Local 3D printing innovations

eora scannerIf there was one theme across all the activity at the Maker Faire on the weekend it was 3D printing. A couple of activities really stood out.

First there was Eora 3D which pitches as the Worlds first 3D scanner powered by a smartphone. It’s an absolutely lovely bit of industrial design and seems to do a great job of scanning reasonable sized objects with sub-100 micron accuracy. While I haven’t actually played with one, if it can live up to its promises that’s good stuff.

Eora recently concluded a very successful Kickstarter campaign. The scanner (and also an equally pretty turntable) is available for pre-order for an October delivery. Cost is US$289 for the scanner and US$319 for the bundle (shame an Australian start-up doesn’t have an A$ price, but with the A$ strengthening right now maybe that’s less of a big deal).

The next organisation that caught my eye was Mobile Makerspace. This is a makerspace that comes to you: “Hands-on classes, workshops and training sessions for students, teachers and maker enthusiasts in our warehouse in Balgowlah (Sydney), in schools, libraries, universities, community centres and other spaces where people get together to learn through making. The scalable set up which includes state of the art additive and subtractive manufacturing tools (aka 3D printers, millers and laser cutters) can accommodate any size group in any size space. ” Lots of cool possibilities there and while it’s not cheap it’s a great way to get hands-on access to some cutting-edge gear.

Finally I’ll mention Bilby 3D. Bilby is not new, but they remain simply fantastic. Bilby is my go-to place for filaments, repairs, and anything else 3D. They have filament at very reasonable prices, especially now they are selling smaller rolls. They’ve also got some really interesting types of filament available – we’ve recently been playing with one that changes colour in sunlight.

It wont be long until 3D printing is so commonplace that it isn’t worth mentioning. But that time has not yet come, and it’s great to see such a lot of local innovation in the space.

2 thoughts on “Local 3D printing innovations

  • March 8, 2017 at 4:35 pm
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    Can you do a follow up on Eora 3D? Seems they have dropped off the internet. Promised shipping in February and no backers have their units.

    Reply
    • March 10, 2017 at 8:49 am
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      Well I reached out via their website and got reply from Rich within a couple of hours asking if there was anything he could help with. I explained I was looking for an update in response to queries via my blog – and there has been no further reply.

      So all I can tell you is that there might be someone alive and kicking at the other end of the Internet.

      Reply

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