Robotics and 3D Printers
With the changes in the new British Columbia education curriculum, there is a strong push for integration of multiple disciplines within a single classroom. Teachers are collaborating with one another to allow students to work on more complex projects or interdisciplinary projects. STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) and STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Art and Math) are geared towards students solving problems using all of their knowledge in various areas.
3D printers, combined with drafting software such as SketchUp, AutoCAD, Inventor, or Fusion 360, can be powerful problem-solving tools to have at students' disposal. These technologies can allow students to assess and analyze problems in new or more efficient ways.
3D printers, combined with drafting software such as SketchUp, AutoCAD, Inventor, or Fusion 360, can be powerful problem-solving tools to have at students' disposal. These technologies can allow students to assess and analyze problems in new or more efficient ways.
With access to software and printers, students can solve problems by:
With limited budgets and the growing costs of materials, 3D printers can allow teachers to save money while still allowing students to learn from mistakes or miscalculations.
- Making a model of a part or item using a modeling software
- Printing a part to assess its functionality or esthetics
- Identifying problems on the product and modifing the model to correct them
- Reprinting the modified model and testing it
- Creating the final product out of the material that best suits the needs of the project
With limited budgets and the growing costs of materials, 3D printers can allow teachers to save money while still allowing students to learn from mistakes or miscalculations.
New classes have been introduced to the new BC curriculum and schools are offering classes such as Mechatronics and Robotics which would benefit highly from having access to 3D printers. These classes integrate a wide range of skills and knowledge from various disciplines to pursue educational goals. With 3D printing in the classroom, students are able to problem-solve and adapt to unique situations more effectively and in a more timlier manner. One popular robotics project in the classroom is known as the Mini Sumo Robot project, where the goal is to create a robot to fit specific parameters and knock an opponent out of the ring. These projects require lots of design work and are often prototyped using 3D printers to test ideas.
Extra-curricular robotics clubs are growing across the province with the goal of competing against other schools or in tournaments. Typically, schools focus on VEX Robotics or FIRST Robotics, as they are the most popular. Although these projects use a variety of materials, prototypes are often created for testing using 3D printers and modeling software.
To find out more information about FIRST Robotics take a look at this video or click the button below.
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Here is a VEX Robotics competition in which players must stack cones upon a pillar within a given time limit.
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Skriware 3D Printers for Robotics
Polish-Swedish startup company Skriware, the recipient of the Central European Startup Award 2017, is providing 3D printers, a virtual library with 3D models, and robotic programming software, to build robots. Under the name of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) they aim to "bridge the gap between pure creativity and applied science in order to equip today's visionaries with the tools that will help them shape the coming decades". You can check the interview of Skriware's CEO Karol Górnowicz here in which she talks about the company's vision as well as entrepreneurship in 3D printing.
Market Opportunities
3D printing is an emerging market that grabs the attention of investors. In this section we would like to give an overview of the 3D printing market and what you should expect before investing in this sector. Let's start with some forecast reports.
According to the research report of Technavio, in 2014 the global 3D printing market in education was valued at $323 million and it is expected to reach $2.321 billion by 2019.
According to the research report of Technavio, in 2014 the global 3D printing market in education was valued at $323 million and it is expected to reach $2.321 billion by 2019.
According to a study by Sculpteo, a private digital manufacturing company, Education ranks 4th in 3D printing applications with 7% of the market share. International Data Cooperation's (IDC) 2017 Worldwide 3D Printer Shipment Tracker data shows that Worldwide 3D printer shipments grew 29% while revenues grew 18%.
The average cost of a desktop 3D Printer is $1094 according to Wohler's 2017 Report. For industrial 3D printers, this price goes up to $104,222. It should be noted that printers selling under $5000 are the fastest growing segment of 3D printer sales.
The average cost of a desktop 3D Printer is $1094 according to Wohler's 2017 Report. For industrial 3D printers, this price goes up to $104,222. It should be noted that printers selling under $5000 are the fastest growing segment of 3D printer sales.
The 2017 Hype Curve by Gartner estimates various trends in 3D printing that are on the rise. This is creating great expectations and is starting to become mainstream. A summary of this report can be found here and in the image below:
Advancements in 3D printing technology do not only affect the printers themselves. The filaments that are used in 3D printers are produced by chemical companies which show interest in improving the materials. Sales of polymer filaments and other materials for fused filament fabrications (FFF) were $182 million in 2016.
The growing numbers create competitive market conditions which at times are hard on new startups who do not have experience with market analyses. In 2017, a Kickstarter campaign for a Unibody 3D printer was canceled because of the team's inexperience (especially in terms of analyzing the costs) and technical difficulties. You can read the announcement of the cancellation of the firm here. For more information and insight on the failure of that startup, a CEO of another Kickstarter-funded 3D printer company, Michael Armani, analyses what went wrong here. We suggest you read this article and comment below.
The growing numbers create competitive market conditions which at times are hard on new startups who do not have experience with market analyses. In 2017, a Kickstarter campaign for a Unibody 3D printer was canceled because of the team's inexperience (especially in terms of analyzing the costs) and technical difficulties. You can read the announcement of the cancellation of the firm here. For more information and insight on the failure of that startup, a CEO of another Kickstarter-funded 3D printer company, Michael Armani, analyses what went wrong here. We suggest you read this article and comment below.