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 16 / 8:31pm

Designing, prototyping, 3D printing... and augmented reality.

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3D CAD is fantastic and students using it can use it to design their products with relative ease. Even better if they output their designs to 3D printers or CNC machines. But there are times when visualising the designed object in the "real environment" can be difficult. Visualising the object "in situ" before committing to printing or machining can be useful in determining whether the design is correct, suitable for purpose or "looks right".

Ok so it is possible to "Photoshop" an image of the CAD design into a photo of the environment but wouldn't it be better if this could be done in 3D?.... With augmented reality this is possible and using an iPad and a suitable app relatively easy to do.

The photo attached to this post only shows half of the story... Its not possible to show a 3D scene using 2D media! The object (a model 3DTouch 3D printer) is 3D, moving the iPad around this virtual object does actually allow you to see it from above, sides, front, back, etc.

Yes the object viewed using augmented reality is still a "virtual object" but as a method of "testing" ideas before actually prototyping or making the object is another tool available to designers... Used in isolation I'm not certain how useful augmented reality actually can be, but as a first check in an iterative design process I can see some potential for some students in some design projects.

I have a feeling that teaming augmented reality with 3D printing could be a powerful combination. I hope to try this out with students soon and intend to get them to design objects, test them with augmented reality and modify their designs before 3D printing them.

If you fancy giving it a go then you might be interested in trying the iPad app "Augment" https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/augment/id506463171?mt=8 For a free app (at the time of posting this) it is really powerful, a range of 3D formats can be imported (.stl, .3ds, .obj etc) and of course these can be designed in CAD or downloaded from sites such as Thingiverse. Imported objects can be scaled, rotated, moved, photographed etc. And to get you started there are a number of lovely sample files available in the app too.

Filed under  //  Software   iPad   teachingandlearning  
Jan 7 / 9:18pm

Cubex A new 3D printer

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Introducing the new 3D printer from 3D Systems ... The Cubex (big brother to the Cube printer).
It has a huge print bed (just like its predecessor the Bits from Bytes 3D Touch). 3 colour printing and new software.

Cool!.... I'll have to start saving for one of these!

Further details from the Cubify website http://cubify.com/cubex/index.aspx?tb_cubex_learn

Filed under  //  hardware   news   printing   software  
Dec 9 / 12:57pm

D&T iPad apps

Ok, so not really about 3D printing but my school blog is "locked" for updating to a new platform/hosting service. My school has just launched into a new project for students to bring portable devices into school... Mainly iPads but other devices are allowed. So students setting up new iPads face a bewildering number of apps, here are a few suggested apps that I have tried out over the last year or so. The star rating is based on usefulness, price, etc... But just a guide! There are many other apps available.
Autodesk Forceeffect ... Free *** Study the effect of forces on structures https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/autodesk-forceeffect/id476321600?mt=8

Forceeffect Motion ... Free *** Study the effect of forces in motion https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/autodesk-forceeffect-motion/id512045820?mt=8

123D Make Intro... Free *** Design 3d designs for laser cutting https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/123d-make-intro/id513915986?mt=8
123D Design... Free *** Simple 3D CAD https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/123d-design/id567821620?mt=8

123D Sculpt... Free (model export £6.99 in app purchase) ** 3D sculpting https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/123d-sculpt/id446119510?mt=8

123D Catch... Free *** Scan objects in 3D https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/123d-catch/id513913018?mt=8

Sketchbook Express... Free ** Sketch, draw etc https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/sketchbook-express-for-ipad/id410871280?mt=8

Pixlr-o-matic... Free ** Another photo edit app https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/pixlr-o-matic/id450263811?mt=8

Other apps
D&T app ... 69p per subject or £1.99 for all 6 *** D&T textbook, revision etc https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/design-and-technology/id363449581?mt=8

Moodboard Lite... Free (limited) or £6.99 ** Create design mood boards https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/moodboard-lite/id369796813?mt=8

iDT HD.... Free*** D&T "dictionary" https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/idt-hd/id383058247?mt=8

Neu.Draw... Free *** Vector drawing https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/neu.draw/id392532294?mt=8

iDesign... £5.99 ** Vector drawing https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/idesign/id342790226?mt=8

iDraw...£2.99 ** Vector drawing https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/idraw/id363317633?mt=8

Adobe Photoshop Express by Adobe...free *** Photo editing https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/adobe-photoshop-express/id331975235?mt=8

Magic Plan... Free ** Create scale room plans https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/magicplan/id427424432?mt=8

Creo view mobile... Free *** Viewer for Creo 3D designs https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/creo-view-mobile/id560549930?mt=8

3D CAD Models Engineering by CADENAS GmbH... Free ** 3d cad models (downloads) catalogue https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/3d-cad-models-engineering/id522705054?mt=8

Idea generator...£1.99 * Random ideas generator https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/idea-generator/id293258418?mt=8

Ohm work... Free ** Resistor colour codes https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/ohm-work/id406539017?mt=8

Design Museum Collection ... Free *** Iconic designs https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/design-museum-collection-for/id510964197?mt=8

Dexigner... Free *** News of what's going on in the design works https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/dexigner/id319785197?mt=8

Arduino Companion... Free * Arduino reference https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/arduino-companion/id501635254?mt=8

Spacecraft 3D... Free ** Augmented reality 3D spacecraft https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/spacecraft-3d/id541089908?mt=8

Maplin ... Free * Electronics catalogue https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/maplin/id434388627?mt=8

Screwfix catalogue... Free ** Hardware catalogue https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/screwfix-catalogue/id531135973?mt=8

 

Filed under  //  D&T   Resources   iPad   software  
Nov 10 / 10:33pm

123D Design

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At last a free 3D design app for the iPad that can be used for 3D printing!

