3d copy machine

[5trucks]

Not sure if this has been posted here yet and i haven't searched but i think it is one of the coolest pieces of equipment i have ever seen.

Here (http://www.jaylenosgarage.com/video/video_player.shtml?vid=944641)

[FbOmRxD]

Not sure if this has been posted here yet and i haven't searched but i think it is one of the coolest pieces of equipment i have ever seen.

Here (http://www.jaylenosgarage.com/video/video_player.shtml?vid=944641)

yep, i use the dimensions machine on a daily basis at work. Really cool machines, the material they have is getting better and better, the stuff is really strong actually.

[300sniper]

that is pretty cool! i could have used that a few times recently. the price seems very reasonable too. here is their direct website: https://www.nextengine.com/indexSecure.htm

[300sniper]

yep, i use the dimensions machine on a daily basis at work. Really cool machines, the material they have is getting better and better, the stuff is really strong actually.

are you using a scanner or a cad program to create the model?

[MC]

I rememebr stereolithograph and Z corp machines. Very cool stuff!!

[ROXROES]

X-ray scanning has the highest accuracy, which is .0005".

Laying a surface thickness of .007 makes me skeptical on how well of a finish quality they can get. We are in the process of getting a laser scanner to certify parts and for QA. But for prototypes its not worth buying a machine because they are very quickly outdated.

If you can make 3D models and need protos, check here, their setup fee sucks though (or at least used to):
www.quickparts.com
Oh, and they'll call you within 5 minutes after uploading a file, gets kind of annoying. :laughing:

I use a local guy, since he gets me my rapid prototypes the same day and delivers them in person at a more competitive rate.

Orthopedic commonly uses what they call direct-metal rapid prototyping (laser sintering), which makes the part out of titanium or cobalt chrome.

[PTSchram]

Orthopedic commonly uses what they call direct-metal rapid prototyping (laser sintering), which makes the part out of titanium or cobalt chrome.

When I worked for Lear Corp., they had a machine that would generate parts out of a bath of sand. While it was really cool and could make plastic models of parts in no time, the multi-million dollar price tag kinda put me off the process.

[gregers05]

yep, i use the dimensions machine on a daily basis at work. Really cool machines, the material they have is getting better and better, the stuff is really strong actually.

and what is it that you do? i want to come work there:)

[ROXROES]

When I worked for Lear Corp., they had a machine that would generate parts out of a bath of sand. While it was really cool and could make plastic models of parts in no time, the multi-million dollar price tag kinda put me off the process.

I have a buddy thats on Orthopedic Engineer, we were talking one day. He was like "yah we have a few of the regular rapid prototyping machines, and then two direct metal machines." Orthopedic budgets, salaries etc don't represent the standard/average corporate market very well. :laughing:

My parts are made by a SLA 5000, it uses an "ABS like" material that has a yield strength of around 6000 psi. It layers at .002 per sweep, giving you hardly any visible grain lines. You can bend it, flex it and it works great for testing snap fits. And can hold up if you want to send protos to the field to test. I shy away from FDM and some of the cheaper SLA's since they are rigid and fracture very easily. Nothing like paying $500+ and busting it within minutes of getting it "I think I'll just hide this one from the boss". :laughing:

[PTSchram]

I have a buddy thats on Orthopedic Engineer, we were talking one day. He was like "yah we have a few of the regular rapid prototyping machines, and then two direct metal machines." Orthopedic budgets, salaries etc don't represent the standard/average corporate market very well. :laughing:


Funny you should make such a comment. When I worked for Phelps Dodge, I asked my boss one day what my R&D budget was. I was told that if he signed the purchase order, I hadn't exceeded it and so far, he had 15 patents that had come out of the department. I was told in no uncertain terms that I was to do what I thought best and there was a really good chance that one of my ideas might result in patent number 16. I never got a patent, but I did save the company millions of dollars by stupidly simple process changes that I did that were completely transparent to all but me, the engineering manager and the accounting staff.

Lear Corp on the other hand, in spite of being much larger, would not allow me to do anything that hadn't already been done. "R&D is not conducted at the manufacturing facilities" I was told over and over, followed by "You're a manager, not an engineer". I was so glad to leave the place, but in Southfield, they had all the cool tools. I had to fight tooth and nail to put a lousy flowmeter on a rinse tank so we could prove to Ford we were meeting their requirements, then some fool decided to slow the flow down and log the flows so that Ford could use our own data to prove us out of compliance with their standards!

[ptrautne]

Funny you should make such a comment. When I worked for Phelps Dodge, I asked my boss one day what my R&D budget was. I was told that if he signed the purchase order, I hadn't exceeded it and so far, he had 15 patents that had come out of the department. I was told in no uncertain terms that I was to do what I thought best and there was a really good chance that one of my ideas might result in patent number 16. I never got a patent, but I did save the company millions of dollars by stupidly simple process changes that I did that were completely transparent to all but me, the engineering manager and the accounting staff.

