If it is possible to do this

 

As intecatly as this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2sCCN3tpp0

 

There are even multiple open source designs for such machines. And we can use metal powder as well as plastic powder and filler powder (which we can).

 

Then what is the problem with giving such a machine it's own design and letting it make a copy of itself? It might need a folding part or to be built in two parts as to obay the laws of size.

 

Such a machine is reliant on energy but should be able to make it's own supply structure.

 

The only things it would need from outside would be plastic, filler and metal powder and an electricity supply or materals to harvest power such as magnets.

Then what is the problem with giving such a machine it's own design and letting it make a copy of itself? It might need a folding part or to be built in two parts as to obey the laws of size.

 

That is precisely the goal behind the RepRap project. Currently, it can only print plastic parts but they're doing research that will allow it to print circuit boards eventually.

 

Check out RepRap:

http://reprap.org/bin/view/Main/WebHome

 

Before too long we'll have self-replicating rapid prototyping machines.

Could rep-rap print the ball bearing system all in one go?

Could rep-rap print the ball bearing system all in one go?

 

The goal is for the machine to be able to print all the parts necessary to construct itself. Whether it can print a ball bearing system all in one go I'm not sure.

 

Here's a video introduction to the RepRap self-replicating 3D printer:

 

Here's the RepRap blog with the latest info:

http://blog.reprap.org/

 

You may want to contact one of the developers with specific questions.

You answer as if my question refereed to a trivial, unimportant detail. This is the difference between a really useful 3D printer that one could own as a non engineer and a mediocre one that you may see in a factory.

Another issue is the fact that you might want to use very tough metals (steel) for ball bearings, unless you are fine with replacing them soon.

 

Machines might be able to replicate, but maintenance (or recycling and rebuilding) is another issue.

 

I agree with alan2here that things like bearings, and other moving parts are the big trick in replicating.

The rep-rap does appear to have a lot of metal components that could be plastic although if it can't produce any metal then it can't produce circuitry as well as the matinance issues that I was not aware of.

 

I think it was steel powder one machine used to create metal parts, is this likely to be a good way forward? I think things like woods metal are too expensive.

 

A possibility is mechanical or another means of computation, another is using a semi-conductor that is more easely maneged instead of metal.

The rapid prototyping field is progressively moving towards being a viable form of manufacturing, particularly since one can now match the density of a forged part.

 

There are currently a number of different methods by which one can RP a metal part. The general gist of the main ones is:

 

• Direct Metal Laser Sintering: This is powdered metallurgy, RP style. The working powder is used both as filler material and as part material. A laser then sinters a very small layer of powder, creating a solid metal part.
  
• Electron Beam Melting: Replace the sintering laser from DMLS with an electron beam that melts the base powder.
  
• Electron Beam Freeform Machining: This is a process still under development by Nasa, but has been proven, and parts are being made. Basically, an electron beam melts a feed wire (like in Fused Deposition Modeling) and "prints" it onto a table that moves in the Z-axis.