Autodesk have just released the 123D app for the iPad and at first sight it appears to be quite useable. Designs can be created from simple primitives and modified by stretching, rotating, shelling, chamfering, rounding etc. The design can be saved to the iPad for further editing or exported to the cloud. The designed object can be downloaded to a PC (or mac?) using the 123D design program...and saved as an stl file for printing!

The iPad app is truly intuitive to use... I was creating printable objects within minutes. Best of all it's not necessary to be a CAD expert in fact anyone with a little experience using Trimble (Google) Sketchup will in their element with this app.

I'm pretty certain that this will open up new possibilities for students to be designing and making with iPads and 3D printers. I can't wait to try it out with students to see what they produce... iPads paired with our RapMan, BfB3000/3D Touch printers look like being a fantastic combination for student creativity.

 

Filed under  //  iPad   software  
Oct 30 / 9:05pm

Bits from Bytes Axon 3 (alpha)

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It's a couple of weeks now since BfB released the first alpha version of Axon 3. So, I've been doing a bit of printing at home over the half term holiday just to try it out.... I came across a couple of problems and reported them to Andrew (the BfB software developer and an ex student of mine), glad to see the fixes in the second release.... Thanks Andrew!

It must be remembered that this is an alpha release and many features are "missing" such as the ability to change profiles or material/build settings... But even with the standard set up I'm really impressed, and there were a few surprises too!

I was getting towards final part of a print that tapered to a point at the top and I happened to glance up from my PC to see the print head charge off towards the back of the machine.... PANIC!!!... Then it carried on printing...ERRRR?.... Next layer it did the same... And then it dawned on me... AHHHH,...Built in cooling time, like the Skeinforge option/plugin "orbiting" round the object when doing small layers .... NICE! The attached picture show the part straight off the machine,with no cleaning up whatsoever, printing this sort of point in ABS usually results in the point staying a bit jelly like (jello for readers in the US) and the squidgy point gets wobbles around by the hot end and usually ends up distorted. The point on this print is so sharp I'll have to be careful not to stab myself, certainly worth doing a risk assessment :-)

In the first alpa release there was a small problem that extruder 3 wouldn't heat up, it is fixed now so my next experiments must be to try 3 colour prints.... Really easy by the looks of it, now you only have to load a stl file for each colour (no need for the extra "combined" parts file), logic says that the stl files must have the parts in the correct x,y,z relationship to each other (and the origin) but that's simply a matter of exporting the parts correctly from the CAD software.

Even after a couple of weeks I still can't get over how fast this version of axon is! And the dimensional accuracy is greatly improved too.

Oh and finally... Reporting bugs to software developers... Don't forget that when a piece of software is in alpha (or even beta) stages of testing you do need to 1. Remember that not all the features may be present yet (a bug report isn't the place for nagging and moaning) 2. Send as much detail as possible...PC details (operating system, RAM, etc), printer details (RapMan 3.x/BfB3000/3DTouch and firmware version), the exact nature of the error, what you were doing when the error occurred, materials loaded in your machine and settings that you made... Screen shots are always useful (if you are emailing then you can paste in screenshots, remember that "Prt Scr" captures the whole screen or "Alt Gr" and "Prt Scr" together captures the active window)... Sorry if I'm stating the obvious!

Filed under  //  software  
Sep 25 / 9:28pm

3D printing with Adobe Photoshop!

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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  
Sep 4 / 8:49pm

3DS Cubify web apps... In education?

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As most people who follow my escapades in 3D printing in education will have probably gathered I a great fan of the 3D Systems / Bits from Bytes machines... currently RapMan kits and the fantastic 3D Touch. But I Also keep an eye on what is happening in the 3D printing world in general. So unsurprisingly I came across Cubify and the Cube printer (unsurprisingly because it is part of the 3DS portfolio of machines). Anyway, one of the impressive things about Cubify is that they are supporting the use of their machines with web apps to generate parts that can be printed on any 3D printer (they export as .stl files).

At the present time there are web apps to create bracelets, earrings, tags, rings, defenders, UFO's, robots, licences and crowns. The apps can be accessed here http://cubify.com/apps.aspx

Now I'm very keen for students to 3D print their own designs but the Cubify apps open up all sorts of new educational opportunities. Now students can easily customise basic designs using the apps that are very easy to use and then print their own ring, bracelet, tag etc. So exposure to 3D printing technology need not only be for those students who have a working knowledge of 3D CAD software! And of course this also means that we can capture these youngsters at an even younger age.

