ROANOKE—There is an empty box sitting on a table in the Roanoke-Benson High School Library awaiting someone to find a use for it. However, this is no ordinary box—it is a 3D printer. And, librarian Charles Atteberry is already finding ways for students to use it.
For much of the older generation, the idea that a computer can actually "print" or create a three-dimensional object out of plastic or other materials is nearly as strange as the many gadgets used in the futuristic utopia of George Jetson and his family. What was once seen as science fantasy in the 1960s cartoon series is becoming reality.
The 3D printer is part of a Maker Space in the RBHS Media Center, facilitated by Atteberry.
"I wanted the students to be able to experiment and be creative without the worry of failure and to explore things in a pressure-free environment," Atteberry said.
Atteberry got the idea when he and his wife visited a library in Ohio. In was a spontaneous decision the couple made when an outdoor concert they had planned to attend was rained out. At the huge city library, Atteberry saw a Maker Space and thought it was a good idea for any library.
"It gave me the inspiration to pursue it," Atteberry said.
Creating a Maker Space also offered an opportunity to get more students into the library, a place they often dread to go when research assignments are on their agendas.
"Reading for fun and research is one thing," Atteberry said, "but I wanted to emphasize more applications of what can be learned from school libraries."
Atteberry successfully applied for a grant from Wal-Mart to get enough money to purchase a 3-D printer and some supplies, but he didn't stop there. On another table, students can work with a 3-D pen, where the "ink" is a filament material that hardens as students "draw" a 3-dimensional object. And for students who like to work with their hands, Atteberry has provided rolls of duct tape and LEGOS to create just about anything from their own imaginations. Books and computer videos that can be accessed from the library lead students to make just about anything from dresses out of duct tape to elaborate machines and buildings from LEGOS.
All the objects in the Maker Space offer students a small artistic environment in a school setting where there are no high school art classes taught.
"Since we have no art classes, this offers students a chance to use their artistic skills and explore those kinds of talents," Atteberry said.
And, for students who want to get into technical creativity, Atteberry has provided used computers so students can tinker with the "guts" of a computer.
"I asked for donations of old computers," Atteberry said. "It did not cost anything to put them there. It gives students an opportunity to take something apart that is not working and try to get it working again."
But the 3-D printer is probably the star of the Maker Space. It works off of software that is programmed to make a certain object. A computer gives the printer commands on how to print an object. Atteberry said it takes some skill to program the computer to make an object, but noted, "you can make some pretty intricate things."
Together, he has worked to make objects like a cell phone case just to see how it works. The printer can use different kinds of material as well, like plastic and nylon.
With the help of websites like students can learn to make many different things, including their own 3-D printers.
And, of course, 3-D printers are not being manufactured just for use in libraries by students—they also have some very practical uses.
"They are changing the way manufacturing is being done," Atteberry said. "They are being used in industry to add to the fabrication element."
That was not a fact that was lost to RBHS Industrial Technology teacher Jason Hemp. The 3-D printer is useful in working with computer numerical control (CNC) machines, and engineering processes such as computer aided design (CAD) in real world applications.
Hemp gave his students the scenario of creating a machine part through reverse engineering. He told them the process can be used to fabricate a part from a design to see if it will work in a certain application. Prototypes of parts can be made to see if they are effective before spending a lot more time and money to manufacture a part only to find out the part has to be re-engineered.
"It is something new and interesting and can be used for rapid prototyping," Hemp said. "There is an artistic aspect for engineering designs. I am encouraging the kids to try it out and see if they want to pursue it."
Hemp said he hopes to include the use of the printer more in his curriculum in the future.
"It is complex, and there's definitely a learning curve," Hemp said. "But we're growing and we're learning."
Atteberry said 3-D printers are being used in all realms of science, from food, to biology, to industry, to making prosthetic devices. And, as the printers are refined and get cheaper, they will likely have a lot more uses, changing the way things are done.
"It's almost endless what can be done with them," Atteberry said.
