Everything you need to know about copyright and intellectual property in context of 3d printing in one simple video

Thomas has another great video where he clarifies issues of copyright, intellectual property, patent and open source in context of 3d printing. It's a must-watch if you are interested in 3d printing on more professional level.

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Apple and Autodesk Patent Color 3D Printing (Apple patents liquid metal casting also)

OMG NOOOOO ... Apple files a patent for a 3d printer that prints colored objects with color being applied by separate nozzle. Maybe it's a tipe of defensive patenting or some corporate IP strategy. I hope they develop it and make it cool, but after Apple Pen fiasco I'm not getting my hopes up ...

Patent page:

LINK

PS: I am really not an Apple fan ...

Update (21.2.2016.)

Autodesk has patented color 3d printing also. Maybe it is the beginning of color patent wars.

http://3dprint.com/74984/autodesk-patent-multi-color/

Update (19.3.2016.):

Apple has filed for a new patent connected to 3d printing and molding technologies:

Apple’s patent application covers a method for 3D printing investment molds to be filled with molten amorphous alloy. These alloys are configured to form a bulk metallic glass (BMG) on cooling. BMGs, (also known as Bulk Amporhous Alloys) are a new class of metallic alloys that are extremely strong, with superior elastic strain limits and resistance under shock impact. They are therefore ideal for the manufacturing of electronic device housings and cases.

Here is a patent page: LINK

Looks like Apple is going into transformable and liquid metals!!! Remember Terminator ...

Source and ore info:

http://www.3ders.org/articles/20160310-apple-files-patent-application-for-3d-printing-investment-molds.html

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How to research 3d printing patents

After a guide on how to copyright your 3d printed work here are few sources that shows you all the steps needed for patent research if you want to apply for your patent or protect your work from being patented by someone else (like a big corporation).
They cover mostly US Patents and Trademark Office but remember that patenting is big international issue.

Source, full size image and more info:

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/244693

Here is the official guide by USPTO:

http://www.uspto.gov/products/library/ptdl/services/7_Step_US_Patent_Search_Strategy_Guide_2014.pdf

Here is video showing the main steps:

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How to copyright your 3d printed work

Copyright is one of the most important issues of our age. Do you know how to use it to protect your 3d printing work? What can be copyrighted? What can you licence on a 3d object?

Here is an excellent White Paper guide written by Michael Weinberg on how to licence elements of your 3d printed / 3d printable object. It is a must read for anyone dealing with 3d printing and design!

Here is an short overview from the document:

A Three-Step Process In order to understand what it is you are licensing, this paper proposes a three-step process:

Figure out which elements of your object or object file are eligible for copyright protection

This can be much harder in the world of physical objects than it is with exclusively digital works. Unlike with code or photographs, with physical objects you may actually have to search out what parts are and are not protected by copyright. You may also need to make a distinction between the object and the file that represents the object—something that rarely occurs in the more traditional copyright world. While this can be complicated, this paper will try to make it as intuitive and straightforward as possible.

Understand what copyright does—and does not—allow you to control

Although it sometimes can feel otherwise, a copyright that protects a work does not control every use of that work.1 Understanding what your copyright allows you to control— and what remains out of your control—is critical to thinking about how to license things. For example, you may have a copyright on a file that represents an object, but not on the object itself. In that case, you should be clear-eyed about the fact that even the most restrictive license on the file will not stop people from reproducing the object without your permission.

Choose your license

After you understand what parts of your work are protected by copyright, and what that copyright protections actually mean, it is time to think about licensing. Once you understand what you have the legal right to control, you can start deciding how you want to exercise that control. This Paper is Only About Copyright Your 3D object might be protected by more than copyright. It could be protected by patent, or by trademark.

So why is this paper only about copyright?

Mostly because copyright protection is free. If you create something that is eligible for copyright protection, it automatically gets copyright protection free of charge. There are good reasons to register your copyright, but registration is not required for protection. This means that you get a copyright without ever filling out paperwork, consulting a lawyer, or even wanting it in the first place

Here you can download the entire guide in PDF format:

https://www.publicknowledge.org/assets/uploads/documents/3_Steps_for_Licensing_Your_3D_Printed_Stuff.pdf

This White Paper was published by Public Knowledge on March 06, 2015: Public Knowledge is a non-profit Washington, D.C.-based public interest group that is involved in intellectual property law, competition, and choice in the digital marketplace, and an open standards/end-to-end internet.

Only issue that needs further clarification is how 3d printing copyright works in international environment. You create a 3d object in one country, publish it on a repository in second county, someone in third country downloads it and does something against your licence...

