Are you preparing for a job interview? If so, make sure that you are well-versed in the skills that employers are looking for! These skills are essential to have if you want to land your dream job whether you want to run for office in the future or play at Bizzo Casino. In order to help…
In this interview, we chatted with one of the leading LED illumination experts in the world, Julius Muschaweck. If you want to know how to super-precisely measure and model LEDs for illumination, this is the guy to talk to. The former “Osram grandpa” worked as a go-to LED expert within Osram and now works as…
In this interview with Dr. Logan Rodriguez Graves, we learn about how gigundous, expensive mirrors in observatory telescopes are made, medical imaging, and other things you can do with a degree in optical science. https://youtu.be/MT0BLowdjlw Medical Imaging for Diagnosing Colon Cancer As an undergrad, Graves worked in a University of Arizona group that researched new…
Do you ever wonder how class-A surface modelers get their jobs putting the polish on race car CAD? We interviewed Adam Kenney, a pro, class-A surface modeler who’s worked on projects for Lotus and McLaren to find out! https://youtu.be/0G0esw_dXe8 What Exactly IS Class-A Surfacing? Adam tells us he is often mistaken for the industrial designer…
https://youtu.be/cqsaltZ_I4o It can be inspiring to listen to smart people talk about what motivates them and learn what habits have enabled their success. I co-host “Being an Engineer,” a podcast centered around engineers and what makes them tick. As my co-host Aaron Moncur and I have shared the privilege of interviewing over 50 engineers and…
Pablo Sobron, PhD gave us a tour of the R&D company, Impossible Sensing, which he founded in St. Louis, Missouri. See the video below for a look inside their lab: https://youtu.be/okNBlVQI1XY Most of the systems Impossible Sensing builds are to be used in aerospace by NASA. Others are for deep ocean and oil & gas…
Two years ago, we interviewed Anthony Mattana, founder of Hooke Audio, about his comically arduous hardware startup story. And today, he’s back. His first product, the Hooke Verse, are wireless headphones that record in binaural 3d audio. More than just stereo sound, this tech gives listeners a literally jaw-dropping feeling of physically being where sounds…
I sat down with Derek Roberts, the man behind the MillRight CNC company. Derek is an entrepreneur, tinkerer, designer, visionary and guy with a cool southern accent. He goes over everything, from how he got started, to MillRight’s first product, starting a business, running a business, manufacturing challenges and, oh yes, their new desktop CNC product,…
We head to Berlin, Germany in the 2nd installment of my Euro tour learning about HW tech development across the pond. Here, I interview the CTO of Next Big Thing, Jasmin Skenderi. There’s also a video of their facilities at Factory Berlin, and an interview with a portfolio company, Sensry. Some Thank-Yous As with the…
On January 30th, 2019, an impressive concentration of hardware pros could be found at Synapse Product Development’s downtown Seattle office. Usually, HW people are in the minority at tech events, but not this time. What was the buzz about? Dragon Innovation was there to sponsor a HW startup panel which also included representation from Hackster,…
What happens when a business leader with the core of a true maker and engineer gets his hands on the resources to build whatever he wants? No, I’m not talking about Elon — I said, “true maker and engineer”. We’re talking about Carl Bass and his wood and metal shops. They’re stocked for projects requiring…
We talked with the founder of Hooke Audio, Anthony Mattana, in a crazily candid interview on July 27, 2018. His invention, the Hooke Verse, brings binaural 3D audio recording capability to all of us consumers. Read on to learn more about 3D audio tech and hear how Anthony bootstrapped the %*&# out of his HW…
The 4th Dimension is a new series where we go behind the scenes with leaders in 3D printing to add a new dimension. Our Dan Slaski interviews Ryan Turk, Business Development Lead at Formlabs, and nerds-out on 3D printing. And nerd-out they did. Dan Slaski: Can you provide a brief intro to Formlabs and your…
We are just now entering summer, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s too early to start thinking about getting outfitted with winter gear—especially if it means getting in early on a Kickstarter product. Developed by Ireland-based Rotation Design across two winters and tested in the harsh weather conditions in Iceland, the TUSK multi-functional snow shovel…
Introducing the newest Hollywood star about to shock audiences everywhere: The DJI Zenmuse X5S camera aboard the Inspire 2 drone in a film called The Ascension of Ava Delaine. Oh, and also the lead actress, director, and producer of this single-take, all mobile device-shot film, complete with multiple wardrobe changes: Tonya Kay. I had the…
After becoming increasingly concerned by the state of design around him in the early 1980s – or what he called “an impenetrable confusion of forms, colors and noises” – industrial designer Dieter Rams established for himself what is now known as the Ten Principles of Good Design. To date, these principles have provided the foundation…
When I first saw the Shapr3D app, I was pretty impressed, as were some of you, but it left some lingering questions. A 3D modeling app on the iPad Pro that looks well thought-out, but why an iOS CAD app? So we gathered the questions and ask the founder and developer, István Csanády, more about…
Back in 2014, Great Britain’s premier postal service, The Royal Mail, tied up with 3D printing company iMAKR, to offer their customers a 3D printing option on objects ranging from key chains to mini postboxes in the latest bid to retool the company for the 21st century. Similarly, La Poste Group, France’s national postal service…
The Glowforge laser cutter is the biggest crowdfunded 30-day campaign in history. $27.9M in 30 days. It didn’t launch on Kickstarter. It didn’t re-launch on Indiegogo. It launched on their own website, bringing in $27.9M in pre-orders alone. But even four months before the crowdfunding campaign, Glowforge had already secured $9M in Series A funding.
