Ember 3D printer files now available to download.
Last year Autodesk launched their mission to provide an open source 3D printing platform that would revolutionise and create new approaches to 3D printing hardware, software and materials. Since then Spark and its Ember 3D printer have been the source of exciting developments and collaboration with the likes of HP, Shapeways and 3D hubs getting on board the innovation train.
Sticking with their promise to produce a platform that is completely open source, the team at Autodesk have taken the ultimate step in that mission by making Ember’s mechanical design files available in Fusion.
The full design of Ember in Fusion 360 is now available to freely view, download and modify, giving engineers and tinkerers the opportunity to experiment and take the technology to a whole new level.
Writing in a Spark blog post, Eric J. Wilhelm, Head of Autodesk’s hardware group, said; “I've been having a blast with the explode model function! We're sharing these designs under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license, the same license Arduino uses to share their design files. Just like the formulation for our resin, we're explicitly inviting you to understand, remix, and remake Ember.”
Platform will encourage engineers to build on top of current Ember 3D printer.
Having these design files available to the 3D printing community means that makers will have the ability to make their own Ember. However, Autodesk does state that whilst it is possible to 3D print many of Ember’s parts, it is perhaps more expensive than simply purchasing the machine itself. Likewise, the projector is another part that requires a lot of work to get the same results as the ready-made kit.
That said, Wilhelm, added: “Our thought is not that you would duplicate Ember, but extend it. The design files allow you to make your own modifications and enhancements. For example, we'd love to see Ember used as a research platform to explore the next-generation of stereolithography.”
The files for Ember can be downloaded here. Will you be creating your own version of Ember? Let us know in the comments or Tweet us @TheTCTMagazine.
