3-D Printing of Open Source Appropriate Technologies for Self-Directed Sustainable Development

The technological evolution of the 3-D printer, widespread internet access and inexpensive computing has made a new means of open design capable of accelerating self-directed sustainable development. This study critically examines how open source 3-D printers, such as the RepRap and Fab@home, enable the use of designs in the public domain to fabricate open source appropriate technology (OSAT), which are easily and economically made from readily available resources by local communities to meet their needs. The current capabilities of open source 3-D printers is reviewed and a new classification scheme is proposed for OSATs that are technically feasible and economically viable for production. Then, a methodology for quantifying the properties of printed parts and a research trajectory is outlined to extend the existing technology to provide complete village-level fabrication of OSATs. Finally, conclusions are drawn on the potential for open source 3-D printers to assist in driving sustainable development.

[1]  P. Polak,et al.  Out of Poverty: What Works When Traditional Approaches Fail , 2009 .

[2]  Behrokh Khoshnevis,et al.  Innovative Rapid Prototyping Process Makes Large Sized, Smooth Surfaced Complex Shapes in a Wide Variety of Materials , 1998 .

[3]  Steven W. Harrison,et al.  A study of alternative building materials and technologies for housing in Bangalore, India , 1995 .

[4]  Behrokh Khoshnevis,et al.  Experimental investigation of contour crafting using ceramics materials , 2001 .

[5]  Hod Lipson,et al.  Freeform fabrication of zinc‐air batteries and electromechanical assemblies , 2004 .

[6]  Carroll Pursell,et al.  The Rise and Fall of the Appropriate Technology Movement in the United States, 1965–1985 , 1993, Technology and Culture.

[7]  Giorgio Bonmassar,et al.  An open-source hardware and software system for acquisition and real-time processing of electrophysiology during high field MRI , 2008, Journal of Neuroscience Methods.

[8]  Steve Hurst.  Metal Casting: Appropriate Technology in the Small Foundry , 1996 .

[9]  Joshua M. Pearce.  Appropedia as a Tool for Service Learning in Sustainable Development , 2009 .

[10]  Kala Meah,et al.  Solar photovoltaic water pumping—opportunities and challenges , 2008 .

[11]  Chi-Jen Yang,et al.  Reconsidering solar grid parity , 2010 .

[12]  Lesley V. Brattle,et al.  Appropriate household technology: charcoal stoves , 1986 .

[13]  Hod Lipson,et al.  Multi-Material Freeform Fabrication of Active Systems , 2008 .

[14]  Hod Lipson,et al.  Direct Freeform Fabrication of Seeded Hydrogels in Arbitrary Geometries , 2022 .

[15]  Mary Bashai,et al.  Victim Assistance Efforts: The Niagara Foot , 2003 .

[16]  Caroline McEnnis,et al.  FAB LAB: AN ALTERNATE MODEL OF ICT FOR DEVELOPMENT , 2002 .

[17]  Michael Pfeifer.  Materials Enabled Designs: The Materials Engineering Perspective to Product Design and Manufacturing , 2009 .

[18]  Barrett Hazeltine,et al.  Field guide to appropriate technology , 2003 .

[19]  Caroline Baillie.  Student learning through international development projects. Who pays and who benefits , 2008 .

[20]  Hod Lipson,et al.  Fab@Home: the personal desktop fabricator kit , 2007 .

[21]  Anna Lindström,et al.  Assistive technology in developing countries: national and international responsibilities to implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities , 2009, The Lancet.

[22]  K. P. Karunakaran,et al.  Low cost integration of additive and subtractive processes for hybrid layered manufacturing , 2010 .

[23]  Joshua M. Pearce.  Photovoltaics - A Path to Sustainable Futures , 2002 .

[24]  Joshua M. Pearce.  Teaching Physics Using Appropriate Technology Projects , 2007 .

[25]  Martin Ravallion,et al.  Global Poverty and Inequality: A Review of the Evidence , 2008 .

[26]  K. M. Yu,et al.  Implementation and evaluation of thin-shell rapid prototype , 1998 .

