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3D printing started out with tiny plastic structures, and over time it has moved on to larger, more complex, and more solid things, from duck prosthetics to airplane engine parts. Will the next step be infrastructure?
A company named MX3D intends to do just that, with the help of Dutch designer Joris Laaram and Autodesk (providing the software to make this happen). The goal is to use robots to 3D-print a steel bridge over a canal in Amsterdam, basically creating the bridge out of thin-air, like in the rendering above.
Particularly challenging is that the robots will be printing their own supporting structures, so any early mistake or miscalculation will be fatal to the project.
"I strongly believe in the future of digital production and local production, in "the new craft". This bridge will show how 3D printing finally enters the world of large-scale, functional objects and sustainable materials while allowing unprecedented freedom of form," said Joris Laarman, the designer of the bridge. "The symbolism of the bridge is a beautiful metaphor to connect the technology of the future with the old city, in a way that brings out the best of both worlds."
Perhaps self-printing, self-healing infrastructure is the answer to its crumbling all the time.
Original Submission
(Score: 1) by anubi on Thursday June 18 2015, @04:35AM
I look forward to seeing how this plays out.
I feel its just a matter of time before we see tract homes built this way.
I have already seen some of the precursors but at that time, there was not enough prior art to ignite the concept. What I saw resulted in excellent workmanship of a home that would probably last until it was leveled and recycled. ( or involved in a forest fire ). One of the things that really caught my fancy was the ease of getting to the plumbing and wiring. You. pull the wall panel off and there it is. The whole thing assembled like big lego block.
Wanna move the walls around? Not that much of a problem. Termites? They won't eat it. Water damage? Leaking pipes? Just pull the wall panel, fix the pipe, and mop up the mess. Wanna expand? Go get some more block and pour more foundation. Wanna change the outside appearance? Get some different fascia surfacing sheets.
I could easily see where a machine could build a house in a few hours.
Then its ready to put any sort of ornamentation you want on it.
About the only thing that looks like it requires prep is pouring the foundation.
The demo I saw had the outside walls and an inside wall or two as concrete/rebar filled block ( load bearing ). The rest were movable. I do not think the robot would have much of a problem controlling a concrete pumper or placing the block and rebar.
I get the idea design software would be available where you could build a model of dang near anything you can imagine, then submit it for an estimate followed by an order to have it constructed.
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]