Grant Marchelli, a University of Washington mechanical engineering graduate student who developed a way to rapid prototype using recycled glass powder, removes a new object from the Solheim Lab digital printer. (This image is from the UW news website which is linked to in the article below.)
Solheim Labs at the University of Washington has been innovating the art of rapid prototyping, according to an article on the University of Washington’s news website. Using everything from ceramics to sugar they are able to “print,” objects made of miniscule particles. Their latest material success: 3-D printing with glass, which is known as “vitraglyphic process.” By using a special binder, the lab is able to create 3-D glass objects that can then be fired into a permanent object which bears a striking similarity to pate de verre.
The lab has stated that one of its goals is to develop processes that can benefit the art and design community. The lab has been keeping a blog of their process that includes all the details of their research. ”By publishing these recipes without proprietary claims, we hope to encourage further experimentation and innovation within artistic and design communities,” says Duane Sorti and UW associate professor of mechanical engineering and co-director of the Solheim Lab. The other co-director of Solheim, Mark Ganter, adds that “The new method would also create a way to repurpose used glass for new functions … recycled glass as a low-cost material that can help bring 3-D printing within the budget of a broader community of artists and designers.”
The 3DP glass ruffle bowl, computer-designed and built up with a rapid-prototype digital printer spraying a mix of recycled glass and sugar.
Read the full article about their research here. Also keep up with their progress through their blog. Their latest prototype, the ruffle bowl, made using only a small amount of electrical energy, sounds like something the art and design community needs.
—Kim Harty
Really impressive. It seems like new materials can be used to prototype parts all the time. A while back I had some parts prototyped by these guys and was blown away by what can be done now.
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