Published: 2014-10-01
Total Pages: 306
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In recent years, 3D printers have revolutionized the worlds of manufacturing, design, and art. As the price of printers drop and their availability increases, more people will have access to these remarkable machines. A Beginner's Guide to 3D Printing is written for those who would like to experiment with 3D design and manufacturing, but have little or no technical experience with the standard software. Professional engineer Mike Rigsby leads readers step-by-step through fifteen simple toy projects, each illustrated with screen caps of Autodesk 123D Design, the most common free 3D software available. The projects are later described using Sketchup, another free popular software package. The toy projects in A Beginner's Guide to 3D Printing start simple-a domino, nothing more than an extruded rectangle, a rectangular block-that will take longer to print than design. But soon the reader will be creating jewel boxes with lids, a baking-powder submarine, interchangeable panels for a design-it-yourself dollhouse, a simple train with expandable track, a multipiece airplane, a working paddleboat, and a rubber band-powered car. Finally, readers will design, print, and assemble a Little Clicker, a noise-making push toy with froggy eyes. Once trained in the basics of CAD design, readers will be able to embark on even more elaborate designs of their own creation. Mike Rigsby is a professional electrical engineer and author of Doable Renewables, Amazing Rubber Band Cars and Haywired. He has written for Popular Science, Robotics Age, Modern Electronics, Circuit Cellar, Byte, and other magazines.