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systems that can print in metal, ceramic, paper, and other materials, at high
resolutions, often very quickly. In the last few years, the MakerBot “Replicator”
has evolved from a single to a dual extrusion system capable of printing multiple
colors of material simultaneously. In our envisioned future scenario, we extend
this trend to imagine home 3D printing with a wide spectrum of simultaneous
colors and materials, including the ability to print with biological material.
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We
also expect home fabricators with larger printable areas which can support
larger-scale projects.
4 .
Improved tools for designing, scanning, and recombining physical items into
digital models:
One of the major bottlenecks for creating unique 3D printed
objects is the learning curve needed to produce a 3D model that is suitable for
printing. Many online services, such as Thing-a-Verse, offer premade models for
a small price or even for free under open-source licensing. However, as home
fabrication technologies grow, so too must grow the resources for creating usable
digital source fi les of things to be printed. 3D scanning technology is rapidly
becoming more accessible, following a similar trajectory to 3D printers. One
notable system, “FabScan,” is open source and can be built for less than $100,
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making it a spiritual cousin to the RepRap project and the DIY Makerbots.
5 .
Hybrid fabrication systems that blend different methods:
3D printing is an
“additive” fabrication method which sets it apart from the more commonly used
“subtractive” systems such as laser cutting and CNC milling. We envision home
fabrication appliances that combine both of these methods, resulting in a much
broader range of potential outputs.
These fi ve advances set the stage for our scenarios, as we try to imagine some of
the new applications for home fabrication as a communications platform.
11.5.2
Utopian Scenarios: Fabrication as Communication
and Tool
Although we have identifi ed at least three motivations for Making above, when we
look at how current Maker culture discusses home fabrication, in many cases the
discourse seems focused solely on the utilitarian motivations, with very little atten-
tion paid to pleasure and expressiveness. Consider that in each of the four design
fi ctions we have examined, design is something that is done by a computer (Star
Trek and Transmetropolitan) or an expert (The Diamond Age) or a genius (Makers).
None of these scenarios see home fabrication technology as a creative platform for
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Already, we have seen medical research use 3D printing to grow a human ear (
http://lifesciences.
3d- printing
) and the Burritobot project suggests that 3D printed food is not too far off (
http://
