All you Trekkies out there...replicators are finally here. Well, at least the earliest prototype! If you are unfamiliar what a replicator is in the Star Trek universe, essentially it generates almost anything you desire out of thin air (Essentially reconstituting atoms and what not, you get the drift).
Anyways, I'm talking about 3D printers. In recent years 3D printing technology has skyrocketed to the point of where we are considering sending 3D printers onto the moon to build moon bases out of moon dust. The applications of this new technology is so diverse that anything from manufacturing cars, customized parts for machines, toys,and etc is possible!
For scientists, 3D printing allows for cost efficient and relatively fast assembly of complex 3D structures which can be used in a wide array of research (ex. prosthetic research). Using traditional assembly methods, something as complex as the prosthetic limb on the left would have taken a long time. Depending on what material is used in the 3D printer, the material properties could be altered to mimic biomaterials of all sorts (cartilage, bone, etc).
Which brings me back to Biomimetics!
Discovery.com reported on the 23rd of February about some cool research performed at Brown University. Scientists at the Breuer and Swartz Labs used 3D printers to build a robotic bat-wing, directly mimicking the wing of a fruit bat. This robotic model is used to study the energetics and aerodynamics of winged flight. The story states some interesting facts about the aerodynamics of wing flapping, namely that while the down-stroke generates lift, the up-stroke does not and has the opposite effect...if wings were completely stiff and didn't bend or move. Bats bend their wings in the up-stroke motion and the robotic bat wing showed a decrease of force pushing downwards by 50% if bent in the up-stroke. In the future this research could culminate in the creation of a robot which utilizes flapping wings for flight instead of static wings and propellers or jet engines for propulsion. If you would like to read up on this research, here is the link to Discovery.com's article.
Do you want a 3D printer yet? I do.
Earl Grey, hot (Mandatory Star Trek reference, and no, it can't print Earl Grey tea...yet!)
Until next time!
JP
Anyways, I'm talking about 3D printers. In recent years 3D printing technology has skyrocketed to the point of where we are considering sending 3D printers onto the moon to build moon bases out of moon dust. The applications of this new technology is so diverse that anything from manufacturing cars, customized parts for machines, toys,and etc is possible!
For scientists, 3D printing allows for cost efficient and relatively fast assembly of complex 3D structures which can be used in a wide array of research (ex. prosthetic research). Using traditional assembly methods, something as complex as the prosthetic limb on the left would have taken a long time. Depending on what material is used in the 3D printer, the material properties could be altered to mimic biomaterials of all sorts (cartilage, bone, etc).
Which brings me back to Biomimetics!
Discovery.com reported on the 23rd of February about some cool research performed at Brown University. Scientists at the Breuer and Swartz Labs used 3D printers to build a robotic bat-wing, directly mimicking the wing of a fruit bat. This robotic model is used to study the energetics and aerodynamics of winged flight. The story states some interesting facts about the aerodynamics of wing flapping, namely that while the down-stroke generates lift, the up-stroke does not and has the opposite effect...if wings were completely stiff and didn't bend or move. Bats bend their wings in the up-stroke motion and the robotic bat wing showed a decrease of force pushing downwards by 50% if bent in the up-stroke. In the future this research could culminate in the creation of a robot which utilizes flapping wings for flight instead of static wings and propellers or jet engines for propulsion. If you would like to read up on this research, here is the link to Discovery.com's article.
Do you want a 3D printer yet? I do.
Earl Grey, hot (Mandatory Star Trek reference, and no, it can't print Earl Grey tea...yet!)
Until next time!
JP