Ever since he exploded onto the additive manufacturing scene in October of 2011 – thanks in no small part to the success of his Crania Anatomica Filigre Kickstarter campaign – 3D designer Joshua Harker has been keeping himself busy with projects that explore the outer limits of 3D modeling and additive manufacturing. As a young…
Times have certainly changed in the “art nouveau” world which was synonymous with harmonizing the various elements of nature with design. Say a warm hello to Canada’s craftsman de extraordinaire Daniel Szohatzky of GLARECUT. Daniel’s take on Tiffany Lamp shades includes staying as far away as possible from the mass produced tradition and adopt a…
Dave Petrillo and Dave Jackson made waves with the Coffee Joulies; and now their new sensation – Booze Joulies – keeps alcohol cold without watering it down is creating quite a literal stir. According to the team, a few Booze Joulies in a glass of room temperature scotch gives “medium chill without the flavors becoming…
If there’s one thing that the world seemingly doesn’t need any more of, it’s another reusable water bottle design. Between the combination of modular concepts that unscrew for easier cleaning to those that include an embedded lemon juicer, the human race has never had as many options for getting water into a mouth as they…
Basic Conception (AKA BiCi) is a smart bicycle with tech that will make you drool all over the handlebars of your Huffy. Among other features, the goodies include built-in sensors that track your cycling stats to keep your ‘quantified self’ busy during the duration of your route to grandma’s house. Built by AOAO Studio, the…
We all have lived through those excruciatingly painful moments when a knob of cold, hard butter refused to spread easily on a slice of bread. Whose fault is it – the cold butter, the clumsy knife, the bread or your will to have a buttered slice? To satisfy such whimsical cravings and more, DM Initiatives…
Modern bicycle cranks have a hollow space the perfect shape and size for a CO2 canister. To use it, all you need is a CO2 pump made the right shape. That’s what CrankPump is: a CO2 pump shaped to hold a CO2 canister securely in an axle. So very clever and inventive; the idea got…
Since launching the Glass Explorer program in April of 2013, Google has seen both an onslaught of support for the technology as well as an intense backlash from establishments ranging from restaurants and bars to cinemas and even public spaces that have ‘No Google Glass’ signs displayed prominently. In an effort to remove the stigma…
There is a big booty attached to the Crisp Brake MTB – a hundred thousand dollars to be precise – and the goal sounds a bit too stretched. However, a quick chat with the man behind it all, Allan Song Crisp, gives you an idea and a good look behind why the cycling, motorcycling and…
We’re living in a world of daily product launches. If you’re reading this, you’re likely considering your own or, at the very least, dream of making riches by bringing the ultimate, life-altering product to market. Whether that is done through crowd sourcing, investor sourcing or mother-in-law sourcing, there will always be a point when that…
If you’re ok with dropping the “cool factor” that goes along with smoke rising from around your face, sounding like a 200 year old truck-driver on a respirator and smelling of burnt carcinogens, then the Ploom modelTwo may be just the right nicotine absorption alternative for you. Ploom recently won the coveted Red Dot Design…
Well folks, if nothing stirs your curry more than some exciting CAM news, then this year’s Autodesk University in Las Vegas was for you! In case you missed the announcement from SolidSmack last week, Autodesk is moving forward with their Autodesk 360 collaborative cloud experience with the addition of CAM 360. We had a chance…
With 70% more customer presentations than the previous year, you would be hard-pressed to not find something interesting at Dassault Systèmes’ 2013 North America Customer Forum—a sort of showcase of how users and companies are using Dassault Systèmes’ software for various applications. From the impressive keynote speakers who dove into the future of STEM education…
This week EngineerVsDesigner sat down with one of the co-founders of the KICK-BUTT Kickstarter project that aims to bring self-sufficient farming into your living room, Mr. Josh Rittenberg of Aqualibrium. We’ll talk with Josh about everything from “What’s the difference between hydroponics and aquaponics?” to how he and his team came up with the idea…
This week EngineerVsDesigner sat down with the young and talented founder of one of our favorite product design sites, Mr. Jude Pullen! We’ll talk to Jude about working with your hands in a digital prototyping age, how the idea for his site Design Modelling came about, and why he believes that working with your hands…
