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Mailing List Logs for ShadowRN

Message no. 1
From: Gurth gurth@******.nl
Subject: Laser-molding
Date: Fri, 3 Sep 1999 10:16:37 +0200
According to Ereskanti@***.com, at 16:19 on 2 Sep 99, the word on
the street was...

> Anyway, there was something *really* cool in it that I have to admit I was
> shocked to see. It had a setup that could build models out of
> epoxy-polymer/resin using a laser. The laser would trace the outline in the
> resin, and whereever the resin traced would solidy. The layer was lowered
> down, and the laser system continued on its' merry work. In about 2-3 hours

Never seen that show, but I read an article about this technique several
years ago.

I also read Holy Fire by Bruce Sterling (which I wouldn't recommend, BTW)
not long ago, and there's a bunch of artists in it who use this to make
their art -- mannequins based on the main character of the book, for
example.

> I think it said they had a too-specification model of the space shuttle
> (exterior) ready for usage in other places (like wind tunnels or advanced
> rendering concepts). It was cool as I could imagine and wondered if this
> kind material and setup could be done as a "shop" in SR.

Sure. It's not all that complicated, all you need to have is a laser that
you can point where you want by computer, and a resin that hardens when
the laser hits it.

> I was imagining using this as the setup for doing simpler, more impact
> related, armors, possible bod 0/1 drone chassis, or even just
cases/"extras"
> that a runner would need.
>
> Hell, with something like they were showing I was imagining someone coming up
> with a custom-designed gun that would be fully functional (if just light
> powered) and being "built" inside the casing to something else. Made to
form
> gear....

You'd have to keep limitations of the material in mind, though. Since this
uses a resin, it'll probably be unsuitable for objects that need high-
strength materials. Furthermore, if the item is made too thin it will be
rather fragile, shattering easily.

The main use of this technique, I think, would be in R&D rather than
actual manufacturing -- instead of having to wait a long time for a part
of a device being built, you can make it in a few hours and see how it
fits together with the other components of whatever it is you're
designing. It likely won't be functional (unless it's a mechanical
device), but it will show you how everything scales out and fits together.

--
Gurth@******.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
De plaag is terug...!
-> NAGEE Editor * ShadowRN GridSec * Unofficial Shadowrun Guru <-
->The Plastic Warriors Page: http://shadowrun.html.com/plasticwarriors/<-
-> The New Character Mortuary: http://www.electricferret.com/mortuary/ <-

GC3.1: GAT/! d-(dpu) s:- !a>? C+(++)@ U P L E? W(++) N o? K- w+ O V? PS+
PE Y PGP- t(+) 5++ X++ R+++>$ tv+(++) b++@ DI? D+ G(++) e h! !r(---) y?
Incubated into the First Church of the Sqooshy Ball, 21-05-1998
Message no. 2
From: Lurch lurch@****.net
Subject: Laser-molding
Date: Mon, 06 Sep 1999 13:33:03 -0500
Gurth wrote:
>
> You'd have to keep limitations of the material in mind, though. Since this
> uses a resin, it'll probably be unsuitable for objects that need high-
> strength materials. Furthermore, if the item is made too thin it will be
> rather fragile, shattering easily.
>

That could have its own uses, too; say, if you needed something that
could be easily disposed of after use (like an assassin's weapon, for
example).

> The main use of this technique, I think, would be in R&D rather than
> actual manufacturing -- instead of having to wait a long time for a part
> of a device being built, you can make it in a few hours and see how it
> fits together with the other components of whatever it is you're
> designing. It likely won't be functional (unless it's a mechanical
> device), but it will show you how everything scales out and fits together.

A real-life use I know of for this technique is in the field of medical
prosthetics. One doctor has used it successfully to create replacement
skull-plates for cranially-conjoined twins who have been separated.
Because the parts are computer-measured and laser-cut, the level of
precision is high enough that they don't have to trim & test-fit them
during surgery, reducing operation time.

--
Lurch
http://yourang.freeservers.com
"Sic gorgiamus allo subjectatus nunc"
Message no. 3
From: Ereskanti@***.com Ereskanti@***.com
Subject: Laser-molding
Date: Mon, 6 Sep 1999 14:54:38 EDT
In a message dated 9/6/1999 1:32:15 PM US Eastern Standard Time,
lurch@****.net writes:

>
> A real-life use I know of for this technique is in the field of medical
> prosthetics. One doctor has used it successfully to create replacement
> skull-plates for cranially-conjoined twins who have been separated.
> Because the parts are computer-measured and laser-cut, the level of
> precision is high enough that they don't have to trim & test-fit them
> during surgery, reducing operation time.

Oh wow, I had NOT even considered this option actually. With this technique,
would it therefore be possible to "laser design/cut" something like
"Precision Fitting Dermal Armor?"

-K
Message no. 4
From: Sebastian Wiers m0ng005e@*********.com
Subject: Laser-molding
Date: Tue, 7 Sep 1999 00:19:17 -0700
> > A real-life use I know of for this technique is in the field of
medical
> > prosthetics. One doctor has used it successfully to create
replacement
> > skull-plates for cranially-conjoined twins who have been separated.
> > Because the parts are computer-measured and laser-cut, the level of
> > precision is high enough that they don't have to trim & test-fit them
> > during surgery, reducing operation time.
>
> Oh wow, I had NOT even considered this option actually. With this
technique,
> would it therefore be possible to "laser design/cut" something like
> "Precision Fitting Dermal Armor?"

Hell yes- that's probaly what you would HAVE to do (its not likely to come
"off the rack") Similar procedures are already used for designing
artificial hips and joints. More amazing, there are machines that drill
out the sockets for these artificail hips, based on stored NMRI data and
attachmant to pre-anchored (and scanned) "reference points". Mike M. and I
had a nice "discusion" about this- he did not seem to realise how much of
implant surgery is probably going to be (and already is) data maniplation
and programming, as opposed to "surgery" in the classic "manual
dexterity"
sense.

Mongoose
Message no. 5
From: Ereskanti@***.com Ereskanti@***.com
Subject: Laser-molding
Date: Tue, 7 Sep 1999 12:34:59 EDT
In a message dated 9/7/1999 2:11:24 AM US Eastern Standard Time,
m0ng005e@*********.com writes:

> Hell yes- that's probaly what you would HAVE to do (its not likely to come
> "off the rack") Similar procedures are already used for designing
> artificial hips and joints. More amazing, there are machines that drill
> out the sockets for these artificail hips, based on stored NMRI data and
> attachmant to pre-anchored (and scanned) "reference points". Mike M. and
I
> had a nice "discusion" about this- he did not seem to realise how much of
> implant surgery is probably going to be (and already is) data maniplation
> and programming, as opposed to "surgery" in the classic "manual
dexterity"
> sense.

He didn't??? (K sits in utter stunned silence) Oh boy, that's frightening,
especially given the need for surgical/biological Nanites that are mentioned
in Shadowtechnology for the implantation of the more "invasive" cyberware.

-K

Further Reading

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These messages were posted a long time ago on a mailing list far, far away. The copyright to their contents probably lies with the original authors of the individual messages, but since they were published in an electronic forum that anyone could subscribe to, and the logs were available to subscribers and most likely non-subscribers as well, it's felt that re-publishing them here is a kind of public service.

Thwap!