Star Trek analogies abound for the ‘Replicator’ technology generically known as 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing. Forthcoming release Teleport It 3D is the latest addition to a growing suite of methods to network 3D printers and 3D printables. The slightly guarded principle of Teleport-It3D appears to be based upon the relatively simple concept of emailing 3D CAD (Computer Aided Design) files, via Teleport It 3D, to another with a 3D printer, to use on demand. Potentially this is an equivalence to a cloud based service, perhaps some equivalence to file-sharing, streaming and so on. The alternatives, network’s such as 3Dhubs, makexyz.com the suite of industrial applications of 3Dindustri.es shape sharing, and so forth, offer a range of different approaches to this niche. Each has their own pro’s and con’s. MakerBot and Ponoko currently offer the equivalent of an iOS platform and App Store: with service registration, API’s for developers, etc. As the range of materials and items that will be legally allowed for home production may be limited to protect certain industries and establishments; perhaps a stratification of design sharing services will occur based upon existing demographics – not quite the egalitarian dream of the self-replicating RepRap, but a catalyst for innovation across society and the globe nevertheless.
It’s pretty inspirational to see so many people becoming engaged in such a simple technology that offers so much potential benefit to all.
More information will be forthcoming on Teleport It 3D’s Roddenberry-nomenclature based services as the company that has developed the service — Layer by Layer — unveils further progress during their release schedule.
About Layer By Layer
Our mission is to increase the availability of great, 3D printable products. We believe that making 3D printing accessible to anyone will help advance the future of 3D printing technology and change the world. We want 3D printing to inspire you the way it has inspired us.
Layer By Layer is a 3D printing technology company founded in 2012 to promote 3D printing through the creation of elegant and innovative software. Teleport It 3D is an example of how pre-sliced, ready-to-print file streaming can make using a 3D printer easier than ever, while giving people a safe way to share prints with each other.
