Canadian $100 3D printer project updates Kickstarter backers

Creators of the Peachy Printer, the Canadian-made $100 3D printer that raised more than CAD$650,000 on Kickstarter last year, have released the latest test prints of its unique machine. Since its crowd-funding campaign wrapped in October of 2013, the 3D printer’s inventor Rylan Grayston and the Rinnovated Design team have been working toward a 2015 ship date for its initial backers and pre-orders.

Unlike typical entry-level 3D printers that are driven by an x/y extruder nozzle, the photo-lithographic Peachy Printer uses laser light, reflected by two electro-magnetically controlled mirrors, to solidify layers of photo-sensitive liquid polymer. The z-height is controlled by a drip system that raises the level of the polymer within tank-like build space for each successive layer.

Similarly unconventional, the Peachy Printer receives model geometry via the audio-out port of a computer sound card rather than by USB. 3D data created or imported into the open-source 3D modeler, Blender, is output by way of a plug-in that converts the overall geometry to a digital waveform. In turn, the sound file controls the Peachy Printer’s mirrors and thereby dictates where the laser will solidify the polymer for any given layer.

At the beginning of October, Grayson announced that, with assistance from the printer’s beta testers, that the team has rooted out a number of technical challenges that will push back the final ship date by four months. At present, the team says they are anticipating an early summer 2015 ship date.
www.peachyprinter.com