THE BATTLE OF COPYRIGHT
Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:THE_BATTLE_OF_COPYRIGHT.jpg

Here are some guidelines for patent research:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2015/04/how-to-research-3d-printing-patents.html

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Amazon wants to patent 3d printing delivery van

Amazon wants to patent 3d printing in the delivery vans. You order something and they print it in the delivery van driving towards you. It's probably a move in some grand corporate strategy of taking over the world, defensive patenting or preventative patenting. I will not even try to forecast implications of this ...

You can see their full patent application HERE.

I always claimed that intellectual property / patent system is broken beyond repair and needs major reform.

All of this has been done in some form in the past:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2013/11/3d-printer-installed-in-electric.html

Here are some pictures form the patent application:

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Cross screw drive for a build plate

Nicholas Seward designed this cross screw drive system that moves XY axis on a 3d printing build plate. He did it as a kind of defensive patenting by putting it in public domain.
Similar systems based on  crossed splines are used on Mod-t and Tekma 3d printers. Both comapnies are trying to get patents on this type of cinematics. Patents are a bad bad thing, so thank you Nicholas for thinking about the community.

Nicholas writes:

Both Tekma3D and New Matter both came out with printers that use crossed splines to drive the x and y of their printers. They both are in the process of trying to acquire a patent on the technology.

Being the open source hippie that I am, here is a system that is functionally the same but should give a wide berth to the patents.

To be clear, I don't think this kind of system is very good. I think it is fun to watch.
If the system has opposing racks as shown, one screw should be left handed and the other should be right handed. If all the racks face the same way, like the MOD-T, then you can use two left handed screws. The system is driven just like a CoreXY system.

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Will 3d printing remain legal? The future of 3d printing legality discussion at Stanford may provide some answers and guidelines

One thing is sure: there will be much more litigation in the future ...


From the video description:

Three dimensional printing turns bits into atoms. The technology is simply amazing. These machines draw on programming, art and engineering to enable people to design and build intricate, beautiful, functional jewelry, machine parts, toys and even shoes. In the commercial sector, 3D printing can revolutionize supply chains as well. As the public interest group Public Knowledge wrote once, "It will be awesome if they don't screw it up."

The age of publicly accessible 3D printers and printing services is finally here, but are our legal doctrines up to the task of protecting the public while not screwing up a fantastic new tool? Stanford Law Professors Mark Lemley and Nora Freeman Engstrom, the CEO of Shapeways, the founder of Printrbot, the president of Airwolf 3D, and CIS Director of Civil Liberties Jennifer Granick discuss the product liablity and intellectual property issues surrounding this innovation.

Panelists:

• Mark Lemley - William H. Neukom Professor of Law at Stanford Law School
• Nora Freeman Engstrom - Associate Professor of Law at Stanford Law School
• Peter Weijmarshausen - CEO of Shapeways, 3D printing marketplace and community
• Brook Drumm - Founder of Printrbot, a desktop 3D printer you can build in a couple hours
• Erick Wolf - Intellectual Property Attorney and President of Airwolf 3D, an affordable, durable, and easy-to-use 3D printer

Moderator:
Jennifer Granick - Director of Civil Liberties at Stanford CIS

May 16, 2013
Stanford Law School
Hosted by the Stanford Center for Internet and Society

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MakerBot patents material mixing extruder (Update: maybe appropriates prior public technology!)

MakerBot applied for material mixing extruder patent. The patent description is vague and it doesn't describe much details, only that two filaments type mix in some sort of filament mixer. This could provide color mixing or material properties change (ie. for support material).

This patent application could be some sort of "defensive" patenting, it doesn't mean that the prototype even exists and it doesn't need to be approved by patent authorities.

If this is real application we might see this technology in future Makerbots.

Makerbot extruder patent with extensive description:

http://www.google.com/patents/US20140034214

Ceterum censeo: the copyright and patent system is completely broken and must be reformed or, even better, fully removed.

Update (see comments also):

Jan Schmidt filed "prior art" complaint with the patent examiner since this patent has many similarities with extruder documented on RepRapWiki almost a year previous to this application:

http://reprap.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Mixer_extruder

http://reprap.org/wiki/File:RepRapColourMixingReport-jmc.pdf

RepRap Mixer extruder, the similarities with MekrBot patent applications are obvious 

So, could this be an attempt of major corporation to appropriate and patent publicly available technology?

MakerBot had some issues with copyright ownership on Thingiverse. Looks like they have same behavior when it comes to public / open source technology. 

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RT report on 3d printing and patents

3d printing humans? Stupid stupid STUPID question ...

