Unique Products: Empowering Kids to Make Their Own 3D Printers with the MagiTools Kit

April 15, 2016 by Bridget O'Neal 3D Printers 3D Printing

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Once you’ve journeyed into the realm of digital design and 3D printing, there’s just no going back. Artists, designers, and engineers enter a new dimension of creativity which indeed does seem to have an element of magic about it—not to mention offering an incredible sense of independence and freedom. It’s a paradise for the DIY crowd of today, no matter the age. And while designing and innovating are an incredibly fulfilling process, many makers prefer to start out by creating their own tools too. It’s one thing to churn out a cool model—but can you say you made the 3D printer too? Indeed, some—like those employing the new MagiTools kit—can say they did.

Certainly, many of those who are mechanically inclined and have an assortment of preferences do dream of making their own 3D printers, and sometimes fulfill that goal with great success, from scratch. But what an incredible sense of accomplishment that would offer for younger students too, just embarking in their journeys as makers and designers. This was the end goal for Qingdao Unique Products, one of the leading 3D printing companies headquartered in China, in the city of Shandong. They created the MagiTools 3D printer kits just to empower the younger generations, and to allow them to focus on moving forward with an even more expansive skill set—not to mention participation in a project literally from beginning to end.

We’ve followed this company previously as they released the MagiCube 3D printer—which offers an incredibly fun design and list of features for the younger crowd as well. It’s not surprising to see that the same company would come out with something even more inspiring for kids after taking a look at the MagiCube, meant to allow each child ‘to own a magic world himself.’ The MagiTools kit is meant to share a similar but even more expansive purpose, challenging and cultivating their sense of innovation further.

It’s all about motivation and unlocking the potential creativity in each child, according to the Unique Products team. The structure which results from building the kit is promised to be strong and reliable when it comes to 3D printing. Students will be making a machine featuring a print volume of 100 x 100 x 100 mm with an aluminum frame and a delta-style structure meant to improve speed as well as precision. It would seem that nothing is sacrificed, with an auto-leveling system for a print bed with little or no adhesion issues—and great print success.

“The key point lies in combining hardware with software,” states the Unique Products (Uni) team in their recent press release.

With the creation of ‘Happy Uni’ modeling software, students are able to design exactly what they want in terms of 3D models. The software is simple, and gives them a good foundation in learning before they go on to graduate one day into working with more complicated CAD tools.

“With Happy Uni, it won’t be [a] difficult task for kids to build 3D models any more,” states the Unique Products team.

Considerations regarding the environment and safety are also major concerns at Unique Products. They realize health is of course a concern when it comes to using technology and new materials and due to that they have created an 80℃ environmentally-friendly filament, which is actually made of food-grade wax. It is non-toxic, kids have no chance of being burned, and children’s safety is handled all-around. Parents don’t have to worry, and can focus instead on the fact that their children are able to build a 3D printer and make amazing creations.

“We believe there are a lot of students around the world [who would] like to make their own 3D printer and exert their potential through 3D printing technology,” states Uni.

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