The Age of the Self Replicating Machine.
There is a saying amongst DIY CNC router builders that goes something like this… “You only need to build your first router good enough to build you second one“. In my case that turned out to be true.
I built a wood, conduit and skate bearing Solsylva router. I painstakingly layed out the various pieces using calipers, t-squares and compasses. I cut them out using hand held tools like jigsaws and drills. It worked remarkably well, but every time I routed out a perfect CAD drawn piece, I always thought “Gee, I wish I had this thing when I built the router“.
It wasn’t too long before I built my bigger, better, more accurate router. I was able to use tougher materials, hold tighter tolerances and cut more exotic shapes. It works much better. A few months ago I finally pulled off all the good bits and Sawzall’ed the old one apart to get more room in the shop…a bitter sweet day.
Most of today’s designs develop inside a computer. Resolution and accuracy are infinite in this realm. We expect our fabrication machines to output similar accuracies, but how does one construct a machine with this accuracy with common (analog) tools.
Today’s open source machine are addressing this head on. There is a big push towards self replication. Struggle past the first one and the rest will be easy. It is not just an accidental bonus it is initial design requirement. It is a lot more work, but I think it builds the strong communities behind these projects that help insure their success.
Here are three examples of self replicating machines…
RepRap
The RepRap Project
Buildlog.Net Open Source Laser
SLS 3D Printer
This is a new project I am following closely. This is another 3D printer, but this uses Selective Laser Sintering (SLA). Peter is spending a commendable amount of time working on the self replicating aspects down. He is using laser cut parts, rather than SLS parts so it is not truly self replicating yet, but I have a feeling he will start substituting SLS parts as soon as he can.
In Closing…
