A blog intended for, and often written by, my middle school students, as well as anyone interested in the fascinating potential of 3D printing and the process of getting there. Since our blog's start in 2013, we've expanded our content a bit to incorporate our other middle school making. Click the "Our BPC Story" blog label to learn more about our Maker Club journey.
Recently a dog named Derby was adopted. (Update 1.31.15: We just learned at the 3DPW Expo that the owner of Derby was Tara Anderson, who happens to be an employee of 3D Systems!) He is unusual because he was born with deformed front legs. The owners have tried many things to help the dog, like giving it wheels. But his movements was still limited and, because of the angle of the dog, it was not good for the dog's spine.
Using 3D scanning, legs were made to fit especially onto the dogs joints, giving him the ability to run. They had a very interesting design - loops rather than pegs, so the dog's legs would not sink into the dirt. 3D scanning made it possible to build these prosthetics quickly, without time-intensive hand fitting.
