If the holy grail of production is full delocalization, a truly portable desktop 3D printer is a must. Well, a new project called ‘By Flow’ is taking a crack at it. The FFF 3D printer project, undertaken by 3Dbyflow, folds and sits comfortably inside a small case, requires no plate calibration and allows for direct SD Card 3D printing with filament as well as plastics, ceramics, food and even metal.
The By Flow 3D printer weights only 7 Kg and has a build volume of 215 x 220 x 160 mm, using 1.75 mm diameter filament. It can produce a layer height between 50 and 400 microns. Its full size, folded up in a comfortable to carry briefcase, is 440 x 325 x 460 mm, with an aluminium chassis, which means you can definitely carry it on board as hand luggage.
The By Flow supports all of the most commonly used open source slicing software, and its building/extrusion system is designed to be as minimal and sturdy as possible. For maximum freedom of creation, the company developed a line of interchangeable extruders, which will let users create objects using a wide range of pastes. And don’t worry, they already include chocolate and clay/ceramics.
The team behind the By Flow is already planning on using it to print with metal. So, if you think about it, a sufficient number of By Flows could theoretically allow you to set up a factory, practically anywhere in the world, to make pretty much anything you need….