[27]  Adrian Bowyer,et al.  RepRap: The Replicating Rapid Prototyper: Maximizing Customizability by Breeding the Means of Production , 2010 .

[28]  C. Faillace.  The importance of using simple and indigenous technologies for the exploitation of water resources in rural areas of developing countries , 1990 .

[29]  D O'Neill,et al.  Ergonomics aspects of crop production in tropical developing countries: a literature review. , 1993, Applied ergonomics.

[30]  G. Prestwich,et al.  Photocrosslinkable hyaluronan-gelatin hydrogels for two-step bioprinting. , 2010, Tissue engineering. Part A.

[31]  Veronica Gutierrez,et al.  Student-led, Community Driven Improvement of the Drinking Supply in a Rural Village in South Africa. , 2010 .

[32]  Yan Dong,et al.  Computer-assisted technique for the design and manufacture of realistic facial prostheses. , 2010, The British journal of oral & maxillofacial surgery.

[33]  Alistair G.F. Gibb,et al.  Design, data and process issues for mega-scale rapid manufacturing machines used for construction , 2008 .

[34]  Chandan Sharma,et al.  Solar still an appropriate technology for potable water need of remote villages of desert state of India -Rajasthan , 2008 .

[35]  Luis Roman,et al.  The rope windpump , 1995 .

[36]  V. Amos G. Winter.  Assessment of Wheelchair Technology in Tanzania , 2006 .

[37]  Joshua M. Pearce,et al.  Overcoming technical constraints for obtaining sustainable development with open source appropriate technology , 2009, 2009 IEEE Toronto International Conference Science and Technology for Humanity (TIC-STH).

[38]  E. F. Schumacher,et al.  Small is Beautiful: A Study of Economics as if People Mattered , 1974 .

[39]  Hod Lipson,et al.  Freeform fabrication of ionomeric polymer‐metal composite actuators , 2006, Rapid Prototyping Journal.

[40]  Issam A Al-Khatib,et al.  Solid waste characterization, quantification and management practices in developing countries. a case study: Nablus district - Palestine. , 2010, Journal of environmental management.

[41]  Ramin Keivani,et al.  Modes of housing provision in developing countries , 2001 .

[42]  T. Short,et al.  Breaking the mould: solar water pumping—the challenges and the reality , 2003 .

[43]  R. Venkata Rao,et al.  Rapid prototyping process selection using graph theory and matrix approach , 2007 .

[44]  Joshua M. Pearce,et al.  Open Design-Based Strategies to Enhance Appropriate Technology Development , 2010 .

[45]  Anath Fischer,et al.  New Trends in Rapid Product Development , 2002 .

[46]  Rafiq Noorani,et al.  Rapid prototyping : principles and applications , 2006 .

[47]  E. McBean,et al.  Appropriate technology – A comprehensive approach for water and sanitation in the developing world , 2009 .

[48]  Caroline Baillie.  Waste for life , 2008 .

[49]  Brian Thomas.  A Wind Powered, White LED Lighting System for the Kibera Slum of Nairobi , 2007 .

[50]  Andrew Y. C. Nee,et al.  Characteristics of photopolymeric material used in rapid prototypes Part I. Mechanical properties in the green state , 1997 .

[51]  Hod Lipson,et al.  Object Augmentation for the Visually Impaired Using RP , 2008 .

[52]  D. Pasini,et al.  Robot-Assisted Rapid Prototyping for Ice Sculptures , 2008 .

[53]  Jafar Jamshidi.  INKJET PRINTER FOR THE REPRAP , 2010 .

[54]  John A. DeFranco,et al.  Freeform Fabrication of Organic Electrochemical Transistors , 2007 .

[55]  Hod Lipson,et al.  Printing Embedded Circuits , 2007 .

[56]  Féniel Philippe,et al.  Household solid waste generation and characteristics in Cape Haitian city, Republic of Haiti. , 2009 .

[57]  A.J.P. Sabberwal.  The Implementation of Appropriate Metal Working Technology in the Social Environment of the Developing Countries , 1981 .

[58]  Edward Johnson,et al.  Millennium Global Village-Net: Bringing together Millennium Villages throughout sub-Saharan Africa , 2009, Int. J. Medical Informatics.