research articles on Rep-rap
Posted by johansoderberg
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research articles on Rep-rap April 16, 2014 07:45AM |
Registered: 10 years ago Posts: 2 |
Reprapers,
I take the liberty of posting on your forum three research articles about the Rep-rap project that I have written. The articles are the outcome so-far (there is more in the pipeline) of the study about the Rep-rap project that I made in 2009-2010. It is based on interviews with about half of the core team developers at the time, as well as four of the key start-up entrepreneurs. I am grateful for the time and confidence that you showed me when accepting to be interviewed. Although a lot has since been written about 3D printers, as far as I am aware of this is the only study about the Rep-rap project based on interviews with you developers. Of course, I will be interested to hear what you make of it. Eventually I hope to have material for a book on Rep-rap and open hardware development, and if you think you should be in it, I am keen to make more interviews...
Atoms Want to Be Free Too! Expanding the Critique of Intellectual Property to Physical Goods:
[www.triple-c.at]
Reproducing Wealth Without Money, One 3D Printer at a Time:
[peerproduction.net]
additional information & articles: www.johansoderberg.net
I take the liberty of posting on your forum three research articles about the Rep-rap project that I have written. The articles are the outcome so-far (there is more in the pipeline) of the study about the Rep-rap project that I made in 2009-2010. It is based on interviews with about half of the core team developers at the time, as well as four of the key start-up entrepreneurs. I am grateful for the time and confidence that you showed me when accepting to be interviewed. Although a lot has since been written about 3D printers, as far as I am aware of this is the only study about the Rep-rap project based on interviews with you developers. Of course, I will be interested to hear what you make of it. Eventually I hope to have material for a book on Rep-rap and open hardware development, and if you think you should be in it, I am keen to make more interviews...
Atoms Want to Be Free Too! Expanding the Critique of Intellectual Property to Physical Goods:
[www.triple-c.at]
Reproducing Wealth Without Money, One 3D Printer at a Time:
[peerproduction.net]
additional information & articles: www.johansoderberg.net
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Re: research articles on Rep-rap April 17, 2014 02:37PM |
Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 7,616 |
Johan,
my compliments for all these very careful observations.
While it might have been not that obvious one or two years back, I think this replication idea is pretty much gone now. Wherever I look, these engineering hobbyists don't look into expanding replication, but into using more industrial parts. Usually with the claim of higher convenience and/or higher reliability at "reasonable" prices.
And engineering discussions are a minority part here anyways, some 80% mimic sort of a helpdesk for commercial machines. Usually commercial machines derived from RepRap ideas.
One thing I would like to add to the social position of engineers (here in the RepRap universe). As all designs are open source, so a design has zero commercial value. As a design has zero value, an engineers' work has zero value, too. As a result, developments no longer happen by careful engineering, but by try-and-error, done by the uneducated. Engineers fell not only to the level of weavers, but far below them.
I could well imagine the RepRap project turns out to be sort of a bubble. The bubble grew while supported by academics ( = funded, but without commercial goals), held for a while and now slowly but steadily collapses towards almost-disappearance.
Even if it is a bubble, it's by no means useless, of course. RepRap has brought one aspect of technology, affordable 3D printing, forward by a huge step. All the published designs made lots of technologies very approachable for hobbyists. It spawned hundreds of small companies doing more or less successful business. Especially the latter wouldn't have happened without the RepRap effort.
my compliments for all these very careful observations.
While it might have been not that obvious one or two years back, I think this replication idea is pretty much gone now. Wherever I look, these engineering hobbyists don't look into expanding replication, but into using more industrial parts. Usually with the claim of higher convenience and/or higher reliability at "reasonable" prices.
And engineering discussions are a minority part here anyways, some 80% mimic sort of a helpdesk for commercial machines. Usually commercial machines derived from RepRap ideas.
One thing I would like to add to the social position of engineers (here in the RepRap universe). As all designs are open source, so a design has zero commercial value. As a design has zero value, an engineers' work has zero value, too. As a result, developments no longer happen by careful engineering, but by try-and-error, done by the uneducated. Engineers fell not only to the level of weavers, but far below them.
I could well imagine the RepRap project turns out to be sort of a bubble. The bubble grew while supported by academics ( = funded, but without commercial goals), held for a while and now slowly but steadily collapses towards almost-disappearance.
Even if it is a bubble, it's by no means useless, of course. RepRap has brought one aspect of technology, affordable 3D printing, forward by a huge step. All the published designs made lots of technologies very approachable for hobbyists. It spawned hundreds of small companies doing more or less successful business. Especially the latter wouldn't have happened without the RepRap effort.
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Re: research articles on Rep-rap April 22, 2014 03:39AM |
Registered: 10 years ago Posts: 2 |
Hi Markus,
It gladens me you liked the writing (and that you are fine with my use of the interview with you), and at the same time, I am disheartenend that you confirm my portrayal of what has become of the Rep-Rap project compared to its earlier days. It would make me even happier if someone challenged me on that point... As for the other comment you make, you are spot on, and I can only add to it that computer/mechanical enginering projects are not the only bubbles that are kept up by state subsidies masked as "education". It is the way the world spins these days. My guess is that for as long as the university system has enough plausibility to provide ideological cover for Keynsian planing & redistribution (all the more important as it is one of the last remaining), this bubble will keep all the other little bubbles soaring.
/Johan
It gladens me you liked the writing (and that you are fine with my use of the interview with you), and at the same time, I am disheartenend that you confirm my portrayal of what has become of the Rep-Rap project compared to its earlier days. It would make me even happier if someone challenged me on that point... As for the other comment you make, you are spot on, and I can only add to it that computer/mechanical enginering projects are not the only bubbles that are kept up by state subsidies masked as "education". It is the way the world spins these days. My guess is that for as long as the university system has enough plausibility to provide ideological cover for Keynsian planing & redistribution (all the more important as it is one of the last remaining), this bubble will keep all the other little bubbles soaring.
/Johan
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