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Blast from the 3d printing past

News clip from 1989 showing 3d printing. It also shows why patenting technology is so problematic. Imagine if we had open access to the technology for 24 years? We would live in Star Trek world by now. Patents and IP rights are bad bad things ...

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TangiBot - low cost Replicator clone

Clone wars have just begun! TangiBot is 100% compatible Makerbot Replicator clone for 2/3 of the price. We will see how will Makerbot react to this, by launching nuclear lawyer strike or staying true to their Open Source roots.


http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2117793364/the-tangibot-3d-printer-the-affordable-makerbot-re

From Kickstarter page:

What does supporting this project mean to you?

By supporting this project you are doing one or more of the following:

• Making a contribution for which you will receive a token of appreciation (a printed medallion and your name listed on the company website forever)
• Pre-purchasing a TangiBot

What is a TangiBot?

The TangiBot is a Makerbot Replicator clone. It offers the same great performance and features of the Makerbot Replicator but it costs roughly 2/3 what Makerbot charges you for it.  Depending on the model you buy that is anywhere from $550-700 off! TangiBot is 100% compatible with all Makerbot Replicator firmware upgrades, parts and accessories. The only difference between the TangiBot and the Makerbot Replicator is that the TangiBot is NOT made by Makerbot.
Please keep in mind that the TangiBot and The Replicator might differ slightly in appearance due to a difference in suppliers. For example, the wires clips might be a different shape or color.

Why should you buy a TangiBot?

Quite simply, because the TangiBot is a Makerbot Replicator clone, the TangiBot is the best 3D printer on the market with a very active community of owners.  Here is a quick list of the benefits of buying a TangiBot:

• 2/3 the price of the Makerbot Replicator (discount of $550-700)
• The highest quality 3D printer
• The best features
• You can get it fully assembled and tested in Acrylic
• 100% compatible with all MakerBot Replicator Parts
• A very active community of owners
• Thousands of designs available to download online
• Design your own parts, toys, games, and models

Why are there 4 different models of TangiBot?

The standard TangiBot comes in a high quality plywood case with a single extruder.  You can also buy the TangiBot in an acrylic (plastic) case or with a dual extruder.  The dual extruder is capable of printing more than one color of plastic at the same time.  Your four options are:

• ($1199) Plywood Single Extrusion
• ($1299) Acrylic Single Extrusion
• ($1299) Plywood Dual Extrusion
• ($1399) Acrylic Dual Extrusion

Please keep in mind that if you want to buy a fully assembled and tested TangiBot in Acrylic you can only get it here.

How do you use the TangiBot?

The TangiBot prints anything you can imagine out of ABS plastic.  You can design your own parts using free tools like tinkerCAD.com or Google Sketchup.  If you have access to a professional CAD tool like ProEngineer or Solidworks, those tools will also work.  You can also download parts from online.  One of the biggest and most popular places to download parts is thingiverse.com.  Many of the online design tools (like tinkerCAD) also have databases where you can search for parts to print.
Don't let the word "CAD" intimidate you.  CAD has long been a tool for professional engineers but in the last few years many free and easy to use tools have become available to the public.  I am a big fan of tinkerCAD because it is so easy to use.

What can you use your printed parts for?

I have used the parts I printed for all kinds of things.  Here is a list of some of the things I have printed on my TangiBot in the past few weeks:

• Parts to fix the icemaker in my fridge (this saved me $100 in parts and $75 for a repair man)
• New parts for my tripod (this saved me $25 and 1 week I didn't have to wait for shipping)
• Parts to fix my toilet (this saved me $45 in parts and a trip to the hardware store)
• A mount for my smart phone to attach to the handlebars of my bike (similar products cost $20-25 and mine works exactly the way I want it to because I printed it)
• Custom hangers to hang things like my kids Nerf guns on the wall
• Desk accessories (pen holders, etc.)
• A penny catapult for the game SEEJ (search for SEEJ on thingiverse.com)
• Tool holders and organizers for my shop
• Drink coasters with my kids names on them
• Toys for my kids and the neighborhood kids
• Engineering prototype parts

My printer regularly runs 10-12 hours a day printing all kinds of things.  In the past few weeks my TangiBot has saved me about $300-350 because I have made things instead of having to buy them.

How much does the Plastic Cost?

Plastic can be bought from many sources on the internet.  The TangiBot uses 1.75/1.8mm filament plastic.  It can use either ABS or PLA plastic.  For 1Kg (2.2 lbs) of ABS plastic you will spend anywhere from $25-45 depending on the color and who you buy it from.  Plastic comes in all colors.  There are even special colors available like glow in the dark!
Your single extrusion TangiBot comes with 1Kg (2.2 lbs) of white ABS plastic.  The dual extrusion TangiBot comes with 2Kg of plastic - 1Kg of while and 1 Kg of black.