This week EngineerVsDesigner sat down with the young founder of a new tool company that has redesigned the traditional shovel as we know it, Mr. Stephen Walden! We’ll talk to Stephen about how he got the idea for his product, how he developed it as a non-designer/engineer, and how he is going about leading his…
This week EngineerVsDesigner sat down with one of the design engineers behind the all-in-one ‘Machine in a Box’ Microfactory, Mr. Jeremy Fryer-Biggs of Mebotics. The Microfactory is a combination 3D printer, mill, and laser etcher. We’ll talk with Jeremy about everything from how the individual components on the machine compare to other systems on the…
This week we stopped by the Dassault Systèmes headquarters outside of Boston, MA to talk with SolidWorks CEO Bertrand Sicot about what we can expect from SolidWorks 2014 and other SolidWorks products as we approach the new year. We’ll talk with Bertrand about everything from what’s new in SolidWorks 2014 to what we can expect…
This week our very special guest is a guy with his own woodworking YouTube channel by the name of Frank Makes, Mr. Frank Howarth! Frank’s background in architecture helped him design and build a super kick-butt woodshop that he uses to create stop-motion films of the development process of various woodworking projects. We’ll talk with…
After School Smack is a new feature here on SolidSmack where we talk with current design students about the current happenings of their budding design careers. We’ll discuss everything from how they’re approaching the wide-open field of industrial design to how they’re keeping their portfolios fresh and their mind in the game. To kick us…
This week we’re talking shop with Jon Troutman and James Krause–AKA the guys behind the design of the Indiegogo sensation, Canary! The Canary is a multi-sensored home monitoring device that aims to replace existing home security systems. We’ll talk to Jon and James about the ins and outs of developing a smart home product, why…
This week EngineerVsDesigner sat down with one of the guys who is ridding the world of peanut butter knuckles one screw thread at a time…Mr. Spencer Vaughn! Spencer is one of the engineers behind the viral hit ‘Jar with a Twist’—a new take on packaging design that gives the user a constant ‘full jar effect’.…
This week EngineerVsDesigner sat down with two guys who are connecting Makers to the People…Mr. Mike Salguero and Jim Haughwout of CustomMade.com! Believe it or not, CustomMade is one of the earliest E-Commerce sites and has been around since 1996. Recently, Mike and Jim have been putting CustomMade into sixth gear to connect even more…
This week EngineerVsDesigner sat down with the ONE guy you want to have with you during the zombie apocalypse: Joerg Sprave of the popular YouTube Slingshot Channel. With over 250,000 YouTube subscribers, millions of views, and dozens of feature stories on prominent blogs, Joerg is the definition of an internet celebrity. We had the chance…
Those who use a 3D mouse swear that once you use one, there’s no going back to using CAD without one. It’s hard to argue that it can dramatically change your entire modeling experience and speed up your process tenfold when used effectively. 3D mouse maker 3D Connexion offers an entry-level 3D mouse for $99,…
Both Autodesk and GrabCAD have made some exciting announcements this week with Autodesk’s Fusion 360 launch on Tuesday and GrabCAD’s new Workbench which will allow even more powerful sharing features the CAD community. We had a chance to sit down with GrabCAD CEO Hardi Maybaum and Autodesk’s Director of Mechanical Design Products Prabakar Murugappan. So…
What does it take to design and build giant robots that fight each other to total destruction in four months? This week we had the chance to sit down and talk with robot designer Mark Setrakian about designing robots for the new SyFy tv show Robot Combat League. We’ll hear about what software he uses,…
Well folks, this week we’ve been in Anaheim, California for this year’s 2013 PTC Live Global event. We had a chance to sit down with Brian Thompson, VP Product Management, CAD Segment and talked with him about the Creo roadmap, 3.0 features, and why apps are getting into the 3D printing scene.
How do you 3D print a house? This week’s guest is robotics expert and CEO and Founder of the D-Shape large-scale printer, Mr. Enrico Dini! Enrico was recently featured in the documentary The Man Who Prints Houses, which centers around the development of his large-scale 3D printer and his vision for a future of 3D…
Back in early 2012, Nike introduced FuelBand to rave reviews and a wide spectrum of users…those who actually use it and those who consider it a fashion accessory. Around that same time, Google had announced the Glass Project — which resulted in what we are seeing today with the Google Glass…effectively creating the Wearable Technology…