rapman-education's posterous

rapman-education's posterous

Dave White  //  A place for educators, teachers, lecturers and students to find "stuff" about RapMan,BfB3000 and BfB 3DTouch printers... The unofficial Blog by Dave White, Advanced Skills Teacher and Head of D&T in Clevedon School UK.

Jan 18 / 3:09pm

I've moved!

I have unfortunately had to move my blog to another platform.

But the good news is that I can now be found here... http://3dprintineducation.wordpress.com/

Like the new name, eh?

Why have I moved? Nothing sinister, it's simply because I use the Blogsy iPad app to do most of my blogging and since early December 2012 Blogsy has not been able to access my blog through the Posterous API.

My apologies to those who regularly visit my blog (and there are quite a few of you according to the analytics).
If you are a regular visitor please update any favourites or bookmarks to my new address, and if you are a new visitor please add this link to keep up to date with the news http://3dprintineducation.wordpress.com/

Filed under  //  Teaching and Learning   dt   education   media   printing  
Dec 13 / 6:59pm

@ClevedonDT students visit 3DS / BfB

(download)

As visitors to my blog will probably know/realise I teach Design and Technology at Clevedon School in the UK.... my year 12/13 students study AS/A2 Product Design. Studying this course not only requires students to design and make products but also to know how they would be made in the "real world"... And many students incorporate 3D printing in their designs, so what could be better to combine all of this into a visit to 3D Systems (Bits from Bytes).

So earlier today we took the students to "BfB HQ" to have a look round. The guys from BfB did a fantastic job of making us welcome with Annabelle introducing the students to the factory with a brief history of how the business was set up and it's development from the RepRap project at Bath University. Iain then gave the students a tour of the facilities including the business side of the company, how it fits in as part of the 3D Systems global company, how sales and marketing are managed and of course a tour of the production facilities. The students were able to see both the RapMan and 3D Touch production systems and how these differ due to RapMan being sold as a kit and the 3D Touch being sold as a "ready to print" machine. It was brilliant for the students to see all this happening "for real" and how the things we have studied such as "Quality Control and Quality Assurance" really do make a difference to the manufacture of products.

From a personal point of view it was also great to meet up again with the guys from BfB... Amazing how many were previously students at my school!

And finally a huge "thank you" to Iain, Annabelle and all the others at BfB for making us so welcome and for sparing their precious time especially when they are in the middle of the rush to get machines out to their resellers in time for Christmas.

Here's what my students had to say...

Bits from Bytes visit

      Bits from Bytes are a UK based company owned by 3D Systems. They design and manufacture low cost 3D printers for rapid prototyping. The company was started in a garage, and has now progressed to two warehouses.

     We were first met by Annabel, who told us briefly about the history of the company. After that we met Iain. He first spoke to us about the marketing aspects of the business, and the admin and finance elements.

     We then went through to the board room, and saw how the machines have evolved and some examples of what could be produced on the 3D printer. This included some alternative materials such as ceramics.

     Following on from this we went down to the factory floor, and observed the different processes involved in production of the Touch 3D machines. He spoke about the different methods they have produced for storing materials, and how they buy materials using the “just in time” method. We also saw the jigs they have produced to make the production method more efficient. Iain also told us how they had recently had seasonal workers in due to a high volume of orders. All of the employees at Bits from Bytes who assemble the machines are trained in all aspects of production.  They each have a trolley which they wheel around the factory floor, and they are responsible for the completion of the machines they are working on.

     To show us a contrast to this, we saw how the kits are put together for the RapMan 3D printers. These are produced in batches and the put in shrink wrap. One employee then moves along the shelves and puts the required quantity of each part into a box, ready to be shipped out.

    At the end of the visit we were given the opportunity to ask any questions we had. We learnt about future plans for the business, and how the company plan to expand as the market does.

    Overall it was a valuable trip, and gave all of us the experience to see what we’ve learnt in our theory lessons in a real life situation.

