I am an artist. I have become known for my pioneering work in the 3D printed medium & have a professional history in product invention/design & development. My art is about pushing the limits of form... an exploration into what can be made & how to accomplish it. My venture into this project is a direct extension of that.
For the last 18 months I've been developing a new 3D printing technology to usher in the next generation of the 3D printing revolution in terms of quality, capability, cost, access, & ease of use. This is a completely new approach & not another FDM/RepRap or DLP project. So far so good, beta software & prototype hardware results are sound but I've already spent more than I can afford on development. I need your support to complete R&D.
As an inventor, I'm here to share my vision but need to reach a more viable version before I can make promises on it. As an artist, I'm here to support that vision with my work. I ask for your participation in "PHASE 1" of development to bring something creative & useful to the world.
I'm offering my art as rewards for your support. After all rewards have been fulfilled, funding will go towards further R&D of my new 3D printer technology. In terms of transparency, I want to let you know specifically what I'm asking your support for but until provisional patents are filed & in the interest of protecting the IP, I cannot yet reveal the functional details of the printer. As development progresses, I will be able to provide more insight as well as an intended "PHASE 2" campaign to launch the technology & support manufacture. For now I need to plug through the remainder of the R&D stage. When all is worked out I will be back.
So until I can bring the meat, here's the potatoes...
Specs & Features:
- Multi-material building to include many standard injection molding plastics (ABS, PP, PE, PS, PVC, acrylic, nylon), elastomers, wax, graphene & other conductive materials (to support in-model printed circuitry)
- Precision full tonal color
- Non-structural & reusable support system allowing for interconnected parts & floating assemblies (chain links, gearing, captured geometries, etc)
- On par with current industry high-resolution standard (X&Y: 600x600 dpi, Z: <15-25 microns/<.001") @ 12-14mm per hour build speed
- Potential high-resolution twice that of current industry best (X&Y: 1200x1200 dpi, Z: 5-6 microns/.0002") @ 12-14mm per hour build speed
- Hi-Speed option at approx 25mm per hour build (X&Y: 600x600 dpi, Z: <15-25 microns/<.001")
- Target pricing at less than $1000 for consumer level machine
- Plug & play... no special part orientation, machine setup, or post processing required
Software: Software tests
are golden with seamless integration with the prototype printer. Multi-materials delivery & coloration systems
are in working order.
Hardware: Current prototype printer works well but significantly limited as to what I can further test on it. Much of the R&D will be focused on building the final stage prototype & preparing the technology for market.
Maintenance: Life cycle of printer components, replacement costs, as well as setting up to make these parts & materials readily available will be addressed.
Legal: All the obvious patent searches & explorations so this can be brought to market without issue.
THE REWARDS
Flowers are a universal gift of "thank you" & given that I'm asking for your help, I want to thank you in a meaningful way. I have created a series of 3d printed filigree flowers called "Mazzo di Fiori". There are 12 Flowers, a Lotus/Lilypad, & the Ripple Vase. The composition celebrates the harmony & beauty of opposite & opposing forces. The water surface depicts the plane of separation between liquid & gas with the reaching flower transcending & binding both worlds… an environmental yin yang. All pieces are 3D printed in SLS polyamide (essentially a nylon powder fused together with a laser).
- Flowers are 10" (25cm) long each
- Lotus is 2.2" x 2.2" x 1.0" (5.5 x 5.5 x 2.6cm)
- Lotus/Lilypad is 3.7" x 3.5" x 1.1" (9.4 x 8.9 x 3.0cm)
- Ripple Vase is approx 10x10x10" (25 x 25 x 25cm)
REWARD TIERS: To help clarify...there are essentially 8 reward tiers (just multiple options of each to handle the different pricing of the various pieces)
- 1 "Thank You" Project Postcard (every tier receives one)
- 4 "Single Flower" tiers ($40, $50, $60, or $70 depending on flower)
- 4 "Set of 3" flower tiers (1 pre-determined flower + your choice of remaining 2)
- 4 "Set of 6" flower tiers (1 pre-determined flower + your choice of remaining 5)
- 1 "Set of 12" flower tier (includes all flowers - NO Lotus/Lilypad Set)
- 1 "Set of 13" flower tier (includes all flowers + Lotus/Lilypad Set)
- 1 "Full Set & Ripple Vase" tier (includes everything with flowers unarranged)
- 1 "16 inch Limited Edition Full Set" tier (more intricate large version includes everything asssembled & arranged with certificate of authenticity)
This is as much an opportunity to share my art as it is to use it to support this project. I hope you find interest in my work on either level. For all multi-option reward tiers...a project "survey" will be forwarded at project end to collect your choices, shipping info, etc. Simply choose the reward tier you want & the appropriate options will be available for you to select on your survey. Click on any picture to view an in-browser 3D viewer of all the pieces!
16" LIMITED EDITION
The 16" Limited Edition "Mazzo di Fiori" piece is considerably larger than the 10 inch open edition (each flower is 16in/41cm long) & is of significantly more intricate design. The edition is limited to 10, includes all pieces, is assembled & arranged by me, & includes a hand-signed Certificate of Authenticity (#1 in the edition has already been sold).
Multiple Rewards: It is only possible to pledge ONCE on a single Kickstarter account. If you pledge again on the same account, it will OVERRIDE your previous pledge and reward selection. It is recommended to create an additional Kickstarter account, which can be linked to the same Amazon account (and therefore the same credit card).
Risks and challenges
There is negligible risk as long as it is understood that the provided rewards are all that I am offering. I cannot promise delivery of this technology at this point, only my good faith effort. All rewards are modeled, prototyped, & ready to go, & their production will happen through vendors I've used for years. I've run 2 exceptionally successful campaigns previous & am a salty veteran at all of this... fear not, I've got this handled.
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Funding period
- (30 days)