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Scientists To Print Robotic Dinos From Bone Scans

February 24, 2012 / 3-d printing, bones, dinos, dinosaurs, fossils, now transform and roll out of bed and cook me some eggs and toast, paleontology, printing, rawr!, robotic dinosaurs, science, sexy time, the knee bone's connect to the -- what is the knee bone connected to?, what does dr. grant think about all this?

printing-robot-dinos.jpg

Paleontologists at Drexel University have developed a means of scanning fossilized dinos, then printing accurate reproductions of their bones to assemble into accurately-moving robotic dinosaurs. No word if they plan on adding skin to them, but I'm not into the bony look. Am I, T-Rex? I SAID FINISH THAT STEGOSAURUS CARCASS.

The researchers, from Philadelphia's Drexel University, are using 3D printing to create dino-bones and then attaching artificial muscles and tendons to create dinosaur robots.


"Technology in paleontology hasn't changed in about 150 years," paleontologist Kenneth Lacovara said. "We use shovels and pickaxes and burlap and plaster. It hasn't changed - until right now."

Because universities and museums generally frown on folks who want to experiment on actual fossilised bones, Lacovara used the printed bones to test out theories of how dinosaurs moved and stood and did the wild thing and other things boffins like to know.

Oh I want to test out some theories on how they moved alright -- in the sack. "Dinosaurs don't sleep in beds." Well they do in mine! Plus sometimes get up in the middle of the night to use my bathroom. "Jesus -- there's piss everywhere!" T-rexes, bro -- can't reach their peenors.

Xeroxiraptor: Boffins to print 3D robot dinosaur [theregister]

Thanks to Victor, Jonathan, cents, Lex, Ryoma, and Ad & Nav, most of which asked how I feel about robotic dinosaurs. Hey -- beggars can't be choosers. Spare some change?

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There are Comments

  • The development of printing was preceded by the use of cylinder seals in Mesopotamia developed in 3500 B.C., and other related stamp seals. The earliest form of printing was woodblock printing, with existing examples from China dating to before 220 A.D.

  • If I rememebr correctly they had this technology in Jurrasic park...... REPOST!!!! D:<

  • captaindash

    My secrete crush on you, GW, is waning.  You are a fraud.  You always claim to love dinosaurs, but I know for a fact you don't have a T-Rex that couldn've eaten a Stegosaur carcass.  Your Stego corpse would've been from the Jurassic period, while T-Rexy is from the Cretaceous period.  Only 80-odd million years separated them, dumbass.  

    Phoney!!! You're a phoney!

  • supper cool. We can potentially learn more about they way they moved, how fast they could go ect. This is awesome. 

  • So when the robot apocalypse comes we'll all be eaten by robo-dinos. Great!

  •  Life found a way...

    And, yeah, if it weren't for 'Goldfinger' we probably wouldn't have in-dash GPS systems!

  • @facebook-100002538248282:disqus
    , hmm didn't know scientists  take advice from fictional films :p

    3D printers have been around for years. And the powder they use to create these model is not strong enough to even support itself at times, let alone a dinosaur skeleton replica...

  • TheOtherJK

     There are 3D printers, and there are 3D printers. Some printers can produce steel parts.   Or maybe they just use the 3D printed bone for a model in a casting process for a stronger material, like epoxy.

  • Wasn't this already done in Jurassic Park 3?

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