ceramics customers are growing into the
investment casting industry. Other markets are opening up as we
explore new formulations.”
October 11, 2012
Viridis3D
LLC and University of the West of England, Bristol (UWE)
and Viridis3D LLC are pleased to announce that they have entered in to a
license agreement granting Viridis3D the exclusive rights to market
ViriClay™, a 3D printable ceramic material developed by Professor Steve
Hoskins and Dave Huson of UWE’s Centre for Fine Print Research. 
