Skip to main content

Robotic 3D printer uses augmented reality to fabricate designs as they’re created

RoMA: Interactive Fabrication with Augmented Reality and a Robotic 3D Printer

Robotic assistants are one of the most enduring features when we envision our technological future. Whether they’re Roombas sweeping the floor or chauffeurs in the form of self-driving cars, our collective image of the future is almost always accented by machinic helpers.

Now, a team of scientists is building a robotic assistant, not necessarily to help around the home, but to fabricate 3D digital designs in real time. Dubbed the Robotic Modeling Assistant (RoMA), the system combines augmented reality (AR) with robotic modeling, allowing users to design primitive 3D models on one side of a platform while the robotic arm fabricates the object on the other.

“One of the most exciting things about RoMA is the combination of AR with fast 3D printing, which makes it possible for the designer to not only receive the visual cue of their design, but also the fast, in-situ tangible feedback that otherwise couldn’t be possible,” Huaishu Peng, an information science doctoral student at Cornell University who helped create RoMa, told Digital Trends. “This setup also opens up new opportunities for us to tryout the concept of direct design and print onto an existing object. We are still at the early stage of the technology, but you may imagine in the future you can directly use such technique to customize physical objects in your house.”

RoMa requires a bit of teamwork to operate. While wearing AR goggles and holding a controller, the user draws 3D features on top of a platform that’s shared with the robot. So they don’t get in each other’s way, the user designs on the front half of the platform, while the robot fabricates on the back. After finalizing a feature, the user spins the platform around and the robot begins fabrication.

The system is currently limited to primitive, skeletal designs that pale in comparison to some of the more sophisticated 3D-printed objects out there, but Peng is optimistic about the system’s potential to help streamline design and 3D fabrication in the future, and even pave the way for more collaborative projects.

“For now, one of the biggest benefits of RoMA is to allow designers to check the physical print at a very early design stage,” he said. “But I can foresee many potential extensions of the project. One possible direction I’m quite excited about is for the robotic 3D printer to be smarter. That the robot will not just follow the user strictly, but may understand the user’s design intention, and toward co-design between human and a robot.”

The future Peng envisions may be tantalizing but it’s still some ways off. After all, although there are companies currently working on instilling intelligence into 3D printers, A.I. still struggles to comprehend comics.

Peng and his colleagues will present a paper on RoMa in April at the Human Computer Interaction conference.

Editors' Recommendations

Dyllan Furness
Dyllan Furness is a freelance writer from Florida. He covers strange science and emerging tech for Digital Trends, focusing…
The best 3D printers under $500
3D printers are finally affordable. Here are the best models under $500
anycubic photon review 3d printer xxl 2

The 3D printing market has seen quite a few changes over the last few years. In just the span of a decade, the barrier to entry has dropped from well over several thousand dollars to under $200 in some cases. However, all entry and mid-level printers are not made equal. We have a few suggestions for prospective buyers and other information regarding alternatives not found on this list.

To some veterans of the 3D printing scene, this list may seem like it lacks a few of the most commonly recommended printers for newcomers. This is by design. Our list only considers printers with tested components from proven, reliable vendors. That's why we chose the Monoprice MP Mini v2 as our top pick--it's reliable and easy to use. We have avoided any printer with a frame primarily made from interlocking acrylic pieces and anything historically unreliable.
Most bang for your buck: Monoprice MP Mini v2
 
Pros:

Read more
Ceramic ink could let doctors 3D print bones directly into a patient’s body
ceramic ink 3d printed bones bioprinting australia 2

Scientists use a novel ink to 3D print ‘bone’ with living cells

The term 3D bioprinting refers to the use of 3D printing technology to fabricate biomedical parts that, eventually, could be used to create replacement organs or other body parts as required. While we’re not at that point just yet, a number of big advances have been made toward this dream over the past couple of decades.

Read more
The future of making stuff: Inside the evolution of 3D printing with Formlabs
future of 3d printing formlabs ces 2021 castablewax40

When 3D printing went mainstream in the mid-2010s and exploded in popularity, it was about as hyped up as it possibly could be. Evangelists told us it would fundamentally transform the way goods were made, and usher in a bold new era of creative freedom. Soon, they said, we’d be able to fabricate anything we wanted on-demand, Star Trek replicator style, right from the comfort of our own homes.

But of course, 3D printing didn't really live up to that high-flying dream. Instead, it made a momentary splash and then largely returned to the fringes, gaining adoption in hobbyist workshops and cutting-edge product design labs, but not really changing the face of manufacturing in the way many hoped it might.

Read more