←back to thread

Design for 3D-Printing

(blog.rahix.de)
837 points q3k | 4 comments | 04 May 25 17:38 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
Show context
no_wizard ◴[04 May 25 18:51 UTC] No.43888612[source]▶
I always thought 3D printing would make multi widget machine[0] manufacturing possible

While it’s done a lot of cool stuff and enabled rapid prototyping etc it never scaled the way I really thought it would

[0]: there may be a better turn for this however this is what I mean: that is one machine that can output a wide variety of different things using the same common material, IE maybe one day it produces ball bearings and the next it could produce a bunch of car pistons, with only having to make minimal changes to the machine itself if not changing anything at all

replies(4): >>43888661 #>>43888858 #>>43892417 #>>43894731 #
1. analog31 ◴[04 May 25 18:59 UTC] No.43888661[source]▶
"Flexible" or "Quick Turn" manufacturing are terms used for this kind of thing. Quick-turn comes from being able to change from one kind of part to another, quickly, with no added setup cost.
replies(1): >>43888700 #
2. codingmoh ◴[04 May 25 19:03 UTC] No.43888700[source]▶
In theory, it seemed perfect for flexible manufacturing: same machine, same material, endless outputs. But in practice, it hit limits in speed, material properties, and post-processing. You still can’t print a high-tolerance metal part at scale and cost-effectively replace traditional machining. It’s amazing for prototyping or niche parts
replies(1): >>43888865 #
3. earleybird ◴[04 May 25 19:25 UTC] No.43888865[source]▶
"You still can't print a high-tolerance metal part at scale and cost-effectively..."

Dan Gelbart has a response (with caveats)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLgPW2672s4

replies(1): >>43888985 #
4. codingmoh ◴[04 May 25 19:42 UTC] No.43888985{3}[source]▶
oh wow - that's cool! - Thanks so much for sharing!