Maker Faire San Mateo Calif

[chiloquinruss]

This weekend is the Maker Faire at the San Mateo Fairgrounds. Come and join in the fun and see what's new in the world of 'gadgets'! ShopBot and Vectric will be there. Meet and greet the crews of both these great teams. I'm really looking forward to seeing the gang again. Russ

[chiloquinruss]

The booth is setup and ready to go. A couple of Desktops, a Buddy, a ton of Handibots and some really cool surprises! The Vectric team has a cool new piece of code that will certainly wow the folks at Maker Faire and the ShopBot gang has a 5 axis Handibot and another Handibot with an indexer just amazing. Should be fun for the next two days! Russ

[garyr6]

Pictures, Pictures, we want pictures!!!!!

[chiloquinruss]

Today, today I promise, we were all a little busy yesterday! The Buddy didn't even get to the booth until after 4! Should be fun today. Russ

[chiloquinruss]

So imagine a user interface where the interface is a piece of paper and the input device is a pen! While you are drawing on the paper the computer in the background is creating both a toolpath for your HandiBot and a VCarve data file. Very, very cool! Also imagine a totally portable FIVE AXXIS CNC machine! Take 4th and 5th axis set of components, put them in a very nice compact package and then set a HandiBot of top of the new box, and there you have it a portable 5 axis machine also very cool. I will have more pix tomorrow, but here is the ShopBot booth. Today's attendance I would guess at 60k plus. Russ

What you see as soon as you enter the Main Gate.







The Vectric crew showing their great software:

[scottp55]

Thanks Russ. "Please Sir, May I have some more?"

[waterwheelman]

Nice post Russ. I think there is going to be a mini Maker Faire in Portland, OR this September. I may have to make time for it since I couldn't go to California right now. Have fun.

[andracke]

I looked through some of the pictures - It looks like a really neat thing to attend. Too long of a drive from Illinois.

Here is a picture of the chair my students built that was on display.

[chiloquinruss]

OK, made it back to Oregon (7 hour drive, yeeck). Took a little time to rest up and then as promised here a few more pix. But first let's get you all up to speed.

Maker Faire is the brainchild of Make Magazine. The semi monthly bible for maker geeks (myself included). If it is a hobby, craft, robot, glow in the dark, or goes boom, it probably has a geek clan some where and they all come to this show to display their hobby, craft, robot, make it glow in the dark, or blow it up! Absolutely a kick in the pants show to attend, and even more fun to be one of the Makers!

Make Magazine
Maker Faire San Mateo 2014

So this year Shopbot added some mini booths to their regular ShopBot booth to display some wares from some of us that have these machines. This year in addition to the regulars from Vectric they added HomeBuilt, AtFab, and Timbrr as additional displays. So how were these received by the 108,000 makers in attendance, I'd say they made out OK. Both HomeBuilt and AtFab got an Editors Choice award from the editors of Make Magazine, the events host publication! Pretty neat.

the-timbrr-stylus-story

The HomeBuilt story

The Atfab story

So the skunk works software from the guys at Vectrics, that can't be talked about (that's what they said, but I saw it at a public event, right?). So as I was saying the software I can't talk about was really cool. Its the one where the screen is a piece of paper and the 'tool' is a pen! You draw on the screen and AS YOU ARE DRAWING, it creates the toolpath. Finish drawing and click print, and the CNC machine starts carving. No sensation of a computer, or dialogs, etc,. The best design was from a young girl that with NO instruction recreated the Maker Faire logo and then signed it. She was about 11 years old. The youngest CNC MACHINE operator was 5!

Anyhow the pix are posted on my ShopBot album. Enjoy. Russ

Maker Faire photo album

[scottp55]

Thanks Russ!