Fascinating research findings for 3D printing and textiles — and there are a few places online where you can read the full text of the paper! German Scientists Study Possibility of Textiles Made via 3D Printing, from 3DPrint.com:
German scientists — a team consisting of R. Melnikova, A. Ehrmann, and K. Finsterbusch — from the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology at the Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences are exploring the possibilities in combining 3D printing technology and textile weaves. The team has been looking into practical potential for the theoretical collaboration of these two very different technologies. Whereas textile weaves have been around in various forms for millennia, using strand-over-strand formats, the layer-by-layer techniques inherent in additive manufacturing is clearly a much newer technology to be adapted.
Woven fabrics rely on strands of fibers; if thin filaments could be used and printed in open weave patterns, could they replicate textile-like structures?
The German team was on the case, and they’ve produced results from three distinct arenas of testing.
- 3D Printed Layer Structures
- Lace
- Weft Knitted Structures
Every Thursday is #3dthursday here at Adafruit! The DIY 3D printing community has passion and dedication for making solid objects from digital models. Recently, we have noticed electronics projects integrated with 3D printed enclosures, brackets, and sculptures, so each Thursday we celebrate and highlight these bold pioneers!
Have you considered building a 3D project around an Arduino or other microcontroller? How about printing a bracket to mount your Raspberry Pi to the back of your HD monitor? And don’t forget the countless LED projects that are possible when you are modeling your projects in 3D!
The Adafruit Learning System has dozens of great tools to get you well on your way to creating incredible works of engineering, interactive art, and design with your 3D printer! We also offer the LulzBot TAZ – Open source 3D Printer and the Printrbot Simple Metal 3D Printer in our store. If you’ve made a cool project that combines 3D printing and electronics, be sure to let us know, and we’ll feature it here!
