Deadline for pledging: September 27, 2013
One of the founders of Somerville, MA-basedMebotics had a problem. He wanted to work late into the night on his own woodworking and tech projects, but he lived in a small apartment and his work made too much noise for his neighbors and girlfriend to tolerate. So he teamed up with friends from the Artisan’s Asylum maker space. Over the course of a year they have managed to create a tech-driven prototyping and machining tool safe enough (and quiet enough) to run on a kitchen table.
At first glance the Microfactory looks like an oversized 3D printer—and it is. In fact, it can 3D print with two different kinds of materials simultaneously and has a rack to hold four spindles full of extrusion materials. It’s also capable of milling and etching, specifically on wood, plastic, and mill-capable aluminum. The 3D printer builds up what you want, the miller aspect whittles away what you don’t want.
The Microfactory has an entire networkable computer on board, which runs Linux-based open-source software. It’s portable so as long as you have a generator to run it, you can take Microfactory out on the road. Hook up a shop-vacuum to the port and it’ll keep the inside clean from dust and shavings. The entire chassis is built for strength, minimal noise, and safety—open the door and it shuts down.
Mebotics has big plans, and has accordingly set an ambitious goal of fundraising $1 million from Kickstarter in order to make the devices for backers, and add capabilities like steel milling and wireless networking. Microfactory 1.0 production won’t start until the summer of 2014. The team will take a pledge of any size, but to get a mill-only Microfactory machine (no 3D printing), you’ll need to drop $3,995. For the whole megillah, pledge $4,495.