Come on, Michael! If you define "automatic" so that it includes human labor,
the word just loses all meaning.
However, I agree with your first point, that none of the machines is yet
fully automatic. It does require some discretion to decide where to draw the
line between what is manual and what is automatic. I'm willing to call an
SLA and an LOM automatic even though they require a good deal of manual
post-processing. That is partly a function of our primitive state of
technology; ten years from now, an SLA and LOM will not be considered
automatic, but dismally laborious. However, even today, I do NOT consider
pottery or manual stacking of digitally cut patterns (including the JP5,
with apologies to my friend Charles Thomas, who knows my views on this) to
be automatic.
Best regards,
Marshall Burns
Marshall@Ennex.com
Ennex Corporation, Los Angeles, USA, (310) 824-8700
www.Ennex.com
-----Original Message-----
From: Michael Rees <rees@michaelrees.com>
To: Marshall Burns <Marshall@ennex.com>
Cc: rp-ml@bart.lpt.fi <rp-ml@bart.lpt.fi>
Date: Sunday, September 05, 1999 08:13
Subject: Re: The History of RP!
>Marshall Burns wrote:
>>
>> >I'm trying to find information on the history/development of RP prior
>> >to the patent being issued for the stereolithography machine in March
>> >1986, and the formation of 3D systems.
>>
>> I've found the postings on this subject in the last few days very
>> interesting, including comments taking us all the way back to the
Egyptians.
>> In my book, I define a fabricator as a device that can make a 3-D shape
>> automatically, without human effort after creation of the design. The
making
>> by skilled craftspeople of coiled pottery and laminated topographic maps
are
>> examples of MANUAL fabrication, from which the developers of automated
>> fabricators have learned and modeled their technologies.
>
>Dear Marshall,
>
>Interesting point marshall, but if we study "automatic" I think you'll
>agree that in different contexts, the word has different meanings. For
>example, none of these machines are truly automatic. They must be
>adjusted and set up by hand, man, computer. Also, to set a man cutting
>shapes and assembling them by hand is automatic for the designer or head
>of an enterprise. You order it and come back the following day and its
>done. (Automatic in the sense that the enterprise is the "auto") Indeed,
>a man (9axis device) manually stacking sections is perhaps more
>automatic than a machine, if that man is sufficiently disciplined and
>motivated.
>
>Its not a pretty picture to consider workers machines, but its not an
>unusual point of view.
>
>
>--
>michael rees effective immediately
>suite Number 301 www.michaelrees.com
>1015 Washington Ave 314 494 7393
>St. Louis Mo 63101 msr@michaelrees.com
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