Part of the random charm of SxSW is that you never know what you’ll find as you’re walking through downtown Austin from one session or party or meetup to the next.
On a chilly street on Sunday afternoon, I talked with Kyle von Hasseln, the creative director for food products for 3D systems. He was giving away small, pretty, green-apple flavor candies. He was also showing off the 3D printer that made each one of the small delicacies.
The printer spits out a layer of confectioners sugar and then sprays water over it. This crystallizes the layer and then the printer lays down another one. The ChefJet can print about 100 of the candies in an hour.
3D Systems recently acquired Bespoke Modeling, a company that specializes in 3D printing for healthcare. The company allows doctors to upload CT scans and then converts the images into full-color 3D models. These plans can be exported for local 3D printing or low-cost color models can be ordered online from 3D Systems.
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The company has printers with more than a dozen engines that can create objects from metal, ceramic and food.
Stem cell scientists recently contacted the company to ask about creating a lattice made from sugar. The idea was to use the structure to grow stem cells.
von Hasseln said that the company created some sample lattices as a courtesy for the researchers, but has not followed up with them.
The candies were cute, but it was very strange to put something from a 3D printer into my mouth. Many printers use thin plastic cord to create the 3D objects and then there’s bioprinting. The candies were almost too cute to eat, but I have to admit that the tart flavor quickly erased my reservations.