A Canadian company has seen off the previous world record for indoor printing with a plastic filament campervan. The 3D-printed van – a world first in itself – is over three times larger than the previous record holder, measuring just under two by four meters, being six feet wide and thirteen feet long.
Specialists at Saskatoon’s Create Cafe, an organization which aims to promote 3D printing across a range of spheres across Canada, brought the trailer into existence over nine days, using their own custom-made ErectorBot 3D printer.
The campervan, which has been named “The Wave,” needs no chassis and is fully-waterproof thanks to its seamless design. The inventors intend to make it available for public purchase towards the end of the year, once it has been fitted out with windows and the requisite appliances and electronics. Customers will be able to have their vans tailored for their own specific needs. To demonstrate the trailer’s potential in this area, “The Wave” can be fully converted into a cabin for ice fishing.
In addition to preparing the campervan for the market, the Saskatchewanian team is also looking at ways to improve the production process, with a focus on reducing vibrations during the print, which they hope will reduce both the printing time and the high temperatures they were forced to endure as the printer worked through day and night. Another challenge they hope to eliminate from future prints is that of dealing with unexpected software reboots, which can significantly extend production time.
“The Wave” weighs an impressive 272kg (600lbs), yet its developers are hoping to produce even heavier and larger versions in the future, including sixteen-foot (4.9m) and nineteen-foot (5.8m) truck bed models.
The breakthrough represents yet another stride forward for the 3D printing world, which has recently seen the addition of homeless shelters and even bridges to the list of products which are expected to revolutionize both the way we live and our ideas about manufacturing.