 

Year 13 students

 

Filed under  //  D&T   Education   Product Design   Student  
Dec 12 / 5:22pm

Poo, dead flies, rat whiskers, broken bones and creepy faces

P675

It is a bit of a strange combination but the list of nasty stuff in the title are just some of the things that I came across at the new Bristol Robotics Lab (BRL) run by Bristol University and the University of the West of England.
So where does this list of nasties fit in? Well, they are all involved in the research they are doing there. The poo and dead flies are used to generate electricity to drive an Eco robot, the rat whiskers are sensors that can "feel" shapes and textures of objects, the broken bones were in a surgical "robot" that manipulates the bones to be repaired and the creepy face was able to move with realistic expressions.... And that was not all! ... Helicopters, quad copters, 3D optical sensors, air muscles, etc, etc.
Getting my head around all of this has been pretty mind blowing and I must thank Dr Martin Pearson from BRL for showing me around and Iain from 3D Systems (Bits from Bytes) for inviting me to accompany him on the visit.
But where does this all fit in with 3D printing? ... As the robots are experimental research machines they usually involve mechanical parts that are unique and are therefore produced by RP or 3D Prints. (I spotted a RapMan on one of the students workstations!) And here is where it all links to what we are doing at my school... Our VEX robotics group have 3D printed a claw for their robot (see some of the previous posts on this blog). I'm pretty certain they will be green with envy about my visit when they see my photos! I expect I'll have to see if one of the guys from BRL can visit us when we meet after school.
Filed under  //  Education   Robotics   University  
Dec 1 / 7:22pm

VEX claw

File

In an earlier post you may have seen that our VEX robotics group at my school made a bit of a mistake by starting to build a robot when we didn't have all the parts... Oops!

So we 3D printed some parts instead using our Bits from Bytes machines.

Here is a picture of the first trial... Just to see if the parts fit together. A bit more "tuning" to make sure they move properly is needed, as the bolts are a bit oversize, before we try it out with a motor.

Filed under  //  education   printing   robotics  
Nov 22 / 7:58pm

3D printing at university

(download)

Some wonderful new 3D printing developments have been happening over the last few weeks that I couldn't omit from my blog...

Early in November Ian Major from 3DS / Bits from Bytes presented a 3D Touch printer to the University of Bristol for use by their students. See the attached photos.

On the BfB forum the university also posted the following .... "The 3DTouch in the atrium of the Merchant Venturer's Building in the University of Bristol has been available to the students for just over a week now and has been in almost continuous use. So far the student have mostly been using it to print cases for their Raspberry Pis, though there has also been a Rubics Cube and I did a Venus de Milo to decorate my desk".

In another development the University of Warwick has just erased some information about some amazing new composite material that they are using for 3DP. The material that they are calling "Carbomorph" is conductive and is being used in some really interesting ways... Flex sensors, capacitive interfaces, and more. Check out this web page for more information http://www.3ders.org/articles/20121122-printing-electronic-sensors-using-low-... . This new material looks like it could have some real impact on 3DP projects made by students in schools if/when it becomes available.

Filed under  //  University   education   media   news   printing   student  
Nov 14 / 10:49pm

Geelong, Clevedon and 3D printing

File

From time to time I get requests to explain about 3D printing in schools for different publications. Well this happened a couple of weeks ago from someone in Geelong. Having never heard of Geelong I had to do a quick bit of Internet research.... It's near Melbourne, Australia!

So I jotted down a few of my thoughts, observations and experiences and emailed them off to the guys at Barwon Copying Solutions (BCS)... And then promptly forgot everything about it. It was a very pleasant surprise when I received an email this week with a copy of the page from the Geelong Business News magazine.

And what a brilliant article they have produced, background information and lots of in depth explanations about the use of 3D printing in schools... And some great quotes from me too! It feels "really cool" that what we are doing with 3D printing using our Bits from Bytes machines here in Clevedon School is potentially having an influence on students in Oz.

With the kind permission of the BCS I have posted a copy here. Many thanks to the "guys from Geelong" Paul and Sue.

 

Filed under  //  article   education   media  
Nov 7 / 10:13pm

3D printing showcase @ Clevedon School

File

D&T students here at Clevedon School can hardly have missed that we are a leading school when it comes to 3D printing. Our Bits from Bytes machines are used by most students in year 9 and some of our GCSE and A'Level students have also designed and made their exam projects using them.

But we were wondering how many parents and visitors to our school know about 3D Printing and how "World Class" we are in using this technology in our school.... So we have set up a "Showcase" in our reception area with a RapMan machine in action, a display board that explains everything and examples of projects and student work in a display cabinet.

Here is a short video clip and pictures for anyone who can't visit us in school to see the "Showcase".

 

 

Filed under  //  education  
Nov 4 / 12:56pm

Wind tunnel project for 3D printing

(download)

A new Teaching and Learning resource for 3D printing on the BfB wiki...

