Pwdr is an unusual 3D printer in that it functions like a regular desktop printer, rather than some of the other 3D printers that melt plastic or use lasers to cure resin. This open source, inkjet-based 3D printer has the potential to offer a wide range of vivid colors while sparking innovative applications involving powder-based rapid-prototyping.

“Unlike the MakerBot and RepRap printers that build objects by melting plastic, or the Form 1 that uses a laser to cure resin, Pwdr works just like a desktop printer,” explains Wired. “An HP inkjet deposits a liquid binder, mixed with ink, onto a layer of white gypsum powder. After the printhead passes, a roller bar drags a thin layer of powder across the surface and the process repeats a couple hundred, or thousand, times.”

“When completed,” the article continues, “the printer looks like a fish tank full of baby powder and the model needs to be carefully removed, dusted off, and dipped in clear glue that infiltrates the part and solidifies it. This process is essentially the same as what ZCorp 3D printers offer and opens the potential for hobbyists to create models featuring thousands of colors using a CMYK process, not the two or three offered by newer home user systems.”

Additional possibilities are offered with the option of replacing the inkjet with a laser that essentially converts the system into a selective laser sintering (SLS) tool.

“A whole new range of materials become available for experimenting with open-source rapid-prototyping; for example, when using the 3D printing process: gypsum, ceramics, concrete, sugar, etc,” said Alex Budding, Pwdr developer. “And when the SLS process is fully supported, plastic materials like ABS, Polypropylene, Nylon and metals become available as building material.”

While this would all require a lot of work, notes Wired, it has the potential to significantly alter the world of 3D printing.