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From: David Farber <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Sun, 5 Jun 2005 07:47:36 -0400
To: Ip ip <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: [IP] CNN: The machine that can copy anything
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From: John Parres <[log in to unmask]>
Date: June 5, 2005 5:29:13 AM EDT
To: David Farber <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: CNN: The machine that can copy anything
Reply-To: John Parres <[log in to unmask]>


http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/06/02/tech.reprap/index.html

The machine that can copy anything
By Simon Hooper for CNN
Thursday, June 2, 2005 Posted: 10:48 AM EDT (1448 GMT)

LONDON, England (CNN) -- A revolutionary machine that can copy itself
and manufacture everyday objects quickly and cheaply could transform
industry in the developing world, according to its creator.

The "self-replicating rapid prototyper," or "RepRap" is the brainchild
of Dr. Adrian Bowyer, a senior lecturer in mechanical engineering at
the University of Bath in the UK.

It is based on rapid prototyping technology commonly used to
manufacturer plastic components in industry from computer-generated
blueprints -- effectively a form of 3D printer.

But Bowyer told CNN the RepRap's ability to copy itself could put
rapid prototyping technology within reach of the world's poorest
communities by alleviating the need for the sort of large-scale
industrial infrastructure common across the developed world.

"People can start manufacturing goods at a low price," said Bowyer.
"All one needs is a computer and a machine that can copy itself. It
can spread without enormous expenditure of capital and where labor
costs are low.

"It is the first technology that we can have that can simultaneously
make people more wealthy while reducing the need for industrial
production."

Prototyping machines currently cost around $45,000 but Bowyer believes
that price could drop to a few hundred dollars as the number of
self-replicating models increases exponentially.

"It makes industry a little more like agriculture," said Bowyer, who
specializes in biomimetics, the study and application of natural
processes in technologies such as engineering, design and computing.

"Farmers have been dealing with self-replicating products for years."

Rapid prototyping machines work by building a succession of layers,
either bonded by a laser or held together by alternating layers of
glue.

The key feature of the RepRap is its ability to print electrical
circuits by squirting a metal alloy with a low-melting point from a
heated nozzle.

The machine could build items ranging in size from a few millimeters
to around 30 centimeters, such as plates, dishes, combs and musical
instruments.

Larger or more complicated items could be assembled from smaller
parts, and by adding extra parts such as screws and microchips.

Bowyer said the target of the project was to create a range of devices
that could be assembled for around $500 using additional components
commonly and cheaply available in hardware stores.

He also said that the technology could help solve some of the
recycling issues commonly associated with plastics: "If the machine
can copy itself, it can make its own recycler. When you break
something you can just feed it into the recycler and break it down to
its raw materials and re-build it.

"The key ecological point is that it cuts down on the transportation
necessary both to manufacture products and to dispose of them. Every
household would have its own recycling set-up.

"This is recycling heaven rather than recycling hell."

The concept of self-replicating machines dates back to the work of
mathematician John von Neumann, who proposed the idea of a "Universal
Constructor" that could copy itself in the 1950s.

Von Neumann suggested that the generational development of a machine
would display similar characteristics to Darwinian evolution as users
honed and varied its design to suit their needs.

To encourage that development, Bowyer plans to make the design of the
RepRap available online and free to use, in the same way as open
source software such as the Linux operating system or Mozilla's
Firefox browser.

Anyone with a replicating machine could then start manufacturing
copies. Once someone owned the technology they could download other
designs, or create their own.

"The most interesting part of this is that we're going to give it
away," said Bowyer.

"If these machines take off, it will give individual people the chance
to do this themselves, and we are talking about making a lot of our
consumer goods. The effect this has on industry and society could be
dramatic."


Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/06/02/tech.reprap/index.html


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