Apr 20, 2016 | By Tess

For those who are looking to invest in a 3D printing pen, or for those who have already done so but have struggled to master the precise art of the handheld additive manufacturing device, there is a new technology in development that could be the answer to your 3D printing artistic challenges: the Guided Hand project, created by Yeliz Karadayi.

As we’ve seen, the possibilities of creating amazing works of art with 3D printing pens are virtually limitless, as people have successfully created 3D printed wearable art, amazing 3Doodled sculptures, and even 3D printed canvas paintings using the handheld technology. Of course, not everyone has the natural artistic chops or even patience to create such stunning pieces with 3D printing pens, especially as they depend on freehand artistic capabilities.

To deal with this, and to offer an alternative to the freehand nature of 3D printing pens, designer and developer Yeliz Karadayi has come up with a novel system that uses a robotic arm, aided by a human hand, to create 3D printed objects using a 3D printing pen. The Guided Hand project, which was developed as part of Karadayi’s thesis research at the Carnegie Mellon University, essentially uses a digital 3D model to guide your own hand in the right places with the 3D printing pen.

The system, essentially a robotic arm that holds the 3D printing pen, guides the user both by gently moving and through force feedback, which stops the user from continuing a movement when it is not necessary. Additionally, with the use of vibrations, the Guided Hand robotic arm can even change the texture of the extruded plastic.

The force feedback, or “Geomagic Touch”, works like a sort of three dimensional ruler, which abruptly stops the 3D printing pen at the right moments, almost as if you are drawing over a real solid model. According to a video about the project, the robotic arm can even emulate a number of different sensations, like texture, springiness, and attraction forces, making it really seem as though you are 3D printing over a solid, invisible object.

Karadayi, who conceived of the project, explains its potential benefits: “By adding a layer of accuracy and efficiency while maintaining a variable level of freedom, the 3D pen has the potential to be used on a more refined level for fabrication, sculpture, and design. Force feedback for freehand 3D printing changes the creation process entirely, allowing for a symbiosis of the design and fabrication processes, bringing back the art of craft and physical design that designers have lost in the digital age.”

That is, Karadayi is hoping to not only offer less skilled 3D printing pen enthusiasts a way to hone their craft, but also for already skilled designers to use haptic modeling technology while simultaneously creating an immersive physical model of their work.

While the Guided Hand Project is not market ready and it is unclear whether it will actually be retailed, the idea could offer artists and designers a novel way of additively manufacturing pieces with a 3D printing pen. To learn more about the project, check out the video below:

 

 

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Walter C. Hynson wrote at 5/22/2016 9:57:46 PM:

Your project is neat for shaky people,however you would have been better off using your device to develop an entirely new low cost 3d printer based on your device and software,What you have done is create a new version of a jig used in woodworking called a duplicating carver to solve a problem for persons who have not taken art instruction or have no talent as a way to make something with a 3d pen ,This technology is new and before designing a handicap machine methods should have been developed on how to use the 3d pen and what must be done by the user before turning the pen on example : to build an object with a 3d pen one uses an entirely different though train as the entire process is new ,and object must have bones and structure before the final exterior skin is applied, most of the videos on the net showing mid air drawing are fake The piece is made laying down and than stood up to give the appearance of mid air printing....WCH



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