Design and make a Wind Tunnel... This resource suggests ways to make a small wind tunnel using 3D printed parts and a few other odds and ends to test the aerodynamic forces on different models. Different models can be 3D printed and tested to compare their efficiency. This project will be suitable for Design and Technology, Science and maybe Mathematics.

http://wiki.bitsfrombytes.com/index.php/Wind_Tunnel

 

Filed under  //  crosscurricular   education   resources   teachingandlearning  
Oct 19 / 9:47pm

The DfE and 3D printing in STEM

(download)

Department for Education: 3D printing in Physics, Maths and D&T.

 Up before 5am and boarding a train to London at the sort of time I would normally be stirring myself to get out of bed... All a bit keen really!... And the sort of thing that I normally have to have a good reason to do. And the good reason was that I was asked to do a presentation about 3D printing in schools for the Department for Education (the DfE is our government body in charge of education here in England). I must say that it was a real honour and privilege to be asked to do this.

 One of the reasons I was asked to do this was because the DfE is setting up a pilot project to look at how 3D printing can be used in STEM subjects... With special emphasis on the mathematics and physics areas.

 If you are a return visitor to my blog then you might realise that I am a D&T teacher at Clevedon School, but I have some experience of developing teaching and learning projects and resources in other subject areas... In fact I'm currently working on some new projects to try out with my own science department very soon (more of this in a later post perhaps)... And that's why I was asked along to share my previous experiences.

 Anyway I think my presentation kicked off the day ok... Some of the delegates even laughed (or raised a smile) at my feeble jokes (yes I do have a very strange sense of humour) ... Quite proud really as presenting in the first slot of the day can be difficult, people need to warm to the atmosphere and are often wondering what they have let themselves in for!

 But I expect you are wondering where the physics and maths fits in with all this and what the pilot project is all about. I suppose in a nutshell it really boils down to the fact that 3D printing has so far really only been in the domain of designers, technologists and engineers. This project is looking to break out of this and involve mathematics and science. And why not? I have exported some cross curricular links before but this project has really got my mind buzzing with the potential uses for this technology in these areas other areas of the curriculum and there should be more to follow in a later blog post about this.

 So, what else happened at the meeting? The other presentation was led by Stuart Douglas from Ripley St Thomas Church of England Academy. Stuart's school is lucky enough to have some very high end 3D printing equipment and he brought a very different perspective to the project. The delegates were given an opportunity to explore what their first steps will be in introducing this technology to these other STEM subjects and Makerbot gave a demonstration of the equipment that is being made available.

 I have just got home and its now 9:30pm... Feeling pretty exhausted, but it has been a fantastic day. I would just like to say thank you to the DfE for inviting me along to the day, and my school for letting me attend (and also the teachers who covered my lessons during my absence) and of course 3DS/Bits from Bytes for the support they give me (and my school) which has enabled me to have a bit of a head start in "3D printing in schools".

Oh, and finally, I hope to publish my presentation a bit later... It's a bit big to upload at the moment so ill have to do a bit of pruning and editing!

EDIT.... here is the powerpoint... it gives an idea of what my presentation was about, but without the verbal content it may not give the whole story.

 

Click here to download:
DfE_presentation.pdf (2.73 MB)
(download)

 

Filed under  //  conference   education   news   printing  
Sep 25 / 9:28pm

3D printing with Adobe Photoshop!

File

Yes, you did read that correctly! It is possible to create 3D objects for 3D printing using Adobe Photoshop. It came as a bit of a surprise to me too. I suppose I have had my head buried in the more CAD approach of PTC Creo and Autodesk Inventor to notice that Photoshop has this capability.

So, how did I "discover" this capability? ... Well this evening after school I had the pleasure of meeting up with some guys from Adobe (Senior Product Managers, Digital Imaging Architects and the like) together with one of the Directors of Bits from Bytes.... All to discuss 3D printing in education.

I suppose I really aught to apologise to everyone, our 1 hour meeting stretched to well over 2 hours and they had to travel up to Birmingham from the Bristol area afterwards, as usual my enthusiasm for this technology got the better of me and I bombarded these guys with examples of how we use our 3D printers and how this all fits into our D&T curriculum.

So, what's next.... I really must find out more about how Adobe Photoshop works with 3D objects and see what can be done in schools as I can already see how a different approach (other than CAD software) could be useful for students designing in schools and colleges.

Filed under  //  education   software   teachingandlearning