Since the invention of the 3D printer in 1983 by Chuck Hull of 3D Systems, many companies appeared, attempting to make the most advanced machine.
For instance, the MakerBot Replicator 2 which allows users to make big objects, up to 410 cubic inches.
Here are the 5 Strangest Things that are already created by 3D Printing:
1. A Gun
It looks like a toy but its a deadly weapon. It's the world's first 3D-printed gun. Last year, a radical libertarian/anarchist from the University of Texas' law school named Cody Wilson, announced plans for printing a gun to establish a charitable called Defense Distributed to manufacture the weapon and distribute the plans.
Wilson and his team achieved their dream in early March. They successfully tested the "Liberator" on a Texas firing range. The gun is made from plastic pieces printed on an $8,000 Stratasys Dimension SST 3D printer, except for a firing pin made from a metal nail. The gun successfully shot a .380 caliber bullet, unfortunately it exploded when the team tried to change it to shoot a larger 5.7x28 rifle cartridge.
2. A DIY Violin
The world's first 3D-printed violin surprise the world. It's half-made papier-mâché project. Alex Davies, DIY violin-maker, used 3D printing to make a plastic form for the violin's body, which he and his team then covered it with newspaper and glue. A bit of cardboard completed the neck and some picture-hanging wire made the strings. The result is announced online Feb. 27 on Youtube that it was no Stradivarius, but its creators stated, "not bad for a weekend and 12 dollars."
3. A Human Stem Cells
The device works by creating constant droplets of living embryonic stem cells, which are the cells existing in early development that can transform into any type of tissue. The printer is so mild that it can produce a minimum of five cells at a time without any damage. Researchers can use the droplets of cells to quickly test drugs or to build tiny scraps of tissue. The goal of this project is to build the whole organ from scrath.
4. A Dead King's Face
When the skeleton of the long-lost King Richard III was found under a parking lot in Leicester, England, archaeologists turned over the skull dimensions to facial reconstruction expert Caroline Wilkinson of the University of Dundee. Wilkinson and her team molded computerized flesh to computerized bone and then 3D printed the broken parts - a credible look at a man who's already dead for more than 500 years.
5. A Bionic ear
A 3D-printed bionic ear is made up from calf cells, a polymer gel and silver nanoparticles that can pick up radio signals beyond the range of human hearing. It was created by Princeton University researchers.
The researchers printed the gel into an estimated ear shape and cultured the calf cells on that matrix to create something appropriately biological. The mixture of silver nanoparticles creates the "antenna" that is use for picking up radio signals, which could then be transmitted to the cochlea, the part of the ear that interprets sound into brain signals. But, the researchers have no plans yet to stick the ear to a human head.
The world of 3D printing is exciting. With more affordable machines, creative entrepreneurs, advanced startups, and new materials, the industry is quickly evolving.
