ID [PNW]

2 years ago I wrote about how industrial design will be affected by personal fabrication or desktop manufacturing.   The prediction was that due to the advancement of rapid prototyping technology that products will be manufactured in your own community  and perhaps in your own home with desktop manufacturing machines.   This is an exciting idea because it revolutionizes the traditional product development process,  which is full of waste, management overhead, shipping containers, distribution, and over production.   And it's beginning to happen today, although in a different format than expected.   Web-based companies such as Ponoko , Zazzle, CafePress , Blurb, Lulu are making this a reality.   You design something, upload it, and they display it, sell it, make it on demand, and ship it to the customer.  And you get paid for each sale.   The material limitations that we see now are really just temporary and it's only a matter of time before a company with a FDM machine and a ...

Sarah Owen's Illuminated Photobox Sarah’s display begins with a digital photograph. This photograph is transformed into a topographical relief surface. The brightest portions of the photo are the thinnest section and the darkest areas are the thickest sections. This 3D data is converted into surfaces and fabricated using an FDM machine. When light is transmitted through the semi-translucent display the photograph appears as areas of dark and light. Every display can be unique, depending on the photo. Her final FDM part is about 8 inches wide.