Science Fiction Dictionary
A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z

 

3D Cocooner From Festo Spins Web In Mid-Air

The 3D Cocooner developed by Festo is a device that builds three-dimensional shapes using a special resin-coated thread extruded from a computer-controlled spinneret.


(3D Cocooner from Festo)

In order to convert the soft thread into a solid lattice structure, it is covered with a special resin in the spinneret. As soon as it comes out of the spinneret, a UV light cures the resin-soaked fibre with pinpoint accuracy and hardens it into a sturdy little rod. During the process, the thread can be reset at any point on the lattice structure, where it continues to build. In this way, it is possible to construct even complex shapes in three-dimensional space without any supports.

A vertically arranged tripod of type EXPT-45 acts as a handling system for the 3D Cocooner. The high-speed handling system can be controlled quickly and precisely in the space and its manoeuvrability makes it ideal for such a task. The tripod receives the necessary positional data and control signals directly from an animation software program, in which the 3D shape model parametrically generates the desired structure.

The 3D Cocooner is the real-life realization of a device from Things Pass By, a 1945 story by Murray Leinster. This device could be controlled to produce useful artifacts from drawings, which might lead to more graceful designs.

It makes drawings in the air following drawings it scans with photo-cells. But plastic comes out of the end of the drawing arm and hardens as it comes. This thing will start at one end of a ship or a house and build it complete to the other end, following drawings only.
(Read more about Leinster's Plastic Constructor)

Festo is a creative powerhouse; take a look at these previous articles.
 Robot Arm With Fluidic Muscles
Fascinating robotic arm technology is based on the human skeletal structure.
(11/6/2007re: Harry Harrison)
 Yamaha Deus Ex Wearable Motorcycle Concept
Although only a concept, the 'Deus Ex' may remind you of another vision of the wearable motorcycle.
(11/10/2008re: Various)
 Robot AquaPenguins Soar Underwater
This robot has an extremely flexible 'fuselage' or body that helps it move uncannily like a real penguin. Note: this article now has video!
(4/20/2009re: Michael Swanwick)
 Festo Aqua Ray Robot
I love underwater robots. Especially the biomimetic underwater robots. This manta ray robot is amazing with the skin on - or off. With video!
(4/20/2009re: Various)
 WIND Wearable Robot Controller
Robot wirelessly sense, robot do. Kind of like a full-torso waldo.
(2/5/2010re: Robert Heinlein)
 Dark Cloud: The Future Of (Anti-)Social Networking
In which two books, read at the same time, coincidentally make each other more interesting.
(4/2/2010re: Barnes/Lanier)
 Still Dreaming Of Tentacle Arms
Beware the 'long, flexible, glittering tentacles...'
(4/14/2010re: H.G. Wells)
 Festo Biomimetic Bionic Handling Systems
Oh, those guys at Festo are doing more than just dreaming about tentacle arms!
(4/19/2010re: H.G. Wells)
 Festo Bionic Handling Assistant Video
Terrific video presents Festo's robotics work, as described by the engineers who created it.
(9/27/2010re: H.G. Wells)
 Marvin Minsky's Tentacle Arm Video
Even in 1968, it was time to 'Beware the 'long, flexible, glittering tentacles...''
(11/11/2010re: H.G. Wells)
 SmartBird Robotic Bird In Flight
Remarkable biomimetic robot from the Festo corporation (not Tyrell).
(3/29/2011re: Philip K. Dick)
 Festo ExoHand Fine Motor Skill Robotic Hand
'Waldo put his arms into the primary pair before him - all three pairs... came to life.'
(7/5/2012re: Robert Heinlein)
 Most Advanced Robotic Hand?
'Hands I could order from the atomics-engineering equipment companies...'- Robert Heinlein, 1956.
(10/2/2014re: Robert Heinlein)
 Graphene Cytobot - Cyborg Bacterial Spores May Help Astronauts
'[It] had not yet objected to being made over into a portion of an electronic system... '- Philip K. Dick, 1964.
(3/15/2015re: Philip K. Dick)
 eMotionButterfly Ultralight Robot From Festo
'Artificial butterflies darted along invisible beams...'- Roger Zelazny, 1980.
(3/16/2015re: Roger Zelazny)

Read more about Festo's 3D Cocooner.

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 4/12/2016)

Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.

| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |

Would you like to contribute a story tip? It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add it here.

Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )

Related News Stories - (" Manufacturing ")

DARPA Wants 'Large Bio-Mechanical Space Structures'
'These are your rudimentary seed packages... Some will combine in place to form more complicated structures.' - Greg Bear, 2015

Robot Bricklayer Or Passer-By Bricklayer?
'Oscar picked up a trowel. 'I'm the tool for the mortar,' the little trowel squeaked cheerfully.' - Bruce Sterling, 1998.

Organic Non-Planar 3D Printing
'It makes drawings in the air following drawings...' - Murray Leinster, 1945.

Laser-Beam Welding In Orbital Factories
'His contract with Space Industries required him to work summers in their orbital factory.' - Jerry Pournelle, 1976.

 

Google
  Web TechNovelgy.com   

Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.

 

 

 

 

Science Fiction Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's   1950's
1960's   1970's
1980's   1990's
2000's   2010's

Current News

LLM 'Cognitive Core' Now Evolving
'Their only check on the growth and development of Vulcan 3 lay in two clues: the amount of rock thrown up to the surface... and the amount of the raw materials and tools and parts which the computer requested.'

Has Elon Musk Given Up On Mars?
'There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.'

Bacteria Turns Plastic Into Pain Relief? That Gives Me An Idea.
'I guess there's nobody round this table who doesn't have a Crosswell [tapeworm] working for him in the small intestine.'

When Your Child's Best Friend Is An AI
'Figments of his mind in one sense, of course, for he had shaped them...'

China's Drone Mothership Can Carry 100 Drones
'So the parent drone carries a spotter that it launches...'

Drones Recharge In Mid-Air Like Jets Refuel!
'...nurse drones that would cruise around dumping large amounts of power into randomly selected pods.'

Australian Authors Reject AI Training Of Llama
'It's done with a flip of the third joint of the tentacle on the down beat.'

Is China Mining Helium-3 On The Moon's Farside?
'...for months Grantline bores had dug into the cliff.'

Maybe It's Too Soon To Require Autonomous Mode
'I hope all those other cars are on automatic,' he said anxiously.

Is Agentic AI The Wrong Kind Of Smartness?
'It’s smart enough to go wrong in very complicated ways, but not smart enough to help us find out what’s wrong.'

Heat Waver - The First Ever Combo Solar Collector And Wind Turbine
'...like a spray of tulips mounted fanwise.'

Tesla 'Fleet Response Agents' Bolster FSD Autonomy
'You hate the whole idea that some bored drone pusher in a remote driving centre has got your life... in his hands.'

Mori3 Autonomous Shapeshifting Robot
'My homeland is being threatened by the Replicators. Thus far all attempts to stop them have failed.'

Tesla Seeks 'Tesla Robotaxi' And 'Robobus' Trademarks Ignoring Prior Art
'A robobus had just rolled up to the curb.'

Scary Grid Safety Robots
'The ultimate horror for our paranoid culture...'

Does AI Provide A Way Forward For Talk Therapy
'And there in the next room by the sofa sat a familiar suitcase, that of his psychiatrist Dr. Smile.'

More SF in the News Stories

More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories

Home | Glossary | Invention Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™

Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.