Actually, there is a pretty simple way that rapid prototyping vendors can
sell their machines to the common home. But they will need to take a
different approach than where the industry thinks it should be going.
We all know that we need better resolution, finer detail, and better speed
in any of the classes of rapid prototyping machines out there. These are
qualities that we need in an industrial machine. Again, the average layman
doesn't want to contend with specialized materials, nor with the legal
implications (or fines from the EPA) of some of the chemicals involved with
RP, whether the materials used for structure, or chemicals used to strip
support away. It's too messy, and in some cases, too dangerous to be worth
it.
The toys I played with as a child were those that didn't need special paper,
special ink, special pens, special RTV rubber liquids that one had to buy to
use the toy. Once the supplies were used up that came in the original box,
that was the end of the toy. What about Play-Do? How many of you have
children now that are playing with the same Legos that you play with-- er,
"playED" with as a child? ;) Matchbox and HotWheels toy cars are still going
strong.
How about the Suzie EZ-Bake Oven?
Okay, Z-Corp, time for you to do a "Heads Up!"
Several years ago, Lego came out with a line of Legos blocks geared towards
older kids, called "Technics." I saw one person build a plotter using a
Technics kit. Another built a robot arm that could be controlled by his
Apple IIe. Lego saw they could go a step further, and now they have Lego
MindStorms kits. And as soon as I can afford one.... :)
Forget trying to sell an industrial strength machine to the average public,
they don't need it, and they don't want it -- yet.
But what about a toy?
A cheap plotter set-up, belt driven. Heck, even rubber band driven! A tank
that you fill with water feeds a jet that sprays water onto a layer flour. A
zinc or plastic cutter swings across, followed by a hopper that sprinkles
another layer of flour, then the jet draws the next layer.
The materials are right there in the home! Water and flour, maybe a little
plaster of paris mixed in. Environmentally sound -- maybe even edible! The
plotter assembly is easy, the control box uses USB for
platform-independent -- and cheap to mass produce -- connectivity.
I'll bet that you could build and sell the thing for less than $300, maybe
even less than $200.
Look at the "P.S." that Bathsheba put in her letter: All those things that
she imagined she could do -- and still wants to -- the moment she saw a
rapid prototyper! Who among all of us haven't thought up a thousand
different things we could do with one of these machines the moment we saw
one in action? Remember when you were a, uh, "kid..." (yeah, right) playing
with Legos? All the things you imagined you could do?
Thousands of kids, growing up playing with rapid prototyping. I can't think
of a better way of securing the future of the RP industry.
And for those of you bent on selling a full, industrial-strength, RP machine
to the consumer public? Think about it: remember when you bought your first
printer? It got the job done. Then you saw one of those ink-jet printers
that could produce near photo-quality pictures.
Bet you upgraded, didn't you?
Bill Richards, Rapid Prototyping Tech.
Fielding Manufacturing "From Art... To Parts... ...To Parts!"
780 Wellington Ave.
Cranston, RI 02910
T: (401) 461-0400 x221
F: (401) 941-2222
For more information about the rp-ml, see http://ltk.hut.fi/rp-ml/
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