Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Ford engineers going geek, using MakerBot 3D printers for prototype testing]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/27/ford-engineers-going-geek-using-makerbot-3d-printers-for-protot/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/27/ford-engineers-going-geek-using-makerbot-3d-printers-for-protot/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/27/ford-engineers-going-geek-using-makerbot-3d-printers-for-protot/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



In an attempt to build future vehicles or improve upon current models, many automakers have turned to 3D printers to create and test new prototype parts. Considering how important new cars are, you'd think automakers would spare no expense when acquiring such tools, but Ford is proving that 3D printers are not only affordable, but that they could someday become a household answer for many problems.

To show just how fast and easy the process works, Ford shows one of its engineers using a MakerBot 3D printer costing less than $1,000 to create multiple prototype parts for a manual transmission shifter. This process allows the automaker create new parts to test in the real world. In the past, Ford has used its 3D printers to create everything from small components like the shift knob up to bigger pieces like an F-150 exhaust manifold or brake rotors for the Explorer.

Scroll down to watch Ford's MakerBot create the prototype shift knob out of thin air.

Continue reading Ford engineers going geek, using MakerBot 3D printers for prototype testing

Ford engineers going geek, using MakerBot 3D printers for prototype testing originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Dec 2012 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>3d printerfordmakerbotprototype partsThu, 27 Dec 2012 16:27:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20411582/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2012/12/27/ford-engineers-going-geek-using-makerbot-3d-printers-for-protot/20411582/article-detail.xml 20411582 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/12/ford-maker-bot_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/12/ford-maker-bot.jpg <![CDATA[Aston Martin DB5 stunt doubles in <em>Skyfall</em> created by 3D printers]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2012/11/15/aston-martin-db5-stunt-doubles-in-skyfall-created-by-3d/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/11/15/aston-martin-db5-stunt-doubles-in-skyfall-created-by-3d/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/11/15/aston-martin-db5-stunt-doubles-in-skyfall-created-by-3d/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,



This is a spoiler alert: stop reading now if you haven't seen Skyfall and don't want to know anything about it.

There are five major stars in Skyfall, only four of them human. The fifth is the Aston Martin DB5 that makes a return to the series as a gadget car for the first time since Thunderball. The plot calls on bad things to happen to the 1964 platinum coupe, but seeing as it's worth $4.6 million, producers figured it would be better if something happened to a facsimile of the 1964 platinum coupe.

Enter Voxeljet, an Augsburg, Germany company specializing in 3D printing. The production team commissioned three one-third scale models of the DB5, and Voxeljet's industrial-sized printers layered up the 18 plastic parts that compose the unfinished model. The models were then sent to Propshop Makers in the UK for finishing work like paint and bullet holes. And then one of them was blown up...

Showing just how much the Bond provenance can do for the worth of an object, one of the remaining printed Astons was auctioned by Christie's and fetched £61,250 ($99,041 US), beating its pre-sale estimate by more than 50 percent.

Aston Martin DB5 stunt doubles in Skyfall created by 3D printers originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 15 Nov 2012 17:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>1964 aston martin db53d printer3d printingaston martindb5james bondprintingskyfallvoxeljetThu, 15 Nov 2012 17:31:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20379032/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2012/11/15/aston-martin-db5-stunt-doubles-in-skyfall-created-by-3d/20379032/article-detail.xml 20379032 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/11/printeddb5skyfall_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/11/printeddb5skyfall.jpg <![CDATA[Amazingly tiny 3D-printed cars have moving wheels, opening doors]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2012/07/02/amazingly-tiny-3d-printed-cars-have-moving-wheels-opening-doors/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/07/02/amazingly-tiny-3d-printed-cars-have-moving-wheels-opening-doors/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/07/02/amazingly-tiny-3d-printed-cars-have-moving-wheels-opening-doors/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Tiny 3D Printed Car

If you haven't taken a second lift your head and look around, we have news for you: we live in the future. This is a world where we can bark orders into a small handheld device and instantly get answers. One where we can sketch up a design on a computer, press print and a machine will carve it out in exacting detail as many times as we like. Now someone has figured out how to scale-down 3D printing to create even smaller designs. How small? How about a 1 centimeter-long plastic car with functioning doors and rolling wheels?

Yeah. That's pretty amazing.

The cars are so small two of them can fit happily on a dime without worrying about dinging each other with the doors open. If 1-cm car is too small for you needs, the same team has worked up 2-cm and a 4-cm versions. Check out the brief video below to see the coolness.

Continue reading Amazingly tiny 3D-printed cars have moving wheels, opening doors

Amazingly tiny 3D-printed cars have moving wheels, opening doors originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 02 Jul 2012 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>3d3d printer3d printingtiny carvideoMon, 02 Jul 2012 12:45:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20270288/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2012/07/02/amazingly-tiny-3d-printed-cars-have-moving-wheels-opening-doors/20270288/article-detail.xml 20270288 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/07/tiny-3d-printed-car-628_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/07/tiny-3d-printed-car-628.jpg -1 2