Lear Corp on the other hand, in spite of being much larger, would not allow me to do anything that hadn't already been done. "R&D is not conducted at the manufacturing facilities" I was told over and over, followed by "You're a manager, not an engineer". I was so glad to leave the place, but in Southfield, they had all the cool tools. I had to fight tooth and nail to put a lousy flowmeter on a rinse tank so we could prove to Ford we were meeting their requirements, then some fool decided to slow the flow down and log the flows so that Ford could use our own data to prove us out of compliance with their standards!

It is nice working for companies that like innovation, I currently have 12 patents and have 3-4 more in process.

[PTSchram]

It is nice working for companies that like innovation, I currently have 12 patents and have 3-4 more in process.

In my experience it has been more important to have a good manager than a good company. When I was at Phelps Dodge, my boss was of the opinion he should hire people smarter than he was (an opinion I share). At Lear, it always seemed that every manager was afraid that their employees would make them look stupid-in too many cases, that was easy to do.

[ptrautne]

In my experience it has been more important to have a good manager than a good company. When I was at Phelps Dodge, my boss was of the opinion he should hire people smarter than he was (an opinion I share). At Lear, it always seemed that every manager was afraid that their employees would make them look stupid-in too many cases, that was easy to do.

To get your name on the patent you need the company also because it's not cheap but I see your point where the managers affect it also. I just think its cool to know my name will be on a piece of paper 100's of years from now.

[PTSchram]

To get your name on the patent you need the company also because it's not cheap but I see your point where the managers affect it also. I just think its cool to know my name will be on a piece of paper 100's of years from now.

Not necessarily. I have attempted patents on my own until I found out that both Hewlett-Packard and Perkin-Elmer had a reputation for disputing everything that came even close to infringing on present art.

Also, Phelps-Dodge had a very lenient patent policy in that you got primary ownership and the company merely had the right to license the idea for the first term of the patent. Other companies I've worked for have been much more possessive of intellectual property of their employees even going so far as to claim ownership of completely unrelated ideas.

I'm listed as a contributor on at least two that I know of as a result of collaboration with suppliers for employers I worked for. My employers got a few of the devices (an application of a burp-less funnel for hazardous waste handling).

[ROXROES]

Design Patent is about $2K
Maintenance Fees over the life of utility patents is somewhere around $10-20K

I'm just glad we have good patent attorneys, all I have to do is come up with good ideas and examine prior art to determine if there are any infringements. Then explain how it works so they can write up the claims, examine the claims afterwards, and send them pdf prints so they can do their purty drawing sheets.

Oh and the best part is I sign a sheet saying I got a $1 for the patent from the company I work for. :(

[PTSchram]

Design Patent is about $2K

LOL, the patent attorney I talked to back in '91 wouldn't begin the preliminary search without a $2000 retainer. I spnet about a third of that visiting the T&PO to do the search myself. Learned a lot, but didn't get a patent:flipoff2:.

One of my old high school friends is a "Patent Agent" who does everything but the filings.

Now, I just want to make as many parts as I can before someone challenges an idea.

[ptrautne]

LOL, the patent attorney I talked to back in '91 wouldn't begin the preliminary search without a $2000 retainer. I spnet about a third of that visiting the T&PO to do the search myself. Learned a lot, but didn't get a patent:flipoff2:.

One of my old high school friends is a "Patent Agent" who does everything but the filings.

Now, I just want to make as many parts as I can before someone challenges an idea.

You may be thinking about the wrong one. The design patent is the "look" of the product. I think you wanted a utility patent because you care about the "function" and not the "look"

[ptrautne]

Design Patent is about $2K
Maintenance Fees over the life of utility patents is somewhere around $10-20K

I'm just glad we have good patent attorneys, all I have to do is come up with good ideas and examine prior art to determine if there are any infringements. Then explain how it works so they can write up the claims, examine the claims afterwards, and send them pdf prints so they can do their purty drawing sheets.

Oh and the best part is I sign a sheet saying I got a $1 for the patent from the company I work for. :(

I guess I am lucky, I get 50 dollars for the idea and if they patent the idea they give me another 500.

[ROXROES]

$2000 is just the Design Patent fees, not the Attorney fees. Don't know what we pay them and don't care, not my job. :flipoff2:

They used to pay us like that, but corporations are cheapskates nowadays. I've only worked here for going on 5 years, have 4 patents, and have contributed a shit ton of ideas. I need to start my own business eventually, then I can get my Nor-Tech offshore racing boat for the Lake on the weekends. :laughing: