Now you can get your own 3D printed autonomous robot

3D NEWS> 3D PRINTING

3D printed iPhone cases are all very good, but how about your own wind powered 3D printed insectoid? It’s yours thanks to Dutch kinetic artist Theo Jansen

The wind-powered version of the Animaris Geneticus Parvus (or Strandbeest) can be downloaded from the Shapeways website for £85 (including the fan add-on). The elaborate mechanism can crawl along a surface in a similar way to a crab, in a strange realsitic animal-like mannor.

Theo Jansen has been creating new forms of life since 1990. He is father to the "Animari" beach creatures, or "Strandbeests", made of PVC tubing, that walk the beach powered by the wind.

Now, owners of 3D printers can create their own mini-version of their beach-combing counterparts.  A version was launched in 2011 but with the propeller add-on, they now include the essential mechanism for wind-powered movement.  

The complex models can be downloaded in one job so there is no assembly required and owners of the original can still bring their Strandbeests to life by downloading the propeller for £30.  Jansen sees this as his creature's evolvement who are spreading their DNA through the Shapeways website. Self-awareness is probably next.

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For more images visit the Shapeways website.

clip 1klein kl from Strandbeest on Vimeo.

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