Out to the country...

Or rather, a trip to the Center for Design Innovation (i.e. CDI). There we met with the director, Carol Strohecker, and design researcher, Nickolay Hristov. We observed two 3D printers, one using an extruded plastic to create the objects and the other creating with layers of plaster. From there we listened about the process of motion capture and viewed how the new stereoscopic cameras were being used to study bats. Also we learned about a new form of technology that consisted of laser beams that are shot in every direction to compile a realistic and accurate representation of Carl's Bad Caverns. This technology is also used to study the home of the specific bat and its' flight process within the caverns.



This is the printer that extrudes plastic. It was explained to us that the printer first starts by laying out the outline of the object and then fills in. It also automatically constructs supports for the object as it goes. This can be seen in the picture below, on the left is the finished object, and on the right is the object still in its' support. They use a basic liquid to dissolve the structure.








This is a finished piece that was made with the printer that uses plaster. This printer can print in color. It lays down a very specific area of adhesive which is colored and then brushes a layer of plaster across the top leaving the slightest of layers of plaster behind and it continues from there. Since this is a cold process, pieces created from this machine don't necessarily need any supports. Retrieving these objects resembles a mini archaeological dig, and one must be careful to not break the object in the removal process.

I found this trip to be extraordinarily fascinating and I will be pursuing an internship with this company.