Objet 3D printing put to the test in Iron Man 2 (video)
By Joseph L. Flatley 
posted May 17th 2010 1:07PM
posted May 17th 2010 1:07PM
We got a pretty good look at some of the tech of Iron Man 2 recently, and it looks like the flick's gadgety goodness extends behind the camera as well. It appears that all that bad ass armor is actually produced on the fly by the film's production company, Legacy Effects, using an Objet Eden 3D printer. The company describes the process as "print-to-wear" – pieces come out of the printer, get applied with paint, and make their way to the actors. And since the designs begin with an actual scan of the actor's body, they are much more comfortable. Believe us, there is nothing that a director wants to see less than a cranky Robert Downey, Jr. on their set. For more info on how the device is being used throughout the creative process, check out the video after the break.
The Technology Behind Iron Man 2: 3D Printing and the Future of Film
Robert Downey, Jr. will once again transform into the superhero Iron Man thanks to his character's engineering prowess. Made possible by cutting-edge technology: the latest advances in rapid prototyping, often called 3D printing.
PR Log (Press Release) – May 12, 2010 – On May 7th, Robert Downey, Jr. will once again transform into the technologically advanced superhero Iron Man thanks to his character's engineering prowess. The plot line parallels the production of the film, also made possible by cutting-edge technology: the latest advances in rapid prototyping, often called 3D printing.
Using a 3D printer by innovation leader Objet Geometries, the film's production company Legacy Effects created the iconic Iron Man suit, as well as the one worn by arch nemesis Whiplash (watch trailer here: http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2256077849/). This body armor is in fact "print-to-wear" – comprised of pieces that came directly out of a 3D printer, simply finished with paint. Plus it's specially designed to be durable and comfortable for the actors, who engage in grueling fight scenes while wearing the gear.
Technology That Fits Like a Glove
Robert Downey, Jr. for one is grateful for the technology. He remembers filming for the original Iron Man, which took place before Legacy Effects had an Objet system. The star was in constant discomfort due to the gloves he had to wear as part of the superhero suit. They were extremely tight and made it difficult for him to maneuver. For the sequel, the production company scanned Robert's hands and used the 3D printer to specially create flexible gloves no thicker than a dime. He was thrilled with the change and happy to work in them for hours.
The 3D Craze, in the Theaters and Behind the Scenes
According to Jason Lopes, systems engineer at Legacy Effects, 3D printing is not yet common in movie-making but is likely to become so, especially as live action flicks make more of a come-back. He says, "in the land of CG, all you need is a computer, but real stunt work calls for endless, identical, often customized props. Thanks to Objet, these are available at the touch of a button." A video of Jason discussing how Legacy Effects uses Objet technology is available here : http://www.objet.com/Case_Studies/Legacy_Effects/
About Objet Geometries
Objet Geometries Ltd., (www.objet.com), a pioneer in photopolymer jetting, develops, manufactures and globally markets ultra-thin-layer, high-resolution 3-Dimensional printing systems and materials that utilize PolyJet™ and PolyJet Matrix™ polymer jetting technologies to print ultra-thin layers.
The market-proven Eden™ line of 3D Printing Systems and the Alaris30 3D Printer are based on Objet's patented office-friendly PolyJet Technology. The Connex family is based on Objet's PolyJet Matrix™ technology, which jets multiple model materials simultaneously and creates composite Digital Materials™ on the fly. All Objet systems use Objet's FullCure® materials to create accurate, clean, smooth and highly detailed 3-dimensional models.
Objet's solutions enable manufacturers and industrial designers to reduce cost of product development cycles and dramatically shorten time-to-market of new products. Objet systems are in use by world leaders in many industries, such as Education, Medical / Medical Devices & Dental, Consumer Electronics, Automotive, toys, consumer goods, and footwear industries in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Japan.
Founded in 1998, Objet serves its growing worldwide customer base through offices in USA, Mexico, Europe, Japan, China and Hong Kong, and a global network of distribution partners. Objet owns more than 50 patents and patent pending inventions.
Visit Objet Geometries at http://www.objet.com
Follow Objet Geometries on Twitter: http://twitter.com/3d_printers.
My days that machine is awesome.
@Daveiops I can't tell you how much I want a 3D printer. All those objects that I could create. To summarize it in words would cause the bigger bang.
I also like the shiny glow part.
@Daveiops
But I want a cheeseburger that doesn't only look like one but tastes like one too. Maybe I get my replicator next year. :-(
@Daveiops none of what you just said makes any sense. can i have some weed?
@Daveiops
It costs around $30 per 100g of the material used to print in this printer
@harry20larry Which is very very cheap compared with a couple years ago where you were looking at a couple K per 100g.
@harry20larry
how much does the frickin printer cost?!
@benwb
$49.99..They get you on the consumables..
@Daveiops Video didn't say anything about wearing the print outs? Just that they make the concepts for approvals-unless I missed it.
The video doesn't show up. I've never seen a 3-d printer, so I'm clueless about how this works. What does it print on? Plastic? Poly-rubber?
Very curious.
@sirthought Try it again, updated the video (it appears that we overtaxed Objet's servers!)