Unfortunately I couldn't get the app to work on my iPad, so I'll have to fire up my trusty old laptop and see how I get on with this. Hopefully in the near future I shall report back and share my experiences.

 

Filed under  //  education   primary   printing   software   student   teachingandlearning  
May 30 / 8:28pm

What's the catch? 3D scan for 3D print.

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There is no catch.... Just feeble attempt at a "catchy" title for this post about Autodesk 123D Catch for pc and iPad.

 

Earlier in the week the 123D Catch app for the Ipad became available from the Apple app store in the UK... So I promptly downloaded and installed it. It was a parent/teacher meeting last night so I had to wait... Grrrr.

But tonight I had my first attempt... A pretty successfully too as you can see in the photos. And even more impressive is that it really is the very first attempt!

 

I did have a go at uploading pictures using the PC program but somehow never really got to grips with it. But the iPad app is a real dream, ok the app takes the photos and uploads them and then shows you a wonderful 3D representation of your object but you still need the PC version to download the mesh file in .obj format.

 

Anyway having downloaded the mesh you do meed to do a bit of editing. The mesh is not "watertight" and has a huge hole in the base. You will need a program to do this, I used netfabb basic but meshlab is another alternative. I found that slicing off the bottom (which looks very like a pizza on my scan) saved a lot of manipulation and triangle editing.

 

Once the mesh was ready (I only downloaded the medium quality by the way) I converted the file into gcode for my 3D Touch and printed a scaled down version as I was too impatient to wait for a big print.

 

Oh, and what is the object I scanned? It's an antique plaster model of a hand borrowed from our Art Department... Thanks guys! Im not entirely certain but I think the hand is holding a borax cone. These cones used to be used by jewellers and the like, they ground the cone in a wet ceramic bowl to make a paste to use as flux for silver soldering. I used to do a bit of silversmithing so I just love this connection!

 

So, my next thoughts are... What do I scan next? How can I use this in school? And.....

 

Filed under  //  3dscanning   dt   education   printing   software  
Mar 6 / 10:06pm

Axon 2 ... Full version released

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5th March saw the release of the full (non beta) version of Axon 2 ... The 3DS BfB software for converting .stl files into the gcode that drives RapMan, 3DTouch and BfB 3000 3D printers.

The interface will look very familiar to users of the previous versions but Andrew at BfB has done a lot of tweaks and tidying up.

There are loads of changes... Far to many to list them all here... Some of the nice ones are.

Drag and drop files into the program.

Objects that are moved too far on the print bed show up as "out of bounds" and lines are displayed on the bed to show the limits of the extruders (this matches the number of extruders installed on the machine.

Tidy materials editor including materials cost... An estimate of the printed object cost is shown after generating the gcode.

Warning if trying to exit without saving the gcode.

Bug fixes ..many of these.. Such as the object now moves in the correct direction when moved on the print bed. And changing a material profile no longer needs a restart of the program.... And more.

"thin wall" settings removed as skeinforge (the engine that drives Axon in the background) handles these better.

A revert to default button... Fantastic when after tinkering with the settings has gone horribly wrong... Must have happened to us all at some time or other.

And one of my favourites ... Right click switches from 3D view to a 2D top view (great for moving the object around on the print bed and checking layers of the gcode.

A huge thank you to Andrew at 3DS BfB as many of these improvements have come about because of constructive feedback from users... And I'm really pleased to see that a few of my suggestions have been implemented.

So all in all Axon 2 is looking and working very well and as always produces excellent results straight out of the box... Great for students and teachers alike.

Oh and watch out for the new icon... It took me ages to find it on the far too cluttered desktop on my battered old laptop!

 

Filed under  //  software  
Feb 21 / 11:14pm

Creo Parametric for 3D printing in schools

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Really not certain what the proper name is for this program... "Creo", "Creo 1", "Creo Parametric", "Creo Parametric 1" or ?? I've seen it referred to as all of these (even by PTC themselves)

Anyway whatever it's called I found out yesterday that DATA the organisation that has been administering this software for schools in the UK are handing back the responsibility to PTC in a couple of months time. I also found out that with PTC's education program I can upgrade my school install from creo elements pro (wf5) to Creo Parametric. So I sent off my emails, registered, and downloaded the software. I must admit it was a bit of a fuss getting all the licence files, Host ID and other details up together but after that the install went really smoothly. I had a bit of a tussle getting the program to display things properly but that's down to my ancient laptop not dealing with opengl graphics very well, so had to change it to win32_gdi and now it works fine.... Probably not as pretty on screen but hey ho....

So, I'll give it a go for a few weeks on my machine before risking a full network install in school, it will give me a chance to get to grips with all the new fancy stuff and also let me find where they have hidden everything on the lovely new ribbon toolbars.... A good idea perhaps to do this before I try teaching it!

Good news is that it opens files fine from previous (education) versions of creo elements, pro engineer or whatever it was called.... And the stl files export ok for 3D printing... So let's see how it goes. I'm sure I'll be blogging about all this again soon.

Filed under  //  software