How much will 1Kg (2.2 lbs.) of plastic print? 

This is a tough question because it really depends on what you print.  I printed all of the stuff I listed above and used about 75% of a 1Kg spool.  Similar to a computers "draft" mode, the TangiBot has different settings you can use to control how much plastic you use when you print.  For example, you can decide if you want your parts to be anywhere from hollow to 100% solid.  In my example above, where I used 75% of a 1Kg spool, I printed most of the parts anywhere between 10% solid and 33% solid.

Why am I on Kickstarter?

I am ready to start production but don't have the money.  I need 400 people to pre-order the TangiBot so that I can begin production.  This is where you come in.  Please buy a TangiBot today.  If you are an international order please be sure to buy the international shipping as well.

How was this prototype made?

The prototype you saw in the video was made by taking parts from three different sources.

• I manufactured some of the parts locally in Utah
• I bought parts like rods, motors, linear bearings, screws, nuts, etc. from suppliers
• I took parts from a Makerbot Replicator

Before anyone cries foul and claims that using parts from a Makerbot Replicator in my prototype is cheating please consider the following. I have not yet produced any tooling to manufacture plastic parts. Plastics tooling requires a significant investment of money and yet, I need my prototype to be as close to production quality as possible. The parts I produce with my own plastic tooling will be identical to those made by Makerbot. Because of this, I used the plastic parts from a Makerbot Replicator in my TangiBot.

Who is 3DTangible?

3DTangible consists of me and a professional network of firmware, software, electrical, mechanical, and manufacturing engineers as well as manufacturing facilities. This is the same network of professionals that I used to develop Cricut Products while I was employed by Provo Craft.
If this project funds I will need to hire a few people in the coming months to help handle things like customer service, sales and marketing. I am serious about building a world class company. As the needs of the business grow I plan on investing in the future.

The Plan

At a very high level, here are the steps that I will follow as soon as the project funds:

• Release production files for tooling
• Develop and launch company website (including customer service portal)
• Produce first round of production samples from production tooling
• Modify tooling and setup production line
• Produce final samples
• Approve golden production samples
• Produce the TangiBot
• Ship to the US
• Ship to customers

Why you can trust that 3DTangible will deliver

For the past 7 years I have been developing, producing, and supporting electronic paper cutters for Provo Craft.  Paper Cutters and 3D printers have a lot in common.  I still have access to all of the same world class resources that I had during my time at Provo Craft.  I will use this same network to produce the TangiBot and develop next generation 3D printers.
I built a prototype.  At the time of posting this Kickstarter project, it has been running from 8AM-5PM, 6 days a week for the past 3 weeks.  I have run almost 4 complete 2.2 lbs. spools of ABS through the machine and it is still going. That is almost 10 lbs. of plastic!
Since leaving my full time job in mid-May to pursue 3D printing full time I have done nothing but research, build and prepare to manufacture the TangiBot.  Before this, I have followed 3D printing very closely.  I am now at the point that I can start production tooling but I don’t have the money.  This is why I have come to Kickstarter.com.
Here is a bulleted list of some of my other qualifications:

• 7 years of experience developing, producing and supporting electronic paper cutters
• 10 years of experience in software and firmware development, support and production
• BS in Mechanical Engineering
• MS in Mechanical Engineering
• MBA – Product Development
• Established network of professionals

Please see my bio for more specific information regarding my qualifications.

Warranty and Replacements

The TangiBot does not carry any long-term warranty.  3DTangible will happily work with you to replace any manufacturer defective parts and get your TangiBot running in tip-top shape.  This is the same warranty that Makerbot provides.

Support

Support will be offered by 3DTangible through our website.  In addition, because the TangiBot is identical to The Replicator, there are also many forums and groups of users that are happy to provide tips and help.

How is 3DTangible able to make a Replicator Clone?

The MakerBot Replicator is open source.  In other words, Makerbot makes its design publically available on the internet.  Why do they do this?  Well, it may surprise some of you that Makerbot is required to do this.  You see, MakerBot used other open source designs when designing and producing their 3DPrinters.  When someone uses an open source design in their product they are required to share any improvements in the design with the world.  In other words, if you use open source and then improve on the design you have to share that improvement so that the rest of the world can benefit from it.  3DTangible will also be bound by these same laws and all the improvements we make to the design will also be shared with the public.
Just to be clear, there is nothing illegal, sneaky or underhanded going on here.  Everything is legal and fair.  Makerbot did the exact same thing when creating their business.  This is simply the way open source designs work.  Welcome to the world of open source.

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