@sirthought
There is a box filled with a liquid polymer. Then a laser(or UV light) hardens a layer of a specified shape on the surface. After that, the bottom of the box moves downwards,so that the printed layer is again covered with liquid polymer. Then another layer is printed on top of the previous one. So the objects are printed from bottom to the top.
@gambiting
Thats actually Stereo lithography. 3D printing uses an inkjet (like in a desktop printer) which lays down a layer of adhesive on the polymer material in the cross-sectional shape required.
@sirthought
do a search on youtube for 3D printers, some impressive stuff out there.
@Unfwithable
just go incognito or send your adblock into temporary hiatus
"there is nothing that a director wants to see less than a cranky Robert Downey, Jr. on their set."
Wouldn't a cranky Christian Bale be ten times worse ?
@Firesuite
Well...he will tear down your fucking lights.
@Firesuite
"Don't Trash My Scene!"
Yeah I think Bale needed this printer for the old Batsuit.
Finally a legitimate reason to pick up a MakerBot 3D Printer..
I believe this model 3D printer (the one mentioned in the video) does not do color. To get into color (not counting spot-color), it is in the much higher-end range of machines.
The color 3D printer that I own can be used for exactly the purpose that is shown in the video but without the need to paint the model after. It's all very interesting technology and it's only going to get more impressive as time goes on.
What do you put into it? It's obviously not paper...blocks of plastic?
@FlyersPh9
Legos
@vapore0n
Awesome answer.
These printers are quite cool. My brother works at a movie studio and he showed me how the printer could print out a working adjustable crescent wrench based on a CAD drawing of it.
Awesome - now I can take a picture of my penis and print out a paper 3-D dildo for my wife!
Didn't really see how they made this the actual costume... looks like a figurine printer.
@Chaos744
"Yea, thanks honey. But but could you by chance get a picture of your friend Tyrone's penis?"
@GeneralThade lolol...buuuuuuuuuuuurn :P
@Chaos744
OHH YOU JUST GOT OWNED
@Chaos744
Well your in luck the software will scale images up to make them more useful to the end user.
LucasArts should be using this to make custom Star Wars Armor for people... they would make millions.
Taste like' chicken...
Reminds me of the Human Tissue Printer from The Fifth Element!
@duneleader
The one in Face/Off is more closely related.
some time in the early future you will not even need to print it, you will just copy the character to the CAD (or select it from the library) and then you will simply wear anything on it and let it do anything you want just virtualy (or using any other character for generating all the movements, so you will not need to programme them).
But anyway 3D printers are excelent idea for prototyping anything. I just wonder if an how it will go into normal home/office live. I can imagine usage in home and office, but up to now the creation in 3D is something what only pros can do. But maybe if it will be simplified in the future, it will be something like replacement of lego for children. Today they are limited with available blocks, in future maybe just by their imagination
So are these durable enough to do small production? Or is it just really useful for prototypes?
We have one of these machines at work and it is amazing. We use it to make custom earpieces for headphones and hearing aids from casts (impressions) of your ears but we've used it for rapid prototyping before. There is a bit more info on how we use it if you are interested; http://www.minervalabs.co.uk/pages/3d-manufacturing-process.php
@sirthought the material we use is definitely really durable, people use our earpieces for years and we made an adjustable spanner in the machine (which worked right after printing)
@sirthought Depends on the durability/rigidity of the polymer used, the stresses the object will incur in actual use, etc. A lot of the DIY 3D printers can print their own parts to make a durable, working machine.
@Minerva Thanks for the response. What I was actually wondering is if the machine can handle regularly spitting things out for production or is it not really designed for that? Do the printers hold up well?
What a boring video. Didn't see it produce squat.
I'm sure it's awesomeness++ but a guy telling me it is, and me seeing it is are very different things.
@Golgo
That's because these models take many hours to produce (depending upon what size it is of course).
With mine, I just let it run at night.
@Golgo That must be the most annoying guy I have ever seen
Wait, is this post paid for by the company behind this machine?
That why it says PR in the corner?
@Golgo PR stands for Press Release, and similar to the video icon that accompanies it, indicates that there is a press release attached to this post.
crazy.. in 15-20 years we will have this "printers" that will print as ANYTHING (as we speak they are using similar technology to "print-out" real nerves.... imagine in 20 years!
I for one would have preferred some video of it making things to some guy talking about it. Some time-lapse of it actually building a suit of iron man armor, perhaps?
@Firesuite Wouldn't a cranky Klaus Kinski be 100 times worse? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75ADI9p2wHY (the director Werner Herzog says that he considered Kinski rather mild and calm in that scene, and thus didn't intervene).
yea you can get one that uses a4 paper, just need to buy the right machine :o)
http://www.mcortechnologies.com/
10 years from now we will be laughing at this video "within hours" because it will take seconds.
Is this any different than any 3D printer? I made a gun during an engineering class in high school that i got to print out :) So is this any different? SolidWorks is awesome if you learn how to use it :) They wouldn't let us print much though because it was "expensive" :|
Anyone interested in affordable options for consumers should check out http://www.shapeways.com where you can upload your own designs to be produced. Oh, and they're printing with metal now too as crazy as that sounds.